Apple Announces New China Clean Energy Programs for Manufacturing Partners

Apple today announced two clean energy programs aimed at reducing the carbon footprint of its manufacturing partners in China. Apple says the programs will avoid over 20 million metric tons of greenhouse gas pollution in China between now and 2020, which is equivalent to taking 4 million cars off the road for a year.

“Climate change is one of the great challenges of our time, and the time for action is now,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “The transition to a new green economy requires innovation, ambition and purpose. We believe passionately in leaving the world better than we found it and hope that many other suppliers, partners and other companies join us in this important effort.”

The first program is aimed at expanding Apple’s clean-energy investments in the country. Apple will build more than 200 megawatts of solar projects in the northern, eastern and southern regions of China. The projects will generate energy equivalent to the amount of energy used by 265,000 Chinese homes in a year. The Cupertino company also says the project will “begin to offset” the energy used in Apple’s supply chain.

The second program is a new initiative aimed at driving Apple’s manufacturing partners to become more energy efficient. Apple and its suppliers will install more than 2 gigawatts of new clean energy in the next couple of years. Apple will share strategies for procuring clean energy and building high-quality energy projects with its suppliers while also providing energy efficiency audits, regulatory guidance and more.

Apple’s most well-known manufacturing partner, Foxconn, will construct 400 megawatts of solar energy in the Henan Province by 2018, with the manufacturer committing to generate as much clean energy as its Zhengzhou factory consumes in final production of the iPhone.

Finally, Apple announced that it has completed construction on 40 megawatts of solar energy in the Sichuan Province, which means that the company is powering 100 percent of its operations in China and is carbon neutral in the country.

Apple’s iCloud Website Gains New Find My Friends App

Apple today added a web-based Find My Friends app to its iCloud.com site (via 9to5Mac), allowing users to locate their friends on a Mac or PC through the web. Find My Friends has long been available on iPhones and iPads through an iOS app, but this is the first time the feature has been made available on all platforms through a universal web app.

Find My Friends will display the location of each friend on a map, and it will also let users know which friends are located nearby. Today’s addition of Find My Friends to iCloud.com comes following its promotion to a default app within iOS 9, which means it comes pre-installed on all iOS devices and cannot be deleted.

Find My Friends joins Find My iPhone and several other iCloud apps, including Mail, Calendar, Photos, Contacts, Notes, Reminders, iCloud Drive, and the iWork suite of apps,

‘YouTube Red’ Ad-Free Subscription Service Launches in U.S. October 28

Google today announced YouTube Red, a new subscription service that provides unlimited ad-free access to YouTube videos for $9.99 per month on Android, desktop and the mobile web, and $12.99 per month on iOS due to Apple’s in-app purchase tax (via TechCrunch). The membership also includes several other benefits.

YouTube Red features the option to save videos for offline playback and to play videos in the background on smartphones and tablets. In early 2016, the subscription service will also take on Netflix by introducing member-only access to Original series and movies by some of YouTube’s most popular creators.

YouTube Red launches in the U.S. on October 28, and will expand to other major markets over the course of the next year. The service works across all devices and anywhere you can sign into YouTube, including its new Gaming and Family apps. A free 14-day trial will be available in the U.S., which can be extended to 30 days with a credit card.

Google has also bundled a Play Music subscription into YouTube Red on iOS and Android, providing access to both services for a combined $9.99 or $12.99 monthly payment. YouTube Red’s unlimited access to both streaming music, videos and more makes it an attractive competitor alongside rivals like Apple Music and Spotify.

The Verge published an exclusive in-depth article and hands-on video about YouTube Red:

Google also announced YouTube Music, an all-new app for discovering, watching and listening to music videos. The app is coming soon in the U.S., followed by additional countries in 2016. YouTube Red members gain additional features such as no ads and other background and offline member benefits.

The Verge also published an exclusive hands-on video for YouTube Music:

YouTube will continue to be available in its traditional ad-supported format on the web and mobile devices. Google says today’s ad-supported experience will not change for users who aren’t interested in paying, while the majority of revenue collected from YouTube Red will be distributed to partners.

Sprint Announces Enhanced Wi-Fi Calling Feature for iOS 9.1 Users

Alongside the launch of iOS 9.1, Sprint has implemented an enhanced Wi-Fi calling feature for its users, allowing them to make and receive calls on multiple iOS and Mac devices over Wi-Fi or a cellular connection.

Prior to today, it was possible for Sprint users to make and receive calls from iPads and Macs using an iPhone’s cellular connection, but that functionality did not extend to calls placed over Wi-Fi when cellular signal was low.

The iOS call forwarding feature implemented with iOS 8 that allowed users to make and receive calls from multiple devices required Wi-Fi calling to be turned off, but that is no longer the case. Calls placed or received on devices other than an iPhone will now work over a cellular connection and when connected to Wi-Fi with Wi-Fi calling in use.

Receiving calls on multiple devices with the call forwarding feature also required devices to be on the same Wi-Fi network as an iPhone, but with enhanced Wi-Fi calling, that’s no longer necessary. In fact, an iPad or a Mac can still receive a call when an iPhone is in another location entirely or turned off.

Sprint users can access the new enhanced Wi-Fi calling feature by downloading iOS 9.1, watchOS 2, or OS X 10.11.1 on their devices and making sure Wi-Fi calling is enabled on an iPhone by going to Settings –> Phone –> Wi-Fi Calling. Other devices can be set up to receive calls by going to Settings –> FaceTime –> Calls from iPhone. All devices must use the same Apple ID and they must be signed into iCloud.

These advanced Wi-Fi calling features, which are outlined in an updated Apple Support document on Wi-Fi calling, are also available to T-Mobile users in the United States. While AT&T and several other international carriers have implemented support for Wi-Fi calling, it does not extend to the enhanced Wi-Fi calling feature available to Sprint and T-Mobile users.

Apple Releases OS X 10.11.1 El Capitan With New Emoji, Mail Improvements and Office 2016 Bug Fix

Apple today released OS X 10.11.1, which is the first update to the new El Capitan operating system that was launched to the public on September 30. In testing since mid-September, OS X 10.11.1 is a minor performance update that focuses on fixing bugs found in the first version of El Capitan.

The OS X 10.11.1 update can be downloaded through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store and it is available to all users who are running OS X El Capitan.

According to the release notes, OS X 10.11.1 fixes several major bugs that El Capitan users have been experiencing since the software was released. It improves compatibility with Microsoft Office 2016, addressing ongoing crashing issues that Office 2016 users have run into. There are also two fixes for Mail issues.

This update:
– Improves installer reliability when upgrading to OS X El Capitan
– Improves compatibility with Microsoft Office 2016
– Fixes an issue where outgoing server information may be missing from Mail
– Resolves an issue that prevented display of messages and mailboxes in Mail
– Resolves an issue that prevents certain Audio Unit plug-ins from functioning properly
– Improves VoiceOver reliability
– Adds over 150 new emoji characters with full Unicode 7.0 and 8.0 support

OS X 10.11.1 also introduces support for Unicode 7 and 8, adding new emoji that include taco, burrito, cheese wedge, middle finger, hot dog, popcorn, and unicorn head. These emoji are also included in iOS 9.1.

Apple Releases iOS 9.1 With New Emoji, Live Photos Improvements

Apple today released iOS 9.1 to the public, marking the first major update to the iOS 9 operating system that launched in September. In testing since before iOS 9 was even released, iOS 9.1 was beta tested for more than a month before its launch, with developers and public beta testers receiving five betas in total.

Today’s iOS 9.1 update is available as an over-the-air update to all iOS 9 users. It is the third update to iOS 9 so far, with Apple having previously released iOS 9.0.1 and iOS 9.0.2. Apple has also released the tvOS golden master (GM), which represents the final version of the software that will be available when the new Apple TV launches next week.

iOS 9.1 has a limited number of outward facing changes. It includes support for Unicode 7 and 8, introducing a range of new emoji like taco, burrito, cheese wedge, middle finger, champagne bottle, unicorn head, and more.

A selection of the new emoji in iOS 9.1, via Emojipedia
iOS 9.1 includes an update for Live Photos, which now sense when the iPhone is raised or lowered to refrain from recording unnecessary movements. The update also introduces a new Messages option in the Settings app that is designed to allow users to disable photos for contacts, and it brings Apple News to the UK for the first time.

This release includes new features, improvements, and bug fixes, including:

– Live Photos now intelligently senses when you raise or lower your iPhone, so that Live Photos will automatically not record these movements
– Over 150 new emoji characters with full support for Unicode 7.0 and 8.0 emojis

Aside from these changes, iOS 9.1 includes new features and compatibility updates for upcoming Apple products like the fourth-generation Apple TV and the iPad Pro The new Apple TV requires iOS 9.1 to be set up using an iOS device.

iOS 9.1 also includes bug fixes for a number of issues that iOS users have been experiencing, and as with most iOS updates, it enhances performance and introduces important security fixes.

Apple Releases iTunes 12.3.1 With Stability and Performance Improvements

Along with updates for iOS, OS X, and watchOS 2, Apple today released a new version of iTunes, iTunes 12.3.1. The update is a minor one, with the release notes only saying it improves overall stability and performance.

The iTunes update can be downloaded from the software update function in the Mac App Store.

iTunes 12.3.1 comes just over a month after the release of iTunes 12.3, which brought support for iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan. iTunes 12, which brought a major redesign to the iTunes software, was initially released in 2014 alongside OS X Yosemite.

Twitter Announces Upcoming Revamped Twitter for Mac App

At its Twitter Flight developer conference, Twitter today announced plans for a redesigned and updated Twitter for Mac client, reports TechCrunch. The new Twitter for Mac app will include support for several newer Twitter features such as in-line Vine, video, and GIF playback, group Direct Messages, photo Direct Messages, and in-line replies.

Image via TechCrunch
The app, which will be optimized for El Capitan, will show interaction highlights within the OS X Notification Center, and it has a built-in dark mode for users who prefer a darker interface.

New Twitter for Mac in dark mode looks so good pic.twitter.com/OnDukgtslx

— Rus (@rus) October 21, 2015

http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
Twitter for Mac has never been a focal point for Twitter, and the app has often gone for months without updates and new feature additions. From June of 2011 to April of 2013 it received zero updates, and in 2014 and 2015, it’s only been updated twice. With the revamped version, it’s possible Twitter plans to invest more of its resources into the Mac app to allow it to better compete with third-party products like Tweetbot.

Twitter plans to release its updated Mac app in a few months, with no concrete launch date set at the current time.