Twitter is making changes to its API on June 19, and third-party Twitter clients are worried about the impact and Twitter's lack of communication about the issue.
The developers behind popular third-party Twitter apps that include Tweetbot, Twitterrific, Talon, and Tweetings today teamed up to warn users about the upcoming changes and to hopefully spur Twitter to action.
On June 19, Twitter plans to remove several streaming service APIs that are used by third-party apps. Disabling these APIs will prevent third-party Twitter apps from sending push notifications and refreshing Twitter timelines automatically.
We are incredibly eager to update our apps. However, despite many requests for clarification and guidance, Twitter has not provided a way for us to recreate the lost functionality. We've been waiting for more than a year.
Twitter is replacing its current streaming APIs with a new Account Activity API, which is in beta testing, but third-party developers have not been given access. With access to the Account Activity APIs, third-party Twitter clients say they might be able to enable some push notifications, but Twitter has also provided no detail on pricing. Automatic refresh of the timeline is set to be disabled entirely.
Automatic refresh of your timeline just won't work: there is no web server on your mobile device or desktop computer that Twitter can contact with updates. Since updating your timeline with other methods is rate-limited by Twitter, you will see delays in real-time updates during sporting events and breaking news.
The developers behind Tweetbot, Twitterrific, Talon, and Tweetings are asking customers to contact the @TwitterDev account to correct the situation and to use the #BreakingMyTwitter hashtag to spread awareness.
Update: Twitter has responded to customers unhappy with the changes coming to third-party apps. Twitter plans to delay the scheduled June 19th date for the deprecation of the existing APIs, and it says developers will have at least 90 days before the APIs are retired after being provided with access to the Account Activity API.
Last year we announced our plan to retire Site Streams & User Streams, and replace them with the Account Activity API (currently in beta). We are delaying the scheduled June 19th deprecation date.
— Twitter Dev (@TwitterDev) April 6, 2018
As always, we’re committed to providing ample time to migrate. We will provide at least 90 days notice of deprecation date from when the Account Activity API becomes generally available to all developers. More specifics on timing to come.
— Twitter Dev (@TwitterDev) April 6, 2018
Apple has formally objected the Environmental Protection Agency's proposed repeal of the Clean Power Plan in the United States.
In a letter submitted to the agency today, Apple said repealing the policy would subject the company and its manufacturing partners to increased investment uncertainty in relation to clean energy, according to Reuters.
"Repealing the Clean Power Plan will subject consumers like Apple and our large manufacturing partners to increased investment uncertainty," the California-based company said in a filing to the agency.
Apple, which says it runs its U.S. operations fully on renewable energy such as wind and solar power, added that repeal of the plan would also threaten development and investments that have already been made in renewable power.
The EPA proposed to repeal the Clean Power Plan in October 2017 after U.S. President Donald Trump mandated a review of the Obama-era environmental policy, which would have required U.S. power plants to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to 32 percent below 2005 levels by 2030.
Apple is the first company to publicly comment on the proposed repeal, which has yet to proceed due to legal challenges, according to the report. The policy's elimination is said to remain a priority of the EPA's administrator Scott Pruitt.
Apple's environmental website notes that 100 percent of the electricity the company uses to power its data centers, and 96 percent used by its facilities worldwide, comes from renewable energy sources like solar, hydro, and wind power. Many of Apple's suppliers have also committed to using 100 percent renewable energy.
Apple's environmental chief Lisa Jackson served as the EPA's administrator between 2009 and 2013 as part of the Obama administration.
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.
The BBC reports today that the Roskomnadzor media regulator has begun legal proceedings to block the app in the country, after Dubai-based Telegram refused to comply with requests that it hand over the encryption keys.
Telegram was given a deadline of 4 April to hand over the keys, but the company has refused, explaining that the way the service is built means it has no access to them.
Russia's main security agency, the FSB, wants the keys so it can read messages and prevent future terror attacks in the country. In its court filing, Roskomnadzor said the legal action was related to the FSB request and Telegram's non-compliance with its legal requirements as a "distributor of information".
Telegram's lawyer, Pavel Chikov, called the Russian attempt to block the app "groundless" and said the FSB's demand to access users' chat logs was "unconstitutional, baseless, which cannot be fulfilled technically and legally".
Telegram had a legal challenge to the demand dismissed in a Moscow court in March, but the platform creator Pavel Durov has said Telegram, which is widely used in Russia, will not "give up" the private data of its users.
Threats to block Telegram unless it gives up private data of its users won't bear fruit. Telegram will stand for freedom and privacy.
— Pavel Durov (@durov) 20 March 2018
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.
Snapchat today began implementing Apple's TrueDepth camera technology in its Lenses selfie feature for the first time. The silent update means iPhone X owners who use Snapchat will see augmented reality masks pop up in the app that make use of Apple's advanced facial mapping technology to superimpose the mask onto the user's face more realistically and track motion more accurately.
Apple first demoed the AR Snapchat Lenses at its iPhone X event last year, as part of its on-stage TrueDepth technology unveiling. Apple's Animojis work using the TrueDepth camera. Face ID also uses its structured-light technique to project a pattern of 30,000 laser dots onto a user's face and measure the distortion to generate an accurate 3D image for authentication.
Apple says the Face ID mathematical image data is encrypted upon generation and never leaves the smartphone's Secure Enclave. Third-party app developers are however able to access TrueDepth's visual face maps separately, including a live read-out of 52 micro-movements in the eyelids, mouth, and other features. At the same time, Apple explicitly forbids this data being exploited for user profiling or ad marketing purposes, but that hasn't stopped privacy advocates and some developers from raising concerns about third-party app access to the TrueDepth Camera.
At present there are three Lenses that utilize TrueDepth, demonstrating closer tracking of facial expressions and head movement. Snapchat says the TrueDepth camera also lets it blur the background and more accurately apply small details and 3D objects, which reflect and react to ambient lighting to project shadows and add highlights. The TrueDepth Lenses only appear for iPhone X owners and more of the AR masks are likely to appear periodically in the future.
Snapchat is a free download for iPhone and iPad from the App Store. [Direct Link]
While last month's version 5.0 update to the official Apple Store iOS app introduced several significant changes to the user experience, one thing Apple has retained is its tradition of occasionally offering select paid apps for free through the app for a limited time.
Right now, users who scroll down the Discover tab should find an option to download monochromatic platform puzzler Starman: Tale of Light for free, rather than paying $3.99 to download it from the App Store.
Originally released in 2017, this serene title uses a level design reminiscent of Monument Valley, with the player encountering a series of easy to moderately difficult puzzles as they progress through each scene. Optimized for iPhone X displays, Starman currently has an average 4.8 star rating out of 769 App Store reviews, and is described in the official Apple Store app as follows:
In this visually stunning game with breathtaking architectural scenery, you guide Starman through delicate atmospheres and solve elaborate puzzles. No two puzzles are ever the same, so the challenges are always new. Soothing music and haptic feedback enhance the immersive experience further.
To download the app for free, tap on the featured app in the Discover section of the Apple Store app, tap Download now for free, and you will be redirected to the App Store's Redeem code screen. Your free redeem code should already be entered – all you need to do is tap Redeem in the upper right corner to begin downloading the game.
The offer to download Starman for free through the Apple Store iOS app expires on July 15, 2018. Note that free app offers sometimes vary from region to region.
In addition to our standalone articles covering the latest news and rumors at MacRumors, this Quick Takes column provides a bite-sized recap of other headlines about Apple and its competitors on weekdays.
Thursday, April 5
Mac mini is three-and-a-half years old: Apple today confirmed that its revamped Mac Pro will be released in 2019. It's an opportune time for a reminder that the Mac mini hasn't been refreshed in three-and-a-half years as of April 16. 1,267 days ago as of today, according to our MacRumors Buyer's Guide. We asked Apple for a comment, but it's unlikely they'll break silence.
FCP Exchange takes place at NAB 2018 in Las Vegas next week: The series of free Final Cut Pro workshops begin Monday, April 9 at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time in room S219 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Final Cut Pro version 10.4.1, previewed by Apple today, will be released on the same day with support for a new ProRes RAW format and advanced closed captioning.
Apple CEO Tim Cook is set to attend a deposition in the ongoing Apple v. Qualcomm legal battle on June 27, according to Bloomberg.
Cook will be providing testimony as part of Qualcomm's lawsuit against Apple, which accuses the Cupertino-based company of lying to regulators to cause trouble for Qualcomm, leading to investigations in multiple countries.
The United States Federal Trade Commission in January accused Qualcomm of violating the FTC Act by using anticompetitive tactics and abusing its patent portfolio to remain the dominant supplier of LTE chips for smartphones, and in June, a judge ruled that Qualcomm will face an antitrust lawsuit.
Qualcomm has also faced an antitrust investigation in South Korea, which it accused Apple of interfering in, and it has been fined $1.2 billion by European antitrust regulators for paying Apple to use its LTE chips in iOS devices. In South Korea, Qualcomm was fined 1.03 trillion won, or $902 million.
Qualcomm and Apple have been mired in an ever-escalating legal battle since the beginning of 2017 after Apple levied a $1 billion lawsuit against Qualcomm accusing the company of charging unfair royalties for "technologies they have nothing to do with."
Apple and Apple suppliers have stopped paying licensing fees to Qualcomm in the midst of the lawsuit, and Apple has maintained that Qualcomm's practice of charging a percentage of an iPhone's entire value is excessive. Qualcomm, meanwhile, says its technology is "at the heart of every iPhone."
Following Apple's lawsuit, Qualcomm filed a countersuit accusing Apple of breaching licensing agreements, making false statements, and encouraging regulatory attacks against Qualcomm in several countries.
Given the legal dispute between the two companies, rumors have suggested Apple is considering eliminating Qualcomm chips from its future devices, instead relying on Intel and MediaTek.
Mophie today announced the launch of a new Qi wireless charger for Apple's iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X, the Mophie Charge Stream Pad+.
Mophie says the Charge Stream Pad+ is its first universal high-speed wireless charging accessory, compatible with the fast charging capabilities of both Apple and Samsung devices.
For Apple's most recent iPhones, that means the Charge Stream Pad+ supports the faster 7.5W charging introduced back in December. Mophie's existing wireless charger, the Wireless Charging Base, also supports 7.5W charging.
Smart charging circuitry inside of the Charge Stream Pad+ communicates with an iPhone or other smartphone to determine and deliver the optimal amount of power.
Design wise, the Charge Stream Pad+ looks like your average Qi-based wireless charger, with a circular flat base where you rest your phone. A non-slip rubberized finish makes sure your iPhone stays in place, and it also ships with a wall adapter and USB-A to microUSB cable. It comes in black or white to match any decor.
The Mophie Charge Stream Pad+ is also compatible with all Charge Force Mophie Juice Pack battery cases designed for the iPhone and for Samsung smartphones, such as the Juice Pack Air for the iPhone 7, which enables wireless charging.
Prynt Pocket, priced at $150, is a portable printer that's designed to work with the iPhone, allowing you to print small 2x3 photos wherever you go thanks to ZINK paper, which does not require printer cartridges to work.
There are several of these iPhone-compatible miniature printers on the market, but the Prynt Pocket is unique because it's designed to connect to the iPhone using a Lightning connector, a feature that has both benefits and downsides.
Design
Of all the portable ZINK photo printers that I've tested, Prynt Pocket has the most complicated design and the biggest learning curve when it comes to using the device. The ZINK paper needs to be loaded into a separate paper cartridge in the correct orientation, and then the paper cartridge needs to be loaded into the portion of the Prynt Pocket that attaches to the phone.
From there, you need to adjust the size of the Prynt Pocket using a slider and accompanying button in order to fit it to your iPhone of choice. Then your iPhone needs to attach to the Prynt Pocket via the Lightning connector built into the device. With other printers, you basically unsnap a single compartment, load the paper, and then snap it back into place.
Prynt Pocket is designed this way so you can snap a photo with the device attached to your iPhone and then print it right away. I found that connecting the Prynt Pocket to my iPhone in this way was time consuming, and it wasn't a feature that I thought was useful as most of the time, I want to edit before I print. Editing with the Prynt Pocket attached to my phone was cumbersome, but there is a "Print" button right in the app if you want to snap a shot and then print sans editing.
Apple's redesigned, modular Mac Pro aimed at professionals is set to launch in 2019, according to an update Apple recently provided to TechCrunch's Matthew Panzarino, who took a trip to the company's Cupertino campus.
The team responsible for revamping Apple's pro product efforts was there to provide updated details both on the Mac Pro and how Apple is shaping it to meet the needs of real professional users.
Apple's current Mac Pro
Employees in the meeting included John Ternus, VP of Hardware Engineering, Tom Boger, Senior Director of Mac Hardware Marketing, Jud Coplan, Director of video Apps Product Marketing, and Xander Soren, Director of Music Apps Product Marketing.
Panzarino was told in no uncertain terms that the Mac Pro will not be arriving before 2019 as the product is still in development. From Tom Boger:
"We want to be transparent and communicate openly with our pro community so we want them to know that the Mac Pro is a 2019 product. It's not something for this year." In addition to transparency for pro customers on an individual basis, there's also a larger fiscal reasoning behind it.
Apple wants customers to know that the Mac Pro isn't coming in 2018 so those who are planning to make a purchase decision for a pro machine like the iMac Pro won't hold off in the hopes of a Mac Pro materializing later in the year.
In the time since Apple announced major changes for the next-generation Mac Pro last year, it has put together a "Pro Workflow Team" led by John Ternus, where employees who focus on pro-level products all work together.
Apple has also been hiring award-winning artists and technicians in an effort to understand the real workflows that creative professionals use to better tailor its products to them. The individuals shoot real projects and then use Apple's hardware and software to find "sticking points that could cause frustration and friction" for pro users.
Apple's Pro Workflow Team finds and addresses the issues that come up, even down to tiny details like tweaking a graphics driver, and it's not just Apple's products that benefit - the company's employees are also working with third-party apps. From Tom Bogar, senior Mac marketing director:
"We've gone from just you know engineering Macs and software to actually engineering a workflow and really understanding from soup to nuts, every single stage of the process, where those bottlenecks are, where we can optimize that," says Bogar.
The Pro Workflow team, in addition to improving current Apple products, is also an essential part of Mac Pro development. Their work is "definitely influencing" what Apple's planning for, with Apple achieving a "much much much deeper understanding" of pro customers, their workflows, and their needs. This understanding is "really informing" the work Apple is doing on the Mac Pro," according to Bogar.
No details were provided on the shape of the Mac Pro or the internal components that it might include, but Apple is still planning on a modular machine, as announced last year, so plans have not changed. Apple back then said that it was "completely rethinking" the Mac Pro, and that it is "by definition" a modular system. Apple at the time also said a pro display was in development alongside the new machine.
Panzarino says we're not likely to hear any additional detail about the Mac Pro at WWDC in June, and that he expects Apple will keep quiet about the machine until next year.
Panzarino's full piece on Apple's efforts to tailor the Mac Pro and other pro-level products to meet professional needs, which goes into much greater detail, can be read over at TechCrunch.
The headline feature is a new ProRes RAW format, which combines the visual and workflow benefits of RAW video with the performance of ProRes, a lossy video compression format developed by Apple for use in post-production.
With ProRes RAW, editors can import, edit and grade pristine footage with RAW data from the camera sensor, providing ultimate flexibility when adjusting highlights and shadows — ideal for HDR workflows. And with performance optimized for macOS, editors can play full-quality 4K ProRes RAW files on MacBook Pro and iMac systems in real time without rendering. ProRes RAW files are even smaller than ProRes 4444 files, allowing editors to make better use of storage while providing an excellent format for archiving.
The update also adds advanced closed captioning tools that allow video editors to view, edit, and deliver captions from right within the app.
Apple says Final Cut Pro users can import closed caption files directly into their project or create them from scratch. Captions appear in the viewer during playback and can be attached to video or audio clips in the timeline, so they automatically move with the clips to which they're connected.
Apple is also updating Final Cut Pro's companion apps Motion and Compressor with ProRes RAW and closed captioning features respectively.
Final Cut Pro 10.4.1 will be available April 9 as a free update for existing users, and the app remains $299.99 for new users on the Mac App Store in the United States. Motion 5.4.1 and Compressor 4.4.1 will also be available on April 9 as free updates, or $49.99 each for new users from the Mac App Store.
Apple is in preliminary talks with Taiwan-based company PlayNitride over cooperation in the MicroLED market, according to DigiTimes via Micro-LED-Info.
While the report doesn't provide any further details about the potential partnership, PlayNitride has developed its own MicroLED displays called PixeLED that may be of interest to Apple for its future products. Samsung was also reportedly interested in the company back in early 2017, but no deal transpired.
PlayNitride is said to have received approval from the Taiwanese government to establish a multimillion-dollar facility at Hsinchu Science Park in northern Taiwan, where it will produce its MicroLED technologies.
Apple's interest in MicroLED displays was first reported in 2015, when it was discovered that the company opened a secretive laboratory in Taoyuan, Taiwan to research the display technology. Since then, Apple has reportedly downsized its team in Taiwan and shifted the efforts closer to its headquarters.
Last month, Bloomberg News reported that Apple has a secret facility in Santa Clara, California, near Cupertino, where it is allegedly designing and producing test samples of its own MicroLED displays. The displays are reportedly being manufactured by TSMC, which already produces A-series chips for iPhones.
MicroLED is widely considered to be Apple's next step after OLED, which it currently uses for the Apple Watch and iPhone X.
Image Credit: TrendForce
MicroLED displays have many of the same advantages as OLED displays have over LCDs, including improved color accuracy, improved contrast ratio, faster response times, and true blacks given both have self-lit pixels, but they are even thinner, much brighter, and more energy efficient than OLED panels.
Apple's use of MicroLED would likely start small, with the Apple Watch, followed by iPhones and then iPads. A recent report said Apple may even use MicroLED for its widely rumored augmented reality glasses. However, the transition away from LCDs and OLEDs is widely believed to be at least a few years away.
Shoppers who use Apple Pay to checkout in Adidas, GOAT, Hotwire, and more over the next few weeks will be rewarded with numerous exclusive offers, thanks to Apple's new "Springtime savings" event. Unlike previous Apple Pay promos that usually focus on one or two services, the new deal is for 10 total apps and websites that support Apple Pay.
You can check out all of the offers in the list below, most of which will run from April 5 through April 18 in the United States.
One week ago Apple launched a promo focused on sporting gear in partnership with Fanatics, and prior to that there were offers for GrubHub, Seamless, and Eat24, free song credits in TouchTunes, movie ticket savings with Fandango, free Instacart deliveries, and more.
Developer Jam City today confirmed that the new mobile role-playing game "Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery" will launch globally on April 25 on both iOS and Android devices. In the game, players will be able to create their own Hogwarts student, go to classes, study spells, build friendships, and make pivotal decisions in a new "encounter system" that influences their personal story in Hogwarts.
Images via Jam City
In addition to the release date, Jam City announced that the mobile game will also have six actors from the main Harry Potter films reprise their roles within Hogwarts Mystery. The actors providing voice work for the game include Dame Maggie Smith (Professor McGonagall), Michael Gambon (Professor Dumbledore), Warwick Davis (Professor Flitwick), Sally Mortemore (Madam Irma Pince), Gemma Jones (Madam Pomfrey), and Zoe Wanamaker (Madam Hooch).
"Our goal with Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery is to make players really feel for the first time like they’re attending Hogwarts,” said Chris DeWolfe, co-founder and CEO of Jam City. “By including these iconic and incredibly talented actors in the game, we come one step closer to truly giving fans their own Hogwarts experience.”
In terms of story specifics, Jam City has said that Hogwarts Mystery is set in the 1980s, after Harry Potter is born but before he enrolls at Hogwarts. Jam City has worked on bringing other popular franchises to mobile before, including the development of "Futurama: Worlds of Tomorrow" with the show's original writers, animators, and cast members.
Another mobile game set in the Harry Potter universe is also in the works at Niantic, called "Harry Potter: Wizards Unite" and previously reported to launch in 2018. Niantic's game is said to be "significantly influenced" by its previous success with Pokémon Go, allowing players to explore their real world neighborhoods and cities in an effort to discover, fight, and capture the Harry Potter series' fantastic beasts.
Apple today shared photos of its new Apple Shinjuku retail store, which will open on Saturday, April 7, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. local time. The store is located in the Shinjuku Marui main building -- a department store in Tokyo -- and marks the eighth location for Apple in Japan.
The interior pictures showcase the same neon banner that Apple posted on its website when it first announced the store, which is just blocks from Shinjuku Station in Tokyo's famous shopping, business and entertainment district.
Also evident in the photos is Apple Shinjuku's expansive 37-meter glass storefront lined with local Longstock Holly trees, as well as familiar Apple store design elements including the Forum, with a dynamic 6K video wall, and Avenues, with interactive displays for visitors to get hands-on with third-party products and accessories.
Apple's senior VP of retail Angela Ahrendts commented on the store in the company's press release:
"Apple has a long and special history in Japan, and Shinjuku marks the first of several new stores we’ll open in Japan in the coming years," said Angela Ahrendts, Apple's senior vice president of Retail. "We can't wait to welcome the vibrant community in Shinjuku to experience all the best Apple has to offer."
As with other Apple Stores, Apple Shinjuku will offer free daily Today at Apple sessions covering art and design, music, photography, coding, activity and more. Participants start by learning the basics in Quick Start and How To sessions, then dive deeper into their creative interests with Music Labs, Sketch Walks and Photo Walks, including evening walks to capture the iconic neon lights of Shinjuku.
Apple CEO Tim Cook visited Alabama today to attend a banquet hosted by the Birmingham Metro Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), where he received the 2018 Human Rights Award for advocacy for equality and safety in the workplace. Cook is an Alabama native who grew up in Robertsdale and attended Auburn University.
The event was meant to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination. King was the founding president of the SCLC in 1957.
It’s an honor to be in Birmingham celebrating Dr. King’s life today. "Let us all hope that...in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty." pic.twitter.com/GN6T54hSqx
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) April 4, 2018
Ahead of the banquet, Cook also spoke at a student symposium at the Sixth Avenue Baptist Church in Birmingham focusing on civil rights, education, and innovation, and details of what he had to say were shared by Alabama news site AL.com.
On the topic of Martin Luther King Jr., Cook said his teachings "are timeless." "If you listen to him today, you feel like he is speaking about today," said Cook. He went on to explain that it's important to reflect on the work done by King, and the ways we can continue his legacy.
Full of hope this morning, hearing from hundreds of Alabama students who are carrying Dr. King's legacy into the future. pic.twitter.com/NDPimMl10A
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) April 4, 2018
As for students who attended the symposium, Cook encouraged them to "change the status quo" with a quote from Dr. King: "It's not the behavior and the actions of evil people that we remember at the end, but the silence of the good people." Cook said that's a quote that has always resonated with him.
"It is a special time in your life," he said. "This is a period of time where you can change the status quo. Now is the time to do it. The world needs you more than ever to not be silent."
After Dr. King, the conversation shifted to coding. As Cook has said multiple times, he believes coding is an "essential language." Apple's Swift coding curriculum is rolling out in community colleges in Alabama as of today, and Cook's trip also involved a stop at the Lawson State Community College.
Cook told students at the symposium that everyone in school should have "multiple years" of coding before graduating because it's important to "understand the possibility of software" even for those who don't plan to pursue a computer science-related job.
He also said that with students in the U.S. being pushed into four-year colleges, vocational paths have dried up, leading to the need for a rebalancing. Not everyone needs to attend a four-year college, he reportedly said, and focusing so much on four-year colleges has left us without enough people with the skills to build things.
Cook's final words were to encourage students to fight for change. Young people are "not stuck with old dogmas" and don't accept "it's never been done before" or "it can't be done," he said. "This is a great beauty of being young," he told students.
All of Cook's comments and additional details on the symposium can be found over at AL.com.
Apple last week announced and debuted an attractive new iPad option -- a sixth-generation model with an affordable $329 price tag, an upgraded A10 Fusion processor, and support for the Apple Pencil, an accessory previously limited to the more expensive iPad Pro models.
For MacRumors readers who are upgrading to Apple's stellar new tablet from an older model, we've put together a video and guide covering features, accessories, and tips for getting the most out of the sixth-generation iPad.
Apple Pencil support is the major new feature in the sixth-generation iPad, and there are a ton of useful tricks you need to know if you're new to the accessory.
Pairing
Pairing the Apple Pencil to the iPad is as simple as uncapping it and plugging the Lightning connector into the Lightning port on your iPad. You'll see a popup that asks you to confirm to pair, and once you accept, the Apple Pencil is successfully connected to the iPad.
Charging and Battery
When you connect your Apple Pencil to your iPad, it'll let you know the battery level. You can also check using widgets accessed by swiping to the right of the Home screen. Scroll down to the "Batteries" section where your iPad and its connected devices (including Apple Pencil) are listed.
Don't see a battery widget? Tap on "Edit" at the bottom of the list and tap on the "+" icon next to the "Batteries" option.
The Apple Pencil's battery lasts for approximately 12 hours, and it charges through the Lightning connector on the iPad or with any Lightning cable using an adapter that ships with the accessory.
If your battery is dead and you need your Apple Pencil in a hurry, just plug it in for 15 seconds. That'll get you enough juice to use it for a half hour, so it's never out of power when you need it.
Apple Pencil Capabilities
The Apple Pencil is a sophisticated device that does quite a lot when paired with the sixth-generation iPad. A new touch sensor in the iPad allows for the Apple Pencil to work, enabling a lag-free writing and drawing experience that's identical to using the Apple Pencil on the more expensive iPad Pro.
Your iPad knows when you're using your Apple Pencil and it blocks out other touch input. That means there's built-in palm rejection, so feel free to rest your hand on the iPad while you write or sketch.
There are pressure and positioning sensors included in the Apple Pencil, which let it detect a range of forces to enable pressure-sensitive drawing and writing in supported apps. When you press lightly, you'll get a thin line. Press harder, and you'll get a thicker line.
On the same note, there are two tilt sensors that determine the orientation and angle of the Apple Pencil while you're holding it, a feature that lets you add shading to drawings and sketches by using the side of the tip.
Replacing the Tip
The Apple Pencil has a replaceable tip, so when it wears down, you can swap in a new one. An extra tip comes with the Apple Pencil, and you can purchase an additional package of four from Apple for $19.99.
How often you'll need to change the tip will depend on how much you're using the Apple Pencil, but on average, a tip should last for multiple months to a year or more. To swap it out, turn the tip counterclockwise to unscrew it and then screw on a new one.
Apple Pencil Apps
The Apple Pencil is ideal for taking notes, writing, sketching, drawing, and other similar tasks on the iPad, and because it's been around for several years now, there are tons of apps that offer full support for the Apple Pencil's features. We've listed some of our favorites below:
GoodNotes 4 ($7.99) - GoodNotes 4 is a comprehensive note-taking app that offers a range of writing and sketching tools, along with OCR for searching through your written notes. You can also use it to annotate documents and PDFs with the Apple Pencil.
Notability ($9.99) - Notability is another app that offers all of the features you need for taking detailed, concise notes with the Apple Pencil. It's simple, easy to use, and offers tons of writing and sketching tools, but it's not quite as feature rich as GoodNotes 4.
PDF Expert ($9.99) - If you're going to be editing and annotating a lot of PDFs, it may be worth investing in PDF expert.
Pigment (Free) - Pigment is a coloring book app that lets you color in intricate designs using the Apple Pencil. Kids love it, and it's relaxing for adults too.
Affinity Photo ($19.99) - Affinity Photo is a lot like Photoshop - you can use it for drawing, sketching, editing photos, and more. It has full support for Apple Pencil, including pressure sensitivity and tilt. Use it to apply editing effects to photos or create paintings with its extensive brush library and brush tools.
Procreate ($9.99) - For sketching and drawing on the iPad, you won't go wrong with Procreate, an app that many iPad artists prefer. Procreate supports high-definition canvases, offers tons of brushes, and has full support for Apple Pencil.
Tracing Through Paper
Want to digitize a drawing that's on traditional paper? The Apple Pencil works through paper, so just place the sheet over the iPad's display, where it will be illuminated by the screen, and then trace the design in your favorite sketching app.
Other Apple Pencil Tidbits
Apple Pencil support is built into apps throughout the iOS 11 operating system. Inline Apple Pencil drawings, for example, can be inserted into Notes and Mail, while a useful Instant Notes feature lets you tap your Apple Pencil on the display of the iPad to automatically open a new note in the Notes app without having to unlock the iPad or manually open the app.
If you use the document scanner in the Notes app to scan a piece of paper, you can then sign it or annotate it with Apple Pencil. It's a useful feature for documents that you need to sign and return to someone. You can also sign standard PDFs, either in the Mail app or right in the Files app.
With the sixth-generation iPad, Apple also added Apple Pencil support to all of its iWork apps, so you can use Apple Pencil with Pages, Keynote, and Numbers. You can also use the Apple Pencil for drawing on and annotating screenshots and photos with Instant Markup, a feature available in the Photos app or whenever you take a screenshot (just tap on the screenshot icon in the lower left corner).
The Apple Pencil is, of course, designed for note taking and sketching, but you can also use it for navigation just like your finger.
Augmented Reality
The sixth-generation iPad includes an A10 Fusion chip, and while it's not as speedy as the A10X Fusion in the iPad Pro, it's still able to run any app or game in the App Store. Apple specifically said the more powerful A10 Fusion, which was first introduced in the iPhone 7, was added to the sixth-generation iPad to support augmented reality content.
There are now tons of augmented reality apps built using ARKit in the App Store, and you can download everything from Pokémon Go to apps that let you preview furniture to educational apps, all of which have AR content. In the iOS App Store, you'll want to check out the specific AR categories in the apps and games sections.
iOS 11 on the iPad
iOS 11 introduced a whole slew of iPad-specific features that make using an iPad as a computer replacement a much more pleasing experience. The new sixth-generation iPad, with its A10 Fusion processor, supports all of these features.
A persistent dock, for example, houses all of your apps and makes it easier to use the built-in multitasking features for accessing two apps side by side. Using simple drag gestures that are easy to learn, you can use multiple apps in a variety of ways with Slide Over and Split View arrangements, as demoed in the video.
Picture-in-picture, another multitasking feature in iOS 11, lets you watch a video on YouTube or another source while continuing to use other apps, which is super handy, and drag and drop features make it simple to move files and content from one app to another.
Control Center has been merged with a useful new App Switcher, accessible by swiping up from the bottom of the iPad. With the App Switcher, you can access all Control Center options and quickly switch between open apps with just a tap.
You can find more detail on all of these iPad features in our iOS 11 roundup, which is complete with tons of how tos that are worth checking out for learning even more about iOS 11 and the new iPad.
Adding Accessories
While the new iPad supports the Apple Pencil, it doesn't have a Smart Connector and there's no option for a Smart Keyboard. Bluetooth keyboards are supported, though, and if you want to use your iPad for writing, coding, or other keyboard intensive tasks, it's worth picking one up.
The sixth-generation iPad's design is the same as the fifth-generation iPad's design, so all existing iPad keyboards will work with the new model, and there are tons of options out there. Brydge, for example, makes a highly rated $99 iPad keyboard, and there are multiple options from Logitech, like the $99 Slim Folio. You can also use Apple's own Magic Keyboard for a Mac-like typing experience.
Did you get a new iPad? Are there tips and tricks worth knowing that we haven't covered here? Let us know in the comments.
Apple today shared new iPad tutorial videos on its YouTube channel, which appear to be aimed at customers who have purchased the new sixth-generation iPad with Apple Pencil support. Apple has also aggregated all of the videos on an iPad how to website.
The first video, which is a minute long, focuses on using the Instant Markup feature that's designed to allow users to draw on and annotate screenshots on the iPad. The tutorial walks through every step of the process, from capturing a screenshot on iPad using the Home button and the power button to using the Apple Pencil to mark it up to sharing the finished product.
Apple's second tutorial video covers Split View multitasking to use two apps at the same time. The video instructs users on accessing the dock to open two apps at the same time, and then it covers drag and drop techniques.
Several other unlisted tutorial videos cover features like using the iPad's keyboard, using the Files app, working with multiple emails, and sketching in the Notes app.
Apple has shared several tutorial videos like this in the past, which are often tied to new releases. Tutorial videos can typically be found on the separate Apple Support YouTube channel, but these new tutorial videos are on the company's main channel for new iPad owners.
The new sixth-generation iPad went on sale last week after its debut at Apple's March 27 educational event. The new tablet, which is priced at $329, boasts a new A10 Fusion processor and support for the Apple Pencil.
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