MacRumors

LG this week appears to have pushed out an update that adds the Apple TV app to some 2018 TV models. There are several reports on Twitter about the ‌Apple TV‌ app coming to 2018 LG TVs, and MacRumors also received a tip from a reader.

It's not clear if the update to introduce the ‌Apple TV‌ app was worldwide, but LG TV users from multiple countries are now seeing the TV app.

Earlier this year, LG brought the ‌Apple TV‌ app to select 2019 LG TVs in the United States and more than 80 other countries, and at the time, LG said that 2018 TVs would also get the TV app through a firmware update.

LG TV owners can access the ‌‌Apple TV‌‌ app from the LG Home app Launcher, and along with ‌‌Apple TV‌‌+, LG users can also subscribe to Apple channels and access their iTunes libraries to rent, purchase, and watch TV shows and movies.

So far, LG has not shared details on which 2018 TVs are offering the TV app, but 2019 TVs with support included all OLED TVs, NanoCell TVs (SM9X and SM8X), and UHD TVs (UM7X and UM6X).

LG has also promised to bring AirPlay 2 and HomeKit support to 2018 smart TVs by October 2020, and the TVs that will get support include "SK" and "UK" LED models and "B8" through "Z8" OLED models. ‌AirPlay‌ 2 and ‌HomeKit‌ support doesn't appear to have rolled out at this time.

(Thanks, Mauritz!)

Earlier this week, Apple changed its AppleCare+ policies in the United States and Canada to give customers up to a year to purchase AppleCare after buying a device, and MacRumors has now learned additional information about the program that may be useful to those who want to know their ‌AppleCare‌+ options.

‌AppleCare‌+ can now be added to a device up to one year from purchase, and this applies to iPhones, iPads, Macs, iPods, HomePods, Beats (minus urBeats3 and Pill+), AirPods, AirPods Pro, Apple Watches, and the Pro Display XDR. Basically all devices that offer ‌AppleCare‌+, with the exception of the Apple TV, which already offers a one-year standard ‌AppleCare‌ purchase plan option.

For up to 60 days after the date of purchase of a device, ‌AppleCare‌+ can be purchased using the Settings section of the iPad, iPhone, or iPod, via the Apple Support app, the Apple Support site, or Checkcoverage.Apple.Com for Apple Watch, HomePod, ‌iPhone‌, ‌iPad‌, iPod, and Mac. It can also be purchased through a contact center or an Apple retail store.

After 60 days has passed (and before 365 days), ‌AppleCare‌+ can be purchased by taking a device to an Apple retail location with a Genius Bar appointment for an inspection, which is required to get coverage after the 60 day mark. If a device has any accidental damage during the inspection, it needs to be repaired before ‌AppleCare‌+ can be purchased.

Extended purchase options apply when paying for ‌AppleCare‌+ in full up front or when purchasing the ‌AppleCare‌+ monthly subscription plan. The ‌AppleCare‌+ timer starts from the date of purchase of the coverage.

The 365 day ‌AppleCare‌+ purchase option only applies to standard ‌AppleCare‌+, however, and not Apple's ‌AppleCare‌+ Theft and Loss plan for the ‌iPhone‌. That can only be purchased for up to 60 days after you buy a device.

With the new ‌AppleCare‌+ purchase options, customers can take advantage of their one-year automatic device purchase warranty and then as that warranty comes to an end, choose whether to extend the warranty with ‌AppleCare‌+. Note, though, that the standard warranty does not cover accidental damage incidents. ‌AppleCare‌+ covers accidental damage and allows customers to get their devices repaired or replaced for a deductible fee that varies based on product.

Major news organizations who offer their content in the App Store want to be able to keep a larger cut of subscription revenue from customers who subscribe to the service through Apple's platform, reports The Wall Street Journal.

Digital Next Content, a trade group representing the New York Times, the Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and other publishers sent a letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook seeking a better deal that would allow them to keep more of the money from subscribers.

Apple takes a 30 percent cut from first-time subscriptions that are made through iOS apps, which drops down to 15 percent after the first year. Digital Context Next in its letter cited a deal made with Amazon for reduced fees, which surfaced as part of an antitrust hearing into Apple's ‌App Store‌ practices.

For Amazon Prime Video, Apple offered Amazon a special deal where it took just 15 percent of subscription revenue, and the publishers want the same deal. The letter asks Apple to "clearly define the conditions" that Amazon met to garner that agreement.

"The terms of Apple's unique marketplace greatly impact the ability to continue to invest in high-quality, trusted news and entertainment particularly in competition with other larger firms," said the letter, which is signed by Jason Kint, chief executive of the trade body, Digital Content Next.

In a blog post, Digital Context Next highlights the recent Epic Games vs. Apple conflict, which saw Epic Games publicly revolting against Apple's ‌App Store‌ policies by implementing a direct purchase option in Fortnite that violates the rules, which led to the Fortnite app being removed from the ‌App Store‌.

‌Epic Games‌ has since filed a lawsuit against Apple, causing companies like Spotify and Facebook to also speak out against the Cupertino company.

Digital Content Next complains that Apple's 30 percent fee drives publishers away from direct audience revenue, pushing them into the "murky world of digital advertising." The group also points out that Apple CEO ‌Tim Cook‌ during his recent antitrust testimony said that the reduced deal made between Apple and Amazon was "available to anyone meeting the conditions," and calls on Apple to "level the playing field" and provide transparency on its secret Amazon agreement.

Adobe's recent 5.4 update for the Lightroom for iOS app had a major bug in it that deleted user photos and presets, eradicating all content that had not been synced to the Adobe cloud service.

As noted by PetaPixel, complaints surfaced on the Photoshop forums on Monday, shortly after the update was released, followed by similar reports on Reddit and Twitter.

Affected users lost photos, presets, edits, watermarks, and more. One user on Reddit said that he lost two years of edits, and there are dozens of similar complaints from people who lost important data. The problem affected users who were using local storage without having uploaded that content to Adobe's cloud storage service.

Many of those affected were using Adobe's free service, which has limited cloud storage, but some paid users were also impacted and lost thousands of photos.

Adobe on Wednesday released a 5.4.1 update to prevent the bug from affecting additional users, and confirmed at that time that none of the data that was lost is in any way recoverable. From Adobe:

We are aware that some customers who updated to Lightroom 5.4.0 on iPhone and iPad may be missing photos and presets that were not synced to the Lightroom cloud.

A new version of Lightroom mobile (5.4.1) for iOS and iPadOS has now been released that prevents this issue from affecting additional customers.

Installing version 5.4.1 will not restore missing photos or presets for customers affected by the problem introduced in 5.4.0.

We know that some customers have photos and presets that are not recoverable. We sincerely apologize to any customers who have been affected by this issue.

Adobe has recommended that affected users try to restore an iCloud backup that might have the lost content, but there's no solution on Adobe's end to address the loss and no fix if there's no ‌iCloud‌ backup.

Apple today seeded the second public beta of an upcoming watchOS 7 update to public beta testers, 10 days after seeding the first public beta and just a few days after seeding a new beta to developers.

The watchOS 7 update can be downloaded after installing the proper profile from Apple's Public Beta website. watchOS 7 should not be installed on a primary device as it is still an early beta and there could be bugs, plus there is no way to downgrade back to watchOS 6.

watchOS 7 is a major update that introduces a new Sleep Tracking feature for the Apple Watch, which is designed to measure how long you're asleep as you wear the Apple Watch while sleeping.

It comes along with a Wind Down feature that helps you establish a bedtime routine to make it easier to fall asleep at night, as well as a Sleep Mode that turns on Do Not Disturb and dims the Apple Watch display.

The Apple Watch can also wake you up with haptic vibrations, providing a weather report in the morning as well as info on battery life so you can get your day started.

Along with these sleep tracking features, the Apple Watch has automatic handwashing detection that listens for the sound of running water and handwashing motions and then starts a 20-second timer so you can make sure you're washing your hands for the appropriate amount of time.

There's a new watch Face Sharing feature that lets you share watch faces with others and install new watch faces from the App Store, Messages, Mail, websites, and more.

There's a new Chronograph Pro face with tachymeter, updates to complications, and new workout options in the newly renamed Fitness app, which was previously the Activity app.

The Maps app now supports directions for cyclists, Siri provides spoken translations, and there's a Shortcuts app on the Apple Watch. For more on what's new in watcOS 7, make sure to check out our watchOS 7 roundup.

watchOS 7 is limited to the Apple Watch Series 3, Series 4, and Series 5 models, and is not compatible with the Apple Watch Series 1 and Series 2.

Apple today launched a livestream test on YouTube that lists a September 10 date, which has led to some speculation that Apple could be holding an event on that day. Apple quickly removed the testing stream, but dozens of Twitter users and MacRumors readers were able to capture screenshots.

There is no confirmation that September 10 is the date that Apple plans to hold an event, however, and it could just be a random date entered for a livestream test, or the date that was used last year as last year's iPhone event took place on Tuesday, September 10.

Apple does not typically hold events on Thursdays, so September 10 would be an unusual choice. There's no clear word on when Apple might hold an event this year because 2020's ‌iPhone‌ release timelines will be different. Apple at the end of July confirmed that this year's iPhones would launch a few weeks later than usual, meaning an October debut instead of a September debut.

Apple could still hold an event in September, but leaker Jon Prosser has said that the Cupertino company will hold its event in October, during the week of October 12. Whether that prediction is accurate remains to be seen. Either way, the September 10 date is not likely to be the date of the event, and the week of September 7 is probably out all together. September 7 is Labor Day, a holiday, and Friday is September 11, a date that Apple avoids.

If the event isn't held in October, the week of September 14 would be another solid guess as to when an event might happen.

The Apple Watch accounted for 51.4 percent of worldwide smart watch market revenue brought in during the first half of 2020, according to new data shared today by Counterpoint Research.

Apple has dominated the smart watch market for years now, and the first half of 2020 is no exception. Other smart watch vendors didn't even come close to Apple's smart watch shipment revenue share, with Garmin devices responsible for 9.4 percent of revenue and Huawei devices responsible for 8.3 percent.

Total global smart watch shipments grew 20 percent year over year even amid the pandemic, with Apple's own shipments growing 22 percent. In total, close to 42 million smart watches were shipped in the first half of 2020.

By shipment volume, the Apple Watch Series 5 was the best selling smart watch worldwide in the first half of 2020, followed by the more affordable Apple Watch Series 3. The Huawei Watch GT2 and the Galaxy Watch Active 2 were the number three and four best selling watches, respectively.

"Apple continued to dominate the smartwatch market both in volume and value. Apple captured a record half of the market in terms of revenue due to strong demand for the Apple Watch S5 models. In terms of shipment volumes, Apple Watch grew 22% globally with Europe and North America being the fastest growing markets in the first half of 2020."

Counterpoint Research expects that fall detection and SPO2 will be two key features that will see mass adoption in future smart watch models. Apple has already implemented fall detection, and rumors have suggested that blood oxygen monitoring could be a feature included in the Apple Watch Series 6.

Blood oxygen monitoring would allow the Apple Watch to measure the amount of oxygen in the blood, as this reading can be helpful to know whether to seek immediate medical attention.

Apple quietly acquired Israeli photography startup Camerai around a year and a half ago for several tens of millions of dollars, with many of its employees joining Apple's computer vision team in Israel, according to Calcalist. A separate source confirmed the story to TechCrunch, but Apple has yet to offer an official statement.

The report claims that Camerai developed photography-related technologies, including advanced capabilities in deep learning and computer vision, that have already become "a significant part of every Apple camera" and "made life easier for developers who wanted to include AR capabilities in their various apps."

TechCrunch listed some of these technologies:

Its tech included the ability to detect different objects in the picture, and outline them with precision to alter them cosmetically; the ability to outline and apply filters across the whole image; a "skeleton tracking" neural network API that could detect and draw body joints in real time overlaid on a picture of a human; and its own version of selective focus for enhanced portrait modes…

Originally named Tipit, the company was founded in 2014 by Aaron Wetzler, Erez Tal, Jonathan Rimon, and Moty Kosharovsky.

Less than a month after LG's UltraFine 5K Display became unavailable to order on Apple's online store, its smaller UltraFine 4K Display counterpart has also gone out of stock in several countries, such as the United States, Canada, and Australia. The display remains available to order in the United Kingdom for now.

While it is possible that the UltraFine 4K is being discontinued, the fact that the product page remains live on Apple's website suggests that LG may be facing supply issues. The UltraFine 5K also remains unavailable from Apple.

Introduced in May 2019, the UltraFine 4K features a 23.7-inch display with a 3,840 x 2,160 pixels resolution, two Thunderbolt 3 ports, three downstream USB-C ports, up to 500 nits brightness, P3 wide color gamut support, and built-in stereo speakers. The display was priced at $699.95 on Apple's online store in the United States.

The original UltraFine 4K featured a 21.5-inch display with a 4,096 x 2,304 pixels resolution prior to being discontinued last year.

Apple continues to sell its high-end, 32-inch Pro Display XDR with a 6K resolution for $4,999.

Mophie today announced three new portable batteries and a new wireless charging stand, all compatible with Apple devices like the MacBook Pro, iPad, and iPhone, and available to purchase today.

The portable batteries include the new Powerstation (10,000 mAh, $49.95) and Powerstation XXL (20,000 mAh, $59.95). The former device can charge two devices simultaneously through one USB-A port and one USB-C port, while the latter can charge three devices at once through two USB-A ports and one USB-C port.

Both accessories support USB-C fast charging at up to 18W output, letting users gain up to 50 percent battery on their ‌iPhone‌ in under 30 minutes. They also both have a premium fabric finish and textured perimeter to help prevent scuffs and scratches. As with most Mophie products, the integrated four-light LED shows current battery life.

The third mobile battery is the Powerstation Wireless XL ($69.95), which includes a 10,000 mAh battery and built-in wireless charging with any Qi-supported smartphone. There's also a USB-A port and USB-C port for wired charging. This device also has a premium fabric finish and four-light LED power indicator on the side.

Lastly, the Powerstation Wireless Stand ($99.95) supports both wired and wireless charging of Qi compatible smartphones. This accessory has a battery capacity of 8,000 mAh and up to 10W of wireless power output, an 18W USB-C power delivery port, and one USB-A port. It includes an ultrasuede finish and can hold an ‌iPhone‌ at an angle, or be folded flat.

If you want to use it as a wired charger, you can simply keep the Powerstation Wireless Stand plugged in at your desk or bedside table. Once it's fueled up, you can unplug the device and use it wirelessly as a portable battery pack, and it supports simultaneous charging of up to three devices with its two extra ports.

Head to ZAGG's website to find more information on the new Mophie products.

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

Another class-action complaint has been lodged against Apple, which claims that the company was aware of a MacBook Pro design flaw that caused some devices to have backlight display issues (via Apple Insider).

The so-called "flexgate" problem was present in some ‌MacBook Pro‌ models manufactured between 2016 and 2017. The problem appears as dark patches along the bottom of the ‌MacBook Pro‌'s display. Some users reported that opening their ‌MacBook Pro‌ beyond a certain angle turns off the screen entirely. iFixit discovered that this was because the delicate flex cable which connects to the bottom of the display could wear out and break over time.

The issue has been the subject of multiple lawsuits against Apple, with the last one being filed in May. Since the issue often takes time to manifest, the affected ‌‌MacBook Pro‌‌ units can be outside of Apple's one-year warranty period when they start exhibiting symptoms, resulting in an out-of-warranty repair fee of up to $850.

Apple seemingly fixed the issue by extending the length of the flex cable by 2mm in the 2018 ‌MacBook Pro‌. It also launched a free repair program in May 2019, but the program only applies to 13-inch ‌MacBook Pro‌ models released in 2016.

The first class action lawsuit sought restitution for all costs attributable to repairing or replacing the affected ‌MacBook Pro‌ units, and called for Apple to expand its repair program to cover the 15-inch ‌MacBook Pro‌. The proposed class was defined as all persons within the United States who purchased a 2016 or newer ‌MacBook Pro‌.

"Apple was aware of the issues with the backlight screen and the defective flex cable, in light of the comments posted by consumers on Apple's discussion forum and that those comments were deleted after they were posted," the new lawsuit reads.

The second class-action complaint argues for violation of competition, false advertising, and consumer fraud laws. Apple is also accused of violation of the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, and breach of express and implied warranty, in addition to fraudulent concealment and unjust enrichment.

Plaintiffs are seeking a range of relief measures, damages, and court fees. They also hope a judgment will compel Apple to identify and declare all defective MacBook Pros. As there are now two cases against Apple due to "flexgate," both of which are filed with the Northern District of California, it is likely that the cases will eventually be consolidated into one.

VMware today is announcing Fusion 12, the next major update to Fusion, its virtualization software that allows users to run a variety of operating systems on virtual machines within macOS.

Fusion 12 brings several new updates and improvements, including eGPU compatibility, support for container-based applications built with Kubernetes, DirectX 11 and OpenGL 4.1 support, improved security for the sandbox rendering engine, improved accessibility controls, and more.

VMware has also prepared Fusion 12 for the upcoming launch of macOS Big Sur, which will continue Apple's transition toward ending support for kernel extensions. VMware says that Fusion 12 will continue to run with kernel extensions on macOS Catalina, but will also support macOS Big Sur by using Apple's APIs to run its virtual machines and containers.

Finally, with this new version of Fusion, VMware is also shaking up its pricing with a new Fusion 12 Player licensing structure that is free for personal use. Fusion 12 Player users who want to use the software for commercial use will be able to purchase a license for $149, with an upgrade license available for $89 to those currently running Fusion 10 or 11.

A professional-level Fusion 12 Pro offers some additional power-user features and allows you to run on up to three devices (including Windows or Linux PCs running VMware's Workstation Pro), with pricing set at $199 for a new license or $99 as an upgrade. Discounted educational pricing will also be available for Fusion 12, although many students will also be able to take advantage of the free personal use license.

Users who purchased Fusion 11.5 or Fusion 11.5 Pro after June 15 will be eligible for a free upgrade to Fusion 12 Player (commercial license) or Fusion 12 Pro.

VMware hasn't yet announced a specific launch date for Fusion 12 Player and Fusion 12 Pro, other than a general timeframe of later this fiscal quarter, which runs through October for VMware. They will be available through VMware's online store and other outlets.

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

Western Digital today launched a new USB 3.2 Gen 2 My Passport SSD under its WD brand, with the new device equipped with NVMe technology that supports read speeds of up to 1050MB/s and write speeds of up to 1000MB/s.

The new My Passport SSD is available in capacities up to 2TB, and like most SSDs, it's small enough to fit in the palm of a hand. It features a metal casing with rounded corners and waved ridges, and it comes in gray, blue, red, and gold.

The My Passport SSD's casing offers shock and vibration resistance, and it is drop resistant up to 6.5 feet. It ships with a USB-C cable and a USB-A adapter, and works with both Mac and PC out of the box.

According to Western Digital, the new My Passport SSD can transfer content twice as fast as the previous version of the drive, and it features password-enabled 256-bit AES hardware encryption.

The My Passport SSD can be purchased from select retailers like Amazon and Best Buy starting today. The 500GB model is priced at $120, while the 1TB model is priced at $190. Other capacities will be available later in the year.

Porsche has collaborated with Apple to bring Apple Music to the upcoming "Taycan". This is the first-ever full integration of ‌Apple Music‌ in any vehicle.

Via the Taycan's "Advanced Cockpit" touchscreen display, ‌Apple Music‌ subscribers can stream over 60 million songs, thousands of playlists, and any ‌Apple Music‌ radio stations. Porsche is offering a complimentary six-month ‌Apple Music‌ subscription with the Taycan, and three years of in-car data streaming.

"Porsche and Apple Music fit perfectly – we share common values, and the same relentless attitude to user experience, to quality engineering, to design, and to innovation," said Detlev von Platen, Member of the Executive Board for Sales and Marketing at Porsche AG. "Together, we bring innovative digital entertainment technologies in our high-performance sports cars, starting with our fully electric Taycan."

Apple's collaboration with Porsche has allowed for a range of unique features to come to the Taycan. The custom Porsche voice assistant will be able to request songs, playlists, or radio stations from ‌Apple Music‌. ‌Apple Music‌ features, such as creating custom radio stations from any song, will also be available through the Advanced Cockpit user interface.

‌Apple Music‌ has digitally mastered songs specially for the Taycan's Burmester high-end surround sound system, resulting in "studio-quality sound." There will also be access to exclusive ‌Apple Music‌ playlists curated by Porsche.

The Porsche Taycan is the company's first fully electric vehicle and will launch next month. The vehicle will come with Apple CarPlay and Siri voice control as standard. ‌Apple Music‌ integration is expected to come to other Porsche models in the future.

Update: Porsche's press release is actually from 2019, but the company mistakenly republished it briefly with today's date.

Enterprising eBay sellers are hoping people who are desperate to play Fortnite will pay high prices for iPhones with the game installed, and there are currently hundreds of iPhone listings on eBay advertising the Fortnite app as a purchase perk.

Many of the prices listed are astronomical, ranging from over $1,000 to up to $10,000 (as noted by Business Insider), but there are some devices available that are reasonably priced. Unsurprisingly, few of the iPhones priced at thousands of dollars have bids, as most people don't appear that desperate to play Fortnite on a mobile device at this time.

There's one ‌iPhone‌ 8 with Fortnite installed that has two bids over $4,000, but those are most likely fake bids. An iPhone SE 2020 with Fortnite is currently priced at $345, which is reasonable, and there's an ‌iPhone‌ XS with Fortnite that's going for $233 at the current time. Given the myriad other ways to play Fortnite, most of these eBay sellers likely won't see purchases.

Apple last week pulled Fortnite from the App Store after Fortnite creator Epic Games introduced an option to purchase in-game currency using a direct payment method, skirting Apple's rules surrounding in-app purchases.

‌Epic Games‌ filed a pre-planned lawsuit after the app was pulled, and the conflict escalated from there. On Monday, Apple sent Epic a letter threatening to terminate all of its developer accounts by August 28, prompting another lawsuit from Epic to attempt to stop that from happening.

Apple has said that it plans to revoke ‌Epic Games‌' access to the App Store and all app development tools, including those used for the Unreal Engine that ‌Epic Games‌ makes available to third-party developers. In response to Epic's second lawsuit, Apple said that it has no plans to "make an exception" for ‌Epic Games‌.

Apple has also made it clear that Fortnite can be returned to the ‌App Store‌ as soon as ‌Epic Games‌ agrees to follow Apple's ‌App Store‌ rules and policies, but it's not known if and when Epic might cave. Right now, Fortnite continues to offer the direct payment purchase option for in-game currency that violates Apple's rules. Regardless of whether Epic makes an effort to get Fortnite back into the ‌App Store‌, the legal battle that has kicked off could span years.

Epic is hoping to recruit a "coalition of Apple critics" to stand with it to fight Apple's ‌App Store‌ policies, which are already under scrutiny as part of an antitrust investigation in the United States.

While the fight between Apple and Epic rages on, Fortnite continues to be playable on any ‌iPhone‌ or iPad that had the game installed before the app was pulled from the ‌App Store‌, hence all the eBay listings. It is also still available on Android devices (though it was pulled from the Google Play store), Macs, PCs, and consoles from Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft.

Apple is planning to make a donation to help wildfire relief efforts in California, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced this afternoon.

Fire season in California kicked off earlier this week when a lightning storm ignited fires across the state. Over the last 72 hours, California has experienced close to 11,000 lightning strikes, which have sparked 367 known fires. Governor Gavin Newsom declared a statewide emergency yesterday.

Amid the fires, California is also battling an ongoing heat wave that has seen high temperatures and low humidity, conditions that contribute to fire spread. Many Californians in the Bay Area have been forced to evacuate their homes and air quality near Apple's headquarters in Cupertino has been affected by the fires.

California regularly experiences fires between August and November due to high winds and dry conditions. Apple has previously donated to wildfire relief efforts in 2017, 2018, and 2019.