Apple

According to Apple, bottom left grille on iPhone 7 houses a barometric vent

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 16, 2016

Yesterday, we speculated that a faux speaker grille at the bottom of the iPhone 7 created by the removal of the headphone jack is for visual symmetry, based on drawings on Apple's website and a quote from John Gruber's iPhone 7 review. Today's teardowns from iFixit and Chipworks hint at a new component where the headphone jack would've been, suspected to channel sound from outside the phone into the mic.

Putting an end to speculation, Apple itself has gone on the record to confirm that the faux speaker grille acts as a “barometric vent.” According to the company, it's needed after all the waterproofing to help built-in barometer sensor measure altitude accurately.

iPhone 7 model A1778: Intel modem confirmed, 1,960 mAh battery, “incredibly thin” A10 Fusion chip

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 16, 2016

Following iFixit's analysis of the components and internal layout changes in the iPhone 7 Plus, semiconductor experts over at Chipworks and TechInsights have performed a joint in-depth analysis of the chips in the 128GB iPhone 7 model “A1778” to identify the key integrated circuits at play.

The Apple-designed A10 Fusion chip is “incredibly thin,” Chipworks has discovered, thanks to TSMC's InFO packaging technique resulting in a thinner package. Perhaps more interesting than that, the AT&T and T-Mobile edition of the handset indeed comes with Intel's LTE modem inside versus Qualcomm's that powers cellular connectivity in other hardware versions of the device.

iPhone 7 Plus teardown: 3GB of RAM, faux speaker grille, bigger battery & more

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 16, 2016

Repair wizards over at iFixit flew out to Japan to obtain their iPhone 7 Plus (in Rose Gold), performing their ritual teardown dance which has helped confirm what we've been suspecting all along: that a second grille at the bottom doesn't house a second speaker.

Other interesting observations gleaned from peeking under the hood of the iPhone 7 Plus include a replaceable Home button, a lot bigger Taptic Engine than in the iPhone 6s, a bigger 2,900 mAh battery, dust and water-proofing measures and other tidbits.

What’s Dock on Apple Watch and how to use it?

Ankur Thakur ∙ Updated December 28, 2021

When you press the side button on your Apple Watch, you see the Dock. Depending on the setting, the watchOS Dock has either your favorite apps or the ones you used recently. In this tutorial, we tell you more about the Apple Watch Dock, how to use it, add favorite apps, and get the most of it.

Emergency SOS: How to set up and use this Apple Watch feature

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated July 31, 2019

A major new feature that came baked into the watchOS 3 update for Apple Watches was Emergency SOS.

This will let you call 911 to dispatch emergency personnel to your current location and will alert your loved ones that you're in trouble, in extreme bouts of danger, or life-threatening emergencies, right from your wrist.

New low quality mode in iOS 10 Messages uses circa 100KB per sent image

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 15, 2016

As you know, iMessage overcomes many of the limitations of standard MMS. Every time you attach an image taken on your iPhone and iPad to an iMessage, it's delivered in its original size and resolution. Some downscaling may occur, but only for very high resolution images: those taken with an iOS device are always delivered in their original form without any resizing taking place.

And herein lies a problem for those of you who send a lot of images via a cellular data connection.

Knowing a typical photo taken on an iPhone 6s weighs in at between three to five megabytes (or even more), it does add up pretty quickly. If you're concerned about cellular data consumption (as you should be), pay attention as Messages on iOS 10 offers a brand new low quality mode.

We've determined it downscales images sent through iMessage to circa 100 kilobytes each. In other words, for the amount of data you'd normally spend to shoot someone a single photo via iMessage you get to send 30 to 50 images in low quality mode.

iPhone 7’s second grille at the bottom is for the mic, not a second speaker

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 15, 2016

One of the smaller but no less important features included in both new iPhone 7 models is an entirely new and “immersive” stereo speaker system that Apples claims provides twice the sound. Risking to be chastised in comments for bringing this up, I do feel we need to clear up the confusion and reiterate that a second speaker grille at the bottom of the phone does not actually house a speaker and is there purely for cosmetic reasons.

New Surface ad wants you to think that your Mac “ain’t fast enough”

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 15, 2016

It's been only three days since Microsoft's advertising department unleashed a new ad salvo at Apple's direction in the form of a commercial for its Surface Pro 4 tablet/laptop hybrid and now it's posted yet another video to conveniently reiterate its message ahead of iPhone 7's launch tomorrow. Titled “Power of Touch”, the 30-second commercial doubles down on the ”the Mac lacks a touchscreen” theme.

Not only does Microsoft poke fun of the fact that Macs are long overdue for a refresh (yours supposedly “ain't fast enough” lately), but also disses the Mac for not shipping with a detachable keyboard or a stylus.

Using the Reminders app on Apple Watch

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated July 31, 2019

Apple Watch offers a standalone Reminders app, and as you'll soon learn, it can be just as functional as the iPhone app.

The introduction of an official Reminders app on Apple Watch was great because this little app on your wrist will help you get through all your errands throughout the day and keep track of your busy life.

The app is used with Siri since there is no keyboard to input text on the Apple Watch like there is on your iPhone. With that being said, using the Reminders app may feel a little awkward at first, but it should become a second nature to you in no time at all.

Motorola is telling supposed real-life iPhone loyalists to “Skip the Sevens”

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 15, 2016

Remember Motorola? Yes, they're still in the business and some of the handsets they make come with cool features, like quick customization modules that snap onto a phone using integrated magnets to add features like powerful speakers, external battery packs and so forth. It also made the first Android handset with a special low-power chip which made possible an always-listening “OK Google” mode.

With the iPhone 7 sales about to kick off, the Lenovo-owned company is now telling customers to “skip the sevens” and has produced a video in which supposedly genuine Apple fans express their disappointment with incremental iPhone 7 improvements like “a little better camera” and “a little faster processor”.

What happens next is a typical marketing crap.

Oz: Broken Kingdom, an RPG game demoed at iPhone 7 keynote, just hit the App Store

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 15, 2016

At each iPhone introduction, Apple would usually invite one or more game developers on stage to demonstrate titles which show off the power of its latest chips. This month's iPhone 7 introduction was no exception. To showcase what's possible with the new A10 Fusion chip, Apple invited This Game Studio co-founder Heather Price on stage to show off a mobile game called Oz: Broken Kingdom, which just launched in the App Store as a freemium download.

A new take on Oz, Broken Kingdom sports crisp and detailed Metal-driven graphics that take full advantage of the A10 Fusion chip, although it supports older devices as well.

Here’s a new “Meet the new Home Button” step in iOS 10 installer on iPhone 7

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 15, 2016

With less than 24 hours left until first iPhone 7 shipments start hitting customers' doorsteps, YouTuber Marques Brownlee has put together a nice unboxing video featuring both new black options for the device, a supper glossy variant called Jet Black and its matte counterpart, referred to by Apple as simply Black.

The video offers interesting observations regarding the RAM, CPU performance, non-moving Home button and a new “Choose Your Click” Home button option.