MacRumors

Brave, the browser which has gained momentum and popularity in recent years, is taking another leap forward in its quest to offer users a more private and secure internet experience. Starting today, Brave browser users will have access to Brave Search in beta, a completely new search engine that offers "unmatched privacy."

Brave Search was announced last March, and since its announcement, it's been tested by more than 100,000 users. Brave, which prides itself on being a "browser reimagined," recently surpassed 32 million monthly active users and is hoping that Brave Search will further its role in the browser market.

Brave Search beta is available to all Brave browser users on iOS, Android, and desktop starting today. At first, users will need to manually select Brave Search as their search engine option, alongside other choices such as Google and Bing. However, Brave Search will become the default and standard search engine for the Brave browser later this year.

Unlike Google and others, Brave Search doesn't track users, their searches, or clicks. Instead, Brave Search "puts users first, and fully in control of their online experience." The "completely independent" search engine also promises full transparency, with "no secret methods or algorithms for bias results," and soon will roll out "community-curated open ranking models to ensure diversity and prevent algorithmic biases" and censorship.

Brendan Eich, CEO and co-founder of Brave, says the new search engine is the "real alternative" to Big Tech, such as Google, and that it offers a new way for users to securely and privately browse the web without the worry of their privacy.

Unlike older search engines that track and profile users, and newer search engines that are mostly a skin on older engines and don't have their own indexes, Brave Search offers a new way to get relevant results with a community-powered index, while guaranteeing privacy. Brave Search fills a clear void in the market today as millions of people have lost trust in the surveillance economy and actively seek solutions to be in control of their data.

One major upside for users using Brave Search, currently still in beta, is its ad-free experience. When the search engine exits beta, Brave is pledging to offer users options for an ad-free search experience and an "ad-supported free" experience later. The company also said it would "explore bringing private ads with BAT revenue share to search," as it's done for Brave Browser users.

Brave relies on its own index for the web, rather than relying on Google Search and Microsoft's Bing. To do this, Brave is relying on "anonymized contributions from the community to improve and refine results."

In order to present a true independent alternative to big tech, Brave decided to build its own index rather than rent it from Google or Microsoft, as other smaller search engines are currently doing. Brave Search includes anonymized contributions from the community to improve and refine results.

At launch, Brave's index will still struggle to meet the levels of Google and others with search queries such as image search. Until Brave's index can expand, it will rely on using third-party APIs. Brave Search is also introducing an "independence metric" that will inform users on the independence of their search results to ensure no bias in the index or algorithm.

Brave Search is also introducing the industry's first search independence metric, displaying the ratio of results coming exclusively from Brave's index. It is derived privately using the user's browser as we do not build user profiles. Users can check this aggregate metric to verify the independence of their results and see how results are powered by our own index, or if third-parties are being used for long tail results while we are still in the process of building our index.

Brave Search in beta is available starting today for Brave browsers on iOS, Android, and the desktop. It will also be available to non-Brave browser users at search.brave.com

Apple's largest manufacturing partner Foxconn is offering "record-high" signing bonuses in an effort to recruit workers for iPhone 13 production over the next few months, according to the South China Morning Post.

The report claims Foxconn is offering up to 8,000 yuan ($1,235) as a signing bonus to former workers willing to return to its Zhengzhou, China factory to assist with iPhone assembly during the "peak season," up from 5,500 yuan last month and 5,000 yuan in 2020. Workers will receive their bonuses after working for Foxconn's iPhone assembly division for four months and staying until the end of the peak season, the report adds.

Apple manufacturers like Foxconn commonly offer signing bonuses in the months leading up to an iPhone launch, but this year's bonus range for returning workers is the highest since the Zhengzhou factory started operations in 2010, according to the South China Morning Post's review of past recruitment ads from Foxconn.

Apple is increasingly expected to unveil the iPhone 13 lineup in September, marking a return to its usual launch timeframe after unveiling the iPhone 12 lineup in October 2020 due to reported COVID-19-related production delays.

iPhone 13 models are rumored to feature a smaller notch at the top of the display, but otherwise they are expected to have a similar design as their iPhone 12 counterparts. Other key new features expected include a faster A15 chip, a 120Hz refresh rate on the Pro models, several camera upgrades, a new Matte Black color, and more.

Apple this week made the HomePod mini available to order in New Zealand, with pricing set at $159 including tax. Available in Space Gray and White, the speaker currently faces a 2-3 weeks shipping estimate in the country.

Apple confirmed the HomePod mini would be launching in additional countries during its WWDC keynote earlier this month. The speaker became available to order in Austria and Ireland last week, and it will be released in Italy later this year. The international expansion comes after the full-sized HomePod was discontinued earlier this year.

HomePod mini was first released in October 2020 in the United States, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Spain, and the UK.

Like the full-sized HomePod, the HomePod mini features built-in Siri for controlling music playback, managing HomeKit accessories, and more. Starting with tvOS 15, two HomePod minis can be set as an Apple TV 4K's default speaker outputs.

The U.K. government on Tuesday will perform its first national test of a new Emergency Alerts system, but only Android users will receive the alert, with iPhones to be included in a smaller, regional test later this month, the Cabinet Office has confirmed to MacRumors.

The government-issued emergency alerts, set to go live this summer, are part of a public safety system similar to one used in the U.S. that is designed to warn smartphone and tablet users if there's a danger to life nearby, with advice about how to stay safe. Alerts will be either national or localized depending on the threat level, and will be sent in cases of severe flooding, fires, explosions, terrorist incidents, and public health emergencies.

When an alert arrives, your phone or tablet may make a loud siren-like sound, even if it's set to silent, vibrate, or read out the alert. When an alert is received, the sound and vibration will last for about 10 seconds, and some alerts may include a phone number or a link to the GOV.UK website for more information.

On Tuesday, the government and mobile phone networks are due to test the emergency alerts nationally for the first time, between 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. local time. The first test will occur for Android devices only, while iPhones will be included in a test for the first time on Tuesday, 29 June, although the test will be localized in the Reading, Berkshire area.

Users can opt out of some emergency alerts, but not the most serious ones, says the U.K. government. Users can't opt out by subject, only by how serious the emergency is. If you opt out because you do not want flood warnings, for example, you might miss alerts for fires and terrorism. For this reason, the official advice is to keep emergency alerts switched on.

Emergency alerts work on iPhones running iOS 14.5 or later. The ability to opt-out appears on iPhones in Settings -> Notifications, under "Emergency Alerts," where there's a switch to disable "Severe Alerts."

Update: the U.K. government website has now been updated to clarify iPhone inclusion in the June 29 test.

London Underground passengers will be able to get mobile coverage across the rail network by the end of 2024, it has been announced.

In a press release, Transport for London (TfL) said the capital's Oxford Circus, Tottenham Court Road and Bank stations would be among the first fully connected stations by the end of the year, followed by Tottenham Court Road, Euston, and Camden Town by the end of 2022.

Mobile reception was introduced on the eastern half of the Jubilee line in March last year. TfL says the additional infrastructure will support 5G as well as 4G, but that it will be the responsibility of mobile operators to offer support for the fastest network speeds.

The London mayor, Sadiq Khan, who was re-elected last month, said in a statement:

"I promised Londoners that if they re-elected me for a second term as mayor I would deliver 4G throughout the tube network. It's already up and running on the eastern half of the Jubilee line and I'm delighted to announce today that I am fulfilling that commitment and full internet access will be available across the tube, with key central London stations such as Oxford Circus and Euston set to benefit before the end of next year."

TfL is partnering with BAI Communications (BAI), a global provider of 4G and 5G connected infrastructure, to plug so-called coverage "not-spots" in the underground network. The over 1,242 miles of fibre cabling installed in London Underground tunnels will also benefit above-ground coverage for buildings and other infrastructure by allowing more mobile transmitters to be installed.

Facebook this week launched its Clubhouse competitor in the U.S., called Live Audio Rooms, along with its new podcasts service, details of which we covered previously.

To begin with, Live Audio Rooms is only available to some public figures and certain groups, and can only be hosted through the Facebook iOS app, but both iOS and Android users can join a room, and the feature supports up to 50 speaking participants and an unlimited number of listeners.

While Clubhouse already has a solid user base, it limits the number of people who can enter a room, so Facebook's offering has one up on its rival from the off. Facebook users can also "raise a hand" to join a conversation, and use reactions to participate in real time.

In addition, Live Audio Rooms is set to receive more features that Clubhouse presently lacks, including notifications when friends or followers join a room and live captioning.

Users can discover and join Live Audio Rooms within Facebook Groups. In private groups, admins can control whether moderators, group members or other admins can create a Live Audio Room. Meanwhile, in public groups, both members and visitors can listen to the Live Audio Room, but in private groups, only members can listen.

Live Audio Room hosts can also select a nonprofit or fundraiser to support during their conversation, and listeners and speakers can directly donate.

Among the U.S.-basd public figures with first access to Live Audio Rooms are music artist TOKiMONSTA, football quarterback Russell Wilson, Internet personality Omareloff, and entrepreneur Amanda Nguyen. Initial group conversations are also being hosted on topics ranging from dance and vegan food to guided meditation.

Apple is set to receive supply priority status from pure play foundry TSMC for iPhone 13 chip orders going into the third quarter of 2021, as the Taiwanese partner grapples with orders for automative and other device chips amid a supply shortfall, according to DigiTimes.

TSMC is also set to ramp up its output for the upcoming iPhone series in the third quarter, the sources indicated.

Other chip suppliers in Apple's supply chain, including Genesys Logic and Parade Technologies, are also scaling up supply to fulfill Apple's orders for the third quarter, which are said to be 30-40% higher than second quarter levels.

With the ‌iPhone 13‌ series expected to follow a more usual launch timeline this year, chipmakers are poised to see Apple's orders peak for 2021 in the fourth quarter, said DigiTimes' supply chain sources.

The ‌iPhone 13‌ models dropping in September are expected to look similar to the 2020 ‌iPhone‌ lineup, with four devices in sizes that include 5.4-inches, 6.1-inches, and 6.7-inches, with two of the iPhones being higher-end "Pro" models and two positioned as lower-cost, more affordable devices.

Though major design changes aren't expected, rumors suggest camera improvements, a faster A-series processor, a new 5G chip from Qualcomm, increased battery life, and some tweaks to the notch. Check out our dedicated iPhone 13 roundup for all the details.

Apple in iOS 15 is making major changes to the FaceTime app, introducing a whole range of new features that turn ‌FaceTime‌ into the ultimate hub for interacting with friends, family, coworkers, and more.

Our ‌FaceTime‌ guide outlines everything that's new in the ‌FaceTime‌ app in ‌iOS 15‌ and iPadOS 15, and many of these features are also in macOS Monterey and can even be used in tvOS 15. We've also included detailed how tos and tutorials so you can dive right into ‌FaceTime‌ after upgrading.

SharePlay

SharePlay is ‌FaceTime‌'s biggest new feature, and it's basically a way for you to do more on ‌FaceTime‌ calls with your friends and family. You can watch TV together, listen to music, and share your screen.

Watch Movies and TV

When you're on a ‌FaceTime‌ call, you can choose to stream movies or TV shows and everyone on the call will see the same synced playback and controls. You can watch on the iPhone or iPad, or swap over to the Apple TV to watch on the big screen while you continue your call.

As you chat and watch, the volume will automatically adjust so that you can hear everyone talking without missing the show.

You can ‌FaceTime‌, watch content, and also do other things on your ‌iPhone‌ for the ultimate multitasking experience.

Listen to Music

If you play an Apple Music song while on a ‌FaceTime‌ call with friends, everyone can hear what's playing and can contribute to a shared music queue. The SharePlay music interface offers up synced playback controls, and everyone can see what's coming up next.

You can listen to music over your ‌iPhone‌, or send it over to the HomePod while remaining on the ‌FaceTime‌ call.

Share Your Screen

Apple has long allowed screen sharing over Messages on the Mac, and this year, that functionality is coming to the ‌iPhone‌ and ‌iPad‌ too. You can share your ‌iPhone‌'s screen with everyone on the call, which is useful when you're planning a vacation, choosing a movie, browsing through a photo album, and more.

SharePlay Messages

If you're on a ‌FaceTime‌ call but want to send a quick link or image over to the group, you can access your group Messages chat right from the call.

Create a FaceTime Link

Apple changed how ‌FaceTime‌ works in ‌iOS 15‌, so you can create something more akin to a Zoom link, but for ‌FaceTime‌. You can make a ‌FaceTime‌ link that other people can tap to join your ‌FaceTime‌ call.

Links let you schedule ‌FaceTime‌ calls in advance and then share the links with others so everyone can join the meeting or group chat at the appropriate time. ‌FaceTime‌ integrates directly with the Apple Calendar app.

To create a link, just open up the ‌FaceTime‌ app and then tap the "Create Link" option next to "New ‌FaceTime‌." You can share the link in a text message, another messaging service, an email, or AirDrop it, and people can click it to join in.

FaceTime on PCs and Android Devices

Apple created ‌FaceTime‌ links because there's a new option to join ‌FaceTime‌ calls on the web, which means PC and Android users can participate in ‌FaceTime‌ for the first time.

An ‌iPhone‌, Mac, or ‌iPad‌ user needs to create a ‌FaceTime‌ link, but once created, anyone can tap it to join. To join from the web, Chrome or Edge browsers are required. ‌FaceTime‌ from the web works on-on-one or in Group ‌FaceTime‌ calls.

• iOS 15: How to Invite Android Users to a FaceTime Call

Spatial Audio

‌FaceTime‌ supports Spatial Audio in ‌iOS 15‌, so if you're chatting with multiple people and their pictures are in different spots on your screen, it sounds like their voices are coming from the right spot on your device.

Apple says that individual voices are meant to sound like they're coming from the direction in which each person is positioned on the screen, which is meant to make conversations flow more naturally.

Spatial Audio requires an ‌iPhone‌ with the A12 Bionic or later.

Grid View

‌FaceTime‌ in ‌iOS 15‌ has a new Grid View, which puts ‌FaceTime‌ on par with other videoconferencing apps. You can organize everyone into the same-size tiles, and the person speaking is automatically highlighted.

Portrait Mode

‌FaceTime‌'s Portrait Mode blurs out the background behind you and puts the focus on you. An A12 Bionic chip or later is required for this feature.

Microphone modes

There are two microphone modes in ‌iOS 15‌. Voice Isolation is designed to minimize background noises to focus on your voice, while Wide Spectrum makes sure the ambient noise is audible, something that's ideal for group calls.

• iOS 15: How to Block Background Noise in FaceTime With Voice Isolation

Mute Alerts

If you're on a ‌FaceTime‌ call and you start talking while muted, you'll see an alert on your ‌iPhone‌ that lets you know the mute button is on.

Zoom

While using the rear-facing camera on a ‌FaceTime‌ call, there's an option to zoom in on what's on the screen.

Guide Feedback

Have questions about ‌FaceTime‌ in ‌iOS 15‌, know of a feature we left out, or want to offer feedback on this guide? Send us an email here.

Apple today announced it is offering an extended one-month free trial for the Paramount+ streaming service to new users who subscribe within the Apple TV app through June 30, as spotted by The Mac Observer. The offer is valid in the U.S. only.

Previously known as CBS All Access, Paramount+ provides access to TV shows and movies from ViacomCBS and its various subsidiaries, including CBS, Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central, BET, and others. The streaming service typically offers a seven-day free trial to new users when subscribing directly.

Paramount+ is one of several "Apple TV channels," meaning that users can subscribe to and watch the streaming service in the Apple TV app. Users can also download the Paramount+ app for iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV.

Paramount+ costs $4.99 per month with ads, or $9.99 per month without ads.

Building on the success of the series, Apple TV+'s "Ted Lasso" is now officially selling merchandise related to the show, including mugs, t-shirts, jerseys, and more.

The new listings, spotted by 9to5Mac, including marketing from the team portrayed in the hit TV series named A.F.C. Richmond. "Fan Favorite" merchandise includes a $60 Richmond jersey, a $42 hooded sweatshirt, a $16 pint glass, a $15 mug with the "Be a Goldfish" quote, borrowed from one of the show's episodes, and more.

Some of the items such as an embroidered $34 "A.F.C. Richmond" hat and "Ted Lasso" engraved tumbler are listed as "Coming Soon." The new merch is available through The Warner Brothers Shop, where merchandise for other popular shows such as "The Games of Thrones," "Friends," "Tom and Jerry," and more can be found.

Update: "Ted Lasso" also received a Peabody Award today for excellence in storytelling. The award was presented virtually by Will Ferrell and was accepted by "Ted Lasso" star and executive producer Jason Sudeikis.

Despite previous attempts to put the situation at rest, some iCloud users continue to experience spam calendar invitations, causing their calendars to be filled with random events.

The situation received widespread coverage in 2016, where Apple said that it was "actively working to address this issue" by "identifying and blocking suspicious senders." Victims are targeted in various ways. The most common method is by receiving a normal iCloud calendar invitation through their calendar app.

Interacting with the invitation, including declining, accepting, or choosing "Maybe," lets the spammer know that the email is valid, so it can continue to be targeted.

Other users are targeted through web pop-ups on potentially malicious or adult websites. Apple has not publicly commented on what specific measures it has taken to solve the issue, but through a video posted by Apple Support, that has so far garnered more than 97,000 views, it has a solution.

The video advises that users, logically, unsubscribe from these spam calendars. The video doesn't offer any insight into what proactive measures users can take to not receive the invitations in the first place.

One measure that some users have found to be helpful is to redirect calendar invitations to their email, rather than an in-app calendar invitation. By redirecting invitations to their email, users can better manage and delete calendar invitations. For more detailed instructions, make sure to check out our how to.

As part of WWDC this month, Apple announced this year's winners of an Apple Design Award, which honors excellence in innovation, ingenuity, and technical achievement in app and game design. Among the recipients in 2021 was CARROT Weather, a popular app known for its humorous weather forecasts.

CARROT Weather has since shared an unboxing video of its Apple Design Award with a similarly humorous tone, offering a closer look at the aluminum cube.

The quirky weather app was a winner in the "Interaction" category alongside Bird Alone. Apple said winners in this category "deliver intuitive interfaces and effortless controls that are perfectly tailored to their platform."

"CARROT Weather is known for its humorous forecasts and unique visuals," said Apple. "A recent design update has brought simplicity and elegance to its experience across all Apple platforms. From witty weather projections, to a robust set of customizable widgets and a collection of useful watch faces, this app comes packed with endless entertainment."

12 different apps received an Apple Design Award this year in total.

A Macintosh 128K fan has created a fun video that re-imagines the original Mac from 1984 in a modern-style advert.

The project comes from motion designer Thibaut Crepelle, who outlined the creative process behind the video in a Behance post.

I wanted to pursue my idea of creating modern motion design stuff for vintage products.
For this piece, since everything is a learning experiment, I wanted to tackle a bit of UI and "animated modeling."

Today, its cubic design, its cute launch icon are elements well established in the computer horizon, and I wanted to pay an homage to that classic piece of hardware.

The Macintosh 128K was introduced in the now-famous "1984" Super Bowl commercial directed by Ridley Scott, but Crepelle sought to match the vibrant, punchy Apple ads of today using a range of software and resources from Figma to replicate the classic Mac's UI and high-resolution animations that synchronized with the music.

Crepelle also included a number of easter eggs in the video, such as macOS Monterey's wallpaper and the gradient used on Apple's "One More Thing" Mac event graphics.

Users appear to be underwhelmed by Apple's upcoming iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 updates, according to the findings of a new survey by SellCell.

The survey asked 3,000 iPhone and iPad users, evenly split between men and women, aged 18 or over in the United States, what they thought of ‌iOS 15‌, ‌iPadOS 15‌, and the naming of the upcoming iPhone 13 lineup.

Over 50 percent of all of the survey's respondents said that the ‌iOS 15‌ and ‌iPadOS 15‌ updates are only "slightly" or "not at all" exciting. 28.1 percent rated the updates "somewhat" exciting, but as few as 19.3 percent are "extremely" or "very" excited about them.

Within ‌iOS 15‌ and ‌iPadOS 15‌, 23 percent of users said that the most exciting upgrade is ID cards in the Wallet app, 17.3 percent are most excited about enhanced Spotlight search, and 14.2 percent are most excited about new Find My features.

Very few respondents were enamored with many of ‌iOS 15‌ and ‌iPadOS 15‌'s new features. Less than one percent of respondents thought that iMessage's "Shared with You" feature, Health app upgrades including fall-risk metrics and data sharing, and improvements to Apple Maps with more transit details and AR walking directions were the best new features. Likewise, FaceTime app improvements with Spatial Audio, screen sharing, grid view, and portrait mode, the redesigned notifications system, and Focus statuses only attracted around five percent of respondents.

When asked what features respondents thought should have been added in ‌iOS 15‌ and ‌iPadOS 15‌, 32.3 percent said that there should have been interactive widgets, 21 percent said that there should have been always-on display features, 14.9 percent said that there should have been Pro apps such as Xcode or Final Cut Pro for the ‌iPad‌, and 13.2 percent said that there should have been better external display support for the ‌iPad‌.

Beyond the ‌iOS 15‌ and ‌iPadOS 15‌ updates, the survey also investigated triskaidekaphobia, a superstitious fear of the number 13, around the naming of the upcoming ‌iPhone 13‌. As many as one in five ‌iPhone‌ and ‌iPad‌ users said that they would be actively put off by the "‌iPhone 13‌" moniker.

Respondents were also asked how they thought Apple should name its upcoming series of ‌iPhone‌ models. Interestingly, most responses indicated that the devices should not be called the "‌iPhone 13‌." 38 percent said that Apple should call its next smartphone series simply "‌iPhone‌ (2021)," 26 percent thought that the "‌iPhone 13‌" was the best name, and only 13 percent said that they would like to see the devices called the "‌iPhone‌ 12S."

Following widespread reports that the iPhone 12 mini has experienced poor sales performance, at least relative to other iPhone 12 models, Taiwanese research firm TrendForce today claimed that production of the device has already ended.

According to TrendForce, the iPhone 12 mini "reached End-of-Life ahead of time" during the second quarter of 2021, suggesting that Apple will focus on selling through its existing inventory of the device without producing any further units. Launched in October 2020, the iPhone 12 mini features a 5.4-inch display that caters to fans of smaller smartphones, with pricing starting at $699 in the United States.

While production has reportedly ceased, the iPhone 12 mini remains available on Apple.com without any notable shipping delays for now. The device is offered in six colors, including a purple option that went on sale in late April.

Apple is still expected to unveil an iPhone 13 mini later this year, but rumors suggest the 5.4-inch model will be discontinued in 2022.