Apple

How do you repair the case for your AirPods? You don't, according to Apple customer service representatives allegedly recorded in a new YouTube video posted by Ken Pillonel, an engineer who modified an iPhone X to support USB type-C charging. Now, the same vlogger has worked out how to do the same for a pair of AirPods.

Launching back in late 2017, the Apple Watch Series 3 has been at the center of much controversy particularly following the debut of watchOS 7 in fall 2020. For a company renowned for making products that are built to last, planned obsolescence seems to be in play for this vintage wearable.

Apple has finally released new OS updates for the iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch following almost two months of beta testing. iOS 15.6, iPadOS 15.6, macOS 12.5 and watchOS 8.7 are all available to download now and mainly focus on fixing bugs that existed in older builds.

Although the brand-new MacBook Air with the lightning-quick Apple M2 chip has only been on the market for a few days, first customers and reviewers are already noticing that one of the new colors seems to be particularly susceptible to scuffs and scratches.

The Apple M2 SoC has scored another benchmark victory by topping PassMark’s current laptop CPU chart for single-thread performance. The M2 actually removed none other than the impressively powerful Intel Core i9-12950HX from the top; however, the Apple silicon couldn’t outscore chips like the i7-1260P and i7-1280P in multithread testing.

It turns out that the latest MacBook Air can match or even outperform the M2-powered MacBook Pro 13. With a simple modification, the MacBook Air can maintain peak performance for longer, which should be useful for short bursts of intense activity.

Apple may not be engaging in an annual refresh of its more powerful MacBook Pro models. According to a new report from a renowned Apple analyst, revised MacBook Pro 14 and MacBook Pro 16 machines may launch this fall, but an early 2023 reveal is also likely. Both laptops should be available with M2 Pro and M2 Max chipsets.

A United States credit union has taken Apple to court over the Cupertino giant's Pay service. The plaintiff in this case has taken issue with what it sees as the imposition of the app as a default option on users, and with the extra fees financial institutions incur as a result. Therefore, Apple is now at risk of losing this apparently happy state of affairs in its home country soon.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max in 2023 and iPhone 16 Pro models in 2024 will feature the long-rumored periscope camera with superior zooming capabilities. The periscope camera in future iPhones will be a 1/3-inch 12 MP sensor with up to 6x optical zoom and sensor-shift image stabilization. Apple's move to a periscope lens is expected to benefit several key camera component suppliers.

China has become a market in which Apple's iPhones are prominent in terms of premium mobile devices. Therefore, new predictions of how well the rumored upcoming 14 series will do in the country might prove an indicator of how its sales will perform worldwide. The latest leak on the subject suggests that they will encounter demand that remains strong in 2022.

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 disappointed in most gaming tests due to its heavy throttling, poor efficiency, and bad thermals. Its replacement, the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1, has now been put through a gaming test and looks the real deal, even outperforming the A15 Bionic on the iPhone 13 Pro Max.

The product design relationship between Apple and Jony Ive has finally come to an end. The former executive at Cupertino was responsible for the distinctive looks of the MacBook line, but has only been a consultant to the OEM since 2019. Ive's contract for this role has now expired, and his former employer has declined to renew it.

The launch of the M2 MacBook Air is just a day away. In the meantime, unboxing and teardown photos of the new laptop have emerged online, highlighting its fanless design and minimal packaging.

Besides the aging iPhone 8 and the iPhone X, the iPhone XS is also on the list of smartphones that won't benefit from all the features that Apple will introduce with its upcoming iOS 16 update. Unfortunately, two specific functions will even be exclusive to the latest and greatest iPhone 13 models.

The AMD Ryzen 7 6800U has finally turned up on the PassMark CPU testing site, and it has made a very promising first showing. The Zen 3+ “Rembrandt” APU with the handy RDNA2-based Radeon 680M iGPU managed to outscore fellow low-power rivals such as the Intel Core i7-1260P and Apple M2 in the site’s average CPU Mark results.

According to new reports, Apple has elected to postpone its next-generation external monitor until early 2023. Initially rumoured to arrive this year, the so-called Studio Display Pro may not directly replace the Pro Display XDR, despite featuring a ProMotion panel with Mini LED backlights like the MacBook Pro 14 and MacBook Pro 16.

The first samples of the Apple M2 have made their way onto the PassMark website, where the new Apple silicon has been lumped into the desktop CPU class. The M2 raced to an incredible score in the single-thread performance chart, smashing its way through a whole block of Alder Lake chips. But it was left a little wanting in the multiple test suite.

According to reports, the rumoured Apple Watch Extreme could arrive as the Apple Watch Pro instead. As the latter's name suggests, it will contain a few features that regular Apple Watch Series models lack. Unsurprisingly, the Apple Watch Pro will also command a 'Pro' launch price.

The display OEM BOE's status as a maker of iPhone 14 displays is said to have been in jeopardy following a disagreement with Apple over the manufacture of the flagship smartphones' predecessors. However, it seems BOE has secured its repeat business from the Cupertino giant after all, albeit for a relatively small proportion of 14-series OLED screens.

A new iPhone 14 price prediction has been shared by an experienced tech analyst based on Apple potentially passing on supply chain costs to its customers. A price hike would leave the standard Apple iPhone 14 costing much more than the widely expected US$799 price tag while a fully specced iPhone 14 Pro Max could cost over US$2,000.

Numerous Geekbench records for the new MacBook Air with M2 chip have started appearing on the popular synthetic benchmark site. The 2022 MacBook Air seems to offer similar performance to the already fully released M2 MacBook Pro while offering decent performance gains over the M1 MacBook Air. The Apple M2 chip comes with a much-improved 8-core or 10-core GPU part.

Coming later this year to iOS 16, iPadOS 16, and macOS Ventura, Lockdown Mode is a feature for users who may be at risk of being targeted by high-level digital threats, including those from the NSO Group. Learn how to activate the new mode and what some of the disadvantages users may face after enabling it.

Eye-catching Apple iPhone 14 fan-made concept renderings have surfaced, giving another idea of what future iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro owners could be shelling out record amounts for. In addition, a noted analyst has forecast that Apple could have up to 100 million iPhone 14 units manufactured and ready for sale before 2023 arrives.

Apple is further strengthening the security of its devices against state-sponsored spyware programs with the introduction of the new “Lockdown Mode”. The company is marketing the feature as an “extreme, optional protection” for people that fear targeted cyberattacks. The feature seems like a direct response to the fiasco caused by the infamous Pegasus spyware.

Even though the M2 is not specifically designed for gaming and despite the lack of optimization on the latest macOS, the iGPU in Apple’s new mobile processor is still a tad faster than AMD's 25 W Ryzen 7 6800U. The M2 with 18 W TDP was able to squeeze an additional 2-3 fps in 1920 x 1200 set to medium / high / highest details.

According to new reports, Apple plans to release an alternative to the standard Watch Series refresh this year. Reputedly, the company is working on an 'Extreme Sports' model with plenty of changes from the rumoured Watch Series 8.

The demand for refurbished smartphones, defined here as those repaired and then re-sold by the OEM in question, is now projected to rise by an extent that brings multi-billions in US dollars to their market over the next 4 years. It may be driven by business in the APAC region, which might contribute nearly 50% of its sales until 2026.

Apple has confirmed pre-order and shipping dates for the new MacBook Air, one of two Apple M2-powered products announced so far. With a redesigned chassis and features from last year's MacBook Pro 14 and MacBook Pro 16, the new MacBook Air could be a better choice for most people than the refreshed MacBook Pro 13.

The emergence of the 2022 Apple MacBook Air with M2 chip will contribute to a considerable downturn in Wintel (Windows/Intel) laptop sales according to a new report from DigiTimes. The acceptable, and even downright attractive, M2 MacBook Air price points will leave competing Wintel notebooks looking like a tough sell.

The Apple MacBook Air with M2 chip release date has seemingly been confirmed in an unexpected manner, potentially leaked (or deliberately teased) by popular YouTuber Marques Brownlee. In addition, the rumored date for the 2022 MacBook Air pre-orders has also been backed up in the same video review.

The latest set of alleged AirPods Pro 2 renders arrived with claims that these upcoming flagship TWS earbuds would become increasingly powerful health-trackers as well. However, a well-known tech correspondent purports to debunk these claims. Then again, 2022's Apple Watch is apparently in a better position to launch with the new features in question.

According to a renowned analyst, Apple has decided to upgrade the size of the Watch Series display again this year. While the Watch Series 7 is available with up to a 1.9-inch display, Ross Young claims that Apple will push the Watch Series 8 to within touching distance of 2-inches.

Another Apple iPhone 14 price leak has recently surfaced, with the purported amounts starting at a reasonable US$799 for the standard iPhone 14. However, things start getting expensive with the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max, with a 1 TB variant of the latter potentially requiring a record-breaking amount for an official mainstream iPhone.

Caviar has opened pre-orders for its customized Apple iPhone 14 Pro and Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max smartphones. For those who feel the expected iPhone 14 Pro colors such as midnight and starlight simply aren’t glamorous enough, there are diamond-encrusted, leather-bound, and even meteorite-embedded custom iPhone 14 options to choose from.

The Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro already undercut the competition in terms of pricing, with the US$599 Pixel 6, in particular, being an excellent value option. Buyers of the Pixel 6 series have more to gain in a potential repair situation, too, as the displays of the phones cost significantly less than rival models from Samsung and Apple.

Apple has added the Mac Studio to its Certified Refurbished program. With 10% savings on new models, the Certified Refurbished program could be a good option for those who do not qualify for Apple's student pricing.

Apple didn't specify available information during the new M2-powered MacBook Air's launch, but we are now getting to know that pre-orders will go live on July 8 with wide availability from July 15. The M2 MacBook Air offers a 1080p webcam, quad-speaker system, and a MagSafe 3 connector — all for US$100 less than the M2 MacBook Pro.

With the growing inflation and the uncertainties brought by the Ukrainian war, Smartphones and PC components are not selling that well anymore, so Apple, AMD and Nvidia are now forced to scale back their chip orders from TSMC, which, in turn, might not see soaring revenues as previously projected in early 2022.

The latest MacBook Pro 13 with Apple M2 offers barely any advantages over its Apple M1-based predecessor. In fact, this year's model is saddled with a few drawbacks, which iFixit has detailed in its latest teardown video.

The Apple M3 processor has been mentioned in connection with at least four devices in a recent report by Mark Gurman. With the M2 chip now out and about, Apple will already be preparing future laptops and all-in-ones to sport the M3 silicon. One of those future computers is believed to be a 15-inch MacBook Air.

Vendor sources seem to suggest that Apple may resurrect the Plus moniker, five years after the iPhone 8 Plus, with this year's upcoming 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Plus. However, other sources feel that may not be the case. The iPhone 14 Plus (or Max) will continue to use the A15 Bionic SoC and is expected to feature the largest battery capacity in the series.

At WWDC22 Apple introduced a breakthrough new way to leverage the sophisticated cameras on modern iPhones to deliver a unique set of webcam features that will work seamlessly between smartphones running iOS 16 and Macs running macOS Ventura. Take a deep dive into this flagship feature coming to compatible Macs and select iPhone models later this year.

The first MacBook with Apple's new M2 SoC is the familiar MacBook Pro 13. It uses a cooling solution with a fan, but it still cannot handle the full performance of the Apple M2 for more than a couple of seconds. This worries us a bit when we think about the upcoming MacBook Air M2 redesign, which once again features a passive cooling solution.

Between bright OLED displays and powerful processor platforms, Apple's refreshed M2 MacBook Pro 13 doesn't bring all that much to the table in terms of upgrades. Is the stale design worth living with for the convenience of macOS? If not, which Windows laptops should you spring for instead?

The experimental and rather futile processor upgrade to the Apple M2 chip illustrates that the almost identical logic board of the new 2022 MacBook Pro 13 cannot simply be used in the chassis of the M1-equipped predecessor from 2020.

According to a renowned Apple analyst, there could be multiple iPad releases this year, including Apple M2-based iPad Pro models. A new basic iPad is also due this year, but the rumoured 14.1-inch iPad may not arrive until 2024 at the latest.

Mark Gurman claims that Apple will bring M2 series chipsets to the Mac mini, currently available with Apple M1. However, Gurman also believes that the Apple M2 will power Apple's inaugural mixed-reality headset, likely providing it with more horsepower than the Meta Quest 2 has.

The new 2022 Apple MacBook Pro 13 with M2 SoC has been found to feature a slower SSD than its much older M1 counterpart, depending on the amount of storage in the configuration. In the worst-case scenario, the M2 MacBook Pro’s SSD was found to offer barely half the read speed of the storage found in the equivalent 2020 MacBook Pro with M1 chip.

Alleged Apple iPhone 14 battery capacity figures have leaked with some surprising details included. It appears that Cupertino is considering giving the iPhone 14 Pro Max a lower battery capacity than the iPhone 13 Pro Max. Some have shared concerns about the ensuing iPhone 14 battery life but design and component updates will likely produce pleasing results.