MacRumors

Apple this week announced that it has expanded its Independent Repair Provider Program to include Mac repairs. Apple has since outlined further details about the initiative in an internal document obtained by MacRumors.

The internal document states the following:

• Qualifying repair shops can gain access to Apple genuine parts, tools, and training starting August 17
• The program covers all Mac models
• The program is limited to out-of-warranty Mac repairs
• Examples of components eligible for repair include the display, logic board, and top case, the latter of which includes the keyboard, trackpad, speakers, and battery
• Participating repair shops must have Apple-certified technicians perform the repairs
• Participating repair shops are not permitted to offer whole-unit replacements for Macs
• Participating repair shops cannot ship Macs to an Apple repair center

Apple first launched the program for out-of-warranty iPhone repairs in the United States last year and expanded it to Canada and Europe last month. Apple's website has more details, but it has yet to be updated to reflect the inclusion of Mac repairs.

Update: Apple has also repriced several Mac repair parts for technicians. While some parts are now lower in price, several have increased by up to hundreds of dollars, such as 13-inch MacBook Pro displays.

Apple today released the fifth developer betas of iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 for testing purposes, updating and refining some of the new features that are included in the new software.

As the beta testing period goes on, changes get smaller and less notable, but we've highlighted the few new features that can be found in iOS 14 beta 5.

- Apple News Widget - The Apple News widget has a new option for a taller widget window that provides more space to display additional news stories. The size of the widget prevents it from being used on the Home Screen.

- Widget Privacy - For apps that use location, there's now a popup that asks if you want to allow widgets for those apps to also use your location data. Widgets can use location data for up to 15 minutes when activated, and the Location Services Privacy settings for apps now mention widgets.

- Alarm Clock Wheel - When setting an alarm in the Clock app, you can now use a finger to swipe through the clock wheel to set the time rather than having to type it in. It's much smaller than the wheel in iOS 13.6, and there's still an option to type a time.

- Exposure Notifications - The interface for Exposure Notifications has changed in iOS 14 beta 5. Tapping on "Turn on Exposure Notifications" brings up an option to choose a country, region, or state, and it will let you know if an Exposure Notification app is available for your area. This interface is different from the iOS 13.6 interface and the interface available in iOS 14 beta 4.

- Hidden Photo Albums - There's a new Hidden Album setting in photos that when turned on, causes the Hidden album in Photos to be hidden from the Albums list. The Hidden album remains available in the image picker.

- HomeKit Control Center - HomeKit favorites in Control Center now feature smaller tiles and smarter organization that provides access to more shortcuts at a tap.

- Widget Fixes - The Weather widget is fixed and updates at more appropriate intervals, and widgets are now blocked for Screen Time when a parent app is blocked.

- Battery Charge - In the Settings app under Battery, the Last Charge Level section has been tweaked a bit. Rather than displaying the last charge level over to the right of the interface, it's now displayed with the Last Charged wording to make it easier to see at a glance.

- Spatial Audio Video - In the iOS 14 beta 5 code, there's a visualization of how the spatial audio feature for the AirPods Pro works. It's not clear where this video will be shown (perhaps in setup) and though the video is available, spatial audio has not yet been enabled.

Know of any other changes in iOS 14 beta 5 that we didn't list here? Let us know in the comments and we'll add them.

Apple today seeded the fifth betas of upcoming iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 updates to developers for testing purposes, two weeks after seeding the fourth betas and nearly two months after unveiling the new software at the WWDC keynote.

Registered developers can download the betas over the air after installing the proper profile from the Apple Developer Center.

iOS 14 introduces a redesigned Home Screen that supports widgets on iPhone for the first time, plus widgets have been redesigned and can now be customized in three sizes through the new widgets gallery.

An App Library shows all of the apps installed on an ‌iPhone‌ in one place, both in an icon view and in an alphabetical list. With all of the apps in the App Library, app icons and ‌Home Screen‌ pages can be hidden for a cleaner look.

Incoming phone calls and FaceTime calls no longer take up the entire ‌iPhone‌/iPad display, and Siri requests have also been minimized so summoning ‌Siri‌ doesn't monopolize the screen. ‌Siri‌ is smarter in iOS 14 and can send audio messages, and dictation can now run on device. A Picture in Picture mode allows users to watch videos or use ‌FaceTime‌ while using other apps.

App Clips lets users take advantage of some app features without needing to download a full app, useful for quick actions like purchasing a coffee, making a restaurant reservation, or renting a scooter, where downloading an entire app would be a hassle. App Clips can be scanned from QR codes, NFC tags, or Apple-designed App Clip Codes, plus they can be shared in Messages or accessed from Safari.

In the Messages app you can now pin important conversations, use @mentions in group chats, and take advantage of inline replies to keep multi-person conversations better organized. There are new Memoji options and group chats can be assigned icons with photos, emoji, or Memoji.

The Health app supports the Apple Watch's new Sleep Tracking feature and there's a Health Checklist for managing health settings, and in the Weather app, there's more info on precipitation and severe weather events.

Cycling directions are available in the Maps app with directions incorporating elevation, how busy a street is, and stairs, plus for those who own electric vehicles, there are options for routes with EV charging stops.

Digital Car Keys let an ‌iPhone‌ be used in lieu of a physical key, a feature that's coming soon to BMWs, and CarPlay now lets users set wallpapers.

A new translate app provides text and voice translations to and from 11 languages, and there are tons of new privacy protections. Developers need to get user permission before accessing devices on a local network, limiting access to photos, and providing apps with approximate locations instead of exact locations.

Safari has a Privacy Report that lets you know which websites have trackers, and there are new icons on the Home screen that let you know when an app is using a camera or microphone. Third-party browser and mail apps can be set as default for the first time, and Apple added new AirPods capabilities.

As for the ‌iPad‌, the Apple Pencil can now be used in any text field, with handwritten text converted automatically to typed text thanks to the new Scribble feature.

There are tons more features in iOS 14 and iPadOS 14, so make sure to check out our iOS 14 roundup and our iPadOS 14 roundup for a full list of everything new. We also highlight all of the new feature tweaks and changes introduced with each beta iteration, and you can see the changes from beta 2, beta 3, and beta 4 in our beta 2, beta 3, and beta 4 tidbits articles.

Beta 3 brought a new red Music icon, changes to the design of the Music Library in the Music app, a Clock widget, an updated Screen Time widget, while beta 4 added an Apple TV widget and improvements to search.

iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 are available to registered developers and public beta testers at this time. Beta testing for ‌iOS 14‌ will last for a couple of months, with the update set to be released in the fall alongside new iPhones.

Google today announced a major update for Google Maps, which will see the feature gaining more detail and granularity to better highlight natural features and terrain.

Google is introducing a new color-mapping algorithmic technique that can take the high-definition satellite imagery used for Google Maps and turn it into what Google says is a "comprehensive, vibrant map of an area at a global scale."

The updated Google Maps app will provide a better look at an area's natural features, making it easier to see beaches, lakes, rivers, oceans, vegetation, and even mountaintops. Color-mapping works by using computer vision to identify natural features from satellite imagery, which are then analyzed and assigned a range of colors.

According to Google, the new Google Maps design is available in all 220 countries and territories that Google Maps supports, and in the near future, there will also be more detailed views of roads for pedestrians.

Google Maps will provide accurate road shapes and widths, along with the locations of sidewalks, crosswalks, and pedestrian islands. Detailed street maps will be coming to London, New York, and San Francisco in the coming months and will expand to other cities later.

Apple has also been working to improve the detail shown in the Apple Maps app, and has rolled out redesigned Apple 2.0 Maps across the United States. This year, those mapping updates are also set to come to Canada, Ireland, and the UK.

The updated maps provide more detailed roads, buildings, parks, marinas, beaches, airports, and more, to make it easier to navigate areas with these features.

Samsung's answer to Apple Card, Samsung Pay Card, has launched in the UK.

Samsung has paired with Mastercard and fintech company "Curve" to power the new service. Curve allows users to link existing cards together and then decide which accounts should be used for different purchases. For reasons that are not entirely clear, existing Curve customers are ineligible to apply for Samsung Pay Card.

Curve offers some unique features, such as the ability to "go back in time" on purchases. For example, if you buy something on your credit card, and later decide that the purchase should have been made on a different card, you have up to 90 days to switch the purchase.

"Now, more than ever, people need a secure payment solution they can rely on. We're excited to be able to put the control back into our customers' hands, by launching Samsung Pay Card," said Conor Pierce, Corporate Vice-President of Samsung UK and Ireland. "At Samsung we believe in the power of innovation and, through our partnership with Curve, the Samsung Pay Card brings a series of pioneering features that will change the way that our customers manage their spending, with their Samsung smartphone and smartwatch at the heart of it. This is the future of banking and we look forward to continuing this journey with our customers."

Samsung Pay Card offers five percent cashback on purchases from Samsung, and one percent cashback at other retailers. It also offers instant spend notifications and currency conversion at market rates when traveling abroad, which Samsung claims will be cheaper than the currency conversion fees at many high street banks.

Payments are protected by "Samsung Knox" security, a "multi-layered defense-grade" security solution. In the event of a smartphone loss, access to Samsung Pay Card can be instantly locked using another device from the Samsung ecosystem.

Although Samsung Pay Card cashback rates are lower than that of ‌Apple Card‌, it is important to understand that the UK credit market generally has much lower rates of cashback than the U.S. due to lower merchant fees. A one percent cashback rate could be considered quite competitive within the UK. For comparison, the American Express Platinum Cashback card offers only 0.5 percent; one of the highest cashback rates in the country.

Unlike ‌Apple Card‌, Samsung Pay Card does not offer a physical card. It is a purely digital service available via NFC on Samsung smartphones and smartwatches. Although contactless payments in the UK are usually capped at £45, a spokesperson for Curve said that there is no spending limit on Samsung Card Pay.

Samsung Pay Card is currently only available in the UK, but a rollout elsewhere is likely at a later date. ‌Apple Card‌ has not yet launched outside of the U.S., meaning that Samsung has a captive market in the UK.

Apple today announced that it has renamed its Beats 1 radio station to Apple Music 1. The radio station can be accessed through the Radio tab in the Music app across the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and other devices, with no Apple Music subscription required.

Launched in 2015, the newly renamed Apple Music 1 is a 24-hour live radio station broadcast by Zane Lowe, Ebro Darden, and other DJs out of studios in Los Angeles, New York, Nashville, and London. Apple describes the station as "the center for pop culture conversation and artist-led programming, and the global destination for artists from around the world to release new music, break news, and speak directly to their fans."

Apple also announced that it is launching two additional live radio stations. "Apple Music Hits" will play popular songs from the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, while "Apple Music Country" will spotlight country music.

The battle royale continues between Epic Games and Apple.

In a statement shared with Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple said that "we won't make an exception for Epic because we don't think it's right to put their business interests ahead of the guidelines that protect our customers."

Apple said that "the problem Epic has created for itself is one that can be easily remedied" if Epic submits a version of the Fortnite app that does not offer a direct payment option for its in-game currency V-Bucks. Apple removed Fortnite from the App Store last week for offering players an alternative to its in-app purchase mechanism.

Apple's full statement:

The App Store is designed to be a safe and trusted place for users and a great business opportunity for all developers. Epic has been one of the most successful developers on the App Store, growing into a multibillion dollar business that reaches millions of iOS customers around the world. We very much want to keep the company as part of the Apple Developer Program and their apps on the Store. The problem Epic has created for itself is one that can easily be remedied if they submit an update of their app that reverts it to comply with the guidelines they agreed to and which apply to all developers. We won't make an exception for Epic because we don't think it's right to put their business interests ahead of the guidelines that protect our customers.

Read our Epic Games vs. Apple guide for an up-to-date timeline of the events surrounding Fortnite's removal from the App Store.

Apple worked with the U.S. government on a "secret" modified iPod, according to a new report by former Apple software engineer David Shayer published by TidBits.

Shayer explains that in 2005, he was asked by the director of iPod software to "help two engineers from the U.S. Department of Energy build a special iPod." The engineers were in fact contractors from Bechtel, a large U.S. defense contractor. Only four individuals at Apple were aware of the project at the time, none of whom still work at the company, and there was no paper trail as all communication occurred in person.

The team set about modifying an iPod to record data from added custom hardware. It still had to look and work like a normal iPod, with any additional data recorded to the iPod's hard disk needing to be undetectable. Shayer's main role in the project was to oversee any help needed by the Department of Energy from Apple. The contractors were given an office at Apple headquarters, and over several months they were taught how to navigate and change the early iPod operating system.

The specific modified device was a fifth-generation iPod, chosen for its easily-opening case and large 60 GB disk. It was also the final iPod for which Apple did not digitally sign the operating system, allowing for easier software modification.

The Department of Energy is responsible for U.S. nuclear weapons and nuclear power programs, and in 2005 its budget was $24.3 billion. $9 billion of this budget was intended to meet defense-related objectives such as nuclear deterrence.

Shayer never saw the additional hardware personally, but believes that the iPod was modified to function as a "stealth Geiger counter." He speculates that such a device would be extremely useful for the Department of Energy when conducting covert operations to gather evidence of radioactivity.

Oracle has expressed serious interest in acquiring TikTok, according to the Financial Times.

Oracle reportedly has already held preliminary talks with TikTok's China-based parent company, Bytedance, to explore the terms of an acquisition. Oracle is also believed to be working with venture capital firms including General Atlantic and Sequoia Capital to raise funds for a bid.

Serious interest from Oracle poses a potential threat to Microsoft's bid, which is currently regarded as the frontrunner. Microsoft has officially provided a formal proposal that would involve the purchase of TikTok's operations in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Twitter is also understood to be exploring an acquisition of TikTok, but there are serious questions around its ability to raise the necessary capital to do so.

Oracle is a multinational technology company focused on database software and cloud systems. Last year, Oracle was the world's second-largest software company by revenue and market capitalization, and it would likely be able to fund a potential acquisition of TikTok.

President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Friday demanding that ByteDance sells its U.S. operations within 90 days. The Financial Times noted that Oracle's billionaire co-founder Larry Ellison has been openly supportive of President Trump, but it is unclear whether this would consolidate Oracle as the White House's preferred choice.

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.

Epic Games, the company behind Fortnite that recently entered into a major dispute with Apple over App Store policies, is aiming to organize a wider opposition to Apple, reports The Information.

Epic over the course of the last few weeks has allegedly reached out to other tech executives with the hopes of forming a coalition of companies that are critical of Apple's business practices.

While Epic had preliminary discussions with Spotify, the music streaming company had not signed on to join Epic as of last week. Spotify did, however, weigh in on the dispute, applauding Epic's decision to "take a stand against Apple."

We applaud Epic Games' decision to take a stand against Apple and shed further light on Apple's abuse of its dominant position. Apple's unfair practices have disadvantaged competitors and deprived consumers for far too long. The stakes for consumers and app developers large and small couldn't be higher and ensuring that the iOS platform operates competitively and fairly is an urgent task with far-reaching implications.

The Information suggests that Epic could find it difficult to recruit companies to join it, even those who are privately sympathetic to its goals. An executive at a prominent video game company said that he supported pressuring Apple to lower its ‌App Store‌ commission rates, but worried that forming a coordinated effort could violate antitrust laws. It's also not known what role a broader anti-Apple group would have.

It isn't clear exactly what role a coalition would play, if Epic succeeds in forming one. Companies with concerns about Apple are already having informal discussions about their issues with other like-minded companies behind the scenes. One of the people aware of Epic's discussions with other companies described it as an apparent effort to coordinate public messaging about Apple.

Though Epic has not yet persuaded other companies to join it and speak out against Apple, Epic has launched a major fight over ‌App Store‌ policies. Last week, Epic introduced a direct payment option in Fortnite, purposefully skirting Apple's rules surrounding in-app purchases.

Apple responded as expected and removed the Fortnite app from the ‌App Store‌, after which ‌Epic Games‌ filed a pre-planned lawsuit against Apple accusing the company of being a "behemoth seeking to control markets, block competition, and stifle innovation."

Today, Apple sent Epic a letter threatening to terminate ‌Epic Games‌' entire access to the ‌App Store‌ and Apple's development tools, which would prevent Epic from optimizing the Unreal Engine for Mac and iOS hardware, thereby impacting third-party apps that use the Unreal Engine.

Apple plans to revoke access to all of Epic's developer accounts by August 28 if Epic does not comply with Apple's ‌App Store‌ guidelines, but Epic has filed an emergency lawsuit to attempt to get a court to prohibit Apple from shutting down its access to ‌App Store‌ tools.

Apple is extending the amount of time that customers have to purchase or subscribe to its AppleCare+ after an initial device purchase, reports Bloomberg.

Right now, customers have 60 days after buying a device to sign up for ‌AppleCare‌+, but that's extending to up to one year for some device purchases in the United States and Canada.

Bloomberg does not specify whether this applies to all ‌AppleCare‌+ plans or just plans designed for the iPhone. Apple's own support documents on AppleCare+ have not yet been updated.

Apple shared the news about the ‌AppleCare‌+ extension with retail staff and customer support employees this morning, explaining that the change gives customers "another opportunity to protect their device and have access to all the ‌AppleCare‌+ benefits."

The extended ‌AppleCare‌+ purchase option is available for customers who pay for ‌AppleCare‌+ in full or for those who subscribe via installments on the Apple Card credit card. Those who want to upgrade to ‌AppleCare‌+ after having a device for some time will need to have their devices screened by a retail employee to check for damage prior to purchase.

Bloomberg speculates that amid slowing ‌AppleCare‌ sales due to the pandemic, providing customers with more time to buy ‌AppleCare‌+ could increase ‌AppleCare‌+ sales and boost Apple's services revenue.

Apple is planning to terminate Epic Games' entire access to its App Store and app development tools, ‌Epic Games‌ said today. Apple told Epic that by August 28, all access will be ended.

That includes Epic's access to the development tools necessary to create software for the Unreal Engine that Epic offers to third-party developers for their games. In response, Epic has filed a court order asking a Northern California court to stop Apple from removing Epic's ‌App Store‌ access. [PDF] From the filing:

It told Epic that by August 28, Apple will cut off Epic's access to all development tools necessary to create software for Apple's platforms--including for the Unreal Engine Epic offers to third-party developers, which Apple has never claimed violated any Apple policy.

Cutting off Epic's access to Mac and iOS developer tools could have a significant impact on all of the apps and games that use Epic's Unreal Engine. Apple in its letter to ‌Epic Games‌ letting it know about the upcoming account closures says that Epic can avoid having its access revoked by following Apple's ‌App Store‌ guidelines. From Apple's letter to Epic:

Upon further review of the activity associated with your Apple Developer Program membership, we have identified several violations of the Apple Developer Program License Agreement. Therefore, your Apple Developer Program account will be terminated if the violations set forth below are not cured within 14 days. [...]

If your membership is terminated, you may no longer submit apps to the App Store, and your apps still available for distribution will be removed. You will also lose access to the following programs, technologies, and capabilities:

- All Apple software, SDKs, APIs, and developer tools
- Pre-release versions of iOS, iPad OS, macOS, tvOS, watchOS
- Pre-release versions of beta tools such as Reality Composer, Create ML, Apple Configurator, etc.
- Notarization service for macOS apps
- App Store Connect platform and support (for example, assistance with account transition, password reset, app name issues)
- TestFlight
- Access to provisioning portal for certificate generation, and provisioning profile generation
- Ability to enable Apple services in-app (i.e. Apple Pay, CloudKit, PassKit, Music Kit, HomeKit, Push Notifications, Siri Shortcuts, Sign in with Apple, kernel extensions, FairPlay Streaming)
- Access to Apple-issued keys for connecting to services such as MusicKit, DeviceCheck, APNs, CloudKit, Wallet
- Access to Developer ID signing certificates and Kernel Extension signing certificates
- Developer Technical Support
- Participation in Universal App Quick Start Program, including the right to use the Developer Transition Kit (which must be returned to Apple)
- Engineering efforts to improve hardware and software performance of Unreal Engine on Mac and iOS hardware; optimize Unreal Engine on the Mac for creative workflows, virtual sets and their CI/Build Systems; and adoption and support of ARKit features and future VR features into Unreal Engine by their XR team

We hope that you are able to cure your breaches of the Apple Program License Agreement and continue to participate in the program.

Epic is asking the court to prevent Apple from taking "any adverse action" against it, including restricting, suspending, or terminating Epic's access to the Apple Developer program. Epic also asks that the court restrain Apple from removing, de-listing, refusing to list, or otherwise making the Fortnite app unavailable, or modifying the Fortnite code.

The dispute between Apple and Epic kicked off last week when Epic made a calculated decision to defy Apple's ‌App Store‌ rules and introduce a direct payment option for in-game currency in Fortnite, skirting Apple's in-app purchase system.

Apple swiftly responded by removing the Fortnite app from the ‌App Store‌, prompting ‌Epic Games‌ to file a pre-planned lawsuit against Apple accusing the Cupertino company of being a "the behemoth seeking to control markets, block competition, and stifle innovation" and imposing "anti-competitive restraints" and using "monopolistic practices in markets" against ‌‌App Store‌‌ developers.

Epic also released an anti-Apple video based on Apple's famous 1984 ad, which encourages people to "join the fight to stop 2020 from becoming 1984."

At this point in time, Fortnite remains unavailable from the ‌App Store‌, and barring court intervention or a decision to comply with the rules, all of Epic's developer accounts will be terminated at the end of the month.

Adobe holds an annual event called Adobe MAX each year to highlight new Adobe software releases for design and advertising professionals. Adobe MAX normally takes place in person, but like many events, the 2020 conference will be held digitally from October 20 to October 22.

Adobe MAX 2020 is a free event for everyone who wants to attend, and registration is open as of today. Those interested in signing up for Adobe MAX can do so on the Adobe website.

According to Adobe, there will be 56 hours of "inspiration and learning," which will include live content demos, speakers, sneak peeks, celebrity appearances, and musical performances.

Special guests will include actor Keanu Reeves, filmmaker Ava DuVernay, photographer Annie Leibovitz, and recording artist Tyler, the Creator.

Those who register will be entered into a sweepstakes to win a free MAX t-shirt and can begin crafting a schedule for virtual events they want to attend. Registering also provides access to instructor files and presentation downloads and an opportunity to engage with Adobe product experts.