MacRumors

Alongside the HomePod mini, Apple introduced a new Intercom feature that's designed to let Apple device owners communicate with one another throughout the home, sending messages to specific rooms, areas, or people.

Intercom works with the HomePod, ‌HomePod mini‌, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, AirPods, and even CarPlay, so you can dictate a voice message on any of your devices that you can have delivered to a single person in the family or all family members. Intercom is primarily designed as a feature for the ‌HomePod‌ and ‌HomePod mini‌.

We have a demo and walkthrough video on the new feature:

How to Set Up Intercom

After updating to ‌HomePod‌ software 14.2 and iOS 14.2, Intercom can be set up in the Home app. Intercom works if you have a ‌HomePod‌ or another compatible device, and there is no dedicated interface on the ‌iPhone‌ for using Intercom outside of the Home app.

1. Install HomePod 14.2 software.
2. Open up the Home app.
3. Tap on the little house icon in the upper left corner.
4. Tap on "Home Settings."
5. Scroll down to "Intercom" and tap it.
6. Adjust your notification settings and select the people in the home who are able to use the Intercom feature.

Those who have remote access to your Home app can send or receive Intercom messages even when away from home, with those messages displaying as audio notifications on ‌iPhone‌ and Apple Watch.

Note that anyone who wants to be able to use Intercom will need to be added as a person with access to the home. This can be done by entering the Home Settings screen and tapping on "Invite People."

Intercom Requirements

Using the Intercom feature on ‌HomePod‌, iOS devices, ‌CarPlay‌, and AirPods requires the HomePod 14.2 software update or later and iOS and iPadOS 14.2 or later. On Apple Watch, it appears to work with watchOS 7.1 and later.

How to Use Intercom to Send a Message to a HomePod

Intercom messages can be sent to the HomePods throughout a home using Siri on ‌iPhone‌, ‌iPad‌, Apple Watch, another ‌HomePod‌, and more. To send an Intercom message, just activate ‌Siri‌ on your ‌iPhone‌, ‌iPad‌, Apple Watch, ‌CarPlay‌, or AirPods and then say "Intercom" and your message.

So if you wanted to tell everyone that dinner is ready, just say "Intercom, dinner is ready" and the message "Dinner is ready" will be relayed to all of the HomePods in the Home.

Other commands like "Hey ‌Siri‌, tell everyone dinner is ready" also work as an alternative phrase for communicating through Intercom.

In the Home app on ‌iPhone‌ and ‌iPad‌, there's also an option to tap on the small waveform in the upper right corner to record a message that's then sent to Intercom devices in the home.

How to Use Intercom to Send a Message From a HomePod to Another Device

You can use the ‌HomePod‌ to send a message to other HomePods in the home or to the devices that belong to members of the family.

It's as simple as activating ‌Siri‌, saying "Intercom" and then the message, with the message able to be sent to every person in the family regardless of who's at home. It will play on ‌HomePod‌ speakers in the house as well as on individual iPhones, iPads, and Apple Watches.

How to Send a Message to a Specific Room

If you have HomePods in separate rooms, you can direct a message to that room by activating ‌Siri‌ and then saying "Intercom [room name] [message]."

So for example if you wanted to tell everyone in the living room that dinner is ready, you would say "Hey ‌Siri‌, intercom living room dinner is ready."

Note that to use the room command, HomePods need to be correctly assigned to a room in the Home app. Assigning or changing a room can be done by following these steps:

1. Open the Home app.
2. Select the ‌HomePod‌ or ‌HomePod mini‌ from the device list.
3. Long press on the ‌HomePod‌ icon.
4. Tap on the gear icon at the bottom of the interface that pops up or scroll down forcefully.
5. Tap on "Room."
6. Select a room from the list of available rooms or tap "Create New."
7. When done, close the interface by tapping the "X" at the top of the window.

How to Reply to an Intercom Message

If you receive an Intercom message in one room of the house and want to send a message back, you can activate ‌Siri‌ and then say "reply" along with your message.

So if you received an Intercom message that said "Dinner's ready," you can say "Hey ‌Siri‌ reply I'm on my way" to send a message right back.

Devices Compatible With Intercom

You can use iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, and AirPods to send Intercom messages to the members of your household, and you can even send messages through ‌CarPlay‌ if you're driving.

Note that if your devices are using different languages, such as Spanish for the ‌HomePod‌ and English for the ‌iPhone‌, Intercom may not function properly.

Guide Feedback

Have questions about Intercom or want to offer feedback on this guide? Send us an email here.

iPhone 12 Pro models feature a new LiDAR Scanner for enhanced augmented reality experiences, but the sensor also enables another unique feature: the ability to measure a person's height instantly using the Measure app. You can even measure the seated height of a person in a chair, according to Apple.

When the Measure app detects a person in the viewfinder, it automatically measures their height from the ground to the top of their head, hat, or hair.

To measure a person's height, open the Measure app and position the iPhone so that the person you want to measure appears on the screen from head to toe. After a brief moment, a line will appear at the top of the person's head with their height measurement, which appears in either feet and inches or in centimeters depending on whether imperial or metric is selected under Settings > Measure > Measure Units.

The circular shutter button in the bottom-right corner allows you to take a photo of the person with their height measurement and share it with them.

• How to Measure Someone's Height with iPhone 12 Pro

This feature is limited to devices with a LiDAR Scanner, including 2020 iPad Pro models and the upcoming iPhone 12 Pro Max.

Apple's biggest product launch of the year is finally here, with the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro getting into customers' hands for the first time, along with a bonus debut for the colorful fourth-generation iPad Air.

This week's top stories were all about those launches, including the new MagSafe Charger that Apple hopes will bring a new level of convenience and speed to wireless charging. Read on below for the highlights of our coverage from a busy launch week!

First Impressions From New iPhone 12 and 12 Pro Owners

The iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro are now available, and that means a host of first impressions, reviews, and unboxing videos for the devices are being shared by users and members of the media. We've also gone hands-on with iPhone 12 Pro ourselves, and we'll have much more to share in the coming days.

• First Impressions From New iPhone 12 and 12 Pro Owners
• Hands-On With the New iPhone 12 Pro
• iPhone 12 Reviews
• iPhone 12 Pro Reviews
• iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro Unboxing Videos

Most reviews have found the iPhone 12 to be quite similar to the iPhone 12 Pro, with both devices featuring a 6.1-inch OLED display, A14 Bionic chip, and a new flat-edge design. iPhone 12 Pro goes a few steps further with a better camera system, LiDAR Scanner, and a stainless steel frame.

Quite a few details about the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro surfaced this week ahead and following the launch. For instance, learned that the devices can download iOS software updates over 5G, are equipped with Qualcomm's Snapdragon X55 modem, and that 5G in Dual SIM mode is only available in China at launch.

Early testing on the new models has shown improved display durability thanks to the new Ceramic Shield, but worse battery life compared to the iPhone 11 Pro.

Users interested in the new MagSafe charging accessories should also be aware that it's slower than wired fast charging and that non-MagSafe iPhones charge quite slowly on the charger. Users should also be aware that the MagSafe charger can leave visible imprints on cases.

New iPad Air Reviews: 'The Best Tablet for Most People'

Alongside the new iPhone models, the fourth-generation iPad Air has also debuted, and early reviews are in for the new tablet, which features a larger 10.9-inch edge-to-edge display, a faster A14 Bionic chip, a USB-C port, and Touch ID built into the power button.

Most reviews agree that the new iPad Air is Apple's best tablet for the average customer, as it has been upgraded with a similar design and features as the iPad Pro, despite starting at a lower price of $599 — albeit with only 64GB of storage. iPad Pro models start at $799 with 128GB of storage. The A14 Bionic chip in the new iPad Air is also newer than the A12Z chip in the iPad Pro.

Hands-On With Apple's MagSafe Charger for iPhone 12

iPhone 12 models feature a new MagSafe system that allows for precise wireless charging and easy-to-attach magnetic accessories on the back of the devices, such as Apple's new MagSafe Charger.

Priced at $39, the MagSafe Charger looks like a larger Apple Watch charging puck, featuring a circular design with a cord at one end that plugs into a power adapter. The charger is designed to snap on to a ring of magnets built into the ‌iPhone 12‌ and 12 Pro, for a perfect alignment without any hassle.

Watch our hands-on video of the MagSafe Charger and MagSafe Cases for a closer look at the new accessories, and subscribe to our YouTube channel for more Apple-related videos every week!

Top Five Reasons to Buy a HomePod Mini

Apple last week introduced a new $99 HomePod mini, which is a more affordable alternative to the full-size HomePod that's been around since 2018. HomePod mini pre-orders begin Friday, November 6, and ahead of time, we have shared a list of the top five reasons to consider purchasing the smart speaker.

Despite having a compact design, Apple says the HomePod mini still delivers "amazing sound" using "computational audio." The speaker is equipped with the same S5 chip as the Apple Watch Series 5, allowing the speaker to "analyze the unique characteristics of the music and apply complex tuning models" to optimize loudness and adjust the dynamic range.

• HomePod vs. HomePod mini Buyer's Guide

MacRumors Newsletter

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.

So if you want to have top stories like the above recap delivered to your email inbox each week, subscribe to our newsletter!

Alongside the iPhone 12 models, Apple introduced a new $39 MagSafe Charger that's meant to work with the magnets in the ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro models to charge them up at a maximum of 15W.

The MagSafe Charger is technically able to be used with older iPhones, but it's not a good idea because the charging with non-iPhone 12 devices is so slow.

We did two tests with the ‌iPhone‌ XS Max, draining the battery down to 1 percent, putting it in Airplane Mode, and then charging for a half an hour.

In the first test, the ‌MagSafe‌ charger charged the ‌iPhone‌ XS Max to 13 percent in 30 minutes, and in the second test, it charged the ‌iPhone‌ XS Max to 14 percent in 30 minutes.

We've tested a lot of Qi-based wireless chargers and have never seen 7.5W Qi charging speeds that slow. For reference, a 7.5W charger is able to charge an ‌iPhone‌ to about 25 percent in a half hour.

We specifically tested the ‌iPhone‌ XS Max in the exact same conditions as the ‌MagSafe‌ charger with a standard 7.5W Belkin charger and it charged to 26 percent in the 30 minute window.

For those who don't have an ‌iPhone‌ 12 and were considering getting a ‌MagSafe‌ charger to use with an older ‌iPhone‌, don't. It's not worth it for the slow charging speeds and you're better off with a standard Qi charger.

The ‌MagSafe‌ charger will work fine with the ‌iPhone‌ 12 and should charge faster than Qi, but it's not as fast as charging with the Lightning to USB-C cable and a 20W power adapter, as Joanna Stern found out in a charging speed test. That's not too surprising because a Lightning to USB-C charger paired with a 20W+ power adapter enables fast charging, where the ‌iPhone‌ 12 models can charge to 50 percent in one half hour.

If you keep your iPhone in a leather case while charging with Apple's new MagSafe Charger, the case might show circular imprints from contact with the accessory, according to a new Apple support document published today.

Apple's leather cases for the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro are not available until November 6, but a MacRumors reader has already shared a photo of a circular imprint on Apple's silicone case, so it appears that other cases can be affected too. It is possible that the circular imprint will be most prominent on leather cases, prompting Apple's warning.

Apple's support document also outlines some other MagSafe Charger information:

• Apple says users should not place credit cards, security badges, passports, or key fobs between the iPhone and MagSafe Charger, because this might damage magnetic strips or RFID chips in those items.
• Apple says that if an iPhone's battery gets too warm while charging with MagSafe, software might limit charging above 80 percent.
• If an iPhone has both a MagSafe Charger attached and a Lightning cable plugged in, charging will occur via Lightning only.
• To clean the MagSafe Charger, Apple says to first disconnect the charger from power and brush off any debris from the metal ring. Then, Apple says to use a soft, slightly damp, lint-free cloth to wipe the silicone middle of the charging area. Apple says window cleaners, household cleaners, aerosol sprays, solvents, ammonia, abrasives, or cleaners containing hydrogen peroxide should not be used.

MagSafe is a new feature on all iPhone 12 models that allows for magnetic accessories to be attached to the back of the devices, including Apple's MagSafe Charger for more precise wireless charging. Apple also offers a MagSafe-based Leather Wallet for credit cards that should begin arriving to customers within the coming weeks.

Apple's online store has a dedicated page for MagSafe accessories available.

Apple's iPhone 12 and 12 Pro are the first iPhones to be released with 5G connectivity, and there are several new settings related to 5G that you should be aware of.

By default, when you set up a new ‌iPhone‌ 12 or 12 Pro, it activates an Auto 5G mode that only turns on 5G data when it won't significantly reduce battery life. You can turn this off so that your ‌iPhone‌ uses 5G all the time, and there are also data modes to choose from. This how to shows you where the new settings are and explains what they mean.

Turn on 5G All the Time or Activate 4G

Getting to your specific cellular settings might look a bit different depending on your carrier, but these general steps should work for accessing your Voice and Data settings.

1. Open up Settings.
2. Tap on "Cellular."
3. Tap on your cellular plan or Cellular Data Options.
4. Tap on Voice & Data.

From the Voice & Data menu, you'll see three options: 5G On, 5G Auto, and LTE. 5G Auto, the default setting, uses 5G only when 5G won't significantly reduce battery life.

This appears to be Apple's Data Saver Mode that's meant to swap the ‌iPhone‌'s connection to LTE when 5G speeds aren't necessary. For example, when the ‌iPhone‌ is updating in the background, it uses LTE because super fast speeds aren't necessary, but in instances where speed does matter, such as downloading a show, the ‌iPhone‌ 12 models will swap over to 5G.

5G On ensures that 5G is activated all the time when a 5G network is available, and LTE disables 5G all together and lets you use an LTE connection instead of a 5G connection.

Data Mode

There are several data modes that you can adjust. By default, ‌iPhone‌ 12 models are set on "Allow More Data on 5G," which offers up higher-quality video and FaceTime when connected to 5G cellular networks.

Most people with unlimited data will want to leave this enabled, but if you're aiming to preserve data, you can change the settings to "Standard," which allows automatic updates and background tasks on cellular but limits video and ‌FaceTime‌ quality.

There's also a Low Data Mode that helps reduce cellular data usage by pausing automatic updates and background tasks when connected to a cellular network. Here's how to get to your data settings:

1. Open up Settings.
2. Tap on "Cellular."
3. Tap on your cellular plan or Cellular Data Options.
4. Tap on Data Mode.

5G is still a new technology that carriers in the United States and other countries are rolling out, so many people may not have 5G connections available to them. Most U.S. carriers have widespread Sub-6GHz 5G networks that should give 5G connectivity that's a bit faster than LTE in most areas, but the fastest mmWave 5G is extremely limited. Make sure to check out our mmWave vs. Sub-6GHz guide for more info.

5G Connectivity Symbols

When you're connected to a 5G network, you'll see a few different symbols, all of which confirm that you're on a 5G network. 5G+ is AT&T's symbol when connected to a faster mmWave 5G network, and the 5G UW symbol shows up when you have a higher-speed mmWave connection on a Verizon device.

Feedback

Have 5G questions or know of something we left out in this how to? Send us an email here.

Happy launch day! The new iPhone 12 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro are arriving to pre-order customers as of today and are hitting stores worldwide. We picked up a Pacific Blue ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro and thought we'd share our first impressions for MacRumors readers still deciding on a purchase or waiting for their own iPhones to arrive.

This year's iPhones include no EarPods or power adapter in the box, so there's a new, more environmentally friendly box that's slimmer than the prior boxes. There's the phone itself, a Lightning to USB-C cable, a few small regulatory booklets, an Apple sticker, and a SIM ejection tool.

The squared-off edges of the new ‌iPhone‌ design are a major departure from the rounded edges we've had since the ‌iPhone‌ 6, so the feel of the flatter edge will take some getting used to. It can be a bit more uncomfortable to hold in the hand when you're unaccustomed to it, but it does feel secure and easy to hold on to, even though it's thinner than the ‌iPhone‌ 11 models.

Design wise, the new ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro looks similar to the iPad Pro or something like the ‌iPhone‌ 5, so if you love that flat edged look, this is the phone for you. We think it looks great, and it's a refreshing change from rounded edges. There have already been complaints about those shiny stainless steel edges on the Pro models, and we can confirm, that glossy material is a fingerprint magnet. The Pacific Blue color is unique, but it doesn't do much in terms of hiding fingerprints.

The ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro is 6.1 inches, which is about the same size as the ‌iPhone‌ 11 before. Last year's Pro model was 5.8 inches, so expect a bit of a size increase, but overall, the sizes aren't hugely different.

Apple added a new Ceramic Shield display that offers 4x stronger drop protection, but we're not going to test that claim and ruin a perfectly good ‌iPhone‌. Drop tests will be coming, though, and note that Apple makes no claims when it comes to protection against scratches and dings. Our ‌iPhone‌ is new enough that it's in perfect condition, but there have been early reports that the screen is easier to scratch than normal, which is something to keep an eye on.

We covered MagSafe cases and chargers earlier this week before we had a new ‌iPhone‌ and were curious if the magnetic connection is stronger with an actual ‌iPhone‌ 12 in hand, and it does seem like there's a small difference. It's still not as magnetic as we might have expected, and while we don't have a Wallet accessory on hand to test yet, there's a good chance it's not going to be the best accessory to slap onto the back of the phone.

All of the new ‌iPhone‌ 12 models support 5G, but we can't give feedback on connection speeds because it's just too early. That's something we'll follow up on in another video, but for the fastest mmWave 5G, you need to be in specific parts of specific cities to use it, so most people won't be experiencing it.

Most people will connect to slower Sub-6GHz networks. We have a T-Mobile ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro, and so far, the speeds seem to be a bit faster than on LTE, but for Verizon, LTE was faster. We'll also need to come back to the A14 chip after we've had some time to test it out, but it is unsurprisingly the fastest chip in an ‌iPhone‌ yet.

The ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro has a middle-tier camera that's better than the ‌iPhone‌ 12 camera but not quite as good as the camera setup in the Pro Max, launching in November. There are three lenses along with a LiDAR Scanner, which brings some neat features like Night Mode portraits, ‌Night Mode‌ for the Ultra Wide lens, and improved low-light performance.

The LiDAR Scanner works by sending out light and measuring the time it takes to reflect back from objects, mapping out the entire space around you. In addition to photography features, it also has some AR applications, but developers need to incorporate the new technology into apps before we can see what it can really do.

As for the camera quality, we'll have a deep dive, but early photos are promising. The 7-element Wide camera has an f/1.6 aperture that lets in 27 percent more light, and there's an improved optical image stabilization system that makes 5000 adjustments per second. The ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro is also capable of shooting 4K HDR and Dolby Vision video, which we'll show off more in-depth in a future video.

Make sure to stay tuned to MacRumors because we're going to have a lot more ‌iPhone‌ coverage coming, including those aforementioned deep dives into 5G connectivity and camera technology. When November rolls around, we'll also be able to see the real differences between the ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro and Pro Max camera systems.

Apple's new iPhone 12 models are protected by a Ceramic Shield cover glass that has nano-ceramic crystals infused right into the glass to improve durability. According to Apple, Ceramic Shield offers four times better drop protection than the glass used for the ‌iPhone‌ 11 models.

YouTube channel MobileReviewsEh conducted some tests on the ‌iPhone‌ 12 using a force meter to compare its performance to the ‌iPhone‌ 11.

With a force meter that measures in newtons, the ‌iPhone‌ 11 was able to withstand 352 newtons of force, while the ‌iPhone‌ 12 was able to withstand 442 newtons of force. The Ceramic Shield of the ‌iPhone‌ 12 significantly outperformed the ‌iPhone‌ 11's cover glass.

In a separate scratch test, the ‌iPhone‌ 12 was able to withstand scratching from keys, coins, rocks, and a box cutter, receiving no scratches on the display.

With a Mohs hardness test, the 6 and 7 points were able to leave scratches on the ‌iPhone‌ 11, while the ‌iPhone‌ 12 stood up to the 6 point and saw some faint scratches with the 7 point. The 8 point left significant scratches on both. For reference, the 8 point is also able to scratch the sapphire lens of the ‌iPhone‌.

The edges weren't particularly durable, and the back glass of the ‌iPhone‌ 12 appeared to scratch as easily as the back glass of the ‌iPhone‌ 11. From MobileReviewsEh:

This Ceramic Shield is definitely tougher on the iPhone 12s. Quite a bit, over 100 newtons. It took a lot of effort to break this screen. The remainder of the iPhone in terms of scratch protection is similar to the iPhone 11. Screen is a little more scratch resistant.

Now that ‌iPhone‌ 12 and 12 Pro models are out in the wild, we should be seeing additional drop and durability tests in the coming days that will give us a better idea of how the Ceramic Shield compares to the glass of earlier iPhones.

Keep in mind that these kinds of force tests and drop tests are not always going to see the same results, and can vary based on where a force meter is applied or the angle that an ‌iPhone‌ happens to fall at, so it's always best to use caution with with devices made of glass, Ceramic Shield or no Ceramic Shield.

For this week's giveaway, we've teamed up with RAVPower to offer MacRumors readers a chance to win a 252.7Wh/70200mAh Portable Power Station. RAVPower makes all kinds of power banks and charging accessories for Apple devices, and this Power Station is one of the largest backup battery options.

Priced at $222 at the current time, RAVPower's Portable Power Station has an attractive cube-shaped design with a sleek black exterior and a handle for portability. Five LEDs at the front provide an overview of remaining power.

There are two 110V AC outlets for powering larger items like lights, refrigerators, TVs, CPAP machines, laptops, and more, with the outlets providing up to 250W when a single outlet is used alone. When both outlets are used, the Power Station draws 300W, split between the two.

Along with the AC outlets, there's a 60W USB-C port that's ideal for charging Apple laptops and other devices. RAVPower says it's able to charge a MacBook Pro to full in three hours. For smaller devices, there are three USB-A ports.

The Portable Power Station can be charged through a wall outlet, a car charger, or a solar panel, making it ideal for all kinds of uses. It's ideal as a power source when camping or for powering RV equipment, and it also works as a backup battery to have on hand in case of power outages and emergencies. RAVPower includes a handy soft carrying case with the Portable Power Station and a power adapter for charging it.

We have two of the Portable Power Stations to give away to MacRumors readers. To enter to win, 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 (October 23) at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time through 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time on October 30. The winners will be chosen randomly on October 30 and will be contacted by email. The winners will have 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address before new winners are chosen.

iFixit has an iPhone 12 in hand and is tearing it down live, providing a close-up look at the components inside. We've already seen several teardowns so there may not be much to learn, but iFixit's teardowns are always fun to watch.

After today's teardown, iFixit plans to provide a more in-depth teardown that will go through all of the components in the new devices.

Apple Card owners who had their Apple Cards stored in Amazon as a saved payment option this morning started noticing that the ‌Apple Card‌ has disappeared from the payment list.

Multiple MacRumors readers have notified us about the problem, and we've also been able to replicate it. Apple Cards are missing from the Amazon website and app and attempting to re-add one pops out an error message that credit card information is unable to be saved.

A Redditor describes the problem:

Has this happened to anyone else? My Apple Card was removed from my amazon payment options, despite having made numerous purchases with it in the past. When I tried to re-add it, I got an error message that they are unable to save the card info and to use another form of payment. When I finally got someone from amazon on the phone, I was told that it was because their systems are starting to recognize the card number as Apple Pay, and amazon does not accept Apple Pay.

This appears to be a widespread problem and most ‌Apple Card‌ owners are no longer seeing their cards appear in Amazon as a saved payment option. As noted above, one person was told by Amazon's support says that it's an Apple Pay-related issue, but that's inaccurate because ‌Apple Card‌ works like a normal credit card.

Another person was told that the ‌Apple Card‌ is "not allowed on your account," which is curious as the ‌Apple Card‌ is a Mastercard that should be accepted where Mastercard is accepted. A third person was told that the issue was on Apple's end, so it appears that Amazon's support staff has no insight what's going on at this time.

Update: In a statement to MacRumors, an Amazon spokesperson said the following: "We are aware of this technical issue and are actively working to resolve it as soon as possible."

Film critic and screenwriter Drew McWeeny has postulated on Twitter that Apple is seeking to acquire the rights to upcoming James Bond film "No Time to Die" for its video streaming service, Apple TV+.

McWeeny, who has clear industry connections, suggested that ‌Apple TV‌+ and Netflix are the frontrunners to possibly stream the new film, speculating that the bids involved are for significant amounts of money.

Apple has previously acquired the rights to films that would have premiered in the cinema, such as Tom Hanks' World War Two movie "Greyhound." Considering the purported success of the war film on ‌Apple TV‌+, it does not seem out of the question that Apple could be actively seeking to exclusively screen the upcoming Bond film in an effort to drive subscription numbers.

No Time to Die is one of the most hotly anticipated James Bond films, featuring Daniel Craig's last outing as the titular character. After multiple delays releasing the film due to the global health crisis, it seems likely that studio MGM may be looking for viable alternative means of screening the film, namely streaming. It is also notable that Apple was reported to have entered talks to acquire MGM outright earlier this year.

Arun Maini today shared a new side-by-side iPhone battery life video test on his YouTube channel Mrwhosetheboss, timing how long the new iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro models last on a single charge compared to older models, with equal brightness, settings, battery health, and usage. All of the devices are running iOS 14 without a SIM card inserted.

In the test, the iPhone 11 Pro outlasted both the 6.1-inch iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro, despite being a smaller 5.8-inch device. When the iPhone 12 Pro ran out of battery, the iPhone 11 Pro still had 18% battery life remaining, and when the iPhone 12 powered off, the iPhone 11 Pro still had 14% battery life remaining.

The final rankings ended up as follows:

• iPhone 11 Pro Max: 8 hours and 29 minutes
• iPhone 11 Pro: 7 hours and 36 minutes
• iPhone 12: 6 hours and 41 minutes
• iPhone 12 Pro: 6 hours and 35 minutes
• iPhone 11: 5 hours and 8 minutes
• iPhone XR: 4 hours and 31 minutes
• iPhone SE (2020): 3 hours and 59 minutes

These rankings are of course missing the iPhone 12 Pro Max and iPhone 12 Pro mini, which will be available to pre-order starting November 6.

Teardowns and regulatory filings have revealed that the entire iPhone 12 lineup features slightly lower battery capacities. iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro models share a 2,815 mAh battery, for example, while the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro are equipped with 3,110 mAh and 3,046 mAh batteries, respectively.

While the more power efficient A14 Bionic chip in Apple's latest iPhones helps to offset the lower battery capacities, this test shows that the iPhone 11 Pro still lasts longer than the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro under heavy, continuous usage.

Apple's tech specs indicate that the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro provide up to 17 hours of video playback, compared to up to 18 hours on the iPhone 11 Pro, so Apple does acknowledge that the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro have slightly less battery life.

It will be interesting to see a real-world battery life test for the iPhone 12 Pro Max, as Apple's tech specs suggest that the device has equal battery life as the iPhone 11 Pro Max, at least based on its own metrics. Apple lists both devices as providing up to 20 hours of video playback and up to 80 hours of audio playback.

iFixit has today shared a teardown of Apple's new MagSafe charger for the iPhone 12 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro.

An X-ray of the ‌MagSafe‌ charger courtesy of Creative Electron reveals the internal charging coil surrounded by a circular arrangement of magnets within the puck.

The only seam that iFixit was able to leverage to open the device was where the white rubber circle meets the metal rim, which was connected with a strong, heat-sensitive adhesive.

On the underside of the white cover was an etched copper sticker that traced to four corresponding leads spaced around the outside of the charging coils. Under the coils was a shielded circuit board.

iFixit also offered a comparison with the Apple Watch charging puck, which internally appears to be surprisingly dissimilar to ‌MagSafe‌. The main difference is the dark ring of magnets around the exterior in the ‌MagSafe‌ charger, which corresponds to magnets within the ‌iPhone‌ 12 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro. The Apple Watch charger instead uses a single magnet in the center of the puck to align.

iFixit is expected to release a teardown of the ‌iPhone‌ 12 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro shortly.

Apple's Vice President of iPhone Marketing, Kaiann Drance, has provided a new interview to Rich DeMuro on the Rich on Tech Podcast, to discuss the ‌iPhone‌ 12 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro.

Although much of the interview repeated points from Apple's "Hi, Speed" event, there were a number of interesting tidbits regarding the affect of 5G on battery life, MagSafe concerns, and the lack of a power adapter in the box.

5G and Battery Life

DeMuro asked about the implications of 5G connectivity on the ‌iPhone‌'s battery life, to which Drance responded:

We're able to make a bunch of software optimizations throughout the entire system to make battery life even better, and on top of that we added a new feature called "Smart Data mode" that will allow you to manage your 5G usage and battery life a bit better, so you can use 5G speeds when it really matters, and then for places where maybe it doesn't matter as much it will revert to 4G LTE speeds to save your battery life. And then the last part of it that I think is really important is the work we've done with our carrier partners, working with them on their network settings, on their deployment plan, so they're also optimizing their settings together with iPhone to optimize for battery life.

Glass and Durability

Drance neglected to answer whether a screen protector is still needed with the new Ceramic Sheild front glass on ‌iPhone‌ 12 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro. However, she did explain that the new flat-edged design aids drop protection and makes the ‌iPhone‌ more durable. Although the rear glass of the ‌iPhone‌ 12 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro does not use Ceramic Shield, Drance said that it still uses "the toughest glass available in a smartphone," which achieves "a 2x performance gain" against accidental drops.

MagSafe Concerns

When asked about the new ‌MagSafe‌ system and concerns about whether the magnets could deactivate cards, Drance admitted that some cards could be impacted by Magsafe:

We are taking care to make sure that we're being as protective as possible, and those credit cards, they're made with magnetic stripes that are pretty strong so that shouldn't be a problem next to next to your phone... what you do want to just watch out for is those single-use types of cards like the hotel cards... you might not want to put that right against that, but certainly, we've got great options like the wallet, the wallet is shielded.

iPhone Launch Day

DeMuro also asked about what customers can expect from the ‌iPhone‌ launch this year, and Drance emphasized the need for contactless delivery and ordering ahead for in-store pickups. She also said that walk-in customers should expect delays:

If you do show up as a walk-in... we may give you an appointment to come back at a later time, but certainly you may expect to wait a little longer because of occupancy in the stores and physical distancing... we may not be able to get everyone in as quickly as possible.

USB-C Power Cable Included in the Box

Lastly, DeMuro queried why Apple had still chosen to include a USB-C charging cable in ‌iPhone‌ boxes. Although he acknowledged that Apple has stopped including the power adapter with the ‌iPhone‌ for environmental reasons, he asked why Apple was including a USB-C cable when many customers will not have a USB-C power adapter, especially if they are coming from an older ‌iPhone‌.

Interestingly, Drance suggested that users should continue to use their older Lightning cable if they do not have a USB-C power adapter, or perhaps even use a Mac laptop for charging.

So first of all of the iPhone 12 models, you can still use your old Lightning cables and any of those power adapters that work with that... any of those will still work, in fact we encourage you to still use those as well. Now, if you do need a new one... we did include a USB-C to lightning cable in the box. It's different because it's more modern, it's faster... now that can still be used with any USB-C power adapter, so where can you get one of those?

Well, you might already have one, if you have either another smartphone product or another consumer electronic product. In the past couple of years a lot of those have moved towards those type-C adapters... Now, if you're an Apple user and you happen to have a Mac or an iPad, we've also included those USB-C power adapters in recent years for those products, and the computer ports themselves include USB-C. So those are other options for you.

The ‌iPhone‌ 12 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro is available from today, starting at $799 and $999 respectively.

The iPhone 12, ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro, and fourth-generation iPad Air are now available in stores and arriving to customers around the world.

Apple has shared a Newsroom post with a range of images to celebrate the launch of the new products. Over the next 24 hours, the Newsroom post will apparently be updated with photos from around the world.

Our own forum members have started a number of threads for tracking and following their ‌iPhone‌ 12 / 12 Pro orders around the world.

Our U.K. readers have been particularly active this morning, posting images of their ‌iPhone‌ 12 pickups at Apple Stores, and deliveries. This image of the line at the Covent Garden Apple Store was taken by paulopadopa.

Brenster visited ‌Apple Store‌ Manchester Trafford Centre and described the scene:

Apple store Manchester Trafford Centre was quiet first thing this morning. Arrived at 7.55 for an 8.15 IUP reservations. Couldn’t have been more than 10 people outside with no real queue, easily outnumbered by the staff inside the store. Opened up at exactly 8; staff member asked those with reservations to stand to one side. The 4 who didn’t who’d turned up on spec for a chance of a walk-in phone were asked to leave and to make an online reservation.

The 4 with 8am reservations were taken in, and 10 mins later those with 8.15 reservations, a couple more having joined the queue since 8.

In store, everything was running like clockwork; temp check, mask and hand wash on the way in, wipes and hand gel on every table for iPhone deactivation and entering details for the IUP application. Then off to the back of the store to pick out a plum silicone case, then out the door before 8.30am. Back home for 9.20am.

Both Apple Store & Trafford Centre staff were fantastic, their system this morning working fantastically well.

He describes his new 256GB Silver ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro as "hella nice!" with a premium feel.

There are a number of other photos of people picking up their iPhones: Pacific Blue, Gold, Booting Up, and even minor defects.

Join our iPhone forums to keep track of deliveries in your region.

U.S. Carrier Pre-Order Threads:

• Apple.com iPhone 12 Pre-Order / Order Status / Delivery Thread
• T-Mobile iPhone 12 Pre-Order Thread
• AT&T iPhone 12 Pre-Order Thread
• Verizon iPhone 12 Pre-Order and Delivery Thread
• Xfinity Mobile iPhone 12 Pre-Order and Delivery Thread
• Sprint iPhone 12 Pre-Order Thread

International Pre-Order Threads:

• UK iPhone 12 Orders and Dispatch Thread
• Europe ‌iPhone‌ 12 Orders and Dispatch Thread
• Canada iPhone 12 Pre Order Thread
• Australia iPhone 12 Orders and Dispatch

Apple's MagSafe charger charges over two-times slower than a wired 20W USB-C charger, according to a new iPhone 12 video review from the Wall Street Journal's Joanna Stern.

The review of the iPhone 12 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro was generally critical of Apple's ‌MagSafe‌ technology, explaining that the idea seems to be better in theory than in practice.

Although Stern found that the ‌MagSafe‌ charger charged the ‌iPhone‌ 12 faster than a traditional 7.5W Qi wireless charger, it was still slower than plugging directly into a 20W charger. The 20W charger charged an empty ‌iPhone‌ to 50% in only 28 minutes, while the ‌MagSafe‌ took 1 hour.

The full video review covers other aspects of the new ‌iPhone‌ 12 and ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro:

The review was also critical of the fact that the combined cost of the ‌MagSafe‌ charger and a 20W power adapter was $58 combined, and that the ‌MagSafe‌ charger's cable is less than a yard in length.