Apple

three-betas-in,-ios-18-testers-still-can’t-try-out-apple-intelligence-features

Three betas in, iOS 18 testers still can’t try out Apple Intelligence features

AI, Apple, ios 18, iPadOS 18, macOS 15, macos sequoia, Sequoia, Tech / /

intel inside? —

Apple has said some features will be available to test “this summer.”

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Three betas in, iOS 18 testers still can’t try out Apple Intelligence features

Apple

The beta-testing cycle for Apple’s latest operating system updates is in full swing—earlier this week, the third developer betas rolled out for iOS 18, iPadOS 18, macOS 15 Sequoia, and the rest of this fall’s updates. The fourth developer beta ought to be out in a couple of weeks, and it’s reasonably likely to coincide with the first betas that Apple offers to the full public (though the less-stable developer-only betas got significantly more public last year when Apple stopped making people pay for a developer account to access them).

Many of the new updates’ features are present and available to test, including cosmetic updates and under-the-hood improvements. But none of Apple’s much-hyped Apple Intelligence features are available to test in any form. MacRumors reports that Settings menus for the Apple Intelligence features have appeared in the Xcode Simulator for current versions of iOS 18 but, as of now, those settings still appear to be non-functional placeholders that don’t actually do anything.

That may change soon; Apple did say that the first wave of Apple Intelligence features would be available “this summer,” and I would wager a small amount of money on the first ones being available in the public beta builds later this month. But the current state of the betas does reinforce reporting from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman that suggested Apple was “caught flat-footed” by the tech world’s intense interest in generative AI.

Even when they do arrive, the Apple Intelligence features will be rolled out gradually. Some will be available earlier than others—Gurman recently reported that the new Siri, specifically, might not be available for testing until January and might not actually be ready to launch until sometime in early 2025. The first wave of features will only work in US English, and only relatively recent Apple hardware will be capable of using most of them. For now, that means iPads and Macs with an M-series chip, or the iPhone 15 Pro, though presumably this year’s new crop of Pro and non-Pro iPhones will all be Apple Intelligence-compatible.

Apple’s relatively slow rollout of generative AI features isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Look at Microsoft, which has been repeatedly burned by its desire to rush AI-powered features into its Bing search engine, Edge browser, and Windows operating system. Windows 11’s Recall feature, a comprehensive database of screenshots and text tracking everything that users do on their PCs, was announced and then delayed multiple times after security researchers and other testers demonstrated how it could put users’ personal data at risk.

Three betas in, iOS 18 testers still can’t try out Apple Intelligence features Read More »

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Testers unearth touchscreen UI in tvOS beta, signs point to a touchscreen HomePod

Apple, Apple TV, HomePod, Tech, tvos / /

screen time? —

Rumors of a touchscreen HomePod stretch back to 2021.

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A screenshot of tvOS 17. Recent betas have included evidence that Apple is working on a touchscreen-enabled version of the interface.

Enlarge / A screenshot of tvOS 17. Recent betas have included evidence that Apple is working on a touchscreen-enabled version of the interface.

Andrew Cunningham

Apple’s tvOS betas are usually among its least exciting; the Apple TV’s operating system has changed so little in the last decade that the most exciting thing to happen to it in recent memory is an extra column of icons.

But this week’s tvOS 18 beta 3 release includes a hidden feature that might be exciting for smart speaker enthusiasts, if not for people who still want their Apple TV boxes to develop exciting new capabilities. 9to5Mac has discovered a touchscreen interface (codenamed “PlasterBoard”) inside of the latest beta, a sign that Apple is testing alternate input mechanisms for software that is currently manipulated via remote control and voice.

Last week, MacRumors also discovered a reference to a device called “HomeAccessory17,1” in Apple’s beta software, a naming convention similar to the “AudioAccessory” device identifiers that Apple uses for HomePod speakers. Together, these developments suggest that Apple is working on a version of the HomePod with an integrated touchscreen, a device that rumors have suggested could launch in 2024 or 2025. The company has reportedly been working on a smart home device with a screen since at least 2021.

MacRumors also points out that the 17,1 model identifier could imply that the new HomePod is being powered by Apple’s upcoming A18 chip—model identifiers across Apple’s product lineup are normally tied to chip generation rather than product generation, which is why the Vision Pro (for example) is called “RealityDevice14,1” rather than “RealityDevice1,1.” Using an A18 will presumably give a new HomePod the necessary speed to support upcoming Apple Intelligence features, including a new and improved version of Siri.

All HomePod speakers have been running a forked version of tvOS since version 13.4 of the HomePod software was released in early 2020, which is why HomePod-related leaks seem to be showing up in tvOS-related code. This would also explain why Apple would use tvOS as the basis for a HomePod with a screen rather than a version of iPadOS.

Apple’s take on an Amazon Echo Show

A version of tvOS running on a tablet-style device could use more than just a touch-driven interface to reach its full potential—a tvOS version of Safari would be useful for browsing recipe sites or casual reading while you’re doing something else, for example. However, what Apple adds depends on the form that the screen takes.

Some rumors have suggested that it would be a circular panel that replaces the swirling LEDs on the top of current-generation HomePods, but Bloomberg’s normally reliable Mark Gurman has described the display as “iPad-like,” suggesting that it could look more like a version of Amazon’s Echo Show. Amazon advertises its Show devices as digital photo frames, miniature TVs, and general kitchen aids, and Apple’s pitch for a screen-ified HomePod would likely feature a lot of the same uses.

Amazon has already released multiple generations of Echo Show devices, and Google has made a couple of stabs at the category, too. A HomePod with a screen, whether released in 2024 or 2025, would be far from the first of its kind. However, the HomePod wasn’t a cutting-edge product when it was released either, and it’s still managed to carve out a niche.

We don’t know what a HomePod with a screen might cost, but assuming it includes a HomePod-esque speaker, an iPad-esque screen, and a cutting-edge iPhone processor, it seems likely that it will be priced well above the $299 Apple currently charges for the full-size screen-less HomePod. Apple’s original $349 HomePod flopped partly because it was priced too high relative to competitors and because it didn’t do a whole lot—a speaker that did more things could probably be priced higher without drawing as much criticism.

Testers unearth touchscreen UI in tvOS beta, signs point to a touchscreen HomePod Read More »

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ChatGPT’s much-heralded Mac app was storing conversations as plain text

AI, Apple, chatgpt, macOS, openai, Tech / /

Seriously? —

The app was updated to address the issue after it gained public attention.

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A message field for ChatGPT pops up over a Mac desktop

Enlarge / The app lets you invoke ChatGPT from anywhere in the system with a keyboard shortcut, Spotlight-style.

Samuel Axon

OpenAI announced its Mac desktop app for ChatGPT with a lot of fanfare a few weeks ago, but it turns out it had a rather serious security issue: user chats were stored in plain text, where any bad actor could find them if they gained access to your machine.

As Threads user Pedro José Pereira Vieito noted earlier this week, “the OpenAI ChatGPT app on macOS is not sandboxed and stores all the conversations in plain-text in a non-protected location,” meaning “any other running app / process / malware can read all your ChatGPT conversations without any permission prompt.”

He added:

macOS has blocked access to any user private data since macOS Mojave 10.14 (6 years ago!). Any app accessing private user data (Calendar, Contacts, Mail, Photos, any third-party app sandbox, etc.) now requires explicit user access.

OpenAI chose to opt-out of the sandbox and store the conversations in plain text in a non-protected location, disabling all of these built-in defenses.

OpenAI has now updated the app, and the local chats are now encrypted, though they are still not sandboxed. (The app is only available as a direct download from OpenAI’s website and is not available through Apple’s App Store where more stringent security is required.)

Many people now use ChatGPT like they might use Google: to ask important questions, sort through issues, and so on. Often, sensitive personal data could be shared in those conversations.

It’s not a great look for OpenAI, which recently entered into a partnership with Apple to offer chat bot services built into Siri queries in Apple operating systems. Apple detailed some of the security around those queries at WWDC last month, though, and they’re more stringent than what OpenAI did (or to be more precise, didn’t do) with its Mac app, which is a separate initiative from the partnership.

If you’ve been using the app recently, be sure to update it as soon as possible.

ChatGPT’s much-heralded Mac app was storing conversations as plain text Read More »

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Apple Vision Pro, new cameras fail user-repairability analysis

Apple, cameras, Meta, new york, Policy, right to repair, Tech, US PIRG / /
Apple's Vision Pro scored 0 points in US PIRG's self-repairability analysis.

Enlarge / Apple’s Vision Pro scored 0 points in US PIRG’s self-repairability analysis.

Kyle Orland

In December, New York became the first state to enact a “Right to Repair” law for electronics. Since then, other states, including Oregon and Minnesota, have passed similar laws. However, a recent analysis of some recently released gadgets shows that self-repair still has a long way to go before it becomes ubiquitous.

On Monday, the US Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) released its Leaders and Laggards report that examined user repairability of 21 devices subject to New York’s electronics Right to Repair law. The nonprofit graded devices “based on the quality and accessibility of repair manuals, spare parts, and other critical repair materials.”

Nathan Proctor, one of the report’s authors and senior director for the Campaign for the Right to Repair for the US PIRG Education Fund, told Ars Technica via email that PIRG focused on new models since the law only applies to new products, adding that PIRG “tried to include a range of covered devices from well-known brands.”

While all four smartphones included on the list received an A-minus or A, many other types of devices got disappointing grades. The HP Spectre Fold foldable laptop, for example, received a D-minus due to low parts (2 out of 10) and manual (4 out of 10) scores.

The report examined four camera models—Canon’s EOS r100, Fujifilm’s GFX 100 ii, Nikon’s Zf, and Sony’s Alpha 6700—and all but one received an F. The outlier, the Sony camera, managed a D-plus.

Two VR headsets were also among the losers. US PIRG gave Apple’s Vision Pro and Meta’s Quest 3 an F.

You can see PIRG’s full score breakdown below:

Repair manuals are still hard to access

New York’s Digital Fair Repair Act requires consumer electronics brands to allow consumers access to the same diagnostic tools, parts, and repair manuals that its own repair technicians use. However, the PIRG organization struggled to access manuals for some recently released tech that’s subject to the law.

For example, Sony’s PlayStation 5 Slim received a 1/10 score. PIRG’s report includes an apparent screenshot of an online chat with Sony customer support, where a rep said that the company doesn’t have a copy of the console’s service manual available and that “if the unit needs repair, we recommend/refer customers to the service center.”

Apple’s Vision Pro, meanwhile, got a 0/10 manual score, while the Meta Quest 3 got a 1/10.

According to the report, “only 12 of 21 products provided replacement procedures, and 11 listed which tools are required to disassemble the product.”

The report suggests difficulties in easily accessing repair manuals, with the report’s authors stating that reaching out to customer service representatives “often” proved “unhelpful.” The group also pointed to a potential lack of communication between customer service reps and the company’s repairability efforts.

For example, Apple launched its Self Service Repair Store in April 2022. But PIRG’s report said:

 … our interaction with their customer service team seemed to imply that there was no self-repair option for [Apple] phones. We were told by an Apple support representative that ‘only trained Apple Technician[s]’ would be able to replace our phone screen or battery, despite a full repair manual and robust parts selection available on the Apple website.

Apple didn’t immediately respond to Ars Technica’s request for comment.

Apple Vision Pro, new cameras fail user-repairability analysis Read More »

apple’s-vision-pro-goes-on-sale-outside-the-us-for-the-first-time

Apple’s Vision Pro goes on sale outside the US for the first time

Apple, apple vision pro, ar, augmented reality, hmd, Mixed Reality, spatial computing, Tech, virtual reality, vision pro, visionOS, vr, XR / /

Spatial computing —

Since February, the headset has only been available in the United States.

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A mixed reality headset over a table in an Apple Store

Enlarge / A Vision Pro on display at an Apple Store in Tokyo.

Apple

Apple’s Vision Pro headset went on sale outside the United States for the first time today, in the first of two waves of expanded availability.

The $3,499 “spatial computing” device launched back in February in the US, but it hasn’t taken the tech world by storm. Part of that has been its regional launch, with some of the biggest markets still lacking access.

Apple announced that the product would be sold internationally during its keynote at the Worldwide Developers Conference earlier this month.

The first new markets to get Vision Pro shipments are China, Japan, and Singapore—those are the ones where it went on sale today.

A second wave will come on July 12, with the headset rolling out in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

When we first tested the Vision Pro in February, we wrote that it was a technically impressive device with a lot of untapped potential. It works very well as a personal entertainment device for frequent travelers, in particular. However, its applications for productivity and gaming still need to be expanded to justify the high price.

Of course, there have been conflicting rumors of late about just how expensive Apple plans to keep its mixed reality devices. One report claimed that the company put the brakes on a new version of the Vision Pro for now, opting instead to develop a cheaper alternative for a 2025 launch.

But another report in Bloomberg suggested that’s an overstatement.  It simply noted that the Vision Pro 2 has been slightly delayed from its original target launch window and reported that the cheaper model will come first.

In any case, availability will have to expand and the price will ultimately have to come down if augmented reality can become the major computing revolution that Apple CEO Tim Cook has predicted. This international rollout is the next step to test whether there’s a market for that.

Apple’s Vision Pro goes on sale outside the US for the first time Read More »

apple’s-“longevity,-by-design”-argues-its-huge-scale-affects-its-repair-polices

Apple’s “Longevity, by Design” argues its huge scale affects its repair polices

Apple, iFixit, IPhone, iPhone 14, longevity by design, parts pairing, repair, right to repair, Self Service Repair, Tech / /

Apple Longevity by Design whitepaper —

Apple must consider volume, but also the world outside its closed loop.

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Images of two charred batteries from Apple's Longevity by Design document

Enlarge / Apple has a lot to say about the third-party battery market in “Longevity, by Design,” specifically about how many batteries fail to meet testing standards.

Apple

Earlier this week, Apple published a whitepaper titled “Longevity by Design.” The purpose, Apple says, is to explain “the company’s principles for designing for longevity—a careful balance between product durability and repairability.” It also contains some notable changes to Apple’s parts pairing and repair technology.

Here is a summary of the action items in the document’s 24 pages:

  • The self-service diagnostics tool that arrived in the US last year is now available in 32 European countries.
  • True Tone, the color-balancing screen feature, can soon be activated on third-party screens, “to the best performance that can be provided.”
  • Battery statistics, like maximum capacity and cycle count, will be available “later in 2024” for third-party batteries, with a notice that “Apple cannot verify the information presented.”
  • Used Apple parts, transferred from one to another, will be “as easy to use as new Apple parts” in select products “later this year.”
  • Parts for “most repairs” from Apple’s Self Service Repair program will no longer require a device serial number to order.

Changes timed to “later this year” may well indicate their arrival with iOS 18 or a subsequent update.

Apple’s take on repair focuses on scale

To whom is Apple’s document explaining its principles? Apple might say it’s speaking to consumers and the public, but one might infer that the most coveted audience is elected representatives, or their staff, as they consider yet another state or federal bill aimed at regulating repair. Earlier this year, Oregon and Colorado passed repair bills that stop companies from halting repairs with software checks on parts, or “parts pairing.” Other recent bills and legal actions have targeted repair restrictions in Minnesota, Canada, and the European Union.

Apple came out in support of a repair bill in California and at the federal level, in large part because it allows for parts and tools pricing at “fair and reasonable terms” and requires non-affiliated vendors to disclose their independence and use of third-party parts to customers.

“Longevity, by Design” stakes out Apple’s position that there are things more important than repair. Due to what Apple says is its unique combination of software support, resale value, and a focus on preventing the most common device failures, the company “leads the industry in longevity” as measured in products’ value holding, lifespans, and service rates, Apple says. Hundreds of millions of iPhones more than five years old are in use, out-of-warranty service rates dropped 38 percent from 2015 to 2022, and initiatives like liquid ingress protection dropped repair rates on the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus by 75 percent.

“The reliability of our hardware will always be our top concern when seeking to maximize the lifespan of products,” the whitepaper states. “The reason is simple: the best repair is the one that’s never needed.”

Photos from Apple's

Photos from Apple’s “Longevity, by Design” document showing the water ingress testing as part of its design.

Apple

Consider the charge port

Apple offers the charging port on iPhones as “an internal case study” to justify why it often bundles parts together rather than making them individually replaceable. From the independent repair shops and techs I’ve talked to in my career, iPhone charging ports, and the chips that control them, are not an uncommon failure point. “Cheap charging cables from 7-11 are serial killers,” one board-level repair shop once told me. Apple disagrees, saying it must consider the broader impact of its designs.

“Making the charging port individually replaceable would require additional components, including its own flexible printed circuit board, connector, and fasteners that increase the carbon emissions required to manufacture each device,” Apple states. This could be justified if 10 percent of iPhones required replacement, but Apple says “the actual service rate was below 0.1%.” As such, keeping the port integrated is a lower-carbon-emission choice.

Apple’s “Longevity, by Design” argues its huge scale affects its repair polices Read More »

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Apple rejects PC emulators on the iOS App Store

Apple, DOS, Emulation, gaming, iOS / /

I need my portable Number Munchers fix —

New iOS emulation rules only apply to “retro game consoles,” not retro computers.

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Don't get your hopes up—this iOS version of <em>Doom</em> was <a href=ported from open source code, not run via a classic PC emulator.” src=”https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/doomios-800×703.jpg”>

Enlarge / Don’t get your hopes up—this iOS version of Doom was ported from open source code, not run via a classic PC emulator.

Earlier this year, Apple started officially allowing “retro game emulators” on the iOS App Store without the need for cumbersome jailbreaking or sideloading. But if you want to emulate retro PC games on your iOS device, you are apparently still out of luck.

In a recent blog update, iDOS developer Chaoji Li said that the latest version of the DOSBox-based MS-DOS emulator was finally rejected from the iOS App Store this month after a lengthy, two-month review process:

They have decided that iDOS is not a retro game console, so the new rule is not applicable. They suggested I make changes and resubmit for review, but when I asked what changes I should make to be compliant, they had no idea, nor when I asked what a retro game console is. It’s still the same old unreasonable answer along the line of “we know it when we see it.”

The developer of iOS Virtual Machine app UTM told a similar tale of App Store rejection on social media. The reported two-month review process for the UTM app ended with “the App Store review board determin[ing] that ‘PC is not a console’ regardless of the fact that there are retro Windows/DOS games fo[r] the PC that UTM SE can be useful in running,” the developer said.

The April revision of Rule 4.7 in Apple’s App Review Guidelines is very specifically worded so that “retro game console emulator apps can offer to download games [emphasis added].” Emulating a more generalized PC operating system falls outside the letter of this regulation, even for users interested in emulating retro PC games using these apps.

Since that narrow exception doesn’t apply to classic PC emulators, they end up falling afoul of Apple’s Rule 2.5.2, which states that iOS Apps may not “download, install, or execute code which introduces or changes features or functionality of the app, including other apps.” That rule also applies to third-party iOS App Stores that were recently allowed under new European Union rules, meaning even so-called “alternative app marketplaces” don’t offer a useful alternative in this case.

What’s the difference?

While the specific language of Apple’s App Review Guidelines is clear enough, the reasoning behind the distinction here is a bit more mystifying. Why does Apple treat the idea of a DOSBox-style emulator running an ancient copy of Microsoft Excel differently than the idea of Delta running a copy of NES Tetris on the same device? Is loading the Windows 95 Version of KidPix Studio Deluxe on your iPhone really all that different from playing an emulated copy of Mario Paint on that same iPhone?

Mario Paint on iOS, why would I buy Photoshop?” height=”498″ src=”https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/mariopaint-640×498.jpg” width=”640″>

Enlarge / Now that I can emulate Mario Paint on iOS, why would I buy Photoshop?

A virtual machine or emulator running a modern PC operating system under iOS could theoretically offer some generalized competition for the apps Apple offers in its official App Store. But surely there’s a limit to how much that applies when we’re talking about emulating older computing environments and defunct operating systems. Just as Apple’s iOS game emulation rules only apply to “retro” game consoles, a rule for PC emulation could easily be limited to “retro” operating systems (say, those that are no longer officially supported by their original developers, as a rule of thumb).

Alas, iOS users and App makers are currently stuck abiding by this distinction without a difference when it comes to PC game emulation on iOS. Those looking for a workaround could potentially use an iOS Remote Desktop App to access games running on a physical desktop PC they actually own. The Internet Archive’s collection of thousands of MS-DOS games will also run in an iOS web browser, though you may have to struggle a bit to get controls and sound working correctly.

Apple rejects PC emulators on the iOS App Store Read More »

eu-says-apple-violated-app-developers’-rights,-could-be-fined-10%-of-revenue

EU says Apple violated app developers’ rights, could be fined 10% of revenue

Apple, Apple App Store, apple digital markets act, Policy / /

Apple and the Digital Markets Act —

EU: Apple fees and rules stop devs from steering users to other sales channels.

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Apple logo is displayed on a smartphone with a European Union flag in the background.

Getty Images | SOPA Images

The European Commission today said it found that Apple is violating the Digital Markets Act (DMA) with App Store rules and fees that “prevent app developers from freely steering consumers to alternative channels for offers and content.” The commission “informed Apple of its preliminary view” that the company is violating the law, the regulator announced.

This starts a process in which Apple has the right to examine documents in the commission’s investigation file and reply in writing to the findings. There is a March 2025 deadline for the commission to make a final ruling.

The commission noted that it “can impose fines up to 10 percent of the gatekeeper’s total worldwide turnover,” or up to 20 percent for repeat infringements. For “systematic infringements,” the European regulator could respond by requiring “a gatekeeper to sell a business or parts of it, or banning the gatekeeper from acquisitions of additional services related to the systemic non-compliance.”

Under the DMA, developers must be free “to inform their customers of alternative cheaper purchasing possibilities, steer them to those offers and allow them to make purchases,” the commission said. But Apple’s business terms prevent that, the commission found.

Apple’s rules prevent developers from providing pricing information within their apps and from communicating “with their customers to promote offers available on alternative distribution channels,” the commission said. Apple lets developers include an in-app link that redirects users to a website, but this “link-out process is subject to several restrictions imposed by Apple that prevent app developers from communicating, promoting offers and concluding contracts through the distribution channel of their choice,” the commission said.

Excessive fees

Apple was further accused of charging excessive fees. The commission said that Apple is allowed to charge “a fee for facilitating via the App Store the initial acquisition of a new customer by developers,” but “the fees charged by Apple go beyond what is strictly necessary for such remuneration. For example, Apple charges developers a fee for every purchase of digital goods or services a user makes within seven days after a link-out from the app.”

Apple says it charges a commission of 27 percent on sales “to the user for digital goods or services on your website after a link out… provided that the sale was initiated within seven days and the digital goods or services can be used in an app.”

We contacted Apple today and are waiting for a response. In a statement quoted by the Associated Press, Apple said that during the past few months, it “made a number of changes to comply with the DMA in response to feedback from developers and the European Commission” and will “continue to listen and engage” with regulators.

“We are confident our plan complies with the law and estimate more than 99 percent of developers would pay the same or less in fees to Apple under the new business terms we created,” Apple was quoted as saying. “All developers doing business in the EU on the App Store have the opportunity to utilize the capabilities that we have introduced, including the ability to direct app users to the web to complete purchases at a very competitive rate.”

As reported on Friday, Apple is delaying its Apple Intelligence AI tools and other features in the EU because of what it called “regulatory uncertainties brought about by the Digital Markets Act.”

EU also probes Apple “Core Technology Fee”

The commission today also announced it is starting a separate investigation into Apple’s “contractual requirements for third-party app developers and app stores,” including its “Core Technology Fee.” Apple charges the Core Technology Fee for app installs, whether they are delivered from Apple’s own App Store, from an alternative app marketplace, or from a developer’s own website. The first million installs each year are free, but a per-install fee of €0.50 applies after that.

The commission said it would investigate whether the Core Technology Fee complies with the DMA. This investigation will also probe “Apple’s multi-step user journey to download and install alternative app stores or apps on iPhones,” and the eligibility requirements imposed on developers before they are allowed to offer alternative app stores or distribute apps from the web on iPhones.

The probe includes Apple’s requirement that developers have “membership of good standing” in the Apple Developer Program in order to benefit from the alternative distribution methods required by the DMA. The commission said it is also probing the “checks and reviews put in place by Apple to validate apps and alternative app stores to be sideloaded.”

EU says Apple violated app developers’ rights, could be fined 10% of revenue Read More »

apple-intelligence-and-other-features-won’t-launch-in-the-eu-this-year

Apple Intelligence and other features won’t launch in the EU this year

AI, Apple, apple intelligence, Artificial Intelligence, dma, EU, European Commission, European Union, gaming, generative ai, ios 18, macos sequoia, privacy, Tech / /

DMA —

iPhone Mirroring and SharePlay screen sharing will also skip the EU for now.

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A photo of a hand holding an iPhone running the Image Playground experience in iOS 18

Enlarge / Features like Image Playground won’t arrive in Europe at the same time as other regions.

Apple

Three major features in iOS 18 and macOS Sequoia will not be available to European users this fall, Apple says. They include iPhone screen mirroring on the Mac, SharePlay screen sharing, and the entire Apple Intelligence suite of generative AI features.

In a statement sent to Financial Times, The Verge, and others, Apple says this decision is related to the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA). Here’s the full statement, which was attributed to Apple spokesperson Fred Sainz:

Two weeks ago, Apple unveiled hundreds of new features that we are excited to bring to our users around the world. We are highly motivated to make these technologies accessible to all users. However, due to the regulatory uncertainties brought about by the Digital Markets Act (DMA), we do not believe that we will be able to roll out three of these features — iPhone Mirroring, SharePlay Screen Sharing enhancements, and Apple Intelligence — to our EU users this year.

Specifically, we are concerned that the interoperability requirements of the DMA could force us to compromise the integrity of our products in ways that risk user privacy and data security. We are committed to collaborating with the European Commission in an attempt to find a solution that would enable us to deliver these features to our EU customers without compromising their safety.

It is unclear from Apple’s statement precisely which aspects of the DMA may have led to this decision. It could be that Apple is concerned that it would be required to give competitors like Microsoft or Google access to user data collected for Apple Intelligence features and beyond, but we’re not sure.

This is not the first recent and major divergence between functionality and features for Apple devices in the EU versus other regions. Because of EU regulations, Apple opened up iOS to third-party app stores in Europe, but not in other regions. However, critics argued its compliance with that requirement was lukewarm at best, as it came with a set of restrictions and changes to how app developers could monetize their apps on the platform should they use those other storefronts.

While Apple says in the statement it’s open to finding a solution, no timeline is given. All we know is that the features won’t be available on devices in the EU this year. They’re expected to launch in other regions in the fall.

Apple Intelligence and other features won’t launch in the EU this year Read More »

reports:-apple-is-halting-its-next-high-end-vision-in-favor-of-something-cheaper

Reports: Apple is halting its next high-end Vision in favor of something cheaper

Apple, apple vision pro, augmented reality, headsets, Tech, The Information, vision pro, VR headsets / /

Vision Pro strategy shift —

Finding a lower-price replacement for its high-end displays could be difficult.

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Vision Pro, seen from below, in a display with a bright white light strip overhead.

Samuel Axon

A report by tech news site The Information suggests that Apple is shifting its augmented reality priorities. The next high-end version of the Vision Pro has purportedly been canceled while work continues on a more affordable version with a reduced feature set.

Citing both an employee in Apple’s headset supply chain and one working in headset manufacturing for Apple, the report claims that the cheaper Vision product—perhaps around the $1,600 mark—is due before the end of 2025. Apple had originally intended to present this headset alongside the Vision Pro, similar to the models available in each iPhone release. The more affordable model would likely have fewer cameras, smaller speakers, and weigh less, though Apple has struggled to bring down the cost of the unit’s displays.

Apple’s efforts in augmented reality are closely watched by other players in the headset space, so even a momentary, situational step back from high-end headsets could have significant repercussions. The Information cites current and former Meta employees in describing how the company had killed plans for its own higher-end headset in January 2023, but it then began work on a new premium model five months after Apple’s Vision Pro debut.

The Vision Pro will launch in China, Japan, Australia, and many European countries later this month. The Information’s sources suggest that Apple has produced roughly 500,000 Vision Pro headsets and will not make significantly more, despite the entry of these new markets.

Apple has not responded to The Information or other outlets. Ars contacted Apple for comment and will update this post with any response.

In Senior Editor Samuel Axon’s extensive experience with the device, the home theater aspect of the Vision Pro, and specifically its high-quality display units, is the “one use case that’s a slam dunk.” Reducing the quality of the Sony micro-OLED displays in the Vision Pro, and their “staggering 3,386 PPI (pixels per inch)” density, would seemingly cut at a solid selling point for the device. It is otherwise not made for walking around, and while working in the Vision Pro is possible, it’s not ready to replace anyone’s standard setup yet, especially if they have regular web meetings.

Reports: Apple is halting its next high-end Vision in favor of something cheaper Read More »

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Apple abruptly abandons “buy now, pay later” service amid regulatory scrutiny

Apple, Apple Pay, Apple Pay Later, bnpl, buy now pay later, consumer financial protection bureau, credit card, loans, online payments, Policy / /
Apple abruptly abandons “buy now, pay later” service amid regulatory scrutiny

Apple has abruptly discontinued its “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) service, Apple Pay Later, which turned Apple into a money lender when it launched last March in the US and became widely available in October.

The service previously allowed users to split the cost of purchases of up to $1,000 into four installments that were repaid over six weeks without worrying about extra fees or paying interest. For Apple, it was likely a move to increase total Apple Pay users as the company sought to offer more core financial services through its devices.

Now, it appears that Apple has found a different route to offer short-term loans at checkout in Apple Pay. An Apple spokesperson told 9to5Mac that the decision to end Apple Pay Later came ahead of the company’s plan to start offering new types of installment loans globally.

“Starting later this year, users across the globe will be able to access installment loans offered through credit and debit cards, as well as lenders, when checking out with Apple Pay,” Apple’s spokesperson said. “With the introduction of this new global installment loan offering, we will no longer offer Apple Pay Later in the US.”

Apple also noted its decision to kill off the service on a support page posted Monday, confirming that “Apple Pay Later is no longer offering new loans.” Apple specified that all “existing Apple Pay Later loans and purchases are not affected,” and loans can continue to be managed through users’ wallets.

One of the biggest challenges for BNPL customers is often seeking a refund for returned purchases, but Apple has assured Apple Pay Later customers that the refund process has not changed for any existing purchases. Customers can contact Apple Support if they have “trouble with a refund,” Apple’s support page said.

Apple announced its new installment loan program at its recent annual developer event, confirming that it had partnered with banks, including Citi in the US, to provide short-term loans as a payment option in its upcoming iOS 18 operating system due out before the end of 2024. Apple’s spokesperson told 9to5Mac that unlike Apple Pay Later, which was only available in the US, installment loans will be an option offered in more countries.

“Our focus continues to be on providing our users with access to easy, secure, and private payment options with Apple Pay, and this solution will enable us to bring flexible payments to more users, in more places across the globe, in collaboration with Apple Pay enabled banks and lenders,” Apple’s spokesperson said.

In a blog post, Apple described new features “available for any Apple Pay-enabled bank or issuer to integrate in supported markets.” These features allow users to “view and redeem rewards, and access installment loan offerings from eligible credit or debit cards, when making a purchase online or in-app with iPhone and iPad,” the blog said. For users in the US, Apple will soon make it easy to “apply for loans directly through Affirm when they check out with Apple Pay.”

A brief history of short-lived Apple Pay Later

The iPhone maker rolled out Apple Pay Later in March 2023, just after BNPL services fell under scrutiny by regulators globally, The Verge reported in 2022. Early studies found that “BNPL users are twice as likely to overdraft” and estimated that 43 percent of younger BNPL users have missed a payment.

A fear quickly arose that Apple Pay Later might “normalize” reliance on BNPL lending for frivolous large purchases that customers might then struggle to repay, The Verge reported. BNPL had already become hugely popular with Gen Z shoppers eager to purchase the latest TikTok fashions they may not otherwise be able to afford, The Verge noted.

In 2021, the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) launched an inquiry into BNPL, flagging emerging potential consumer risks in 2022. Those included privacy risks from data harvesting and excessive debt accumulation from frequently reported borrower overextension.

However, despite emerging concerns about BNPL, Apple Pay Later was immediately popular, according to a JD Power survey of 8,000 consumers. In the first three months that the service was available, nearly one-fifth of BNPL customers used Apple Pay Later. With its BNPL offering, Apple attracted new customers who were interested in trying a new BNPL service from a trusted brand, JD Power reported, posing an immediate threat to BNPL services offered by “traditional payments juggernauts” like PayPal.

At that time, Apple was well-positioned to provide short-term loans, JD Power reported, finding that the “average Apple Pay Later user tended to be more financially healthy than most other BNPL customers, potentially giving it a more sustainable user base than its competitors.”

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After a few years of embracing thickness, Apple reportedly plans thinner devices

Apple, apple watch, IPhone, MacBook Pro, Tech / /

return to form —

Thinness is good, as long as it doesn’t come at the expense of other things.

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Apple bragged about the thinness of the M4 iPad Pro; it's apparently a template for the company's designs going forward.

Enlarge / Apple bragged about the thinness of the M4 iPad Pro; it’s apparently a template for the company’s designs going forward.

Apple

Though Apple has a reputation for prioritizing thinness in its hardware designs, the company has actually spent the last few years learning to embrace a little extra size and/or weight in its hardware. The Apple Silicon MacBook Pro designs are both thicker and heavier than the Intel-era MacBook Pros they replaced. The MacBook Air gave up its distinctive taper. Even the iPhone 15 Pro was a shade thicker than its predecessor.

But Apple is apparently planning to return to emphasizing thinness in its devices, according to reporting from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman (in a piece that is otherwise mostly about Apple’s phased rollout of the AI-powered features it announced at its Worldwide Developers Conference last week).

Gurman’s sources say that Apple is planning “a significantly skinnier iPhone in time for the iPhone 17 line in 2025,” which presumably means that we can expect the iPhone 16 to continue in the same vein as current iPhone 15 models. The Apple Watch and MacBook Pro are also apparently on the list of devices Apple is trying to make thinner.

Apple previewed this strategy with the introduction of the M4 iPad Pro a couple of months ago, which looked a lot like the previous-generation iPad Pro design but was a few hundredths of an inch thinner and (especially for the 13-inch model) noticeably lighter than before. Gurman says the new iPad Pro is “the beginning of a new class of Apple devices that should be the thinnest and lightest products in their categories across the whole tech industry.”

Thin-first design isn’t an inherently good or bad thing, but the issue in Apple’s case is that it has occasionally come at the expense of other more desirable features. A thinner device has less room for cooling hardware like fans and heatsinks, less room for batteries, and less room to fit ports.

The late-2010s-era MacBook Pro and Air redesigns were probably the nadir of this thin-first design, switching to all-Thunderbolt ports and a stiff-feeling butterfly switch keyboard design that also ended up being so breakage-prone that it spawned a long-running Apple repair program and a class-action lawsuit that the company settled. The 2020 and 2021 MacBooks reversed course on both decisions, reverting to a more traditional scissor-switch keyboard and restoring larger ports like MagSafe and HDMI.

Hopefully, Apple has learned the lessons of the last decade or so and is planning not to give up features people like just so it can craft thinner hardware. The new iPad Pros are a reason for optimism—they don’t really give up anything relative to older iPad models while still improving performance and screen quality. But iPad hardware is inherently more minimalist than the Mac and is less space-constrained than an iPhone or an Apple Watch. Here’s hoping Apple has figured out how to make a thinner, lighter Mac without giving up ports or keyboard quality or a thinner, lighter iPhone or Apple Watch without hurting battery life.

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