Apple Vision Pro arrives in the US on Friday, and the first reviews are rolling in today. Here’s what the early reviewers are saying about Apple’s $3500 “spatial computer” headset.
Expand Expanding CloseHere come the first Apple Vision Pro reviews
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Zac Hall is a Senior Editor, covering Apple, AI, and the modern technology landscape.
He joined 9to5Mac in April 2013, originally as a writer and copy editor.
He later served as Lead Editor from May 2016 through December 2020, before shifting focus to creating the Space Explored website.
In 2015, Zac began co-hosting 9to5Mac Happy Hour, establishing the format of the site’s premier podcast, which he hosted for eight years.
In 2018, he created 9to5Mac Daily, providing audio recaps of Apple and technology news each weekday. He also created and hosted multiple seasons of the 9to5Mac Watch Time podcast, a health and fitness-focused interview series.
Zac currently focuses on writing for 9to5Mac. He is based in the lovely Gulf Coast town of Ocean Springs, MS, where he lives with his brilliant kids and Nova, his adventurous Cavachon rescue pup.
Contact: zac@9to5mac.com
Is Apple about to turn Arcade into a streaming game service?
Last week Apple announced a bunch of very specific changes to iOS and the App Store only for EU customers. Apple refers to these changes as risks that it has smartly tried to mitigate. Apple simply can’t guarantee the same consumer protections to customers in the EU, however, now that the Digital Markets Act is dictating the company’s policies.
As part of the same news drop, Apple announced a complete one-eighty on its App Store ban on streaming game services. This change is immediate, global, and seemingly not directly a result of the DMA. Why the sudden change of heart?
Expand Expanding CloseApple Music and iTunes Store are down, Apple confirms [U]
Update: Apple says iTunes and Apple Music are back online, but AppleCare on Device purchasing is offline. All resolved now.
Apple Music may be experiencing an outage for some users. Both Downdetector and reports on X point to an ongoing disruption for music streaming service.
Expand Expanding CloseSeverance season 2 closer to release on Apple TV+ as production resumes after strike
Severance season two is back on track, according to Apple, after strike delays halted production last year.
Expand Expanding CloseApple Music SharePlay control expands from CarPlay to HomePod and Apple TV
iOS 17.4 is taking the Apple Music SharePlay experience from CarPlay and bringing it to the house. Apple is expanding the SharePlay music control feature to work with both HomePod and Apple TV.
Expand Expanding CloseRouters secured by HomeKit are not dead
Routers secured by HomeKit may not be the first accessories that come to mind when thinking about smart home gadgets. Nevertheless, routers are still alive and well as an accessory category in the world of HomeKit. That’s despite a thread on Reddit this week that suggested HomeKit was no longer open for business as far as routers were concerned.
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Pestle cooking app puts recipe discovery on your Home Screen
Pestle, the handy recipe app for iPhone and iPad, is adding new widgets that put recipe discovery right on your iPhone’s Home Screen.
Expand Expanding CloseApple Vision Pro delay hits pre-order customers with February 2 ship dates [Update]
Update: Customers who received delay emails yesterday are now being told that the update was made in error. Original ship dates are still being honored.
Apple Vision Pro inventory has been a mystery since pre-orders started almost a week ago. Earlier this week we saw a highly uncommon second wave of in-store pickup options for launch day. Now some Vision Pro pre-order customers are reporting a disappointing update on their delivery dates.
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Meta Quest headsets might soon be able to play spatial videos shot on iPhone without workarounds
Apple recently introduced spatial video capture to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. The feature lets you start saving memories now to relive on Apple Vision Pro when it arrives. Or when you buy one. Or when the more consumer-priced version comes out. Or maybe on an existing Meta Quest headset without requiring the current workarounds!
Expand Expanding CloseApple and iOS 17.4 reaffirm this is the year next-gen CarPlay takes over select cars
CarPlay is a few weeks away from turning 10 … depending on when you celebrate its birthday. Apple has already promised a whole new generation of CarPlay will start taking over cars in 2024. Now assets in iOS 17.4 beta show that CarPlay 2.0 really is getting closer to rolling off the new car lot.
Expand Expanding CloseYour Live Activities order is finally ready for pickup at Starbucks
When Apple unveiled the iPhone 14 Pro in 2022, the company showed off a Starbucks order in progress as one concept for Live Activities and the always-on display. Fast-forward to today and the Live Activities feature for Starbucks is finally available for everyone.
Expand Expanding CloseThese new emoji are coming in iOS 17.4
Update: These new emoji unveiled last year are now available in iOS 17.4 beta. These are the finalized designs:
Original story follows:
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Apple explains why it will not make major iOS policy changes outside of the EU
Apple is introducing a wave of changes to iPhone and iPad software with iOS 17.4, but these changes are only impacting customers in the 27 countries that make up the European Union? So what gives?
Expand Expanding CloseApple will prompt users to set default browsers and allow third-party web engines on iPhone in the EU
Apple is making major changes to how web browsers can operate on iPhone for customers in the EU. iOS 17.4 will introduce the option to set your preferred default browser when you initially launch Safari, and browser makers will be able to use other browser engines.
Expand Expanding CloseSoundCloud available on CarPlay, but only with a paid subscription for now
Apple Musical Classical teased the world with an accidental CarPlay app this week, but SoundCloud has the real deal. At least for paid members of SoundCloud’s subscription service.
SoundCloud apparently isn’t just a place for uploading your mixtape. Still, if you land a viral tweet and need something to promote, SoundCloud is the go-to choice (unless you don’t have one).
Expand Expanding CloseApple adds pronoun fields with privacy focus to Contacts app on iOS 17
iOS 17 and watchOS 10 introduce a new way to easily swap contact information between iPhones, Apple Watches, or both. NameDrop lets you control what information you share over AirDrop without having to create a separate contact card. NameDrop isn’t the only update to the contact card experience in iOS 17, however. iOS 17 introduces a widely requested feature to the Contacts app in the form of a new pronouns field.
Expand Expanding CloseApple canceled Jon Stewart just in time for surprise return to ‘Daily Show’ ahead of presidential election
Apple recently canceled Jon Stewart’s commentary series on TV+. That’s either because Apple disliked season three topics or ratings were too low (or both but probably the former). That depends on who you ask. A few months later, it appears the political commentator is returning to familiar place just in time for the US presidential election. Stewart will return to The Daily Show on Comedy Central as producer and host (on Mondays) for the first time since 2015.
Expand Expanding CloseWatch the first Apple Vision Pro accessory unboxing
The first third-party Vision Pro accessory sold by Apple basically looks like an iPhone case. That’s because it’s the Belkin Battery Holder for Vision Pro, and the Vision Pro battery basically looks like, well, an iPhone.
Expand Expanding CloseSteve Jobs Archive wants your Mac memories as it marks 40 years of the Macintosh
What better way to mark the 40th anniversary of the Macintosh introduction than by sharing your Mac memories with the Steve Jobs Archive? The Archive is asking Mac users to answer one question: What did the Mac make possible for you?
Expand Expanding CloseApple wins early battle against NSO after suing spyware mercenaries for attacking iPhone users
Apple has won an early battle against the NSO Group in court today. Apple sued the Pegasus spyware maker in November 2021, but the Israel-based firm has been trying to export Apple’s lawsuit to its home turf.
Apple’s early victory comes in the form of Judge Donato denying NSO Group’s request to dismiss the lawsuit from Apple altogether.
Expand Expanding CloseApple Vision Pro already has a software update
It looks like Apple Vision Pro will have a software update ready to go on day one. That’s assuming Vision Pro ships with visionOS 1.0.
Expand Expanding CloseNetflix will pull cheapest ad-free plan after latest price increases
Netflix raised the ceiling on how much you could spend on a monthly subscription in October. The new high? $23. Now it plans to raise the floor on how much an ad-free plan will cost you.
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Apple TV+ shrinks Kids division with rare layoffs: ‘a fraction of the overall staff’
It’s not common to see Apple and layoffs in the same headline, but Deadline exclusively reports that Apple has shrunk its Kids division.
Expand Expanding CloseApple’s car project has been four years away for nearly nine years
I remember it like it was yesterday. I was on a flight bound for San Francisco, preparing to attend a Sonos summit in San Jose, with bad plane wifi. The date was September 21, 2015. CNBC was on-air discussing an accelerated release date for the Apple Car: 2019.
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