Better than Black Friday pricing has arrived today on Apple’s 16-inch M3 Pro MacBook Pro. If you’ve been asking for a Mac discount with more than 8GB of RAM, just the price cut has arrived at $250 off this pro model with 18GB of memory. It comes joined by a new all-time low on ecobee’s new Smart Video Doorbell at $120, as well as Anker’s latest Prime power banks from $72. Hit the jump for all that and more in the latest 9to5Toys Lunch Break.

Don’t ask me what any of this means, but it might be of interest for some of you real Mac users. Apple has released MLX, “an array framework for machine learning on Apple silicon, brought to you by Apple machine learning research.”

As part of the company’s continuing work to reduce its dependence on China, Apple has reportedly told suppliers that it has a preference for iPhone 16 batteries being made in India.

One battery supplier which already manufactures in India has been asked to scale-up production there, and Chinese suppliers have been urged to establish battery factories in the country …

Update: Apple issued the following statement to 9to5Mac:

Apple is committed to transparency and we have long been a supporter of efforts to ensure that providers are able to disclose as much information as possible to their users. In this case, the federal government prohibited us from sharing any information and now that this method has become public we are updating our transparency reporting to detail these kinds of requests

Apple has confirmed that foreign governments have been carrying out what has been described as “push notification spying,” stating that the company was not previously allowed to disclose the practice.

Governments have been serving both Apple and Google with secret legal orders to hand over details of the push notifications sent to iPhones and Android smartphones …

The European Union’s iMessage antitrust investigation looks set to rule in favor of Apple, meaning that the secure messaging service would be exempt from upcoming interoperability rules.

If confirmed, it would mean that Apple would not have to make iMessage able to exchange messages with rival chat apps …

A new supply-chain report suggests that we could see an under-screen Face ID camera in the iPhone “after 2026,” using technology developed by LG Innotek.

It’s likely that the tech would initially be used for Face ID only, but would be a stepping stone toward a later true all-screen design, with the front-facing camera similarly embedded beneath the screen …

As first reported in October, Apple will discontinue the standalone iTunes Movies and iTunes TV Shows apps on the Apple TV box, starting with tvOS 17.2 The warning message seen above has started appearing in the release candidate version of tvOS 17.2 beta, released yesterday.

Apple directs users to the TV app instead to manage their purchases, and buy and rent from the store. At least as far as Apple’s video content is concerned, the iTunes brand is on the way out.

Instapaper, the popular read-it-later service, is doubling the price of its subscription for new and existing subscribers alike. The good news? In a blog post this week, the company promises “increased investment” in the service that will result in “faster feature development.”

Last month, I reported that iOS 17.1.1 broke in-car wireless charging for a number of GM drivers with an iPhone 15. In today’s release notes for iOS 17.2, which will be released to everyone next week, Apple says it has solved this problem…hopefully.

One of the headlining features of the first iOS 17.2 beta was support for Apple Music collaborative playlists. Apple then removed this feature with iOS 17.2 beta 4 last week, and unfortunately, it doesn’t return with today’s iOS 17.2 RC update.

This means that Apple Music’s collaborative playlists feature won’t debut in iOS 17.2 and has likely been delayed until 2024.

There’s a new firmware update waiting for second-generation AirPods Pro. This update includes build number 6B34 and version number 6.1.34. Head below for details on how to check your AirPods Pro firmware…

You probably know by now that you can choose between two different Home screen designs for Apple Watch. While you used to be able to do that quickly with a long-press, that’s not available with watchOS 10. Here’s how to use Apple Watch list view with the current software.

iOS 17.2 unlocks a significant new feature for iPhone 13 and iPhone 14 users: support for Qi2 wireless charging. This comes after the iPhone 15 was announced as the first Qi2-enabled iPhone and before the first Qi2 accessories hit the market this month.

Listen to a recap of the top stories of the day from 9to5Mac. 9to5Mac Daily is available on iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

Sponsored by Capital One Shopping: Capital One Shopping users saved over $800 million in the past year. Get automatic free coupons at over 100+ stores.

Apple released the iOS 17.2 RC to developers and public beta testers, signaling that the update will be pushed to everyone as soon as next week. Alongside the iOS 17.2 RC, Apple has shared the full release notes for the update with details on every new feature, bug fixes, and more.

Apple has issued release candidate beta versions of iOS 17.2, watchOS 10.2, macOS 14.2, and tvOS 17.2. The final versions are expected to be ready this month. We’ll update you with any changes we discover.

CarPlay has been in the news quite a bit this year, ranging from GM’s decision to abandon the platform to Apple’s looming launch of “next-generation” CarPlay.

How important is CarPlay to car buyers? We polled over 6,000 9to5Mac readers to find out…

New all-time lows are the name of the game today as far as Apple deals are concerned, as the Apple Watch Series 9 now starts from $310. There’s $89 or more in savings to be had across both sizes, with much of the same best-price-ever status landing on Apple’s FineWoven MagSafe wallet at $45. Plus, Sonos Roam/SL AirPlay 2 smart speakers hit $119 – the best price of 2023 and beyond. Hit the jump for all that and more in the latest 9to5Toys Lunch Break.

SwingVision, an Apple Design Award-winning app in innovation, today introduced its expansion into pickleball. Initially an app meant to act as a tennis coach helping users to perfect every aspect of their game, SwingVision is making its way into America’s fastest-growing sport.

iPhone assembler Foxconn had already predicted “significant growth” during the holiday quarter, but now says that October and November have been even stronger than expected.

The company told investors that its November revenue hit T$650 billion ($20.65 billion), the second highest on record for the month …

India is planning to copy the European Union’s USB-C charging port law, requiring all smartphones to adopt the standard, which poses three big problems for Apple – and not just in India.

A new report today says that Apple is lobbying either for an exemption for older models still manufactured in the country, or delayed enforcement of the proposed legislation …