Apple today won an auction for world screen rights to "Songwriter," a documentary about popular singer Ed Sheeran, reports Deadline.
Apple paid "low to mid-seven figures" for the rights to the documentary, and the company plans to make it an event release that will include a theatrical component along with a debut on Apple platforms.
"Songwriter" was directed by Murray Cummings, Sheeran's cousin, and it is said to be an "intimate, beautifully photographed" documentary that covers the creation of Sheeran's best-selling "Divide" album.
The film offers a glimpse inside the "intense collaborative process" that resulted in some of Sheeran's biggest hits, and it provides a look back at Sheeran's childhood through never-before-seen footage.
Along with Sheeran, the documentary will feature legendary producer Benny Blanco and musicians that include Amy Wadge, Johnny McDaid, Ryan Tedder, and Julia Michaels.
Apple this afternoon shared several new iPad ads on its YouTube channel in the United Kingdom, all of which are designed to highlight the addition of Apple Pencil support to the low-cost tablet.
Each short video ranges in length from 12 seconds to 17 seconds and focuses on a different iPad and Apple Pencil feature or supported app. The Notes app is demonstrated in the first video, for example, while the drawing app Tayasui Sketches Pro is shown off in the second.
A third video highlights Apple Pencil integration in Keynote, a new feature that was announced alongside the debut of the new iPad, and the fourth video covers the Markup feature that can be used to edit screenshots, photos, images, and more.
All of these videos will likely be used both in TV spots and across social media sites, like Instagram. Apple has only shared these videos on the UK YouTube site so far, but they may shared in the U.S. at a later date.
Apple has already shared several tutorial-style videos to promote its new iPad with Apple Pencil integration, and it has been sharing the "Homework" ad that was first introduced at the March 27 event where the new tablet debuted.
Apple's latest 2018 iPad offers Apple Pencil support and a faster A10 processor at a price point of $329, making it Apple's most affordable tablet that works with the Apple Pencil.
Apple and Samsung today submitted their witness lists for an upcoming retrial in the long running patent infringement battle between the two companies, reports CNET.
Neither Apple CEO Tim Cook nor design chief Jony Ive will be taking the stand, but several other notable figures will be providing testimony during the retrial. Apple will call Richard Howarth, a senior director on the Apple Design Team, along with Greg Joswiak, vice president of product marketing.
Howarth will discuss the design process at Apple, the design patents that were infringed upon, and other design topics, says CNET, while Joswiak will talk about Apple's marketing approach for its devices and the competitive nature of the smartphone market.
Apple also plans to call Susan Kare, who designed many of the early icons for Apple's Macintosh computers, to talk about icon and user interface graphics design. Other witnesses include Ravin Balakrishnan, a professor of computer science; Alan Ball, an industrial design expert; Julie Davis, a consultant with expertise in damages analysis; and Karan Singh, another computer science professor.
Samsung will call Justin Dension, its senior vice president of mobile product strategy and marketing, along with Drew Blackard, senior director of product marketing and Jinsoon Kim, a vice president at Samsung's Corporate Design Center.
Apple and Samsung's latest damages retrial will kick off on Monday, May 14, with the aim of determining how much Samsung has to pay Apple for infringing on three Apple design patents.
The two companies have been fighting in court since 2011, when Apple sued Samsung for copying the iPhone's design. Apple was initially awarded $1 billion in 2012, but after several appeals and retrials, the award was reduced to $548 million.
Samsung paid Apple the $548 million in 2015, with $399 million of that total awarded to Apple for the design patent infringements. Samsung at the time argued that it was asked to pay a "disproportionate" sum for the design violation, and appealed to the Supreme Court to reduce that portion of the award.
Apple had been awarded damages based on the full value of the infringing device, while Samsung argued that it should pay damages based only on the infringing portion.
The original devices involved in the 2011 patent infringement case
Samsung's appeal was successful, and the Supreme Court ordered the U.S. Court of Appeals to redetermine the amount Samsung owes Apple for the design patent infringement. The U.S. Court of Appeals sent the case back to the district court, which brings us to the May trial.
During the retrial, Samsung will argue that the damages awarded to Apple should be less than the original award because the infringed Apple patents represent only a small part of the design of the entire Samsung smartphone in question. Apple, meanwhile, will argue that it deserves damages based on the full value of the device.
All of Apple's Macs come with Preview, a feature that's built into macOS. Preview is the default app that opens up whenever you view an image or a PDF, and it actually has quite a few useful tools built into it, which we've explored in the latest video over on our YouTube channel.
Editing a Clipboard Image - If you copy an image to your Clipboard from another app, you can quickly edit what's on your clipboard in Preview. To do so, copy an image, open the Preview app, and use the Command + N keyboard shortcut. Alternatively, choose File --> Open New From Clipboard in the menu bar.
Filling Out Documents - When you open up a PDF in Preview, there's a whole toolbar of tools that you can use to fill out blank boxes. To access these tools, select the Markup icon (a pen in a circle).
Signing Documents - With the Markup tools for editing PDFs, you can even virtually sign a document with your own signature. From the Markup toolbox, choose the signature icon, and select "Create New." From here, you can sign using your trackpad, or sign a white piece of paper with a pen and then hold it up to your Mac's camera. Both of these techniques work remarkably well, making it simple to get a virtual signature onto a digital document.
Quickly Remove an Image Background - Preview is no match for software like photoshop, but there are some basic image editing tools included. If you want to remove the background from an image like a logo, there's a quick way to do so, with the steps outlined in detail in the video above. This feature really works best on images with a lot of contrast, such as a colorful logo with a white background.
Photo Editing - In the same Markup toolbox that's been used for most of these tips, you'll find some basic photo editing tools for adjusting color, exposure, and other simple parameters. To open up these image editing tools, click on the little icon that looks like a triangle. You'll see options for exposure, contrast, saturation, temperature, tint, highlights, shadows, and sharpness, plus there's a histogram for more advanced edits.
Adding and Removing PDF pages - If you open up a PDF in Preview, you can remove unnecessary pages or add additional pages. Using the Edit options in the menu bar, select Insert --> Page from File to add a new document to an existing PDF. Deleting is as simple as selecting the thumbnail view, selecting a thumbnail, and selecting delete. You can also use the sidebar to rearrange pages with simple drag and drop gestures.
If you've never really delved into the Preview app beyond viewing an image or PDF, it's well worth checking out some of the more advanced features. Have a favorite Preview feature we missed? Let us know in the comments.
Apple today shared two new videos in its "Life's easier on iPhone" series, which are aimed at encouraging Android users to switch over to an iPhone.
The first ad, "App Store," depicts exploding app icons that are meant to demonstrate the superior safety of the iOS App Store, which is curated by human editors to protect against malicious apps.
Apple's second ad highlights Portrait Mode and Portrait Lighting on the iPhone 8 Plus and the iPhone X, both features that are designed to offer studio quality effects with the iPhone.
The two ads are both 15 seconds in length and will likely be used both on TV and on social media sites like Instagram. Last week, these ads were uploaded to Apple's YouTube channels in other countries, such as Mexico.
Apple earlier this year started sharing several short videos designed to lure Android users to the iPhone. All of Apple's videos in this series link back to the "Switch" website, designed for customers who use an Android device or other smartphone and are thinking of switching to an iPhone.
Apple's Switch website answers simple questions like "Will it be easy to switch to iPhone?" and "Will iPhone be easy to use?" It also offers up details on key features that make the iPhone stand out compared to other smartphones, like Face ID, Portrait Mode, iMessages, the App Store, and more.
Apple has aimed to encourage Android users to switch to the iPhone for years with its "Move to iOS" app that makes it quick and easy for Android users to swap to an iPhone and transfer data like contacts, message history, photos, videos, web bookmarks, mail accounts, and more.
Amazon's Kindle app for iOS was today updated to version 6.6, introducing a handful of useful new features to those who read Amazon books on their iPhones and iPads.
The updated version of the app features a new mobile-friendly format that's designed for magazines, and this new option comes shortly after rumors suggesting Apple is going to debut a subscription news service that would include magazines.
For background, Apple recently purchased Texture, a service that provides unlimited access to more than 200 digital magazines for $9.99 per month.
Amazon says that its new magazine-reading format is available for popular titles like Food Network, Cosmopolitan, Life & Style, Us Weekly, and 15 others to start with.
Today's update also allows Prime Reading and Kindle Unlimited books to be returned using the Kindle for iOS app. A book can be returned by long pressing on a book cover from the bookshelf interface and choosing the "Return book" option.
Kindle Unlimited is a subscription service that costs $9.99 per month and provides unlimited access to more than a million books, audiobooks, and magazines. Prime Reading, meanwhile, is a service that offers a smaller selection of content for free to Amazon Prime subscribers.
Along with the new options for Kindle Unlimited and the magazine format, the new Kindle app update also includes a setting to allow you to enable the highlight menu so it displays whenever text is highlighted.
The Kindle app for iOS can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]
Best Buy is back today with a refresh of deals on Apple and Apple-related products and accessories, this time including a deal on the iPhone X. With the sale, you can save up to $200 on Apple's iPhone X, when purchasing and activating the smartphone on Sprint's 24-month installment agreement.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
The sale brings down the cost of the 256GB iPhone X to $949.99, from $1,149.99, with the savings reflected in reduced monthly payments over the life of the smartphone. There are also a few sales on accessories like the Powerbeats3, Ultimate Ears BLAST, and numerous discounts on 4K televisions. Check out more details on these deals in the list below:
If you're looking at the Apple Watch Series 3, Best Buy also still has a trade-in offer going on in-store only: if you trade in any working Apple Watch, you can get $70 or more to put toward a new Apple Watch Series 3. Another ongoing offer from Best Buy that's stuck around since the retailer began its spring savings event is for an iPad mini 4 Wi-Fi + Cellular model on Verizon. With the discount, the iPad mini 4 is $329.99 paid upfront on a two-year contract, down from $529.99.
For the 2017 model of the 9.7-inch iPad, Walmart today has marked the 32GB tablet down to $249.99 from $329.99. The Wi-Fi model is available in both Space Gray and Silver, and Walmart's sale for the tablet beats the $280 price tag currently seen at Target and Best Buy.
As a reminder, anyone looking to add some color to their Apple devices should head over to ColorWare and take advantage of a MacRumors exclusive 30 percent discount. With the offer, our readers can save on all iPhone, iPad, and Mac skins, which are cut to fit precisely on each device, providing extra durability and protection against daily scratches and scuffs.
Lastly today we've rounded up the latest promotional code offers that Anker is running on Amazon:
GE has a new HomeKit-enabled single-room air conditioner available for purchase, which is the first HomeKit-compatible GE product that's launched so far.
According to GE, the Window Air Conditioner offers 8,000 BTUs sufficient for cooling medium-sized rooms of 250 to 350 square feet. It comes equipped with a WiFi Connect feature, designed to allow the unit to be controlled via a smartphone.
WiFi Connect supports HomeKit, allowing the device to be monitored and accessed through the dedicated Apple Home app and through Siri commands. HomeKit compatibility also lets it be incorporated into scenes and automations.
There are few HomeKit-enabled air conditioning units on the market at this point in time, with the only other HomeKit air conditioner available from Haier in a limited number of markets.
The total includes 85 percent of respondents who said they are "very satisfied" with the iPhone X, which Creative Strategies analyst Ben Bajarin said "is amongst the highest" he has ever seen "in all the customer satisfaction studies we have conducted across a range of technology products."
12 percent of respondents said they are "satisfied" with the iPhone X, while three percent were unsatisfied to various degrees.
Of course, the higher the "very satisfied" responses, the better a product probably is. For perspective, research firm Wristly conducted a survey in 2015 that found the original Apple Watch also had a 97 percent overall customer satisfaction rate, but a lower 66 percent of respondents were "very satisfied."
Apple CEO Tim Cook said the iPhone X has a 99 percent customer satisfaction rate on the company's first quarter earnings call, citing a study by 451 Research, but Creative Strategies said its own survey had a significantly higher number of respondents that led to a more balanced number with room for slight variance.
Creative Strategies surveyed 1,746 respondents to be exact. The research firm informed MacRumors that respondents were profiled as early adopters based on a series of upfront questions about purchasing habits.
On a feature-by-feature basis, the iPhone X saw very high satisfaction rates in all but one area, including Face ID and battery life at above 90 percent. The sole exception was Siri, which scored only a 20 percent satisfaction rate among early adopters, leaving four out of every five respondents unimpressed.
As noted by Creative Strategies, early adopters tend to be more critical than mainstream consumers of technology, but Apple is widely considered to have lost the lead it once had with Siri in the artificial intelligence space.
The Information recently reported that Siri has become a "major problem" within Apple. The report opined that Siri remains "limited compared to the competition," including Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, and added that the assistant is the main reason the HomePod has "underperformed" so far.
Apple responded to that report with a statement noting Siri is "the world's most popular voice assistant" and touted "significant advances" to the assistant's performance, scalability, and reliability.
"We have made significant advances in Siri performance, scalability and reliability and have applied the latest machine learning techniques to create a more natural voice and more proactive features," Apple wrote in its statement. "We continue to invest deeply in machine learning and artificial intelligence to continually improve the quality of answers Siri provides and the breadth of questions Siri can respond to."
The European Commission today announced it has opened an in-depth investigation into Apple's proposed acquisition of Shazam.
The regulators are concerned that the merger could reduce choice for users of streaming music services in Europe. In particular, they believe that Apple could gain access to sensitive data that could allow Apple to directly target its competitors' customers and encourage them to switch to Apple Music.
While the European Commission did not name any specific services, Apple Music's biggest rival in Europe is Spotify, headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. Other competitors include Deezer, Tidal, and Google Play Music.
European Commission competition chief Margrethe Vestager:
The way people listen to music has changed significantly in recent years, with more and more Europeans using music streaming services. Our investigation aims to ensure that music fans will continue to enjoy attractive music streaming offers and won't face less choice as a result of this proposed merger.
In addition, the European Commission said it will investigate whether Apple Music's competitors would be harmed if Apple were to discontinue referrals from the Shazam app to them following the acquisition. Shazam's app currently integrates with multiple services, including Spotify and Deezer.
The regulators have set a September 4, 2018 deadline to reach a decision, delaying an Apple-Shazam merger for at least 90 days.
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 Music has been the focus of numerous record-breaking reports in recent weeks, and the latest comes from rapper J. Cole after he broke the service's record for most album streams in the first 24 hours in the United States. In total, subscribers streamed J. Cole's fifth album "KOD" 64.5 million times on Friday, April 20, surpassing Drake's "Views" -- the previous record holder -- by almost 1 million streams.
Apple reported the numbers to The Verge, also stating that seven of the top 10 most streamed songs in a 24-hour period on Apple Music are all from "KOD." In total, Apple Music represented 66 percent of first-day streams for "KOD" in the U.S. and 60 percent worldwide, edging out streaming competitors like Spotify in terms of streams for J. Cole's latest album.
Earlier in April, Cardi B broke Apple Music's record for most first-week streams by a female artist, surpassing 100 million streams. The rapper's numbers grew so rapidly after "Invasion of Privacy" launched that she beat Taylor Swift's streaming record, launching the album into Apple Music's fifth most-streamed album ever.
As Apple Music continues to grow, one analyst predicted that the service will keep up its progress and average 40 percent growth each year for the next three years. Apple Music currently sits at just over 40 million subscribers, so analyst Ben Schachter's prediction puts the streaming music service at over 100 million paid subscribers sometime in 2021. Given Apple Music's steady growth, that milestone could happen even sooner.
J. Cole's success with "KOD" follows Carl Chery's exit from Apple Music to Spotify. As head of hip-hop programming, Chery was instrumental in garnering success for Apple Music in the hip-hop/rap genres, helping to discover artists like Khalid, 6LACK, and Post Malone. At Spotify, Chery will reportedly work on the service's RapCaviar playlist and bolster Spotify's hip-hop presence in much the same way as he did for Apple Music.
In a separate report from Variety this morning, Apple is said to be gearing up for a bigger push into country music by moving Apple Music's Jay Liepis to Nashville. In the city, Liepis will lead a team "dedicated to being more involved with artists, managers, songwriters and the label community at large." Later in 2018, Apple will open an office in Nashville with the hopes of keeping "an eye on closer relations" with the country music industry, as well as other genres growing out of Nashville, including rock, pop, Christian/gospel, Americana, and hip-hop.
Today is National Sovereignty and Children's Day in Turkey, an annual public holiday that takes place on April 23 in the country. As it has in years past, Apple is celebrating the holiday by sharing art that children have created using its products.
Apple CEO Tim Cook highlighted a self-portrait created by 13-year-old Özgün Asya, who made the image on an iPad with Apple Pencil.
It’s Children’s Day in Turkey! 🇹🇷 Thanks to 13-year-old Özgün Asya from Istanbul for this colorful self-portrait, created on iPad using Apple Pencil. pic.twitter.com/N5EzH11F1x
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) April 23, 2018
Over the past week, Apple's Turkish YouTube channel has been sharing a few videos also highlighting Children's Day, in a series called "My Portrait." The first video posted focused on Asya's self-portrait, and in it she explains that she drew herself with her favorite flower, the cherry blossom.
Following the first video, Apple published six more short, 15-second clips where kids from Turkey explained the art that they created using iPad. Ali G. explained that he drew seven-and-a-half versions of himself due to his own age, Ece S. described her nature-focused portrait, and Defne A. showed off an image of her and her dog.
In the most recent video, shared over the weekend, Apple combined all of the self portrait videos into one 30-second ad.
The power of the iPad, the ease of use of Apple Pencil, and the unlimited creativity of children came together, and these extraordinary self-portraits came out.
Apple's Children's Day videos showcase the latest 9.7-inch iPad, which was announced at an education-focused event in late March. The sixth-generation device includes Apple Pencil support with sensors that measure pressure and tilt so that users can take notes or illustrate in supported apps. The tablet has a reduced education price and multiple accessories that are particularly aimed at kids in school.
In a new survey conducted by SurveyMonkey and shared by Recode, 11 percent of respondents said that they believe Apple has the most positive impact on society today. Apple came in third place, however, falling in line behind Google at 15 percent and Amazon in the top spot at 20 percent.
Survey respondents were given the option of choosing between a number of technology companies between April 8-9, and it totaled 2,772 adults based in the United States. When asked which company they believe has the most positive impact on society, 20 percent elected to choose "none of the above."
Despite the ongoing Cambridge Analytica scandal, 10 percent of respondents chose Facebook as having the most positive impact today. Microsoft rounded out the top 5 slots at 7 percent, followed by Tesla at 6 percent, Uber at 3 percent, Netflix at 2 percent, and a list of companies at 1 percent.
The survey also dived into the CEOs of the companies and asked respondents which leaders had the greatest impact on people's daily lives. Amazon came in first place again, with 22 percent saying CEO Jeff Bezos and his decisions impact them in some way each day. Google's Sundar Pichai came in second at 18 percent, and Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg was third at 17 percent.
Amazon has been a competitor for Apple in a few areas over the last couple of years, particularly in areas like AI assistants and smart home accessory support. Most recently, The Information reported that an increasing number of home builders have opted to go with Alexa-enabled smart homes, rather than install HomeKit products during construction.
A Bloomberg report today claims that Amazon's next big push into consumer products will be a robot that can navigate around the user's home "like a self-driving car." The ultimate purpose of the robot is still unclear, but people familiar with the project believe it to be a "mobile Alexa" that would follow customers into areas of the home that don't have an Echo device.
Last week, Apple supplier TSMC saw its shares decline around nine percent after it cut its full-year revenue growth target to 10 percent, compared to its previous 10-15 percent estimate. The manufacturer blamed the cut on lower-than-expected smartphone demand and growing uncertainty in the cryptocurrency mining market.
Apple's stock also declined around four percent on Friday, as many analysts equated the slowing smartphone demand with poor or declining sales of the iPhone X, which has an A11 Bionic chip fabricated by TSMC, in the second quarter.
Now, a report from DigiTimes suggests that TSMC may post better-than-projected revenues and profits in 2018 after all, as it gradually ramps up volume production of so-called A12 chips for Apple's next-generation iPhone lineup. The wafers are expected to be manufactured based on TSMC's advanced 7nm process.
The sources said that TSMC will see its revenue ratio for advanced 7nm process hit a high of 20 percent in 2018, and may therefore post better-than-projected revenues and profits for the second half of the year and register an annual revenue growth of over 10 percent.
TSMC may also benefit from Qualcomm's decision to roll out its new Snapdragon 700 series processors in May, ahead of schedule, according to the report. Qualcomm has allegedly grabbed significant orders from non-Apple smartphone vendors and will have TSMC fabricate the chips in the second half of the year.
The report is questionable given that TSMC presumably factored in production of A12 chips into its revenue guidance last week, but the better-than-projected revenues could rest more on the Qualcomm portion of the news.
How much money TSMC makes is a data point that Apple analysts often attempt to interpret in order to gauge iPhone sales. A constant flow of reports have claimed iPhone X sales have significantly declined following the device's late 2017 launch quarter, but Apple has yet to disclose any official figures.
Apple will report its second quarter earnings results on Tuesday, May 1, including how many iPhones it sold during the January-March period, but it doesn't provide a model-by-model breakdown of sales. Apple reported record-breaking revenue of $88.3 billion and 77.3 million iPhone sales in the first quarter.
Back in January, Toyota finally announced support for CarPlay, becoming one of the last major car manufacturers to support Apple's system for accessing iPhone apps through a vehicle's infotainment system. Mazda, one of the other major holdouts, announced similar support last month.
2019 Toyota Avalon and Corolla Hatchback
At its January announcement, Toyota revealed that the redesigned 2019 Avalon sedan would be the first Toyota model to include CarPlay support, with other Toyota and Lexus models adding support in the future. Several of those follow-on vehicles have since been announced, including the 2019 Corolla Hatchback, 2019 RAV4 and the 2019 Lexus UX. Other 2019 models with Toyota's Entune 3.0 and Lexus's Enform 2.0 systems will similarly be gaining CarPlay support.
Toyota invited me to Del Mar, California, earlier this month to preview both the Avalon and Corolla Hatchback, and I got to spend some time trying out and talking to Toyota representatives about not only CarPlay but other features of the new vehicles that will appeal to smartphone and smartwatch users. The Avalon and Corolla Hatchback really represent opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of market demographics, so it's good to see Toyota looking to embrace the feature for all types of customers.
2019 Toyota Avalon
The 2019 Avalon, arriving at dealers in the U.S. in mid-May, will be the first opportunity for Toyota fans to take advantage of CarPlay. While the Avalon has largely catered to an older demographic with a conservative sedan design, Toyota is upping the ante with the new fifth-generation design, which has been completely rebuilt from the ground up to modernize the sedan and appeal to not only the model's traditional audience but also younger drivers looking for sportier performance and a more aggressive design.
2019 Toyota Avalon XSE Hybrid
To that end, Toyota is offering the new Avalon in four grades, with the XLE and Limited grades offering the updated yet balanced look while the XSE and Touring grades offer a sportier design with a bold, mesh-patterned front grille, larger wheels, and black accents. The Touring model offers new Sport S and Sport S+ driving modes for those who want a more responsive driving experience that lets them feel the road more and optionally enhances engine sounds.
Base prices for the new Avalon start at $35,500 for the XLE model and rise to $42,200 for the Touring model, with the XLE, XSE, and Limited grades all available with hybrid powertrain options at a premium of just $1,000.
Apple fans will find a lot of new features to like in the 2019 Avalon, and they will undoubtedly make their way into much of the rest of the Toyota lineup as models are refreshed. CarPlay support is the big addition, and Toyota has made it standard across all four Avalon grades, which is a refreshing contrast to some other manufacturers that limit it to specific grades or packages.
I won't go into much detail on CarPlay specifically, as it's essentially the same experience from vehicle to vehicle and many users are already familiar with it from other vehicles launched over the past few years.
2019 Avalon with CarPlay home screen
Suffice it to say, CarPlay brings your iPhone's interface to your dashboard, letting you interact with a number of key stock and third-party apps to handle audio, navigation, phone calls, messages, and more. By plugging your phone into a USB port in your car, you can have convenient access to these functions in an interface that's easy to use by voice or touch while on the road, and it's all tied into your digital life already on your phone.
2019 Avalon with Apple Maps via CarPlay
As far as CarPlay details specific to the Avalon, the sedan's 9-inch touchscreen is a fantastic palette for CarPlay, with responsive touch capabilities and a great display size that makes it easy to see and reach everything while you're on the road.
Toyota has thoughtfully considered the design here, with the center console flowing smoothly up into the climate control system and the infotainment system as the large screen appears to float at the top of the stack. Hardware buttons to the left and right of the display let you access certain basic functions by feel, although the ones on the right side are quite a reach for the driver. Touchscreen and steering wheel controls do help avoid the need to use the buttons.
2019 Avalon overall dashboard and center stack layout
The Avalon only supports wired CarPlay, with the USB port for data and power located inside the center console storage compartment. A removable tray that sits at the top of the console box under the lid is a nice spot to rest your phone so you can keep everything tucked away.
Phone sitting in console tray and connected via USB, with two other USB charge ports visible
It's a tidy solution, but with the Avalon also offering Qi wireless charging (standard on XSE, Limited, and Touring and an option on XLE as part of a moonroof package) in a fairly spacious compartment at the front of the console, it's unfortunate that wireless CarPlay isn't supported. It would really be the ideal solution to be able to toss my phone onto a wireless charging pad when I hop into the car and have CarPlay pop right up without needing to plug in any cables, but hopefully it won't be too many more years before that becomes reality.
Qi charging pad in center console
I asked Toyota why it took so long to add CarPlay support, and they told me that they've historically been very conservative in adding these types of features, as they're wary of negatively impacting the user experience and are committed to collecting significant data on performance and other considerations before adopting new technologies. User privacy has been one particular area of concern, which is likely a significant reason why Toyota isn't rolling out support for Android Auto alongside CarPlay.
Aside from CarPlay, Toyota is clearly invested in more generally making things easier for the increasing numbers of mobile devices in our lives. In addition to the USB charging and data port in the console that lets you hook up to CarPlay, there are four other 2.1A charging-only USB ports in the Avalon — two more in the center console and two on the back of the console within easy reach of the rear passengers.
Pair of 2.1A USB charge ports on rear of center console
Considerations also extend to device storage, with one of the cupholders in the center console offering a flat rear wall to double as a phone holder, as long as your phone isn't too big. A slot in the rear fold-down armrest also serves as a convenient place to store a phone or a small tablet for rear passengers.
Phone storage with Qi charging pad (on some grades) tucked into front of console, cupholder also designed to hold phones
Onboard smartphone features also extend beyond CarPlay, with Toyota offering a Remote Connect app that lets you remotely start or stop your car, lock or unlock your doors, check the vehicle status for any open doors, windows, or trunk, and see where your vehicle was last parked. The app could use some design updates and support for iPhone X, but it gets the job done.
Remote Connect main screen, remote start confirmation, and vehicle finder
The app also supports guest drivers, which allows you to set up different categories of drivers such as friends, family, valets, or other specific people, and activate limits on speed, curfew, total miles, and driving radius/time. If the vehicle exceeds any of those limits, you'll receive a notification on your phone.
Remote Connect vehicle status and guest driver alert options
Remote Connect isn't a new feature, but with the 2019 Avalon, it'll be gaining Apple Watch and Android smartwatch apps that let you manage the most basic controls like remote start and lock/unlock right from your wrist, similar to the existing capabilities available through phones.
Remote Connect Apple Watch app
Remote Connect requires the Entune 3.0 Audio Plus package (standard on XLE and XSE) or Premium Audio package (standard on Limited and Touring, optional on XLE and XSE), and also requires a separate subscription priced at $8/month or $80/year after a free six-month trial. It's unfortunate that there's a separate subscription charge for this feature, but Toyota certainly isn't the only manufacturer charging extra for it.
Another interesting feature for smartphone and connected home users is built-in Alexa support across all Avalon grades. Once you log into your Amazon account, your Toyota will be linked to your Alexa home, which means you'll be able to perform both car-to-home and home-to-car tasks. For example, you'll be able to ask Alexa to turn on your house lights from your car. Some Alexa functions such as setting timers or turning on ovens won't be available from the car, but many will. In reverse, you'll be able to ask Alexa questions about your car from within your home, making sure doors are locked, checking on fuel level, or even checking where the car is parked.
Alexa’s in-car capabilities can also handle general queries, allowing you to ask for details such as weather. Alexa's capabilities can be expanded with third-party skills as well, letting you order pizza from your car using only your voice, for example. Unfortunately, the in-vehicle Alexa support won't be coming for iOS users until the fall, while Android users will get it at launch. Another limitation is that initially, Alexa will only support a single vehicle at a time, as Toyota and Amazon are still working on how to let users distinguish among multiple vehicles.
One of the reasons users have been clamoring for CarPlay support is dissatisfaction with Toyota's own Entune system, which lets you connect a smartphone to the car via Bluetooth and access a suite of apps such as Scout GPS Link from Telenav, iHeartRadio and Pandora for music, NPR, Yelp, and more. Entune 3.0, which debuted on the 2018 Camry and Sienna and is making its way into more of Toyota's lineup for model year 2019, offers a new and improved platform but has still received lukewarm reviews from users.
2019 Avalon with Entune 3.0 home screen
Three different levels of Entune 3.0 are available, with increasing levels of hardware quality available on the Audio Plus and Premium Audio tiers. The two higher levels are also required for supporting such features as Remote Connect, Wi-Fi Connect to leverage a Verizon data connection to create a Wi-Fi hotspot in your car, and Safety Connect, which offers emergency and roadside assistance, automatic collision notifications, and stolen vehicle locator functionality.
Scout Link GPS, which comes with a three-year subscription included on Audio Plus and subsequently requires a $24.99/year subscription, in particular has been maligned as clunky with a rather unfriendly interface and connectivity issues between phone and car. The embedded Dynamic Navigation built into the Premium Audio tier is much better (again with a three-year subscription included and then requiring a $169 fee plus dealer labor every two years for updates), but overall the Entune 3.0 apps can't compete with CarPlay's design and ease of use, as well as the convenience of having the most crucial apps from your phone seamlessly show up on your car's display.
2019 Corolla Hatchback
I won't go into as much detail on the Corolla Hatchback, as Toyota isn't quite ready to release full details on the car ahead of its summer release, but what I can say is that the in-vehicle tech offers a very similar experience, with a slightly smaller 8-inch touchscreen and CarPlay and Alexa support standard throughout all grades.
2019 Corolla Hatchback with CarPlay home screen
Remote Connect availability is a bit more limited here, as the lower SE grade (both manual transmission and CVT models) only includes basic Entune 3.0 standard, which doesn't support Remote Connect.
2019 Corolla Hatchback with Entune 3.0 home screen
The Audio Plus package required for Remote Connect is standard on higher-end XSE models and an option on the SE CVT model. It's not available at all on the manual SE model. The Audio Premium package with embedded navigation is an available option for the XSE CVT model. Toyota tells me that Apple Watch Remote Connect support will be available standard on the XSE CVT model and as part of an Audio Plus and Blind Spot Monitor upgrade package on the SE CVT model.
2019 Corolla Hatchback with Apple Maps via CarPlay
With the Corolla Hatchback coming in at a much cheaper price point than the Avalon, there are also a few sacrifices in terms of connectivity, with a single 1.5A USB port for connecting to the infotainment system somewhat awkwardly positioned under the instrument panel and a second 2.1A charge-only port in the center console. Rear passengers don't have their own dedicated ports easily accessible, and Qi wireless charging is available only as an option on the XSE CVT model.
All Avalon and Corolla Hatchback models also include Wi-Fi Connect capabilities, which turns your car into a Wi-Fi hotspot through Verizon. A free trial of six months or 2 GB of data is included, after which you'll need to add the car as a line on a Verizon plan.
Wrap-up
It's great to see Toyota finally getting onboard with CarPlay, as it's become something many users have come to expect in their vehicles with an increasing number of car buyers considering it to be a "must have" feature. Making CarPlay standard across all grades ensures that even entry-level users will have access without needing to pay for packages or higher model grades they may not necessarily want or need.
CarPlay puts your most important phone functions at your fingertips or a voice command away while behind the wheel, and with the standardized interface you'll have a familiar experience no matter what kind of car you're driving. But what surrounds and augments the CarPlay interface certainly differs from manufacturer to manufacturer, and it's good to see Toyota embracing features like Remote Connect with Apple Watch support, Qi wireless device charging, Alexa connectivity, and Wi-Fi hotspot services.
Not all of the extra features are perfect, and in some cases app designs could use some work, but that's pretty typical of car manufacturers and a big reason why users have clamored so long for CarPlay in the first place.
And unfortunately some of these features come with extra fees, which is understandable with products like Wi-Fi hotspot where Verizon provides ongoing data services for the vehicle, but somewhat less so with Remote Connect. There's certainly an infrastructure cost associated with handling communication to and from the car, but it should be pretty minimal and it would be nice if it could be baked into the cost of the vehicle rather than under a subscription plan that likely includes hefty profit margins.
Overall though, the new technology features coming to Toyota's lineup are welcome additions that many Apple fans will be able to benefit from and should help bolster Toyota's appeal as today's technologically connected consumers comparison shop for their next vehicles.
Recognizing the utility of Markup annotation tools, Apple has extended their availability in recent versions of iOS, but it's worth bearing in mind that you can access a similar and equally useful annotation toolset within several native Mac applications.
In macOS, accessing an application's Markup toolbar lets you draw on and annotate images or PDF documents within the app using arrows, shapes, and text. You can also use it to quickly sign a document with your digital signature.
We've highlighted which native apps support Markup in this article. But before you can access the toolset in desktop apps, you'll need to check that the relevant extension is enabled on your Mac. Keep reading to learn how it's done.
Apple is set to close its last remaining pop-up shop dedicated to Apple Watch next month. Signs displayed at the Tokyo shop, located in Shinjuku's high-end Isetan department store, were shared on Twitter announcing the closure.
The message reads, "This is a notice that Apple Watch at Isetan Shinjuku will close as of Sunday, May 13. Thank you very much for your continuous patronage."
The closure of the pop-up shop follows last month's opening of Apple's Shinjuku store, which is situated directly opposite Isetan and offers the full range of Apple products and services, including Apple Watch.
Japan's pop-up shop is notable for being the first of its kind to open, coinciding with the launch of the original Apple Watch in 2015. Apple has only operated three pop-up shops worldwide selling Apple watches and bands. The other two operated out of Galeries Lafayette in Paris and Selfridges in London. Both closed in 2017.
The closures appear to be part of Apple's recent strategy of promoting Apple Watch as a health and fitness accessory first and a haute couture fashion detail second. The pop-up shops specialized in selling Apple Watch Edition models, gold versions of which sold for at least $10,000 and up to $17,000 when they hit the market.
The pop-up shops were essentially outlets for Apple's remaining inventory of 18-karat Gold and Rose Gold Apple Watch Edition models, which were discontinued in 2016 and replaced with the ceramic Edition models the company continues to offer online and in-store to this day.
Today is Earth Day, and around the globe people are celebrating the annual event through demonstrations and gatherings aimed at showing support for the planet and protecting the environment. Apple began celebrations this past week in its retail stores, sending green shirts for its employees to wear and lighting up the Apple logo with a green leaf to mark the April 22 global event.
On Friday, April 20, Apple held one of its annual Beer Bash concerts with a performance by Ziggy Marley. In a tweet, the musician explained that his performance at Apple's campus was his "first set fully powered by solar energy." Marley continued by thanking Apple: "Thank you for the example you set for companies around the world."
Also in attendance during the performance was Lisa Jackson, Apple's vice president of environment, policy, and social issues. In a tweet this morning Jackson reminded Apple Watch users about today's Earth Day Challenge, which requires you to do any workout for 30 minutes or more before the day ends, and record your activity within the Workout watchOS app or any other app that adds workouts to the Health iOS app.
The company is also celebrating Earth Day across its services, with a few themed playlists, iTunes movies, and iBooks getting top-billing today on each respective platform. On Apple Music, you can find the "Mixtape for Mother Earth," which Apple Music editors describe as a soundtrack for Earth Day with songs "inspired by our planet's natural wonders." Artists and songs include Radiohead's "Bloom," The Beatles's "Sun King," Tegan and Sara's "Our Trees," and more, totaling 30 tracks.
While "Mixtape for Mother Earth" is the main playlist currently being promoted on the Browse tab, if you search for "Earth Day" you can also find playlists like "What are Earth's favorite songs?" and other curated collections from previous Earth Day events.
Over on the iTunes Movies store, Apple has a collection of $0.99 rentals for films that all include messages about the environment. The list of just over 40 films has a mix of scripted movies and documentaries, including "FernGully: The Last Rainforest," "Beasts of the Southern Wild," "Fly Away Home," "Blackfish," "March of the Penguins," "An Inconvenient Truth," "A Plastic Ocean," and more. There's also a collection of Disneynature documentaries priced at $9.99, including topics like Oceans, Bears, African Cats, and Monkey Kingdom.
iBooks readers can also get in on the Earth Day celebrations thanks to a "Protect the Planet" section of the Featured tab within Apple's digital books app. The books in the new collection "include meditations on Mother Nature's delightful quirks, rallying cries for biodiversity, and blueprints for how to play a part in passing on a healthier planet." The collection is split up into three sub categories called "Explore the Natural World," "Get Informed & Inspired," and "Do Your Part." Books include "Unstoppable" by Bill Nye and Corey S. Powell, "Voices in the Ocean" by Susan Casey, and "A Hole in the Wind" by David Goodrich.
Earlier this month, Apple announced that its global facilities, including retail stores, offices, data centers, and more, are powered with 100 percent clean energy. Apple went into further detail about how it has lessened its overall environmental impact with the 2018 Environmental Responsibility Report, sharing stats about its reduced greenhouse gas emissions, lowered energy footprint, and more. The company also updated its trade-in and recycling initiatives into a new "GiveBack" program, and introduced a new iPhone disassembly robot named Daisy.
Amazon's Kindle app for iOS was today updated to version 6.6, introducing a handful of useful new features to those who read Amazon books on their iPhones and iPads.
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