Graphics

Apple to slash royalty payments to GPU designer Imagination by two-thirds

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 19, 2017

As Apple is winding down its supply deal with UK-based GPU designer Imagination Technologies over the next two years, a new report alleges that the Cupertino firm is about to slash payments to Imagination to just one-third of its current royalty rate.

Reuters cited UBS analysts as predicting that Imagination could very easily become a loss-making company by fiscal 2019 without any Apple royalty contributions. The British GPU designer may even have to axe jobs and consider other potential cost-cutting moves in order to weather the storm ahead.

New iMacs could sport Xeon E3 chips, ECC RAM, Thunderbolt 3/USB-C, new keyboard & more

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 13, 2017

Following up on a comment from Apple's Phil Schiller regarding upcoming iMacs with pro-grade features, Pike's Universum today shared a few specifics on what said upgrades might entail. Citing a “pretty accurate” source, the blog claims next-gen iMacs will feature Intel's more powerful Xeon E3 chips with up to sixty-four gigabytes of Error-Correcting Code (ECC) RAM, faster flash storage with capacities up to two terabytes, Thunderbolt 3, USB-C and more.

Benchmark GPU performance of your iPhone, iPad and Mac with Geekbench’s updated app

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 3, 2017

Available on App Store free of charge, Primate Labs' refreshed Geekbench app now lets you measure the performance of mobile GPUs in iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and Mac devices. Geekbench 4.1 brings a new Compute Benchmark to iOS and macOS. Written using Apple's new graphics API, Metal, it measures the performance of the GPU at executing common compute tasks such as image processing and computational photography.

Apple is developing its own GPU chips

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 17, 2018

In a bombshell press release issued Monday, UK chip designer Imagination Technologies said Apple told it that it would end a fruitful deal to use Imagination's blueprints for customized graphics cores in its own A-series chips powering iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Apple Watch and Apple TV devices.

Apparently, the Cupertino company is now looking to create independent GPU designs that could be ready in about two year's time. Shares of Imagination immediately plunged over 70 percent to their lowest level since the financial crisis in 2009, wiping over $625 million off the company's market value.

What Automatic Graphics Switching is on your MacBook Pro and how to use it

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated August 16, 2022

Depending on the model of MacBook Pro you have, you may be able to physically choose whether your computer uses the high-power discreet graphics card for better performance or the low-power integrated graphics chip for better battery life by using an option known as Automatic Graphics Switching.

The feature is only available on MacBook Pros which have two Graphics Processing Units (GPU). The reason it only exists on certain models of the MacBook Pro is not all Macs have dual GPUs. And desktop Macs don’t need this as they don’t rely on batteries and are connected to a power source all the time.

Here's more about Automatic Graphics Switching and how to enable it on your Mac.

Nvidia seeking software engineers to help produce “the next revolutionary Apple products”

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 27, 2016

Apple and the graphics giant Nvidia have had something of a rocky relationship, with the Cupertino company switching between Nvidia's and AMD's graphics chips for Mac desktops. Most of the Macs currently shipping use either integrated graphics from Intel or discreet AMD chips, but that could change in the coming years.

As first spotted by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Nvidia is seeking software engineers tasked with helping produce “the next revolutionary Apple products.” According to the job post, the role would require “working in partnership with Apple” and writing code that will “define and shape the future” of graphics-related software on Macs.

How to launch apps in low resolution mode on Retina display Macs

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated December 14, 2023

In this tutorial, we'll show you how you can launch apps on your Retina display Mac in normal resolution rather than in its higher Retina display resolution form.

GraphicConverter for Mac gains facial recognition, Collage, Picture Package and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 30, 2016

GraphicConverter by small Germany-based developer Lemkesoft has been dubbed the Swiss Army knife of Mac graphics programs, and for a very good reason: this app converts over 200 different graphic file formats into any of almost 80 graphic formats.

In its latest update, GraphicConverter for Mac was bumped to version 10 and enriched with a trio of major new features—facial recognition for your photos, Collage and Picture Package—along with refinements like support for converting Apple’s Live Photos format into an animated GIF.

Pixelmator for Mac gains precise selection tools, all-new Photos extension and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 26, 2016

My favorite Photoshop alternative, Pixelmator, was updated this morning on the Mac App Store with some notable new features, bug fixes and enhancements. Pixelmator 3.5 for Mac, a free update for those who own the app, includes the new Smart Selection and Magnetic Selection tools, a new Retouch extension for Photos which provides a full set of powerful retouching tools, and more.

Apple looking to buy troubled iPhone graphics provider Imagination Technologies

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 22, 2016

Ars Technica reported this morning that Apple is in “advanced talks” regarding a possible takeover of British fabless semiconductor maker Imagination Technologies. The chip designer develops GPU blueprints that other companies license and incorporate into their own chips.

Apple owns at least a 9.5 percent stake in Imagination and has long used their PowerVR line of graphics-processing units (GPU) inside its own A-series processors since the emergence of the A4 chip, which powered the original iPad, the iPhone 4 and the fourth-generation iPod touch.

Give your Retina Mac’s screen more real estate with scaling options

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated March 12, 2018

Macs that comes with retina displays allow the user to configure their own resolution scaling options.

These scaling options can be taken advantage of to give your Mac more screen space and gives you the illusion that your screen is bigger than it really is. With that in mind, you can run more windows side-by-side and be more productive.

In this tutorial, we'll be showing you how you can create more space on your screen for additional windows on your Retina display Mac – this includes the new MacBook, some MacBook Pro models, and even some iMac models.

Adobe releases Post, an iPhone app for turning photos and text into share-worthy graphics

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 17, 2015

Photoshop maker Adobe on Thursday released Post for iPhone, a brand new application for turning text, photos and graphics into eye-candy illustrations for instant sharing on social media and elsewhere.

With professionally designed templates and filters, gorgeous typography with resizable fonts, one-tap color adjustments, a curated selection of fonts and shapes and more than half a million free photos, creating instant memes should be fun.