Apple Maps Conducting Pedestrain Level Surveys

Apple Maps is collecting pedestrian level data in California. On Friday, a man wearing a Lidar rig, GPS and multiple cameras as well as an Apple Maps backpack, was spotted in San Francisco, according to MacRumors. On its website, Apple said [via AppleInsider] that Pedestrian teams will be in a number of California counties. While cars conducting mapping are not such a rare site spotted in Los Angeles earlier in the week, but as MacRumors noted: “This is the first time we’ve seen someone collecting mapping data on foot.”

The End of 'Beautygate'

The iPhone XS and XS Max came with a feature called SmartHDR that increased the dynamic range of photos.  It also reduced the local contrast and the phone’s performance in low light. The lowlight issues were fixed by decreasing noise reduction, which, when combined with the lack of contrast created a smoothing effect. This was particularly noticeable in selfies and came to be known as ‘Beautygate’. With iOS 12.1 Apple tried to fix the problem. Did they succeed? A video from AppleInsider takes a look.

How iOS Helps a Blind Veteran Return to the Water

Here is a feel-good story for a Friday. Apple has made public the story of Scott Leason—a US Navy veteran and keen surfer…who happens to be blind. The story details how by using an iPhone XR, and the VoiceOver application in particular, as well as an Apple Watch, Mr Leason is able to undertake a number of tasks and partake in his beloved water sports. He said,“When I’m at the end of a line behind a boat just like anybody else, I forget I’m blind. And then when I come into the beach and there’s people around [his dog] Snickers and I go yeah that’s my seeing eye dog and I got a board in my hand and they go, ‘you’re blind?’ That’s a cool feeling.” It might be easy for some to be cynical about Apple promoting this, but for most of us, it is equally easy to forget how crucial technology and the accessibility tools modern devices have are to people with a variety of disabilities. Surfs up, Mr Leason!