News

Apple now has $237.6 billion and other highlights from the Q4 earnings call

Cody Lee ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

Apple announced the financial results for its fiscal fourth quarter of 2016 this afternoon, and although they met Wall Street estimates, the numbers are still pretty rough. iPhone sales are down 3 million units, and revenue is down $4.5 billion from the year-ago quarter.

Following the release of its earnings, CEO Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri hopped on a conference call to talk about their company's performance over the last 3 months, and offer up some insights into its future. Here are some of the most interesting points from the call.

Report: Apple has team in Canada working on car operating system

Cody Lee ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

Apple has dozens of software engineers in Canada building a car operating system, reports Bloomberg. The engineers are said to be working at an office in Kanata, close to the offices of BlackBerry's QNX, where many of them were previously employed.

First look at the new MacBook Pro with Magic Toolbar and Touch ID

Cody Lee ∙ October 25, 2016

Here are the first pictures of Apple's new MacBook Pro. MacRumors spotted the images of what is believed to be the company's new laptop hidden within the just-released macOS Sierra 10.12.1 update, and we have no reason to believe otherwise.

The images appear to confirm the rumors that the refreshed MacBook Pro will feature an OLED touch bar, in place of the function keys, and Touch ID. The above photo shows how to use Touch ID to authenticate an online purchase via Apple Pay.

Note 7 recall has Apple boosting iPhone 7 orders to snatch market share from Samsung

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 25, 2016

Samsung is expected to lose a few billion dollars over the ill-fated Note 7 which got discontinued after numerous reports of spontaneous battery fires. The Note 7 debacle has created an opportunity not just for Apple and Google, but just about every vendor out there that builds high-end smartphones.

According to DigiTimes, Apple has now increased iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus orders for the crucial holiday quarter as it looks to snatch some market share from Samsung.

One more hint that the next MacBook Pro will have OLED touch bar

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 25, 2016

If you need another “proof” that the next MacBook Pro will indeed feature an OLED touch bar in place of the function key row, feel free to comb through system resources in the macOS Sierra 10.12.1 software update which released yesterday.

As first discovered by MacRumors reader Gabriel Lorin, the System Preferences assets for the Mac's virtual keyboard now come with refreshed image assets depicting an updated keyboard layout which no longer shows the standard row of function keys.

Sid Meier’s Civilization VI for Mac hits Steam, Mac App Store version due soon

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 25, 2016

Developer Aspyr Media announced yesterday that Sid Meier's Civilization VI for Mac is now available on Steam, just three days after its PC release. The game will be hitting the Mac App Store at a later stage, Aspyr has confirmed. Civilization VI was created by the same team that made Civilization expansions.

The turn-based strategy game challenges you to dominate capitals and woo the world as the new diplomatic leader with improvements like a new research system, enhanced artificial intelligence and more.

Google Maps for iOS gains food delivery support, plus codes & more

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 25, 2016

Google Maps for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch yesterday received an interesting update in the App Store. The new version brings out a few enhancements such as integration with popular food delivery services, support for plus codes—identifiers for locations that don’t have their own street address—and other perks. These new features require Google Maps 4.24 for iOS or later, which can be downloaded free of charge from the App Store.

Suge Knight sues Dr. Dre for alleged attempted murder over Beats money

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 25, 2016

Marion Hugh Knight Jr., better known as rap mogul Suge Knight or just Suge, is suing Apple employee Dr. Dre for $300 million, alleging Dre hired a hitman in an attempt to murder him after cutting Suge out of earnings for Beats. According to TMZ, Suge and his attorney are convinced that it was Dre who had him pumped with seven bullets in 2014 in a West Hollywood night club.

Powerbeats3 Wireless earphones with W1 chip & 12-hour battery available to preorder

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 25, 2016

Powerbeats3 Wireless earphones, a successor to the Powerbeats2 Wireless edition, are now available to buy from Apple.com in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Australia, New Zealand, China and elsewhere. The accessory is available in White, Shock Yellow, Flash Blue, Black and Siren Red.

Listings for the $199.95 Bluetooth earphones on local Apple.com websites display delivery estimates ranging from 2-3 days to 1-2 weeks.

Apple’s created mockups of iMessage for Android, including one with pure Material Design

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 25, 2016

I was just reading a post titled “On iMessage's Stickiness” from Apple pundit John Gruber, published last evening on his Daring Fireball blog, and stumbled upon an interesting passage alleging that Apple's created several mockups of iMessage for Android.

One of the mockups of iMessage for Android reportedly looks like a carbon copy of its iOS counterpart, with another one based on Google's Material Design guidelines.

“I’ve heard from little birdies that mockups of iMessage for Android have circulated within the company, with varying UI styles ranging from looking like the iOS Messages app to pure Material Design,” reads the post.

Commuters struggling to register their train passes following Japan’s Apple Pay launch

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 25, 2016

Following its official launch in Japan, Apple Pay has experienced a rocky debut in the 127 million people market as commuters struggled to register their train passes onto iPhones for more than ten hours amid apparent system overload.

Many people in Japan use their rail passes that double as electronic money cards.

According to Bloomberg, the trouble started shortly after 9am in Tokyo as users began reporting issues adding their cards to Apple Pay.

Apple Pay launches in Japan

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 24, 2016

Apple Pay today launched in Japan, one of Apple's most important markets and home to population of 127 million souls. Marking its twelfth major market, Apple Pay permits Japanese customers to make private credit and prepaid card purchases in stores, online and in apps, plus commute and pay for everyday items with Suica from JR East.

To support the service, Apple today issued the free iOS 10.1 software update which has enabled support for transit directions in Japan to help users find ride details, including fare breakdowns that automatically show Suica pricing on their device.