MacRumors

Hulu in May began testing a new Watch Party feature that's designed to allow up to eight people to watch TV shows and movies together through the Hulu website, chatting with one another while the content is playing.

The feature was limited to some Hulu users, but Hulu today announced that Watch Party is now available for all on-demand Hulu subscribers.

Today, we're officially launching Hulu Watch Party for Hulu and Hulu (No Ads) subscribers on Hulu.com. Viewers can now safely connect with their friends and family from the comfort of their homes to watch thousands of titles from Hulu's on-demand streaming library.

Creating a Watch Party can be done by choosing the "Watch Party" option on a title's detail page, which provides a link that viewers can share with up to seven other Hulu subscribers. Once everyone has joined, the host can start the show.

Participants need to be logged into Hulu and watchers must have a Hulu subscription. It's also limited to those who are 18 years of age and older. All participants who use Watch Party can react in real time through the chat function in addition to controlling their own playback.

Apple today seeded the third betas of upcoming iOS 14.3 and iPadOS 14.3 updates to developers for testing purposes, two weeks after releasing the second betas and a month after the launch of iOS and iPadOS 14.2.

iOS and iPadOS 14.3 can be downloaded through the Apple Developer Center or over the air after the proper developer profile has been installed.

The iOS 14.3 update brings the ProRAW format to the iPhone 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max. ProRAW is designed for those who prefer to shoot in RAW but also want to take advantage of the Apple image pipeline data like noise reduction and multi-frame exposure adjustments.

The ProRAW feature can be enabled in the Camera section of the Settings app for those who have installed the iOS 14.3 beta on a new ‌iPhone 12 Pro‌ or Pro Max. When enabled, there's a RAW toggle in the upper right side of the camera app that can be tapped to turn it off or on. Photos taken with ProRAW are 25MB in size.

Ecosia, a search engine that plants trees when people conduct searches, can now be set as the default search engine on iPhone and iPad.

Though not a feature, the iOS 14.3 update hints at some future product releases. There's an icon that may reveal the design of the AirPods Studio, along with details on AirTags and the Find My feature that's meant to let third-party devices integrate with the ‌Find My‌ app.

Code in iOS 14.3 suggests Apple is laying the groundwork to add support for third-party item trackers and Bluetooth devices in the ‌Find My‌ app, allowing these devices to be tracked right alongside iPhones and iPads. It's not yet clear which items will support the feature or when support will roll out, but we could be hearing additional information soon.

In iOS 14.3, it's easier than ever to launch apps with custom icons right from the Home Screen, which is great for those who prefer to customize their Home Screens.

When opening an app that has a custom icon created using Shortcuts, it is no longer routed through the Shortcuts app and is instead able to open much more quickly. There's still a banner that pops up, but it's a more streamlined experience than before.

Other new features include pregnancy data in the Health app, third-party app suggestions at setup in certain countries, support for scanning App Clips QR codes with the camera app, an option to update HomeKit products with the Home app, and more, with a full list available in our iOS 14.3 features guide.

Apple today seeded the third beta of an upcoming watchOS 7.2 beta to developers for testing purposes, two weeks after the release of the second beta and a month after the launch of watchOS 7.1.

To install the ‌watchOS 7.2‌ beta, developers need to download the proper configuration profile from the Apple Developer Center. Once the profile is in place, the watchOS 7.2 beta can be downloaded through the dedicated ‌Apple Watch‌ app on the iPhone by going to General > Software Update.

To update to the new software, the ‌Apple Watch‌ needs to have 50 percent battery life, it must be placed on the charger, and it must be in range of the ‌‌‌‌iPhone‌‌‌‌.

watchOS 7.2 adds a Cardio Fitness feature for the Apple Watch, and Apple says that the cardio fitness metric are a "strong indicator of overall health." The feature measures VO2 max, or the maximum amount of oxygen that your body is able to consume during exercise. Measurements are done over time, and the Apple Watch and iPhone are able to send notifications to let you know about fluctuations in your VO2 max.

Cardio Fitness can be accessed through a new trend that's been added to the Activity app, and it can be set up in the Health app on iPhone. Cardio fitness levels are available for users age 20 and above, and are estimated by age.

Cardio Fitness information will vary based on age and sex, and will be categorized into one of four ranges: high, above average, below average, or low. Notifications will let you know if your cardio fitness is at a low level, providing motivation to move more. Apple Watch has previously been able to measure VO2Max, but the new feature includes support for lower ranges that have needed clinical testing in the past.

watchOS 7.2 will also see the release of the Apple Fitness+ service, with a splash screen after installing the beta announcing the inclusion of Apple Fitness+.

Apple today seeded the third beta of an upcoming tvOS 14.3 update to developers for testing purposes, two weeks after the release of the second beta.

Designed for the fourth and fifth-generation Apple TV models, the tvOS 14.3 developer beta can be downloaded onto the ‌‌‌‌‌‌‌Apple TV‌‌‌‌‌‌‌ via a profile that's installed using Xcode.

Other than new releases, tvOS updates are often minor in scale, focusing on under-the-hood bug fixes and improvements rather than major outward-facing changes. There's no word yet on what's included in tvOS 14.3 update, but we'll update this article should anything new be found. Nothing new was discovered in the first beta.

Though we don't often know what's new in tvOS during the beta testing process, we let MacRumors readers know when new updates are available so those who are developers can download it upon release.

Apple's tvOS 14 update brought expanded Picture in Picture support, new HomeKit integration with HomeKit Secure Video cameras, support for multiple Apple Arcade profiles, and more, with details available in our tvOS 14 roundup.

The latest beta of messaging app Telegram supports Apple's Announce Messages with Siri feature on AirPods, allowing users to listen and reply to new messages without an iPhone or iPad handy (via The 8-Bit).

Announce Messages with ‌Siri‌ reads an incoming message to a user's headphones when they are connected to an iPhone or ‌iPad‌ and their device is locked. When a new message arrives, ‌Siri‌ plays a tone, announces the sender's name, and reads the message. There is then the option to reply hands-free using ‌Siri‌.

Despite the feature being available to developers via Apple's ‌Siri‌ API for over a year, Telegram appears to be the first app to implement Announce Messages with ‌Siri‌. Users on the latest beta of Telegram via TestFlight are able to see an option to enable the feature in Settings.

The feature arrived with iOS 13.2, and it is only supported on Apple's AirPods, AirPods Pro, Powerbeats, Powerbeats Pro, and Beats Solo Pro.

For more on Announce Messages with ‌Siri‌, see our how-to guide on using the feature. Moreover, to reply to messages faster using Announce Messages with ‌Siri‌, read our how-to on replying without Siri reading responses.

Apple Watch shipments totaled an impressive 11.8 million units in the third quarter of 2020, up nearly 75% from 6.8 million units shipped in the third quarter of 2019, according to figures shared today by research firm IDC.

11.8 million units appears to be a new quarterly record for the Apple Watch, as Statista shows that shipments of the device have never exceeded 9.2 million in any prior quarter, based on data from research firm Strategy Analytics. The third quarter of 2020 encompassed the launch of the high-end Apple Watch Series 6 and mid-range Apple Watch SE, and the Apple Watch Series 3 remains available, providing customers with several price points.

As usual, the big caveat here is that Apple does not disclose Apple Watch unit sales in its earnings reports, so any figures from research firms are estimates. That said, Apple's wearables category brought in a record $7.9 billion in revenue last quarter, and given that this segment includes products like the Apple Watch and AirPods, there is evidence to suggest that the Apple Watch has been selling quite well as of late.

IDC estimates that the Apple Watch held 21.6% market share among wrist-worn wearables shipped worldwide last quarter, trailing in second behind Xiaomi's estimated 24.5% market share, but this includes everything from high-end smartwatches to basic fitness trackers like Xiaomi's Mi Band, which is priced under $50.

As England's second national lockdown comes to an end today, after four weeks of waiting, many customers enrolled in Apple's iPhone Upgrade Program are finally able to go in-store to complete their upgrade.

England entered a second national lockdown on Thursday, November 5, meaning that Apple stores in England were forced to close, with some converting to a click-and-collect service only.

Unlike the United States, iPhone Upgrade Program customers in the United Kingdom have to attend an in-store appointment to complete their upgrade.

Apple staggered the launch of the iPhone 12 lineup, with the iPhone 12 Pro Max and iPhone 12 mini launching three weeks later than the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro. The ‌iPhone 12 Pro Max‌ and ‌iPhone 12 mini‌ became available for pre-order on November 6, one day into England's lockdown. This meant that iPhone Upgrade Program customers in England were able to upgrade to the iPhone 12 or iPhone 12 Pro if they did so before the second lockdown began, but not the ‌iPhone 12 mini‌ or ‌iPhone 12 Pro Max‌.

Customers in the UK's other three constituent countries, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, were still able to upgrade as Apple Stores in these territories remained open due to different regional restrictions, albeit belatedly due to the way Apple's retail system operates.

Today, all Apple stores in England are re-opening, so the iPhone Upgrade Program is able to continue. However, as noted by iMore, not all retail stores are resuming normal opening hours.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Apple plans to release two redesigned MacBook Pros in 2021 and a new MacBook Air in 2022, all with mini-LED displays and Apple Silicon chips, according to TFI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

In a research note to investors, seen by MacRumors, Kuo explained that two new MacBook Pro models equipped with an all-new form factor design are expected to launch in 2021, and a new "affordable" ‌MacBook Air‌ is expected in 2022, all with ‌Apple Silicon‌ chips and mini-LED displays. This appears to be a clarification of a previous report that simply said redesigned MacBooks would launch in late 2021.

Kuo also believes that Apple will be able to offset the increased cost of using mini-LED panels in Mac devices because the cost of ‌Apple Silicon‌ chips is significantly lower than that of Intel processors.

Upcoming Apple devices with mini-LED displays are also projected to see much higher than expected shipments. TFI Securities has revised its shipment forecasts by 350 percent for 2021 and 450 percent in 2022. Apple is presumed to ship 10 to 12 million mini-LED devices in 2021 and 25 to 28 million mini-LED devices in 2022. Epistar is anticipated to make major gains as a result, with the company now expected to serve as Apple's sole mini-LED supplier.

The reason behind the revised estimates are lower than expected costs for mini-LED components over the next few years and faster adoption of mini-LED panels in MacBook devices.

MacBooks are projected to be the main driver of mini-LED panel shipments since they will purportedly gain mini-LED before the iPad and see faster shipment growth. Kuo has previously said that at least one new iPad model will be released with a mini-LED display in the first half of 2021.

Within the next three years, Kuo's optimistic scenario sees MacBook shipments grow significantly by 100 percent with up to 35 million units per year, thanks to the adoption of ‌Apple Silicon‌ and refreshed designs.

An EU consumer advocacy group has filed class-action lawsuits against Apple in both Belgium and Spain for "unfair and misleading commercial practices" related to the iPhone performance management system it introduced in iOS 10.2.1 without informing customers.

Brought by Euroconsumers, which describes itself as the "world's leading consumer cluster organization," the suits allege that the system introduced via iOS update in order to preserve battery life amount to "planned obsolescence."

In a press release on Wednesday, the group stated:

The lawsuits cover owners of iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6S and 6S Plus and alleges Apple engaged in unfair and misleading commercial practices. The lawsuits ask for compensation of on average at least 60 euro for each affected consumer in Belgium and Spain.

Apple introduced power management features for older iPhones to prevent unexpected shutdowns during times of peak power draw on devices with degraded batteries.

These power management features throttle the processor on older iPhones with less than optimal batteries, resulting in slower performance. Though introduced early in 2017, the power management features were not widely publicized until late 2017, leading many customers to feel deceived by Apple.

Apple apologized for not better explaining how battery health could impact performance and has since implemented a policy offering no-questions-asked $29 battery replacements for the iPhone 6 and later.

Earlier this year, the company also agreed to pay up to $500 million to settle a long-running class action lawsuit in the United States that accused the company of "secretly throttling" older iPhone models.

Euroconsumers references the latter settlement along with more recent state-level U.S. settlements in its press release, and says it has two identical suits planned for Italy and Portugal. Together, the four complaints seek about 180 million euros in damages from Apple, according to the Financial Times.

"Consumers are increasingly upset by products wearing out too quickly, the iPhone 6 models being a very concrete example of that," said Els Bruggeman, head of Policy and Enforcement at Euroconsumers. "Not only does it cause frustration and financial harm, from an environmental point of view it is also utterly irresponsible. Consumers want to be treated with respect, demand fair compensation and more sustainable phones. Euroconsumers is sending a clear message to Apple that planned obsolescence can no longer be accepted."

Back in early November, Apple released iOS 14.2 and announced with it a slew of new features for iPhones, but one thing it didn't mention was the apparent addition of support for 1080p FaceTime calls on iPhone 8 and later devices.

The little-known fact was discovered by MacMagazine, which found that Apple quietly updated the specs pages for devices like iPhone XR shortly after the release of iOS 14.2.

Prior to the release, Apple didn't list FaceTime HD (1080p) video calls on its iPhone XR pages, but made the addition in the week following the debut of iOS 14.2.

Looking at Apple's iPhone comparison tool, Apple also now makes clear that FaceTime HD (1080p) over Wi-Fi is available on all models including iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone SE (2020), iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max.

That means when it comes to using FaceTime HD, the only advantage of the iPhone 12 series is support for the resolution over both Wi-Fi and 5G.

According to tests carried out by MacMagazine, the difference in quality between 1080p over Wi-Fi and 720p over 4G was very noticeable on the older iPhones.

Spotify's annually hosted Wrapped experience went live today, offering subscribers a look back at their listening habits over the year.

Delivered this year via the mobile app and in a Stories-style format, the company's year-in-review offers a microcosm of your listening over the last 11 months, including top songs, artists, genres, and podcasts.

Users then move onto a short quiz where they get to guess their top songs, artists, and genres over the course of the year, before being revealed the results.

The site then provides "Your Top Songs of 2020", collected in one playlist, as well as a playlist titled "Missed Hits", which includes a selection of unplayed tracks released in 2020 that are "based on what you love", according to Spotify.

In addition, listeners in the U.S., UK and Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada can dig deeper into some of their top artists of 2020 in On Record, a mixed media experience that highlights your top 2020 artists.

As well as the Wrapped feature, Spotify this week released its Year in Music lists, which revealed that Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny was the service's most streamed artist globally in 2020, racking up 8.3 billion. Meanwhile, Billie Eilish was the most streamed female artist of the year, followed by Taylor Swift and Ariana Grande in spots two and three.

Apple Music provides users with its own year-in-review feature, called Apple Music Replay, although it's relatively paltry compared to Spotify Wrapped, offering listeners only a web page with a list of their most listened songs and artists, with accompanying playlists in the mobile app.

Earlier this year, Apple patched an iOS vulnerability that potentially could have allowed hackers to remotely access a nearby iPhone and gain control of the entire device.

Devised by Ian Beer, a researcher at Project Zero, Google's vulnerability research team, the exploit used a vulnerability in Apple Wireless Direct Link (AWDL), Apple's proprietary mesh networking protocol that enables features like AirDrop and Sidecar to work.

Beer revealed the stunning exploit on Tuesday in a 30,000-word blog post, which shows in detail how a memory corruption bug in AWDL could give attackers remote access to a user's personal data, including emails, photos, messages, and passwords and crypto keys stored in the keychain.

The vulnerability was discovered by Beer in a 2018 iOS beta that Apple accidentally shipped without stripping function name symbols from the kernelcache, offering a wealth of missing context about how bits of code fit together.

After lengthy investigative work, Beer was able to find code related to AWDL, identify the vulnerability, and target it remotely using a laptop, a Raspberry Pi 4B and a couple of Wi-Fi adapters.

It took six months for Beer to develop the exploit, but by the time he was finished he was able to hack any iPhone that was in radio proximity, run arbitrary code on it, and steal all the user data.

Beer says he has no evidence that the issues he uncovered were exploited in the wild, but "we do know that exploit vendors seem to take notice of these fixes."

The takeaway from this project should not be: no one will spend six months of their life just to hack my phone, I'm fine.

Instead, it should be: one person, working alone in their bedroom, was able to build a capability which would allow them to seriously compromise iPhone users they'd come into close contact with.

Imagine the sense of power an attacker with such a capability must feel. As we all pour more and more of our souls into these devices, an attacker can gain a treasure trove of information on an unsuspecting target.

Apple patched the vulnerability in May with the release of iOS 12.4.7 and iOS 13.3.1, and actually cites Beer in changelogs for several security updates. Apple said that the vast majority of users are already on newer versions of iOS that have been patched.

Alongside picks for the top iPhone, iPad, and Mac apps and games of the year, Apple today shared charts featuring the Top Games of 2020 and the Top Apps of 2020, revealing the most popular free and paid apps and games during the year.

Among Us! was the top free game of 2020, followed by Call of Duty: Mobile, Roblox, and Subway Surfers. Ink Inc. Tattoo Drawing was the number four free app, while Magic Tiles 3: Piano Game earned the fifth spot. Mario Kart Tour also made the list, earning the 15th spot.

Minecraft was the top paid game of the year, followed by Plague Inc., Heads Up!, Monopoly, Bloons TD 6, Geometry Dash, and NBA 2K20. Many of these games are often at the top of the charts at the end of the year, with Minecraft and Plague Inc. long holding top spots.

Zoom was the top free app on iOS devices, followed by TikTok, Disney+, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat. Top paid apps included TouchRetouch for quickly removing clutter from photos, Procreate Pocket, Facetune, HotSchedules, and AutoSleep Sleep Tracker.

Full Charts

• 2020 Top App charts
• 2020 Top Game charts

Apple has sections in the Today center of the App Store where all of these apps can be downloaded for those interested.

Apple today shared its App Store Best of 2020 winners, highlighting its picks for the top iOS, iPadOS, and macOS apps and games released over the course of the year.

Apple's iPhone App of the Year award went to Wakeout!, which is a family friendly exercise and movement app that encourages people to complete easy exercises while at home. Apple's iPad App of the Year was Zoom, which soared in popularity due to the number of people working and learning from home this year.

Apple's iPhone Game of the Year was open world RPG Genshin Impact, which allows players to explore a huge game world filled with colorful monsters and earthshaking titans. The ‌iPad‌ Game of the Year was Legends of Runeterra, a collectible card game set in the League of Legends universe.

Apple also selected winners for Mac App of the Year, Mac Game of the Year, Apple TV App of the Year, and more.

• Mac Game of the Year - Detective role-playing game Disco Elysium
• Mac App of the Year - Calendar app Fantastical
• ‌Apple TV‌ App of the Year - Streaming service Disney+
• ‌Apple TV‌ Game of the Year - Adventure platformer Dandara Trials of Fear
• Apple Watch App of the Year - Soundscape and meditation app Endel
• Apple Arcade Game of the Year - Stealth game Sneaky Sasquatch

Apple also highlighted several apps that were part of the 2020 trend of "helpfulness," helping users to get the "daily self-care they needed." App picks in this category include classroom app Everything Whiteboard, kid-friendly chat app Caribu, Pokémon Go, charity app ShareTheMeal, and meditation app Shine.

Apple's Phil Schiller said that Apple in 2020 saw "remarkable efforts" from so many developers in 2020.

"This year, more than ever before, some of our most creative and connected moments happened in apps. This was thanks to the amazing work of developers who introduced fresh, helpful app experiences throughout the year," said Phil Schiller, Apple Fellow. "Around the world, we saw remarkable efforts from so many developers, and these Best of 2020 winners are 15 outstanding examples of that innovation. From helping us stay fit and mindful, to keeping our children's education on track, to helping fight hunger, their impact was meaningful to so many of us."

Each winner will receive a physical ‌App Store‌ Best of 2020 award, which is the first time an actual physical award has been provided to developers. Awards feature the ‌App Store‌ logo set into 100 percent recycled aluminum with the name of the winner engraved on the other side.

All of the apps can be downloaded from the iOS and macOS App Stores, which feature banners highlighting all of the top app picks.

Apple today began selling the MagSafe Duo Charger that was announced alongside the new iPhone 12 models back in October. Priced at $129, the ‌MagSafe‌ Duo offers a ‌MagSafe‌ charging puck for the iPhone 12, 12 Pro, 12 Pro Max, and 12 mini, along with an Apple Watch charger.

Though the accessory was announced in October and was listed as coming soon, it was not clear when it would launch. Orders placed today will deliver as soon as Thursday, December 3 when shipped, and it is not available for pickup in retail stores yet.

The ‌MagSafe‌ Duo features a foldable design for easier portability, and it ships with a USB-C to Lightning cable. The Apple Watch charging puck can be used flat, but there's also an option to pop it up to charge the Apple Watch upright. The ‌MagSafe‌ charging portion does not have the same pop up option.

Before purchasing, it's worth noting that the ‌MagSafe‌ Duo is not able to charge an iPhone 12 model at the full 15 watts supported by the standalone ‌MagSafe‌ charger. Instead, it is able to charge at a maximum of 14W when paired with the appropriate charger.

Despite the high price point, the ‌MagSafe‌ Duo does not ship with a power adapter. When paired with the 20W USB-C power adapter from Apple, it can charge an iPhone up to 11W, and when paired with a 27W or higher USB-C power adapter, it can charge at the aforementioned 14W.

Though designed for the iPhone 12 models, Apple says the ‌MagSafe‌ Duo is compatible with older iPhones, the AirPods with Wireless Charging Case, the AirPods Pro, and other devices that support Qi-based wireless charging.

(Thanks, Alex!)

Apple today released a new Display Firmware 4.2.30 update for the Pro Display XDR, with the software introducing a new Pro Display XDR Calibrator allowing for in-field recalibration.

Alongside the new calibration tool, Apple has provided a support document that walks users through calibrating the Pro Display XDR. There's a walkthrough for measuring the display, fine tuning the calibration through Displays preferences, and using the in-field recalibration.

In-field recalibrations allow the Pro Display XDR to be tuned to a third-party spectroradiometer through the feature added in the firmware update. These calibrations require the new firmware, macOS Catalina 10.15.6, and a supported spectroradiometer.

Apple also provides several tips for measuring and calibrating a Pro Display XDR, such as controlling the ambient lighting, calibrating in cool ambient temperatures, and optimal setup for spectroradiometers.