MacRumors

Apple continues to dominate Fortune's list of the "World's Most Admired Companies" for 2021, taking the top spot for the 14th consecutive year.

Technology and entertainment held the top four rankings, with Amazon claiming second place, followed by Microsoft in third, and Disney in fourth.

After a year in which humanity leaned more heavily than ever on tech giants—to connect, entertain, and even feed us in a time of isolation — it's fitting that Apple, Amazon, and Microsoft hold the top three spots in Fortune's ranking of corporate reputation. Apple, the premier personal-tech provider, tops the roster for the 14th year in a row, based on our poll of some 3,800 corporate executives, directors, and analysts.

Elsewhere, Netflix returned to the top ten, placing ninth, and Walmart and Target earned their highest rankings since 2011 and 2008. Nvidia and PayPal also earned a place in the top 50 for the first time.

The 50 companies selected for the 2021 Fortune rankings were narrowed down from an initial list of the 1,000 largest companies in the U.S. ranked by revenue and 500 non-U.S. companies from Fortune's Global 500 database with revenues of $10 billion or more.

Management consulting firm Korn Ferry then asked executives, directors, and analysts to rate companies in their own industry based on nine criteria, from investment value and quality of management and products to social responsibility and ability to attract talent, and select the ten companies they admired most.

While the result is not indicative of financial performance, the list does provide an interesting insight into how some of the world's best-known companies are perceived relative to each other.

Today we're tracking a pair of deals on the AirPods with Wired Charging Case and the AirPods Pro. To start, Woot has brought back its popular holiday sale on the AirPods Pro, marking the Bluetooth headphones down to $189.99, from $249.00.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Woot is selling the AirPods Pro in new condition, and they come with a one year Apple warranty. The new sale is beating the price currently offered at Amazon by $10, and it's one of the most consistent AirPods Pro markdowns that we've ever tracked.

Next, you can get the AirPods with Wired Charging Case for $119.99 on Amazon today, down from $159.00. This price tag is reflected after an automatic coupon is applied at the checkout screen, and it's currently the best price that you'll find among the major Apple resellers online.

This model of the AirPods saw steep discounts over the holidays, but one of its most consistent sales has been down to around $110, so today's offer is one of the better deals that we've seen so far in 2021. This is the version of the AirPods with a Wired Charging Case, so it won't support Qi wireless charging mats.

We track sales for every model of the AirPods in our Best AirPods Deals guide, so be sure to bookmark that page while you shop around for the wireless headphones.

In celebration of Black History Month, Apple today released a limited-edition Black Unity Apple Watch Series 6 and a Black Unity Sport Band, both of which are now available to order in the United States and many other countries.

The custom Apple Watch has a Space Gray aluminum case inscribed with the words "Black Unity" on the back. The watch comes with a Black Unity Sport Band that Apple says was inspired by the colors of the Pan-African flag, and the band's metal pin has a custom laser-etched message that reads "Truth - Power - Solidarity."

The Black Unity Apple Watch Series 6 starts at $399, while the Black Unity Sport Band is also available to order separately for $49. Apple said the watch will be available in February only, while the band will remain available throughout the year. Orders are currently estimated to ship in one business day on Apple's online store.

The limited-edition Apple Watch is complemented by the new "Unity" watch face in watchOS 7.3, also based on the Pan-African flag.

Rafael Zeier has shared a German-language unboxing on YouTube:

Apple says it supports organizations dedicated to advancing racial equity and justice in the United States and around the world, including the Black Lives Matter Support Fund via the Tides Foundation, the European Network Against Racism, the International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights, the Leadership Conference Education Fund, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc., and Souls Grown Deep.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

The European Union has set out its grounds of appeal against Apple's victory in its $13 billion euro ($15.8 billion) tax dispute, saying that judges used "contradictory reasoning" when they ruled that Apple's business in Ireland was not liable for significant payments (via Bloomberg).

In a summary of its appeal published earlier today, the EU set out its determination to challenge the court judgement from last year. In July 2020, the EU's General Court sided with Apple, and said the EU's executive arm, led by antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager, had failed to show Ireland's tax arrangements with the company were tantamount to illegal state aid.

The appeal alleges that the court improperly conflated Apple's number of employees at two of its Irish units and the company's level of responsibility for intellectual property on iPhone and iPad sales across Europe. Judges are said to have failed to properly weigh the EU's own analysis of Apple's Irish branches and showed "contradictory reasoning" in their findings.

The argument essentially centers on where value is created and, in turn, where it should be taxed. Apple argues that all important company decisions are made in its Cupertino headquarters, so profits should be taxed in the U.S.

July's ruling came as a surprise to EU commissioners, who have in recent years set about probing national tax rulings that effectively serve as illegal subsidies and closing tax loopholes that allow some multinational companies to lawfully pay less tax in Europe. The final decision will now be made by the EU's highest court, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).

Though losing the appeal would be seen as a major setback for the European Commission, it would not stop it from pursuing other lines of investigation into the tax arrangements of multinational companies such as Apple. However, the Commission would need to be able to demonstrate more clearly that tax rulings confer a financial advantage to the company in question and therefore constitute illegal state aid.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

WhatsApp has started using Status messages to remind its users of the messaging service's "commitment to your privacy," following the recent confusion regarding changes to its privacy policy last month.

"WhatsApp is now on Status," the message begins. "We'll let you know about new features and updates here. One thing that isn't new is our commitment to your privacy. WhatsApp can't read or listen to your personal conversations as they're end-to-end encrypted. Stay tuned for more updates!"

The Stories-style in-app messages began appearing over the weekend for users in the U.S. and the U.K., while users in India have reportedly been receiving them for longer. In a statement given to The Verge, WhatsApp explained the reasoning behind the move:

"There's been a lot of misinformation and confusion around our recent update and we want to help everyone understand the facts behind how WhatsApp protects people's privacy and security," a WhatsApp spokesperson told The Verge. "Going forward, we're going to provide updates to people in the Status tab so people hear from WhatsApp directly. Our first update reaffirms that WhatsApp cannot see your personal messages, and neither can Facebook, because they are protected by end-to-end encryption."

WhatsApp first announced its new usage terms early last month, and the changes at the time suggested WhatsApp would share additional data with Facebook such as phone number, service-related information, IP address, and transaction data. WhatsApp has since made it clear that the update does not affect data sharing with Facebook in terms of user chats or profile information, with the new terms instead applying to those who use the business chat feature.

Via posts on social media, WhatsApp has assured users that its privacy policy update does not affect the privacy of messages. It has also added to its FAQ to address users' privacy concerns relating to data sharing with Facebook.

However, that hasn't stopped an exodus of millions of users from the service to rival messaging apps like Telegram and Signal, both of which have been quick to exploit the situation to their advantage.

Telegram has since added the ability for users to import their chat history from WhatsApp so they won't lose old conversations, while Signal recently got an update containing several new features clearly designed to appeal to former WhatsApp users.

Owing to the confusion, WhatsApp says it has opted to delay the new privacy policy changes for three months, but it is not canceling them.

From today, Apple Watch owners can complete a new Apple Watch activity challenge in celebration of black history.

The Unity challenge, which is listed in the Activity app on the iPhone, asks users to close their Move rings seven times in a row during February.

Let's celebrate Black history this month and keep the momentum going all year long. To start, earn this Unity award by closing your Move ring seven days in a row during February.

Completing the challenge will award users with a unique badge viewable in the Awards section of the Activity app on ‌‌iPhone‌‌ and Apple Watch.

In what seems to be a glitch, there are a few reports on Reddit of users having already been awarded the challenge, as if stats from the last week of January have mistakenly been taken into account.

Nvidia's GeForce Now game streaming service has been updated to work with Macs powered by Apple silicon, offering official support for both M1-equipped and Intel-based machines for the first time.

GeForce NOW for Mac lets you use a virtual GeForce GTX gaming PC in the cloud to run games that otherwise may not be possible to play on a Mac. The only requirement is a good internet connection, with the virtual gaming PC handling all of the GPU and CPU requirements.

GeForce NOW integrates with Steam and works with games users already own, in contrast to other gaming services that provide access to a large catalog of games. Users need to purchase the games they play, with GeForce NOW providing the power to play them.

GeForce NOW requires a fast internet connection to use, demanding a 25Mb/s download speed at a minimum and a 5GHz wireless router. Nvidia recommends a 50Mb/s connection or higher to account for other potential internet traffic.

Apart from official support for the new Mac mini, 13-inch MacBook Pro, and MacBook Air models powered by Apple silicon, version 2.0.27 of Nvidia's browser client also adds support for Google Chrome, as noted by XDA Developers.

GeForce NOW can also be accessed on iPhone or iPad through Safari by visiting the GeForce NOW website. The service is priced at $24.99 for a 6-month Founders membership subscription. Due to high demand, the $4.99 monthly memberships are currently sold out.

2/3 Correction: This article originally reported that GeForce NOW offered native support for Macs with Apple silicon, when in fact the support is "official" (Nvidia's term) rather than native. Apologies for any misunderstanding.

Apple has released an iCloud password extension for Google's Chrome browser on Windows that allows ‌iCloud‌ Keychain passwords to be used on PCs.

Called simply "‌iCloud‌ Passwords," the extension allows users to access passwords in Google Chrome that have been generated in Apple's Safari browser. It also enables ‌iCloud‌ syncing of passwords generated in Chrome, making them available on Apple devices, too.

The feature was alluded to last week when Apple released a new version of iCloud for Windows 10, which included "Support for ‌iCloud‌ Passwords Chrome Extension," despite the extension being unavailable.

‌iCloud‌ Passwords is available now in the Chrome Web Store for both Windows and Mac.

This week saw a good mix of Apple news and rumors, led by the release of iOS 14.4, a blockbuster earnings report from Apple, and a fresh report that the next Apple Watch might be able to monitor blood glucose levels.

We also went hands-on with Apple's new "Time to Walk" feature for Apple Watch, while AirPods Max owners can now purchase standalone ear cushions to mix and match colors. Read on for all of the details!

Everything New in iOS 14.4

Apple publicly released iOS 14.4 and iPadOS 14.4 this week with a handful of new features and bug fixes for iPhone ad iPad users.

iOS 14.4 introduces a notification on iPhone 12 models with non-genuine cameras, the option to classify Bluetooth device type in Settings for correct identification of headphones for audio notifications, and more.

Apple also released watchOS 7.3, which expands the ECG app on the Apple Watch Series 4 and newer to Japan, Mayotte, Thailand, and the Philippines, and introduces a new "Unity" watch face based on the Pan-African Flag. tvOS 14.4 is out too, while macOS 11.2 remains in beta.

Apple this week announced that its App Tracking Transparency privacy measure will be required starting with the next beta versions of iOS 14, iPadOS 14, and tvOS 14, meaning that apps will need to request permission to track users and collect their device's random identifier for advertising purposes. Apple says the software updates will be publicly released in the early spring.

Apple Reports Record-Breaking Quarter With $111B in Revenue

Apple this week reported its earnings results for the first quarter of the 2021 fiscal year, which corresponds with the fourth quarter of the 2020 calendar year.

The quarter was a blowout for Apple, which reported an all-time quarterly revenue record of $111.4 billion, with strength across all product categories, including the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and more.

Apple has thrived financially during the pandemic as many customers work, learn, and connect with others from home. Apple launched many new products and services during the quarter, including the entire iPhone 12 lineup, rave-reviewed M1 Macs, a redesigned iPad Air, the HomePod mini, the AirPods Max, Apple Fitness+, and Apple One subscription bundles.

Apple Watch Series 7 Rumored to Feature Blood Glucose Monitoring

The Apple Watch Series 7 will reportedly feature blood glucose monitoring via an optical sensor, according to a report this week by ETNews.

The report, which mainly focuses on the blood glucose capabilities of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4, explains that Apple is intending to bring blood glucose monitoring to the upcoming Apple Watch Series 7 using a non-invasive optical sensor.

Apple has been gradually expanding the health monitoring capabilities of the Apple Watch, most recently adding the ability monitor blood oxygen levels in the Apple Watch Series 6 introduced last September.

Hands-On With the New Apple Fitness+ 'Time to Walk' Feature

Apple this week officially introduced Time to Walk, a new feature that allows Apple Watch users who subscribe to Apple Fitness+ to listen to audio stories from celebrities, musicians, athletes, and other influential guests while they walk — similar to podcasts. For wheelchair users, the feature is named Time to Push.

Time to Walk episodes are automatically downloaded to the Apple Watch with a Fitness+ subscription, and users can start an episode directly from the Workout app. New episodes ranging from 25 to 40 minutes in length will appear in the Workout app from a different guest each Monday through the end of April, according to Apple.

The first guests include musicians Dolly Parton and Shawn Mendes, NBA star Draymond Green, and actress Uzo Aduba, known for her role as Suzanne Warren on the Netflix original series "Orange Is the New Black."

We took a quick look at Time to Walk in one of our latest YouTube videos to see what it's all about and whether it's a worthwhile addition to Fitness+.

Apple Now Selling Standalone Ear Cushions for AirPods Max

Apple is now selling AirPods Max ear cushions on a standalone basis, priced at $69 for a set, allowing customers to mix and match colors, including silver, black, sky blue, green, and red.

‌AirPods Max‌ ear cushions attach to the ear cups magnetically and can be popped right off, so making a swap to a new color is simple.

MacRumors mocked up all of the AirPods Max color combinations that are possible, so if you're wondering how a particular color might look with your ‌AirPods Max‌, the article is a valuable resource. The replacement ear cushions were initially estimated to ship in one business day, although delivery of colors other than silver and black quickly slipped into late March or early April. The first orders are, however, already arriving in customers' hands.

In other product news, Apple this week announced that it will be releasing a limited-edition "Black Unity" version of the Apple Watch Series 6. This special model will be available throughout February in honor of Black History Month and comes with a "Black Unity" Sport Band based on the Pan-African Flag.

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Each week, we publish an email newsletter like this highlighting the top Apple stories, making it a great way to get a bite-sized recap of the week hitting all of the major topics we've covered and tying together related stories for a big-picture view.

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For this week's giveaway, we've teamed up with designer Philip Lee of Classicbot to offer MacRumors readers a chance to win an iBoy, which is a cute little desktop toy that's been designed as an homage to Apple's 2001 iPod Classic.

Philip Lee makes a whole range of eye-catching Apple-themed toys and products that are perfect for Apple fans and Apple merchandise collectors. The iBoy is Lee's newest creation, released in November 2020, and it's his most detailed and ambitious to date.

The iBoy is a cross between a little robot and a classic iPod, featuring a functional rotating click wheel complete with clickable buttons, an iPod-style mirror-like finish on the back, EarPod antennas, magnetic arms and legs, and simple but endearing facial expression.

There are no electronic parts inside the iBoy as this is an iPod replica figurine that's meant for display, but it does look like a functional MP3 player. The working click wheel with its satisfyingly clickable buttons turns the iBoy into a desk toy that's perfect for fidgeting with during a stressful day.

The magnetic arms and legs can be detached and there's an included headphone wire that can be added to morph the iBoy from robot mode to an MP3 player mode that even more closely resembles the iPod.

iBoy is made from an iPod-like glossy white ABS plastic with silk-screened details and full ports and iPod details that make it unmistakable as a toy robot inspired by the iPod's design. For those who prefer a darker aesthetic, Lee has also created a U2 version of the iBoy that's colored black and red like the special edition U2 iPod that Apple released.

We have 15 iBoys to give away to MacRumors readers as part of our giveaway, and each winner can choose the traditional white color or the red and black U2 color. To enter to win our giveaway, use the Gleam.io widget below and enter an email address. Email addresses will be used solely for contact purposes to reach the winners and send the prizes. You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube channel, following us on Twitter, following us on Instagram, or visiting the MacRumors Facebook page.

Due to the complexities of international laws regarding giveaways, only U.S. residents who are 18 years or older and Canadian residents (excluding Quebec) who have reached the age of majority in their province or territory are eligible to enter. To offer feedback or get more information on the giveaway restrictions, please refer to our Site Feedback section, as that is where discussion of the rules will be redirected.

The contest will run from today (January 29) at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time through 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time on February 5. The winners will be chosen randomly on February 5 and will be contacted by email. The winners will have 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address before new winners are chosen.

Apple is working on in-screen fingerprint technology for the iPhone 13, a feature that would be available right alongside Face ID as a secondary biometric option, according to The Wall Street Journal's Joanna Stern. Stern shared the tidbit in a piece looking at Samsung Galaxy S21 features that could be incorporated into the next-generation iPhones.

We've heard several other rumors about in-display Touch ID functionality from reliable sources like Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo and Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, both of whom have said that this is a feature Apple is considering adding to the new iPhones. A secondary ‌Touch ID‌ option would be useful for situations where ‌Face ID‌ is not optimal, such as when wearing a face mask.

According to Stern, she heard from a former employee who said the company was working with optical sensors for in-screen fingerprint reading, which "can be more reliable" than an ultrasonic solution.

Optical in-display fingerprint sensors work using light, and in Android phones that have adopted this technology, the screen lights up with a fingerprint icon where you're meant to place a finger to provide light, and a camera creates an image of your finger. Optical sensors can be easy to fool because they're using a 2D image.

Ultrasonic fingerprint sensors are a newer technology and use small sound waves to make a 3D map of a fingerprint, a more secure solution that's not easily fooled, and one that works better when fingers are wet. Ultrasonic fingerprint sensing technology is much more expensive, however.

The ‌Touch ID‌ home buttons that Apple has used in the ‌iPhone‌, iPad, and Macs, are capacitive. Capacitive sensors use a series of tiny capacitors to create a fingerprint data map that's hard to trick as it's not using a straight fingerprint image.

It's worth noting that optical-capacitive hybrid sensors exist, so if Apple does go with an optical solution, the ‌Touch ID‌ functionality won't necessarily be as insecure as some optical sensors that are used by Android manufacturers. In fact, it's very unlikely Apple would use a standard optical sensor, but an optical-capacitive hybrid would combine the fast scanning benefits of the optical sensor with the security of a capacitive sensor, and this system wouldn't be able to be easily fooled.

Stern says that according to her source, whichever solution Apple decides to adopt will need to meet the security standards of its current ‌Touch ID‌ Home button, so there will be no downgrade in functionality.

Though Stern's source says that Apple is working on optical technology, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes that Apple is going to use ultrasonic technology. He has said that GIS will provide "large-area sensing ultrasonic" technology to Apple, with Qualcomm providing an ultrasonic module and lamination. For what it's worth, Apple has also patented "acoustic" Touch ID functionality, which would work in-display.

Regardless of implementation, the return of ‌Touch ID‌ to the ‌iPhone‌ would be welcome as it would provide more authentication options for unlocking the ‌iPhone‌ in different situations, as well as an extra layer of security. So far, we don't have confirmed rumors that this is a technology that's definitely coming to the next-generation iPhones, nor is it clear that all 2021 iPhones would get the technology, especially if a more expensive ultrasonic solution is employed.

Apple earlier this week began selling standalone replacement ear cushions for the AirPods Max, and now customers who ordered the cushions have begun receiving them.

The ‌AirPods Max‌ ear cushions arrive packaged in a simple white box with a picture of the cushions in the appropriate color on the front. Each ear cushion is separated inside by a cardboard divider, and are designed to be easy to remove from the box.

Packaging is standard Apple packaging and is similar to the boxes and materials used for accessories like Apple Watch bands and Apple Pencils.

MacRumors reader Sven sent us photos of his ‌AirPods Max‌ ear cushions in black, which he is using with his silver ‌AirPods Max‌.

‌AirPods Max‌ ear cushions are available in silver, black, red, sky blue, and green to match all of the available ‌AirPods Max‌ colors, but it's possible Apple could offer unique colors in the future given that the design allows for mix and match colors.

We previously mocked up all of the AirPods Max color combinations, so if you want to know what a particular color ear cushion might look like with your ‌AirPods Max‌, it's a good resource.

Standalone ear cushions are priced at $69 per pair, and right now, the silver and black ear cushions will ship out in a matter of days. Green, sky blue, and red cushions are not available right now and will deliver at the end of March at the earliest.

Those also happen to be the three colors of ‌AirPods Max‌ that are in short supply. Right now, all ‌AirPods Max‌ orders placed directly with Apple will arrive in early March, but third-party retailers have been listing stock on occasion and the silver and space gray colors are most commonly available.

Xiaomi has today revealed its "Mi Air Charge Technology," which is able to wirelessly charge devices from across a room with 5W of power.

Mi Air Charge Technology offers a "true wireless charging" solution, with no cables or stands. Devices charge remotely with 5W of power, using advanced spatial positioning and beamforming energy transmission.

Xiaomi has developed an isolated charging pile unit with five phase interference antennas, which can accurately detect the location of a smartphone. A phase control array with 144 antennas then transmits millimeter-wide waves directly to the phone through beamforming.

For smartphones, Xiaomi has developed a corresponding miniaturized antenna array with a "beacon antenna" and a "receiving antenna array." The beacon antenna broadcasts low-power positional information, while the receiving antenna array uses 14 antennas to convert the millimeter wave signal emitted by the charging pile directly into electric energy via a rectifier circuit.

The remote charging technology is capable of charging multiple devices within a radius of several meters, with each device able to receive 5W of power. Xiaomi also notes that physical objects placed in between the charging pile and the device do not reduce the charging efficiency.

Xiaomi says that it is looking to expand the technology to smartwatches, wristbands, and other wearables, as well as smart home speakers, desk lamps, and more in the future. It is unclear how close Xiaomi is to bringing its Mi Air Charge Technology and charging pile to the consumer market, but today's reveal may suggest that it is sooner rather than later.

The announcement indicates that progress on remote wireless charging technology within the industry is steadily developing. Several years ago, Apple was rumored to be partnering with Energous to deliver its own remote wireless charging solution. Apple is still believed to be researching new wireless charging technologies, and with the advent of MagSafe on iPhone 12 models, the company is clearly interested in new ways to power devices.