Apple

macOS Mojave 10.14.4 enables automatic Dark Mode on websites with black themes

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 27, 2019

Safari on the macOS Mojave 10.14.4 beta, which was released last week, permits websites to automatically adapt their styling to complement Mojave's dramatic new Dark Mode.

Apple in October put out Safari Technology Preview 68 with support for the prefers-color-scheme media query for styling dark mode content. This experimental feature's now made its way into the Safari browser that ships in the macOS Mojave 10.14.4 developer beta.

Websites that support dark themes still appear white in the current macOS Mojave 10.14.3...

This super-useful feature can be manually enabled or disabled in Safari's Develop menu under Experimental Features → Dark Mode CSS Support, as shown top of post. However, That option is nowhere to be seen in the current macOS Mojave 10.14.3 software.

...but on MacOS Mojave 10.14.4 they automatically adapt to OS appearance.

When macOS Mojave 10.14.4 releases, turning on Mojave's Dark Mode in System Preferences will now change the styling on websites you visit accordingly. This will, of course, require web developers to implement black themes and adopt the new media query.

If you have the macOS Mojave 10.14.4 beta installed, you can try this out yourself by visiting Kevin Chain's example webpage, then switch between Light and Dark mode in System Preferences to see the website automatically apply an appropriate theme.

Again, this does not work in Safari on macOS Mojave 10.14.3 and earlier.

A white webpage looks out of place when Dark Mode in the current Mojave version is on.

Safari Technology Preview gives you an early look at upcoming web technologies in macOS and iOS. Anyone can install it alongside the regular Safari and use them interchangeably.

This looks more like it, however. Courtesy of Safari on macOS Mojave 10.14.4.

The biggest annoyance with Mojave's Dark Mode currently is Safari's lack of support for the new media query. With macOS Mojave 10.14.4, Apple's web browser will finally be able to allow websites to automatically cycle their styling for Light and Dark system appearances.

TUTORIAL: How to get Dark Mode on any website with Siri Shortcuts

Dark Mode in Mojave transform your desktop into a darkened color scheme that puts the focus on your content. It changes the look of built-in apps like Mail, Messages, Calendar and more. An official API permits developers to do the same for their own apps.

What you'll find embedded below is a very cool comparison between automatic theme switching on websites when cycling between Dark and Light Mode in MacOS Mojave 10.14.4.

Just drag the vertical slider to see it in action.

Since macOS Mojave was released to the public in September, numerous apps have added support for the system-wide Dark Mode, including 1Password, HazeOver, Spark and more.

Dark Mode is officially unsupported on iOS, but a number of popular apps have adopted dark themes internally. Because there's no OS-level support for Dark Mode in iOS 12, users must manually turn on a darker interface in their favorite app, provided it supports it.

Dark Mode in Bear Notes for Mac.

Be sure to check out Apple’s list of the top apps that feature darkened or pure black interfaces. A fan-made website over at Darkmodelist.com highlights more than 70 iPhone and iPad apps with custom dark themes along with screenshots.

Apple's App Store list of apps with black themes.

macOS Mojave 10.14.4 will also bring support for Apple News in Canada and the ability for Safari to automatically fill in your saved passwords with a touch of the Touch ID button.

The software update should releases to all users in a few weeks.

Are you looking forward to Safari's support for Dark Mode styling on website?

Let us know by leaving a comment down below!

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HomeKit support for Smart TVs shown in action

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 30, 2019

Developer Khaos Tian has managed to add his Smart TV to the Home app on the iOS 12.2 beta by hacking Apple's HomeKit protocol. As a result, he's discovered, screenshotted and capture on video some of the upcoming HomeKit features for Smart TV integration and control.

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NYT: Facebook to integrate WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger chats

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 25, 2019

Facebook is reportedly planning to integrate chats from its three major properties: WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger.

This was reported Friday by The New York Times. A Facebook spokesperson has confirmed the report's findings via a written statement to the newspaper.

The different chats should be merged sometime in 2020.

According to sources, Facebook's boss and co-founder Mark Zuckerberg recently summoned WhatsApp employees to announce the merging of the company's messagings services.

They balked at the plan, the article reads:

On December 7, employees gathered around microphones at WhatsApp’s offices to ask Mr. Zuckerberg why he was so invested in merging the services. Some said his answers were vague and meandering. Several WhatsApp employees have left or plan to leave because of Mr. Zuckerberg’s plans, the people said.

If Facebook proceeds with the plan, customers will be able to start a chat with another user irrespective of whether they're on Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp or Instagram. As an example, a Messenger user could start chatting with a friend of Instagram, or vice versa. In another instance, a WhatsApp user would be able to chat directly with a contact on Instagram.

From the article:

By stitching the apps’ infrastructure together, Mr. Zuckerberg wants to increase the utility of the social network, keeping its billions of users highly engaged inside its ecosystem. If people turn more regularly to Facebook-owned properties for texting, they may forgo rival messaging services, such as those from Apple and Google, said the people, who declined to be identified because the moves are confidential. 

Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp will remain separate apps: the company will not merge them into a unified mega-app for chatting.

This integration would include end-to-end encryption to protect communications as the messages are transmitted between the three different chat services.

It was however unclear at post time how this would work in practice considering that people go by their real name on Facebook versus the anonymity that Instagram and WhatsApp provide.

Today, WhatsApp requires people to register only a phone number to sign up for the service. By contrast, Facebook and Facebook Messenger ask users to provide their real identities. Matching Facebook and Instagram users to their WhatsApp handles could give pause to those who prefer keeping their use of each app compartmentalized.

Is this a good idea, do you think?

Let us know in the comments!

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Watch Apple’s short film celebrating the upcoming Chinese New Year

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 25, 2019

Ahead of Chinese New Year which falls on February 5, Apple's official YouTube channel yesterday released a short shot-on-iPhone film about the taste of home.

Titled "The Bucket" and done by acclaimed director Jia Zhangke, the video asks the question: "What gifts would your parents prepare when your Chinese New Year visit comes to an end?".

It invites the viewer to capture the taste of home this Chinese New Year with their iPhone.

The taste of home

And here it is.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eu-TqfxpfgU

Apple has also posted a pair of behind-the-scenes videos in which the author sheds some light on how slowing time with the Slo-mo camera feature makes emotions last longer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRn6SutCmcU

"Use Slo-mo to prolong and savor the taste of home this Chinese New Year," Apple advises. In the following making-of video, Jia discusses bridging the gap between his subject matter and audience through the Depth Control feature.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lYFWtSIPiM

"Use Depth Control to get closer to the taste of home this Chinese New Year," says Apple.

Shot on iPhone, but...

These short films were all shot on the new iPhone XS.

As we saw with other Apple-commissioned clips, third-party accessories for filmmaking were most likely used in the making of these clips to stabilize footage, capture aerial scenes and more, with color-correction and editing likely done in professional video editing apps.

Prime examples of such professionally done videos include recent short films about a teenage athlete from American Samoa and Japan’s extravagantly decorated trucks, called "decotora," that attempt to highlight low-light photography improvements of the latest handsets.

Shot on iPhone contest

Three days ago, Apple announced a contest inviting iPhone users from around the globe to submit their best shots for a chance to be featured on billboards, in retail stores and online.

Submissions will be accepted from January 22 to February 7, and Apple says a panel of judges will be selecting 10 winning photos.

Apple to pay licensing fees

Responding to criticism by the artistic community that it will use select works from the winning iPhone photographers on billboards without compensation, Apple has since updated the content announcement to acknowledge that winning artists will be paid for their work.

"Apple believes strongly that artists should be compensated for their work," reads the updated press release. "Photographers who shoot the final 10 winning photos will receive a licensing fee for use of such photos on billboards and other Apple marketing channels."

What do you think about these new shot-on-iPhone ads?

Let us know in the comments down below.

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White vs. black unboxing: Smart Battery Case for iPhone X/XR/XS/Max

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 24, 2019

Apple's mid-January release of its Smart Battery Case for the new iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR models wasn't entirely unexpected. Our video editor Harris Craycraft has managed to get his hands on the new battery case, this is his unboxing experience.

For starters, the case now looks sleeker than the previous version. While the hump is still present, the bottom chin is gone because this case was specifically designed for the Face ID-enabled iPhone models that feature a fullscreen design (except the notch, of course).

And now, watch Harris's video covering the unboxing experience:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLPor9rHqMI Subscribe to iDownloadBlog on YouTube

Aside from improved appearance, other innovations in this Smart Battery Case include support for Qi wireless charging, meaning you can now charge either the case’s battery or both your iPhone and the case via any Qi-compliant wireless charger.

The new case also fits last year's iPhone X though charging requires Apple's recently-released iOS 12.1.3 software update. See how it increases each handset’s battery life:

iPhone XR: 39 hours of talk time, 22 hours of Internet use and 27 hours of video iPhone XS: 33 hours of talk time, 21 hours of Internet use and 25 hours of video iPhone XS Max: 37 hours of talk time, 20 hours of Internet use and 25 hours of video

The new Smart Battery Case has a larger battery capacity than the previous version. With a pair of integrated cells at 1,369 mAh each, you’re now getting around 1.4 additional watt hours and almost 400 more milliamp hours than before. Even though the mAh rating is lower, the new case does have a larger capacity than the old version when taking voltage into consideration.

Harris will be playing with these cases for a bit more before publishing his complete hands-on video walkthrough so watch this space for his full review.

You can find the new Smart Battery Cases for iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR on Apple’s website. It's available in Black and White and priced at $129 regardless of the version.

What do you think about the unboxing experience?

Let use know by leaving a comment below.

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Twitter is testing a new tag to help you distinguish genuine accounts from copycats

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 24, 2019

In another attempt to nuke fake news out of orbit and help you distinguish the real Elon Musk or Donald Trump from their false copies, Twitter is testing a new "Original Tweeter" tag.

The company yesterday confirmed the test to TechCrunch, saying that the new label has rolled out to a “small percentage” of iOS and Android users across multiple markets.

Sara Haider, Twitter’s Director of Product Management, said:

Twitter’s purpose is to serve the public conversation. As part of this work, we’re exploring adding more context to discussions by highlighting relevant replies—like those from the original tweeter.

Not only does this new feature make it easier to distinguish the person who started a thread, it also helps curb certain types of abuse on the platform.

Accounts masquerading as other Twitter users has been an annoying problem for sure. That being said, any effort to curb this kind of behavior deserves a thumbs-up, wouldn't you agree?

Just be careful not to confuse the new "Original Tweeter" tag with Twitter's existing blue verified badge which lets people know that an account of public interest is authentic.

As you probably know, Twitter's somehow managed to botch the roll-out of verified badges.

At first, the little blue badge was exclusive to celebrities and well-known users with millions of followers. But when the company expanded the program beyond public figures, it found itself in trouble after it verified accounts belonging to conspiracy theorists and Neo nazi groups.

Because of those woes and missteps, the company's verified account program is currently on hold and not accepting any new requests at this time.

On a related noted, we reported yesterday that Twitter's Night Mode, which enables a darkened interface, might soon introduce a pure black setting following user complaints that the app's Night Mode theme was too blue-ish and not dark or black enough.

So, has this new "Original Tweeter" tag appeared for you yet?

Let us know by leaving a comment down below.

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