MacRumors

During its Google I/O developers conference today, Google previewed Android 12, the next version of Android that will ship to millions of Android devices around the world later this year.

Google is mainly targeting customization as the theme for this year's new release and a new design language that it's calling "Material You." Google says this new design language brings a "humanistic approach to design," an approach that "celebrates the tension between design sensibility and personal preference, and does not shy away from emotion."

Google is offering users nearly unlimited customizability for system shapes, colors, and overall feel. Google aims to offer users customization through color extraction, which automatically detects colors that are most dominant in a user's wallpaper and then applies them throughout the system, such as on the lockscreen, widgets, and more.

With Android 12, Google is also introducing more fluid systemwide animations that are aimed at making devices feel "alive with every tap, swipe, and scroll." Google is ensuring, however, that these systemwide animations have minimal impact on battery life and system performance.

Your Android devices are now faster and more responsive with better power efficiency so you can use your device for longer without a charge. This was achieved by some under-the-hood improvements including reducing the CPU time needed for core system services by up to 22% and reducing the use of big cores by the system server by up to 15%.

Beyond design changes, Google introduced new privacy features that take some inspiration from iOS 14, released this past September. One new feature is a microphone and camera indicator, which provides a dot in the top-right hand corner of a device whenever an app is accessing the camera or microphone. Google is also making it easier to disable a specific app's access to the microphone and camera through new toggles in Quick Settings.

Another privacy-centric feature coming with Android 12 is the ability for users to give apps access to either their precise or approximate location. Much like iOS, whenever an app requests access to a user's location, an option to provide "Precise" and "Approximate" locations are given.

Android 12 also includes under-the-hood privacy changes enabled by new AI technologies that help minimize user data collection.

Beyond these new privacy features in Android 12, we’re also building privacy protections directly into the OS. There are more opportunities than ever to use AI to create helpful new features, but these features need to be paired with powerful privacy. That’s why in this release we’re introducing Android Private Compute Core. It allows us to introduce new technologies that are private by design, allowing us to keep your personal information safe, private and local to your phone.

Beyond adopting some iOS 14 privacy features, Google is also taking inspiration in some other areas. Google introduced "Google Digital Car Key," which, much like Apple's Digital Car Key feature available on iOS 13 and ‌iOS 14‌, lets car owners use NFC on their supported Android device to unlock compatible vehicles.

As reported by 9to5Google, Google is also adding support for Apple's Beats headphones to its "Google Fast Pair" process, which aims to make it easy to pair Bluetooth headphones and accessories by simply bringing them near your device. The new feature takes heavy inspiration from Apple users' seamless experience when pairing AirPods, HomePod, and other accessories to their iPhone or iPad.

Android 12 will be under beta testing throughout the summer starting today, and Google says it will be available for a wide range of Android devices later this year.

Apple in June 2021 added new Lossless and Hi-Res Lossless tiers to Apple Music, but so far, it's a bit confusing trying to determine which devices support ‌Apple Music‌'s Lossless Audio and which devices do not.

What is Lossless Audio?

Apple upgraded its entire streaming music catalog to lossless audio using the ALAC (Apple Lossless Audio Codec) format. ALAC is a lossless compression format that lets Apple make smaller file sizes without impacting the integrity of the original audio recording.

Lossless means that after compression and then decompression, the audio that you're hearing is identical to the audio as it was recorded by the artist, preserving the texture, detail, and sound that went into the music when it was created.

With lossless audio, ‌Apple Music‌ subscribers can listen to songs exactly as the artists recorded them in the studio and intended them to be heard.

Lossless Device Support

Supported

According to Apple, lossless audio on ‌Apple Music‌ can be listened to on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV. Support for lossless audio will be added to the HomePod and HomePod mini via a future software update.

The ‌HomePod‌ and ‌HomePod mini‌ are expected to gain lossless audio support with the launch of iOS 15. The ‌HomePod‌ 15 software that was released in July adds Lossless Audio support for the ‌HomePod‌ and ‌HomePod mini‌, and it will see a public release this fall.

Unsupported

None of Apple's headphones, however, work with lossless audio. The AirPods, AirPods Pro, and AirPods Max are limited to the Bluetooth AAC codec and simply cannot support the ALAC format.

In regard to a wired connection for AirPods Max, Apple says that AirPods Max can be connected to devices playing Lossless and Hi-Res Lossless recordings with exceptional audio quality, but because of the analog to digital conversion in the Lightning to 3.5mm audio cable, playback will not be completely lossless.

Lossless Audio Quality

The standard Lossless tier starts at CD quality, which is 16-bit at 44.1 kHz, and it goes up to 24-bit at 48 kHz. Apple is also adding a Hi-Res Lossless tier for audiophiles, which is available at 24-bit 192 kHz, but Hi-Res Lossless will require a USB digital-to-analog converter, or DAC.

Even when connected by a physical wire, the AirPods Max won't support true lossless audio.

It is not clear if ALAC support is something that Apple can add in the future because technically, Bluetooth 5.0 should support higher bitrates, nor is it known if Apple plans to add support to future audio devices.

Lossless Audio Songs

At launch, 20 million songs supported lossless quality, with Apple planning to bring support to all 75 million+ songs on ‌Apple Music‌ by the end of 2021.

The feature is limited to ‌Apple Music‌ streaming subscribers. Lossless quality will not be available for iTunes purchases and there is no way to upgrade owned music to lossless via iTunes Match.

Can You Even Hear Lossless Audio?

Lossless audio is not a new concept, and has in fact been supported via iTunes and the ‌Apple Music‌ app for Mac for years now. There is some controversy over lossless audio, and there are quite a few people out there who are unable to hear the difference between lossy audio and uncompressed lossless audio files.

There are also other considerations to take into account, such as the quality of the device that you're listening to music on. Lossless audio is designed for audiophiles and most people will not miss lossless quality on their ‌HomePod‌, AirPods, AirPods Pro, and AirPods Max.

Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos

Apple's more notable ‌Apple Music‌ announcement has been somewhat overshadowed by the lossless music feature. The ‌HomePod‌, all AirPods, and all Beats headphones with Apple's H1 or W1 chip automatically support a new Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos feature that Apple is bringing to ‌Apple Music‌. Spatial Audio for other headphones paired with an Apple device can be enabled manually via the Settings app on your device.

With this feature, artists are able to record multi-dimensional audio that will make it sound like the music is coming from all around you.

Apple Music Lossless Launch Date

Apple laid the groundwork for the new ‌Apple Music‌ update in iOS 14.6, tvOS 14.6, and macOS Big Sur 11.4, then later enabled lossless quality in June.

Just three days before the new iPad Pro begins arriving to customers, the developers of award-winning iPhone camera app Halide have announced the release of an iPad app, complete with a custom user interface that takes advantage of the larger screen.

To keep the viewfinder minimally obscured, the iPad app has an expandable "honeycomb" of controls next to the shutter button for manually adjusting shutter speed, ISO, white balance, and more. Other key features are readily reachable at the edges of the screen, with Halide offering Smart RAW and RAW+JPEG capture, instant RAW processing, a dedicated Depth mode, manual focus with focus peaking, and more.

Unique to the iPad is a new Pro View that shrinks the viewfinder to be within the limits of your central vision, according to Halide:

Ever notice that taking a photo on an iPad is a challenge? It’s not just the iPad part. Our human vision is split into central and peripheral vision - allowing you to see detail only in a small area. As you hold iPads closer to you than iPhones and their screens are larger, it is nearly impossible to see your entire composition well. […]

Pro View is a toggle in the bottom left that shrinks the viewfinder up to the limits of your detailed central vision. It makes it large enough to use a large iPad screen, but small enough to judge composition and take a good photo. This also creates extra space for manual mode, a big histogram (we made it much larger), waveform, manual focus, and the pro features. Even enabling manual controls for shutter and ISO do not interfere or overlap on the viewfinder.

Halide said there are several other new features, refinements, and bug fixes, including a left-handed user interface option and a space gray app icon option.

Halide is available on the App Store.

Apple is working on a high-end version of the Mac mini, featuring a more powerful Apple silicon chip and extra ports, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

In a wide-reaching report, Gurman explained that Apple is developing a more powerful version of the ‌Mac mini‌, positioned as a high-end version of the current M1 model. The new ‌Mac mini‌ is expected to use the same chip as the next-generation MacBook Pro.

The next-generation ‌MacBook Pro‌ models are expected to feature an improved version of the ‌M1‌ chip with a 10-core CPU, containing eight high-performance cores and two energy-efficient cores, and 16-core or 32-core GPU options, meaning this is also what we can expect from the new ‌Mac mini‌. Gurman said that this Apple silicon chip will also support up to 64GB of memory, a significant increase compared to the current maximum of 16GB.

The high-end ‌Mac mini‌ is also expected to feature four Thunderbolt ports on its rear, rather than the two that are available on the rear of the current ‌Mac mini‌ with an ‌M1‌ chip, which is also a change supported by the next-generation Apple silicon chip.

Apple has also been working on a more powerful version of the Mac mini (code name J374) with the same chip as the next MacBook Pro. It's expected to have four ports versus the pair available on the current low-end version and to sit above the current entry-level M1 Mac Mini. Apple could delay or cancel the new mini's launch - as it has in the past - but eventually the company will likely replace the Intel-equipped version it now sells.

When Apple introduced the ‌M1‌ ‌Mac mini‌ last year, it retained the Intel Mac minis with two additional ports in the product lineup as a high-end option. Apple did the same with the ‌MacBook Pro‌ and iMac, where the ‌M1‌ option replaced the entry-level version of the machine, and kept the high-end Intel models with more ports on sale.

The new high-end ‌Mac mini‌ is expected to replace the current Intel-based ‌Mac mini‌ that is still on sale, meaning that the whole ‌Mac mini‌ product lineup will have transitioned to Apple silicon. Gurman added the caveat that the new ‌Mac mini‌ may yet be delayed or cancelled, but said that the company will likely replace the current high-end Intel-based ‌Mac mini‌ with an Apple silicon version eventually.

Gurman also disclosed an extensive amount of information earlier this morning regarding upcoming MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac Pro models.

Apple TV's Color Balance calibration feature may make color accuracy and image quality worse on some TVs, tests have found (via AFTVnews).

Professional television calibrator Vincent Teoh, who runs the YouTube channel HDTVTest, put the ‌Apple TV‌'s color calibration feature to the test on a range of popular TVs in a recent video.

The ‌Apple TV‌'s Color Calibration debuted in tvOS 14.5 and iOS 14.5, giving users the ability to hold an iPhone with Face ID near their TV and, after tapping a notification, the iPhone's front-facing camera and ambient light sensor will begin color measurements and automatically tailor the ‌Apple TV‌'s video output to deliver supposedly more accurate colors and improved contrast. Apple says this process will result in improved picture quality without adjusting the TV's settings.

Apple's demonstration image showing what the Color Balance feature can achieve.

When set to their most accurate out-of-the-box color presets, two of the three TVs Teoh tested had their color accuracy made worse. On a Samsung QLED TV, the overall color accuracy improved, but the image was incorrectly shifted to a cooler blue tone. On a Sony LED TV, the feature made the color accuracy worse and similarly made the image too blue. On an LG OLED TV, the calibration feature did manage to improve color accuracy without making the image too blue.

When the tests were re-run with the TV's default color presets, the ‌Apple TV‌'s calibration feature improved color accuracy on all three models. Even so, Teoh found that when color accuracy was improved, image quality was degraded in other ways. Since the ‌Apple TV‌ had to shift the color output so much in these instances, the resulting image suffered from unwanted color banding lines, known as posterization.

• How to Use Apple TV's iPhone-Based Color Balance Feature

Teoh's tests indicate that the ‌Apple TV‌'s color calibration is certainly not a replacement for professional color calibration using specialized tools, and should be used with caution. AFTVnews suggests that users may be better off using the Color Balance feature to see how drastically it changes the TV's image, and then attempting to match the result using the TV's built-in color options.

SteelSeries, the makers of popular gaming controllers for Apple devices, has today announced that all purchases of the Nimbus+ Wireless Gamepad Controller will come with up to four free months of Apple Arcade.

The SteelSeries Nimbus+ Wireless Gamepad Controller delivers a "console-quality experience" with ‌Apple Arcade‌'s library of games.

Iterating on the original Nimbus controller, the Nimbus+ Wireless Gamepad Controller features an ergonomic design, ultra-responsive triggers and buttons, and a range of Apple connectivity options to work with Phone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, and Apple TV. The Nimbus+ adds a range of new features, including clickable joysticks, new Hall effect triggers, and a 50-hour battery life. The Nimbus+ also features an optional iPhone mount to allows users to directly attach their iPhone to the controller.

SteelSeries notes that the Nimbus+ controller comes with up to four months of ‌Apple Arcade‌, which may indicate that some subscribers who have already redeemed their one-month-long free trial may be eligible for a shorter, three month period of free ‌Apple Arcade‌.

The Nimbus+ controller is available now for $69.99 USD at steelseries.com, the Apple online store, and other participating retailers, including up to four free months of ‌Apple Arcade‌.

Update: SteelSeries has now clarified that Nimbus+ customers will receive a code to redeem three free months of ‌Apple Arcade‌, on top of Apple's one-month free trial. Existing ‌Apple Arcade‌ subscribers will still be able to redeem the code for three free months of the service.

Apple is working on a high-end version of the MacBook Air that will feature an improved iteration of the current M1 Apple silicon chip, featuring improved graphics, but the same number of high efficiency, and high performance cores, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

Apple updated its 13-inch ‌MacBook Air‌ alongside the 13-inch MacBook Pro and Mac mini with the ‌M1‌ Apple silicon chip in November. Bloomberg says that this new ‌MacBook Air‌, which could launch as soon as the end of this year, will be more "high-end," featuring possibly nine or ten graphics cores, instead of the current seven and eight configurations.

The report notes that Apple is planning to update the low-end 13-inch ‌MacBook Pro‌ with the same improved chip.

For a redesigned, higher-end MacBook Air planned for as early as the end of the year, Apple is planning a direct successor to the M1 processor. That chip, codenamed Staten, will include the same number of computing cores as the M1 but run faster. It will also see the number of graphics cores increase from seven or eight to nine or 10. Apple is also planning an update to the low-end 13-inch MacBook Pro with that same chip.

Specfic details on what the ‌MacBook Air‌ redesign may include are scarce, but, Apple leaker Jon Prosser says that the new MacBook Air may come in different colors, much like the recently launched 24-inch iMac.

The embargo has lifted on reviews of Apple's new 24-inch iMac, powered by the same M1 chip that debuted in the 13-inch MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac mini last year. We've gathered up impressions of the colorful new computer below.

The most striking aspect of the new iMac is its long-awaited redesign, with an ultra-thin 11.5mm chassis that comes in up to seven vibrant colors, including green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, blue, and silver. The Verge's Monica Chin said the new colors have generated lots of interest on TikTok and are "clearly a hit with certain crowds":

I'm not quite convinced that the jazzier models will fit in outside of especially stylish homes and offices. But I will say: I've never seen so many of my friends, or so many people on TikTok, as excited about a tech product as they seem to be about the colored iMacs. The hues are a nice change, aren't obnoxious, and are clearly a hit with certain crowds.

As seen in benchmark results last week, the new iMac benefits from the impressive performance of the M1 chip, with Chin noting that there has never been a better iMac to buy for simple everyday tasks:

This iMac model achieved a higher score on the Geekbench 5 single-core benchmark than any Mac we've ever seen before — even the iMac Pro. That means if you're looking for a device for simpler everyday tasks that don't scale to every available CPU core (and that largely seems to be the demographic that Apple is trying to sell this machine to), there has literally never been a better iMac for you to buy.

Benchmark results revealed the new iMac is up to 56% faster than the previous high-end 21.5-inch iMac with an Intel Core i7 processor.

The Verge's video review:

The bezels around the display itself are a neutral gray. It's effectively a gradient, with your peripheral vision noticing the bright color, but that accent fading away until you're left with whatever is on the display itself. It works really well, though I imagine that if you're someone who prefers using Dark Mode in brightly lit rooms, it will be a pretty dramatic contrast. (I'm a Light Mode person myself, and I found the overall effect quite harmonious. But then, my office wall is orange.)

The Guardian's Samuel Gibbs said the new iMac is the best 24-inch all-in-one-computer available:

There's no doubt this is the best 24in all-in-one computer available and one of the very best Macs you can buy. But it is not perfect. The lack of USB-A ports and an SD card slot will mean users require adapters for older gear, but it is the fact that Apple still hasn't made the iMac height adjustable that is the most irritating. You can buy the 24in iMac with a universal VESA mount so you can add your own adjustable stand. iMacs balanced on third-party height risers, books or reams of paper will remain a common sight for years to come.

The Wall Street Journal's Joanna Stern:

• Rene Ritchie at iMore
• Devindra Hardawar at Engadget
• Joanna Stern at The Wall Street Journal
• Dan Ackerman at CNET
• Tom Brant at PCMag

We also have a roundup of iMac unboxing videos, including new color-matching Apple logo stickers included in the box.

A look at the color-matching Apple logo sticker from Dave Lee's review video:

The new iMac became available to pre-order starting April 30 and will begin arriving to customers on May 21. The new iMac will also be on display in all seven colors at most Apple Store locations starting May 21.

The 24-inch iMac with the M1 chip is now available to order and set to begin arriving with customers starting on Friday, May 21.

The iMac features a 24-inch 4.5K Retina Display, Apple's custom silicon ‌M1‌ chip for improved performance, a new, ultra-slim design, and is available in a range of color options.

Ahead of the arrival of orders this Friday, Apple has provided some YouTube channels and media outlets with an early look at its new Apple silicon-powered desktop computer. We've rounded up some unboxing videos and first impressions below.

Videos

For more in-depth impressions, see our 24-inch iMac review roundup.

Apple is working on an updated model of its Mac Pro that may feature an Apple silicon chip with as many as 32 high performance cores, and a 128 core option for graphics, according to a new report from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

Bloomberg has reported in the past that Apple is working on an updated Mac Pro that will feature an Apple silicon chip rather than an Intel processor. Today's new report echoes a similar story but offers more details on the performance of this upcoming high-end Mac.

Bloomberg says there are two new Mac Pro models in the works, both featuring a redesign and are planned to "come in 20 or 40 computing core variations, made up of 16 high-performance or 32 high-performance cores and four or eight high-efficiency cores."

Codenamed Jade 2C-Die and Jade 4C-Die, a redesigned Mac Pro is planned to come in 20 or 40 computing core variations, made up of 16 high-performance or 32 high-performance cores and four or eight high-efficiency cores. The chips would also include either 64 core or 128 core options for graphics. The computing core counts top the 28 core maximum offered by today’s Intel Mac Pro chips, while the higher-end graphics chips would replace parts now made by Advanced Micro Devices Inc.

Alongside the faster, more powerful processor, the new Mac Pro will feature a smaller design that "could invoke nostalgia for the Power Mac G4 Cube," according to a previous Bloomberg report. Apple is also working on a successor to the current Mac Pro design that may use Intel processors rather than its own Apple silicon.

Apple plans to launch new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with an improved iteration of the M1 chip as early as this summer, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The new chip is said to include a 10-core CPU with eight high-performance cores and two energy-efficient cores, with 16-core or 32-core GPU options.

Gurman said the next-generation Apple silicon chip will also support up to 64GB of memory compared to the current maximum of 16GB. This would be in line with the current Intel-based 16-inch MacBook Pro, which is available with up to 64GB of RAM. The new chip is also said to support additional Thunderbolt ports for expanded connectivity.

As mentioned in his previous reporting, Gurman said the new MacBook Pro models will feature a redesigned chassis with the return of more ports, including an HDMI port, SD card slot, and a MagSafe magnetic charging cable.

Gurman said Apple is also working on a revamped MacBook Air for as early as the end of the year, in addition to an all-new Mac Pro, a higher-end Mac mini with four Thunderbolt ports, and a replacement for the Intel-based 27-inch iMac.

Spotify in February announced plans to introduce a new "HiFi" premium tier sometime in 2021, and while the company declined to offer a date, there's reason to believe a launch could be imminent, especially in the wake of Apple Music's lossless tier announcement on Monday.

In a timely discovery, hints of Spotify's lossless HiFi audio streaming service have again been spotted this week by Reddit user themonarc, who shared their finding with the accompanying image above.

According to the Reddit poster, a hidden HiFi menu was accessed in the Spotify app by "quickly tapping the glitched icon" that briefly appeared on the Now Playing screen upon launch.

Doing so brought up a separate screen explaining that the HiFi option supports 16-bit 44.1kHz streaming over wired earphones. The selected track didn't play in Hi-Fi quality, however, indicating that the server-side functionality isn't yet finalized.

First reports that Spotify was working on a lossless audio version of its streaming service actually appeared over three years ago, when the company started testing the option with a small group of users.

Back then, promotional screens pitched the "Spotify Hi-Fi" tier as a $5-$10 upgrade to a standard Spotify subscription. However, Spotify will likely be hard pressed to justify a paid-for upgrade, now that Apple Music has announced that its lossless offering, set to drop in June, will be free to existing subscribers.

Notably, Amazon Music has already acted to stem a potential audiophile exodus by offering its own Hi-Fi plan as an option for existing subscribers at no extra cost. We've reached out to Spotify for any update on their own HiFi launch plans.

Apple today confirmed that the new 24-inch iMac, iPad Pro, and updated Apple TV 4K will be available for customers in Apple Stores and retail locations around the world on Friday, May 21. Pre-orders for the products began earlier last month, and Apple previously said the new products will be available in the second half of May.

The new ‌iPad Pro‌ features the M1 Apple silicon chip, first introduced in the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and Mac mini last November. The larger 12.9-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ also features an all-new mini-LED display. The new 24-inch ‌iMac‌ also sports the ‌M1‌ chip, alongside a whole new design. The ‌Apple TV‌ 4K features an updated processor and a newly designed remote.

Apple Music on Android devices will not include Dolby Atmos support when Apple launches Spatial Audio on the streaming service in June. That's the claim from MySmartPrice, which says it received confirmation from Apple India that the sound technology would not be crossing the divide between Apple and Android ecosystems.

For anyone confused by all the audio nomenclature that's been bandied about since the ‌Apple Music‌ announcement on Monday, Dolby Atmos is based on surround sound technology that first appeared in cinemas but is now found in many home cinema setups.

It improves on standard 5.1 and 7.1 channel setups by adding extra channels that sound as if they're coming from overhead, resulting in a more immersive experience. The virtualized technology has since been used by sound engineers to enrich the recordings of both original and remixed music tracks.

Spatial Audio, based on Dolby Atmos, is basically Apple's way of delivering a similar immersive three-dimensional audio to listeners through Apple hardware. Spatial Audio takes Dolby Atmos signals and applies its own directional audio filters to make sounds appear to be coming from all around you. However, as mentioned, it only works on Apple devices and Apple headphones like AirPods Pro and AirPods Max, and there's no dynamic head tracking for Spatial Audio music like there is for movie soundtracks.

It's not clear exactly why Dolby Atmos won't be available for ‌Apple Music‌ users on Android when it launches, but it could be due to the lack of control Apple has over the handset and tablet hardware used, or perhaps rollout could come later. On the flip side, however, the higher quality Lossless audio streaming tier that Apple announced this week will be available on Apple Music for Android.

As part of the iOS and iPadOS 14.6 RC update that was released yesterday, Apple has introduced a new Shazam App Clip, which now allows users to find and identify a song using the new iOS 14 feature, instead of being redirected to the Shazam website or app.

Apple introduced App Clips with iOS 14 in June of last year as a small, mini-app that can run on a device, without a user needing to download an app from the App Store. There are multiple ways to activate an App Clip, including a specially designed App Clip QR code, an NFC tag, or even websites. Developers must, however, support the feature first.

As 9to5mac reports, Apple is now beginning to implement the feature with its own apps. With iOS 14.2, Apple added a direct Shazam toggle into Control Center, allowing users to not only identify a song playing from their device but be able to identify any song playing around them without having to download the Shazam app. Apple is now extending functionality even further, not requiring users to have the Shazam app at all, or even visit the website thanks to App Clips.

The process works the same; tap the Shazam toggle in Control Center, which can be added in Settings, wait a few moments for your iPhone or iPad to identify a song, and then the App Clip appears. From the App Clip, users can choose to share the song, hear a short preview, and open it in Apple Music to be saved for later.