We finally have the winner of our iPhone 16 Pro international giveaway! Congratulations to Oliver T., and a huge thank you to everyone who participated.
Mark Zuckerberg Alleges Apple's Privacy Protection's Will Hurt Small Firms
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg used the company’s earnings call to claim that Apple’s planned privacy protection will hit small firms.
Top Global Brand Consultancy Names Apple Brand of The Year
Consultancy firm Interbrand named Apple as it’s Best Global Brand for 2020, beating off tech rivals to claim the accolade.
The Mandalorian Season Two Arrives on Disney+
The first episode of season two of The Mandalorian is now available on Disney+, with new episodes coming weekly. The Star Wars spin-off picks up after the fall of the Galactic Empire, with lawlessness rife. The streaming service costs $6.99 per month or $69.99 for a year.
Favourite iPhone 12 Pro Features
The Mac Observer’s Associate editors Charlotte Henry and Andrew Orr discuss their favorite features on the new iPhone 12 Pro:
- The updated design.
- The cameras.
- Battery life.
- The OLED display.
[iPhone 12 Pro Review: An Absolute Joy to Use]
{iPhone 12 Sensor Shift, ProRAW, and Other Impressive Camera Features]
John Turturro Joins Adam Scott in Apple Thriller ‘Severance’
John Turturro has joined Adam Scott and Patricia Arquette in “Severance” a thriller series on Apple TV+ from Dan Erickson.
Earnings and Bundles – TMO Daily Observations 2020-10-30
Charlotte Henry and Bryan Chaffin join host Kelly Guimont to discuss Apple’s latest earnings report, and newly released subscription options.
Apple One Subscription Bundles Now Available
The Apple One services bundles are now available – with three different tiers encompassing comprising of different options.
iFixit Shares iPhone 12/12 Pro Internal Wallpapers
iFixit is back this year to provide iPhone 12 internal wallpapers to let you see what the devices look like beneath the display.
Need a zoom party icebreaker? Take some folk on a phone tour, tell everyone Apple has pressed pause on unique battery shapes. And let us know how that goes because we’re running out of Kahoot topics…
Netflix Standard Plan and Premium Increase in Price
The Netflix standard and premium plans are getting a price increase. Standard is increasing to US$13/month while premium will cost US$18/month.
T-Mobile Expands its Mid-Band 5G Network Coverage
T-Mobile announced on Wednesday that it expanded its mid-band 5G network coverage and plans to reach 100 million people by the end of the year.
OWC Introduces Envoy Pro Elektron External SSD
Mac and PC technology company OWC has launched its Envoy Pro Elektron USB-C drive. It features high speeds and resistance to dust and water.
Claris Connect Gets New Third-Party App Integrations
Apple subsidiary Claris International has announced an expansion of Claris Connect, with new third-party app integrations.
Apple One Bundles Launching Friday
The various Apple One services bundles will become available on Friday, October 30, 2020, with Fitness+ following later this quarter.
Apple Beats Estimates with Q4 Results of $64.7B in Revenues and $0.73 EPS [Update]
Apple announced fiscal Q4 earnings on Thursday, with September quarter revenues of US$64.7 billion and earnings per share (EPS) of $0.73, both of which beat Wall Street consensus estimates.
Keep Your Space Warm and Cozy with This Heater's 360 Degree Rotation, 2-Speed Fan, and Remote Control: $32.99
We have a deal on the Plug N’ Heat Personal Space Heater. As the name says, it’s a heater designed specifically for your personal space. It features 360° rotation, a 2-speed fan, built-in constant temperature control, a digital readout, a 1 to 12-hour timer, and a remote control. It’s $32.99 through our deal.
Apple Maps in Italy Gets Transit Directions
Apple Maps now includes transportation directions across Italy. MacRumors reported that it works on systems like train, bus and tram in a number of cities now, instead of just Rome where the functionality originally rolled out.
The feature can be accessed by selecting the Transit tab or button in Apple Maps on iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple Watch. Supported modes of transportation include trains, buses, trams, and more in and between cities such as Milan, Naples, Turin, Palermo, Genoa, Florence, and Venice. Google Maps has supported transit directions for several years now, but Apple Maps is steadily catching up with detailed routing information.
Apple’s 85/15 Subscription Split Doesn’t Help Developers Much
Unlike Apple’s 70/30 split for in-app purchases, it offers an 85/15 split for subscriptions from customers that stay subscribed for at least a year. But Jacob Eiting writes how that doesn’t really help developers because of subscriber churn.
No matter how great an app is, subscribers are going to churn. Sometimes it’s because of a credit card expiring or some other billing issue. And sometimes it’s more of a pause, and the user comes back after a few months. But the majority of churn comes from subscribers who, for whatever reason, decide that the app just isn’t worth paying for anymore. If a subscriber churns before the 1-year mark, the developer never sees that 85% split. And even if the user resubscribes, Apple and Google reset the clock if a subscription has lapsed for more than 60 days.
FBI Warns of Ransomware Threat to US Healthcare System
The FBI, CISA, and HHS are issuing a joint alert to warn of the threat of ransomware attacks currently affecting U.S. healthcare systems.
MagSafe Fast Charging Won’t Damage Your iPhone 12 Battery
With the right charging brick, Apple’s MagSafe charging pad can quickly charge your iPhone 12 at an estimated 50% battery in 30 minutes. Although it was written last year, Clifford Colby’s article is a helpful investigation into fast charging. The short answer is that fast charging won’t damage your iPhone’s battery.
Damage is rare if everything’s well-managed inside. A battery’s management system closely monitors the two charge phases and drops the charging speed during the second phase to give the battery time to absorb the charge and avoid issues, which is why it can take 10 minutes to get those last few percentage points.
Apple's Search Engine Situation – TMO Daily Observations 2020-10-29
Bryan Chaffin and Andrew Orr join host Kelly Guimont to discuss Apple’s possible search aspirations and what that means for your data.
Apple Releases Unseen 'Long Way Up' Footage
Apple released previously unseen footage from the Apple TV+ series Long Way Up on Thursday. It’s 83 minutes of Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman on their motorcycles shot from their point of view. The show is available to view now in the TV app.
OverDrive Announces Next Title in Digital Book Club Called ‘Reverie’
Big Library Read is a digital book club from eBook lender OverDrive. “Reverie” is the next book to read available for free through Libby from author Ryan La Sala. “All Kane Montgomery knows for certain is that the police found him half-dead in the river. He can’t remember anything since an accident robbed him of his memories a few weeks ago. And the world feels different—reality itself seems different. So when three of his classmates claim to be his friends and the only people who can tell him what’s truly going on, he doesn’t know what to believe or who he can trust. But as he and the others are dragged into unimaginable worlds that materialize out of nowhere—the gym warps into a subterranean temple, a historical home nearby blooms into a Victorian romance rife with scandal and sorcery—Kane realizes that nothing in his life is an accident, and only he can stop their world from unraveling.”
Simon Says is Bringing AI Transcription to DaVinci Resolve on Mac
Simon Says announced a partnership on Thursday to bring AI transcription to video editor DaVinci Resolve on macOS.
Germany Investigates Amazon, Apple Over ‘Brandgating’
Germany’s Federal Cartel Office is investing Amazon and Apple over “brandgating”, an Amazon policy that interferes with independent vendors.