MacRumors

Gazelle, a company that buys old iPhones, iPads, and Macs, has reinstated its device trade-in program after initially ending it in February.

Back in December, Gazelle announced plans to end its trade-in program in 2021, and said that it would shut down trade-in options on February 1, 2021. Gazelle stopped taking trade-ins at that time, but has since reversed course on the decision.

As of April 5, Gazelle is once again accepting online trade-ins for smartphones and tablets. In an email to customers that was also shared with The Verge, Gazelle said that trade-ins were reinstated after feedback from consumers.

Earlier this year, we announced that we will no longer be offering our trade-in option on Gazelle. After careful consideration, including feedback from customers like you, we have decided to keep Gazelle Trade-In going. Today, we are happy to say, 'We're back, baby!' Gazelle Trade-In is a pioneer of the electronics trade-in space and we are happy to continue building on our legacy by offering a simple process and immediate payouts for those unwanted devices.

When initially announcing that its online trade-in program was ending, Gazelle said that it would instead focus on its in-store ecoATM kiosks, which are designed to offer instant cash for devices.

Gazelle operates more than 4,000 ecoATM units across the United States and has collected more than 25 million devices.

Popular Twitter client Tweetbot 6 was today updated to version 6.1, introducing a redesigned video player, new custom icons, and more.

The app features a redesigned video player that includes Picture in Picture support, so videos playing in the app can be watched even if you swipe out of the app.

A video that's playing in Tweetbot can be shifted into Picture in Picture mode by tapping on the Picture in Picture icon in the top left. Once in Picture in Picture mode, the video will continue playing if you exit the Tweetbot app and open another app.

According to the Tweetbot 6 release notes, today's update also includes new custom icons, a new high contrast light theme, and a number of bug fixes.

Tweetbot can be downloaded from the App Store for free, and all features can be unlocked for $0.99 per month or $5.99 per year. [Direct Link]

Apple yesterday updated its Apple Music for Artists app with some minor bug fixes and improvements, but also one other notable change -- a new icon.

The Apple Music for Artists app now features a simpler, streamlined icon with a pinkish red music logo rather than the multicolored logo that was used before. The icon also has an embossed look that makes it stand out from other Apple icons.

‌Apple Music‌ for Artists is an app that lets artists know how their music is performing across ‌Apple Music‌, iTunes, and Shazam, so it's an app with a limited audience and the new icon may seem inconsequential, but it is similar to another app icon change that Apple introduced last year.

App Store Connect in October was updated with a refreshed icon that's similar to the ‌Apple Music‌ for Artists icon, which means Apple has now updated two app icons with this new design.

Over on Reddit, users are speculating that the icon changes could perhaps be indicative of more sweeping design changes set to be introduced in iOS 15.

Apple in macOS Big Sur refreshed many of its icons and streamlined their design, so there is a chance that something similar could happen in iOS 15. That said, these could just be one-off updates for Apple's behind the scenes apps for developers and musicians, and not a sign of something to come.

We don't know much at all about iOS 15 at this point, but we could perhaps see some details leaking out as the software's launch date approaches. Apple is expected to debut iOS 15, iPadOS 15, watchOS 8, tvOS 15, and macOS 12 at its keynote event that will be held on June 7.

Apple is getting closer to launching the third-party program that will allow item trackers and other Bluetooth devices to be tracked using the Find My app, based on the launch of a new app.

As noted by TechCrunch, Apple Sunday introduced the Find My Certification Asst. app, which was created exclusively for Made for iPhone (MFi) licensees who need to test their accessories with the ‌Find My‌ network. From the App Store description:

For use by MFi Licensees only. Use the Find My Certification Assistant to test discovery, connection, and other key requirements for accessories you develop that incorporate Find My network technology.

Based on screenshots of the app, product developers are able to test connectivity, sound power, NFC capabilities, firmware, Bluetooth connectivity, and more.

Apple's Find My Network Accessory Program was first introduced alongside iOS and iPadOS 14. It lets third-party products integrate with the ‌Find My‌ app, allowing them to be tracked right alongside Apple devices.

iOS 14.5 added a new "Items" tab to the ‌Find My‌ app, which is where any ‌Find My‌ integrated device will be able to be tracked. This is also presumably where Apple's own AirTags will be able to be located when those launch, but for now, it may be aimed at third-party accessories.

So far, there are few accessory makers that have released a product that works with ‌Find My‌ integration. Belkin in January announced the Soundform Freedom True Wireless Earbuds, which have ‌Find My‌ integration and will be able to be tracked in the ‌Find My‌ app.

‌Find My‌ is able to work with any device that has Bluetooth and integrates Apple's code through the ‌Find My Network Accessory Program‌, so it is not limited to item trackers and can be built into any Bluetooth product. Tile has been offering a similar program that allows accessories to integrate with the Tile ecosystem to be located through the Tile app.

Four months after Apple first began requiring apps to add App Privacy labels to their App Store listings, Google has finally updated all of its most popular apps with the information, letting people know exactly what data Google is collecting.

Google began adding App Privacy labels to its apps in February after months of delaying. Gmail, for example, got App Privacy labels on February 22, and other apps have been slowly updated over time.

Google Maps was quietly updated with privacy information last week, and as noted by The 8-Bit, Google today updated its last main app with App Privacy details, adding the information to Google Photos.

As a consequence of taking so long to add App Privacy labels, many of Google's apps went months without an update. Apple began enforcing App Privacy labels on December 8, and any new app or app update submitted after that time had to include the information.

Back in February, it had been two months since Gmail was updated, and the app started giving users a warning that it was out of date and should be updated, but there was, of course, no update available. Gmail was finally updated on March 1.

Though Google ‌Photos‌ and Google Maps now have App Privacy labels, the apps still have yet to be updated. It's been four months since Google Maps and Google ‌Photos‌ got bug fixes or new features, which is highly unusual as Google typically pushes regular updates.

It's not clear why Google delayed adding App Privacy labels to its apps for so long as it isn't exactly a surprise that the company is collecting quite a bit of data from users. Google Maps, for example, uses coarse location, search history, browsing history, identifiers, and usage data for third-party advertising purposes, with Google Search using much of the same information.

All of the data that Google is collecting is now listed in the ‌App Store‌ for each individual app for those who are interested.

Longtime Apple supplier TSMC is set to begin mass shipments of Apple's upcoming A15 chip for the iPhone 13 ahead of schedule at the end of May, according to a snippet of a full report set to be published tomorrow by DigiTimes.

The new chip will be based on an enhanced version of the 5nm process, which first debuted in the A14 Bionic with the 2020 iPad Air and ‌iPhone‌ 12 lineup. While the full report will likely offer more details as to the specifics of the new chip that will power the next-generation iPhones, it can be reasonably assumed that it will improve on performance and power efficiency.

Due to impacts to suppliers as a result of the global health crisis, Apple launched the ‌iPhone‌ 12 series in October, out of the normal September timeframe. With impacts to supply chains now easing, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes that Apple is on track to release the iPhone 13 in September. With TSMC now believed to be starting mass shipments of the new chip ahead of schedule, that certainly does seem to be the case.

Improved performance and power efficiency in the A15 will be one of the multiple rumored features coming to the 2021 iPhones. Information so far suggests that Apple will relocate the earpiece to the top bezel for the upcoming iPhones, resulting in a smaller notch.

Internally, Apple is expected to include a ProMotion 120Hz and always-on-display for at least some ‌iPhone‌ 13 models. Additional features include a rumored new matte black option, improved fingerprint resistance for the stainless steel edges, and possibly an in-screen fingerprint sensor.

Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty today raised her services-related revenue forecast for Apple through the 2022 fiscal year.

In a research note shared with MacRumors, Huberty said stronger licensing revenue is the primary driver of the raised estimates, including an acceleration in the search traffic-related payments Apple receives from Google. The New York Times last year reported that Apple receives an estimated $8-12 billion per year in exchange for making Google the default search engine on devices like the iPhone and iPad.

"Following strong March quarter App Store results and an analysis of the key drivers of Apple's Licensing & Other segment, we raise our already above-street FY21 and FY22 Services revenue estimates by 3% and 5% respectively, and are increasingly convinced that consensus Services forecasts over the next 2+ years are too low," wrote Huberty.

Despite the positive outlook on Apple's services, Huberty lowered her 12-month price target for Apple to $155 from $164 per share.

"However, multiple compression over the last 2 months, primarily at Apple's higher growth Services peers, more than offsets our higher revenue and earnings estimates, driving our new sum-of-the-parts based price target to $156, or 33x FY22 EPS, down from $164 previously," wrote Huberty.

Apple's service portfolio includes the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple News+, Apple Fitness+, Apple Arcade, iCloud, and more.

Less than seven months after launch, iOS and iPadOS 14 are now installed on an estimated 90% of all compatible iPhones and iPads, according to data collected by Mixpanel's iOS 14 adoption tracker.

In February, Apple said that iOS 14 was installed on 86% of all devices introduced in the last four years. Now, a little more than a month later, the installation base seems to have grown by around 4%. According to Mixpanel, iOS 14 adoption is hovering around 90%, but the exact number fluctuates.

iOS 14 was released to the public in September as a notable iOS upgrade, bringing new widgets to the Home screen, the App Library, and other systemwide changes such as a new Siri and incoming call UI. As of a few months after release in December, iOS 14 was installed on 72% of all active iPhones, according to Apple, signaling excitement for upgrading to the new software.

Sonos in March introduced a new portable smart speaker called the Sonos Roam, which is priced at $169, making it the most affordable Sonos speaker to date. We were able to check out the Sonos Roam to see if it's worth the asking price and how it compares to other portable speakers on the market.

At just under a pound, the Sonos Roam is lightweight and able to be taken anywhere, from the living room to the pool to the park. It's not ultra small, but it is smaller than a water bottle, which makes it easy to transport. The Sonos Roam offers IP67 water and dust resistance, so it can survive splashes of water and even a dunk if it accidentally falls into a pool. Depending on how you're using it, the speaker can be set upright or laid on its side thanks to the triangular design.

Design wise, it fits in with other Sonos speakers and it will be immediately familiar to those in the Sonos ecosystem. Though it's light, it has a premium feel, and you can get it in black or white.

Sonos says there are two Class-H amplifiers inside, along with one custom racetrack mid-woofer, one tweeter, and a high-efficiency motor. There are built-in beamforming microphones, and an adjustable EQ. When it comes to sound, the Sonos Roam is fantastic for its size. The Roam is a bit larger in size than the HomePod mini because of its design, and that comes across in the sound quality. Audio quality is always subjective and it's not going to match higher-end larger speakers, but it offers the sound that you expect from a premium Sonos product.

An Automatic Trueplay feature allows the Roam to adapt the sound based on the environment that it's in and the music that's playing. The microphones detect what song is playing and then adjust the EQ based on the surroundings for a balanced sound profile.

Sonos is known for its WiFi-connected speakers, and the Roam works like many other Sonos speaker options, but it also supports Bluetooth. When at home, the speaker connects to WiFi and can be used as a standard Sonos speaker, but when out of WiFi range, it pairs to an iPhone over Bluetooth. For those in the Apple ecosystem, the Sonos Roam supports AirPlay 2, which is rare for a portable speaker. With ‌AirPlay‌ 2, the Sonos Roam can be paired up with other ‌AirPlay‌ 2-enabled speakers in the home for easy multi-room audio, and it also makes it easy to play songs to the device from an ‌iPhone‌.

There are physical controls and a Sonos app for controlling music, plus the speaker also works with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa. The battery in the Sonos Roam lasts for up to 10 hours and it can be charged over USB-C or wirelessly using any Qi-based charger. Sonos eventually plans to make a dedicated charging cradle for the Roam, but it's not yet available.

Two of the Sonos Roams can be paired together to create a stereo pair, and it is also able to interface with other Sonos speakers. Sonos supports more than 100 streaming services, including Apple Music, so you can also stream direct from ‌Apple Music‌ using the Sonos app.

If you're in the Sonos ecosystem already or want a portable ‌AirPlay‌ 2 speaker experience, you're not going to be disappointed with the Sonos Roam even at its $169 price point because of the build quality and the impressive sound from a small speaker. There are few other ‌AirPlay‌ 2-enabled portable speakers on the market and because of the portability and Bluetooth/WiFi switching functionality, the Sonos Roam is more versatile than Apple's own ‌HomePod mini‌, which must be plugged in to function.

Sonos plans to begin selling the Sonos Roam on April 20, and it is available for pre-order for $169 ahead of that date.

Nomad, known for its lineup of premium accessories for Apple's devices, today announced the launch of the MagSafe Mount, which is designed to house the MagSafe Charger and keep it secured on a desk.

The ‌MagSafe‌ Mount is made from a solid block of stainless steel with a painted satin finish. There's a cutout at the top that fits a ‌MagSafe‌ Charger, with the charger held in place with microsuction tape. A soft rubber on the bottom keeps your desk protected, but this is a mount only -- you need to supply your own ‌MagSafe‌ Charger.

Nomad sent me a ‌MagSafe‌ Mount ahead of launch, and this thing is heavy, so I was surprised when I was able to pick up my iPhone with the ‌MagSafe‌ Mount still attached some of the time. The Magsafe Mount weighs a mount and a half and I thought that kind of weight would keep it on the desk, but if you grab your ‌iPhone‌ in a certain way, the mount can come up with the ‌iPhone‌.

You need to make sure to pick up your ‌iPhone‌ from one side first, with the edge that's hanging off the charger, or with a bit of a twist, which many people probably do anyway. You can also use a finger underneath to do a pry up kind of gesture when you pull it up, which is more natural than it sounds. I do typically pick up my ‌iPhone‌ with a side pull, but I wasn't expecting that ‌MagSafe‌ strength.

In just casual use without thinking about it, I only had the ‌MagSafe‌ Mount lift off my desk a couple of times over the weekend, so it wasn't an ongoing issue as long as I was mindful of how I was picking it up. Since the ‌MagSafe‌ Mount is so heavy, though, I'm worried that I might pick it up wrong one day and send it crashing into my desk.

I've only had the ‌MagSafe‌ Mount on hand for a couple of days, so I haven't had the time to determine whether it's something that's going to bother me over time during day to day usage. I suspect most people will get used to picking an ‌iPhone‌ up off of the ‌MagSafe‌ Mount from the top or the bottom or with a finger at the side and it won't be an issue.

I do wish Nomad had used the same microsuction material used on the inside on the outside to give the ‌MagSafe‌ Mount a stronger attachment to a desk or a table so the slight lifting in some circumstances wouldn't have been an issue at all.

The design of the ‌MagSafe‌ Mount made it difficult to get the ‌MagSafe‌ Charger secured in place, and it's really in there. It's an incredibly tight fit, so this is not an accessory that you're going to want to be taking on and off a ‌MagSafe‌ Charger. The microsuction adhesive on the inside makes it even harder to get off, and I have a bruise on the side of my thumb from trying to get it out.

Because the ‌MagSafe‌ Charger fits so tightly inside the ‌MagSafe‌ Mount, it does look great. It resembles a single piece of hardware rather than an attachment, and it's difficult to tell that there are two pieces. It's machined well and it fits precisely. The design has the USB-C cable routing through the middle and into a channel on the bottom, which contributes to the streamlined design.

The way the cord of the ‌MagSafe‌ Charger goes into the ‌MagSafe‌ Mount has me a little concerned for its impact on the life of the cord. The way the ‌MagSafe‌ Mount is designed produces a slight bend in the cord because of the angle that it inserts into the device, and this particular spot is sometimes a point of failure for Apple's cables. I'm not sure if I have a faulty ‌MagSafe‌ Mount or if I did something unusual putting it in or pulling it out, but it's something to be aware of.

Bottom Line

At $50, the Magsafe Mount is an expensive addition to a ‌MagSafe‌ Charger, which is $40 on its own for a total of $90, but it has a decidedly Apple-esque design that melds well with the design of the ‌MagSafe‌ Charger.

Those looking for a permanent desk mounting option may want to consider the ‌MagSafe‌ Mount, but it won't be a good fit for those looking for a solution that makes it easier to move the ‌MagSafe‌ Charger from place to place.

How to Buy

The ‌MagSafe‌ Mount can be purchased from the Nomad website for $50, but our readers can save 20 percent by entering the code MACRUMORS at checkout. This makes the ‌MagSafe‌ Mount $39.96.

Note: Nomad provided MacRumors with a ‌MagSafe‌ Mount for the purpose of this review. No other compensation was received. MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Nomad. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Technicians in China have reportedly succeeded in upgrading the memory and storage of the M1 chip, suggesting that Apple's integrated custom silicon for the Mac may be more flexible than previously thought.

Reports of maintenance technicians being able to expand the memory and storage of ‌M1‌ Macs began circulating on Chinese social media over the weekend, but now international reports have started to clarify the situation.

Technicians in Guangzhou, China have discovered that it is possible to detach the RAM from the ‌M1‌ chip and its nearby SSD module and replace them with larger capacity components, which are correctly recognized by macOS, without breaking the device.

As proof, a large number of images showing the process of a base model ‌M1‌ MacBook Air with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage being upgraded to 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage, and this change being correctly shown in macOS Big Sur, have been shared online.

The RAM and SSD components on Apple's ‌M1‌ Macs are soldered in place, making the procedure extremely challenging, and there is reportedly a high chance of failure. This invasive unofficial upgrade also undoubtedly breaches Apple's warranty.

Apple has made it increasingly challenging for users to upgrade their own Macs over the years, and it was thought that the ‌M1‌ Mac represented a final solidification of this move, with all of the ‌M1‌ Mac's computing components being heavily physically integrated. The possibility of upgrading the memory and storage of ‌M1‌ Macs, albeit in an invasive and risky procedure, therefore seems to be a significant discovery.

Due to the difficulty of upgrading the RAM or SSD, almost all ‌M1‌ owners will likely still have to rely on the memory and storage configuration that they chose at the point of purchase, with upgrades being confined to a minority of enthusiasts, although it has been suggested that ‌M1‌ Mac memory and storage upgrades in Asia will be available through unofficial channels.

‌M1‌ Mac owners may be keen to see if the process behind these upgrades is refined over time and becomes a more viable option.

In its latest App Store update, Microsoft To Do has ended support for iOS 12 and older, officially requiring that all users must be running iOS 13 or later in order to receive app updates.

Microsoft To Do rose to popularity last year following the closure of Wunderlist and Microsoft's acquisition of the company. Since then, Microsoft To Do has been playing catch-up in attempting to keep former Wunderlist users hocked onto its service.

With a previous ‌App Store‌ update, Microsoft added iOS 14 widgets to its "intelligence task management app," giving users quick access to their tasks on their homescreen. Last week, Microsoft shut down Cortona for iOS and Android, and tasks previously stored with Cortona were automatically added to Microsoft To Do.

Microsoft To Do is available on the ‌App Store‌. [Direct Link]

WhatsApp is testing a new feature that will allow users to transfer their chat history, logs, and transcripts between iOS and Android devices, making it easier for WhatsApp users to switch between the two platforms.

The new future, in the early stages of development, was brought to light by WABetaInfo, who often shares unreleased and hidden features behind the chatting service. According to the WhatsApp specialist, a future update will allow users to transfer their chats from an iOS device to an Android device and vice versa, as long as both phones have the latest version of WhatsApp.

In case an app is not running the latest version, WhatApps will prompt users to update their app before being able to transfer their chats, according to a screenshot provided by WABetaInfo. Currently, there is no way to transfer chats between iOS and Android, making it hard for customers of both ecosystems to switch over.

On iOS, WhatsApp uses iCloud to backup user data, making it easy to switch to a new iPhone and restore WhatsApp history. On Android, WhatsApp uses Google Drive for backing up and restoring. Other features WhatsApp is testing include password-protected iCloud backups, self-destructing images, and the ability to link one WhatsApp account to up to four devices.

Update: Images and a video shared by WABetaInfo show a new "Move chats to Android" option in WhatsApp for iOS and outline how the process takes place.

Apple is working on a new version of the Apple TV that's set to be released at some point in 2021, and the new set-top box that's coming could feature support 4K 120Hz video output.

Evidence of 120Hz support was found in the tvOS 14.5 beta code by 9to5Mac, with the code listing multiple instances of "120Hz and "supports120Hz." The code was found in PineBoard, Apple's name for the ‌Apple TV‌ interface.

The references to 120Hz refresh rate support suggest that Apple is testing this feature for the next-generation ‌Apple TV‌, and it suggests that the new set-top box will use HDMI 2.1. HDMI 2.0, used for the current fifth-generation ‌Apple TV‌ 4K, is limited to 4K resolution at 60Hz. HDMI 2.1, however, is able to support streaming 4K content at 120Hz.

As with the 120Hz refresh rate on the iPad Pro models, a 120Hz refresh rate mode on ‌Apple TV‌ would allow for smoother performance on 120Hz television sets and would be ideal for gaming where there's a lot of quick action as you might find in shooting games.

There are 120Hz TVs on the market, which people generally buy for gaming purposes and use with the latest Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 consoles, both of which support the HDMI 2.1 specification and can output 4K video at 120Hz.

We don't yet know when the next-generation ‌Apple TV‌ will launch, but rumors have suggested it will feature a faster processor and a redesigned remote. Some rumors also suggest that Apple is planning for an ‌Apple TV‌ that would offer a console-like gaming experience, and 4K 120Hz support would allow the ‌Apple TV‌ to better compete with the latest flagship gaming consoles.