Apple Products

Apple is planning a major MacBook redesign for Q3 of 2021. The most significant changes include removing the OLED Touch Bar favouring physical keys, replacing the USB-C charging port for a proprietary MagSafe connector, a wider range of ports and squared off sides to match their iPad Pro and iPhone 12. These changes are coming to the 14 inch and 16 inch MacBook Pro models. These will contain Apple's own Arm processors, with no Intel options.

Apple has introduced its new noise-cancelling over-ear headphones, the AirPods Max. The AirPods MAx come in five colours, silver, space grey, sky blue, green and pink and are priced at $549, with availability beginning Tuesday, December 15.

“AirPods are the most popular headphones in the world, beloved for their effortless setup, incredible sound quality, and iconic design. With AirPods Max, we are bringing that magical AirPods experience to a stunning over-ear design with high-fidelity audio,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “The custom acoustic design, combined with powerful H1 chips, and advanced software enable AirPods Max to use computational audio to wirelessly deliver the ultimate personal listening experience.”

At 10AM (PST) today, 10 November, Apple unveiled their newest chip for their Mac products. Called the M1, this chip is the first to be designed by the Silicon Valley company.

In the video, introduced by Tim Cook, members of staff go in to detail about how the chip is formed, and which out of their Mac lineup will be the first to use the chip.

The 3 products announced as using the M1 chip are:

• Apple MacBook Air 13in (which also no longer has a fan inside)

• Apple Mac Mini - the company's desktop computer

• Apple MacBook Pro 13in

All devices come with impressive new optimisations in the battery and speed departments. The new devices are available to pre-order now, and will be delivered starting 17 November.

They also announced that the newest software update for their Macs (macOS Big Sur) will finally launch on 12 November, after what some people say has been one of the longest times between announcement and launch.

Apple has announced its last event for the year. Set for 10 am PST on November 10th, the event called "One More Thing" is presumed to introduce the company's first Arm-based Macs running on Apple Silicon chips instead of Intel processors.

Apple today introduced the $99 HomePod Mini, its new smart speaker "that delivers impressive sound, the intelligence of Siri to get things done, and a smart home experience that offers comfort and convenience without complexity."

The new device comes in white, and space grey colors and shipping starts the week of November 16.

During Tuesday's Apple Event, the company introduced four new phones: iPhone 12, the 12 mini, the 12 Pro and the 12 Pro Max, with 5G technology, "ushering in a new era for the world’s best smartphone." The iPhone 12 models also introduce MagSafe, a "high-powered wireless charging and an all-new ecosystem of accessories that easily attach to iPhone."

iPhone 12 starts at $799 and will be available for preorder on October 16 while shipping starts on October 23.

Apple has announced an Apple Event for October 13 at 10 am local pacific time which will be online only like the company's last two events. Even though the invitation sent to the press had made no explicit reference to the iPhone 12, it's rumoured that the company will announce their new smartphone during the event.

Apple has filed a patent to the United States Patent and Trademark Office for a foldable iPhone with a "self-healing" screen that could "heal" itself from scratches and dents "automatically." The patent called "Electronic Devices With Flexible Display Cover Layers" was filed earlier this year, but was only just made public, according to 9to5mac.com.

"During the operation of an electronic device, the display cover layer for the electronic device may be scratched or dented. To improve the aesthetics of the electronic device, it may be desirable for the presence of scratches and dents to be minimized. To help mitigate the number of dents, scratches, or other imperfections in a display cover layer, the display cover layer may include a layer of self-healing material," the patent reads.

US Customs and Border Protection tweeted that officers at John F Kennedy International Airport had "recently seized 2,000 counterfeit Apple AirPods from Hong Kong, valued at $398K had they been genuine."

The box from the tweet picture states that the product is from OnePlus and not Apple, but according to a CBP spokesperson: "Upon examining the shipment in question, a CBP Import Specialist determined that the subject earbuds appeared to violate Apple's configuration trademark."

Epic tweeted on Monday that Apple has threatened to cut off its access to all Apple developer tools, for iOS and Mac. The developer said Apple would terminate all of its development tools accesses on August 28.

Epic has filed for a preliminary injunction against Apple, saying the company will be "irreparably harmed long before final judgment comes" if it does not obtain the injunction. Epic also asked for Fortnite — with its lowered prices and alternate payment option — to be returned to the App Store.

Apple announced Tuesday that its marketing boss Phil Schiller will step down from his role and serve as an “Apple Fellow” running the App Store and company events. Greg Joswiak will replace Schiller as Vice President of Worldwide Marketing.

"Phil has helped make Apple the company it is today and his contributions are broad, vast, and run deep. In this new role, he will continue to provide the incredible thought partnership, and guidance that have defined his decades at Apple," said Tim Cook in a press release.

Telegram, the messaging app, filed a formal antitrust complaint to the EU over Apple’s App Store. The company joins Spotify and Rakuten in complaining the app store represents a monopoly power, given that developers have to accept Apple’s terms, including a 30 per cent commission on in-app purchases.

In its complaint, Telegram took issue with Apple’s argument that the App Store commission keeps it running. Pavel Durov, Telegram founder, stated "Every quarter, Apple receives billions of dollars from third-party apps. Meanwhile, the expenses required to host and review these apps are in the tens of millions, not billions of dollars. We know that because we at Telegram host and review more public content than the App Store ever will".

During Apple'2 Q3 2020 earnings call, Apple CFO Luca Maestri revealed that the company is planning to launch the next iPhones "a few weeks later." Maestri didn't give a reason for the delay but it's assumed it's due to the impact of Covid-19.