MacRumors

NBCUniversal's upcoming streaming service, Peacock, will be available on Apple devices that include the iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, and Apple TV when it launches on July 15, NBC announced today.

Peacock will be fully integrated into the ‌Apple TV‌ app, and it will be available in the Watch Now section. Peacock content will be tracked by Apple's Up Next feature, and customers will be able to use Siri to search for Peacock shows and movies.

The new streaming service will have a free tier that offers 7,500 hours of movies, shows, and live programming like sports, news, reality, and late night shows. There will also be a Peacock Premium tier available for $4.99 per month with over 15,000 hours of content.

The $4.99 per month price point includes ads, but an ad-free experience is available for an additional $5 per month. Apple customers will be able to sign up for Peacock Free or upgrade to premium using the Peacock app on iPhone, ‌iPad‌, iPod Touch, and ‌Apple TV‌.

Peacock will include popular movies like "Jurassic Park," "E.T.," and "Shrek," along with NBC TV shows like "Law & Order: SVU," "Parenthood," "30 Rock," "Parks and Recreation," "Two and a Half Men," "King of Queens," and more.

Apple today seeded the fourth betas of upcoming iOS and iPadOS 13.5 updates to developers, one week after seeding the third betas and over a month after releasing iOS and iPadOS 13.4 with iCloud Folder Sharing, iPad trackpad support, and more.

iOS and ‌‌iPadOS‌‌ 13.5 can be downloaded from the Apple Developer center or over the air after the proper developer profile has been installed.

iOS and iPadOS 13.5 introduce the exposure notification API designed by Apple and Google, which is designed to allow public health authorities to create COVID-19 contact tracing apps that are meant to slow the spread of the virus.

The API Apple has introduced is for health-related apps that will incorporate the new API, but there is a toggle in the Settings app that is designed to allow users to opt out of participating in COVID-19 exposure notifications.

Along with laying the ground work for the exposure notification API and accompanying apps, iOS 13.5 makes it easier to unlock an iPhone with a passcode when wearing a mask, as many people are wearing face coverings at the current time.

With the update, the passcode interface pops up more quickly when an iPhone detects that a mask is obscuring the face after a user swipes upward, so it's quicker to get into an iPhone using a passcode than before.

There's also a tweak to Group FaceTime, with Apple introducing a new toggle to disable the feature that automatically enlarges the tile of the person who is speaking. By default, Group ‌FaceTime‌ has a dynamic view with a tile for each person, and the person speaking has a larger tile while other tiles fade into the background.

An "Automatic Prominence" section in the ‌FaceTime‌ portion of the Settings app allows this to be disabled, displaying all of the people using ‌FaceTime‌ in a grid with equal-sized windows regardless of who is talking. A tile can be enlarged with a tap.

Earlier betas have introduced a new Apple Music feature that allows ‌Apple Music‌ songs to be shared on Instagram Stories. Tapping the Share button on a song in ‌Apple Music‌ creates a story with a song title, album name, and animated background, but at this time there is no way to get to ‌Apple Music‌ from the shared information.

iOS 13.5 also patches two security vulnerabilities that affect the Mail app on the iPhone and the ‌iPad‌. One vulnerability allowed an attacker to remotely infect an iOS device by sending emails that consume a significant amount of memory, while another allowed remote code executions.

The update may also address an issue with Personal Hotspot that prevents it from working for some people and it could also fix a VPN-related vulnerability, both of which are bugs that Apple has promised to address in upcoming iOS updates.

Ring today announced a new Ring Video Doorbell with improved night vision, updated motion zones, support for 1080p HD video, and a new solar charger accessory. The new Ring Video Doorbell still does not support Apple HomeKit.

Similar to previous models, the new doorbell can be hardwired into an existing doorbell spot, or powered by batteries. It connects to the Ring smartphone app, allowing you to keep track of who is at your door. The new device also supports two-way talk with noise cancellation, three preset modes (Home, Away, and Disarmed), and Privacy Zones to exclude areas of the camera's field-of-view.

A classic is a classic for a reason––it’s tried and true, reliable, and delivers on its promise. Yet every now and then, a classic deserves an upgrade. That’s why we’re thrilled to introduce you to the new and improved Ring Video Doorbell. With 1080p HD video, better image quality in day and night modes, and updated motion zones, this second generation Ring Video Doorbell takes your home security to the next level. And all for the same affordable price.

Additionally, a new Solar Charger device can be purchased separately. This accessory is installed first on the frame of the door, and built-in solar panels can provide charge to the Ring Video Doorbell, as long as your front door is in a sunny spot.

The new Ring Video Doorbell can be pre-ordered today for $99.99, and it will begin shipping on June 3. It's available in Satin Nickel and Venetian Bronze on Ring's website and on Amazon. The Solar Charger isn't up for pre-order yet, but it will cost $49.99 and launch sometime in July.

Apple software engineering chief Craig Federighi recently spoke with TechCrunch's Matthew Panzarino about the iPad's new cursor functionality, introduced alongside trackpad and mouse support in iPadOS 13.4.

Federighi said the iPad's new cursor experience was inspired by the Apple TV:

"There was a process to figure out exactly how various elements would work together," Federighi says. "We knew we wanted a very touch-centric cursor that was not conveying an unnecessary level of precision. We knew we had a focus experience similar to Apple TV that we could take advantage of in a delightful way. We knew that when dealing with text we wanted to provide a greater sense of feedback."

And:

"Part of what I love so much about what's happened with iPadOS is the way that we've drawn from so many sources. The experience draws from our work on tvOS, from years of work on the Mac, and from the origins of iPhone X and early iPad, creating something new that feels really natural for iPad."

When using a trackpad, the cursor displays as a circle on the screen, popping up only when you have a finger on the trackpad. The circle then morphs into various other shapes when interacting with various elements of iPadOS:

"So we came up with a circle that elegantly transforms to accomplish the task at hand. For example, it morphs to become the focus around a button, or to hop over to another button, or it morphs into something more precise when that makes sense, like the I-beam for text selection."

And:

"We set out to design the cursor in a way that retains the touch-first experience without fundamentally changing the UI," Federighi says. "So customers who may never use a trackpad with their iPad won't have to learn something new, while making it great for those who may switch back and forth between touch and trackpad."

MacRumors recently went hands-on with the cursor experience, providing a closer look at various trackpad gestures and more.

iPadOS 13.4 introduced the new cursor experience and trackpad support on all iPad Pro models, the iPad Air 2 and later, the fifth-generation iPad and later, and the iPad mini 4 and later. Keyboards with built-in trackpads released so far include Apple's Magic Keyboard, Logitech's Combo, and Brydge's Pro+.

Lamborghini today announced that all iPhone and iPad users will be able to view the new Huracán EVO RWD Spyder using Augmented Reality and Apple's AR Quick Look.

Apple users can visit the Lamborghini website from tomorrow on their iPhone or ‌iPad‌, tap "See in AR" next to the announcement of the Huracán EVO RWD Spyder, and then the vehicle will be viewable in AR. Users can rotate and expand the size of the car in order to look more closely at interior and exterior details, and take pictures of it in their environment.

According to Lamborghini, this AR Quick Look feature will soon be available for its entire range of vehicles. Apple SVP of Worldwide Marketing Phil Schiller commented on the launch of the AR feature, mentioning that the companies wanted people to be able to view the new Lamborghini model without having to leave their homes.

“Apple cares deeply about the people of Italy and our friends at Lamborghini. We are inspired by their commitment to return to work safely during this critical time,” said Phil Schiller, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing.

“Apple and Lamborghini share a great passion for design and innovation. We are excited to support the launch of the new Lamborghini with Apple’s augmented reality technology, so that their fans around the world can experience it from the safety of their own homes.”

To use AR on an iPhone and ‌iPad‌, you'll need iOS 11 or later and a device with an A9 processor or later. This includes the iPhone 6 and later, iPad Pro, ‌iPad‌ (5th generation or later), iPad mini (5th generation or later), iPad Air (3rd generation), and iPod touch (7th generation).

In recent months, some AirPods Pro users have been complaining about reduced noise cancellation and crackling or static sounds, particularly since the release of firmware version 2B588 for the earphones in November.

As noted by 9to5Mac, Apple has now addressed these potential issues. in two support documents, providing affected users with troubleshooting advice.

For users experiencing noise cancellation issues, Apple first says to make sure that you have the latest software installed on your connected iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Mac. Apple has also just released a new firmware version 2D15 for the AirPods Pro, which should automatically install after the earphones are connected to an Apple device for a short period.

Next, Apple says to place both AirPods Pro in your ears and perform the obvious step of making sure that Active Noise Cancellation is turned on.

If noise cancellation still isn't working as expected, Apple says to clean the mesh located on the top of your AirPods Pro, noting that sometimes noise cancellation can be affected if debris or earwax builds up in the area highlighted below. In particular, Apple says this buildup could result in a loss of bass sound or an increase in ambient noise.

As for crackling or static sounds, Apple again says to make sure that you have the latest software on your connected iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Mac, and to ensure that there are no wireless interference or obstructions between you and your device. Apple also recommends listening to audio from a different app to see if a particular app causes the issue.

If all else fails, Apple says to contact its support representatives.

Since the release of firmware version 2D15 yesterday, there has been mixed feedback about noise cancellation, with some users noticing an improvement, some noticing no change, and some noticing further degradation.

Apple has significantly added to the data available through its Mobility Trends Reports tool using information collected from Apple Maps.

Apple's reports are designed to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19 by providing helpful insights to local governments and health authorities, although anyone can use the tool to search by country, region, or city to see specifics trends for an area.

When Apple released the tool last month, it included data from major cities and 63 countries or regions. As noted by Asymco's Horace Dediu (via 9to5Mac), Apple has added approximately 580 new sub-regions to its database.

According to Dediu, all U.S. states and 530 other provinces are now represented in the data. Apple generates the data by counting the number of requests made to ‌‌Apple Maps‌‌ for directions.

The data sets are compared to reflect a change in the number of people who are driving, walking, or taking public transit, and Apple says that data availability in a particular place is subject to factors like minimum thresholds for direction requests made per day.

With the tool, users can search to see how routing requests have shifted since January 13, 2020, leading up to today. Apple also provides a complete downloadable data set that features daily changes in requests for directions by transportation type for all available countries and cities.

Last month, Apple introduced a Mac Pro Wheels Kit designed for the Mac Pro that adds wheels to the machine after purchase. The kit is priced at $699.

For anyone interested in what it's like to get their hands on the wheels kit, popular YouTuber Unbox Therapy has posted a dramatically staged, tongue-in-cheek unboxing video.

It's an admittedly lengthy watch at 7 minutes and 45 seconds, but its irreverent take on unboxing may appeal to viewers who would balk at the prospect of splashing that much cash on a set of computer wheels.

When adding wheels to the ‌Mac Pro‌ when making an initial purchase, Apple charges $400, but the standalone kit to be used after purchase is $300 more because the pre-purchase price includes the price of removing the $300 feet.

Mac Pro‌ users who want to purchase the wheels add-on kit can do so from Apple's online store.

The Apple TV app for the ‌Apple TV‌, iPhone, iPad, Mac, and other devices now features an AFI Film Club section highlighting movie picks and recommendations from the American Film Institute.

As noted by Variety, the AFI's picks in the ‌Apple TV‌ app can be found in the "Browse by Collection" section, and the movie selections are updated on a daily basis. The AFI Film Club is not a subscription service and is instead just recommending content that can be purchased through iTunes or that is available through a streaming service like HBO, Hulu, or Disney+.

Today, for example, the AFI Film Club's recommendation is "Spartacus," which can be rented for $3.99 from iTunes or purchased for $14.99. Past movie picks include "Star Wars: A New Hope," "La La Land," "Roman Holiday," "Shawshank Redemption," "Moonlight," "The Sound of Music," and more.

Along with daily movie picks the AFI Film Club has a section that includes the AFI's top 100 greatest films of all time, recommending titles like "Gone with the Wind," "The Wizard of Oz," "Toy Story," "Pulp Fiction," "The Sixth Sense," and others.

The AFI Movie Club collection can be found on the ‌Apple TV‌, iPhone, ‌iPad‌, Mac, some Samsung and LG Smart TVs, Roku devices, and Amazon Fire TV devices.

Disney+ now has 54.5 million subscribers worldwide, a new total announced today during the company's quarterly earnings call.

That means Disney has gained 4.5 million Disney+ subscribers since April 8, when it said that Disney+ had 50 million subscribers. Disney+ launched in November and has grown to almost $55 million subscribers over the course of the last six months.

Disney's significant growth earlier this year came from launches of the service in the UK, Ireland, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria, France, Switzerland, and India, but the service has also seen a boost with everyone sheltering in place and working from home.

54.4 million subscribers is well ahead of Disney's projected figures for the growth of Disney+. When the service launched, Disney estimated that it would see 60 to 90 million subscribers worldwide by the end of 2024, but if the current growth rate keeps up, Disney will hit that goal this year.

Apple has not provided subscriber numbers for Apple TV+, so there's no direct comparison to make to Disney+. Apple has been providing a free year of service to everyone who purchases a new Apple device, so it will take some time before Apple has large numbers of paying subscribers.

Disney+ has a major edge over ‌Apple TV‌+ because Disney has an established catalog of content along with many popular Star Wars and Marvel franchises to offer. "The Mandalorian," the key show Disney+ premiered with, received more attention than any of ‌Apple TV‌+'s launch shows, including "The Morning Show," "Dickinson," "See," and "For All Mankind."

Though Disney+ growth is solid, Disney lost about $1 billion in operating income in the March quarter due to the shuttering of its theme parks worldwide, including Disneyland in Anaheim, California and the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida.

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek today told Bloomberg that he expects Apple to further "open up" in long term following the antitrust complaint Spotify filed with the European Union last year.

In the complaint, Spotify said that Apple enforces App Store rules that "purposely limit choice and stifle innovation at the expense of the user experience," and that Apple acts as "both a player and referee to deliberately disadvantage other app developers."

Spotify specifically took issue with Apple's 30 percent fee collected on ‌App Store‌ purchases, which has forced Spotify to charge subscribers through the ‌App Store‌ $12.99 per month for its Premium plan instead of the $9.99 per month fee it normally collects.

The European Union subsequently launched an investigation into Apple, even though Apple claimed Spotify's complaint was "misleading rhetoric."

Apple has since made a few changes, launching a feature that allows Siri to work with non-Apple Music services, and Spotify has also introduced new Apple Watch and Apple TV apps. Ek said these moves have been encouraging.

"We're very encouraged about being able to now finally use Siri as a way of building in voice support and also being available to build products for the Apple TV and Apple Watch, something that we haven't been able to do until very recently," Ek said in the interview. It's unclear if Spotify was actually prevented from launching an Apple TV app as the platform has had other music services for multiple years as App Store apps.

Earlier this year, Bloomberg said that Apple is working on a new feature that will allow third-party apps like Spotify to run natively on the HomePod, and there may be an option that will allow users to change the default music app on iOS and iPadOS 14, further leveling the playing field between Apple and its competitors.

Apple, said Ek is "moving in the right direction," but there are "many, many steps" still to go before Spotify will consider Apple an "open and fair platform."

Security researchers are scared to use, buy, or even talk about iPhone emulation software Corellium after Apple levied a lawsuit against the company, reports Motherboard.

Apple in August 2019 filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Corellium, a mobile device virtualization company that works with iOS. In the lawsuit, Apple claimed that Corellium had illegally replicated the operating system and apps that run on the iPhone and the iPad.

"Corellium has simply copied everything: the code, the graphical user interface, the icons - all of it, in exacting detail," reads Apple's lawsuit.

Corellium initially responded by suggesting that its software helps Apple by making it easier for security researchers to track down iOS bugs, but later said that Apple was waging war on jailbreaking and that the lawsuit should concern security researchers, jailbreakers, and app developers.

Though the legal battle between Apple and Corellium is ongoing, it has successfully scared people away from Corellium's software because Apple has sought information from companies that have used Corellium's software and those companies are afraid of retribution.

"Apple has created a chilling effect," a security researcher familiar with Corellium's product, who asked to remain anonymous because he wasn't allowed to talk to the press, told Motherboard.

"I don't know if they intended it but when they name individuals at companies that have spoken in favor [of Corellium], I definitely believe retribution is possible," the researcher added, referring to Apple's subpoena to the Spanish finance giant Santander Bank, which named an employee who had Tweeted about Corellium.

Some security researchers told Motherboard that they're afraid to use Corellium because of the possibility of retribution from Apple, while others refused to comment at all. One security researcher said he'd have a legal look into it if he needed Corellium's software, while another said he'd get legal advice before using it in the future.

Not all security researchers, however, are worried. One researcher, Elias Naur, told Motherboard that he uses Corellium to test code written in the Go language for iOS devices. With Corellium, he no longer needs to test on two old and broken iPhones.

Security researchers have complained that Apple's lawsuit against Corellium is about Apple wanting control over research done on iOS and the bugs that are found.

Apple is continuing to pursue the lawsuit, and on April 20, asked Chris Wade, Corellium's founder, for all documents and communications related to him obtaining valuable dev-fused or prototype iPhones, which are designed for internal testing but sometimes escape Apple's clutches. Wade has denied using dev-fused iPhones for the development of Corellium.

It remains unclear how the lawsuit will ultimately turn out, but Apple is successfully making researchers think twice about using Corellium's tools amid the legal dispute.