Broadcom on Thursday offered analysts an upbeat end-of-year revenue forecast, thanks in part to the imminent launch of Apple's 2018 iPhone lineup, which is expected to boost the chipmaker's wireless business.
Reuters reports that Broadcom predicted current-quarter revenue largely above estimates, due to higher demand for components that power data centers, as well as an increase in manufacturing at a certain "North American customer," which analysts identified as Apple.
The chipmaker expects Apple's smartphone sales to increase its wireless revenue by 25 percent compared to the previous quarter, although the overall forecast may be down in single-digit percentage compared to the previous year.
That said, Broadcom's enterprise storage business was up 70 percent in Q3 2018, and CEO Hock Tan believes that another strong show will feed into a "seasonal uptick" in its wireless arm:
"More than half our consolidated revenue ... is benefiting from strong cloud and enterprise data center spending," Tan said on his post-earnings call with analysts.
"This, coupled with a seasonal uptick in wireless, will drive our forecast revenue in the fourth quarter."
Next week sees Apple launch its new flagship iPhone lineup, for which Broadcom traditionally supplies several components, including the wireless charger controller, touchscreen, and more.
Apple's September 12 event is expected to usher in a next-generation iPhone X, a larger 6.5-inch OLED screen mobile handset, and a mid-tier 6.1-inch device with an LCD display. The date should also see the company debut a new Apple Watch series and redesigned iPad Pro models.
British Airways says it is investigating the theft of customer data from its website and mobile app over a two-week period, during which 380,000 payment cards were exposed (via The Guardian).
"From 22:58 BST August 21 2018 until 21:45 BST September 5 2018 inclusive, the personal and financial details of customers making bookings on our website and app were compromised," the airline revealed in a statement on its website.
According to BA, travel and passport information was not accessed during the data breach, but concerned customers are being advised to get in touch with their card issuers in the first instance. The company said all customers affected by the breach had been contacted on Thursday night.
"British Airways is communicating with affected customers and we advise any customers who believe they may have been affected by this incident to contact their banks or credit card providers and follow their recommended advice."
The airline said it was informed of the hacking by a third party, which is why it was able to continue undetected for two weeks, but the company insists that the breach has been resolved and its website and mobile app are now working normally.
Twitter is testing an updated version of its desktop site that includes a new Bookmarks feature, the company outlined in a tweet earlier today.
Bookmarks is a feature that was added to the mobile version of Twitter earlier this year but has yet to make its way to the desktop. The Bookmarks option is designed to allow users to save tweets for later access.
Love to use Bookmarks and want it on web? Into scrolling through Explore to see what's happening?
We are testing out a new Twitter for web, which a small number of people will see today. Love it? Missing something? Reply and tell us. Don't have the new experience? Stay tuned. pic.twitter.com/w4TiRrVFHU
— Twitter (@Twitter) September 6, 2018
The new desktop site also includes some refinements to the design, with details shared by Business Insider and TechCrunch. There are new toggles for activating Night Mode and Data Saver from the profile page, and Trending Now and profile sections have been relocated from one side of the page to the other for a cleaner two-column look. Twitter has also redesigned the tweet composing window.
According to Twitter, the design is a "limited test for now" and not everyone will see the revamped site. Those who are able to try out the site will see an opt-in popup and are able to go back to the "legacy" site at any time in the Settings options.
Google today sent out invitations to members of the media for a "Made by Google" event that's set to be held in New York City on Tuesday, October 9.
At the event, Google is likely to unveil its Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL smartphones, which will be competing with the trio of new iPhones that Apple is set to unveil next week.
The 6.2-inch Pixel 3 XL will feature a deep iPhone X-style notch that's been the subject of jokes on the internet since early images leaked, while it looks like the smaller 5.5-inch Pixel 3 will be notchless.
Wireless charging will be available on both devices through glass rear shells, and the two smartphones will feature single-lens rear cameras and dual front-facing cameras. A fingerprint sensor is located at the back of each device, and given the inclusion of USB-C headphones and a USB-C to audio jack device, it looks like the Pixel 3 will not feature a headphone jack.
Image via Mobile-review.com
In past years, Google has unveiled multiple other products at fall events, so there are likely other devices Google is set to debut aside from the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL.
Apple is unveiling its own new 2018 smartphone lineup a month ahead of Google on Wednesday, September 12. Rumors suggest we can expect to see a 5.8-inch OLED iPhone Xs, a 6.5-inch OLED iPhone Xs Max, and lower-priced 6.1-inch iPhone with an LCD display.
Twelve South has long offered a PlugBug accessory designed to provide interchangeable plugs for travel purposes, but earlier this month, an updated version debuted that adds an extra USB port.
The new Twelve South PlugBug Duo is an ideal travel accessory because it adds international plugs to your MacBook adapter and it lets you charge accessories like an iPad, iPhone, and Apple Watch while charging your laptop.
Design wise, when it comes out of the box, the PlugBug Duo is similar in shape to the power adapter for a MacBook, MacBook Pro, or MacBook Air. To use it, though, the bottom portion snaps off to reveal a slide and hook mechanism.
Attaching it to a MacBook power adapter requires popping off the plug part of the adapter and replacing it with the snap-on PlugBug Duo component. It's a simple replacement that took me a few seconds to do.
PlugBug Duo is made from a bright red plastic material that's quite eye catching, and while the quality of the plastic doesn't quite measure up to the Apple power adapter, it's not far off.
The PlugBug Duo can serve as a permanent replacement for the plug portion of the power adapter, for use both at home and when traveling. Size wise, it lines up well with the 87W MacBook Pro charger, but it's larger than the 29W/30W and 61W chargers for the MacBook and 13-inch MacBook Pro.
In my photos, for example, I've attached it to the MacBook charger. It's wider on the right side than the power adapter and it adds more than an inch of bulk at the top due to the two USB ports, but it takes up less space than separate charging bricks for my iPad and iPhone.
The PlugBug Duo does add extra size to a power adapter, but I didn't feel like it was so bulky that it became less portable.
It's worth noting that with the PlugBug attached, you're not able to use the Power Adapter Extension Cable. If you want to use the Extension Cable, you will need to remove the PlugBug to attach it to the power adapter. I don't normally use the Extension Cable, especially when traveling, so I didn't have a problem with the tradeoff.
There are two USB-A ports on the PlugBug Duo, one that's 2.1A and ideal for charging an iPad and one that's 1A, which is suitable for an iPhone or Apple Watch. You can also use the 2.1A port to more quickly charge an iPhone, but this isn't an adapter you'll want to use for something like two iPads. I found it particularly useful for charging an iPhone in the 2.1A port and an Apple Watch in the 1A port.
While you can use the PlugBug Duo at home to add extra USB ports to your power adapter, where it really shines is travel. It's useful not having to take along extra power adapters for all of your devices. As with the standard power adapter, the prongs on the PlugBug tuck in when it's not in use (this is limited to the U.S. and China adapters).
PlugBug Duo is ideal for international travel because the plug portion snaps off and Twelve South ships it with several other interchangeable adapters that can be used in other countries.
There are adapters for Europe, China, Australia/New Zealand, North America, and the UK, with more than 150 countries covered in total. I didn't travel out of the country during my time testing the PlugBug, but I can say that it's pretty simple to swap out the plugs when needed.
Even if you're not traveling abroad, PlugBug Duo has the potential to be useful just because it lets you charge a MacBook and two other accessories at one time.
I do wish that Twelve South had included some kind of little pouch to keep the adapters in place when not in use, but with no pouch, I'm using the box, which does have convenient cutouts for each one.
I also wish that the PlugBug Duo had a place to wrap up the cord when packing it up for travel, but Apple's own USB-C power adapters don't offer that functionality either so I can't complain too much.
PlugBug Duo worked well with the two USB-C power adapters I tested it with, but it's also compatible with all MagSafe 2 power adapters, all MagSafe power adapters, and the 12W iPad power adapter.
Bottom Line
The PlugBug Duo is a great little travel accessory that offers a lot of utility, offering up different adapters for travel and two USB-A ports so you don't need to carry around additional adapters for the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch.
It's not cheap at $50, but the utility that's offered seems worth the price if you travel on a frequent basis.
Pixelmator today updated its pro image editing software, Pixelmator Pro, to version 1.1.4 to add new effects, a new Auto Selective Color adjustment tool that's powered by Core ML, and more.
The Auto Selective Color feature allows selective color adjustments to be applied automatically to images to improve specific colors using machine learning.
A new Light Leak effect adds a sunny, vintage feel to photos, while a Bokeh effect can add artistic camera blur. There's a new Spin Blur to create circular motion effects, and a Noise effect lets you add digital noise to photos.
Other new effects include Threshold, Mask to Alpha, Clouds, and other Tile and Distort effects pulled from the original Pixelmator app.
A long list of improvements have been made to existing tools. Auto White Balance and Auto Lightness, for example, better preserve skin tones and are 30 percent faster. The Color Adjustments and Effects submenus offer up Copy, Paste, Reset and Flatten Adjustment options, and there's a new keyboard shortcut (O) for Show Original when using various tools.
A full list of improvements and bug fixes are available in the Pixelmator Pro release notes.
In celebration of back to school, Pixelmator is discounting Pixelmator Pro to $29.99, a $30 discount off of the original $59.99 price tag. Pixelmator Pro can be downloaded from the Mac App Store. [Direct Link]
Smart home tech company Brilliant today launched its touchscreen-based "Brilliant Control" light switch priced starting at $299.00. Announced in early 2017, Brilliant Control replaces any existing light switch to enable touch and voice control over smart home devices from Amazon, Google, Nest, Ecobee, Honeywell, Ring, Philips Hue, and Wemo, but at launch not HomeKit.
Amazon Alexa is built directly into Brilliant Control, making it easy for those in the Amazon ecosystem to control their products with their voice using the light switch. For whatever light switch you are replacing, Brilliant Control also turns these bulbs into smart lights through the touch and voice control system.
Brilliant Control is compatible with Sonos, allowing the light switch to act as a hub for music playback on Sonos' line of smart speakers. The device also acts as a speaker system if you have two or more installed, so one person can make announcements to the rest of the house or use it as a video intercom between specific rooms.
Connected smart features include being able to see who is at your door by displaying the feed from a Ring doorbell, adjusting the temperature of Nest with touch or voice control, controlling Hue scenes, and more. Brilliant Control's display can also act as a picture frame when not in use, displaying family photos, art, or even seasonal themes.
Next to the touch screen are grooves that represent the traditional light switches you've replaced using Brilliant Control. Users can slide their fingers along each area to adjust the lighting for each respective fixture.
We reached out to Brilliant regarding future HomeKit support, and the company told us that it has hardware support for HomeKit built directly into Brilliant Control. This means that a future software update for the switch will include HomeKit support, but the company didn't divulge a release window for this update.
This should make Brilliant Control more enticing for those in Apple's ecosystem when HomeKit support launches, allowing you to control your scenes and accessories through the touch panel or Siri. As usual, if you're interested in Brilliant Control for HomeKit support, it's probably best to wait until the update has rolled out since we aren't sure how long it will take.
The company is also launching a connected iOS [Direct Link] and Android app, which allows all of the same controls when you aren't at home. Brilliant says that installing the device is as easy as installing a light switch, and requires "no additional wiring, modifications, or remote servers."
Brilliant Control comes in six colors and begins at $299.00 for a one light switch panel, and then rises to $349.00 for a two switch panel, $399.00 for a three switch panel, and $449.00 for a four switch panel. More information about Brilliant Control can be found on the company's website.
Satechi today announced the launch of two new keyboards that have been designed for use with the iMac and iMac Pro.
The Aluminum Bluetooth Wireless Keyboard and the Aluminum USB Wired Keyboard offer up enhanced scissor switch keys and an extended keyboard layout with full numeric keypads. Each of the keyboards is available in silver, space gray, gold, and rose gold to match Apple's lineup of Mac devices.
There are built-in hotkeys designed for macOS that are able to play/pause media, switch between applications, adjust brightness, adjust volume, search, and more.
With the Aluminum Bluetooth Wireless Keyboard, up to three devices can be connected at once with three buttons available for quick switching between them. It features a built-in USB-C port for recharging the battery, which Satechi says has enough capacity for 80 hours of uninterrupted work. The keyboard can continue to be used while charging with a USB-C connection.
The Aluminum USB Wired Keyboard connects to a USB-A port on an iMac or iMac Pro using an included USB-A cable and is ideal for those who prefer a wired connection to a Bluetooth connection.
Both of the keyboards can be purchased in silver today from the Satechi website or Amazon.com, while the space gray, gold, and rose gold options can be pre-ordered and will ship by the end of September.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Satechi and Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
The European Commission today announced it has approved Apple's proposed acquisition of music recognition service Shazam.
"After thoroughly analyzing Shazam's user and music data, we found that their acquisition by Apple would not reduce competition in the digital music streaming market," said Margrethe Vestager, European Commissioner for Competition.
The regulatory body concluded that Apple and Shazam mainly offer "complementary services" and "do not compete with each other," and that a merged Apple-Shazam entity would not adversely affect competitors in the European Union:
In particular, access to Shazam's data would not materially increase Apple's ability to target music enthusiasts and any conduct aimed at making customers switch would only have a negligible impact. As a result, competing providers of digital music streaming services would not be shut out of the market.
The regulators were concerned that the merger could reduce choice for users of streaming music services in Europe. In particular, they were concerned that Apple might gain access to sensitive data that would allow it to directly target competitors' customers and encourage them to switch to Apple Music.
While the Commission did not name any specific companies, Apple Music's biggest rival in Europe is Spotify, headquartered in Sweden. Shazam is currently integrated with multiple services, including Apple Music, Spotify, and Deezer.
Apple announced its plans to acquire Shazam in December, describing the two companies as a "natural fit" with "exciting plans" ahead. In February, however, the Commission received requests from Austria, France, Iceland, Italy, Norway, Spain, and Sweden to assess the deal under European merger law.
Shazam is a popular service that can identify the name and lyrics of songs, music videos, TV shows, and more. It has apps across iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, iMessage, and Mac, while the service has been built into Siri since iOS 8.
Apple this week announced it will be launching a dedicated web portal by the end of 2018 for authenticated law enforcement officers to submit lawful requests for data, track requests, and obtain responsive data from the company.
Photo: Alejandro Mejía Greene via Flickr/Creative Commons
Apple also said it is building a team of professionals dedicated to training law enforcement officers, which the company believes will improve its ability to reach smaller police forces and agencies around the world. This will include the development of an online training module for officers.
The web portal will be available globally as part of Apple's new Law Enforcement Support Program, which the company detailed on the Government Information Requests page of its privacy website this week.
Apple says the program will allow it to uphold its fundamental commitment to protect the security and privacy of its users:
We believe that law enforcement agencies play a critical role in keeping our society safe and we've always maintained that if we have information we will make it available when presented with valid legal process. In recognizing the ongoing digital evidence needs of law enforcement agencies, we have a team of dedicated professionals within our legal department who manage and respond to all legal requests received from law enforcement agencies globally. Our team also responds to emergency requests globally on a 24/7 basis.
We publish legal process guidelines for government and law enforcement agencies globally and we publish transparency reports twice a year detailing the types of requests we receive and how we respond. In addition, we regularly provide training to law enforcement officers on the types of data available from Apple and how to obtain it consistent with our legal process guidelines.
By the end of 2018 we will begin the launch of an online portal for authenticated law enforcement officers globally to submit lawful requests for data, track requests, and obtain responsive data from Apple.
We are building a team of professionals dedicated to training law enforcement officers globally, which will significantly increase our ability to reach smaller police forces and agencies. This will include the development of an online training module for officers. This will assist Apple in training a larger number of law enforcement agencies and officers globally, and ensure that our company's information and guidance can be updated to reflect the rapidly changing data landscape.
Apple is committed to protecting the security and privacy of our users. The above developments and the work we do to assist investigations uphold this fundamental commitment.
Apple requires law enforcement and government officials to follow applicable laws when requesting customer information and data. If they do, Apple complies by providing the narrowest possible set of data relevant to the request.
That information can include device identifiers, customer service records, and iCloud content such as emails, stored photos, documents, contacts, calendars, bookmarks, Safari browsing history, Apple Maps search history, iMessages backups, and iOS device backups, according to Apple's guidelines.
Where and when legally required, Apple may also provide basic customer information such as name, physical address, email address, phone number, and IP address, along with customer service records and Find My iPhone logs.
Apple ensures that it has never created a backdoor or master key to any of its products or services, and never will. Perhaps the biggest example of this was Apple's refusal to create a loophole for the FBI to brute force their way into the passcode-locked iPhone owned by the shooter in the 2015 San Bernardino attack.
Twice per year, Apple publishes a transparency report that outlines how many data-related requests it has received from law enforcement, government, and private party officials, both in the United States and abroad.
In the United States, during the second half of 2017, for example, Apple received 4,450 requests for 15,168 devices. Apple provided data in 3,548 cases, or approximately 80 percent of the time. Worldwide, Apple received a total of 29,718 requests covering 309,362 devices, providing data 79 percent of the time.
Apple has adopted all of the recommendations in the CSIS report and, on Tuesday, Apple's Senior Vice President and General Counsel Katherine Adams sent a letter to U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) announcing the launch of several new programs meant to help law enforcement agencies.
Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues 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.
With the latest Apple Pay promotion you can get 10 percent off your next order from Under Armour through Wednesday, September 12. If you're in the United States, you can shop in the Under Armour app and then place your order before next Wednesday to see the discount automatically applied when you check out using Apple Pay.
Apple is promoting the beginning of football season with the new Apple Pay offer, which also points users towards apps like Fanatics, Gametime, and Grubhub, offering sports apparel, tickets, and food respectively.
The last few Apple Pay promotions have included partnerships with Postmates, Nike, StubHub, TGI Fridays, and Adidas. As we enter the fall, users can likely expect some of the same promos we saw last holiday season, potentially including free Postmates subscriptions, savings on Fandango tickets, free Instacart deliveries, and more.
Apple has temporarily halted plans to launch Apple Pay in India after facing troubles with regulators in the country and a few technical hurdles, according to The Economic Times. Specifically, Apple is said to be concerned about the Reserve Bank of India's recent data localization rule, which requires companies to store all of their payments data for local users only in India.
Because of this rule, numerous companies -- including Apple, Amazon, PayPal, WhatsApp, Visa, and MasterCard -- have faced uncertainties regarding the rollout of their respective mobile wallets in India. Apple is said to have gone so far as to meet with a few leading banks and the National Payments Corporation of India, which manages the country's Unified Payments Interface platform.
In addition, Apple has reportedly encountered a few technical and design hurdles surrounding Apple Pay's India launch, relating to the inclusion of Touch ID as a mode of authentication for payments in India on supported iPhones. The NPCI did not agree to this plan, because the country's UPI is based on a six or four-digit passcode to authenticate transactions and does not have support for smartphone-based biometric security features yet.
Following these hurdles, plans as of now have been shelved, according to two people familiar with the matter.
“Apple will not launch payments in India yet. They are waiting to see how the regulatory landscape shapes up,” one of them said.
In an attempt to finally rectify these issues, Bloomberg in August reported that Apple is planning a completely revamped India strategy led by Apple executive Michel Coulomb. This includes better and longer-lasting retail deals with higher sales targets, the opening of official Apple retail stores in India, "overhauling" the company's relationship with independent retailers, and improving apps and services "aimed more closely at Indians."
Apple Pay was never mentioned as part of that strategy, so it doesn't appear that users in India will have a chance to use the company's mobile wallet anytime soon. Otherwise, Apple Pay is available in over two dozen countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Singapore, Switzerland, Hong Kong, France, Russia, China, Japan, New Zealand, Spain, Taiwan, Ireland, Italy, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, UAE, Brazil, Ukraine, Norway, and Poland.
Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues 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.
In March, Feral Interactive announced that its latest video game port for macOS would be the adventure game Life is Strange: Before the Storm, and at the time said it would launch in the spring. After a delay, the prequel is set to release next week on Thursday, September 13 on macOS and Linux.
Life is Strange: Before the Storm was originally developed by Deck Nine and published by Square Enix on consoles and PCs in August 2017. The story takes place three years before the events of the original Life is Strange, tracking the friendship between rebellious sixteen-year-old Chloe and a popular schoolmate named Rachel.
Gameplay puts players in the shoes of Chloe as she must make choices that ultimately shape a branching story with multiple endings influenced by every decision. One of the main gameplay hooks of the game is "Backtalk," which the developers describe as a "risk and reward-based system" in which Chloe uses her wit to provoke NPCs or get her way.
The game requires macOS High Sierra 10.13.5 or higher, an Intel Core i5 2.0 GHz processor, 8GB RAM, and 28GB of hard drive space. Required graphics cards include 1GB Nvidia 650M or better, 2GB AMD Radeon R9 M290 or better, or 1.5GB Intel Iris 5100 or better. The full list of supported Macs can be found below:
All Mac Minis since Late 2014
All 13" MacBook Pros released since 2013
All 15" MacBook Pros released since mid 2012 with a 1GB graphics card or better (Mid 2015 models with an AMD 370X are not supported.)
All 21.5" iMacs released since late 2013
All 27" iMacs released since late 2013 (Late 2012 models with Nvidia 675 or Nvidia 680 graphics are also supported.)
All 27" iMac Pros released since late 2017
All Mac Pros released since late 2013
Life is Strange: Before the Storm includes three episodes that make up the base game, and will also come in a Deluxe Edition that includes all three episodes as well as all available additional content, including the bonus episode "Farewell." The Deluxe Edition will be priced at $24.82 and is available to pre-order beginning today on the Feral Store.
Mozilla today launched Firefox 62 web browser for macOS, bringing variable fonts support and a new automatic dark theme to Mac desktops.
By introducing a dark theme to the browser, Mozilla is following up the one it added to its mobile counterpart last month, the only difference being that the desktop version comes with intelligent support for the new native Dark Mode featured in macOS 10.14 Mojave.
What that means is Firefox automatically switches to the twilight theme whenever the the macOS Dark Mode is active, making for a more uniform desktop application interface without requiring action on the user's part.
Meanwhile, support for variable fonts makes it possible for web designers to create typography using a single font file, rather than generating several files for variations of the same font.
Also listed in this release's changelog: Firefox Home (default new tabs) can now display up to four rows of top sites, Pocket stories, and highlights, while a "Reopen in Container" tab menu option appears for users with Containers that lets them choose to reopen a tab in a different container.
Lastly, disconnecting from the desktop version of Firefox Sync prompts the browser to ask if you want to wipe your Firefox profile, including passwords, history, cookies, and web data.
Firefox now has 300 million active users, according to Mozilla's weekly user activity report. If you're already a Firefox user, you should receive an automatic upgrade after restarting the browser. For everyone else, Firefox 62 is available for macOS as a free download directly from the Mozilla website.
Logitech today announced that its Crayon stylus, which was previously only available to schools, is coming to Apple retail stores, which means it will be available for everyone to purchase for the first time.
Introduced in March alongside the 6th-generation 9.7-inch iPad, the Crayon is designed to operate as a lower-cost alternative to the Apple Pencil.
The Crayon features a slim aluminum body and an Apple Pencil-style tip. Functionally, it works just like the Apple Pencil, with support for palm rejection and the same latency and tilt as you get with the Apple Pencil. There is, however, no pressure sensitivity.
Logitech designed the Crayon with students in mind, so it has a flat surface to prevent rolling, a tethered rubber end cap, a comfortable grip for small hands, and the ability to withstand drops of up to four feet.
The Crayon does not need Bluetooth to connect to the iPad, and it's able to last for up to seven hours before needing to be recharged with the built-in Lightning port.
It's worth noting that the Crayon is designed to be compatible only with the sixth-generation iPad.
We were able to get our hands on one of Logitech's Crayons ahead of its Apple Store availability, so if you're considering picking one of these up for your 9.7-inch iPad, make sure to check out our review video above.
The Crayon will be available in Apple retail stores, on the Apple website, and on the Logitech website starting on September 12 before expanding to additional retail outlets in October.
While schools can purchase the device for $50, customers who purchase the Crayon from Apple or Logitech will need to pay $70.
Apple executives in charge of the company's video efforts will be attending the Toronto International Film Festival this week to scope out potential movie acquisitions, reports Variety.
The site says that at least one of the top programming executives, which includes Jamie Erlicht and Zack Van Amburg, will be at the festival to look for new content that could fill out an upcoming entertainment service.
The Toronto International Film Festival is set to kick off on Thursday, September 6, and it will run through Sunday, September 16. This will mark the first time that Apple executives have attended the film festival, and the company will be competing with at least one other TV giant -- Amazon. Amazon executives are also going to be attending the festival to look for new movies to pick up.
342 films are set to be shown off at the Toronto International Film Festival, with a list of content available on the website for the festival.
While Apple has more than a dozen original television shows that are in the works, it has thus far established few deals for movies.
In fact, we only know about one potential movie deal with Cartoon Saloon, a company that develops animated movies like "The Secret of Kells," "The Song of the Sea," and "The Breadwinner."
Rumors have suggested that Apple is planning to launch some kind of streaming television service in the future where all of the television shows are in the works will be available, and if Apple is aiming to compete with Netflix and Amazon, exclusive movie offerings will help to fill out its content catalogue.
There has, however, been no concrete information outlining exactly how Apple is going to distribute its original content, nor details on what a potential streaming service could cost if it is in the works, but we may learn more next year as the first of the TV shows is rumored to be debuting in March 2019.
Apple's upcoming Apple Watch Series 4 models will feature larger displays thanks to reduced bezel size, and information 9to5Mac discovered in the most recent watchOS 5 beta suggests the 42mm Apple Watch will likely have a screen resolution of 384x480.
The current 42mm Apple Watch Series 3 model, for comparison, has a resolution of 312x390.
With the higher resolution (and increased PPI), Apple Watch Series 4 apps will be able to display more information at a higher resolution on the display, as shown in the example image below that were taken from a modified Apple Watch Simulator using a guesstimated PPI of 345.
As was seen in leaked marketing materials last week, the upcoming Apple Watch Series 4 models will feature at least one new watch face capable of displaying up to nine complications at one time.
Additional new watch faces could be included, and information taken from the beta suggests there will be new types of complications for Apple Watch apps to use.
Given the increase in resolution, third-party app developers will need to tweak their apps to work with the new Apple Watch Series 4 screen sizes.
Apple today updated the Events app on the Apple TV to prepare for next Wednesday's "Gather Round" iPhone-centric event, which will see the debut of the 2018 iPhone lineup, new Apple Watch models, and new accessories.
The Events app, along with the Events section of Apple's website, will be used to live stream the product unveiling. Apple's Gather Round event will kick off at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time at the Steve Jobs Theater on the Apple Park campus.
To see the updated Events app on the Apple TV, it needs to be updated through the Apple TV App Store.
Apple is set to introduce the new 2018 iPhones, which will include the 5.8-inch OLED iPhone Xs, the 6.5-inch OLED iPhone Xs Max, and the lower-cost 6.1-inch LCD iPhone, which we don't yet know the name of. All three iPhones are expected to adopt edge-to-edge designs with a TrueDepth Camera System that will replace the Touch ID Home button.
We're also expecting to see new Apple Watch Series 4 models with smaller bezels for more screen real estate, refreshed AirPods with "Hey Siri" support, new Apple Watch bands, and perhaps the long-awaited debut of the AirPower, which is able to charge the iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods all at once.
For those who are unable to watch Apple's live stream, MacRumors will have live coverage of the event on MacRumors.com and on our MacRumorsLive Twitter account.
Biggest design overhaul since iOS 7 with Liquid Glass, plus new Apple Intelligence features and improvements to Messages, Phone, Safari, Shortcuts, and more. Developer beta available now ahead of public beta in July.
Biggest design overhaul since iOS 7 with Liquid Glass, plus new Apple Intelligence features and improvements to Messages, Phone, Safari, Shortcuts, and more. Developer beta available now ahead of public beta in July.
