Apple

Apple apparently had big plans, including ray tracing support, for the A16 Bionic's GPU in the iPhone 14 Pro but had to revert to a design based on the previous A15 Bionic. This was due to a major power consumption flaw discovered late in the SoC's development cycle. Such a setback is unheard of in the company's SoC team and is being attributed to several layoffs and lawsuits that the group in currently contending with.

The Dimensity 9200 has only been used on the Vivo X90 so far, and looks to be a home run, especially GPU-wise. The MediaTek chipset outperformed the Apple A16 Bionic in synthetic GPU benchmarks recently, and has now been put through a real-world gaming test.

According to a new report, Apple has put a next-generation iPhone SE on ice. Potentially postponed until 2024 or cancelled entirely, the iPhone SE 4 or iPhone SE 2023 was thought to mimic the iPhone XR, but with an A15 Bionic chipset instead of the A12 Bionic.

Dubbed "Apex Predators" and labeled 2.23, War Thunder's final update of the year introduces three iconic rank VIII 4th generation fighters, namely the F-16, the MiG-29, and the Tornado. Other changes include new and updated ground vehicles, new locations and missions, interface updates, as well as new music and sound effects.

Apple may well have new 24-inch iMac and iMac Pro all-in-one machines in development, but neither are expected to arrive until the end of 2023, at the earliest. Mark Gurman has also shared processor details about the pair, along with some information about forthcoming external monitors, including a Pro Display XDR successor.

New Mac mini variants remain in development, with Apple M2 and Apple M2 Pro-based models reputedly in the pipeline. Neither will arrive before the start of next year though, with an upgraded Mac mini spoken of in the same breath as the Mac Pro and new variants of the MacBook Pro 14 and MacBook Pro 16.

According to a new report, Apple continues to develop a new Mac Pro. However, production challenges have forced the company to re-think the processor options that will be available, with the Apple M2 Extreme consigned to the cutting room floor for now. The Apple M2 Extreme would have combined 48 CPU cores with 152 GPU cores by effectively fusing four Apple M2 Max chipsets.

The MediaTek Dimensity 9200 sports an Immortalis-G715 as its GPU. Before it debuted last month, reports claimed the flagship SoC could outperform the iPhone 14 Pro's A16 Bionic GPU-wise. Those reports weren't baseless, it now appears.

Although the deal only applies to the Satin Silver finish and only for US-based customers, the 43% discount that pushes the Beats Solo3 wireless on-ear headphones from US$199.95 to US$114.95 should not be overlooked. Compatible with both Apple and Android devices, these wireless headphones provide up to 40 hours of battery life.

Reportedly, Apple is in the latter stages of developing a MacBook Air 15. Now expected to launch with a 15.5-inch panel, the MacBook Air 15 is said to be in line for a spring 2023 launch.

If the words of a prominent Apple analyst are to be believed, Apple could soon introduce sideloading to iOS. This would allow users to install applications on an iPhone without using the App Store, opening the door to applications not officially sanctioned by Apple.

Apple has released a raft of OS updates, with the company upgrading all core product lines ahead of the holiday season. macOS Ventura 13.1, tvOS 16.2 and watchOS 9.2 are rolling out now, as are iOS 16.2 and iPadOS 16.2.

Apple has now made a stable version of iPadOS 16.2 available to download. While the update is available for iPads as old as the iPad 5 or the iPad Air 3, the company continues to lock elements of Stage Manager behind those with Apple M series chipsets. iPadOS 16.2 adds Apple's Freeform app too, among other changes.

Apple has now released a stable version of iOS 16.2 for the iPhone 8 and later. Apple reserves some new features for its latest iPhones though, as it has also done with iPadOS 16.2 and Apple M1 or Apple M2-powered iPads.

The latest, tenth-gen version of Apple's most vanilla iPad comes upgraded to a relatively new A14 Bionic SoC and (perhaps more importantly) USB type-C for charging and syncing. However, as the famous durability vlog JerryRigEverything has now discovered, it also comes with drawbacks besides its confounding choice of first-party stylus support.

An early estimate of the Apple iPhone 15 Ultra price has been published by a known tech tipster, with a considerable hike likely on the cards. Apparently, the iPhone 15 Ultra price tag could be bumped up by US$100-US$200 over the iPhone 14 Pro Max, which has a starting price of US$1,099. In addition, it appears the top-end titanium 2023 iPhone may only come in one color.

Released as a cheaper alternative to the AirPods Pro, the US$150 Beats Studio Buds TWS ANC earbuds are now down to less than US$90 thanks to a 40% Amazon discount. Unfortunately for those who would like to get them in black, red, white, or gray, the only discounted color choice is Ocean Blue.

According to Ross Young, CEO of Display Supply Chain Consultants, Apple will opt for OLED displays in both iPad Pro models and the MacBook Air in 2024. This would be a change for the 12.9-inch iPad Pro, which currently uses a mini-LED panel, and the MacBook Air and iPad Pro 11, which both use IPS LCDs. Young also claims these devices, including the MacBook Air, will support Apple's ProMotion technology with a 120 Hz variable refresh rate.

The 24-inch iMac is only just over a year old and 11.5 mm thick. Still, its thick chin makes it look older and chunkier than something like the Huawei MateStation X. A modder has now shown Apple could have eliminated the chin, effectively moving it to the device’s rear.

Apple is yet to adopt curved displays on its smartphones, with all iPhones resolutely sticking with flat panels instead. An engineer has shown in several videos that it is possible to modify an iPhone to resemble a current Android flagship though, with an iPhone 14 Pro Max serving as a guinea pig.

Apple may indeed be working with Korean OLED display suppliers on testing a foldable 20.25-inch screen panel to gauge the concept's viability for a future MacBook. When bent, the screen half that would serve as the display of a regular laptop, could form a 15.3-inch diagonal, but the release date is still far away.

Vivaldi 5.6 arrived earlier today with the integration of Mastodon in the side panel, as well as its instance, namely Vivaldi Social. This update of Vivaldi Browser is only available on the desktop for now. You.com is a new default search engine choice alongside the ability to pin tab groups and other improvements.

Apple Car could have limited Full Self-Driving if the latest report from Bloomberg is accurate. Cupertino’s first EV, which was previously expected to debut in 2025, was thought of as being a completely autonomous vehicle. Moreover, Apple could also delay the car to 2026.

The entry-level iPad may have received a design overhaul this year, but Apple still lumbers the tablet with the original Apple Pencil despite lacking native support for the accessory. Now, iFixit has demonstrated why the iPad 10 lacks Apple Pencil 2 support and how the new tablet compares against the iPad Air 5.

Apple has been thought to unveil Reality OS (or, possibly, realityOS) as the new "mixed reality" dimension for its software ecosystem in 2023. Now, according to a knowledgeable Bloomberg blogger, the Cupertino giant has decided to make a practically last-minute change to this branding. The volte-face apparently involves a whole new trademark for a very different naming scheme.

Apple's MacBook Air M1 was on sale for around 900 Euros on Black Friday. The base model is still equipped with the faster version of the 256 GB SSD, which is an advantage over the 300 Euros more expensive MacBook Air M2.

Apple has released iOS 16.1.2 for the iPhone 8 and later. While the update is available for multiple iPhone models, iOS 16.1.2 primarily addresses an issue that resulted in iPhone 14 series units erroneously thinking they had been involved in car crashes.

In our review, the Apple iPad Pro 12.9 (2022) impresses in all areas. Boasting an accurate mini-LED display, a fast M2 SoC, plenty of storage space for those who can afford it, and a long update cycle, it is a tablet of superlatives.

LG has a chance to wiggle into the Apple Car supply chain next year as it is pivoting to the production of EV charging stations, cables, and connectors. LG has been retooling its former phone factory for the task, while it is already the world's second largest EV battery maker as it supplies cells to Tesla and many others.

The Geekbench 5 database entry appears to feature an M2 Max engineering sample with 12 ARM cores that is 10% faster in single-core tests and 20% faster in multi-core tests compared to the M1 Max.

The iPhone has made a name for taking stellar photos, but Android phones have largely caught up or exceeded Apple's image quality. However, the iPhone 15 line is rumored to include sensors from Sony that may set it far apart from the competition.

Amazon is currently selling the 2022 MacBook Air with Apple's M2 chip for US$150 off, a savings of 10-13%. This discount applies to both the 256 GB and 512 GB versions of Apple's new notebook.

The iPad 2022 presents itself looking like the iPad Air and also gets closer to it in terms of its price. However, the technical progress remains within limits, and the new USB port also creates some problems for the user.

The Apple Watch Ultra is marketed as the most premium, and yet most functional, wearable of its line thus far. As such, it is also touted as having a "sapphire crystal", as is the new Samsung Galaxy Watch5 and the highest-end version of the Garmin Fenix 7. These claims have just been put to the test in a new JerryRigEverything video.

While the AirPods Max and AirPods Pro 2 have been heralded as offering excellent audio quality for their class, neither support high-definition Bluetooth audio codecs. Instead, both peak at 256 kbps over AAC, or SBC if you are not using an Apple product. Finally, an Apple engineer has commented on why the company has elected against supporting LDAC, aptX or equivalents.

Apple markets the latest AirPods Pro as delivering improved sound quality, long battery life and superior noise cancellation than the AirPods Pro 1. However, new independent tests have determined that Apple has made strides in reducing Bluetooth latency between generations, which should make the AirPods Pro 2 better suited for gaming than previous AirPods.

The Apple AirPods Pro 2 is available at a US$50 discount during Black Friday promotions. Only available in one colour, the AirPods Pro 2 are still full price when ordered from Apple directly.

Apple is tipped to raise its challenge to Meta's bid for AR/VR dominance from early 2023 with the launch of its first ever headset. Now, the inaugural potential Quest-series competitor is said to go into production around that time at the facilities of an established manufacturing partner. Meanwhile, for those who can help make the software for the alleged new hardware, the Cupertino giant may be hiring.

Apple received plenty of criticism for how it integrated always-on display functionality for the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max. While the mode was almost indistinguishable from iOS 16's active lock screen, it seems that this could change with iOS 16.2, a preview of which Apple already offers in Beta 3.

Industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says the USB-C ports on the iPhone 15 lineup could be rated differently. The iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Ultra will get one that operates at USB 3.2/Thunderbolt 3.0 speeds, whereas the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus will be restricted to USB 2.0.

Apple finally brought 128 GB of storage to the Apple TV 4K with the 2022 model. While the most expensive Apple TV 4K also supports Ethernet and Thread networking, tvOS 16 currently prevents it from accessing more than 64 GB of storage. The current tvOS 16.2 beta does not address this bug, either.

A new lawsuit alleges that Apple continues to collect user data in stock iPhone apps even when users have opted out of data tracking. This tracking contradicts assurances that Apple safeguards user privacy and can completely disable any kind of data collection in Apple's apps.

Apple has announced that the Emergency SOS via satellite feature exclusive to iPhones of the latest 14 series is now available - albeit in North America only. The Cupertino giant asserts that it should prove a new last resort should its customers be out of range of cell towers. It can also be used to share a device's location in the Find My app.

Apple has released numerous firmware updates for its various AirPods and Beats earbuds. As well as updating headphones too, Apple has issued a new update for the AirTags, which have now reached firmware version 2.0.24.

Apple may start equipping its standalone monitors with OLED panels, too, after it has shifted MacBooks and iPads to the iPhone's screen technology. The next Apple Studio Display all-in-ones may opt for a 27-inch Samsung-made Quantum Dot OLED panel.

The well-rounded multimedia laptop with the quick Apple M1 Pro processor is still an excellent choice for demanding users, especially since the company has apparently pushed back the release of the upgraded successor to the 2021 MacBook Pro 14 to next year.