Email: Chance@9to5mac.com
Chance is an editor for the entire 9to5 network and covers the latest Apple news for 9to5Mac.
August 12
A new report this weekend from the SF Chronicle highlights Apple’s push to lower its tax burden in its home county of Santa Clara in California. The report explains that Apple is the leading appealer of tax assessments in the county, with over 400 open cases since 2004.
Earlier this year, Ralph Nader penned an open letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook criticizing the company’s plans for a $100 billion share buyback program. Now, Nader is back again to express his unsolicited thoughts on how Apple should spend its “excess billions.”
A few weeks ago, a report highlighted how hackers were gaining access to Instagram accounts by stealing a phone number and reassigning it to a different SIM card. Now, authorities have made an arrest as part of a multi-state SIM card hacking ring…
August 11
Apple’s 2018 MacBook Pro has been available for almost a month now and despite the fact that the update was announced via a press release, this year’s revision brings some notable changes. While everything looks the same on the surface, the 2018 MacBook Pro packs more power, an improved keyboard, and more.
In this week’s top stories: The iPhone X bests Samsung’s shiny new Galaxy Note 9 flagship, iOS 12 beta 6 is released, Logitech unveils a sleek new wireless charger for iPhone, and much more. Read on as we round up all of this week’s top stories…
Facebook, as part of its growing efforts of transparency, is rolling out a new verification process to confirm that those who run Pages are who they say they are. Facebook announced the new process on its Facebook Business blog…
Apple CEO Tim Cook and President Donald Trump met for dinner last night, according to a tweet from the president. While details of the meeting are unclear at this point, it’s likely that tariffs were a central point of conversation…
Spotify’s free ad-supported tier has been controversial in the past over concerns about how much gets paid out to artists, but the company is purportedly planning to make changes that would allow users to skip ads in which they are uninterested…
Earlier this week, Samsung officially unveiled its new Galaxy Note 9 flagship, but now a survey from PC Mag indicates that consumers are far more excited about what Apple has in store for the iPhone this year…
August 9
After leaving in 2013 to join Tesla, Doug Field has now made his way back to Apple. As noted in a report from Daring Fireball, Field is returning to Apple to work alongside Bob Mansfield on Apple’s Project Titan car team…
Back in May, Apple revealed the full list of third-party speakers slated to receive updates with AirPlay 2 support. Now, one of the first manufacturers has started rolling out updates to their line of audio accessories…
A former Metropolitan Transportation Authority official has been indicted on accusations of buying some $60,000 worth of iPhones with taxpayer money – only to resell them and pocket the money…
Earlier today, Samsung officially unveiled its brand new (and oft-leaked) Galaxy Note 9 with a 6.4-inch display. While Samsung touts the device’s Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chipset and 6GB or 8GB of RAM under-the-hood, but earlier benchmarks show the device is still outperformed by the iPhone X…
Following a positive outlook on Apple’s earnings call last week, Loup Ventures is out today with an in-depth look at the state of Apple Pay. Currently, Loup Ventures estimates that just 20 percent of global smartphone users rely on their phone as a wallet, but it expects that number to rise to 80 percent…
August 8
Apple celebrates ‘Everyone Can Code’ students with special ‘Today at Apple’ session in Chicago
Apple and the City of Chicago came together to celebrate the “Everyone Can Code” program at Apple’s Michigan Avenue location this week. As highlighted in tweets by Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Tim Cook, a special “Today at Apple” session where students of the program showcased their app creations…
Comcast Xfinity customers are the latest to be affected by lax online security. According to a report from BuzzFeed News, more than 26.5 million customers had their partial home addresses and social security numbers exposed…
After removing five Infowars podcasts earlier this week, Apple announced in a statement today that the Infowars application itself will remain available on the App Store for the time being. The statement, obtained by BuzzFeed News, explains that Apple supports “all points of view” being represented on the App Store…
Disney has long been teasing its upcoming standalone streaming package, and today CEO Bob Iger offered additional details on how the company plans to differentiate between its streaming service, ESPN+, and Hulu…
In a press release today, Verizon announced a new partnership with Apple that will allow it to offer subscribers of its Verizon Unlimited tier six free months of Apple Music. Verizon touts that this is just the beginning of its “exclusive” partnership with Apple…
One of Apple’s key suppliers reported earnings today, showing an uptick in its augmented reality and 3D-sensing business. Lumentum Holdings serves as Apple’s primary supplier of vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser components, or VCSEL. This component is what’s used in the iPhone’s front-facing camera for its Face ID and Animoji technology…
