Year: 2016

Apple’s generously made 8GB of RAM standard across all 13″ MacBook Air configurations

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 19, 2016

In addition to updating its twelve-inch MacBook lineup around Intel's latest SkyLake chips, a new Rose Gold finish and other perks, Apple also announced that all configurations of the 13-inch MacBook Air now ship with eight gigabytes of RAM.

“Apple also today made 8GB of memory standard across all configurations of the 13-inch MacBook Air,” reads a line in Apple's press release announcing its notebook refresh.

Apple's two 13-inch MacBook Air models still start at $999 (128GB model) and $1,099 (256GB model) like before so customers now get twice the memory for the same price. The 11-inch Air models continue to ship with 4GB of RAM as a standard option.

Apple updates 12″ MacBook with faster CPU/GPU, Rose Gold model, longer battery life & more

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 19, 2016

Apple on Tuesday via a press release and a website update announced a second-generation twelve-inch MacBook with Intel's latest Skylake chips with faster graphics, a longer battery life, faster flash storage, a brand new Rose Gold color option and more.

The twelve-inch notebook is now available in four aluminum finishes: Gold, Silver, Space Gray and Rose Gold. In addition, the Cupertino firm has made 8GB of memory standard across all configurations of the 13-inch MacBook Air.

The refreshed twelve-inch notebook starts at the same $1,299 like before and will be available starting tomorrow.

Let’s Talk iOS 131: Bold like a bold eagle

Sébastien Page ∙ April 19, 2016

It's iPhone rumor season again as Cody and Sebastien discuss what may come with the new iPhone 7 later this year, including features such as Smart Connector, the disappearance of headphone jack and more. And because it's never too soon to speculate, the guys also address a recent note from KGI about the material that may be used in next year's iPhone. The two co-hosts then talk about rumored paid search results in the App Store, the possible MacOS rebranding, Project Titan, and more

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Check out this endless runner game you can play from Notification Center

Anthony Bouchard ∙ April 19, 2016

Knowing that Apple has been restrictive in the past on what is and what isn't allowed to pass in the App Store for a Notification Center widget, it can be fun when little gems find their way into the top charts section and you stumble upon them.

While looking through them, I discovered a free endless runner game called Steve - The Jumping Dinosaur, but unlike other endless runners you've played before, this game is played inside of a Notification Center widget rather than from the app itself.

Use text replacement in iOS to input email addresses faster

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Email addresses can be long and annoying to type, especially when you're one of those goofballs out there with the weird emails like iph0n3_fan_09325@emailaddress.com, or something else with a bunch of wonky characters you don't care to remember or spend the time typing.

This is why when I came across this tip on how to make email address entry simple and fast from a friendly iDB reader, I wanted to share it with the rest of you.

Apple opens registration for WWDC ticket lottery

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

Apple on Monday confirmed Siri's claim that WWDC will take place June 13-17 this year, and opened registration for its WWDC ticket lottery. The company's annual conference has become so popular that it has to randomly issue tickets to registered developers.

Registration will be available from April 18, to Friday April 22nd. You must be a member of Apple's developer program (having joined prior to today's announcement) to qualify for the lottery, and if you are lucky enough to be selected, tickets are priced at $1,599.

Apple meeting with top talent to develop original programming

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

Apple has been secretly meeting with top entertainment talent, reports Fast Company. In a lengthy article detailing the streaming ambitions of various tech giants, the outlet says the iPhone-maker has its sights set on building a lineup of original programming.

According to sources, the company quietly set up shop at the Imperial Hotel in Utah during this year's Sundance Film Festival. There, it hosted a series of private events, known as the "iTunes Lounge," where it discussed content deals with actors and filmmakers.

iDB app version 1.1 comes with new bookmarking feature, San Francisco font, and more

Sébastien Page ∙ April 18, 2016

Version 1.1 of the iDB app was just approved and is now available in the App Store, including the usual round of stability improvements and bug fixes, as well as a couple notable additions. More specifically, we have added a new bookmarking feature as well as support for the San Francisco font, something many of you were pretty vocal about.

GoPro unveils powerful new cameras and an app for viewing 360-degree and VR content

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 5, 2018

Monday, action camera maker GoPro announced at The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) show a pair of powerful new camera rigs in the Omni and Odyssey series alongside a new VR sharing platform and a brand new mobile application which lets you view 360-degree videos and virtual reality content hosted at vr.gopro.com on an iPhone, iPod touch or iPad.

The new six-camera synchronized Omni rig costs five grands and packs in pro-grade features that allow pixel-level synchronization, making stitching in post-production easier and more exact than using unsynchronized camera arrays.

Pricing for the more capable panoramic stereoscopic 16-camera Odyssey rig, which is optimized to work with Google's Jump VR Platform, will be out of the reach for most people unless they create professional VR content for a living.

Downgrades no longer possible as Apple stops signing iOS 9.3 for some devices

Anthony Bouchard ∙ April 18, 2016

On Monday, Apple has pulled the signing plug on its iOS 9.3 firmware for its lineup of iPhones, iPod touches, and iPads.

As a result, downgrades through iTunes to iOS 9.3 are no longer possible, and there's no way to upgrade specifically to iOS 9.3 from an earlier firmware.

Instead, users will be directed to install iOS 9.3.1 when restoring or updating their devices through iTunes.

Update: It seems that not all versions of iOS 9.3 have stopped being signed. It appears that iOS 9.3 is not being any longer for newer devices (i.e. iPhone 6s, iPad Air 2), but it is still being signed for older devices (ie. iPhone 5s).

True Silicon Valley icon and former longtime Apple board member Bill Campbell dies at age 75

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 18, 2016

Silicon Valley has lost its coach: longtime Apple board member and true Silicon Valley icon, Bill Campbell, has died today at the age of 76 after a long battle with cancer, Re/code reported Monday. Best-known as simply “The Coach” for his business acumen and coaching skills, he coached many big name Silicon Valley executives, including Google’s Larry Page and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos.

He, of course, acted as an unofficial adviser to Apple’s executive team and coached Apple's own Steve Jobs. “News of his passing popped up on Facebook early this morning and many prominent tech players also confirmed the death to me, wrote reporter Kara Swisher.

WWDC 2016 will run from June 13 through June 17, Siri has it on good authority

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 18, 2016

Benjamin Mayo of 9to5Mac has discovered that asking Siri about Apple's summer developers conference has now started to produce a more concrete answer than before. Whereas asking Siri about the WWDC 2016 schedule would yield a “WWDC is not yet announced” response just earlier in the day, a backend change has updated that answer with the June 13-17 date.

“The Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) will be held June 13 through June 17 in San Francisco. Can't wait!,” reads Siri's response.