MacRumors

Apple has shared two ads on its YouTube channel highlighting the power of its just-updated 11-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models, including a new Magic Keyboard.

The first video, titled "Your next computer is not a computer," showcases the new features in the updated ‌iPad Pro‌, including the new A12Z Bionic chip, LiDAR Scanner for AR, triple-lens cameras, and the new Magic Keyboard with integrated trackpad.

The second ad, titled "How to correctly use a computer," features an ironic retro voiceover offering a "beginner's guide to proper computing," which basically goes against everything shown visually in the video as far as using an ‌iPad Pro‌ goes.

When the voiceover says "Start by taking a seat at your desk, sit up straight, and focus on only one task at a time" a girl is shown lounging around in a park while multi-tasking on an ‌iPad Pro‌, using a new Magic Keyboard, and wearing AirPods Pro.

The ad continues in a similar vein, showcasing the ruggedness of an ‌iPad Pro‌ when dropped into a bag, ("Treat your computer with respect"), the game-playing and AR capabilities ("It is not a toy"), and multi-touch gestures ("Do not touch the screen").

The ad finishes by highlighting the new Magic Keyboard's multi-touch trackpad ("Your computer comes with a standard arrow cursor") and the LTE-equipped ‌iPad Pro‌ model ("Must stay within reach of a Wi-Fi signal").

The new ‌iPad Pro‌ is available to order starting today on apple.com and in the Apple Store app. ‌iPad Pro‌ will be available in stores starting next week. The 11-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ starts at $799 for 128GB Wi-Fi, while the 12.9-inch model starts at $999 for 128GB Wi-Fi. More storage capacities include 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB, and cellular options are available.

The Magic Keyboard for ‌iPad Pro‌ will be available to purchase in May in two versions: $299 for the 11-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ and $349 for the 12.9-inch ‌iPad Pro‌. There are also new Smart Keyboard Folio accessories out today, priced at $179 for 11-inch and $199 for 12.9-inch.

Apple today announced that iPadOS 13.4 will launch next Tuesday, March 24 as a free software update for all iPad Pro models, the iPad Air 2 and later, fifth-generation iPad and later, and iPad mini 4 and later.

iPadOS 13.4 will introduce trackpad support for iPads. While this is mainly aimed at the upcoming Magic Keyboard accessory for ‌iPad Pro‌, Apple confirmed that any ‌iPad‌ running iPadOS 13.4 will be able to connect a Magic Mouse 2, Magic Trackpad 2, or third-party mice via Bluetooth or USB.

The Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro won't launch until sometime in May. It will be priced at $299 for the 11-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ and $349 for the 12.9-inch ‌iPad Pro‌, and include layouts for over 30 languages.

For more information on the all-new ‌iPad Pro‌, be sure to visit our post on the refreshed tablet right here. Apple today also announced a new MacBook Air and updated the Mac mini with double the storage capacity.

Apple today introduced a new iPad Pro with a faster A12Z Bionic chip, a new Magic Keyboard accessory with a built-in trackpad, an Ultra Wide camera, a LiDAR Scanner, and more. In Apple's description of the new tablet, it calls it "faster and more powerful than most Windows PC laptops."

The updated iPad Pro has a new camera system that features a 12MP Wide camera and a 10MP Ultra Wide camera, which can zoom out two times to capture a wider field of view. This brings the iPad Pro family in line with the most recent iPhones, which also sport the square-shaped triple-lens camera bump.

The device's new A12Z Bionic chip supports an eight-core GPU, enhanced thermal architecture, and tuned performance controllers. Apple said that professionals working on the iPad Pro can edit 4K video and design 3D models thanks to the internal update, and the new tablet has a 10 hour battery life, faster Wi-Fi, and gigabit-class LTE that's 60 percent faster than the previous generation.

The iPad Pro is still available in both 11-inch and 12.9-inch sizes, with an edge-to-edge Liquid Retina display and ProMotion technology. The tablet also now features five studio-quality microphones and four speakers that adjust to any orientation.

The new LiDAR Scanner measures the distance to surrounding objects up to 5 meters away, and enables advanced experiences with augmented reality on the iPad Pro. Apple said this means that ARKit apps on the new iPad Pro will get improved motion capture and people occlusion, leading to AR experiences "never before possible."

Lastly, Apple is adding trackpad support to iPadOS 13.4 and the new Magic Keyboard. This new accessory attaches magnetically to iPad Pro and includes a floating design that works well on both a lap or a desk. The Magic Keyboard features cantilevered hinges for smooth adjustments of the viewing angle up to 130 degrees, including a full-size keyboard with backlit keys and a scissor mechanism that delivers 1mm travel.

The Magic Keyboard also has USB-C pass-through charging and the new trackpad. With this, Apple said that users will be able to enhance their workflows in multiple ways: scrolling through web pages in Safari, photo libraries in Photos, precisely edit text in Notes, organizing Mail, and more. Most third-party apps will work with the trackpad as well, without any update required.

The new iPad Pro is available to order starting today on apple.com and in the Apple Store app in 30 countries and regions, including the US. iPad Pro will be available in stores starting next week. The 11-inch iPad Pro starts at $799 for 128GB Wi-Fi, while the 12.9-inch model starts at $999 for 128GB Wi-Fi. More storage capacities include 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB, and cellular options are available.

The Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro will be available to purchase in May in two versions: $299 for the 11-inch iPad Pro and $349 for the 12.9-inch iPad Pro. There are also new Smart Keyboard Folio accessories out today, priced at $179 for 11-inch and $199 for 12.9-inch.

Apple today updated its MacBook Air lineup with faster processors and graphics, a scissor switch Magic Keyboard, a lower starting price of $999, and more.

The new MacBook Air features Intel's latest 10th-generation Core processors, including up to a 1.2GHz quad-core Core i7 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.8GHz, resulting in up to two times faster performance compared to the previous generation. And with Intel Iris Plus Graphics, the new MacBook Air delivers up to 80 percent faster graphics performance.

First introduced on the 16-inch MacBook Pro, the new MacBook Air features a Magic Keyboard with a redesigned scissor mechanism that delivers 1mm of key travel, plus a new inverted-"T" arrangement for the arrow keys. Most importantly, this keyboard should prove to be far more reliable than the problematic butterfly keyboard on the previous MacBook Air.

The new MacBook Air has a starting price of $999 with 256GB of storage in the United States, compared to $1,099 with 128GB of storage for the 2019 base model. Education pricing starting at $899 is available to current and newly accepted college students and their parents, as well as faculty, staff and homeschool teachers of all grade levels.

Overall, the new MacBook Air has a similar design as the previous model, including a 13-inch Retina display with True Tone, Touch ID, a Force Touch trackpad, two Thunderbolt 3 ports, stereo speakers, an Apple-designed T2 security chip, and three microphones.

The new MacBook Air can be ordered on Apple.com or in the Apple Store app starting today in most countries. It is available in space gray, silver, or gold.

Apple today updated the Mac mini so that standard configurations now come with double the storage capacity.

The $799 configuration now comes with 256GB of PCIe-based SSD storage, while the $1,099 configuration features 512GB of storage as standard. All ‌Mac mini‌ models use solid state storage, with up to 2TB of storage available for build-to-order purchases.

The new base configurations are live on Apple's website and currently ship in one business day. Apple Store Pickup is currently unavailable.

The ‌Mac mini‌ was last refreshed in October 2018, after more than four years without an update.

Announced earlier this week, Apple's new Powerbeats are now available through its online store for $149.95 in black, white, and red.

The new Powerbeats feature the same Apple-designed H1 chip as the Powerbeats Pro, second-generation AirPods, and AirPods Pro, enabling hands-free "Hey Siri" voice commands and faster pairing with iOS devices. The new Powerbeats also have up to 15 hours of battery life and a similar design as the Powerbeats Pro, but with a wire between each earpiece.

For more details about the new Powerbeats, read our announcement post earlier this week.

The United States government is in talks with Facebook, Google, and other tech companies about how location data from smartphones can be used to combat the coronavirus, reports The Washington Post.

Tech companies could aggregate anonymous location data that could be used to map the spread of the coronavirus and determine whether social distancing is an effective virus mitigation strategy. The discussions, and the project, are in the early stages.

Facebook executives have said that the government is interested in understanding the patterns of people's movements, which can be provided through Facebook data. Facebook has in the past offered this kind of information in the form of disease prevention maps for health researchers, and officials could use the data to predict hotspots and where to allocate health resources.

"We're encouraged by American technology companies looking to leverage aggregate, anonymized data to glean key insights for COVID-19 modeling efforts," said an official with the White House's Office of Science and Technology Policy, who spoke only on condition of anonymity.

Government sources say they are "not building a government database" and that insights gleaned from location data could "help public health officials, researchers, and scientists improve their understanding of the spread of COVID19 and transmission of the disease."

As The Washington Post points out, using smartphone location data in this way could make some Americans uncomfortable, depending on how it's implemented. The data that Facebook provides for other disease tracking projects limits the granularity of location data to a third of a mile, with no data provided about an individual's movement.

"You're trying to predict the probability that a group of people in Prince George's County might interact with a group of people from D.C.," said Laura McGorman, who leads the project. Such a prediction could offer clues for how infections might travel.

Multiple tech companies, including Apple, Google, Facebook, Twitter, and Amazon, met with White House officials last week, where they were asked to help the government with its response to the growing outbreak.

Google is now working on an informational coronavirus website that's set to launch in the near future, which comes after President Trump mistakenly announced that Google was working on a comprehensive site that would allow people to check symptoms, arrange tests, and get test results.

Verily, a Google company, had planned to launch a coronavirus-focused website limited to the Bay Area of California, and the purpose of the site was misstated, leading to confusion. The Bay Area site has since launched, but Google is also now working on a site offering "COVID-19 education, prevention, and local resources."

White House officials, tech experts, and health officials have also created a portal of more than 29,000 coronavirus research papers that let AI tools scan and analyze data to discover new insights.

More information on the plans to use smartphone location data for combating the coronavirus can be found in The Washington Post's full article.

AltConf, which is a popular alternative conference for developers that takes place at the same time as Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference, has been canceled for 2020 following Apple's announcement that WWDC is set to be a digital only event.

AltConf is designed for developers who are unable to get a ticket to WWDC, and typically, there's an event in San Jose along with satellite events around the world.

AltConf organizer Rob Elkin yesterday announced the official cancelation of AltConf gatherings.

Much like many of our contemporaries, AltConf has been watching carefully the spread of the COVID-19 virus throughout the world, and assessing how this potentially affects the many worldwide AltConf events.

Unfortunately, we've come to the conclusion that it would not be prudent or safe to put on any AltConf events in 2020. It's been a tough call to make, but the safety of our team, our attendees, and the public as a whole is our most important priority.

AltConf had planned to host events in San Jose, London, Paris, Berlin, Madrid, Lisbon, NYC, Tokyo, and São Paulo. None of the events will be made digital as AltConf is meant to be an in-person affair that's offered as an alternative to WWDC. With WWDC taking place in a digital capacity, everyone will have the same opportunities for attendance, networking, and learning what Apple has to offer in 2020.

According to Elkin, if there is a way to bring some of the satellite events to their cities in a safe way in 2020, that may happen, but for now, it's not the plan. There will, however, be AltConf events that will take place in 2021 alongside the WWDC 2021 event.

Chinese display maker BOE has partnered with touch panel maker General Interface Solutions as both companies aim to become suppliers of Apple's rumored 5.4-inch iPhone, according to a paywalled report from DigiTimes.

Apple plans to release four so-called iPhone 12 models with OLED displays in the fall, including one 5.4-inch model, two 6.1-inch models, and one 6.7-inch model, according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. All of the devices are expected to support 5G and they may sport a new design that includes more of a flat edged metal frame like the iPad Pro or iPhone 4.

The new 5.4-inch iPhone would be the smallest iPhone that Apple has ever offered with a notched display. By comparison, the iPhone 11 Pro has a 5.8-inch display and the iPhone 11 Pro Max has a 6.5-inch display. With a notch, slim bezels, and lack of a home button, the 5.4-inch iPhone would have an even smaller footprint than the 4.7-inch iPhone 8.

Whereas the highest-end iPhone 12 models are expected to sport triple-lens rear camera systems with a time-of-flight sensor for 3D sensing, mid-range models like the 5.4-inch iPhone are said to have a dual-lens array and, according to 9to5Mac, may lack 3D sensing.