Tag: apple

Apple Ramps Up 6G Technology Development Amid Challenges With In-House 5G Modem: Gurman

Apple is working on adding support for 6G connectivity to the company’s future devices, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. The Cupertino company has reportedly faced challenges over the past few years as it attempts to develop its own 5G modem and reduce its reliance on chipmakers like Qualcomm. The iPhone maker is focusing on developing 6G technology and is also hiring employees to work on the next-generation cellular network standard, he states in the latest edition of his weekly Power On newsletter.

Gurman spotted a job listing posted to the company’s website last month for a modem systems software architect to join the company’s Wireless Technologies and Ecosystems (WTE) team. Apple’s prospective cellular platform architects will be tasked with coordinating the development of 6G reference architecture alongside prototype implementations.

From the job listing’s description, it appears that Apple wants to assess the implementation of 6G technology in future devices and the engineers hired for the role will have to collaborate with the company’s research and development teams and external partners. Candidates must have at least 10 years of work experience and a master’s or PhD degree in electrical engineering, according to the company.

It is worth noting that the 5G standard was only introduced in July 2017, while carriers began to roll out networks with the current-generation network standard in 2019. While the new standard — 6G — is expected to be finalised over the next couple of years, customers shouldn’t expect to see 6G capable devices until the end of the decade.

Last month, it was reported that Apple would miss its target to develop a 5G modem for its smartphones by 2025. The smartphone maker is expected to launch its own modem on a future iPhone model by 2026, as per the report. Apple and Qualcomm renewed a contract that allowed the former to access the chipmaker’s modem technology until 2026. 

Apple’s purported 5G modem might not offer better performance than the other smartphones and the firm’s own handsets equipped with Qualcomm’s chips, according to the report that describes Apple’s challenges with implementing advanced millimetre-wave (mmWave) technology. The company also reportedly faces the additional challenge of ensuring that its chip technology doesn’t infringe on Qualcomm’s patents.

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Apple Plans to Equip All iPhone 16 Models With Revamped Action Button: Report

iPhone 16 — expected to debut in the second half of 2024 as the successor to the iPhone 15 series of smartphones — could be equipped with Apple’s new Action Button. While the company equipped the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max with the new button designed to replace mute switch, a new report states that the company is planning on equipping all four models in the lineup with the customisable button, which is expected to arrive in a revamped form.

MacRumors reports that Apple will include the Action Button on all iPhone 16 models that are likely to arrive next year. Unlike the iPhone 15 lineup, the non-Pro iPhone 16 models are also expected to feature the new Action Button. It is also suggested that the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus might be the last iPhone models to debut with the mute switch — even the iPhone SE 4 is tipped to debut in 2025 with the new button.

Meanwhile, the report states that the Action Button on the iPhone 16 series will be revamped next year. Instead of using the regular mechanical button like the volume and power keys, the new Action Button will offer capacitive-style button functionality like the iPhone SE (2022) home button. It is unclear whether all models in the series will be equipped with the redesigned button — codenamed Atlas.

When Apple unveiled the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max this year, the firm touted the new functionality offered by the Action Button that expands the use of the button that was used to switch between vibrate and ring modes on the iPhone.

With the action button, you can toggle ringer modes or accessibility features, launch the camera app or magnifier app, start or stop a voice memo or the flashlight, and enable and disable focus modes on the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. The switch to a capacitive button means that it might be able to detect different pressure levels. However, enthusiasts will have to wait for several months before Apple unveils the purported iPhone 16 series of smartphones in 2024.

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Apple Releases iOS 17.1.2, macOS Sonoma 14.1.2 With Security Updates, Fixes for WebKit Flaws

Apple publicly released the iOS 17 update for the iPhone 15 lineup along with a few select older iPhone models a couple of months ago. Since then, the Cupertino-based tech giant has been seeding smaller updates to address some of the known bugs and patch actively exploited security vulnerabilities. Now, the company has released iOS 17.1.2 and macOS Sonoma 14.1.2 as the latest OS versions to address the minor issues on supported iPhone and Mac models. Apple is also working on iOS 17.2, which is expected to be released sometime next month. The update will bring the new Journal app (Review) and various notable improvements in the Music app.

iOS 17.1.2 and macOS Sonoma 14.1.2 updates for eligible iPhone and Mac models is rolling out now. The latest update brings some security improvements and fixes to address some of the known problems of iOS and macOS. The updates will be available over the air and installed on all compatible iPhone and Mac models starting from the iPhone 11 and iMac Pro (2017 or later).

iOS 17.1.2

The iOS 17.1.2 update can be downloaded from the Settings app on compatible iPhone units. You can head to Settings > General > Software Update and install the latest update by following the on-screen instructions. Users are recommended to connect their handsets to a power source until it finishes installing the OS update.

With the latest iOS 17.1.2 update, Apple has offered fixes for two actively exploited flaws in its WebKit browser engine that have been exploited against older models. These vulnerabilities can be exploited to snatch sensitive content. “Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been exploited against versions of iOS before iOS 16.7.1,” the company said. It has patched CVE-2023-42916 and CVE-2023-42917 updates. Apple states that CVE-2023-42916 was fixed with improved input validation while the memory corruption vulnerability was addressed with improved locking.

Meanwhile, Apple is also working on the iOS 17.2 update that is expected to be released later this month. The update will bring the new Journal app for iPhone. It will also bring improvements to the Apple TV app, add new clock and weather widgets, collaborative playlists in Apple Music, and more.

Apple unveiled its first mixed reality headset, the Apple Vision Pro, at its annual developer conference, along with new Mac models and upcoming software updates. We discuss all the most important announcements made by the company at WWDC 2023 on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.
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Seoul, Dubai, Santa Monica Named Among Leaders in Metaverse in WEF Report



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Foxconn to Invest Over $1.5 Billion in India; Sent Chinese Engineers to Train Workers This Year: Reports

Apple supplier Foxconn will invest over $1.5 billion (roughly Rs. 12,500 crore) in India as the company looks to expand production of Apple’s iPhone in the country, according to a report. The move comes a year after the Taiwanese firm’s factories in China were negatively impacted by the country’s strict COVID-19 restrictions in 2022. The company also reportedly flew Chinese engineers to India in order to train workers at its factory to improve efficiency earlier this year.

CNBC reports that Foxconn will invest more than $1.5 billion (roughly Rs. 12,500 crore) to be budgeted for a “construction project to fulfil operational needs” of the company in the country, according to security filings. The multi-crore investment will be made via its subsidiary Hon Hai Technology India Mega Development, as per the report.

Foxconn’s representative in India said in September that the company was aiming to double its investment and workforce in India by 2024 as the firm looks to diversify its production outside China. The iPhone assembler was severely impacted last year when Chinese lockdowns related to the coronavirus pandemic affected production and output for weeks.

The company currently employs around 40,000 people at its iPhone factory in Tamil Nadu and recently flew out Chinese engineers to its iPhone manufacturing plant in Tamil Nadu to improve production, according to a Rest of World report. The company planned to manufacture iPhone 15 units in India in time so that they could ship alongside units made in other regions, on the launch day.

While Foxconn has achieved high levels of efficiency in China, the company’s Tamil Nadu plant was affected by a higher ratio of defective units and more expensive costs for materials — lowering profits from the factory compared its counterparts in China, according to the report that cites two persons close to the company.

Over the coming months, Foxconn will compete with the Tata Group as the Indian tech conglomerate recently completed its takeover of Wistron’s Indian unit. While the Tata Group was already producing components used in some iPhone models, the Wistron India acquisition will allow the company to assemble iPhone models in India, alongside Pegatron, Luxshare, and Foxconn.

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Apple’s MagSafe-Based Qi2 Wireless Charging Standard to Arrive Soon on Android Phones

The next generation upgrade for the global wireless charging standard, Qi, was announced at CES 2023 in January. The Wireless Power Consortium (WPC) took the covers off Qi2, which is based on Apple’s MagSafe technology, at the event. Qi2 certified phones and chargers are expected to arrive in the holiday season of 2023. Recently, the WPC announced that Qi2 is almost at the finish line as the first mobile devices with the new wireless charging standard were set to complete certification testing. This means, we could soon see MagSafe wireless charging technology on Android phones.

Qi2, like MagSafe, will feature magnetic attachment with phones, faster charging, higher efficiency and greater convenience, according to WPS. The first Qi2 certified products are set to come to market in the holiday season, starting with Apple’s iPhone 15 lineup. Android phones are expected to follow suit, adopting the Qi2 profile. According to WPS, Belkin, Mophie, Anker, and Aircharge have already announced Qi2 charging products and over 100 devices are currently in testing or in the certification testing queue.

According to the WPC, the Qi2 standard comprises two profiles, the Magnetic Power Profile (MPP) which is based on MagSafe technology contributed by Apple to the consortium and branded with the Qi2 logo, and the Extended Power Profile (EPP), which is an improvement to the existing wireless charging, that does not include magnets but complies with the Qi2 standard. New Qi2 EPP products will be branded with the existing Qi logo, WPS said in its press release earlier this month.

With Android phones adopting the new Qi2 standard, we could soon see the MagSafe-based MPP profile on upcoming Android phones. New wireless chargers would be able to magnetically attach to compatible Android devices, just like a MagSafe charger attaches to an iPhone. Additionally, with magnetic attachment coming to Android phones, a bunch of magnet-based phone accessories, which are currently available for iPhone models, could also arrive for Android devices. These include MagSafe-compatible cases, magnetic wallets, battery packs and more.

“These certified Qi2 chargers provide smoother, faster charging that is more energy efficient, and offers wide interoperability,” Paul Struhsaker, executive director for the WPC, had said in the release. “Plus, Qi2’s magnetic attachment also means consumers will no longer have to fuss in trying to adjust the positioning of their devices to ensure perfect alignment between phone and charger.”

Recently, the Google Pixel 9 lineup was also tipped to launch with the Qi2 wireless charging standard. A Google senior hardware engineer Liyu Yang, who has been working on wireless charging systems on Pixel handsets since 2017, recently joined WPC as a board member. According to WPC, Yang is currently in charge of the research and development of next-generation wireless charging technology on upcoming Pixel products, thus suggesting Pixel 9 series may come with Qi2 wireless charging support.

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Apple Watch Ultra Prototype With Black Ceramic Back Allegedly Appears in FCC Images

Apple’s 49mm Watch Ultra 2 was launched at the company’s Far Out event in September. Now, a new Apple Watch Ultra model has been allegedly spotted on the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) website, hinting that its launch could be around the corner. The early renders of the prototype from FCC suggest a rugged exterior for the rumoured wearable. It is seen with a black ceramic back panel. It’s Action Button has a different design than of the Apple Watch Ultra.

An X ( formerly Twitter) user @ParrotSWD has posted alleged renders of the Apple Watch Ultra prototype from the FCC listing. The wearable is seen with a black ceramic rear case in the images and is identical to other Apple Watch Series models. It has a rugged exterior but the Action Button appears to have a different design than of the Apple Watch Ultra. The button seems to be made of plastic rather than metal. Both Apple Watch Ultra and Watch Ultra 2 feature a Titanium case. It is unclear which models of the Apple Watch Ultra the renders represent, but the design downgrades hint at the development of a possible affordable Apple Watch Ultra model.

That being said, we are not sure whether Apple would bring a new affordable Watch Ultra with a different design. The company may reveal its plan soon, until then, we will have to wait for other details to surface on the Web.

Apple’s second-generation Watch Ultra 2 is currently available in India for Rs. 89,900. It is offered with Alpine Loop, Trail Loop, and Ocean band options.

The Apple Watch Ultra 2 was launched in September during the Far Out event alongside the Apple Watch Series 9. It features a 49mm case with a Retina display that offers up to 3,000 nits of peak brightness. It runs on watchOS 10 and has Apple’s custom S9 SiP under the hood. It supports a diving depth of 40 meters and is claimed to deliver up to 36 hours of battery life during normal use and a maximum of 72 hours of battery life in Low Power Mode.

Apple unveiled its first mixed reality headset, the Apple Vision Pro, at its annual developer conference, along with new Mac models and upcoming software updates. We discuss all the most important announcements made by the company at WWDC 2023 on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.
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iPhone 16 Pro to Feature 120mm Tetraprism Camera From iPhone 15 Pro Max: Ming-Chi Kuo

iPhone 16 series is expected to arrive next year, but numerous leaks have already begun to surface online, giving us an idea of what to expect from Apple’s next flagship phones. Most recently, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reiterated his claim that both the iPhone 16 Pro and ‌iPhone 16‌ Pro Max will feature Apple’s tetraprism telephoto lens with improved zoom capabilities. This year the Cupertino giant included a new tetraprism lens system with the iPhone 15 Pro Max, enabling support for 5x optical zoom. The smaller ‌iPhone 15 Pro‌, on the other hand, supports 3x optical zoom.

TF International Securities analyst in a new blog post on Tuesday claimed that Apple would include a tetraprism camera in the iPhone 16 Pro next year. In the iPhone 15 lineup, Apple only equipped one model with a new telephoto lens with up to 5x optical zoom and a focal length of 120mm — the iPhone 15 Pro Max. The iPhone 15 Pro features a 12-megapixel telephoto camera that offers 3x zoom. This is in line with Kuo’s previous claims.

The addition of a tetraprism camera in the iPhone 16 Pro would lead to a 160 percent year-on-year growth for Apple’s smartphones, with the inclusion of the camera on both models in 2024, according to Kuo, who adds that lens manufacturer Largan is the exclusive supplier of quadruple reflex periscope camera lenses for the iPhone 15 Pro Max and the production yield was at only 40 percent. Kuo says that Largan has now significantly improved its yield rate to 70 percent or above.

Further, he states that Apple and Huawei are the two fastest-growing brands in global periscope camera smartphone shipments in 2024. Largan will be the primary supplier of periscope lenses for Apple and Huawei in 2024. Huawei’s P70, P70 Pro and P70 Art, which are expected to go into production in the first half of next year, will also feature periscope cameras.

Besides cameras, the iPhone 16 Pro models might bring display upgrades as well. As per a recent report, Apple could pack a 6.27-inch display on the iPhone 16 Pro and a 6.86-inch display on the iPhone 16 Pro Max. The Pro models could use 120Hz displays based on the low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO) technology. The iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus models are said to maintain 6.12-inch and 6.69-inch displays with 60Hz refresh rate, respectively.

Apple unveiled its first mixed reality headset, the Apple Vision Pro, at its annual developer conference, along with new Mac models and upcoming software updates. We discuss all the most important announcements made by the company at WWDC 2023 on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.
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Apple Lands into Legal Trouble for Obstructing Crypto Tech from iOS Payment Apps

Apple, despite having faced constant criticism from the Web3 industry for its unfriendly policies, now finds itself in a legal soup. A bunch of resentful Apple users, who are also part of the crypto community, have now filed a class-action lawsuit against Apple. In their complaint, the group has accused the iPhone-maker for not expanding its array of peer-to-peer payment services and especially restricting crypto payments. The complaint has been filed in a District Court in California, US.

The plaintiffs, in their complaint, have accused Apple of having entered into anti-competitive agreements with Cash App owned by Jack Doresey’s Block and PayPal-owned payments app Venmo. With these agreements, Apple has been accused of blocking crypto payments that forced some of its users to continue paying in ‘rapidly inflating prices’. The lawsuit also alleges that Apple exercises excessive control over all apps that run on iOS using tech and contractual constraints.

“These agreements limit feature competition—and the price competition that would flow from it—market wide, including by barring the incorporation of decentralised cryptocurrency technology within existing or new iOS peer-to-peer payment apps,” CoinTelegraph quoted the lawsuit as saying.

Snapshots of the 58-page court filing are floating around on X.

Apple has not reacted to development as of yet. The tech giant, that has maintained a safe distance from the volatile crypto sector, has not disclosed any plans of merging its ecosystem with Web3 anytime soon. Apple has been getting infamously notorious for getting into spats with Web3 apps. In June this year, two Bitcoin wallet providers — Zeus and Damus called out the iPhone-maker for restricting their apps on Apple’s App Store.

Meanwhile, in April — a California appeals court called Apple’s policy of not allowing app developers to integrate third party payment methods with their services as ‘unlawful’. The court ruling is expected to bring changes to Apple’s App Store payment practices and could also allow Web3 apps to add more operability to their iOS iterations.

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Apple Vision Pro US Launch Date Delayed, Coming to Other Countries Later in 2024: Report

Apple Vision Pro — the company’s first spatial computer unveiled at WWDC 2023 — could arrive in the US a couple of months later than expected, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. While the company has not announced detailed plans to launch the Vision Pro outside the US, its first mixed reality headset could be available in other markets in the months after it is launched in the country. Unlike most Apple products, customers will not be able to purchase the Apple Vision Pro headset via third-party sellers.

Gurman states in the latest subscriber-only version of his weekly newsletter Power On (via 9to5Mac) that he expects the Apple Vision Pro to be launched in the US in March 2024. While Apple’s software development teams were hoping for a January launch window, the firm is conducting final device testing and finalising distribution plans for its first mixed reality headset.

The Apple Vision Pro is not expected to be available via third-party sellers, unlike most of Apple’s products, according to Gurman. This is possibly due to logistical challenges — including different stock keeping units (SKUs) for Zeiss prescription lenses or headband sizes for various head shapes and sizes. He also states that Apple is looking to control the rollout of the headset and how users experience it.

As a result, Gurman says that customers can expect to see the company show off the headset for the second time at its spring launch event, along with apps and features that have been introduced since it was first unveiled at its annual Worldwide Developers conference earlier this year.

Recently, Telegram founder Pavel Durov teased users with a brief look at the company’s app developed for visionOS. The upcoming version of Telegram for the Apple Vision Pro features a translucent deign and support for animated stickers, and viewing content on a large virtual display.

While Telegram might be one of the first app publishers to share a detailed look at how their apps will look and function on visionOS, we can expect to see even more developers show off their apps (and games) on the new platform, close to the purported March 2024 launch date. 

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Amazon Announced Layoffs in Alexa Voice Assistant Unit to Focus on Gen AI

Amazon.com on Friday announced it is trimming jobs at its Alexa voice assistant unit, citing shifting business priorities and a greater focus on generative artificial intelligence.

The cuts affect several hundred employees working on Alexa, according to the email. A spokeswoman declined to elaborate on exactly how many were affected.

“We’re shifting some of our efforts to better align with our business priorities, and what we know matters most to customers — which includes maximising our resources and efforts focused on generative AI,” Daniel Rausch, vice president of Alexa and Fire TV, said in the email. “These shifts are leading us to discontinue some initiatives.”

Amazon has been pulling back in a variety of divisions this month, including in its music and gaming divisions and some human resources roles. 

While most of the jobs affected were in the devices division, a few were working on Alexa-related products in a different unit, a spokeswoman said. Many companies are shifting resources to generative AI, which can create software code and lengthy text responses from short prompts.

Alexa is a voice assistant that can be used to set timers, ask search queries, play music, or as a home automation hub.

Reuters reported in September that morale in the devices division had suffered over concerns about what some viewed as a weak product pipeline. In particular, people familiar with the matter pointed to the Alexa voice assistant, now nearly a decade old, as having failed to keep pace in the age of generative artificial intelligence. 

Amazon said at the time that “to suggest that a few anecdotes paint a picture of reality for an organization as large and diverse as Devices and Services is inaccurate,” and that it stood by its products.

Amazon has said its devices and services business is not profitable, without providing figures.

Only last month the device unit got a new chief, Panos Panay, who joined the company from Microsoft, replacing David Limp, a 13-year veteran who is leaving later this year to head Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin rocket company. Panay had overseen development of the Surface tablet.

Amazon has struggled to generate any profits from Alexa, which many people use through Echo speakers or video screens. Most efforts to make money from it have centered on easing purchasing from Amazon.com.

The Seattle-based online retailer’s voice assistant products compete with offerings from Alphabet and Apple.

Amazon has cut more than 27,000 jobs across the company over the past year, part of a wave of US tech layoffs after the industry hired heavily people during the pandemic. 

The latest cuts come even as Amazon reported third-quarter net income that far exceeded analyst estimates and forecast revenue in the year’s final quarter roughly in line with expectations. The fourth quarter is Amazon’s most crucial, as it includes holiday shopping.

In the email, Rausch said he remained optimistic about Alexa. 

“Incorporating a new large language model into a voice-forward, personal AI, has been and continues to be an enormous scientific and engineering challenge,” he wrote, using another term for generative AI.

© Thomson Reuters 2023

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