Twelve South’s HiRise 2 Deluxe dock looks great with the new iPhone 7

Twelve South is at it again, making great accessories for Apple products. The company’s release of the HiRise 2 and HiRise 2 Deluxe charging docks earlier this month brought forth a redesign with new color options and improved stability for larger devices.

In this review, we’ll take a closer look at the HiRise 2 Deluxe in black, a color made to match Apple’s new black iPhone 7 & 7 Plus finish.

QuickDial Lite adds speed dial features to your iPhone

QuickDial Lite is a new free jailbreak tweak intended for iPhones that allows you to quickly dial up to 9 of your favorite phone numbers in fewer keystrokes.

With this tweak, you can assign certain phone numbers to individual number keys on the keypad in the Phone app. Afterwards, you will be able to tap and hold on any of those assigned keys to automatically initiate a phone call to the number assigned to the key you held down.

App Store Search Ads go live October 5, Apple offering developers $100 credit

Apple on Wednesday began emailing developers regarding the launch of App Store Search Ads. The ads will go live in the App Store on October 5, and for a limited time qualified developers can get a $100 credit toward their first campaign.

The Search Ads have been in beta testing since the feature was announced in June. Apple describes it as an "efficient and easy way to promote apps at the top of relevant search results," and promises this won't negatively affect app searches.

How to use emoji like a pro in Messages for iPhone and iPad

Your expressive Messages app for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch packs in some interesting and useful features related to emojis. For added impact, emojis can be made three times their normal size.

But that's not all.

Apple's stock QuickType keyboard now recommends emojis as you type and Messages has a cool emojification feature where you tap words to turn them into appropriate emoji characters.

We're going to take you through all emoji-related features in Messages for iOS and teach you how to use them. Are you ready to boost your emoji game?

Apple aiming for October launch of new MacBook Pro

Apple is moving rapidly toward the launch of new MacBook Pro models, reports MacRumors. The site says it has learned that macOS 10.12.1 is largely focused on preparing the operating system to support the new laptop's features, and it hopes to finalize the update by the end of next week so it can be loaded on the new hardware currently being produced by Apple's supply chain.

Yes, Apple keeps a log of who you contact on iMessage for 30 days

A new report is out on Wednesday, claiming that Apple logs your iMessage contacts and may share them with police. The Intercept published the piece, along with an internal law enforcement document that shows Apple tracks information like IP addresses, phone numbers and time, and stores it for up to 30 days.

At first glance, the report can be a bit unsettling, conjuring thoughts like: "isn't Apple always preaching about user privacy" and "I thought iMessage was one of the most secure messaging services, thanks to its end-to-end encryption." But it doesn't take much digging to realize this is likely much ado about nothing.

Apple teams up with Deloitte to push further into enterprise

Apple on Wednesday announced a strategic partnership with Deloitte. The company is recognized as the largest professional services network in the world by revenue and headcount, so the relationship should help Apple in its efforts to push further into the enterprise space. The duo plan to "transform the way companies work using iOS devices."

What’s jet black anyway?

Apple's new jet black iPhone 7 is what I believe to be the flagship finish for this year's iPhone. This is the one that Apple features in most of its promo materials, and I assume this is the one Jony Ive is carrying right now in his man purse, along with early prototypes of the iPhone 8.

Getting that gorgeous glossy finish isn't exactly an easy process. According to Apple, "the new jet black finish is accomplished through an innovative nine-step process of anodization and polish for a uniform, glossy finish, achieving its beautiful, high-gloss black finish even required a new process."

But what is jet black anyway?