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Television

Apple Rolls Back Its Big Plans to Release Movies in Theaters (bloomberg.com) 35

An anonymous reader shares a report: Apple is rethinking its movie strategy after the disappointing box office performance of several big-budget films, including Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon, Napoleon, Argylle and Fly Me to the Moon. Apple canceled plans to release Wolfs -- an action comedy starring George Clooney and Brad Pitt -- in thousands of theaters globally. Instead, the picture made its debut in a limited number of venues before it became available on the Apple TV+ streaming service on Sept. 27. Apple plans to use a similar approach with the next few titles on its calendar, including the World War II drama Blitz. Apple, which previously had intended to spend about $1 billion annually on blockbusters for cinemas, won't return to the big screen with a wide, global theatrical release until June with F1 -- a film starring Pitt as a former Formula One driver who returns to racing to mentor a rising star.

[...] Apple is pulling back from theaters at the same time Netflix Inc. and Amazon are reworking their movie strategies. Earlier this year, Netflix hired producer Dan Lin to oversee its film studio, which had spent billions of dollars a year to produce more films than any other company in Hollywood. Yet Netflix struggled to control the quality and cost of its slate, which in some years approached 50 movies. For every hit, such as Bird Box, there were several misses. Lin's predecessor Scott Stuber also clashed with management over its strategy for movie theaters. Stuber wanted to release movies such as Scorsese's The Irishman and the Knives Out sequel Glass Onion widely in cinemas, but he couldn't persuade Netflix co-Chief Executive Officer Ted Sarandos. Lin aims to make fewer movies and develop more projects in-house to keep costs down. He has considered scrapping several of the more expensive projects in development at Netflix.

Apple

Apple Quietly Removed 60 More VPNs From Russian App Store (theregister.com) 46

Apple has pulled 60 VPNs from its App Store in Russia, according to research from anti-censorship org GreatFire. From a report: The iThing-maker's action comes amid a Kremlin crackdown on VPNs that has already seen a ban on privacy-related extensions to the open source Firefox browser. The software's developer, Mozilla, defied that ban and allowed the extensions back into its web store. In July, Apple removed at least one VPN from its Russian App Store. Cupertino removed at least 60 more between early July and September 18, according to research by GreatFire posted to its site that tracks Apple censorship. The org's research asserts that 98 VPNs are now unavailable in Russia -- but doesn't specify if the removals were made in the iOS or macOS app stores.
Iphone

The End of the iPhone Upgrade? 96

An anonymous reader shares a New Yorker story: Ultimately, the iPhone 16 does little to meaningfully improve on the experience I had with the 12, besides, perhaps, charging with a USB-C, as my laptop does, cutting down on the number of cords I have to keep track of. Instead, the greatest leaps in Apple's hardware are largely directed at those niche users who are already invested in using tools such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality. The company has announced that, within a month or so, the new phones will be able to operate its proprietary artificial-intelligence system, which means that users may soon be relying on A.I. to perform daily personal tasks, like navigating their calendars or responding to e-mails. The 15 and 16 Pros can take three-dimensional photos, designed for V.R., using the Apple Vision Pro. Thus far, I don't use A.I. tools or V.R. with any frequency and have no intention of doing so on my iPhone.

The fact that I do not need an iPhone 16 is a testament not so much to the iPhone's failure as to its resounding success. A lot of the digital software we rely on has grown worse for users in recent years; the iPhone, by contrast, has become so good that it's hard to imagine anything but incremental improvements. Apple's teleological phone-design strategy may have simply reached its end point, the same way evolution in nature has repeatedly resulted in an optimized species of crab. Other tech companies, meanwhile, are embracing radical departures in phone design. Samsung offers devices that fold in half, creating a smaller screen that's useful for minor tasks, such as texting, and a larger one for watching videos; Huawei is upping the ante with three folds. The BOOX Palma has become a surprise hit as a smartphone-ish device with an e-ink screen, similar to Amazon's Kindle, which uses physical pixels in its display. Dumbphones, too, are growing more popular by intentionally doing less. Apple devices, by contrast, remain effective enough that they can afford to be somewhat static.
Iphone

iPhone's 80% Charge Cap Barely Boosts Battery Life, Year-Long Test Reveals (macrumors.com) 79

A year-long test of Apple's 80% charge limit feature on the iPhone 15 Pro Max has revealed only marginal benefits to battery health. MacRumors editor Juli Clover reported her device maintained 94% battery capacity after 299 charge cycles, compared to 87-90% capacity for iPhones without the limit. The opt-in setting, introduced with iPhone 15 models, aims to extend battery longevity by restricting maximum charge.

Clover adhered strictly to the 80% limit for 12 months, noting occasional inconveniences like depleted batteries during long days. While the test showed slightly better battery health retention, Clover questioned whether the trade-off in daily usability was worthwhile. She adds: I don't have a lot of data points for comparison, but it does seem that limiting the charge to 80 percent kept my maximum battery capacity higher than what my co-workers are seeing, but there isn't a major difference. I have four percent more battery at 28 more cycles, and I'm not sure suffering through an 80 percent battery limit for 12 months was ultimately worth it. It's possible that the real gains from an 80 percent limit will come in two or three years rather than a single year, and I'll keep it limited to 80 percent to see the longer term impact.
Facebook

Zuckerberg Says Apple's Culture is Not Like Meta's (msn.com) 78

Meta and Apple have increasingly been rivals, and Mark Zuckerberg only expects their competition to intensify in the coming years. From a report: "I think in a lot of ways we're like the opposite of Apple," Zuckerberg said. "Clearly, their stuff has worked really well too. They take this approach that's like, 'We're going to take a long time, we're going to polish it, we're going to put it out,' and maybe for the stuff that they're doing that works, maybe that just fits with their culture."

Zuckerberg went on to say Meta approaches product releases differently, saying, "there are a lot of conversations that we have internally where you're almost at the line of being embarrassed at what you put out." "You want to really have a culture that values shipping and getting things out and getting feedback more than needing always to get great positive accolades from people when you put stuff out," he continued.

He also took the opportunity to critique Apple's approach. "If you want to wait until you get praised all the time, you're missing a bunch of the time when you could've learned a bunch of useful stuff and then incorporated that into the next version you're going to ship," he said. [...] Zuck said one of his goals for the next 10 or 15 years is "to build the next generation of open platforms and have the open platforms win."

The Almighty Buck

Apple, Google Wallets Now Support California Driver's Licenses (techcrunch.com) 60

Residents of California can now store their driver's license or state ID in Apple or Google Wallet, according to an announcement today. Apple also shared the news. TechCrunch reports: Californians with an ID in the Apple Wallet or Google Wallet app can use their mobile devices to present their ID in person at select TSA security checkpoints and businesses. They can also use the app to verify their age or identity in select apps. Other states that already support digital driver's licenses and state IDs include Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, and Ohio.
United States

Apple A16 SoC Now Manufactured In Arizona (appleinsider.com) 51

"Apple has begun manufacturing its A16 SoC at the newly-opened TSCM Fab 21 in Arizona," writes Slashdot reader NoMoreACs. AppleInsider reports: According to sources of Tim Culpan, Phase 1 of TSMC's Fab 21 in Arizona is making the A16 SoC of the iPhone 14 Pro in "small, but significant, numbers. The production is largely a test for the facility at this stage, but more production is expected in the coming months. The volume will ramp up massively once the second stage of the Phase 1 fab actually concludes. If everything stays on schedule, the Arizona plant will hit a target for production sometime in the first half of 2025.

Sources say TSMC is achieving yields that are marginally behind those of Taiwan-based factories. Yield parity is expected to happen within months. TSMC has also raised its investment and moved to build additional plants in Arizona, with three set to be constructed in total. The U.S. Commerce Department previously claimed this will create 6,000 direct manufacturing jobs, on top of an estimated 20,000 construction jobs.

Android

Apple and Google Diverge on Photography Philosophy (theverge.com) 41

Apple's VP of camera software engineering Jon McCormack has affirmed the company's commitment to traditional photography in an interview, contrasting with Google's "memories" approach for Pixel cameras. (A Google executive said last month of the AI usage in the pictures Pixel smartphone owners take: "What some of these edits do is help you create the moment that is the way you remember it, that's authentic to your memory and to the greater context, but maybe isn't authentic to a particular millisecond.") The Verge: I asked Apple's VP of camera software engineering Jon McCormack about Google's view that the Pixel camera now captures "memories" instead of photos, and he told me that Apple has a strong point of view about what a photograph is -- that it's something that actually happened. It was a long and thoughtful answer, so I'm just going to print the whole thing:

"Here's our view of what a photograph is. The way we like to think of it is that it's a personal celebration of something that really, actually happened.

"Whether that's a simple thing like a fancy cup of coffee that's got some cool design on it, all the way through to my kid's first steps, or my parents' last breath, It's something that really happened. It's something that is a marker in my life, and it's something that deserves to be celebrated.

"And that is why when we think about evolving in the camera, we also rooted it very heavily in tradition. Photography is not a new thing. It's been around for 198 years. People seem to like it. There's a lot to learn from that. There's a lot to rely on from that.

"Think about stylization, the first example of stylization that we can find is Roger Fenton in 1854 -- that's 170 years ago. It's a durable, long-term, lasting thing. We stand proudly on the shoulders of photographic history."
Further reading: 'There is No Such Thing as a Real Picture,' Says Samsung Exec.
Operating Systems

Apple Pulls iPadOS 18 For M4 iPad Pro After Bricking Complaints (macrumors.com) 23

Apple's iPadOS 18 update is no longer available after some iPad Pro owners found that it bricked their devices. MacRumors reports: There are reports on Reddit from iPad Pro users who had an interruption in the installation process, leading to an iPad that refused to turn on. A total replacement was required for affected users. Not all M4 iPad Pro owners have had an issue installing the update, and it could be linked to installing the new iOS 17.7 update before installing iOS 18. Apple will make the software available again when the underlying problem has been addressed.
Android

iOS 18 Rolling Out RCS To the iPhone For Better Android Messaging (9to5google.com) 23

Apple today is rolling out iOS 18, introducing support for Rich Communications Services (RCS) to enhance messaging between iPhone and Android devices with features like typing indicators, read receipts, and higher resolution media. "However, there continues to be no end-to-end encryption (E2EE), with work towards that between Android and iOS continuing," notes 9to5Google. The feature will be enabled by default on iPhones with major U.S. carriers supported, but smaller MVNOs are not yet included.
Apple

Apple Charging 20% More To Replace Batteries in iPhone 16 Pro Models (macrumors.com) 39

Apple has increased its out-of-warranty battery replacement fee for iPhone 16 Pro models. From a report: Apple Stores can replace the battery inside an iPhone 16 Pro or iPhone 16 Pro Max for $119 in the U.S., which is up from $99 for the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. This is a 20% increase to the fee, which includes the cost of a new battery and service by an Apple Store. The fee may vary at third-party Apple Authorized Service Providers. The fee remains $99 for the standard iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus. Customers with AppleCare+ can still get an iPhone 16 Pro battery replaced for free, but only if the battery retains less than 80% of its original capacity.

Apple says all four iPhone 16 models are equipped with larger batteries, and all of the devices received an internal redesign for improved heat dissipation, according to the company. A metal enclosure was rumored for at least some iPhone 16 batteries, but we are still waiting for teardowns to get a proper look inside of the devices.

Iphone

iPhone 16 Pro Demand Has Been Lower Than Expected, Analyst Says (macrumors.com) 68

Ming-Chi Kuo, a high-profile and reliable Apple analyst, says the demand for the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max has been "lower than expected" since the devices became available to pre-order in the U.S. and dozens of other countries on Friday. From a report: Kuo said his data is based on a "supply chain survey" and shipping estimates listed on Apple's online store. Kuo estimated that sales of all four iPhone 16 models reached about 37 million units in the first weekend after Apple began accepting pre-orders, which is down nearly 13% compared to first-weekend sales of the iPhone 15 series last year. The analyst said a key factor for the decline is the lower demand for the Pro models, with first-weekend sales of the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max estimated to be down 27% and 16%, respectively, compared to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max sales during the equivalent period last year.
Iphone

'I Don't Get Why Apple's Multitrack Voice Memos Require an iPhone 16 Pro' (engadget.com) 63

Apple unveiled a multitrack recording feature for Voice Memos at its recent iPhone event, exclusive to the iPhone 16 Pro. The feature allows users to layer vocals over guitar tracks without headphones, utilizing advanced microphone technology and machine learning algorithms to reduce ambient noise.

Engadget argues the feature's exclusivity to the new $1,000+ model is unnecessary, given modern smartphones' processing power far exceeds that of early digital audio workstations. They contend that basic multitrack recording functionality could be implemented on older iPhone models. Apple's decision to limit this feature contradicts its inclusion of GarageBand on all iPhones and the availability of Audio Mix on base iPhone 16 models, which offers similar noise reduction capabilities. The story adds: Why is this particular feature walled behind the iPhone 16 Pro? It's a simple multitrack recording function. From the ad, it looks like the app can't even layer more than two tracks at a time. This can't exactly be taxing that A18 Pro chip, especially when the phone can also handle 4K/120 FPS video recording in Dolby Vision.
Iphone

Apple Seeks To Drop Its Lawsuit Against Israeli Spyware Pioneer NSO (msn.com) 24

Apple asked a court Friday to dismiss its three-year-old hacking lawsuit against spyware pioneer NSO Group, arguing that it might never be able to get the most critical files about NSO's Pegasus surveillance tool and that its own disclosures could aid NSO and its increasing number of rivals. From a report: A redacted version of the filing in San Francisco federal court cited a July article in the Guardian, which reported that Israeli officials had taken files from NSO's headquarters. The newspaper said the officials asked an Israeli court to keep the action secret even from those involved in an earlier, still pending hacking suit against NSO filed by Meta's WhatsApp. Israeli ministry of justice communications that were hacked showed that officials were concerned about sensitive information reaching Americans, the newspaper said.

"While Apple takes no position on the truth or falsity of the Guardian Story described above, its existence presents cause for concern about the potential for Apple to obtain the discovery it needs," the iPhone maker wrote in its filing Friday. Israeli officials have not disputed the authenticity of the documents but have denied interfering in the U.S. litigation.

Medicine

FDA Approves Apple AirPods As Hearing Aids 39

The FDA on Thursday approved the first hearing aid software for Apple's latest AirPods Pro earbuds. According to Apple, the feature will be pushed to eligible devices through a software update in the coming weeks. The Washington Post reports: The move, which comes two years after the FDA first approved over-the-counter hearing aids, could help more Americans with hearing loss start getting help, the FDA said in a statement. The feature works by amplifying some sounds, such as voices, while minimizing others, such as ambient noise. Users can take a hearing test in the Apple Health app, and their AirPods will adjust sound level automatically based on the results. The feature is only available on the AirPods Pro 2, which cost $249.

The FDA says it tested Apple's hearing aid feature in a clinical study with 118 subjects who believed they had mild or moderate hearing loss. The study found that people who set up their AirPods using Apple's hearing test noticed similar benefits as people who had a professional set up the earbuds. Over-the-counter hearing aids are best for people with mild to moderate hearing loss, audiologists say, many of whom don't seek treatment. [...] However, consumer earbuds aren't a good solution for people with severe hearing loss, experts maintain, and most over-the-counter hearing devices will still require a trip to the audiologist for some fine tuning.
Apple

Apple Must Pay $14 Billion Tax Bill To Ireland, EU Court Rules (telegraph.co.uk) 189

Bruce66423 shares a report: The European Union's top court ruled against Apple Tuesday in the tech company's protracted legal battle over contested back taxes in Ireland. The ruling means Apple will be forced to pay Ireland up to $14.4 billion in back taxes and represents the latest setback in Europe for the tech giant. Earlier this year, Apple became the first company to be accused of violating the EU's new major tech competition law. The tax case stretches back to 2016, when the European Commission (EC) ordered Apple repay Ireland roughly $14.4 billion of unpaid taxes.

The commission argued that the tech giant had received "illegal" tax benefits from Ireland over the course of two decades. Apple had housed its European headquarters in Ireland and paid a corporate tax rate of less than 1% in some years, which the EC argued gave Apple an unfair advantage over other companies. Apple and Ireland appealed the decision in 2019. The European Court of Justice on Tuesday overturned the lower court decision and upheld the EC's 2016 order. "Today is a big win for European citizens and for tax justice. The Court of Justice confirms ... that Ireland granted Apple unlawful aid which Ireland now has to recover," Margrethe Vestager, the EU competition chief, said in a statement Tuesday.

Medicine

Sleep Apnea Detection Is Coming To the Apple Watch 40

Apple announced today that it's adding sleep apnea detection to the Apple Watch, including the Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10, and Apple Watch Ultra 2. The Verge reports: Sleep apnea is a disorder that causes you to stop breathing as you sleep. Sleep apnea is a feature that wearables makers have been working on for some time, with Samsung getting cleared by the FDA for sleep apnea tracking with the Galaxy Watch earlier this year. Apple says it's using the accelerometer on its watches to monitor a new metric that it calls "breathing disturbances." You'll be able to see your nightly breathing disturbance values in the Health app.

The company expects to get FDA clearance for its sleep apnea detection feature soon, and it plans to launch the feature in more than 150 countries and regions. The company says its sleep detection was validated in a study that was "unprecedented" in size for sleep apnea technology.
Medicine

AirPods Pro 2 Adds 'Clinical Grade' Hearing Aid Feature 47

Apple says AirPods Pro 2 will receive a software feature "soon" that will turn the wireless earbuds into "clinical-grade" hearing aids. "This includes a hearing protection mode being enabled by default, offering passive noise cancellation in loud environments," adds 9to5Mac. From the report: Firstly, users can take a clinically-validated hearing test. The hearing test uses your AirPods and iPhone, and can be conducted by a user in under five times. The result of your hearing test can be viewed securely in the Health app. If hearing loss is detected, the hearing aid mode is then available to use. The AirPods will make it easier to hear sounds from the world around you. A custom hearing profile is automatically applied when listening to audio, like music or podcasts.

The hearing aid feature is currently making its way through the FDA and other regulatory bodies. Apple said the functionality will be available in more than 100 countries. The feature will be enabled through a free software update coming later this year to AirPods Pro 2.
Apple

It Sure Looks Like FineWoven is Dead (theverge.com) 21

An anonymous reader shares a report: It seems like Apple is already moving on from FineWoven. After introducing the FineWoven brand with a series of very bad cases and accessories last year, it appears as though Apple opted not to release new cases featuring the material for the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro. Apple has stopped offering FineWoven cases for the iPhone 15 lineup on its website, too. Apple launched FineWoven, which had a microtwill material, as a replacement for its leather cases. But the cases quickly accumulated visible wear and tear and picked up bits of lint, which could make them look dirty relatively quickly.
Operating Systems

Apple Will Release iOS 18, macOS 15, iPadOS 18, Other Updates on September 16 9

Apple plans to release the next versions of iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and watchOS to the general public on September 16, the company announced via its website following its iPhone-centric product event earlier today. From a report: We should also see updates for tvOS and the HomePod operating system on the same date. The new releases bring a number of new features and refinements to Apple's platforms: better texting with Android devices thanks to support for the RCS standard, iPhone Mirroring that allows you to interact with your iPhone via your Mac, more UI customization options for iPhones and iPads, and other improvements besides. What won't be included in these initial releases is any hint of Apple Intelligence, the batch of generative AI and machine learning features that Apple announced at its Worldwide Developers Conference in June. Apple is testing some of the Apple Intelligence features in betas of iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS 15.1, updates that will be released later this fall.

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