With the Digital Markets Act (DMA) in the EU, Apple was forced to allow developers to distribute their apps through alternative app stores (or App Marketplace) in member countries. However, these developers are required to pay Apple a Core Technology Fee after they reach a certain number of downloads. To make things easier for small developers, AltStore will offer Patreon-backed apps.

One of Apple’s lead designers for Safari has departed the company to join The Browser Company. The news was announced today by Josh Miller, CEO of The Browser Company.

The Browser Company is the company behind the increasingly popular Arc web browser, which claims to offer “a calmer, more personal” internet browsing experience.

Apple is widely expected to revamp its AirPods lineup later this year with multiple new models. In a new investor note on Monday, analyst Jeff Pu corroborated these expectations and said that Apple will release new lower-cost “AirPods Lite” sometime during the second half of 2024.

Pu also corroborates that new AirPods Max are coming later this year.

Apple and Goldman Sachs are set to drop the interest rate offered by Apple Card Savings Account later this week, according to a new report. Currently, the account offers a 4.5% annual percentage yield, but this is set to change to 4.4% on April 3.

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If you’re having problems accessing Meta’s Instagram and Threads apps today, you’re not alone. Both services appear to be suffering from an outage that affects your ability to post and interact with content.

Want to be featured on the App Store? Develop a new feature that uses Apple’s latest technologies. Looking for a similar featured spot on Apple Podcasts? Consider charging listeners for your podcast.

Siri has recently been attempting to describe images received in Messages when using CarPlay or the announce notifications feature. In typical Siri fashion, the feature is inconsistent and with mixed results.

Nevertheless, Apple forges ahead with the promise of AI. In a newly published research paper, Apple’s AI gurus describe a system in which Siri can do much more than try to recognize what’s in an image. The best part? It thinks one of its models for doing this benchmarks better than ChatGPT 4.0.

Many iOS apps ask for precise location tracking permission by default the first time you open them. But it can be easy to forget how many or which apps you’ve given that permission. Here’s how to turn off precise iPhone location tracking.

Over the years, there have been a number of smartphones with built-in kick-stands. I always thought they were somewhat gimmicky. After spending some time various iPhone kick-stands, I am now in the “I wouldn’t hate an iPhone with a built-in stand. I’ve been testing the MOFT Phone Tripod for the past week or two, and it’s great device to keep in your travel bag.

Apple launched the new M3 MacBook Air last month, offering more powerful performance, a more durable Midnight finish, and other upgrades. In a new interview this week, Apple product marketing exec Evan Buyze offered an interesting look at how Apple optimizes the MacBook Air for travel – specifically on a plane.

A new rumor today reiterates the expectation that iOS 18 will be compatible with all the same devices as iOS 17. For iPadOS 18, however, Apple is planning to drop support for several older generation devices.

These deals are no joke. You can bring home a 15-inch M2 MacBook Air with 16GB of memory at the all-time low of $1,499 – or $400 off today. Apple’s iPhone 14 Plus is an even better value as it falls to $540, and the beloved Lutron Aurora smart bulb dimmer switch is finally on sale for the first time in ages at $33. Hit the jump for all that and more in the latest 9to5Toys Lunch Break.

Siri launched with the iPhone 4S in October 2011, replacing Voice Control with a more capable virtual assistant. A dozen years later, Siri has evolved into the primary way we interact with our Apple products.

Wait, no, I’m being told Siri sounds more natural but the core technology is roughly the same. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence now means generative AI and chat bots are based on large language models.

Siri and the rest of iOS 18 will join the AI revolution in June, ending our long national nightmare of Siri being somewhere between hot garbage and kinda useful sometimes. At least that’s what’s being reported, but we don’t really have a great sense of what to expect yet.