Joe Rossignol

Apple today announced that AirPods Max with a USB-C port will be gaining support for lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio with a firmware update next month, alongside the release of iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, and macOS 15.4. For context, audio files are typically compressed to keep file sizes smaller. There are lossy compression standards like MP3, and Apple's own Advanced Audio Codec...

iOS 18.4 should be released to the general public next week. Apple today seeded the iOS 18.4 Release Candidate, which is typically the final beta version, barring the discovery of any major last-minute software bugs. iOS updates are typically released one week after the Release Candidate, and Apple says iOS 18.4 will be released in "early April," so the update should be out as early as...

In a blog post this week, software engineer Andrew Rossignol (my brother!) detailed how he managed to run generative AI on an old PowerBook G4. While hardware requirements for large language models (LLMs) are typically high, this particular PowerBook G4 model from 2005 is equipped with a mere 1.5GHz PowerPC G4 processor and 1GB of RAM. Despite this 20-year-old hardware, my brother was able...

Apple today announced it has committed up to 720 million yuan (nearly $100 million) towards accelerating the development of clean energy sources in China, as part of the company's goal of transitioning its supply chain to 100% renewable energy by 2030. The investment will go towards the second phase of the China Clean Energy Fund, which aims to add approximately 550,000 megawatt-hours of...

AirPods Max with a USB-C port are getting three new features next month, at no extra cost. Apple today announced that iOS 18.4 will add support for lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio to the AirPods Max when they are connected to an iPhone. An accompanying AirPods Max firmware update will also be required. As noted by 9to5Mac's Michael Burkhardt, this means the AirPods Max with a...

While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. iPhone 17 Pro's alleged design via Front Page Tech Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone...

Apple is reportedly working on a new Magic Mouse that will address a longstanding design flaw. While the Magic Mouse switched from Lightning to USB-C last year, the charging port is still located on the bottom of the mouse, which prevents it from being used while charging. This is only a minor inconvenience, as charging the mouse is a quick and infrequent process, but it sounds like Apple...

Apple is working on multiple new Apple Watch models with built-in cameras for release by 2027, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said Apple plans to add a camera in the screen area on a future Apple Watch Series model. On a future Apple Watch Ultra, he expects the camera to be on the right side of the watch, near the Digital Crown. Gurman does...

There might not be a plastic Apple Watch SE this year after all, according to the latest word from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said the plastic Apple Watch SE is now in "jeopardy" for two reasons: design and cost issues. "The design team doesn't like the look, and the operations team is finding it difficult to make the casing materially cheaper than...

The next iPhone and Apple TV models will have a common new feature, according to rumors. All four iPhone 17 models coming later this year will be equipped with an Apple-designed Wi-Fi 7 chip, according to Apple supply chain analysts Ming-Chi Kuo and Jeff Pu. A new Apple TV is also expected to be released this year, and it will also have an Apple-designed Wi-Fi chip, according to Bloomberg's...

Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today reiterated that the A20 chip in iPhone 18 models will be manufactured with TSMC's 2nm process. Kuo said TSMC's trial production of 2nm chips has now reached yields well above the 60-70% range. The yield refers to the percentage of functional chips that can be obtained per silicon wafer, which is essentially a large, circular disc of chips....

Apple continues to explore the idea of adding tiny cameras to future AirPods, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman briefly reiterated this possibility in his report this week about Apple executive Mike Rockwell becoming the new head of Siri development:Rockwell's experience with hardware also could help the company more deeply embed AI into its future devices. Already, the company is ...

A few years ago, the American automaker General Motors (GM) announced that it would be phasing out support for CarPlay and Android Auto in its new electric vehicles, in favor of its own software platform. It was a controversial decision, as many drivers who are in the market for a new vehicle consider CarPlay to be a must-have feature. Looking to capitalize on the situation, one GM...

Following the introduction of the iPhone 16e, new iPads and Macs, and some new accessories over the past month, what will Apple's next product announcement be? Based on rumors, a second-generation AirTag item tracker is likely next up. Last year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported that a new AirTag would be released around the middle of 2025. More recently, a leaker known as Kosutami claimed...

While the first iOS 19 beta is still more than two months away, there are already plenty of rumors about the upcoming software update. Below, we recap the key iOS 19 rumors so far. visionOS-Like Design In January, the YouTube channel Front Page Tech revealed a redesigned Camera app that is allegedly planned for iOS 19. According to Front Page Tech host Jon Prosser, the Camera app...

Apple is reportedly shaking up its executive ranks, shortly after it delayed the personalized Siri features that it previewed at WWDC last year. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said that Vision Pro chief Mike Rockwell will be taking over the Siri team at Apple, which until now was led by Apple's artificial intelligence chief John Giannandrea. Apple CEO Tim Cook has apparently "lost confidence" ...

Earlier this week, the investment firm GF Securities shared multiple research notes regarding Apple's future chips. In one of these notes, it said the A20 chip for the iPhone 18 series would be manufactured with TSMC's third-generation 3nm process, N3P, and in another it said that the chip would use TSMC's newer 2nm process N2. GF Securities is a large organization with many analysts, and it ...

Is Apple experiencing a "Vista-like drift into systemically poor execution?" That was a question posed by well-known technology analyst Benedict Evans, in a recent blog post covering Apple's innovation and execution, or seemingly lack thereof as of late. He is referring to Microsoft's Windows Vista operating system, which was widely criticized when it launched in 2007 due to software bugs,...

If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, Apple has a new perk for you, at no additional cost. The new perk is the ability to create invitations in the Apple Invites app for the iPhone, which launched in the App Store last month. In the Apple Invites app, iCloud+ subscribers can create invitations for any occasion, such as birthday parties, graduations, baby showers, and more. Anyone ...

Siri launched on the iPhone 4S all the way back in 2011, and yet it still struggles to answer some of the most basic questions. Daring Fireball's John Gruber today highlighted a recent post from a Reddit user who asked Siri what month it is, only for Siri to respond that it does not understand. This is a frustrating experience that many iPhone users are all too familiar with, as evidenced by ...