Apple this week announced that it now hosts more than 550,000 active podcasts with a total of 18.5 million episodes that have been downloaded or streamed 50 billion times.
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Everything Apple Announced at WWDC Is Free - Here's a Complete List
SAN JOSE – Here’s something you may not have noticed about Apple’s WWDC keynote: everything Apple announced will be free—here’s the complete list of new products and features Apple announced during the WWDC 2018 keynote.
Watch the WWDC 2018 Keynote On-Demand
If you missed the livestream yesterday and want to see all of Apple’s announcements for yourself, you can now watch the complete WWDC 2018 keynote on-demand over at Apple’s special events page. The keynote clocks in at 2 hours and 16 minutes, so make yourself comfortable.
Apple Updates App Store Review Guidelines to Address Steam Link, Cryptocurrencies, and Free Trials
Apple this week updated its App Store Review Guidelines to address recent questions about mirroring apps like Valve’s Steam Link, free trials for non-subscription apps, cryptocurrency mining, in-app ad behavior, and more.
Apple TV 4K Gets Dolby Atmos Support in tvOS 12, Plus New 'Earth' Aerial Shot
SAN JOSE – Apple announced Monday that Apple TV 4K settop boxes will get support for Dolby Atmos audio via tvOS 12 this fall, along with other new features.
Apple Watch Adds Walkie Talkie App and New Workout Features in watchOS 5
SAN JOSE – To be released in the fall, this Apple Watch update will include a Walkie Talkie app, new workout features, new Siri options and features, and support for Student IDs in Wallet.
Apple Announces iOS 12: Siri Skills, Performance, Improved Communication, Enhanced Augmented Reality
SAN JOSE – The next major update for the company’s mobile platform focused on Siri skills, performance, improved communication, enhanced augmented reality tools, and addiction controls.
Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo Returns to Predict More Aggressive iPhone Pricing
After leaving KGI Securities, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo is back to predict “more aggressive” iPhone pricing for the upcoming 2018 models. Kuo believes that Apple wants to reassure investors concerned with the iPhone X’s $1,000 base price, as well as make technologies like Face ID more accessible.
Leaks Show Dark Mode, Apple News App in macOS 10.14
Apple this weekend leaked a Mac App Store preview video of a new version of Xcode, which happened to also show off new features in the upcoming macOS 10.14 update, including a new dark mode, Mac App Store video previews, and a strong suggestion that the next version will be called macOS Mojave.
Toshiba Completes Memory Business Sale to Bain Capital
Apple has a bigger stake in the memory chip market because Toshiba has officially wrapped up its sale to Bain Capital. Apple is part of the consortium with the winning bid for Toshiba’s memory chip business.
What Will The Next macOS Version Be Called?
Some trademarks were uncovered that give a list of possible names for the next macOS version.
Apple Allows Developers More Options for App Store Search Ads
The company added “Creative Sets for more ad variations” for better user targeting.
Apple's Intel Engineer Hires, iCloud Safari History - TMO Daily Observations 2018-05-31
Andrew Orr and John Martellaro join Jeff Gamet to share their ideas on what Apple is doing with the engineers it’s hiring away from Intel, plus they look at how much of our Safari browser history Apple retains.
Apple Seeds macOS High Sierra 10.13.6 Developer Beta 1
Mum’s the word on features in the new release cycle, even while all eyes turn to next week’s World Wide Developer Conference.
Developers, Apple Has a WWDC Activity Challenge For You (and There's a Reward)
Designed for teams up to four WWDC attendees in conjunction with the Challenge app, developers who complete the challenge will earn an unspecified reward on Friday, June 8th.
Report Claims Apple Actively Ditching Intel for its Own ARM Processors in the Mac
Apple has tasked Pegatron with manufacturing an ARM-based MacBook, or so a report claims. This rumored ARM Mac is code named “Star” and series number N84.
Tim Cook Tweet - Wait, What's that iPhone X without a Notch in Tim's Pic? (Probably Just a White iPhone)
What some have noticed is a device being used at a nearby table with neither a notch nor space for a Home button—what in the world could that be?
Twitter Insanity, Apple's AI Showdown, FBI Exaggeration, Apple's HQ Hunt - ACM 463
Twitter has lost its corporate mind, Bryan Chaffin and Jeff Gamet argue in this episode of ACM. They also weigh the importance of WWDC 2018 in terms of Siri, and discuss whether or not Apple has to announce significant improvements to remain competitive in AI. Then there’s the revelation that the FBI exaggerated the number of locked iPhones it couldn’t get into, and they squeeze in a fourth topic, too: Apple’s hunt for a new campus, and how it contrasts with Amazon.
WWDC and Hardware Expectations, Apple Music for Other Platforms - TMO Daily Observations 2018-05-23
John Martellaro and Kelly Guimont join Jeff Gamet to talk about expectations for hardware announcements at Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference, plus they debate if it’s time for Apple Music to come to more platforms.
Here's How to Watch Apple's WWDC 2018 Keynote Live Stream
Apple’s 2018 Worldwide Developer Conference keynote event is scheduled for 10 AM pacific time on Monday, June 4th. Here’s how to watch the keynote live even if you aren’t there.
Apple Launches New Data and Privacy Download Page for EU
Apple has a new Data and Privacy web page for European Union residents that complies with the EU’s General Data Privacy Regulation, or GDPR, laws.
![Apple’s Siri Says She’s Getting ‘Smarter’ at WWDC [Update]](https://www.macobserver.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/siri-tease-la-la-la-wwdc-2018.jpg)
Apple's Siri Says She's Getting 'Smarter' at WWDC [Update]
So far, Siri has revealed she will be getting a new voice, and she hinted at what may be a new HomePod. Perhaps most importantly, on one test, she told me she was getting smarter. [Updated with additional info.]
Samsung Thinks Galaxy S9 Is at Least Better than iPhone 6
Check it out. Samsung is positioning its two-month old flagship Galaxy S9 against an iPhone. And when I say “iPhone,” I mean iPhone 6 [via MacRumors]. The ad appears to be a pitch to owners of old iPhones, but it feels more like a Freudian slip to me. “This,” Samsung appears to believe, “is all we can do.” Even if the psychology behind the ad isn’t as twisted and warped as my Samsung-loathing mind wants it to be, comparing a brand new flagship device to a three-and-a-half year old competitor is terrible, awful, absurd positioning. Perhaps that’s part of why iPhone 7 is still selling as well as the Galaxy S9, let alone the iPhone 8, 8 Plus, and X, all of which handily outsell the Samsung device. Anyhoo, you can watch it and judge for yourself.
The Developers Union Forms to Give Indie Developers a Voice to Apple
The group says it will start by asking Apple for developer-friendly changes to the App Store. Its goal is 20,000 members by early June (i.e. WWDC), and has 182 members so far (16 of whom joined while I was working on this article).