John Kheit thinks Apple has lost the plot about what users need in Apple devices, especially with creative pros. He argues that Microsoft nailed it with Surface Studio, while Apple’s new MacBook Pro is a far cry from a pro Mac.
Touch Bar Is Apple's Double Down Against the Foolishness of ToasterFridges
Bryan Chaffin argues that the new MacBook pro’s Touch Bar is Apple’s double down against the ToasterFridge. More specifically, Touch Bar is Apple’s solution for the same need that ToasterFridges are trying to fill.
Here's What You Need to Know About USB-C and Thunderbolt 3
The MacBook introduced USB-C to Apple’s laptop lineup in 2015, and the just announced Retina MacBook Pro with Touch Bar gives us Thunderbolt 3—which looks exactly like USB-C. Not sure what the differences are and how they affect you? Read on to learn more.
Apple Fixes 2 Bugs in iTunes 12.5.2 Update
Apple released iTunes 12.5.2 on Thursday. The update fixes two bugs, one dealing with album playback order, and the other an issue with lyrics showing in Beats 1.
Apple Discontinues 11-inch MacBook Air, MagSafe Now on Death Row
Farewell, 11-inch MacBook Air, we knew you well. Apple dropped the diminutive Mac laptop from its online store on Thursday following the “hello again” event where new Retina MacBook Pro models were introduced. The 13-inch MacBook Air is still available, but now the 12-inch MacBook is the smallest screen laptop Apple offers.
Customizing Apple Watch Faces on Your iPhone
Today’s Quick Tip is all about using the Apple Watch app on the iPhone to customize your faces. If you don’t wanna fiddle with colors and complications on your itty bitty Watch, there’s now an easier, faster way to do so!
Apple Adds Support for 3 Video Codecs in Sierra and El Cap
Apple released Pro Video Formats v2.0.5, an update to the video codecs supported in OS X El Capitan and macOS Sierra. The update comes out at the same time as Final Cut Pro X 10.3, which was announced during Apple’s “hello again” media event.
Apple's 'Hello Again' Event Wasn't About the Mac After All
During Apple’s “Hello Again” event, Apple spent an hour and 25 minutes talking about several cool things. The new MacBook Pros are very nice—but they were the only major Mac announcement. In contrast, the event tagline suggested that Apple would say something important about the “Mac” as a product. Instead, the vacuum persisted and Apple elected to take a stand, instead. on how it sees the MacBook Pro catering to the pro market with the Touch Bar.
Apple Retail Stores Set Stanchions Overnight, Hints at New Product Availability Today
Some Apple retail stores began setting up the stanchions they use for long product launch lines overnight. With Apple’s “hello again” media event kicking off in a few hours, the stanchions may be a hint that whatever is announced today may be available right away—and that the company expects loads of people will want it.
Apple Store Offline Ahead of 'hello again' Media Event
Apple’s online store went offline Thursday morning ahead of the company’s “hello again” media event. That’s not much of a surprise considering the company is expected to introduce new MacBook Pro models today.
Apple Delays AirPods, Won't Ship in October
If you’ve been holding out for Apple’s promised “late October” AirPods release, it looks like you’ll be waiting a little longer. Apple isn’t shipping its wireless earpods this month because they’re still not ready to go.
Apple's 'hello again' Event to Include Apple TV Content Discovery App
Apple’s “hello again” event on Thursday is shaping up to include more than new Mac announcements. A report claims the company will also unveil an Apple TV app that helps TV viewers discover new shows.
How to Add a Physical Escape Key to the New MacBook Pro
The Escape key has been on our keyboards practically since the beginning of time—even the Apple II had one. That’s changing with tomorrow’s MacBook Pro refresh and its Magic Toolbar. The physical Escape key is going virtual, but Apple is including a way to let other keys handle its task.
iOS 10.1: Turning Off Duplicate Portrait Mode Images
This Quick Tip is about the spankin’-new Portrait Mode available on the iPhone 7 Plus, which’ll let you take shots with a special depth effect applied. However, if you don’t want your iPhone to keep an additional version of each of your Portrait Mode images, come read this article and find out how to turn that off!
Tim Cook: Giving Up Privacy with Siri and AI is a False Choice
The best analyst questions during Apple’s Q4 2016 Financial Results came from Simona Jankowski with Goldman Sachs. She asked Tim Cook about his perspective on home vs. mobile artificial intelligence agents and then the issue of privacy. Tim Cook took a solid stand on both questions that reveal the future direction of Apple.
macOS Sierra 10.12.1 Leaks New MacBook Pro Images
Apple seems to have tipped its hand and accidentally revealed the upcoming Retina MacBook Pro in Monday’s macOS Sierra 10.12.1 update. Photos showing the soon to be announced MacBook Pro with a touch sensitive OLED function strip were buried in the macOS update, which is about a close to a pre-event confirmation Apple will get.
Apple Beats Guidance with Q4 Earnings, Guides Q4 Above Consensus
Apple reported fiscal fourth quarter revenues of US$46.9 billion with earnings of $9 billion on Tuesday. Earnings per share were $1.67. Those results are down year over year from revenues of $51.5 billion, earnings of $11.1 billion, and EPS of $1.96. Gross margins were 38%, down year-over-year from 39.9%. Apple beat consensus estimates on EPS and guided Q4 revenues higher than consensus.
Existing Home Routers Could Be Used to Stop DDoS Botnet Attacks
There has been much written about how Friday’s DDoS attack was made possible by a security hole present in various internet of Things (ioT) devices. The lingering question is: how do we prevent this from happening again? The answer might be sitting right there in your home.
tvOS 10.0.1 Update Improves Security, Skips Single Sign-on
When Apple released macOS Sierra 10.12.1 and iOS 10.1 on Monday it also slipped tvOS 10.0.1 out, too. The update is available for the fourth generation Apple TV, and offers security and bug fixes, but doesn’t give us iOS 10’s promised single sign-on feature.
AAPL Q4 2016 Earnings Report Coverage this Afternoon
Apple’s fourth fiscal quarter earnings conference call is scheduled to start after the market closes this afternoon, Tuesday, October 25th. The Mac Observer will be here to bring you the latest news, announcements, and analysis from the event.
Apple Fixes Two-Factor Authentication Setup Bug
HomeKit in iOS 10 requires Two-Factor authentication if you plan to remotely control or monitor your smarthome devices. That isn’t a big deal, unless you’re one of the unlucky few who were blocked from switchting to Apple’s more secure password authentication system. The good news is that Apple finally fixed the issue, so HomeKit can be more that your in-home personal assistant again.
Apple Releases watchOS 3.1 with Charging Fix, Message Effects Improvements, More
Apple released watchOS 3.1 Monday, an update with a mix of improvements and bug fixes. On the improve side if the ability to replay bubble and full-screen effects in Messages. On the bug-fix side, a charging issue for Apple Watch Series 2 was fixed, and more.
Apple Releases macOS Sierra 10.12.1 with Improved Apple Watch Unlock, More
Apple released macOS Sierra 10.12.1 Monday (in addition to iOS 10.1). The first new feature that jumped out at me was “Improves reliability of Auto Unlock with Apple Watch,” a feature I love but is inconsistent. It also includes auto smart album of photos that use the newly unlocked Portrait Camera feature on iPhone 7 Plus, and some bug fixes.
Apple Releases iOS 10.1 with Portrait Camera for iPhone 7 Plus, Replay iMessage Effects, More
Apple released iOS 10.1 to consumers on Monday. The update includes beta support for Portrait Camera on iPhone 7 Plus, as well as the ability to replay iMessage bubble and full-screen effects. There are also new features for Apple Watch, transit-related features in Maps, and other improvements to camera functionality and the Photos app.