Apple Music will play on Sonos speakers by the end of the year
When Apple Music showed up, one of the biggest questions was whether or not it would get at least the same level of third-party hardware support as Beats. Will you have to chuck your Sonos speakers in favor of some Apple-blessed streaming audio gear? Not at all, apparently. The team at 1 Infinite Loop says that Sonos devices will play Apple Music by the end of this year — “ASAP,” as the iPhone maker’s Ian Rogers puts it. There’s no word of compatibility other hardware, but it’s evident between this and Android support that Apple is more interested in having a Spotify-like ubiquity than locking you into its ecosystem.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Internet, HD, Apple
Via: 9to5Mac
Source: Ian Rogers (Twitter), Buzzfeed News
Apple Music Coming to Sonos Home Audio Systems by End of 2015
Popular Wi-Fi home audio system manufacturer Sonos has supported direct streaming of Beats Music since the music service’s launch in early 2014, but the company has repeatedly stated it will not initially support Apple Music when that service launches this week. Apple Music senior director Ian Rogers confirmed late last week that Apple Music will be coming to Sonos “ASAP, but not at launch.”
Earlier today, Sonos confirmed to The Verge that it is working with Apple to bring Apple Music to Sonos systems by the end of the year. Apple joined Sonos in confirming the plans to BuzzFeed.
“We’re working together to make Apple Music available on Sonos before the end of the year,” Apple spokesman Tom Neumayr told BuzzFeed News.
Apple Music launches this Tuesday, June 30 with the release of iOS 8.4 and a new developer seed of iOS 9. Apple’s free Beats 1 streaming radio station is scheduled to go live at 9:00 AM Pacific, with the necessary software updates apparently arriving roughly an hour before that.
Apple reportedly starts making force-sensitive iPhones
Those rumors of a pressure-sensitive iPhone just gained a little more weight. Bloomberg sources claim that Apple has begun “early production” of iPhone models that incorporate Force Touch input. Full-scale manufacturing would start as soon as July, if all goes well. Don’t expect these devices to be conspicuously different, though. The tipsters say the devices will be similar on the outside to the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, right down to the 4.7- and 5.5-inch screens. In other words, this could well be the stereotypical iPhone “S” release — all the big improvements (such as Force Touch, a faster processor and upgraded cameras) may be found under the hood.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Apple
Source: Bloomberg
Apple Music arrives June 30th at 11AM Eastern, Beats 1 an hour later
Determined to try Apple Music and its accompanying Beats 1 radio the very moment they’re available on June 30th? The streaming service’s senior director, Ian Rogers, is happy to help those early adopter impulses. He says that iOS 8.4 (and thus Apple Music) will be available at 11AM Eastern on that day, and Beats 1 will go on the air one hour later. It’s not clear what you’ll hear if you tune in to the station right away, but the first slate of programming will include an interview with Eminem as well as appearances from everyone from Cara Delevigne to (unsurprisingly) Beats brand co-founder Dr. Dre.
And no, Apple hasn’t forgotten about iTunes Match and streaming the songs you already have. Eddy Cue notes that Apple Music will not only share the feature, but expand on it — the company is aiming to match up to 100,000 songs in your library (versus today’s 25,000) by the time iOS 9 shows up this fall. Unless you have a mind-numbingly huge music collection, you can safely assume that it’ll be available in the cloud.
Filed under: Internet, Mobile, Apple
Via: MacRumors
Source: Fistfulayen, Beats 1 (Twitter), Zane Lowe (Twitter)
iOS 8.4 Launching at 8 AM Pacific Tuesday, Beats 1 Goes Live at 9 AM
Former Beats Music CEO and current Apple Music senior director Ian Rogers made a brief blog post yesterday summarizing some of his background in music leading up to this week’s debut of Apple Music while also revealing Apple’s launch schedule for iOS 8.4 and the new Beats 1 radio station.
According to Rogers, iOS 8.4 will go live at 8 AM Pacific this Tuesday, two hours earlier than Apple’s usual iOS update release window. Beats 1 will kick off programming an hour later, offering users around the world a 24/7 streaming music station led by former BBC DJ Zane Lowe and featuring a mixture of interviews and music sets from DJs interspersed with programming blocks from celebrities such as Elton John, Dr. Dre, Pharrell, and Drake.
Tuesday morning we’ll be unveiling the next chapter. Please make a note to upgrade to iOS 8.4 at 8am PT Tuesday, June 30th and listen to the first Beats 1 broadcast at 9am PT. Here’s a Facebook invite to make it easy for you to say yes, you’ll be there, and invite all your friends. See you there.
Aside from Beats 1, which is free to all users signed in with an Apple ID, Apple Music also includes a paid streaming component priced at $9.99 per month for a single user or $14.99 for a family of up to six people. Subscribers will have streaming access to the full Apple Music catalog of over 30 million tracks, with Apple offering a three-month free trial to give users an extended opportunity to test out the new service.
Apple reportedly starts making force-sensitive iPhones
Those rumors of a pressure-sensitive iPhone just gained a little more weight. Bloomberg sources claim that Apple has begun “early production” of iPhone models that incorporate Force Touch input. Full-scale manufacturing would start as soon as July, if all goes well. Don’t expect these devices to be conspicuously different, though. The tipsters say the devices will be similar on the outside to the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, right down to the 4.7- and 5.5-inch screens. In other words, this could well be the stereotypical iPhone “S” release — all the big improvements (such as Force Touch, a faster processor and upgraded cameras) may be found under the hood.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Apple
Source: Bloomberg
Apple Starts Early Production on Next-Generation iPhones With Force Touch
Apple is starting production on its next-generation iPhones, reports Bloomberg, and the new models are equipped with Force Touch capabilities. Force Touch, first introduced with the Apple Watch, is a feature that’s able to distinguish between a light tap and a harder press, enabling a range of new gestures.
The two new iPhones will retain the same 4.7 and 5.5-inch display sizes, with an exterior design that’s largely unchanged. KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has suggested the addition of Force Touch could make the iPhone 0.2mm thicker, but it is unclear if that rumor is accurate.
Apple Inc. has started early production of new iPhone models with a feature called Force Touch, which senses how hard users are pressing down on a screen, people with knowledge of the matter said.
Its newest iPhones, in the same 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch versions as the current iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus devices, will have a similar exterior design, the people said. Volume manufacturing is scheduled to ramp up as soon as next month, they said.
Because the design of the new iPhones will remain the same, Bloomberg‘s sources believe final assembly will go smoothly, but caution that production volume could be impacted by the supply and yield of displays for the devices. Apple has been working to add Force Touch across its product lineup since unveiling the Apple Watch and has thus far incorporated the feature into the trackpads of the Retina MacBook and Retina MacBook Pro.
Apple is expected to debut its next-generation “iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus” in September. Other rumors about the device suggest it could include an improved camera, 7000 series aluminum, and a new rose gold color option.
Hidden Features in iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan
iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan have been available to developers for two weeks now, giving us time to discover all of the little features in both operating systems that weren’t discussed during the keynote event. We’ve created two videos that highlight some of the small but neat additions to iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan, which you can watch below.
Apple’s introduced a wide range of feature additions and minor tweaks in iOS 9 that make some very useful improvements to iOS. For example, there’s now a Notification Center widget that displays the battery life of connected devices like the Apple Watch, and there’s a search bar in the Settings app that lets you find a specific setting very quickly.
A “Back to App” feature lets you swap between apps quickly when you click a notification or a link, and some keyboard changes on the iPad make editing documents a whole lot easier.
OS X 10.11 El Capitan has fewer small feature additions, but there are some improvements worth pointing out. The famous rainbow wheel pointer or “beachball,” which spins when a program is loading has brighter, more defined colors, and the cursor is now easier to find when waking a Mac from sleep. There’s also a revamped Disk Utility window and a dedicated Find My Friends widget for the Notification Center.
If you want to see an overview of all of the features in the new operating systems, make sure to check out our roundups: iOS 9 and OS X 10.11 El Capitan. Our dedicated iOS 9 and El Capitan forums are also an excellent resource for learning more about the software we’ll all be using in the fall.
Buyer’s Guide: Discounts on iMac, Retina MacBook Pro, Apple Accessories, and More [Mac Blog]
With the Fourth of July approaching, Best Buy is offering some holiday discounts on Macs, dropping its prices on iMacs and on the 13-inch 2.7GHz/8GB/128GB Retina MacBook Pro. There are a few minor deals on iPads as usual, but if you can hold out on purchasing, you might be able to get a better deal later this month.
We’ve rounded up some deals on Apple accessories, including several Apple Watch stands, and we’ve got list of apps and games that are on sale this week.
iPad Air 2
B&H Photo is offering a small discount on most of its iPad Air 2 models, dropping prices by $30 to $50. With the discount, the 16GB WiFi only iPad Air 2 is priced at $469 and the 64GB model is priced at $559. Prices vary somewhat by model, but there are slight discounts to be had.
MacMall is also offering some discounts on iPad Air 2 models, dropping the prices by $30 to $50. With the discount, the 16GB entry-level Wi-Fi only iPad Air 2 is priced at $469, while the Wi-Fi-only 64GB iPad Air 2 is available for $564.
iPad Air
Both Best Buy and B&H Photo have deep discounts on some remaining stock of now-discontinued higher-capacity iPad Air models, as listed below.
– iPad Air WiFi Silver 128GB – $499
– iPad Air Cellular Silver 64GB (AT&T) – $429
– iPad Air Cellular Space Gray 64GB (AT&T) – $524.99
– iPad Air Cellular Silver 128GB (Verizon) – $529
– iPad Air Cellular Space Gray 128GB (Verizon) – $549
iPad mini 3
Amazon has a couple iPad mini 3 models available at a low price. The 16GB Silver Wi-Fi only model is available for $349, while the 16GB Space Gray Wi-Fi only model is available for $335.
B&H Photo is offering some modest discounts on various iPad mini 3 models, dropping the price by up to $100. The 16GB WiFi + Cellular iPad mini 3 in gold is available for $469 and the 128GB version is available for $649. The 16GB Wi-Fi only version in Silver is available for $379 and the 64GB Wi-Fi model in Silver is available for $479.
Discounts for each model and and color vary, but most models are being offered at a lower price than you’ll find at the Apple Store, and buying from B&H, you won’t have to pay sales tax unless you’re in New York.
iPad mini 2
Amazon has some discounts on current iPad mini 2 models, offering the 16GB Silver Verizon iPad mini 2 for $329 and the 16GB Space Gray Verizon iPad mini 2 for $329. Amazon also has the 32GB Verizon iPad mini 2 in Space Gray for $375, the lowest price we’ve seen.
Best Buy, B&H Photo, and Amazon have remaining stock of now-discontinued higher-capacity iPad mini 2 models, which are a good deal if you’re looking for an iPad mini. Compared to the iPad mini 3, the iPad mini 2 only lacks Touch ID.
– iPad mini Cellular Silver 128GB (AT&T) – $449.99
– iPad mini Cellular Space Gray 128GB (AT&T) – $498.99
– iPad mini Cellular Space Gray 64GB (AT&T) – $379.99
– iPad mini Cellular Silver 128GB (Verizon) – $495
– iPad mini Cellular Space Gray 128GB (Verizon) – $534.99
– iPad mini Cellular Space Gray 64GB (Verizon) – $429.99
iMac
– 2014 21.5-inch 1.4GHz/8GB/500GB (Best Buy) – $979.99, $20 off
– 2013 21.5-inch 2.7GHz/8GB/1TB (B&H Photo) (Adorama) – $1,199.99, $100 off
– 2013 21.5-inch 2.9GHz/8GB/1TB (Adorama) (B&H Photo) – $1,399, $200 off
– 2013 27-inch 3.2GHz/8GB/1TB (Best Buy) (Amazon) (B&H Photo) – $1,679.99, $120 off
– 2013 27-inch 3.4GHz/8GB/1TB (Adorama) – $1,794.99, $204 off
– 2014 27-inch 3.5GHz/8GB/1TB Retina iMac (Best Buy) (B&H Photo) (MacMall) – $2,119.99, $179 off
– 2015 3.3GHz/8GB/1TB Retina iMac (Best Buy) (B&H Photo) (MacMall) – $1,849.99, $150 off
Mac mini
– 1.4GHz/4GB/500GB (B&H Photo) – $464, $35 off
– 2.6GHz/8GB/1TB (Adorama) – $664, $35 off
– 2.8GHz/8GB/1TB (Adorama) – $938, $60 off
MacBook Air
– 2015 11-inch 1.6GHz/4GB/128GB (Adorama) (B&H Photo) – $824.99, $75 off
– 2015 11-inch 1.6GHz/4GB/256GB (Best Buy) (Amazon) (B&H Photo) (Adorama) – $1044.99, $50 off
– 2015 13-inch 1.6GHz/4GB/128GB (Best Buy) (Amazon) (B&H Photo) (MacMall) – $949.99, $50 off
– 2015 13-inch 1.6GHz/4GB/256GB (Best Buy) (Adorama) (B&H PHoto) (MacMall) – $1,139, $60 off
– 2014 11-inch 1.4GHz/4GB/256GB (B&H Photo) – $799, $200 off
– 2014 13-inch 1.4GHz/4GB/128GB (Adorama) (B&H Photo) – $829.99, $170 off
– 2014 13-inch 1.4GHz/4GB/256GB (B&H Photo) (Adorama) – $999, $200 off
Retina MacBook Pro
– 2015 13-inch 2.7GHz/8GB/128GB (Best Buy) – $1,149.99, $149 off
– 2015 13-inch 2.7GHz/8GB/256GB (Best Buy) (B&H Photo) (Adorama) (MacMall) – $1,424.99, $74 off
– 2015 13-inch 2.9GHz/8GB/512GB (Adorama) (MacMall) – $1,699.99 $100 off
– 2015 15-inch 2.2GHz/16GB/256GB (Best Buy) (B&H Photo) (MacMall) – $1,899, $100 off
– 2015 15-inch 2.5GHz/16GB/512GB (Best Buy) (Amazon) (B&H Photo) (MacMall) – $2,374.99, $125 off
– 2014 13-inch 2.6GHz/8GB/128GB (B&H Photo) – $1,149, $150 off
– 2014 13-inch 2.6GHz/8GB/256GB (B&H Photo) (Adorama) – $1,229, $259 off
– 2014 13-inch 2.8GHz/8GB/512GB (B&H Photo) (Adorama) – $1,499 $300 off
– 2014 15-inch 2.2GHz/16GB/256GB (Adorama) – $1,749.99, $250 off
– 2014 15-inch 2.5GHz/16GB/512GB (B&H Photo) – $1,999.95, $500 off
Apps
There are quite a few apps that are on sale at discounted prices or available for free for a limited time. We’ll highlight a few here, but make sure to check out our sister site AppShopper for a complete list.
Shoot ’em up game Star Drift is available for free, down from $2.99. Puzzle game Dwelp is available for free, down from $1.99. Fantasy Gamebook Adventures apps are all on sale for $0.99, down from $5.99: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.
Note taking app Sketch Rolls is available for free, down from $1.99. Icewind Dale is available for $4.99, down from $9.99. Both Baldur’s Gate and Baldur’s Gate II are also on sale for $4.99, down from $9.99.
Hitman GO is available for $1.99, down from $4.99. Arcade game Impossible Road is available for $0.99, down from $1.99. Photography app Manual is available for $0.99, down from $1.99. Endless runner Alto’s Adventure is available for $0.99, down from $1.99.
Photo editing app Halftone 2 was named Apple’s App of the Week, so it will be free to download until next Thursday when a new app is picked.
Apple Accessories
iPhone accessory maker Speck is offering 30 percent off site wide, cutting the prices on all of its products. The discount is applied at checkout.
Groupon is selling the Beats Powerbeats2 Wireless Earbuds for $169.99, down from $199.95. Otterbox’s Defender Series Case for the iPhone 6 Plus is available for $34.99, down from $69.90.
The OVA Wood Apple Watch Charging Dock is available for $69.99 from StackSocial, down from $100. Dragon Dictate 4 for Mac is available from StackSocial for $99, down from its regular price of $154.99.
The Dual Wooden Charging Dock for iPhone and Apple Watch is available for $24.99 from LivingSocial, down from the regular price of $59.95. Target is selling Beats by Dre Solo HD Drenched headphones for $40 off.
The Griffin PowerJolt Car Charger is available from Groupon for $24.97, down from $34.99. iHome’s Car Charger is available for $14.99 from Groupon, down from $29.99.
MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors.
MacRumors Giveaway: Win a Twist Plus+ World Charging Station for Mac and iOS Devices [Mac Blog]
For this week’s giveaway, we’ve teamed up with OneAdaptr to offer 12 MacRumors readers a chance to win a Twist Plus+ World Charging Station. Priced at $45, the Twist Plus is a very handy charging solution that lets you charge your Mac and multiple iOS devices at the same time.
Because it attaches to any MacBook Power Adapter by replacing the attached plug, it works with many different Mac models. Its included four USB ports can charge iOS devices at the same time, and it even works with Apple’s newest devices, the Retina MacBook and the Apple Watch.
In addition to charging multiple Apple products at once, the Twist Plus comes with a selection of adapters for use around the world, making it a useful product for those who travel often. The adapters are all built-in so there’s no need to carry extra accessories, and changing the adapter is done with a twist of the base. The Twist Plus’ selection of adapters work in more than 150 countries.
Twist Plus World Charging Station not only allows for worldwide charging of MacBook, but also provides 4 ports, 4.0 Amp USB charging station for iPad/iPhone/Smartphone/Tablet. Once attached, simply twist to select the local plug, to power up to 5 devices simultaneously from a single outlet.
To enter to win one of the 12 Twist Plus+ World Charging Stations, use the Rafflecopter widget below to enter your email address. Your email address will not be given to any third party and is used solely for contact purposes. You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube channel, following us on Twitter, or visiting the MacRumors Facebook page. Due to the complexities of international laws regarding giveaways, only U.S. residents who are 18 years of age or older are eligible to enter.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
This contest will run from today (June 26) at 12:00 p.m. Pacific Time through 12:00 p.m. Pacific Time on July 3. The winner will be chosen randomly on July 3 and will be contacted by email. The winner has 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address or a new winner will be chosen.
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