Benjamin Mayo

Apple is advancing its data accuracy efforts with Apple Maps, according to a new report from iGeneration. The report details a new website app program where freelancers can sign up and get paid a small fee each time they correct/verify a Point-of-Interest or placemark in Apple Maps.

Similar to a Mechanical Turk system, people in the program can get paid about 54 cents per task, with a maximum of 600 tasks per week …

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Ahead of its developer conference next week, Apple has announced that all-time earnings from App Store developers have topped $70 billion. The App Store launched with iPhone OS 2 in 2008 and has exploded ever since.

In the last twelve months, the company said Apple Store downloads have increased more than 70% …

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Several reports have indicated WWDC will introduce several new Apple hardware products alongside the headline software announcements like iOS 11 and macOS 10.13. Today, Eurasian regulator filings (which have proved reliable before) suggest that new iPad and MacBook (Pro?) models are on the way, as has been reported before.

The filings also suggest that a revision to the wireless Apple Magic Keyboard is imminent ….

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The schedule for WWDC 2017 has just been announced and includes a new ‘Podcast Studio’. From Tuesday, podcasters will be able to reserve one hour slots and record in a specially-made recording studio inside the McEnery Convention Center.

Apple says that the ‘fully outfitted studio’ allows for the creation of audio podcasts with up to four guests per show. Apple experts are on hand to provide support and podcasters are given a copy of their session to distribute freely how they see fit.

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The Apple Online Store is now out of stock of current 15-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar configurations, with estimated delivery quoted as June 5 – June 7. Amazon is also reporting constrained stock availability of the 15-inch models.

June 5 just happens to be the same day as the WWDC keynote which points to a hardware refresh at the event. The change in shipping times was first noticed by MacRumors. Although WWDC is typically a software event, there have been several rumors of new hardware this time around …

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Several iPhone 8 related leaks surfaced over the weekend, backing up a radical new chassis design first seen in April. The new schematics include the various characteristics we’ve seen reported for the OLED iPhone in the past including the elongated power button, vertical dual camera and lack of a physical home button.

Most notably, an orange outline traces the purported screen area of the iPhone 8. Based on this schematic, the screen will be effectively bezel-less on left, right and bottom sides whilst the top edge will cut inwards to accommodate the front camera, earpiece and sensors. More pictures after the jump …

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A new report from Economic Daily News, via Digitimes, indicates that the iPhone 8 will use a new optical fingerprint sensor technology to enable users to place their fingers directly on the OLED display and have the phone scan the print, as an elegant replacement for the existing Touch ID home button.

The screen ratio will change from 16:9 on iPhone 7 to 18.5:9 (corroborating many other sources) and ‘invisible’ Infrared sensors will unlock enhanced camera and augmented reality features. Apparently, TSMC discussed these upcoming flagship iPhone features at a Taipei symposium.

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After a change of heart, Belkin has now officially announced that it will bring HomeKit support to its ecosystem of Wemo smart home accessories later this year with the unveiling of a new HomeKit Wemo Bridge.

The bridge will enable all Wemo devices currently on the market to interact with an Apple user’s HomeKit setup. This will allow voice control of Wemo lights, plugs and switches via Siri as well as manual control through the iOS 10 Apple Home app.

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Apple has today officially transitioned away from its aging press portal in favor of the modern Apple Newsroom, which combines company press releases, photo coverage and other news into one place. All links to apple.com/pr now redirect to apple.com/newsroom.

At the same time, the company has also updated its executive biography pages with a fresh design update to fit in with the company’s recent website design trends and adopts the San Francisco typeface, finally retiring the Lucida Grande font.

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Apple has today announced that is launching a new app development curriculum designed to teach students how to start using Swift to create fully functional iPhone apps. The course is available for free on iBooks (plus teacher’s guide) for anyone to download, and builds on the Everyone Can Code series Apple already publishes.

This fall, Apple says six American community colleges will teach the curriculum as well as ‘select high schools’. Apple wants to help more people learn to code and enter the app economy.

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Over the last few months, Apple has quietly relaunched the iPhone 6 in a ‘new’ 32 GB configuration around the world. The company has opted not to sell the product directly, instead distributing the device via carrier partners.

The 32 GB iPhone 6 originally debuted in emerging markets, presumably as a lower cost option, but has more recently appeared in the US — and now it has hit the UK too …

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Although it seems silly to consider the 2018 iPhone whilst we are still deep in rumors about the iPhone 8, Apple as a company works on much longer timelines.

As such, ‘The Bell’ (via Korea Herald) is reporting that Apple has agreed a deal with Samsung to supply OLED panels for the ‘iPhone 9’. The report claims the phones will include larger 5.28-inch and 6.46-inch OLED displays …

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Apple and Nokia today announced that they have agreed a settlement to a patent lawsuit that began in December. The companies said they have moved from adversaries to business partners, settling all litigation.

Nokia will provide network infrastructure services to Apple, Apple will stock Nokia’s Withings products once again in Apple Stores and pay ongoing license fees to use Nokia’s intellectual property.

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Whilst WWDC is typically focused on software announcements like iOS 11, this year several reports point to new hardware announcements including a new 10.5-inch iPad Pro model.

In line with that expectation, photos are now surfacing showing cases sized for the new 10.5-inch iPad. Similar to rumors for iPhone 8, Apple will shrink the bezels to fit a larger display in approximately the same physical chassis size as the 9.7-inch iPad Pro. A case for the 2017 12.9 inch model is also shown …

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Although the iPhone 8 is apparently entering production verification testing this month, the rumor mill continues to disagree about several details of Apple’s upcoming radically-redesigned phone.

In this latest alleged schematics photo via Sneakleaks, an iPhone chassis is shown with a Touch ID fingerprint cutout below the Apple logo on the back of the device. This idea was last seen in an April leak. However, the rumors have not come to consensus and there are still many contradictory reports about the fate of the iPhone 8 Touch ID …

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Apple is expected to launch three new iPhone models this year, two iterative updates with similar industrial designs to  iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, and one major radical new phone tentatively dubbed ‘iPhone 8’.

A new set of photos have surfaced on Weibo purporting to show molds for all three of the new phones. They don’t really reveal anything what we haven’t seen rumored before, but it’s interesting to see the new size in context. More photos after the jump …

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The iPhone 8 is expected to debut later this year touting a 5.8-inch OLED ‘bezel-less’ display incorporated into a new-design glass and stainless chassis. There have been many rumors about Apple increasing the price of the model above the current iPhone range (128 GB iPhone 7 Plus tops out at $969), with some people referring to the device as an ‘iPhone Pro’.

Higher component costs support the idea of a premium price tag, and this is exactly what Economic Daily News is reporting today. It claims that the 3D Touch module in the OLED iPhone will cost Apple 150% more than the equivalent parts in the LCD iPhone 7 …

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Earlier in April, news broke that Apple was developing an Apple Watch oriented solution to diagnose and manage diabetes, with a non-invasive sensor that continuously measures blood sugar levels. Today, CNBC is reporting that Tim Cook is actively wearing a glucose tracker prototype on his body around Apple’s campus. Typical glucose monitors available today are invasive, bulky and cumbersome — a non-invasive optical solution would be a game changer for many people.

The report says that the wearable tracker is connected to the Apple Watch but the details are murky …

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In a statement to the Wall Street Journal, Apple has confirmed that its manufacturing partners in India have started domestic production of iPhone SE. Up to now, Apple produces almost all of its iPhones in China (although some older models have been assembled in Brazil). Presumably, the devices will bear an ‘Assembled in India’ label on the hardware. Apple is pushing hard into India as it looks for new markets to grow iPhone sales.

The report says that the iPhone SE devices are being made in Bangalore and will ship to customers later in May, with the first domestically-produced phones appearing on store shelves next week. Pricing is unknown …

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