DOJ: FBI prematurely took Apple to court over San Bernardino iPhone

In 2016, the debate over whether manufacturers should aid law enforcement officials in unlocking criminals’ phones became very heated as the FBI took Apple to court over its refusal to unlock the San Bernardino shooter’s iPhone. At the time, the agency said Apple was its only shot at getting access to whatever was stored on Syed Farook’s iPhone 5c but it later used an outside vendor to crack the phone and get to its data. Now, the Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General has released a report that says the FBI didn’t do everything it could to find a solution before seeking a court order against Apple.

According to the watchdog’s report, the main issue was miscommunication throughout the agency — certain factions that had knowledge of a potential solution weren’t properly approached and those helming the search for a fix didn’t adequately emphasize the need to find one. Namely, a lack of communication between the FBI’s Cryptographic and Electronic Analysis Unit (CEAU) and its Remote Operations Unit (ROU) delayed the approach of outside vendors and led the FBI to determine that there were no potential solutions other than assistance from Apple.

The report notes that the ROU chief knew of a vendor that was nearing a solution to the issue at hand. However, he said that he was never approached by the CEAU chief to aid in the search for a way to get into the phone and a long-standing separation between using tools for national security issues and criminal cases led him to remain uninvolved in the search for a solution. It wasn’t until the chief of the Digital Forensics and Analysis Section — which houses the CEAU — asked “anyone” for “any kind of solution” that the ROU chief reached out to the vendor, which he did the day before the FBI’s court filing.

Overall, the Office of Inspector General determined the lack of communication between units and unclear language regarding how far the FBI was willing to look for a solution led to a delay in finding one. ” We believe better communication and coordination at the outset among the units in OTD would have helped to ensure that this had taken place,” the report said, referring to the FBI’s Operational Technology Division, which the ROU, CEAU and DFAS are all a part of.

The FBI and other law enforcement agencies have maintained that phone encryption is a massive hindrance to public safety and recent reports claim the Trump administration is considering a renewed push for legislation that would require phone companies to provide a way for law enforcement to access encrypted data. Critics of such legislation have said that introducing these means would impair the security of mobile devices overall.

Via: Reuters

Source: Justice Department

NVIDIA teams with Adobe to ensure AI editing runs smoothly

Adobe and NVIDIA are partnering up to power up the former’s cloud-based AI endeavors with the latter’s GPUs. Each new update for software in Adobe’s suite leans more on its artificial intelligence toolkit Sensei to improve editing features, and it makes sense to tap NVIDIA’s chips to ensure those run smoothly.

For instance, Adobe added Sensei to products like Lightroom last year and, in recent updates, implemented it to auto-edit photos. Optimizing Sensei for NVIDIA GPUs will ideally improve Adobe’s service for Creative and Experience Cloud customers and developers, especially as the software company builds out its multi-platform cloud-hosted editing and storage features.

The partnership could also lead to new business opportunities for NVIDIA’s ecosystem of developers, according to a press release. The pair could offer GPU-boosted versions of Adobe’s services for creative mediums like mixed reality, next-gen rendering and ‘other new immersive experiences.’

Hyundai’s Kona Electric will have an estimated 250 mile range

Hyundai’s Kona is a great little crossover and it’s starting to look like the Kona Electric will follow in the gas-powered vehicle’s footsteps.

At the New York Auto Show, the Korean automaker announced more details about its upcoming electrified SUV. The biggest news about the Kona electric is that the production vehicle will have an estimated range of 250 miles per charge. That’s more than Chevy Bolt and the regular version of Tesla Model 3.

The front-wheel-drive vehicle will ship with a 64kWh battery that can be charged to 80 percent via DC fast charging (which is standard) in 54 minutes. Level two charging will take nine hours and 35 minutes which lends itself to overnight charging.

That battery pack powers a single motor that outputs 201 horsepower and 291 pounds of torque. That means it’s producing more horsepower (26 more horsepower) and torque (a whopping 96 more pounds) to the wheels than the 1.6-liter turbo found in the upper trim levels of the gas-power Kona.

While most of the styling is similar, the EV Kona does away with the traditional front grill and replaces it with a cross-hatched surface. Meanwhile, Hyundai has placed the charging port on the front of the car. If you drive an electric vehicle or plug-in hybrid, you know that sometimes the parking space you get to charge your car might not always line up with the side of the car the port is on.

Hyundai also announced that the car would be available in California in late 2018 with availability expanding to coastal regions and the rest of the country after that. The high-range EV market is getting crowded and for consumers, that’s a good thing.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from the 2018 New York Auto Show.

Tim Cook Discusses Tech in Education, DACA, Facebook Scandal, and More in MSNBC Interview

Apple CEO Tim Cook sat down for an interview with Recode’s Kara Swisher and MSNBC’s Chris Hayes at Lane Tech College Prep today. The same high school hosted Apple’s education-themed event on Tuesday.

The full interview will be part of a TV special titled Revolution: Apple Changing the World that will air Friday, April 6 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on MSNBC. However, reporters in attendance have shared highlights from the discussion on Twitter.

Education

Cook started by sharing his view that “education is the great equalizer of people.” He said “if you look at many of the issues in society today, you can find the root in people who don’t have access to quality education today.”

“We all have to get comfortable with notion that education is lifelong. Jobs will be cannibalized over time and replaced by others.”

While he believes that technology plays a key role in modern education, Cook noted that Apple doesn’t believe technology can replace teachers. “Our products are tools,” he said. “They help people — not replace people.”

“Teachers want to have technology to deliver their lessons. Most all teachers want a level of coding for their classes,” said Cook.

On the subject of Apple’s new entry-level iPad, $299 with education pricing, Cook said that price point becomes “a very reasonable expenditure” since students, teachers, and school districts “don’t have to buy a new iPad every year.”

Coding

“I want America to be strong, first and foremost. And one base for that is that everyone needs to learn to code. Coding is a way to express yourself. It’s a language,” said Cook. “It’s not our expectation that everyone becomes a software programmer. But it’s important that people learn the basics,” he added.

“We need to get more people interested in coding. We have to reach out to women and unrepresented minorities that have been too low in coding.”

United States and Jobs

“We know that Apple could only have been created in the United States,” proclaimed Cook. “This company would not have flourished in any other country in the world. This is our country and we want to create as many jobs as we can in the United States. We don’t need any political pressure for that.”

While the iPhone is assembled in Asia, Cook said that many parts are manufactured in the United States, like the display glass from Corning in Kentucky.

On the subject of job retraining, Cook said “we should not all sit around waiting for government to tell us what to do.” He added that “this should be something that government and business are working together on.”

Cook emphasized the importance of lifelong education and job retraining given that robots will replace humans for certain tasks. “There’s an element of what each of us do, which will be automated over time. That’s not bad. But we need to think about training for the jobs for tomorrow, which will be software-based.”

A roundup of Cook’s other comments:

• “Businesses should be more than just building revenues and profits. They should be building people.”
• On the subject of Apple’s planned new campus, which appears to be a slight dig at Amazon’s HQ2 search: “We’re not doing a beauty contest thing, that’s not Apple … It sets up a win lose situation and that’s not something I want Apple to be a part of.”
• “The DACA situation is one that I am personally, as an American, deeply offended by. The DACA situation is not an immigration issue. It’s a moral issue.”
• “I don’t see this as a partisan issue, this is about America, it’s that simple. I am very disappointed with both parties … I’m personally lobbying Congress on it.”
• On the subject of regulation: “The best regulation is no regulation is self regulation. I do think that it is time for a set of people to think deeply about what can be done here.” … “Regulation can have unexpected consequences, but I think we’re beyond that,” says Cook, regarding Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data scandal
• On the subject of privacy: “The truth is, we could make a ton of money if the customer was our product. We’ve elected not to do that.”
• “We’re not going to traffic in your personal life. I think it is an invasion of privacy. Privacy to us is a human right, it’s a civil liberty and it’s something that is unique to America.”
• “I think it’s creepy when I look at something and it chases me all the way across the web… I don’t like that.”
• On the subject of what Cook would do if he was Mark Zuckerberg re: Cambridge Analytica: “What would I do? I wouldn’t be in this situation.” … “We curate. We don’t want porn on our App Store. We don’t want hate speech on our App Store. We don’t want the ability to recruit terrorists on our App Store. We’re looking at every app in detail. Is it doing what it is saying it is doing?”
• “The only way to protect your data is to encrypt it. …if I were you I wouldn’t do business with a company that isn’t doing that.”
• On the subject of Apple-FBI dispute following San Bernardino shooting: “You should not be able to compel someone to write something that is bad for civilization.”
• On the subject of allowing NRATV app on Apple TV: “Public discourse is an important part of democracy. Do I like their tactics and positions? Obviously, no. But their point of view, it’s important for the public to hear that.”
• On the subject of how to maintain privacy: “I would make sure I understood the privacy policy of every app and every website you frequent … I would go into private browsing mode … Think about blocking cookies … The only way to protect your data, is to encrypt.”
• On the subject of what Cook would tell his high school self: “I would tell myself, the joy is in the journey. And on finding your purpose: Your purpose is to serve humanity.”

We’ll have more in-depth coverage of Cook’s comments shortly.

Tag: Tim Cook
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Tim Cook on What He Would Do in Mark Zuckerberg’s Shoes: ‘I Wouldn’t Be in This Situation’

“I wouldn’t be in this situation” Apple CEO Tim Cook told Recode’s Kara Swisher in an interview where he was asked what he would do right now if he was Mark Zuckerberg.

Cook went on to say that Facebook should have self regulated to prevent the massive data collection scandal it’s now embroiled in, but the time for that has passed. “I do think that it is time for a set of people to think deeply about what can be done here.”

Image via Recode

It’s clear to me that something, some large profound change is needed… I’m personally not a big fan of regulation because sometimes regulation can have unexpected consequences to it, however I think this certain situation is so dire and has become so large, that probably some well-crafted regulation is necessary.

Cook made the comments calling for regulation in a wide-ranging discussion with Swisher and MSNBC’s Chris Hayes, covering topics from privacy to DACA to education, where he also again pointed out Apple’s strong stance on privacy.

As Cook has said many times in the past, “you” are not Apple’s product and Apple does not make its money selling customer data. Cook says Apple sees privacy as a “human right, a civil liberty.”

We could make a ton of money if we monetized our customers. If our customers were our product. We’ve elected not to do that. …We’re not going to traffic in your personal life.

Curation is important to Apple, and that’s one of the ways Cook believes Facebook went wrong. “We curate,” he said. “We don’t want porn on our App Store. We don’t want hate speech on our App Store.”

Apple, he says, looks at every app in detail. “Is it doing what it is saying it is doing?”

Cook also offered up some advice on how people can protect their privacy. He recommends people read and understand the privacy policy of every app and website frequented, use private browsing mode, and think about blocking cookies. “The only way to protect your data is to encrypt,” he added.

Like many of us, Cook says he “finds it creepy” when he looks at something and it chases him “all across the web,” something Apple has actively started blocking with cross-site tracking prevention tools in macOS High Sierra and iOS 11. “I don’t like that,” he said.

Cook was interviewed at the Lane Tech College Prep High School where Apple held its educational event earlier this week. The CEO’s full interview will air on Friday, April 6 at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time or 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time on MSNBC.

Tags: Facebook, Tim Cook
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Apple Releases iOS 11.3 Update Solely for New iPad

Apple today released the long-awaited iOS 11.3 update, but it appears the software is only available for download on the sixth-generation iPad, which was announced yesterday at an education event in Chicago.

The sixth-generation iPad went on sale yesterday, but the first orders won’t be delivered until later this week and the device is not yet in stores.

Customers with the new iPad can download iOS 11.3 over-the-air using the Settings app. To access the update, go to Settings –> General –> Software Update.

iOS 11.3 introduces a long list of new features, such as Messages on iCloud for storing your iMessages in iCloud to save valuable on-device storage space.

The update also introduces ARKit 1.5, a new version of ARKit that allows developers to do more with augmented reality apps, and it includes a “Battery Health” feature designed to provide iOS users with more information about their batteries.

Other new features include new review sorting options in the App Store, software authentication for HomeKit devices, Business Chat for contacting businesses using iMessage, and more.

It’s not clear why Apple has released iOS 11.3 for the new iPad and not for any other devices, but the surprise launch suggests the release of iOS 11.3 for other Apple products is imminent and could perhaps come later this week.

Related Roundup: iOS 11
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Developer ‘Survios’ Details Process of Porting VR Title to iMac Pro, Says Apple Has ‘A Lot of Passion’ for VR

When Apple launched the iMac Pro last December, virtual reality applications and content creation were headlining features for the high-end computer. Prior to that, the company focused on Metal 2 and VR-based content as major additions to macOS High Sierra during WWDC 2017, also announcing multiple game studios putting their support behind Mac-based VR experiences, like Valve and Epic using the HTC Vive headset.

Today, another VR studio backing Apple’s efforts in this space has become the focus of a new report by Ars Technica. The studio, called “Survios,” was approached by Apple to port its new software “Electronauts” to macOS, part of many VR apps aimed at showcasing the iMac Pro’s top-of-the-line capabilities.

In the new interview, Survios studio head Mike McTyre and software engineer Jason Meisel discussed the “nearly painless” porting process, what working with Apple was like, and the important distinction between Apple’s focus on AR vs VR.

According to Meisel, Apple focused on ease of portability and ensured that early VR Mac developers wouldn’t hit roadblocks during the porting process. Right now on Mac, VR experiences are supported using an optimized version of Valve’s SteamVR platform and Survios developed Electronauts in the Unity game engine, which “can build directly to a multitude of platforms” spanning macOS and Windows.

“Essentially, what they’ve done really well is that they’ve been working with Unity and with Valve to make that whole process of porting a game that already exists using Unity and just get it running on the iMac,” Meisel added.

Speaking on the topic of the small install base of an iMac Pro-only VR title, McTyre said that the studio noticed “a lot of passion” from Apple, and it’s clear that the Cupertino company is planning “a lot more growth” in VR moving forward.

We’re seeing a lot of resources on their end, a lot of effort, a lot of passion. They want to focus on this and work on this. So that might be true now, but that’s just the starting point. It starts here, and let’s see what they add on to that next… I truly believe that they’re going to put a lot more growth into that going forward beyond this. This is just a starting point.

To expand the support of VR on Mac computers, McTyre said that in a few years he hopes to see Macs launch with integrated GPUs that sport minimum spec requirements for VR. Right now, even the iMac Pro development kit includes an external GPU enclosure, and support for eGPUs will launch wide in macOS High Sierra 10.13.4. McTyre hopes this is just a stopgap solution for graphics-heavy apps like VR: “I do think we are not that far off from the built-in GPUs just being good enough to just, out of the box, play VR.”

Photo of the Survios offices in Culver City, California by Samuel Axon via Ars Technica
McTyre also touched upon the difference between virtual reality and augmented reality, the latter of which has been more of a focus for Apple in recent years thanks to ARKit in iOS. Apple has been tied to potential future products that could use either AR or VR, but Survios is specifically focused on VR and McTyre said AR is just “not as far along yet as VR.”

The concept that AR is a version of VR but better, in my mind, is not true. It’s a different experience. Televisions did not make movies obsolete. Movies did not make books obsolete. Mobile gaming did not making console gaming obsolete, and console gaming did not make PC gaming obsolete. It’s all nonsense. We’ve been through this a million times over the last century. It’s a new medium, and AR and VR are different. Is there overlap, just like TV and movies have overlap? But they’re not the same thing.

For more details on Apple’s relationship with VR developers, be sure to visit Ars Technica and read the full interview with Survios.

Related Roundup: iMac ProTags: Apple VR Project, augmented realityBuyer’s Guide: iMac Pro (Buy Now)
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‘MLB The Show 18’: How to master pitching and keep runners off the basepaths

MLB The Show 18 is available now, and it’s a remarkably realistic take on America’s pastime, with challenging batting and base-running features, as well as strategic pitching. If you take the mound without a game plan or a basic understanding of how pitching works in real-world baseball, you’ll find yourself with a soaring earned run average and a heavy deficit when you come up to the plate. Before you even throw a single pitch, check out our tips for how to dominate on the mound and in the field in MLB The Show 18.

The basics of pitching

As the pitcher in MLB The Show 18, you set the pace of the game. Innings unfold as you throw pitches and attempt to get each batter out, and by managing your total pitch count and locating your pitches correctly, you’ll be able to keep runners from crossing the plate and scoring.

The default control scheme for pitching in MLB 18 is meter-based, requiring you to tap a button on your controller a few times in order to determine how effective your pitch will be. After selecting one of your available pitches using the face buttons on your controller and choosing a location using the analog stick, you’ll tap the tap the X button to send a bar moving up the length of the meter. Tap it again, and it will move in the opposite direction, and you must tap it one more time to throw a pitch.

It can be a little overwhelming at first, but the system is actually quite simple. As the bar goes up the meter, hit the X button just before it heads into the red-colored section at the very end. As it comes back down, you want to hit X again so the bar lines up as close as possible with the line near the middle of the meter. If you do this correctly, you’ll throw a nice, hard pitch right where you aimed. To throw the ball a little harder, you can wait for the bar to go into the red area, but you can easily miss your target this way.

As your pitcher works deeper into a game, his energy level will begin to drop. You need to keep careful track of this as you pitch, particularly if he has an inning or two when he throws more than 15 pitches. With a drop in energy comes a drop in velocity and precision. Precision can also be affected by a drop in “confidence,” which is displayed right below energy in the pitching interface. This will go up or down depending on how many hits or runs the pitcher has given up.

How to dominate the batter

You have the advantage at the mound in MLB The Show 18, but if you get careless, you will still see your pitches getting clobbered over the fence. This is relatively easy to avoid if you locate your pitches well and know when to throw each one. Here are the tips you need to know in order to dominate the batter, even after the ball is put in play:

Locate your fastball

Just like in real baseball, pitchers in MLB The Show 18 live and die by their fastball. The fastest pitch in your repertoire, the basic four-seam fastball is a straight pitch that you will make heavy use of – possibly as much as 75 percent of your pitches can be fastballs. Your goal when throwing the pitch isn’t to just blow the ball by the batter, as they’ll quickly pick up on its velocity and smack it into the outfield.

Instead, you have to “paint the corners,” with the pitch. Focus on staying to the low-outside corner of the strike zone, unless that corner is displayed in red for a particular batter, as this means he hits pitches in that location well. If you miss with this pitch, batters are unlikely to hit a home run, and it’s difficult for them to discern whether it’s a ball or a strike until it’s too late to swing. If you start a batter off with this pitch, you’ll have an easier time getting them to swing at “junk” pitches later on.

Learn to love the changeup

Breaking pitches such as curveballs and sliders are handy for getting a batter to chase a pitch outside the strike zone, but you need to learn to use the changeup if you want to get batters to swing and miss on a consistent basis. Thrown by the majority of Major League pitchers, it looks like a fastball when it comes out of your hand but is 5 to 15 miles-per-hour slower. This will cause batters to swing too early, either completely missing the pitch or hitting a ground ball to an infielder.

Make sure you keep the changeup located near the bottom of the strike zone. Unlike fastballs and curveballs, which can have success when thrown higher up, the changeup becomes much easier to spot if it’s located up in the strike zone. If a batter picks up on it, it’s one of the easier pitches to knock out of the park.

Pay attention to your pitches’ effectiveness

Near the icon showing which button to use for each pitch, you’ll see a blue circle. This denotes your different pitches’ current effectiveness. At the beginning of an outing, it will be about halfway around the icon, indicating a fair amount of confidence in the pitch. Should you successfully use a particular pitch to get several outs or some swing-and-misses at the plate, the circle will begin to fill up. If you use a particular pitch and it’s consistently hit into the outfield or you can’t locate it for a strike, the semi-circle will shrink.

Not every pitch is going to be working for each game, and if you find that one of your pitches isn’t getting the job done, it’s usually best to just stop using it for the duration of your pitcher’s time on the mound. The sole exception to this is the fastball – you must fight through any issues and try to locate it for strikes, because without it, all your other pitches will be less effective.

Don’t be afraid of walks

Walking a batter in a baseball game used to be embarrassing, as games’ pitching systems made it quite difficult to throw anything but strikes on purpose. This isn’t the case in MLB The Show 18. Even just releasing a ball slightly too early or late can result in it missing your target and landing outside the strike zone. Should you fall into 3-0 or 3-1 counts, it can be tempting to just throw a pitch right down the middle in order to get an easy strike, but you have to learn to accept walks. Occasionally, particularly when you already have two outs, it’s less risky to just give a hitter first base than it is to try to get him out. Learning when to concede a base – and accepting it – will make you a better pitcher.

Throw pitches to trigger double plays

Just because a batter has managed to get a hit or a walk doesn’t mean he’s safe: far from it. By using the right pitches and locations, you can trigger double plays on a regular basis. These are accomplished by forcing a batter to hit a hard ground ball to an infielder, who typically throws the ball to second base before it is thrown to first base.

In order to initiate double plays, make use of the splitter, sinker, cutter, or two-seam fastball. All of these pitches have just slightly lower velocity than the standard four-seam fastball, but with movement that make them difficult to hit with solid contact. This means a lot of ground balls. With the sinker and the splitter, the movement will be vertical, with the ball dropping as it approaches the plate. The cutter will break in the opposite direction of the pitcher’s throwing hand – a lefty throwing the pitch will see it break to the right. The two-seam fastball will break in the same direction as the pitcher’s throwing hand, though typically with less bite than the cutter.

If your pitchers don’t have any of those pitches to work with, a changeup thrown on the outside edge of the plate can also initiate a double play. Just make sure you locate it properly, as missing can result in the batter putting a few runs on the board with one swing.

Make smart throws from the field

Once the ball is put in play and your fielders attempt to track it down, your attention has to shift to where you’re going to throw the ball next. With a runner on first base, for instance, your best option on a simple fly ball will be to throw it to either the cutoff man (done by hitting L1) or the second baseman. If a runner is on second base, he might attempt to tag up on this play, taking third base before you can get the ball in. If he’s already on third base, he’ll likely try to score.

Take a second to examine your individual outfielders’ arm strength and arm accuracy stats, which you can find by examining your roster in the pause menu. A selection of players, such as Starling Marte or Yasiel Puig, will be extremely hard to run on, while others aren’t capable of throwing out base-runners on a regular basis. Regardless of where you send the ball, you can “preload” your throw by holding down the appropriate button before your player catches the ball.

If there are runners on both second and third and a ball is hit into the outfield, you might need to concede the run and just throw the ball to the cutoff man. Typically, you can prevent the runner on second base from moving to third base this way. Should you throw the ball to home, he’s almost guaranteed to take third base.

For more pitching tips, including information on specific types of breaking pitches, check out our MLB The Show 17 guide.

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Google acquires GIF search engine Tenor (and its 300 million users)

It looks like Google wants to make it easier to search for GIFs. The company has announced its acquisition of Tenor, a GIF search engine that was founded in 2014. Details about the acquisition have not been released.

Tenor was initially launched as a way to search for GIFs both on desktop and on mobile. On mobile, it allowed users to quickly and easily search for GIFs straight from their keyboard. According to Tenor, a massive 300 million Tenor users search for GIFs 12 billion times every month, and its partners include the likes of WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, and Google. It’s perhaps the scale of its service that attracted Google to buying it in the first place.

“With their deep library of content, Tenor surfaces the right GIFs in the moment so you can find the one that matches your mood. Tenor will help us do this more effectively in Google Images as well as other products that use GIFs, like Gboard,” said Cathy Edwards, director of engineering for Google Images, in a blog post.

The company became known last year for monetizing the GIF-searching experience through sponsored GIFs, and a handful of high-profile brands, including Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks, all jumped on board the new way of advertising.

“The acquisition will enable us to accelerate improvements to Tenor’s service for our users, API partners, content partners, and advertisers,” said Tenor CEO David McIntosh in a blog post. “Tenor will continue to operate as a separate brand to better serve you, and I will continue to lead the Tenor team alongside my co-founders Erick Hachenburg and Frank Nawabi.”

While Tenor will continue to operate as its own brand, it will be interesting to see if the Google acquisition affects its relationship with any other companies. For example, it wouldn’t be all that surprising for the likes of Apple to remove support for Tenor given that Tenor is now owned by what’s perhaps Apple’s biggest rival.

Tenor has generated a lot of interest over the past few years. The company previously raised as much as a whopping $32 million in venture funding, according to Crunchbase.

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Here’s everything we know about the upcoming Apple Watch Series 4

Prykhodov/123RF

It’s that time of year again — the time when Apple rumors begin to fill up every corner of the internet. While there’s already plenty of speculation about the next iPhone, iPad Pro, and even MacBook, the rumors for the upcoming watch have been pretty sparse … until now.

Although we’re just starting to hear rumors about the upcoming Apple Watch Series 4, it looks like this may be a huge year for the smartwatch. Here’s everything we know about the forthcoming Apple Watch Series 4.

Design

Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

While the overall design of Apple Watch has become iconic and has been the inspiration for many a smartwatch, it seems time for change. Well, according to a report from KGI Securities, first spotted on 9to5Mac, a design change is coming to the Apple Watch Series 4.

While KGI Securities does not provide a lot of specifics, it predicts that this year’s Apple Watch will feature “a more trendy form factor design.” The firm also suggests that the display on the Apple Watch Series 4 will be 15 percent larger. While we can’t imagine that Apple would actually make the overall case on the Series 4 smartwatch any larger, it could add more display real estate by decreasing the size of the bezels.

Specs

This year’s Apple Watch will almost certainly ship with an upgraded Apple S4 processor. As with every processor update, we’d expect to see better performance and improved efficiency. Since the Apple Watch Series 3 shipped with 16GB of storage, we think it’s unlikely to see a bump in storage for the 2018 refresh.

As for memory, the Series 3 Apple Watch shipped with 768GB of RAM, so we don’t think it would be unheard of for Apple to bump it up to an even 1GB on the Series 4. We’d also like to see Apple move to Bluetooth 5 for the Apple Watch Series 4.

In terms of display, there’s a chance we may see some changes on the Apple Watch Series. First off, the display itself may be larger since KGI Securities is predicting Apple will increase the display size on the Apple Watch Series 4 by 15 percent. There’s also the possibility that Apple will transition to more efficient MicroLED displays for this year’s crop of Apple Watches.

Operating system

The Apple Watch Series 4 will almost definitely run on Watch OS 5. Right now the detail are slim around Watch OS 5, however we should learn all about it at WWDC in June. While we can’t be certain, there are a few features we’re expecting for the next rendition of Watch OS.

New watch face options are the most obvious addition we’d expect to see on Watch OS 5. There’s also a more than decent chance that we’ll see upgraded customization options since the last few iterations of Watch OS have increasingly allowed users to customize the interface.

On the more speculative side, we’d anticipate a native podcast app on Watch OS 5 as well as better health tracking. We’d also hope to see native sleep tracking (especially since Apple bought Beddit in 2017), and period tracking on Watch OS 5.

Battery and charging

Will the Apple Watch Series 4 pack a bigger battery than its predecessors? If a report from KGI Securities is to be believed this Apple Watch Series 4 will sport a bigger battery than its predecessors. In addition to a larger battery, it’s also likely we’ll see better battery life overall on this year’s refresh since Apple continuously finds ways to make its chips more energy-efficient. The transition from OLED to MicroLED display could also significantly increase the battery life for the Apple Watch Series 4.

In terms of charging, we’d hope to see more wireless charging options for the Apple Watch Series 4. Since Apple introduced a wireless charging option with Apple AirPower for it’s Series 3 smartwatch, it’s not too far fetched to think this year’s Apple Watch may offer wireless charging via Qi Standard.

Price and Release

Pricing for the next Apple Watch is unknown but we would anticipate a modest price increase over the Apple Watch Series 3 to account for the larger display and improved internals. We also anticipate a Wi-Fi model as well as a more expensive LTE version as we saw last year.

While it’s tricky to guess exactly when the Apple Watch Series 4 will be released, our best guess is in September 2018. For the past few years, Apple has announced Apple Watch refreshes alongside its iPhone, and we expect that tradition to continue.

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