Apple Releases Second Beta of tvOS 9.1 to Developers
Apple today seeded the second beta of an upcoming update to tvOS, the new operating system that runs on the fourth-generation Apple TV. Today’s tvOS beta marks the first software update to tvOS 9.0, a final version of which was released alongside the new Apple TV. The first beta of tvOS was seeded to developers last week.
The second tvOS beta is available as an over-the-air update to those who have installed the first beta. Installing an initial tvOS beta is a more involved process than installing a beta update for iOS or OS X. The update requires the Apple TV to be connected to a computer with a USB-C to USB-A cable, with the software downloaded and installed via iTunes.
We don’t yet know exactly what is included in the new version of tvOS, as most changes thus far appear to be under-the-hood updates. Apple’s release notes for the update include references to networking and scrolling tweaks, and it’s likely tvOS 9.1 will include fixes for bugs and issues that have been discovered in the software since the Apple TV’s official launch.
We will include any other external facing changes below.
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Apple Music is live on Android devices today
Apple Music launches in beta form today on Android, cementing it as the second Apple program to hit Google’s mobile platform (following the “move to iOS” app). Apple offers a three-month trial to Android users, as it does to Apple customers. Since the Android version is still in beta, it’s missing a few features and upgrades: Apple promises music videos are on their way and the sign-up process will be optimized for Android. To sign up for a family membership, you’ll need a Mac or iOS device for now. Apple Music on Android requires version 4.3 or better, and it’s a 29M download. After the trial period, Apple Music is a $10-per-month service. We gave the iOS version a spin when it launched on June 30th and found it to be heavy on features but a little disjointed. Apple announced the Android version of Music back in June, alongside a promised launch on Apple TV this fall.
Via: TechCrunch
Source: Google
iPhone Unlikely to Adopt AMOLED Display in Foreseeable Future
Apple is unlikely to adopt AMOLED displays for next-generation iPhones in the foreseeable future, according to often-reliable KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. The analyst believes Apple will continue using TFT-LCD display technology for at least the next three years — and likely beyond.
Kuo claims that Apple supplier Hon Hai Precision Industry, better known as Foxconn, is preparing to invest in advanced TFT-LCD production lines in China for mass production in 2018, and coupled with recent comments made by iPhone backlight supplier Minebea, the analyst believes iPhones will continue using TFT-LCD displays in the future.
Based on recent comments by Minebea, one of the main iPhone backlight unit suppliers, we believe AMOLED will not penetrate iPhone for the next three years. Moreover, Hon Hai is preparing to invest in Gen-6 LTPS TFT-LCD production lines in Zhengzhou, China for mass production in 2018, suggesting the iPhone line will likely stick with TFT-LCD technology in 2018 and thereafter. […]
Minebea, major BLU supplier of iPhone, stated to investors on November 5 that it does not foresee risk of TFT-LCD share loss to AMOLED in high-end smartphone market in next three years & guides growth in TFT-LCD going forward. As Apple and Samsung are the only two brands that currently offer premium smartphones, we think Minebea’s statements imply it does not expect iPhone to adopt AMOLED in the coming three years, given that Samsung’s models are already being equipped with it.
Taiwanese website DigiTimes, citing a report in the Korea-based ET News, said in late October that Samsung may supply Apple with OLED panels for upcoming iPhone models, and past rumors have suggested an AMOLED-based iPhone could arrive in 2017 or later, but Kuo believes there is “sufficient evidence indicating otherwise.”
Samsung’s popular Galaxy-branded smartphones are equipped with AMOLED displays, as is the Apple Watch, but Apple has always used various LCD display technologies since the original iPhone launched over eight years ago. Geek provides a good comparison of AMOLED vs. LCD display technologies.
Tags: Samsung, KGI Securities, Ming-Chi Kuo, AMOLED
Buyer’s Guide: iPhone (Buy Now)
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Best Buy Offering Black Friday Deals on iPhones, iPads, Macs, Apple Watch and More
Best Buy has shared its Black Friday ad for 2015, revealing several deals on Apple products and accessories. The discounts and promotions include up to $125 off select iPad Air 2 models, up to $200 off select Macs, up to $100 off select Apple Watch models, up to $50 off all iPods and more.
Best Buy stores in the U.S. will open at 5:00 PM on Thursday, November 26, close at 1:00 AM on Friday, November 27, then reopen at 8:00 AM on Friday, November 27 and remain open until 10:00 PM on Friday, November 27. All times are local and may vary at select locations. Most deals are also available online between November 26-28.
Doorbusters
Best Buy will be offering limited doorbuster deals on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday in stores and online. Thanksgiving Day doorbusters will be available at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 26. Black Friday doorbusters will be available at 8:00 a.m. on Friday, November 27. All times are local and may vary.
Tickets are required for in-store Black Friday doorbuster shopping, which grants the customer the ability to buy a discounted item for a limited time. Best Buy stores will determine when to distribute tickets in the two hours prior to opening for select store-opening doorbusters on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday.
– $100 off iPad Air 2 (16GB/Wi-Fi)
– $100 off iPad Air 2 (64GB/Wi-Fi)
– $125 off iPad Air 2 (128GB/Wi-Fi)
– $200 off MacBook Pro (13-inch/Mid-2012)
– $200 off iMac (21.5-inch/1.6 GHz/Late-2015)
– $120 off MacBook Air (11-inch/Early-2015)
– Up to $50 off all iPods
Black Friday Deals
– $100 off iPad mini 4 (64GB or 128GB/Wi-Fi)
– $150 off MacBook Pro (13-inch/Early-2015)
– $150 off iMac (27-inch/Retina 5K/Late-2015)
– Up to $100 off select Apple Watch models
– Up to 50% off select Apple Watch accessories
– Up to $60 off ZAGGfolio keyboards for iPads
– Buy one, get one 40% off on iTunes gift cards
– $200 Best Buy gift card with purchase or lease and activation of any new iPhone plus trade-in of iPhone 5 or newer
Follow our Black Friday roundup to keep track of all the best Apple deals at Walmart, Sam’s Club, Staples, Target and other retailers as announced. See Best Buy’s Black Friday FAQ for more details about the above deals.
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Sonos Debuts ‘Trueplay’ Update for No-Hassle High Quality Speaker Tuning
Sonos today announced an update to its Sonos Controller app that will bring a new feature called “Trueplay” to its customers worldwide. The update allows users to fine tune their Sonos speakers, even if the devices are placed in poorly pitched areas of the room, so that the devices sound as good as they would in a higher audio quality setting.
Trueplay uses the microphone in your iPhone or iPad and a quick setup process to ensure your Sonos speakers always sound their best, whether you’ve placed one on the most perfect pedestal or hid one inside your kitchen cabinet above the coffee grinder. Now you can violate one of those audiophile rules and put your speakers where you actually want them: behind, above, under or inside and still get awesome sound.
The company promises that the new Trueplay feature will make any compatible Sonos speaker (including PLAY:1, PLAY:3, and PLAY:5) sound great whether they’re “on the most perfect pedestal” or even behind a muffled door. Once the update to the Sonos Controller app is downloaded, a prompt for Trueplay guides the user through a 30-second tutorial that walks them around a specified room and sends the data back to the Sonos speaker for better quality sound.
Sonos ensured the calibration process would be user-friendly by layering in the possibility for external sounds to muffle the tuning — a dog barking, or subtle wind noises picked up by the iPhone speakers — and making sure the speaker didn’t account for the sounds in the final stages of calibration. The company aims for Trueplay to keep all of its speakers on the cutting edge with constant updates to audio performance, “whether you’ve had your Sonos speaker for three months or three years.”
The Sonos Controller app is available to download for free from the App Store [Direct Link].
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Tim Cook warns UK government against weakening encryption
Following the UK’s Investigatory Powers Bill, which was released last week with new and extended surveillance powers for the government, Apple CEO Tim Cook has defended strong encryption. Speaking to the Telegraph, Cook reiterated that Apple believes “very strongly in end-to-end encryption and no back doors.” He pointed to recent data breaches (hello, TalkTalk hack) and emphasised that they can endanger both public privacy and national security. “To protect people who use any products, you have to encrypt.”
Former Apple Car Hire Johann Jungwirth Joins Volkswagen as Head of Digitalization Strategy
Johann Jungwirth has been appointed as the head of Volkswagen’s new Digitalization Strategy Department in the company’s Germany-based headquarters. In the past, Jungwirth worked for Mercedez-Benz and Apple, where he led the Mac Systems Engineering team.
More specifically, Jungwirth supported Apple’s Special Projects Group, a tie that has connected him in the past to Apple’s long-rumored Apple Car project. Although the German native could have left Apple solely for a job that brought him closer to home, it’s still unclear exactly why he decided to leave the Cupertino-based company — where he was allegedly working alongside the Apple Car team — for Volkswagen.
Jungwirth was named Director, Mac Systems Engineering at Apple in Cupertino, CA (USA), in 2014. He was responsible for innovation in design and engineering in product development as well as hiring, growing and leading a multicultural research & development team and supporting the Special Projects Group.
According to Volkswagen’s press release, Jungwirth will help the car manufacturer look towards the future with a focus on digitilization in the automotive industry. The hire comes on the heels of Volkswagen’s big diesel scandal that’s plagued the company for the past few weeks, in which it was discovered that it cheated on emissions tests in a number of its diesel cars.
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Google Announces Full Offline Maps Coming Soon to iOS
Google has announced that the latest version of Google Maps for Android has an improved offline mode, providing access to turn-by-turn directions and several other features in areas without a reliable cellular data or internet connection. It also confirmed these features will be coming soon to iOS, but did not provide a specific release timeframe.
Google Maps was previously limited to viewing maps while offline, but this update will enable iPhone users to navigate with turn-by-turn driving directions, search for specific destinations and look up information about places, including hours of operation, contact information and ratings, while offline.
Now you can download an area of the world to your phone, and the next time you find there’s no connectivity—whether it’s a country road or an underground parking garage—Google Maps will continue to work seamlessly. Whereas before you could simply view an area of the map offline, now you can get turn-by-turn driving directions, search for specific destinations, and find useful information about places, like hours of operation, contact information or ratings.
Google previewed Offline Maps at Google I/O in May, and will be gradually rolling out the new features to Android and iOS users.
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Tim Cook: iPad Pro Will Replace Notebooks and Desktops for ‘Many, Many People’
Ahead of the launch of the iPad Pro, Apple executives have been doing a series of interviews to drum up excitement and interest in the device. Earlier today, The Independent published an interview with Tim Cook where he shared his thoughts on the Apple Pencil and the iPad Pro’s target market.
This afternoon, The Telegraph published a second interview where Tim Cook spoke further on his vision of the iPad Pro as a PC replacement and how tablets are subsuming the PC market. According to Cook, the iPad Pro will serve as a replacement for a notebook or desktop computer for “many, many people.”
“I think if you’re looking at a PC, why would you buy a PC anymore? No really, why would you buy one?” […]
“Yes, the iPad Pro is a replacement for a notebook or a desktop for many, many people. They will start using it and conclude they no longer need to use anything else, other than their phones.”
Cook also said the iPad Pro will be highly appealing to artists and other creatives, pointing towards the ease of use of the Apple Pencil and the iPad Pro’s sound system, two features he also highlighted in his earlier interview with The Independent.
According to Cook, sales of the new Apple TV were “very strong,” a sentiment he echoed for the Apple Watch, which will “set a new record this quarter.” Cook also said Apple doesn’t have plans to introduce sensors or other health features that would cause the FDA to get involved with the device. He didn’t rule out the possibility of other products that require FDA approval, like apps.
We don’t want to put the watch through the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) process. I wouldn’t mind putting something adjacent to the watch through it, but not the watch, because it would hold us back from innovating too much, the cycles are too long. But you can begin to envision other things that might be adjacent to it — maybe an app, maybe something else.”
Tim Cook’s interview, where he also speaks on the iPad mini 4 and device cannibalization, the health benefits of the Apple Watch, and the possibility of an Apple subscription service is well worth reading over at The Telegraph.
Apple’s iPad Pro will go on sale online on Wednesday, November 11. Pricing for the iPad Pro starts at $799 for the entry-level 32GB Wi-Fi only model. A 128GB Wi-Fi only model is available for $949, and a 128GB Wi-Fi + Cellular model is available for $1,079.
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Apple Shares ‘A Great Big Universe’ iPad Pro Ad Ahead of Launch
Apple today launched a new ad for the iPad Pro, entitled “A Great Big Universe.” The ad depicts a gorgeous and detailed close up of the solar system, which zooms out to show that it’s actually being displayed on the iPad Pro’s Retina display. According to The Verge, the ad will premiere on TV tonight during Monday Night Football.
There’s a great big universe in the new iPad Pro. It’s the largest iPad ever and takes your creativity and productivity to an epic scale.
The new iPad Pro ad comes just two days before Apple will began accepting orders for the device. This morning, Apple announced orders would begin online on Wednesday, November 11, with the iPad Pro available in stores later in the week.
Pricing for the iPad Pro starts at $799 for the entry-level 32GB Wi-Fi only model. A 128GB Wi-Fi only model is available for $949, and a 128GB Wi-Fi + Cellular model is available for $1,079. The iPad Pro is available in the three signature iPad colors: Space Gray, Silver, and Gold.
Apple will also be allowing customers to order the Apple Pencil and the Smart Keyboard, the two accessories that are designed to be used with the iPad Pro. The Apple Pencil, a pressure-sensitive stylus, will be available for $99 while the Smart Keyboard is priced at $169.
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