Benjamin Mayo

In a report shared today by Bloomberg, Apple’s teams apparently are still working on some spiritual successor to the doomed AirPower mat project. In the years since AirPower’s announcement (and cancellation), third-party accessory makers have achieved multi-device Qi charging through various means, although the promised ability to charge an iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods on the same pad remains AirPower fiction. Apple’s current best attempt is the MagSafe Duo accessory, but there is clearly nothing as elegant as a simple seamless charging mat.

The report says Apple is also in the research and development stages regarding true wireless charging technology. That is, being able to send power over the air across short distances — not merely via an inductive pad like we know “wireless charging” as today.

After months of leaks, social networking platform Twitter has today launched its subscription plan called Twitter Blue. For $2.99 per month, users can unlock additional functionality including the ability to undo a just-sent tweet (not quite the edit button that everyone wants), and access to new theming and bookmarking features.

Twitter Blue is launching today in Canada ($3.49/mo CAD) and Australia ($4.49/mo AUD). It will arrive for Twitter users in the United States later in the year.

Ted Lasso was Apple TV+‘s breakout hit of 2020. Fans of the show have been anxiously waiting for the second season premiere on July 23rd. However, people have also been wanting Apple to release show merch almost as soon as the last season ended. In its absence, unofficial Ted Lasso merch has flooded the likes of Amazon and Etsy.

However, Ted Lasso fans shouldn’t have to wait much longer to be able to get their hands on something official …

The latest analyst report from Wedbush’s Dan Ives gives the firm’s insight into Apple’s upcoming product roadmap. Like a lot of rumors, Ives expects Apple to replace the 16-inch MacBook Pro with an Apple Silicon model and a chassis redesign incorporating dedicated IO ports.

Echoing Bloomberg’s reporting, he expects iOS 15 to include new notifications features, more privacy awareness and perhaps updates to iMessage. The WWDC press images certainly suggest an iMessage connection. Apple’s developer conference kicks off next week, with the consumer production keynote happening on Monday.

In June 2011, Steve Jobs would make one of his final public appearances to unveil iCloud at that year’s WWDC, Apple’s new strategy for back up and sync of its entire device ecosystem. Apple wanted to shake off the embarrassment that was MobileMe and set itself up for the future, where customers would host all of their data in the cloud.

iCloud has come a long way since its iOS 5 launch but one thing that has hilariously stayed the same: the free tier of iCloud has remained at 5 GB …

Update: The job listing has been updated to remove the homeOS mention and replace it with references to tvOS and HomePod instead.

An intriguing reference to a previously unknown Apple software platform name, homeOS, has been spotted in a company job listing. The finding is another data point to join the pile of rumors surrounding Apple’s interest in the smart home. Recent Apple product launches in this arena have been somewhat disappointing, such as the discontinuation of the larger HomePod speaker and the release of a very minor Apple TV 4K update.

The ‘homeOS’ name is stylised to match Apple’s other platform naming, like iOS, tvOS and macOS with a lowercase letter and no space between the prefix and the ‘OS’ suffix. This suggests it will have a customer-facing presence at some point in the future.

Corroborating a report from Ming-Chi Kuo earlier in the year, Digitimes is claiming that more than half of iPhone 13 models manufactured will support 5G mmWave.

As a reminder, the iPhone 12 supports sub-6GHz 5G worldwide but the superfast gigabit speeds are only available in the United States with mmWave technology, as only US-model iPhone 12s have the special mmWave antenna window and radios embedded. That is set to change with the iPhone 13 launch this fall.

Starting this week, Coinbase is making it easier than ever to spend your crypto as if it was real currency. If you have a Coinbase card, you will be able to buy goods at retail stores using Apple Pay contactless transactions.

The Coinbase Card acts like a debit crypto card, automatically drawing down from your crypto wallet balance. If you already have a Coinbase Card, you can add the card to your Apple Wallet through the app. However, most people interested in the card are currently on a waitlist …

Apple has released its latest annual supplier responsibility report. The document details Apple’s rigorous and comprehensive safety policies that were implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2020, several publications found alleged incidents of forced labor in Apple’s supply chain. In the company’s report today, Apple says it found no evidence of forced labor or underage child labor. This is down from one case of child labor identified in the previous year’s report.

Apple apparently showed interest in acquiring the music rap battle live-streaming website Verzuz. Bloomberg says Apple proposed an acquisition price, but the platform was ultimately acquired by Triller for a higher amount.

Presumably, the acquisition would have fed into Apple Music or Apple TV content. For a time last year, Apple hosted Verzuz livestreams through the Apple Music app.

Apple is said to be close to launching new third-generation AirPods according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman and Debby Wu, after several months of leaks and rumors about the product. The new buds, rendered above, will feature shorter stems and look similar to current-generation AirPods Pro.

Bloomberg also reports that redesigned AirPods Pro will arrive next year and feature new motion sensors to enable onboard fitness tracking. This would be the first time the functionality of AirPods expands beyond audio.

The launch of the new iPad Pro with M1 chip has once again sparked conversation about how the iPad hardware is vastly outpacing the operating system and software ecosystem that it can run. Many people are setting their hopes on iPadOS 15 at WWDC to announce overhauls to multitasking, external display support and file management to bring iPad productivity closer to what is possible with macOS.

However, there’s an even more direct limitation of iPadOS today for customers hoping to use that high-specced M1 chip for pro apps. It turns out that the operating system on the new iPad Pro limits all third-party apps to a maximum of ~5 GB RAM each.

Digitimes reports that Apple is expected to beat out Samsung this year as the biggest purchaser of AMOLED smartphone screens.

Apple’s demand is higher than ever with the entire iPhone 12 lineup and the upcoming iPhone 13 lineup all featuring OLED screens. Apple suppliers are said to be pulling in components in June as they prepare for iPhone 13 mass production in the July timeframe.

Last year, Apple’s production schedules were significantly disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic and the iPhone 12 series ended up shipping one month later than usual. So far this year, Apple seems to be circumnavigating the headwinds (including chip shortages and rising COVID-19 spread in some areas) and the flagship iPhone 13 is on track for a standard fall release, probably in September.

Digitimes today reported that TSMC has started production for the A15 chip, which will power the new iPhone lineup.

In his latest video, Jon Prosser claims that the upcoming M1X-powered Mac mini will also introduce a new generation of industrial design for Apple’s standalone Mac. This model is expected to replace the higher-end space grey Intel Mac mini in the lineup, with the M1 Mac mini sticking around as the entry-level machine.

According to Prosser, the 2021 Mac mini will feature a new external chassis with a “plexiglass-like” reflective surface on the top, in an otherwise aluminium enclosure …