Following the release of iOS 13.1.2 last week, Apple today stopped signing iOS 13.1, meaning downgrading to this version of iOS is no longer possible.
Apple last Friday stopped signing iOS 12.4.1, iOS 13.0, and iOS 13.1.1, but continued signing iOS 13.1 until today.
iOS 13.1.2 was a bug fix release that quickly followed iOS 13.1.1, which primarily addressed issues with battery drain, Siri, and access permissions for third-party keyboards.
Apple routinely stops signing older versions of software updates after new releases come out in order to encourage customers to keep their operating systems up to date.
iOS 13.1.2 is now the current public version of iOS, but developers and public beta testers can download iOS 13.2, an upcoming update with features like the Deep Fusion image processing system for the new iPhone 11 lineup.
Popular social networking app Instagram was today updated to add Dark Mode support for iOS 13, introducing a darker theme that activates when Dark Mode is turned on.
The new Dark Mode option is available throughout the app, from viewing the main feed to browsing to the profile. Dark Mode can be accessed by activating Dark Mode on an iPhone running the iOS 13 update.
To get Dark Mode, the latest version of Instagram is required, even though the release notes don't mention the new feature.
Samsung's Galaxy Note 10+, the company's newest flagship device, was unveiled just a month ahead of the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro, and it's one of the main competitors to Apple's newest iPhone devices.
Both have triple-lens camera setups, so we thought we'd compare the camera quality of the iPhone 11 Pro Max with the camera quality of the Galaxy Note 10+ to see if one has an edge over another.
The iPhone 11 Pro Max has 12-megapixel telephoto, wide-angle, and ultra wide-angle lenses. The Galaxy Note 10+ has the same general lens setup, but with a 12-megapixel telephoto lens, a 12-megapixel wide-angle lens, and a 16-megapixel ultra wide-angle lens, so it wins out when it comes to megapixels for the ultra wide-angle camera.
When it comes to photo quality, both of these cameras can take some amazing photos and a lot of the variance is going to depend on your personal shooting conditions, including subject, lighting, and other factors, but there are some differences to be aware of.
The Galaxy Note 10+ seems to overdo highlights, washing out photos and overexposing them in some situations, while the iPhone 11 Pro Max doesn't tend to do that. The Galaxy Note 10+ also has a tendency to oversaturate images somewhat, while the iPhone 11 Pro Max offers more true to life colors.
Some people prefer that slight oversaturation and the brighter light areas that the Samsung device can produce, even if it's not quite as accurate to what you're seeing in front of you when taking a photo. You can, of course, tone down saturation in post processing for Galaxy Note 10+ photos or bump it up for iPhone 11 Pro Max photos, but out of the camera, colors can tend to look a bit more vibrant on the Galaxy Note 10+.
Though the Galaxy Note 10+ has a higher megapixel ultra wide-angle camera than the iPhone 11 Pro Max, it doesn't really produce better pictures. Quality seems similar between the two devices, and on the iPhone 11 Pro Max, the new ultra wide-angle sensor is lacking some of the better features of its wide-angle camera, such as a lower aperture, larger sensor, optical image stabilization, and support for Night Mode.
So while the ultra wide-angle camera can get you some great wide shots of landscapes, architecture, and people, it's best for better lighting conditions, and the same seems to be true of Samsung's ultra wide-angle lens.
The Note 10+ and the 11 Pro Max each offer a nighttime mode for low-light photography, and both do a great job in poor lighting conditions using this feature. The Galaxy Note 10+'s penchant to overexpose can result in some brighter night time shots in some situations, but that's not always a desired effect. Night mode on the iPhone 11 Pro Max is designed to make sure a night time photo feels like it was taken at night, and that's an area where Apple excelled.
Samsung offers a feature called Live Focus, designed to offer an adjustable live background blurring effect for front and rear-facing photos, while the iPhone offers Portrait Mode. Both of these are similar, and have seen improvements over prior-generation smartphones from each manufacturer. Edge detection is better than ever, and the background blurring is better, so it's tough to pick a winner in this category.
As for video, both photos produced impressive 4K footage at 60 frames per second, though the 11 Pro Max had better auto stabilization features without having to delve into settings.
Both smartphones have similar front-facing setups. The iPhone 11 Pro Max has a 12-megapixel front-facing lens while the Galaxy Note 10+ has a 10-megapixel front-facing lens. There's a caveat with the iPhone's front-facing camera - in zoomed in shots (there's an option to zoom in and out now), the photos that you're getting by default are seven megapixels. You need to use the zoomed out mode to get the full 12-megapixel resolution.
When it comes to quality, the front-facing camera of the Galaxy Note 10+ seems to be a bit sharper than the iPhone 11 Pro Max, with more detail, while the iPhone 11 Pro has better color accuracy. Sometimes the Galaxy Note 10+ may be a bit too sharp for some people, so preference between the two will come down to how sharp you want your selfies to be.
Of course, the iPhone 11 Pro Max has Face ID for 3D facial biometric authentication, which the Note 10+ can't match. It does offer iris scanning and facial recognition capabilities, but neither are secure enough to serve as the sole authentication method for payments so there's still a fingerprint sensor.
When it comes down to it, both the iPhone 11 Pro Max and the Galaxy Note 10+ are capable of producing incredible, crisp photos that can often rival what you'll get out of a dedicated camera. Neither one is clearly better than the other, and choosing one will come down to platform preference more than anything else.
That said, the Galaxy Note 10+ appears to be better for those who prefer a more saturated, color rich image and exaggerated highlights, while the iPhone 11 Pro Max appears to be better at producing colors and lighting that's more true to life.
Do you prefer Note 10+ or iPhone 11 Pro Max and think there's a clear winner? Let us know in the comments.
The launch of Apple Arcade on Mac will complete the rollout of Apple's subscription gaming service, with the service already up and running for all users on iOS, iPadOS, and Apple TV. While Apple touts Apple Arcade as having 100+ games overall, not every game is available on every platform and the Mac version of Apple Arcade currently offers about two dozen titles including Sayonara Wild Hearts, Operator 41, Big Time Sports, Card of Darkness, and more.
Apple Arcade requires macOS Catalina, and users currently running macOS Mojave are being presented with a "Welcome to Apple Arcade on Mac!" feature story in the Mac App Store. The feature outlines the Apple Arcade service and offers a "Check for Update" button, suggesting a public macOS Catalina launch may be imminent.
Apple Arcade is priced at $4.99 per month across all platforms, with Family Sharing allowing up to six members of a single family to access the service at no additional charge. A one-month free trial is also available.
Apple today shared a new teaser trailer for its upcoming TV show "Servant," which is a psychological thriller created by Tony Basgallop and executive produced by M. Night Shyamalan.
The series is said to follow a Philadelphia couple (played by Tony Kebbell and Lauren Ambrose) who hire a young nanny named Leanne (Nell Tiger Free) to care for their newborn child, who, based on the trailers, appears to be a fake baby.
The new teaser trailer is one of three that Apple has shown so far, with the others previewed during the Emmy Awards in September.
Servant will not be available when Apple TV+ launches on November 1, but it will be coming out soon after on November 28. Apple TV+ will be priced at $4.99 per month, but Apple is offering a free subscription to customers who purchase an Apple TV, iPhone, iPad, or Mac.
At launch, Apple TV+ will offer several TV shows, including "Dickinson," "For All Mankind," "Helpsters," "Ghostwriter," and "The Morning Show."
Apple CEO Tim Cook is currently in Europe, and over the course of the last few days, he's visited Germany, France, and Italy. Earlier this week we shared an interview he did with a German news site, and today he spoke with a French newspaper and students in Italy as part of an appearance at the Osservatorio Permanente.
Cook commented on topics like journalism, privacy, and immigration, with his comments shared by Italian site Macitynet.it [Google Translate] and French newspaper Les Echoes (via CNBC).
According to Cook, while the internet has brought "many positive things," fake news is one negative. From a translation of the original interview:
All of us lovers of democracy and freedom must think that separating the false from the true is the basis of freedom. Quality journalism is the foundation of every democracy and an open and free press is essential.
Cook also spoke about a topic that he's covered many times in the past - privacy. He reiterated his belief that Apple customers are not Apple's product, and that Apple will not sell customer data. "At Apple, we will never treat you as products but as customers with dignity and respect," he said.
Along with touching on privacy, Cook highlighted Apple's environmental efforts, such as the fact that Apple is run on 100 percent renewable energy, and he spoke on human rights. "We do not do it because it's required by regulations, but because it is a moral imperative," he said.
Apple supports immigration because wealthy countries must "accept migrants who are fleeing difficult situations," said Cook. Cook added that he would like for young people and children to be able to stay in the United States to study, referencing his support for DACA, or the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals immigration policy.
Cook had advice for students regarding smartphone usage. "Smartphones must bring you closer to those who are far away - don't leave those close to you," he said. "If you spend more time looking at your smartphones than people's eyes, you're wrong."
Cook also spoke about cryptocurrency according to CNBC, with statements originally shared by French site Les Echoes. Cook said that currency should stay in the hands of countries, and private companies should not look to gain power with cryptocurrency.
"No. I really think that a currency should stay in the hands of countries. I'm not comfortable with the idea of a private group setting up a competing currency," he said.
"A private company shouldn't be looking to gain power this way."
Apple's vice president of Apple Pay Jennifer Bailey recently said that Apple is "watching" cryptocurrency in regards to potentially supporting it in the future, but said that the company is primarily focused on what consumers are using today.
Cook's comments come three months after Facebook announced plans to launch a new digital currency called Libra next year in partnership with companies like Visa, Mastercard, Paypal, and Stripe.
Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.
Apple today updated its investor relations page to announce that it will share its earnings results for the fourth fiscal quarter (third calendar quarter) of 2019 on Wednesday, October 30.
The earnings results will offer up some insight into how well the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Max did during their first week of availability, though Apple no longer breaks out iPhone unit sales so specific data won't be available.
Apple's guidance for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2019 includes expected revenue of $61 to $64 billion and gross margin between 37.5 and 38.5 percent. If on the higher end of the range, Apple's revenue will beat its Q4 2018 revenue of $62.9 billion.
Guidance for the holiday quarter provided by Apple in its Q4 earnings results will give us the most insight into how the company's newest iPhones are selling.
The quarterly earnings statement will be released at 1:30 PM Pacific/4:30 PM Eastern, with a conference call to discuss the report taking place at 2:00 PM Pacific/5:00 PM Eastern. MacRumors will provide coverage of both the earnings release and conference call on October 30.
Apple's macOS Catalina update did not come out alongside iOS 13, with Apple instead planning to release it on an unspecified date in October.
While Apple has provided no detail on when the launch date might be, text on Apple's Danish macOS Catalina website suggests that it could be coming on Friday, October 4.
Image from Apple's Danish macOS Catalina site
An Apple Arcade section of the macOS Catalina website for Denmark says that Apple Arcade will be available in the App Store starting on October 4. The text is on the macOS Catalina page and refers to the Mac App Store as Apple Arcade for iOS has already launched in Denmark.
"Exceptional gameplay. Find it in the App Store from October 4," reads the translated version of the site. No additional dates are provided on the Apple Arcade specific site, with the October 4 mention limited to the Catalina page.
Apple Arcade on the Mac requires the macOS Catalina update and is a macOS Catalina feature, so for Apple Arcade to be available on October 4, macOS Catalina would also need to be available by that date.
The problem with the October 4 date is that most macOS and OS X updates have historically been on a Monday or a Tuesday. The last time a Mac update came out on a Friday was OS X Snow Leopard, which was released 10 years ago.
Apple could potentially release macOS Catalina earlier in the week and then launch Apple Arcade on October 4, but it's unclear why it wouldn't simply be available when Catalina launches. If Apple's Danish site is accurate, though, it seems we can expect to see macOS Catalina early in the month of October rather than later.
Apple's other software updates, including iOS 13, iPadOSwatchOS 6, and tvOS 13, have already been released and Apple Arcade is available on all other platforms except for the Mac at this time.
Facebook today announced a new set of Portal video chat devices, including one that is aimed to compete in the streaming TV market. This device is called the Portal TV, and it connects to a TV set with a standard HDMI cable and can stream content as well as enable video calls through Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp.
According to Facebook, video calling is the primary feature of Portal TV, because there aren't many supported streaming apps announced as of today. Customers will be able to stream Amazon Prime Video, listen to Spotify, and download apps like Showtime, CBS All Access, Starz, Pluto TV, Red Bull TV, and Neverthink.
More apps are said to be coming soon, but Netflix, Hulu, HBO, and other popular platforms will not be on Portal TV at launch.
Speaking with Bloomberg, Facebook executive Andrew Bosworth said that the ability to video call friends and family on a TV-based device will make it unique in a crowded market. Bosworth went on to suggest that people will likely switch on alternative devices for their video streaming when they're done video calling on Portal TV.
Otherwise, Facebook is also launching updated Portal devices in two new sizes: an 8-inch "Portal Mini" and 10-inch regular "Portal." The new Portals have improved speakers, and a physical shutter so users can easily disable the camera and microphone.
Of course, with any news related to Facebook, the company has attempted to double down on privacy assurances. With the new Portal models, it said that users can opt out of the company accessing voice recordings collected by the Portal in their home. Facebook will transcribe some "Hey Portal" audio clips if users don't opt out of it, however.
Bloomberg posted a separate story about this earlier today, detailing how Facebook "paused human review of audio" in August, while it worked on a way to give customers more control over the feature. The default option will still be for Facebook to automatically collect and transcribe "Hey Portal" commands, so users will have to be aware of this and navigate into their settings to opt out.
The Portal TV will cost $149, the Portal Mini will cost $129, and the Portal will cost $179. The Portal Mini and Portal will launch October 15, while the Portal TV is set to launch on November 5.
Apple this week published environmental reports for the new iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max, revealing that the Taptic Engine in all three devices is made of 100 percent recycled rare earth elements.
The Taptic Engine, which powers haptic feedback, represents around 25 percent of the total rare earth elements used in each iPhone.
"This is one of those happy coincidences where what is good for the planet is really good for business at the same time," Apple's environmental chief Lisa Jackson told Reuters. "One of the things we talk about a lot internally, just in general, is how much more resilient this makes our supply chain."
Apple is able to recover and sort some rare earth elements using its recycling robot Daisy.
The Apple Watch Series 5 is set to launch this Friday, September 20, but the embargo for the first reviews of Apple's latest smartwatch ended this morning. Several journalists and media outlets were provided with review units, so we've gathered together some key takeaways and highlights.
Not a lot is new with the Apple Watch Series 5, and it's identical in design to the Series 4. The exception is the display, which uses a lower power (LTPO) OLED screen that enables Apple's new always-on display feature.
To accommodate the new always-on display, Apple has created new battery-optimized watch face options that allow you to see the time and your complications at all times. Apart from a new built-in compass and a new international emergency calling feature for LTE models that contacts the local emergency services when SOS is activated, other new features are software-based and will come courtesy of watchOS 6.
As you'd expect, the focus of many of the reviews is on that always-on display. TechCrunch's Catherine Shu says it "addresses a longstanding issue with the device," but one that has been understandable because of battery considerations. To get around this, Apple has "made a bit of a compromise" by offering an always-on watch that lasts the same stated 18 hours as its predecessors.
Apple's employed some clever fixes to ensure that the new feature won’t totally sap battery life. Each of the faces gets a low-power, always-on version. In the case of the Meridian face that I've been using (new for WatchOS 6), it's white text on a black background. Hold the watch up to your face, however, and the colors invert. The active version is easier to see, and the always-on version uses less power.
While complications and other features are still on display, they're simplified, removing any power-hungry features. That means the second hand disappears on the standard watch face, and when the watch is in workout mode, the milliseconds will disappear until you bring the watch back up to your face.
Ultimately, Shu reckons "there's probably not enough here to warrant an upgrade from last year’s model, but some welcome new features like the always-on help keep the line fresh."
Daring Fireball's John Gruber says that the always-on display "solves my single biggest complaint about Apple Watch since day one. Its not perfect," he says, "but it's more than good enough. No other feature or improvement to Apple Watch to date has ever made me this happy."
As for the built-in compass, Gruber says that "while it's fun to play with, I don’t recall ever needing a compass in my entire life." However, he was impressed by the way it overcomes the problem that magnets pose to traditional compasses.
Traditional compasses spin randomly when you bring a magnet near them. Series 5's compass won't do this, because it uses the gyroscope to see if you're actually moving. The compass won't be fooled by a magnet because it can tell the watch itself isn't spinning around. Smart.
The Verge's Dieter Bohn starts his review by covering the new materials for the Apple Watch casing, specifically the more expensive titanium and ceramic.
There are some subtle weight differences on the more expensive materials, and they also have sapphire glass on the front of the Watch. But you should not spend the extra money on those more premium materials in the hope that they’ll be better from a feature perspective. They're the same Apple Watch; you'd just be paying more for something fancier. Some people like doing that!
Bohn also admits his long-running desire for an always-on screen, which is made possible by the low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO for short) display that Apple has designed.
I love the always-on screen on the Series 5. Apple's implementation is better than other smartwatches I've used for two reasons: it legitimately doesn't hurt the battery life as much, and Apple keeps a little color visible in ambient mode.
For whatever reason, I've never been able to get earlier Apple Watches to show their screens with subtle wrist movements. I've always had to cartoonishly raise my arm. An always-on screen means I am a little bit less of a jerk in conversations and meetings.
Bohn confirms that the display doesn't deplete the battery faster than the stated 18 hours, although he notes that "the Series 4 usually outperformed that estimate."
Apart from the new compass and LTE-based Emergency Call features, Bohn sees little else to recommend existing Apple Watch Series 4 owners and admits he's more excited about features coming with watchOS 6, like the new health features and the dedicated App Store, which he thinks are worth checking out first before anyone thinks of upgrading.
Following the release of iOS 13.1.2 last week, Apple today stopped signing iOS 13.1, meaning downgrading to this version of iOS is no longer possible.
