Apple Releases OS X 10.10.3 Supplemental Update With Video Driver Fix

Following the April 8 public release of OS X 10.10.3, Apple has today released a supplemental update for software, which fixes a video driver bug that prevented Macs from starting when running certain apps that are designed to capture video.

Today’s supplemental update is available immediately for all OS X Yosemite 10.10.3 users from the Mac App Store.

The OS X Yosemite 10.10.3 Supplemental Update fixes a video driver issue that may prevent your Mac from starting up when running certain apps that capture video.

OS X 10.10.3 brought several new features to Apple’s desktop operating system, including the new Photos for OS X app, a revamped emoji picker, new diversified emoji, Spotlight suggestions for lookup, and a bunch of bug fixes and performance improvements.

Google Updates Chrome Browser for iOS With Notification Center Widget, App Extensions [iOS Blog]

Google today released a significant update to its Chrome browser for iOS, adding several features to improve its compatibility with iOS 8. There’s a new Notification Center widget that includes controls to let users launch a new tab or initiate a voice search directly from the Today view of the Notification Center.

Tapping on “New Tab” or on “Voice Search” will automatically launch the Chrome web browser with a new search tab open or an activated voice search, making it handier to look things up quickly. There’s no comparable Safari widget for quick launching searches, so the new Chrome widget gives it a bit of a leg up over Apple’s built-in browser. Safari users can, however, use Siri for quick searches.

The app also includes support for iOS Extensions for apps like 1Password and LastPass, so it’s now easier to input passwords into Chrome with those apps.

Other new features include the ability to pull to reload and open and close tabs and easier-to-open links copied from other apps.

What’s new
– Start searching and browsing faster: quick access to Voice Search and open new tabs from the Today View
– Ergonomically-designed: Pull to reload and open/close tabs
– Support for iOS App Extensions, such as 1Password and LastPass
– Easily open links copied from other apps

The Chrome web browser can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Stylus Review: Hands-On With the $75 Pen-Like Adonit Jot Script 2 [iOS Blog]

Adonit recently announced the launch of a new version of its popular Bluetooth-enabled Jot Script stylus, featuring a rechargeable battery, a revamped body, and iPad Air 2 support. When Adonit asked if we’d like to review the new stylus, we jumped at the chance because our last stylus review covering the Adonit Jot Pro and Jot Mini was popular with MacRumors readers.

The Jot Script 2 Evernote Edition is one of Adonit’s higher-end styluses, connecting to an iPhone or iPad over Bluetooth. It’s a digital stylus, so it’s able to offer the accuracy of a regular rubber-tipped stylus with a tip that’s only 1.9mm, giving it a pen-like feel.

Adonit’s Jot Script 2 improves upon the original Jot Script with a redesigned slimmer body that has a better grip, an upgraded Pixelpoint tip, and longer battery life. It’s been launched in partnership with Evernote, so it works with Evernote’s Penultimate app, and it comes with six months of Evernote’s premium service.

Apple introduced new display technology with the iPad Air 2, breaking a lot of digital styluses, including Adonit’s previous Jot Script. Older styluses don’t work as well with the iPad Air 2, resulting in a lot of missing contact. The Jot Script 2 is one of the first styluses that works well with Apple’s newest tablet.
Read more

Apple Seeds First OS X 10.10.4 Yosemite Beta to Developers

Apple today seeded the first beta of OS X 10.10.4 to developers, just over a week after releasing OS X 10.10.3 with the Photos for OS X app to the public.

The new beta can be downloaded through the Mac Developer Center.

It is not clear what’s new in the beta, but it may include new features like OS X 10.10.3, or it may be a smaller update focused on bug fixes like OS X 10.10.1 and OS X 10.10.2, both of which introduced several fixes to improve performance.

How to Migrate Pictures from iPhoto or Aperture to Photos for OS X [iOS Blog]

With the launch of OS X 10.10.3 Yosemite, Apple released its much-anticipated Photos app, which was first announced during its Worldwide Developers Conference in 2014. The Photos for OS X app took several months to complete because it was designed from the ground up to work with OS X Yosemite and integrate with both the Photos for iOS app and iCloud Photo Library.

Because Photos for OS X replaces both of Apple’s existing photo apps, Aperture and iPhoto, you’re going to need to migrate your Aperture and iPhoto libraries into the new Photos app if you want to be able to use Apple’s latest and greatest photo editing tools with your images.

The migration from iPhoto or Aperture to Photos actually happens automatically if you only have one library in your Pictures folder. However, you may have more than one photo library on your Mac if you’ve split your iPhoto library up or if you use both iPhoto and Aperture, which makes things a little more difficult. You may need some help figuring out how to manually migrate additional libraries, so we’ve created a handy guide to explain how to get those other libraries into Photos quickly and easily.

One quick note: Before you migrate all of your existing photos into Photos for OS X, make sure you have enough iCloud storage space if you want to take advantage of iCloud Photo Library, which syncs your images across al of your devices. With iCloud Photo Library turned on in the Photos app, all of your images will be uploaded to the cloud, which does eat up your iCloud storage space. You can use Photos without iCloud Photo Library — just make sure you turn it off in the Preferences menu. Read more

J.J. Abrams Wears Apple Watch During Star Wars Panel in Anaheim

Famous film director and producer J.J. Abrams is latest celebrity to be spotted with an Apple Watch, which he’s wearing right now during the Force Awakens Panel at the Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim, California. Abrams appears to be wearing a stainless steel Apple Watch with a blue band.

Along with Abrams, several other celebrities have been seen wearing the Apple Watch. Pharrell Williams wore it on reality TV show The Voice, and both Katy Perry and Drake shared Instagram photos of themselves wearing gold Apple Watch Edition models. Yesterday, a photo surfaced of designer Karl Lagerfeld with a custom gold Apple Watch with matching gold Link Bracelet.

As the launch of the Apple Watch approaches, we’re likely to see it popping up on the wrists of other influencers, including celebrities, fashion designers, directors, and more.

‘iPad Pro’ Cases Increasing in Quality Ahead of Rumored Fall Launch

From design mockups to purported case leaks, the much-rumored “iPad Pro” has been steadily building steam for the past few months. Today, several new cases apparently designed for Apple’s iPad Pro have been leaked, and one in particular is far more detailed than any previously released (via SonnyDickson.com).

The notable new case leaked today is the first to feature a tri-fold design with a fabric cover, marking a substantial increase in complexity over the simple soft plastic cases seen previously. This increased complexity could be a sign that case manufacturers are increasingly confident in the iPad Pro’s design specs and thus willing to invest in more expensive case designs such as this even months ahead of the expected launch.

Recent rumors point towards the iPad Pro’s screen measuring between 12.2- and 12.9-inches, with the expected array of cutouts for the volume rockers, back-facing camera, lock button, and a charging port. The newly leaked cases have cutouts for all of these features, including what appear to be speakers at both the top and bottom of the device, in line with previous rumors surrounding the tablet.

The new cases also include the mysterious cutout on the left side of the device. Some previous rumored cases have included the cutout, with rumors variously suggesting it could be for a SIM-card tray on cellular models, a second Lightning port, or perhaps a USB-C port. The Wall Street Journal previously claimed Apple is indeed considering including USB on the iPad Pro.

As is always worth pointing out, these early case designs could still be far off from the actual design of whatever the iPad Pro turns out to be, due to case manufacturers creating molds off of leaked or unsubstantiated design elements. But while there have been some notable misses over the years, case designs have generally proven accurate indicators of upcoming product designs.

The latest rumors peg the iPad Pro as perhaps having a triple-core A8X processor, 2 GB of RAM, Touch ID, and possibly shipping with a first-party Apple manufactured stylus accessory. Release date rumors have fluctuated significantly as Apple as reportedly pushed back its internal timeline several times. The latest rumors suggest production could begin in September, perhaps setting up for an October launch alongside a refresh of the existing iPad lineup.

Apple Watch Orders Will Remain Exclusively Online Through May, Deliveries Begin April 24

Apple retail chief Angela Ahrendts issued an internal memo to retail employees on Thursday that helps eliminate some of the confusion surrounding the launch of the wrist-worn device. The memo, a roughly translated copy of which was obtained by iGen.fr, states that Apple Watch orders will continue to be taken exclusively online through May and that deliveries will begin April 24 as planned.

“The feedback from customers is overwhelmingly positive. They are excited about Apple Watch, and your teams are creating fantastic experiences for them. Customers who pre-ordered will start receiving deliveries next Friday as planned, and I know you will do a great job helping set them up.

Many of you have been asking if we will have the Apple Watch available in stores on April 24 for walk-in purchases. As we announced last week, due to high global interest combined with our initial supply, we are only taking orders online right now. I’ll have more updates as we get closer to in-store availability, purpose we expect this to continue through the month of May.”

With no walk-in purchases of the Apple Watch available at Apple Stores until at least June, and product reservations for in-store pickup not available yet, it would appear that the Apple Watch’s upcoming April 24 launch day could be quieter than usual. The long lines that typically accompany an iPhone launch, for example, could be a lot shorter than usual at many Apple retail stores around the world.

Fortunately, disappointed customers can rest assured that Apple’s iconic lineups will not be going away forever. Ahrendts ensured in her memo to retail employees that not all Apple products will launch the same way as the Apple Watch, adding that both Apple and its customers love the long lines and that there will be many more of them to come in the future.

“I know this is a different experience for our customers, and has changed for you as well. Are we going to launch every product this way from now on? No. We all love those blockbuster Apple product launch days and there will be many more to come. They’re the times where you, our teams, shine. And our customers love them as well!”

Likely to reflect that many customers will not be receiving their pre-orders by April 24, and that in-store availability on launch day, if any, will be very limited, Apple changed the tagline on its website on late Wednesday to read “the Watch is coming” instead of “available 4.24.15″ as it previously showed. Apple Watch pre-orders began on April 10 at 12:01 AM Pacific and sold out in less than six hours.

Apple Confirms Sport Bands Include Three Pieces to Adjust Size [iOS Blog]

Apple has quietly updated the Apple Online Store to list that the Apple Watch Sport ships with one fluoroelastomer band that includes three pieces to make either a Small/Medium (S/M) or Medium/Large (M/L) strap.

The updated “what’s in the box” section confirms a TechCrunch report from last week that, “with very good authority,” claimed that the Apple Watch Sport would ship with a three-piece band.

It was initially believed that the Apple Watch Sport would ship with two separate bands for sizing purposes, leading to the creation of services such as BandSwapper that intended to allow customers to swap their unused bands for a different size or color. But Apple’s unique three-piece approach to the Sport band eliminates the chance that customers will be able to swap out their unused band.

Tim Cook Featured in TIME’s List of ‘100 Most Influential People’

Apple CEO Tim Cook has made TIME’s annual list of “the 100 most influential people” alongside several other notable celebrities, business executives, scientists, authors, healthcare professionals, iconic leaders and more.

Cook’s segment was written by John Lewis, a civil rights leader and Democratic Congressman from Georgia. The chief executive last made TIME‘s list in 2012, less than one year after the passing of Steve Jobs.

“It could not have been easy for Tim Cook to step into the immense shadow cast by the late Apple co-founder, Steve Jobs. But with grace and courage and an unabashed willingness to be his own man, Tim has pushed Apple to unimaginable profitability—and greater social responsibility. He is setting a new standard for what business can do in the world. Tim is unwavering in his support of an individual’s right to privacy and is not only embracing equality and LGBT rights but advocating for change through his words and actions. His commitment to renewable energy is also leaving our planet a little cleaner and a little greener for generations yet unborn.”

While not included in the list himself, Apple design chief Jonathan Ive also wrote a piece on Airbnb founder and fellow designer Brian Chesky, describing him as a “travel revolutionary” that has created a new way to build community through his startup. “Brian Chesky’s audacity is fabulous. He dares to believe that we shouldn’t be strangers, that we can have a sense of true belonging whenever, wherever we travel.”

Notable inclusions in the tech industry include YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and Xiaomi founder and CEO Lei Jun. Other highly recognizable names making the list include Emma Watson, Kanye West, Kim Kardashian, Hillary Clinton, Pope Francis, Tim McGraw and Vladimir Putin. Cook was also nominated for TIME‘s “Person of the Year” award in 2014.