News

New MacBooks offer 90 percent faster SSD write speeds, Skylake CPU up to 20 percent faster

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 6, 2016

Apple today announced a second-generation twelve-inch MacBook which brings speed increases across the board thanks to the use of Intel's latest Skylake chip platform, PCIe-based flash storage and a speedier 1,866MHz RAM.

The Verge took the new machines briefly for a spin. Having put the new MacBook through its paces in Primate Labs' $0.99 Geekbench 3 benchmarking app to measure the performance of the new Intel CPU and using the free Blackmagic Disk Speed Test app for benchmarking disk I/O operations, the publication was able to determine just how performant the updated flash storage and Intel's new Skylake CPU are.

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Have you seen Pinterest’s new-look iOS app yet?

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 16, 2018

Pinterest today announced a completely overhauled iPhone and iPad application—“our fastest, cleanest app yet”—that lets you focus on more Pins than ever before. The app, used by more than a hundred million people around the world, is a lot faster than the previous version it replaced, with your Home feed now loading up to three times faster.

The refreshed application is now rolling in the App Store so check back later if the new version isn't immediately available where you live. The Android edition of Pinterest and its web-based counterpart are next on Pinterest's list to tackle, though they wouldn't commit to a firm release dates for these.

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Apple confirms QuickTime for Windows is no more

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 19, 2016

Following the disclosure of two new flaws in QuickTime 7 for Windows last week by software security firm Trend Micro, Apple has now officially confirmed to The Wall Street Journal that it will stop releasing updates or patching security holes for QuickTime for Windows, marking the end of the road for the PC edition of the multimedia software after an eleven-year run.

The Cupertino firm added that keeping the software installed on Windows PCs may pose a security risk.

A support document on Apple's website details the steps that Windows users should follow in order to uninstall the software from their Windows PC.

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New App Store resources help developers find success on Apple platforms

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 19, 2016

In addition to formally announcing that it will be kicking off the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference with a keynote on Monday, June 13 in San Francisco, Apple yesterday quietly refreshed its portal for developers with a brand new section dedicated to helpful App Store resources which Apple has created to make it easier for its developers to find success on the App Store.

“Take advantage of new articles and videos designed to help you grow your business on the App Store and engage users worldwide,” said the company on the new “Making Great Apps for the App Store” webpage.

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Apple Maps web app may be in the works

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated August 4, 2016

Latest checks indicate that Apple is getting ready to make the Maps service available to everyone on the web through a desktop web application which will permit you to embed an Apple Maps view into your own webpage, blog and more.

Look no further than Apple's own WWDC 2016 webpage, which appears to take advantage of what seems to be an interactive, embedded Maps view. This is the first time Apple has used an embeddable Maps view on the web.

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With new 12″ MacBooks in the mix, Apple discounts refurbished models

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 19, 2016

With this morning's refresh of the twelve-inch MacBook lineup around Intel's latest processors, Apple's now discounted refurbished twelve-inch MacBooks, bringing their already reduced price down by up to an additional fifteen percent for most models.

If you've been eyeing Apple's ultra-thin notebook but have refrained from taking the plunge due to their a bit steep price point—and you don't mind buying a slightly used, good-as-new products—you can now get an entry-level model of the original twelve-inch MacBook for as low as $929, netting a savings of a cool $370 versus its standard $1,2999 asking price.

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Apple’s generously made 8GB of RAM standard across all 13″ MacBook Air configurations

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 19, 2016

In addition to updating its twelve-inch MacBook lineup around Intel's latest SkyLake chips, a new Rose Gold finish and other perks, Apple also announced that all configurations of the 13-inch MacBook Air now ship with eight gigabytes of RAM.

“Apple also today made 8GB of memory standard across all configurations of the 13-inch MacBook Air,” reads a line in Apple's press release announcing its notebook refresh.

Apple's two 13-inch MacBook Air models still start at $999 (128GB model) and $1,099 (256GB model) like before so customers now get twice the memory for the same price. The 11-inch Air models continue to ship with 4GB of RAM as a standard option.

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Apple updates 12″ MacBook with faster CPU/GPU, Rose Gold model, longer battery life & more

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 19, 2016

Apple on Tuesday via a press release and a website update announced a second-generation twelve-inch MacBook with Intel's latest Skylake chips with faster graphics, a longer battery life, faster flash storage, a brand new Rose Gold color option and more.

The twelve-inch notebook is now available in four aluminum finishes: Gold, Silver, Space Gray and Rose Gold. In addition, the Cupertino firm has made 8GB of memory standard across all configurations of the 13-inch MacBook Air.

The refreshed twelve-inch notebook starts at the same $1,299 like before and will be available starting tomorrow.

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GoPro unveils powerful new cameras and an app for viewing 360-degree and VR content

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 5, 2018

Monday, action camera maker GoPro announced at The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) show a pair of powerful new camera rigs in the Omni and Odyssey series alongside a new VR sharing platform and a brand new mobile application which lets you view 360-degree videos and virtual reality content hosted at vr.gopro.com on an iPhone, iPod touch or iPad.

The new six-camera synchronized Omni rig costs five grands and packs in pro-grade features that allow pixel-level synchronization, making stitching in post-production easier and more exact than using unsynchronized camera arrays.

Pricing for the more capable panoramic stereoscopic 16-camera Odyssey rig, which is optimized to work with Google's Jump VR Platform, will be out of the reach for most people unless they create professional VR content for a living.

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Downgrades no longer possible as Apple stops signing iOS 9.3 for some devices

Anthony Bouchard ∙ April 18, 2016

On Monday, Apple has pulled the signing plug on its iOS 9.3 firmware for its lineup of iPhones, iPod touches, and iPads.

As a result, downgrades through iTunes to iOS 9.3 are no longer possible, and there's no way to upgrade specifically to iOS 9.3 from an earlier firmware.

Instead, users will be directed to install iOS 9.3.1 when restoring or updating their devices through iTunes.

Update: It seems that not all versions of iOS 9.3 have stopped being signed. It appears that iOS 9.3 is not being any longer for newer devices (i.e. iPhone 6s, iPad Air 2), but it is still being signed for older devices (ie. iPhone 5s).

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