MacRumors

Apple has wrapped up construction on its second retail store located in Bangkok, Thailand, and is set to open the location to the public on Saturday, July 25.

Apple hasn't added the new store to its list of stores in Thailand, but details on the opening date were shared on Twitter and sent to MacRumors by reader Kangg.

The new store is in front of the Central World mall and it joins Apple's existing store in Thailand, Apple Iconsiam, which opened in November 2018.

During construction, a temporary wall has kept the new retail store hidden from view, and while it continues to be shrouded in a temporary black covering, the cylindrical glass design and flat, circular roof are visible.

Leaked architectural plans have suggested the store will feature wood product tables arranged in a ring shape around the store's floor, with shelves for displaying products along the walls. The center of the store features a winding staircase up to the second floor, where there's a forum area with a large video screen and tables for Today at Apple sessions.

Apple will likely share a detailed look at the new store when it opens up to the public later this week.

Apple's 2020 iPhone lineup won't launch until late October, according to a new report from Japanese site Mac Otakara that cites sources in the Chinese supply chain.

Apple has historically held all of its modern iPhone unveilings during the first few weeks of September, with iPhones launching soon after for the most part, but this year, the release could be pushed back due to production delays caused by the ongoing public health crisis.

There have been multiple rumors suggesting delays thus far, so it seems that some or all of the 2020 iPhones will be coming later than September. Apple may still unveil all of its iPhones in September, but launch the devices later than expected.

There is precedent for a delayed launch after announcement as Apple's iPhone XR in 2018 was announced in September and then launched in late October.

According to Mac Otakara, Apple's LTE iPhone 12 models will be released in October, while 5G models will follow in November.

‌Mac Otakara‌ has something of a mixed track record when it comes to rumors as if often sources Apple's supply chain which is not always accurate, but we have now heard several rumors about delayed launch dates, so we can expect at least some if not all of Apple's 2020 iPhones to come later in the year than normal.

We're expecting four iPhone variants in 2020, including lower-cost 5.4 and 6.1-inch iPhone 12 models and higher-end 6.1 and 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro models. Everything we know about what to expect from the 2020 iPhone lineup can be found in our iPhone 12 roundup.

Apple this morning released the third developer beta of iOS and iPadOS 14 for testing purposes, tweaking and refining some of the features and design changes that are coming in the update.

Changes get less notable as the beta testing period goes on, but there are some noteworthy new features in the third beta, which we've highlighted below.

- New Music Icon - Apple introduced an updated Music icon that's red and white instead of white and multicolored.

- Music Library - The Music app's Library section was overhauled in iOS 14 beta 3, doing away with some of the red text and adding icons next to the different Playlists, Artists, Albums, and Songs sections. Buttons have also been tweaked to be gray instead of red, and the Apple Music widget is red instead of white.

- Clock Widget - iOS 14 beta 3 adds a clock widget to the iPhone and the iPad that can show a single city or times from four places around the world.

- Widget Popup - When you swipe over into Widgets for the first time after updating to iOS 14 beta 3, there's a popup that provides instructions on reorganizing widgets.

- App Library Popup - There's also a new popup about App Library that shows up when you swipe over to open it up for the first time after updating.

- Home Screen Popup - When you long press on the Home Screen to edit apps, iOS 14 will now let you know that you can hide ‌Home Screen‌ pages by tapping on page dots.

- Screen Time Widget - The Screen Time widget has been updated in beta 3 and it now shows usage details for the top apps that you've used during the day.

- Display Zoom for 5.8-inch iPhones - iOS 14 brings a new Display Zoom option for 5.8-inch iPhones like the iPhone X, which is designed to make the icons, text, and other elements of the screen larger. As 9to5Mac points out, the new Zoom Mode is likely possible because Apple has been preparing a version of iOS 14 designed to work on smaller iPhones, mainly the 5.4-inch iPhone that's coming this fall.

- Screenshot Editing - When you delete a screenshot in iOS 14 beta 3, the interface is slightly different.

- Snapchat Stories - ‌Apple Music‌ songs can now be shared to Snapchat Stories through the Share Sheet in iOS 14 beta 3.

- Memoji Masks - There is a new Memoji mask type in the third beta that has a slightly different look.

- 3D Touch Disabled - ‌3D Touch‌ has been disabled temporarily in the beta on 3D Touch-enabled devices. Long pressing still works.

- Shortcut Automations for Apps - Shortcut automations are able to be triggered by an app opening and closing, so you can do things like toggle on Bluetooth when opening up a specific app and then turn it off when you're done.

- Apple Music - The Music app remembers the last play position and timeline position.

Have you found other changes not listed here? Let us know in the comments and we'll add them to the list.

As Apple CEO Tim Cook gears up to testify in an App Store antitrust hearing before the House Judiciary Committee next week, Apple has commissioned a study from Analysis Group [PDF] that's designed to demonstrate how similar Apple's ‌App Store‌ fees and practices are to those of other digital marketplaces like the Amazon Appstore and the Google Play app.

Apple takes a 30 percent cut of all paid apps and in-app purchases, along with a 30 percent cut of all in-app digital subscriptions during the first year. That drops to 15 percent in the second year.

Analysis Group compared Apple's commission rates to those used by 38 digital marketplaces for apps and software, video game platforms, and found that most also take a 30 percent cut of sales. The Google Play Store, Amazon ‌App Store‌, Galaxy Store, Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo all have similar commission fees.

Since Apple also sells other digital goods like books and music, the study covered commission rates for other digital content platforms like Kindle Direct Publishing, Nook, and Kobo, all of which collect between 30 and 65 percent from book sales on their platforms.

When it comes to e-commerce marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Uber, Walmart, Ticketmaster, TaskRabbit, Poshmark, and more, fees range from 5 percent up to 37 percent.

The study suggests that ‌App Store‌ developers earn "substantially higher share" of total sales than through brick-and-mortar channels. For video games, developers and publishers collect less than 45 percent of the retail price, and before digital marketplaces, 60 to 70 percent of software sales went to intermediaries rather than software creators.

As for Apple's rules that developers must use its in-app purchase options, the study suggests that's common for many e-commerce sites and services. Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and Walmart all have rules preventing sellers from directing buyers to external sites, as do Airbnb, VRBO, TaskRabbit, Upwork, and Spotify's SoundBetter.

The study concludes that Apple's ‌App Store‌ commission rates are in line with those charged by other digital content marketplaces, it's cheaper to distribute software digitally than through a brick-and-mortar store, and that Apple's rules about "free riding" are similar to the rules enacted by other companies.

Apple CEO ‌Tim Cook‌ is likely to cite this study when he testifies in front of the House Judiciary Committee on Monday. Cook is expected to be questioned about the ‌App Store‌'s fees and policies on rejection and competition. Cook's testimony is part of an antitrust investigation that won't directly lead to enforcement, but will govern future legislation that could regulate digital marketplaces.

The full Analysis Group study commissioned by Apple can be read here.

Apple is today launching a new Apple Security Research Device Program that's designed to provide security researchers with special iPhones that are dedicated to security research with unique code execution and containment policies.

Apple last year said it would be providing security researchers with access to "special" iPhones that would make it easier for them to find security vulnerabilities and weaknesses to make iOS devices more secure, which appears to be the program that's rolling out now.

The iPhones that Apple is providing to security researchers are less locked down than consumer devices and will make it easier to find serious security vulnerabilities.

Apple says the Security Research Device (SRD) offers shell access and can run any tools or entitlements, but other than that, it behaves similarly to a standard iPhone. SRDs are provided to security researchers on a 12-month renewable basis and remain Apple property. Bugs discovered with the SRD must be "promptly" reported to Apple or a relevant third-party.

If you use the SRD to find, test, validate, verify, or confirm a vulnerability, you must promptly report it to Apple and, if the bug is in third-party code, to the appropriate third party. If you didn't use the SRD for any aspect of your work with a vulnerability, Apple strongly encourages (and rewards, through the Apple Security Bounty) that you report the vulnerability, but you are not required to do so.

If you report a vulnerability affecting Apple products, Apple will provide you with a publication date (usually the date on which Apple releases the update to resolve the issue). Apple will work in good faith to resolve each vulnerability as soon as practical. Until the publication date, you cannot discuss the vulnerability with others.

Apple is accepting applications for the Security Research Device Program. Requirements include being in the Apple Developer Program, and having a track record finding security issues on Apple platforms.

Those that participate in the program will have access to extensive documentation and a dedicated forum with Apple engineers, with Apple telling TechCrunch that it wants the program to be a collaboration.

The Security Research Device Program will run alongside the bug bounty program, and hackers can file bug reports with Apple and receive payouts of up to $1 million, with bonuses possible for the worst vulnerabilities.

Apple today seeded the third betas of upcoming iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 updates to developers for testing purposes, two weeks after seeding the second betas and a month after unveiling the new software at the WWDC keynote.

Registered developers can download the betas over the air after installing the proper profile from the Apple Developer Center.

iOS 14 introduces a redesigned Home Screen that supports widgets for the first time, plus widgets have been redesigned and can now be customized in three sizes through the new widgets gallery.

An App Library shows all of the apps installed on an iPhone in one place, both in an icon view and in an alphabetical list. With all of the apps in the App Library, app icons and ‌Home Screen‌ pages can be hidden for a cleaner look.

Incoming phone calls and FaceTime calls no longer take up the entire iPhone/iPad display, and Siri requests have also been minimized so summoning ‌Siri‌ doesn't monopolize the screen. ‌Siri‌ is smarter in iOS 14 and can send audio messages, and dictation can now run on device. A Picture in Picture mode allows users to watch videos or use ‌FaceTime‌ while using other apps.

App Clips lets users take advantage of some app features without needing to download a full app, useful for quick actions like purchasing a coffee, making a restaurant reservation, or renting a scooter, where downloading an entire app would be a hassle. App Clips can be scanned from QR codes, NFC tags, or Apple-designed App Clip Codes, plus they can be shared in Messages or accessed from Safari.

In the Messages app you can now pin important conversations, use @mentions in group chats, and take advantage of inline replies to keep multi-person conversations better organized. There are new Memoji options and group chats can be assigned icons with photos, emoji, or Memoji.

The Health app supports the Apple Watch's new Sleep Tracking feature and there's a Health Checklist for managing health settings, and in the Weather app, there's more info on precipitation and severe weather events.

Cycling directions are available in the Maps app with directions incorporating elevation, how busy a street is, and stairs, plus for those who own electric vehicles, there are options for routes with EV charging stops.

Digital Car Keys let an iPhone be used in lieu of a physical key, a feature that's coming soon to BMWs, and CarPlay now lets users set wallpapers.

A new translate app provides text and voice translations to and from 11 languages, and there are tons of new privacy protections. Developers need to get user permission before accessing devices on a local network, limiting access to photos, and providing apps with approximate locations instead of exact locations.

Safari has a Privacy Report that lets you know which websites have trackers, and there are new icons on the Home screen that let you know when an app is using a camera or microphone. Third-party browser and mail apps can be set as default for the first time, and Apple added new AirPods capabilities.

As for the ‌iPad‌, the Apple Pencil can now be used in any text field, with handwritten text converted automatically to typed text thanks to the new Scribble feature.

There are tons more features in iOS 14 and iPadOS 14, so make sure to check out our iOS 14 roundup and our iPadOS 14 roundup for a full list of everything new. We also highlight all of the new feature tweaks and changes introduced with each beta iteration, and you can see the changes from beta 2 in our beta 2 tidbits article.

We'll be doing a separate article featuring the changes in beta 3 after we download the update and discover what's new.

iOS and iPadOS 14 are available to registered developers and public beta testers at this time. Beta testing for ‌iOS 14‌ will last for several months, with the update set to be released in September 2020.

Apple today shared a new feature celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which was signed into law on July 26, 1990. The law prohibits discrimination due to disability, and has led to significant improvements and awareness of accessibility to help disabled individuals navigate their worlds.

Apple has long been a champion of accessibility in its products, including numerous features and technologies as core components of its products, operating systems, and apps. The company's feature piece today shares quotes from an Apple employee, ADA activists, and others about both the overall benefits of the ADA and the part Apple has played in the movement.

Jazz musician Matthew Whitaker, who is blind, shares his thoughts on using VoiceOver on an iPod touch as a child, and has graduated to using Logic Pro X on a MacBook Pro to record his music.

Disability rights lawyer Haben Girma was the first Deafblind student at Harvard Law School, where she focused her studies on the intersection of the ADA and technology and has since helped push forward ADA accommodations in the online world.

Actor and model Tatiana Lee, who is paralyzed from the waist down due to spina bifida, discusses her efforts to support disability representation in Hollywood films and how Apple's technology like Voice to Text and Siri Shortcuts helps her be productive even when her hands are occupied performing other tasks.

And finally, Dean Hudson, an accessibility technology evangelist at Apple, talks about the strides Apple has made since he arrived in 2006, including VoiceOver for iPhone and the more recent Switch Control.

Samsung today announced the Galaxy Z Flip 5G smartphone, a new device that is essentially the same model launched earlier in 2020, now with 5G support.

Continuing with the design of the previous model, the Galaxy Z Flip 5G can be folded in half and unfolds to a full 6.7-inch AMOLED display. You can also open the device halfway, in "Flex Mode," letting you view content on the top half of the display and interact with the bottom half.

Flex Mode supports apps like YouTube, where you can watch a video on the top display while it's free-standing, while reading and typing comments on the bottom display. The camera also has been updated to support Flex Mode, allowing you to double-tap in Flex Mode to switch the preview window from the top to the bottom half of the device.

A similar multitasking feature supports all of the apps on the Galaxy Z Flip 5G. You can drag and drop apps you want to use using App Pair, opening the photos app and the messaging app at the same time to choose photos to send to friends.

When it's fully closed, the Galaxy Z Flip 5G has a small 1.1-inch display that presents the current time, incoming notifications, and other relevant information. If you tap on one of these notifications, when opening the phone you'll see the related app open and ready to use.

The new phone still has a 3,300 mAh dual battery, fast charging support, a capacitive fingerprint sensor on the side, and facial recognition. The front camera is a 10-megapixel selfie camera, while the rear camera is a 12-megapixel ultra wide camera.

Internally, the Galaxy Z Flip 5G features 8GB RAM and the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 Plus 5G Mobile Platform, allowing the smartphone to access 5G networks in supported areas. Samsung ensures that the form factor of the Galaxy Z Flip hasn't bulked up with the addition of 5G, measuring in at about 6.5 inches long, and half that at just under 3.5 inches when folded.

The Galaxy Z Flip 5G will be available in carrier and Unlocked by Samsung versions starting August 7, 2020, in Mystic Gray and Mystic Bronze and priced at $1,449.99. The previous device (without 5G) started at $1,380.

The winners of the 13th annual iPhone Photography Awards have been announced today, following submissions from thousands of photographers from around the world.

Dozens of photographs taken via iPhone were chosen as winners, with the grand prize going to street photographer Dimpy Bhalotia from the United Kingdom, for her photo called "Flying Boys."

Follow-up winners include Artyom Baryshau from Belarus with "No Walls," Geli Zhao from China for an untitled image; and Saif Hussain of Iraq with "Sheikh Of Youth."

In total, the iPhone Photography Awards gave out awards to photographers from Australia, Bahrain, Belarus, Canada, China, Colombia, France, Hong Kong, Italy, Iraq, Israel, Japan, Netherlands, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

You can view the full collection of winners on the iPhone Photography Awards website.

Apple and Amazon are under investigation by Italy's antitrust regulator over allegations that the two companies have been blocking the sale of Apple and Beats devices to resellers in order to stifle competition (via Reuters).

The L'Autorit Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM) is looking into the allegation, which has been made by legal but unauthorized resellers who could theoretically sell the hardware at a discounted price.

In a press release (translated) today spotted by setteBIT, the ACGM said it was investigating Apple and Amazon for alleged contravention of Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

The purpose of the investigation is to ascertain whether Apple and Amazon have implemented a restrictive agreement to prohibit the sale of Apple and Beats branded products by electronics resellers not participating in Apple's official program, who legitimately purchase products from wholesalers and then resell them to retailers.

In the Authority's view, the agreement to exclude certain parties from the marketplace appears to have the potential to reduce competition by raising barriers to the outlet of online sales markets to the detriment of unofficial resellers, which are usually small and medium-sized enterprises that sell on the web using marketplace services.

The AGCM did not say how long the investigation would take, but did acknowledge that officials carried out inspections at the local offices of both companies this week. Apple has yet to comment on the matter.

This isn't the first AGCM investigation into Apple. A previous probe looked into the company for iPhone battery slowdowns, which the antitrust watchdog said was a form of planned obsolescence and subsequently slapped Apple with a 10 million euro fine.

Apple will launch a next-generation version of AirPods Pro in the second half of next year, according to a new report today.

According to DigiTimes' sources, at least some of the next-gen AirPods Pro models will be assembled by Inventec Appliances in Vietnam, with current generation AirPods Pro manufacturers Luxshare and GoerTek also taking a share.

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who often reliably predicts Apple's product plans, has previously said that Apple is working on a second-generation version of the AirPods Pro that will go into mass production into the fourth quarter of 2021 to the first quarter of 2022, suggesting no AirPods Pro refresh in 2020 or early 2021.

Future AirPods could include light sensors, which could be used for health monitoring features. DigiTimes has suggested the new sensors could be included in AirPods in one to two years. Health monitoring features could let the AirPods monitor heart rate, step counts, and health conditions, as well as detect head movements.

Apple is also rumored to be working on a third-generation version of the lower-end AirPods, for a planned rollout in the first half of 2021. Kuo originally said the third-generation AirPods will look similar to the current AirPods with no design changes, but later said that the new AirPods will feature a form factor design "similar to AirPods Pro."

The third-generation AirPods are expected to adopt a more compact system-in-package (SiP) that's similar to the internals of the AirPods Pro, which will allow the audio features of the AirPods to be integrated into a casing more similar in design to the AirPods Pro.

Facebook says it is bringing a new personal fundraising tool to Instagram that allows users to raise money for causes they support. The feature is similar to an existing fundraising system on Facebook, but this one will begin as a small test for users in the U.S, the U.K., and Ireland.

Users with access to the test will see the new option in Instagram in Edit Profile -> Add Fundraiser -> Raise Money. They can then choose a photo, select a category, and then add details to help tell their story and encourage others to donate.

When people donate to a fundraiser, they can choose to keep their information hidden from the public, but the creator of the fundraiser will be able to see their username, name on their profile and donation amount. After a fundraiser ends, the funds go to a designated bank account.

According to Facebook, anyone who can use Instagram's donation sticker to donate is also eligible to donate to personal fundraisers. The company says each Instagram fundraiser lasts 30 days, but there's no limit to the number of times it can be extended. Users must be at least 18 years old to create a fundraiser, and donations are accepted after the fundraiser is approved.

Google this week announced several new security features for its G Suite services, and the most notable for Gmail users is a pilot of an email specification that allows brand logos to display within authenticated emails.

Brand Indications for Message Identification (BIMI) is developed by the AuthIndicators Working Group, and requires emails to pass Google's anti-abuse validation, after which it brands the incoming message with a logo of the company that sent it.

Our BIMI pilot will enable organizations, who authenticate their emails using DMARC, to validate ownership of their corporate logos and securely transmit them to Google. Once these authenticated emails pass all of our other anti-abuse checks, Gmail will start displaying the logo in existing avatar slots in the Gmail UI.

By authenticating messages using the existing DMARC system and requiring strong authentication, the spec aims to give users and email security systems increased confidence in the source of emails while creating a trusted brand presence.

Google says it will be starting the BIMI pilot in the coming weeks with a limited number of senders. To learn more about BIMI, you can visit the working group's website.