Streaming video may be all the rage, but Netflix is still shipping DVDs and Blu-rays to more than 4 million customers. Now those physical disc hold-outs can manage their queues and keep up-to-date with new releases on the go with an iOS app.
News
Apple Sued for Failing to Prevent the Use of FaceTime While Driving in Fatal Accident
A Texas family is suing Apple for failing to implement iPhone safety features that would prevent the use of apps like FaceTime by drivers behind the wheel, and potentially have prevented a traffic accident that claimed the life of the family’s five-year-old daughter.
![Report: 3% of Super Mario Run Users Paid to Unlock the Game [Updated]](https://www.macobserver.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/super-mario-run-purchase.jpg)
Report: 3% of Super Mario Run Users Paid to Unlock the Game [Updated]
Many hoped that Nintendo’s single in-app purchase approach for Super Mario Run would save us from the microtransaction free-to-play hell that is the iOS App Store. And while heavy marketing from Apple and the Nintendo brand gave it a boost, in the end only about 3% of users are estimated to have paid.
Rotting Apples: macOS Sierra PDF Bugs Get Worse in 10.12.2
PDF-related bugs have plagued macOS Sierra since its release last year, causing headaches for both users and developers. But while major bugs are nothing new for Apple’s operating system, developers are sounding a troubling alarm: things are getting even worse with the latest 10.12.2 update.
Happy 2017 from The Mac Observer!
With 2016 behind us and CES is only a couple days away, The Mac Observer is taking off Monday while we catch our breath before jumping neck deep into 2017. We’ll be back with our regular daily new coverage, analysis, and podcasts on Tuesday, January 3rd. We’ll also be on location at CES 2017 to bring you the latest on this year’s tech. Rest up, and get ready for another exciting year!
Want to Edit Your Tweets? Let Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey Know
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey wants to know what features you’d like to see added to the social networking and microblogging service. The ability to edit tweets is at the top of our list, and it looks like that’s what most everyone else wants, too.
AirPods Production in Overtime to Cut Shipping Delays
It may be easier to get ahold of AirPods soon because Inventec, the company manufacturing them for Apple, is expanding its production. That’s good news for impatient consumers who are currently waiting upwards of six weeks for theirs to arrive.
Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Brick Update Starts Rolling Out
The last few Samsung Galaxy Note 7 owners won’t be able to use their fire-phones much longer because carriers are starting to push out an update that bricks the devices. T-Mobile is already remotely updating Note 7 phones, AT&T and Sprint are planning to start in the next few days, and even Verizon has reversed course and is going to push out the update, too.
Samsung Reportedly Supplying Apple with 5.8-inch Displays for Next iPhone
Samsung is making 5.8-inch AMOLED displays for next year’s iPhone, according to supply chain sources. If true, that makes rumors of a larger screen iPhone in 2017 more likely—and that next year Apple plans to add yet another screen size to its smartphone lineup.
Police Turn to Amazon Echo in Homicide Showing How Smarthome Devices Can Spy on Us
Police in Bentonville, Arkansas, obtained a search warrant for the audio captured by an Amazon Echo as part of a homicide investigation, raising concerns over just how much smarthome devices know about us. In the case of the Echo, Amazon says little is being recorded and stored, but that’s not much of a consolation for IoT device owners who’re worried their tech might be used against them by the government.
Sorry, New Video Isn't Proof of a White iPhone 7
A video showing the rumored Jet White iPhone 7 is making the rounds on the internet. iPhone fans hoping for an all white model shouldn’t, however, get their hopes up because these are most likely after market replacement parts.
Star Wars Icon Carrie Fisher Passes Away at Age 60
The Star Wars universe got a little smaller on Tuesday when Carrie Fisher, who portrayed Princess Leia in four Star Wars films, passed away following a heart attack late last week.
Apple May Add 5-inch Screen to the 2017 iPhone Lineup
Apple is adding a 5-inch model to its iPhone lineup in 2017, or so the latest supply chain report claims. Assuming the sources are right, that would give Apple four different smartphone screen sizes starting at 4-inches for the iPhone SE, and topping out at 5.5-inches for the iPhone 7 Plus.
Apple Opens Up to AI Community with Research White Paper
Apple’s artificial intelligence efforts are starting to come to light thanks to a just published white paper. The document describes a way to use artificial images to train computers to recognize real world objects, and is also a bit of a good faith gesture towards the open research philosophy in the AI community.
Happy Holidays from The Mac Observer to You!
Christmas, Hanukkah, Festivus, Solstice…It doesn’t matter what you celebrate this time of year—or if you celebrate at all. The Mac Observer hopes this weekend is a wonderful time for you, and that you get to take a day or two off to relax. We’re taking Monday off, but we’ll be back on Tuesday, December 27th, with our iPhone, iPad, and Mac coverage, along with a fresh TMO Daily Observations episode, too.
iOS Developers Get More Time To Use ATS
At its World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC) this year, Apple announced that all apps on its platform must support App Transport Security (ATS). The company told developers on Friday, however, that it is extending that deadline.
Pokémon GO Finally Comes to Apple Watch
Niantic came through on its promise to release Pokémon GO for Apple Watch before the end of the year. The Apple Watch version is a companion app for the iPhone game that lets you log your walks and runs to hatch new characters, and alerts you to nearby Pokémon and PokéStops.
Russia And Turkey Ask Apple to Unlock Killer's iPhone 4s
Apple’s encryption debate isn’t over yet. Several days ago, a man assassinated the Russian ambassador to Turkey before turning the gun on himself. Now, Russian and Turkish authorities have asked Apple to unlock the shooter’s iPhone 4s.
AT&T Launches Spam Call Blocking with Call Protect for iPhone
AT&T launched a new spam call blocking service this week called Call Protect. The service blocks calls before they reach your iPhone, but it comes with some big limitations.
Super Mario Run Downloads Top 40M in 4 Days
Nintendo’s Super Mario Run for the iPhone and iPad is off to a great start topping 40 million downloads in only four days. This follows the US$5 million the game brought in during its first 24 hours.
Apple Extends USB-C Dongle Discounts to March 31 2017
Apple’s discount on USB-C adapters was set to end on December 31st, but the company extended that out to March 31st, 2017. The extension means new MacBook Pro owners have more time to but the dongles they need at a substantially lower price.
Apple Stopped Signing iOS 10.1 and 10.1.1 - What That Means
Now that iOS 10.2 is officially released to the public, Apple has stopped signing iOS 10.1 and iOS 10.1.1. Users won’t be able to downgrade if you run into issues with iOS 10.2. Andrew Orr explains what that means.
Apple Updates AirPort Firmware to Fix Disappearing Base Station Issue
Apple released AirPort Base Station Firmware Update 7.7.8 on Tuesday. The update fixes an issue that caused some AirPort Base Stations to disappear from AirPort Utility when Find My Mac is on. It’s specifically for AirPort Extreme and AirPort Time Capsule base stations with 802.11ac.
Tim Cook Says 'Great Desktops' are Coming
The iMac hasn’t been updated in over a year and the Mac Pro is more than three years old without any changes, leaving many wondering if Apple is stepping back from the desktop computer market. Apple CEO Tim Cook says that’s not so, and that there are “great desktops in our roadmap.”