News

10.9″ iPad Pro to have the same footprint as 9.7″ model thanks to skinnier bezels

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 28, 2016

A new report Monday from the fairly reliable Japanese outlet Mac Otakara claims that Apple's rumored 10.9-inch iPad Pro model (10.1/10.5-inch, depending on a source) will have the same footprint as the current 9.7-inch models thanks to a lot skinnier bezel on the left and right side.

Citing unnamed Taiwanese sources, the publication reports that the device will also be a tad thicker than the existing 9.7-inch iPads at 7.5 mm, making it thicker than the iPad Air 2 (6.1 mm) and the same thickness as the original iPad Air.

Apple R&D center launching in Indonesia in 2017

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 28, 2016

According to Indonesian publication Tempo, Apple has agreed to set up a research and development center in Indonesia, home to 250 million people. The country's Communication and Information Minister Rudiantara told the outlet that Apple will be setting up its R&D facility in early 2017 in the city of Jakarta.

While Rudiantara couldn't reveal the investment value, he expressed hope that Apple would build additional R&D centers in other Indonesian regions.

The top stories of the week on iDB (and the best deals still around)

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

Like every Sunday, we get to take a look at some of the most popular posts that were published on iDB during the week that just ended. Whether it is a news item, a new jailbreak tweak, a tutorial, or an app review, we sum it all up in one convenient place for you.

As always, if you like what you're reading, please feel free to spread the love by sharing our posts on your favorite social network.

We're usually hanging out a lot on Twitter and Facebook, more rarely on Google+.

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Here’s a special tool Apple uses to recover data from MacBook Pro’s non-removable SSD

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 25, 2016

iFixit's teardown analysis of both the 13 and 15-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar has found a non-removable SSD inside soldered to the logic board. In contrast, non-Touch Bar Pros use a removable PCIe-based SSD, simplifying upgrades.

iFixit discovered that Touch Bar Pros include a hidden connector on the logic board that leads nowhere which, as reported by 9to5Mac, works in conjunction with a special tool to let service technicians rescue data in case of a hardware failure.

Apple has stopped disclosing how much it spends on advertising

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 25, 2016

Apple has stopped disclosing how much it spends on advertising, as revealed in its annual report (10-K) filed with the United States Securities and Exchange (SEC) commission in October.

Apple's motives behind this move are unclear and the SEC filing makes no mention of its advertising expenses for the whole 2016. In 2015, Apple's ad spend rose fifty percent to a record $1.8 billion.

The decision to stop reporting how much it spends on advertising may have something to do with the fact that the iPhone maker ended 2016 with its lowest operating margin since 2009, partially due to spending more ad dollars to drive total revenue.

Open source Darwin code for macOS 10.12 Sierra now available

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 24, 2016

Apple today released open-source Darwin code for macOS 10.12 Sierra, 9to5Mac reports. Darwin, for those unfamiliar with it, forms the core set of Unix components upon which macOS, iOS, watchOS and tvOS are based, including drivers and the unencrypted kernel along with its BSD portions.

Apple typically releases Darwin code shortly after major macOS releases, and Sierra is no exception. Anyone interested in the intricacies of Sierra's inner workings can now grab a copy of Darwin via this direct download link.

10.5-inch iPad Pro rumored to target education and enterprise markets

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 24, 2016

Apple may position its rumored new 10.5-inch iPad Pro model as the go-to tablet in the education and enterprise markets, if a report Tuesday in DigiTimes is anything to go by. The Taiwanese trade publication learned from Asian supply chain makers that the Cupertino firm's decided to add a new screen size to the lineup because existing 9.7-inch models proved too small and the 12.9-inch iPad Pro too expensive for business users and students.

Rumor: Apple working with LG on dual cameras for iPhone with 3D photography features

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 24, 2016

A future iPhone could enhance the iPhone 7 Plus's depth-of-field Portrait photography mode with all-new “3D photographing” features, according to a new report Thursday from The Korea Economic Daily. The outlet is reporting that the Cupertino firm has teamed up with LG Innotek on a next-generation dual-camera module with 3D photography features, likely to be used in select 2017 iPhone models.

How to set up and use Touch ID on your Mac

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 17, 2023

Learn how to set up Touch ID on a MacBook or Magic Keyboard, enroll your fingerprints in the system, and use it to quickly unlock your computer, make purchases on websites with Apple Pay, and much more.

Microsoft brings Solitaire to iPhone and iPad

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 23, 2016

Microsoft's version of Solitaire has been available on Windows PCs for more than 25 years, but up until now the game has not expanded to other platforms. With Microsoft Solitaire Collection for iOS, the Windows maker is finally bringing its version of the classic card game to the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. Available free in the App Store, the app includes 5 of the top Solitaire games that you can play for free—Klondike, Spider, FreeCell, Tripeaks and Pyramid.

As a bonus, daily challenges will extend longevity of the game and built-in support for Xbox Live will keep your achievements, competitions and game progress in sync between Windows 10 and iOS devices.

This Mac app lets you switch between recently used apps via Touch Bar

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 14, 2018

With all of the time-saving shortcuts available for Apple's stock apps on the Touch Bar, you'd think Apple would have brought the macOS app switcher to the the new MacBook Pro's OLED strip. That's why developer Maxim Ananov set out to create an app, called TouchSwitcher, which does just that. With TouchSwitcher, you can switch between your recently-used apps on the new MacBook Pro right from the Touch Bar.

President-elect Trump promises tax incentives for Apple to build “Made in USA” iPhones

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 23, 2016

Apple reportedly asked contract manufacturers Foxconn and Pegatron to look into assembling iPhones in the United States and now we learn that Tim Cook phoned President-elect Donald Trump following his victory to talk about U.S. manufacturing.

In an interview with The New York Times, Trump reveals he's promised tax incentives to Apple to build its products domestically rather than outsource component production and assembly work to Taiwanese and Chinese suppliers and contract manufacturers.