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This week’s top stories: iOS 13.5 beta, iPhone 12 delays, AAPL Q2 earnings, more

Chance Miller | May 3 2020 - 6:12 am PT

In this week’s top stories: Apple starts beta testing iOS 13.5 with key changes, a detailed iPad buying guide, Apple reports its Q2 2020 earnings, and much more. Read on for all of this week’s biggest news.

Apple this week released a new beta of iOS 13.5 to developers and public beta users. This update includes the first version of the exposure notification API developed by Apple and Google. There are also two key other changes prompted by how our usage of iPhones is shifting during the COVID-19 outbreak.

First, Face ID can detect if you’re wearing a mask and skip directly to the passcode screen if so. Secondly, there’s a new setting for FaceTime that allows you to disable the shifting design during Group FaceTime calls. Learn more about that in our full coverage.

Corroborating recent reports from other sources, a new report from The Wall Street Journal this week indicated that iPhone 12 mass production is delayed by one month. Mass production being pushed back does not necessarily mean that the phone release date will also be delayed but is a good indicator of that.

Elsewhere, HBO announced this week that it is teaming up with Apple for the launch of its upcoming HBO Max streaming service. Customers who are billed through the App Store or through Apple TV Channels for HBO Now will be “upgraded automatically to HBO Max at no additional charge.” There will also be a new HBO Max app for iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV.

Finally, Apple this week reported its fiscal Q2 2020 earnings, reporting revenue and profit impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Apple reported revenue of $58.3 billion and profit of $11.25 billion. This compares to $58 billion in revenue and $11.56 billion profit reported in the same quarter last year.

These and the rest of this week’s top stories below.

iOS | tvOS |

iPhone |

Apple Watch |

Pandora shows Spotify how to make a proper Apple Watch app

iPad and Mac |

Apps |

COVID-19 |

Apple TV, HomeKit, and HomePod |

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This week’s top videos |

9to5Mac Daily |

Listen to a recap of the top stories of the day from 9to5Mac. 9to5Mac Daily is available on iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

Sponsored by Disco Elysium: An award-winning and groundbreaking role-playing game, now available on Mac. Get 25% off until May 1 on Steam.

9to5Mac Watch Time episode #21 |

Tyler Hayes joins Zac this week to talk about how the Apple Watch has become the ultimate iPod, the best apps for finding new music and playing audio, and much more.

Sponsored by:

Monowear Design: Check out the latest collections of premium bands and accessories for the Apple Watch from Monowear.
Pillow: Pillow is an all-in-one sleep tracking solution to help you get a better night’s sleep. Download it from the App Store today.

9to5Mac Watch Time is a podcast series hosted by Zac Hall. In this series, we talk to real people about how the Apple Watch is affecting their lives. 9to5Mac Watch Time is available on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, and your favorite podcast player through RSS.

Happy Hour Podcast 275 |

iOS 13.5 arrives in beta, Apple’s Exposure Notification API is ready to combat COVID-19 risks, Face ID and Group FaceTime are making changes, Zac has more thoughts on the iPad Pro Magic Keyboard, iPhone SE has a missing feature, Ming-Chi Kuo predicts new AirPods, Apple announces earnings results, and much more.

Sponsored by:

Pillow: Pillow is an all-in-one sleep tracking solution to help you get a better night’s sleep. Download it from the App Store today.
Intego: Get 9to5Mac’s deal of the month with 50% off Intego’s Mac Internet Security X9 bundle.

9to5Mac Happy Hour is available on iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play Music, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

Stacktrace Podcast 081 |

John and Rambo return to the topic of app architecture, this time to discuss how to build scalable code bases using the MVC design pattern, and also talk about what Apple’s pro-level apps (including Xcode) might look like if ported to the iPad.

Sponsored by Disco Elysium: An award-winning and groundbreaking role-playing game, now available on Mac. Get 25% off until May 1 on Steam.

Stacktrace by 9to5Mac is available on iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

Apple @ Work Podcast |

In this episode of the Apple @ Work podcast, Bradley is joined by Shane Moore from Bitglass to talk about the security risks of the move to cloud applications. Even if you are securing the authentication process, there is still more to consider for IT managers when it comes to creating a security environment in cloud services.

Stacktrace by 9to5Mac is available on iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players. .

Apple @ Work and Making the Grade |

Apple @ Work is a weekly series from Bradley Chambers covering Apple in education. Bradley has been managing Apple devices in an education environment since 2009. Through his experience deploying and managing hundreds of Macs and hundreds of iPads, Bradley will highlight ways in which Apple’s products work at scale, stories from the trenches of IT management, and ways Apple could improve its products for students.