MacRumors

When Apple Card launched last year, it didn't support importing transactions into various budgeting apps, which was a major negative for customers who use Quicken, YNAB, Lunch Money, Mint, and more.

As of today, though, Apple has a solution - an option to download a spreadsheet that has all ‌Apple Card‌ data, which can then be imported into many budgeting apps.

As outlined by TechCrunch, ‌Apple Card‌ users can follow these steps to access a document containing their monthly statements:

• Open up the Wallet app.
• Choose ‌Apple Card‌.
• Tap the "Card Balance" option.
• Tap on a monthly statement.
• Tap "Export Transactions."

The option to export transactions will show up when a monthly statement is available. The ‌Apple Card‌ transactions are exported in a Share Sheet format with a CSV document, but in the future, Apple also plans to add an OFX option.

Apple's newly added feature to download transaction data in a CSV format should be a welcome change for ‌Apple Card‌ users who use budgeting services that accept imports. Some apps, like Quicken, accept imports, but may need file format conversions prior to import. Quicken does not support CSV files, for example.

Apps that require API-level integration like Plaid or Co-pilot will still be unable to download ‌Apple Card‌ content, and there's no word from Apple on when and if support will arrive.

Apple may release a Smart Keyboard with a scissor switch design for its next-generation iPad or iPad Pro models, suggests Taiwanese industry publication DigiTimes, although full details are not available yet.

A paywalled preview of the report vaguely claims that "Apple's next-generation iPad series reportedly will feature a scissor switch keyboard," which is presumably referring to an accessory rather than a built-in hardware keyboard. The full report should be released tomorrow with more details.

In July 2019, reputable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claimed that iPad keyboards would stick with a rubber dome design rather than scissor switches in 2020-21, adding further uncertainty to this report.

Apple switched to a butterfly mechanism for its MacBook Pro keyboard in 2016, and after years of issues with sticky or unresponsive keys, it finally returned to a scissor switch design with the new 16-inch MacBook Pro last October. Kuo expects the 13-inch MacBook Pro and the MacBook Air to follow suit in 2020.

We'll update this post when the full report is released.

Update: The full report claims that Apple will likely release new iPads with "glowing" scissor switch keyboards in the second half of 2020, which presumably means a backlit Smart Keyboard. The report also reiterates that a 13-inch MacBook Pro with a scissor keyboard will be released in the first half of 2020.

More than two years ago, Apple informed the FBI that it planned to roll out end-to-end encryption for iCloud backups, according to Reuters. Apple ultimately dropped the plan at some point after the FBI objected, although the report notes that it is unclear if the federal agency was a factor in the decision.

A former Apple employee told Reuters that the company did not want to risk scrutiny from public officials for potentially protecting criminals, being sued for making previously accessible data out of reach of government agencies, or the move encouraging new legislation against encryption.

"They decided they weren't going to poke the bear anymore," the person said, after Apple's legal battle with the FBI in 2016 over unlocking an iPhone used by a shooter in the San Bernardino, California attack. In that case, the FBI ultimately found an alternative method of unlocking the iPhone.

Apple faces a similar standoff with the FBI over refusing to unlock two passcode-protected iPhones that investigators believe were owned by Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, the suspect of a mass shooting at a Naval Air Station in Florida last month. Apple said it has provided the FBI with all data in its possession.

Apple has taken a hard line on refusing to create a backdoor into iOS that would allow the FBI to unlock password-protected iPhones to assist in their investigations, but it does provide data backed up to iCloud to authorities when lawfully requested, as outlined in its semiannual Transparency Reports.

Note: Due to the political 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.

Disney+ is coming to Europe sooner than we thought. Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom will now get the streaming service on March 24, Disney revealed today.

Additional Western Europe markets, including Belgium, the Nordics, and Portugal, will follow in summer 2020, said the company in a press release. Disney+ is already available in the Netherlands, where it launched as a free pilot trial back in September.

The new launch date is a week earlier than was initially scheduled. In November, Disney CEO Bob Iger said the launch date for European markets would be March 31.

Pricing has also been confirmed at £5.99/€6.99 per month, or £59.99/€69.99 for an annual subscription. Disney+ will be available on Amazon Fire devices, LG and Samsung smart TVs, Roku's streaming devices, Apple TV, iOS, Android, Xbox One, and PS4 at launch.

Users will access high-quality and commercial-free viewing, up to four concurrent streams, unlimited downloads on up to ten devices, personalised recommendations, and the ability to set up to seven different profiles, including the ability for parents to set Kids Profiles that have an easy- to -navigate, child-friendly interface to access age-appropriate content.

Over 500 feature films and over 7,500 shows will be available on the service including new original content like the critically acclaimed "The Mandalorian" and "The World According To Jeff Goldblum," along with timeless classics like "Lady and the Tramp" and the entire Pixar library.

(Thanks, Ricardo!)

Apple is widely rumored to release four new iPhones in the fall, including one 5.4-inch model, two 6.1-inch models, and one 6.7-inch model, and Japanese blog Mac Otakara has offered a few details surrounding these devices. The information is said to come from sources within Apple's supply chain in China.

The translated report is quite difficult to decipher, but here are some details that are being suggested:

• 6.7-inch model will have a thickness around 7.4mm, which would be nearly 10% thinner than the iPhone 11 Pro Max at 8.1mm
• All four new iPhone models will have OLED displays and Face ID
• 5.4-inch model's height would be between the iPhone SE and iPhone 8, while at least one of the 6.1-inch iPhone models would have a height that falls between the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro
• 6.7-inch model will be slightly taller than the iPhone 11 Pro Max
• 5.4-inch and lower-end 6.1-inch models will have dual-lens rear camera arrays identical to the iPhone 11
• 6.7-inch model will have a triple-lens rear camera with larger sensors than the iPhone 11 Pro Max
• 5.4 inch, 6.7-inch, and at least one 6.1-inch model will have different numbers of microphone holes along the bottom

In line with analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the report suggests that the new iPhone lineup will be introduced in September as usual.

Apple today began selling certified refurbished iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max models for the first time since the devices were released in September 2018.

At the time of writing, the refurbished models are available in Space Gray, Silver, or Gold with 64GB, 256GB, or 512GB of storage through Apple's online store in the United States. All of the models are unlocked, aka SIM-free.

Refurbished models available:

• iPhone XS - 64GB: $699, down from $999 in September 2018
• iPhone XS - 256GB: $829, down from $1,149 in September 2018
• iPhone XS - 512GB: $999, down from $1,349 in September 2018
• iPhone XS Max - 64GB: $799, down from $1,099 in September 2018
• iPhone XS Max - 256GB: $929, down from $1,249 in September 2018
• iPhone XS Max - 512GB: $1,099, down from $1,449 in September 2018

Apple says all refurbished iPhone models are thoroughly inspected, tested, cleaned, and repackaged with a new white box and all manuals and accessories. Apple also installs a new battery and replaces the outer shell, making it nearly impossible to distinguish between a refurbished and brand new iPhone.

Any refurbished iPhone model comes with Apple's standard one-year warranty effective on the date the device is delivered, which can be extended with AppleCare+ at a cost of $199 for the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max.

Apple is not offering refurbished iPhone XR models at this time.

Starting in February, Apple is hosting its annual company wide fitness challenge for all of its employees, tasking them with closing all three Apple Watch Activity rings every day of the month.

Employees who successfully finish the challenge will be rewarded with a t-shirt that says "2020" in a logo with Apple Watch Activity-style rings, as shared by an Apple employee.

The employees who complete the challenge every day will earn a "gold" ranking and will receive a gold pin along with their t-shirt, and there are also silver and bronze rewards accompanied by silver and bronze pins.

Apple in 2018 and 2019 hosted similar challenges offering employees Activity-themed Apple Watch bands as prizes.

Apple's February fitness challenge is internal only and is limited to Apple employees, but Apple also regularly hosts public fitness challenges, though these do not come with physical rewards.

Apple's HomePod speaker can recognize the voices of up to six people and tailor the music selection to an individual user's taste profile, respond to their own Personal Requests, and access their information to help them with everyday tasks.

Before you can make use of ‌HomePod‌'s multi-user voice support, you have to set up the feature, and there are a few steps involved. This article explains what they are and also offers a few troubleshooting tips if you're experiencing issues.

Check That Your Software is Up-to-Date

The first thing you need to do is ensure that the ‌HomePod‌ and the iPhones or iPads of the people who intend to use it are updated to iOS 16.3 or later or iPadOS 16.3 or later. You can check what software your iOS devices are running by opening the Settings app and selecting General -> Software Update.

To check the software version of your ‌HomePod‌, launch the Home app on your iOS device, tap the home icon in the upper left corner of the display, then scroll down to Software Update. You can pull down from the top of the iPhone or iPad screen to check for an update if you need to.

Turn on Share My Location in Find My

Share My Location must be set to This Device on the ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌ of every user who wishes to be recognized by ‌HomePod‌, including yours.

1. Launch the Settings app on the ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌.
2. Tap your name in the banner at the top of the screen.
3. Tap Find My.
   
   

4. Tap the toggle next to Share My Location to turn it to the green ON position.
5. Next, set My Location to This Device.

Add People to Your Home Network

Whoever wants to be recognized by your ‌HomePod‌ must be part of your Home network. Here's how to add them.

1. Launch the Home app on your ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌.
2. Tap the ellipsis button (three encircled dots) in the top-right corner of the screen.
3. Tap Home Settings in the dropdown menu.
4. Under People, tap Invite....
   
   

5. Enter the person's Apple ID that they use with iCloud.
6. Tap Send Invite.

Additional Settings to Check/Enable

You'll also need to check the following settings on your ‌HomePod‌ and iOS device to ensure everything works.

• Make sure Listen for "Hey, Siri" and Personal Requests are enabled on your ‌HomePod‌: In the Home app, long press on your ‌HomePod‌, tap the cog in the bottom-right corner of the screen, then toggle the requisite switches. On the same screen, check also that the Language is set to English. (Siri on ‌HomePod‌ multi-user only supports English at this time.)
• Make sure Listen for "Hey, Siri" is enabled on the iOS device of every user who wishes to be recognized by ‌HomePod‌, including your own device. The associated toggle can be found in Settings -> Siri & Search. On the same screen, check also that the device is set to the same Language as your ‌HomePod‌.
• Likewise, location services must be enabled on the device of every user who wishes to be recognized by ‌HomePod‌: Go to Settings -> Privacy -> Location Services, and make sure the Location Services toggle is green.

Testing HomePod Multi-user and Fixing Issues

When someone that you've set up to be recognized by your ‌HomePod‌ first asks it a personal request, ‌Siri‌ will ask who it is. If the user states their name, ‌Siri‌ should be able to recognize them after that.

Apple does say ‌HomePod‌ can have trouble distinguishing some voices, like those of young children, but rest assured whenever ‌HomePod‌ isn't sure, it will ask who's speaking.

If ‌Siri‌ doesn't recognize you after multi-user setup, try these steps. After each step, see if ‌Siri‌ recognizes you.

1. In the Home app, tap the home icon, then tap Home Settings. Choose your home, then turn off Recognize My Voice, then turn it on again. Wait a few minutes before trying ‌Siri‌ again.
2. Restart the iOS device that you use with "Hey ‌Siri‌."
3. Restart your ‌HomePod‌: Open the Home app on your iOS device, tap and hold ‌HomePod‌, then tap the cog wheel in the bottom-right corner of the screen. Scroll down and select Reset HomePod, then tap Restart HomePod to confirm.
   

4. On your iOS device, go to Settings -> Siri & Search, then turn off Listen for "Hey Siri", then turn it on again, and follow the onscreen instructions to teach ‌Siri‌ your voice.

To test out out the voice recognition further, you can get users to try asking different questions that relate specifically to them, like what their upcoming calendar events are. If everything works, ‌Siri‌ will reply with their respective name and the answer to their query.

The neat thing about ‌HomePod‌ multi-user support is that it doesn't apply to queries and commands that aren't person-specific – so you can ask what time it is or what the weather is like, just as you would do so normally.

Similarly, anyone can ask ‌HomePod‌ to play music, and it will play from the primary user's account without affecting that person's taste profile.

Tim Cook visited Ireland today to collect an award from Taoiseach Leo Varadkar for Apple's 40 years of investment in the country. Apple's CEO also met with Irish musician Hozier and Dublin-based game studio WarDucks.

In 2016, the European Commission found that Apple received illegal state aid from Ireland and forced the company to repay 13 billion euros in back taxes. Apple and Ireland are both appealing the ruling. Apple has previously expressed confidence that the ruling "will be overturned" by European courts.

In that regard, Cook today called for global corporate tax reform, telling Reuters and others that Apple "desperately" wants the system to be fair. "It's very complex to know how to tax a multinational," he added.

"I think logically everybody knows it needs to be rehauled, I would certainly be the last person to say that the current system or the past system was the perfect system. I'm hopeful and optimistic that they will find something," said Cook, referring to the intergovernmental economic organization OECD.

Ireland has been a second home for Apple for forty years and this honour is even more special for us because it recognizes the contributions of our incredible team here who work tirelessly to serve our customers around the country, and around the world. I believe deeply that our most important work together is still ahead of us, and I'm grateful to the people of Ireland for their commitment to openness, to innovation and to the cooperation that will make possible the next generation of world-changing ideas.

Note: Due to the political 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.

A former Apple executive who worked on the chips that power iPhones and iPads has had a request to toss a breach-of-contract lawsuit brought by the company rejected by the court in a tentative ruling.

Last August, Apple sued its former A-series chip lead, Gerard Williams III, for breach of employment contract. Williams was the lead designer of Apple's custom ‌iPhone‌ and ‌iPad‌ chips from the A7 to A12X, before he departed the company in March 2019 to start his own chip company, Nuvia Inc, with two other former Apple chip executives.

Apple accuses him of breaching the contract because it barred him from planning or engaging in any business activities that are "competitive or directly related to Apple's business or products." Williams argues that a provision in the contract conflicts with a California law that allows workers to develop new businesses while they're employed elsewhere.

However, Bloomberg today reports that Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Mark Pierce said the law doesn't permit an employee "to plan and prepare to create a competitive enterprise prior to termination if the employee does so on their employer's time and with the employer's resources."

The judge also dismissed a claim by Williams that Apple invaded his privacy by reviewing text messages he wrote to coworkers that were critical of the company. In one of the messages, Williams is said to have claimed that Apple would have "no choice but to purchase" his new company.

Williams sought to have those texts excluded as evidence in the suit. Pierce disagreed. "There are no allegations in the complaint establishing that the text messages were obtained as the result of eavesdropping upon or recording a confidential communication," he wrote.

The judge sided with Williams in dismissing Apple's bid for punitive damages, saying the company has failed to show how Williams intentionally tried to harm Apple by being disloyal.

Bloomberg notes that the tentative ruling regarding the California law doesn't address the merits of Apple’s claims, but it will allow the company to proceed with pretrial information-sharing if the judge decides to make it final.

Claude Stern, Williams' lawyer, said he would contest the judge's findings at a hearing in San Jose on Tuesday. He argues that Williams can't be sued for simply coming up with a new business idea while working at Apple, as opposed to taking inventions he worked on that belong to his previous employer.