Joe Rossignol

Mercedes-Benz has issued an internal announcement to U.S. dealers (via C450 AMG) that confirms CarPlay will be supported in a number of 2016 model year vehicles starting with December 1, 2015 or January 8, 2016 production or later. CarPlay can be controlled using the central controller or touchpad, if equipped, on supported Mercedes-Benz vehicles. Siri voice commands can be activated by...

Earlier this week, my coworker Juli Clover kickstarted our MacRumors Gift Guides with a list of items that she owns and loves, would love to receive or would love to gift to someone. Today, she passes the reins onto me. Our second gift guide this week is written by myself, Joe Rossignol, and is based on gifting an iPhone 6s on T-Mobile, including some of my personal favorite headphones and...

iFixit has completed a Smart Battery Case teardown, providing a closer look at the case's brushed aluminum inner shell, rechargeable lithium-ion battery and tiny logic board housing two Lightning connectors. The inner aluminum plate serves as a door for the battery compartment, which houses a 1,877 mAh battery (7.13 Whr) that more than doubles the iPhone 6s battery capacity of 1,715 mAh....

T-Mobile has announced a fourth "Un-carrier Unwrapped" holiday promotion that offers Verizon customers 12 months of Hulu's Limited Commercials plan for free, a value of $7.99 per month or $96 annually. The offer is valid for Verizon customers that switch any phone number to a T-Mobile Simple Choice postpaid plan between December 11 and December 17. Verizon customers who switch to T-Mobile...

Walmart today introduced its own mobile payments service called "Walmart Pay" built into its Walmart app on iOS and Android. The new Apple Pay competitor will roll out in select Walmart stores in the U.S. this month, followed by a nationwide launch within the first half of 2016. Walmart Pay's QR code-based checkout process will involve opening the Walmart app, selecting Walmart Pay,...

Apple CEO Tim Cook accepted the 2015 Ripple of Hope Award at the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights on Tuesday night, and gave a nearly twelve minute speech about the need for social change, reports Bloomberg. Tim Cook at the RFK Center for Justice and Human Rights (Image: Bloomberg) Cook, who spoke after Evercore's Roger Altman and Unesco ambassador Marianna Vardinoyannis, ...

Apple has published its annual Best of 2015 charts for the App Store, iTunes and iBooks Store, naming live video platform Periscope its App of the Year and Tomb Raider puzzler spinoff Lara Croft GO its Game of the Year. Enlight and Robinhood were selected as runner-ups for App of the Year, while strategy game Fallout Shelter and one-touch platformer Mr Jump finished second and third place...

Apple senior executive Eddy Cue has confirmed to BuzzFeed News that the company is developing a new Apple TV Remote app with full Siri Remote functionality on iPhone to be released in the first half of 2016.“We’re working on a new Apple TV remote app that will give you the full functionality of the Siri Remote on your iPhone,” Cue said. “We’re hoping to ship that in the first half of next year.”Ap...

Kantar Worldpanel has released new smartphone operating system market share data for the third calendar quarter of 2015, providing a regional breakdown of Android, iOS, BlackBerry, Windows Phone and other mobile platform adoption in the U.S., Europe, China, Japan and elsewhere during the three-month period ending October. In the U.S. market, Android led the third quarter with 62.8% market...

Deezer Music has announced that its iOS app will be updated today with CarPlay support, making the streaming music service's full catalog of 35 million songs available through Apple's in-dash software platform. CarPlay support will be limited to Premium+ and Elite paid subscribers. Deezer on CarPlay allows subscribers to listen to their favorite songs, albums, artists and playlists, choose a ...

Apple has confirmed that updating to iOS 9.2 should prevent an issue that caused some iPad Pros to become unresponsive after charging from continuing in the future. Shortly after the launch of the iPad Pro, some early adopters began complaining about an issue that caused the 12.9-inch tablet to become unresponsive after charging, requiring a hard restart to restore functionality. Apple...

Apple has released a new Lightning to SD Card Camera Reader with support for up to USB 3.0 speeds on iPad Pro, and USB 2.0 speeds on all other iPad and iPhone models, as spotted by iDownloadBlog. The dongle retails for $29 on the Apple Online Store in the U.S. and is available to ship for delivery within approximately one week. Last month, it was discovered that the iPad Pro's Lightning port...

French audio company Devialet has reached a partnership with Apple that will see its high-end Phantom speaker sold at the top fourteen Apple Stores in the U.S. starting today, reports TechCrunch. The 750-watt Phantom will sell for $1,990, while the 3000-watt Phantom Silver will cost $2,390, the same prices as purchasing either speaker directly from Devialet.The Phantom and Phantom Silver,...

Apple has announced that its 28th retail store in China opens Saturday, December 12 at 2:00 p.m. local time. The store will be located in the MixC shopping mall at 136 Minzu Avenue in Nanning's Qingxiu District. MixC shopping mall in Nanning, China (Image: WeekendNotes) The new store will be open between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. local time on Monday-Thursday and Sunday, with extended hours on...

Dropbox has announced that it will be shutting down popular email and photo sharing apps Mailbox and Carousel on February 26, 2016 and March 31, 2016 respectively. Dropbox originally acquired Mailbox in March 2013, and launched Carousel in April 2014. The company says it will be communicating directly with users of both apps in the coming days. Mailbox users will no longer be able to sign...

Apple supplier Japan Display plans to begin mass production of OLED displays for future iPhones in spring 2018, according to Japanese website Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun [Google Translate] (via GforGames). Japan Display executives are reportedly in negotiations with Apple about securing OLED orders for future iPhones, in an effort to compete with existing OLED panel suppliers Samsung Electronics and...

Google today acknowledged an ongoing issue causing a number of iPhone, iPad and Mac apps to display incorrect one-star ratings in its search results on the web, and confirmed that a fix should be implemented by early next week. "I'm happy to share that we've been working hard on providing a solution, and a new fix has been scheduled for the next release, which should be rolling out early...

Apple will begin trial production of a fifth-generation Apple TV in December 2015, with supplier Quanta Computer ramping up volume production in the first quarter of 2016, according to Taiwanese website DigiTimes. The report, citing "sources from Taiwan-based supply chain makers," claims the next-generation Apple TV will feature a new CPU that will "dramatically improve the device's hardware...

The latest data from market research firm IDC estimates Apple Watch sales totaled 3.9 million worldwide in the third quarter of 2015, making it the second most popular wearable device behind Fitbit fitness trackers during the three-month period ending September 30. Apple posted a slight increase from the previous quarter, mostly the result of additional markets and channels coming on line....

Flickr has published a 2015 Year in Review that again crowns the iPhone as the most popular camera, used for 42% of photos uploaded, based on EXIF data analysis. iPhones finished ahead of the Canon EOS, used for 27% of uploaded photos, and the Nikon D, used for 16% of uploaded photos. The photo sharing website's cameras page lists the iPhone 6 as the most popular camera in the Flickr...