Opinion pieces & commentary

iPhone 16 may not seem like a huge upgrade compared to the previous generation, but the new phones come with some cool tricks. For instance, Apple has revamped the Photographic Styles feature, and the new version has already become my favorite part of the iPhone 16.

The Meta Quest Pro headset has been discontinued, with the company officially bidding goodbye to its most expensive headset while selling off remaining units. This follows an earlier decision to abandon work on an even more expensive Vision Pro competitor.

Meta had already slashed the price of the Pro from $1,499 to $999 within months of launch, but has now completely given up on the four-figure market …

My colleague Filipe Espósito yesterday said that the prototype Meta Orion glasses are what he wants for the future of Apple Vision, and I agree that they are an incredible step in the right direction.

I’ve long said that an Apple Glasses product is what I really want to see, but as impressed as I am by what Meta has shown us, I still think it will be a few years before any of us will be wearing a pair of Apple Glasses …

Apple’s latest theft-prevention measure went live for beta testers yesterday: Activation Lock for iPhone components.

The move is likely to generate some controversy, as it introduces another barrier to DIY repairs using parts harvested from broken devices, but the company is also working on a solution to that …

Apple’s announcement about the upcoming AirPods hearing aid capability hasn’t just upset the share price of existing brands – it’s also likely to lead to some social norms being challenged.

In addition, the uncertainty of whether someone wearing a pair of AirPods means that they either can or can’t hear you is likely to create some comedic moments …

The Mac mini is Apple’s most affordable desktop computer, and it has become known not only for its price, but also for its versatility – it’s a full Mac in a small box. But despite now having an Apple Silicon chip, it’s been a long time since the Mac mini was given any real attention. Luckily, rumors suggest that the Mac mini is about to get a lot more interesting.

Suggestions that Apple plans to launch an iPhone 17 Slim or iPhone 17 Air are gaining ground, with most reports now pointing to a compromise device.

One big compromise we might see is for Apple to limit the model to a single camera – but there may be a creative solution to this problem, which could give us the equivalent of an entire camera bag full of lenses right there in our pocket …

The court ruling that Google is no longer allowed to pay Apple $20B+ a year to be the default search engine raises the question: What now? One potential answer being suggested is that the iPhone maker create its own Apple search engine.

But much as many of us might like to see that, it seems like an unlikely prospect – and just not worth the potential risks …

We’ve seen various claims about Apple’s interest in robotics, from a fully-fledged domestic robot to what we might think of as a robot iPad screen that can turn to face you.

I’ve already expressed my skepticism about the domestic robot, and at first glance it’s a little hard to see how the latest report could pass the “say no to a thousand things” test …

Over the last few years, everyone has been talking about generative AI. Not only that, everyone was doing something about generative AI. Me and a lot of other people then started wondering when Apple would do something about it. At WWDC 2024 in June, the company announced Apple Intelligence. But so far, Apple Intelligence remains more of a concept than a reality. And here’s why.

We’ve been hearing multiple rumors about a potential new iPhone 17 model that will have a new, slimmer design. The first rumors about this “iPhone Slim” suggested that this version would be positioned as an ultra high-end model and could cost more than an iPhone Pro Max. However, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman has now pointed out that iPhone Slim will be more like an “iPhone Air” – and that puts all the rumors in a whole new direction.

Google has for years made billions of dollars worth of payments to Apple in return for being the default search engine on Apple devices. A court ruling yesterday appears to have declared those payments illegal under antitrust law.

But while that would be a setback to the company’s impressive Services revenue, in the scheme of things it wouldn’t amount to much more than a blip …

The iPhone 16 will launch without some of the headline Apple Intelligence features – which are arguably the biggest reason for most to upgrade to the new models.

While Apple is taking an understandably cautious approach here, the company runs the risk of disappointing or confusing its customers …

We’ve noted the contradictory and hard-to-parse rumors about a new iPhone 17 Slim, with some suggesting it will be the top-end model while more recent reports indicate that it may be less powerful than the Pro models.

The more I read about this device, the more it sounds like Apple may be aiming to get yet another step closer to that vision of “a single slab of glass” – and making another attempt at a strategy it first tried with the 12-inch MacBook …

Apple Watch is turning 10 this year, and although the product has evolved a lot, its design is still very similar to the original introduced in 2014. In recent years, there have been many rumors about a major redesign coming to the Apple Watch – but they never saw the light of day. But after all, do we really need a radically redesigned Apple Watch?

Apple has a reputation for taking its time with new technology. It is rarely first to the party, but often it arrives with an offering that sets a new standard.

There have always been critics to this approach, and that’s as true now as ever. But recent fails from some of Apple’s biggest competitors, particularly in emerging technologies like AI and robotics, have once again proven the advantage of Apple’s method.

We’re of course all eagerly awaiting the iOS 18 headline feature to hit the betas: Apple Intelligence. But sometimes the little things really count.

Steve Jobs famously said that design is not just how things look, but how they work. Jony Ive added that one hallmark of great design is when it looks stunningly obvious after it’s been done – and Apple just gave us two tiny but beautiful examples …

Apple devices are extremely capable of running good games. However, things have been changing in recent years and we now finally have some AAA games available on the App Store for iPhone, iPad and Mac. Even so, most users don’t seem interested in playing console-level games on smartphones – which is why now is the time for a new gaming-focused “Apple TV Pro” with the M4 chip.

It’s been consistently reported that Apple has been struggling to develop a lower-cost version of the Vision Pro, and that the solution might need to be a tethered Apple Vision product – with either an iPhone or a Mac providing the required processing power.

While some may see that as a big deal, there are three reasons why I’d consider it an acceptable compromise to bring the price down to a more affordable level …

When Apple first launched AirPods back in 2016, it also introduced a whole new accessory setup process, designed to avoid the usual pain point of Bluetooth pairing.

For almost eight years, it seemed like the company wanted to keep this exclusive to its own headphones, with competitors unable to take advantage of it. But all that changes in iOS 18 …

The bad news from yesterday’s keynote is that Apple has never listed so many new features as “coming later.” This includes all of the Apple Intelligence ones.

The other bad news is that AI features will initially be limited to US English, although Apple’s wording here does suggest that those of us in other countries will still be able to try it …