MacRumors

Apple is set to report its earnings results for the fourth quarter of its 2018 fiscal year at 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time today.

The quarter began July 1, 2018 and ran through September 29, 2018, according to Apple's fiscal year accounting calendar.

Apple provided the following guidance for the quarter back on July 31:

• revenue of $60 billion to $62 billion
  

• gross margin between 38 and 38.5 percent
  

• op. ex. of $7.95 billion to $8.05 billion
  

• other income/expense of $300 million
  

• tax rate of approximately 15 percent before discrete items

Apple's guidance suggests it will report its best fourth quarter results ever, by revenue, comfortably topping its 2017 record of $52.6 billion:

• 2014: $42.1 billion
  

• 2015: $51.5 billion
  

• 2016: $46.9 billion
  

• 2017: $52.6 billion
  

• 2018: $60+ billion

Wall Street analysts forecast that Apple will report $61.5 billion revenue, above the midpoint of its guidance, and earnings per share of $2.78, according to 32 estimates averaged by Yahoo Finance.

Key Takeaways and What to Look For

• iPhone unit sales of around 47.5 million, according to a FactSet estimate. Apple began accepting iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max pre-orders September 14, just over two weeks before Apple's fourth quarter ended. Apple sold 46.7 million iPhones in the year-ago quarter.
  

• Apple doesn't break out iPhone sales on a model-by-model basis, but the iPhone's average selling price should reveal whether customers are leaning towards higher-priced iPhones such as the iPhone XS Max. iPhone ASP was $617.99 in the year-ago quarter.
  

• Mac unit sales should be boosted by 2018 MacBook Pro models, released on July 12, nearly two weeks into the quarter. Apple sold 3.72 million Macs last quarter, its fewest in any single quarter since the third quarter of 2010, due to seasonality and a largely outdated lineup. Mac sales totaled 5.39 million in the year-ago quarter.
  

• Apple's guidance for its first quarter of fiscal 2019, which began September 30 and encompasses the launch of the iPhone XR and the new iPad Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac mini models. Analysts expect record revenue of $92.9 billion, based on 31 estimates averaged by Yahoo Finance.
  

• Continued growth of Apple's Services category, including the App Store, Apple Music, iCloud, iTunes, Apple Pay, and AppleCare. Last quarter, Apple's services brought in a record $9.5 billion revenue. Apple said it is still on target to double its fiscal 2016 services revenue by fiscal 2020.
  

• Continued growth of Apple's Other Products category, including the Apple Watch, Apple TV, HomePod, AirPods, Beats, iPod touch, and accessories, as Apple diversifies revenue beyond the iPhone.

Apple's CEO Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri will discuss the company's earnings results on a conference call at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time today. MacRumors will loosely transcribe the one-hour call as it occurs live.

Normally, an Apple product becomes vintage once five years have passed since it was last manufactured, meaning that Apple Stores and Apple Authorized Service Providers (AASPs) will no longer repair or service the product.

In late January, however, Apple launched a pilot program that permits Apple Stores and AASPs to continue servicing select vintage products, subject to parts availability. The program started in the United States and Turkey with the Mid 2011 iMac and expanded worldwide with the 2012 MacBook Air in August.

Now, Apple is further expanding the program to include the iPhone 5, which became vintage on Wednesday. In an internal document, Apple says Apple Stores and AASPs worldwide are authorized to continue servicing the CDMA variant of the device through October 31, 2020, and the GSM variant through December 30, 2020.

Apple's internal document, obtained by MacRumors from multiple sources, also outlines other soon-to-be vintage iPhones and Macs that will also be added to the pilot program at various dates throughout the remainder of this year:

Effective November 30, 2018:

• iPhone 4S
  

• MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2012)

Effective December 30, 2018:

• MacBook Pro (13-inch, Retina, Late 2012)
  

• MacBook Pro (13-inch, Retina, Early 2013)
  

• MacBook Pro (15-inch, Retina, Mid 2012)
  

• MacBook Pro (15-inch, Retina, Early 2013)
  

• Mac Pro (Mid 2012)

If parts are unavailable for a specific repair for these vintage products, Apple Stores and AASPs are instructed to decline service. This is a pilot program to begin with, so it is subject to change or end at any time.

The exact reason for the pilot program is unclear, beyond Apple apparently having a surplus of service parts for these specific vintage products. Apple's internal document states that inventory of service parts will not be replenished, so repairs under the pilot program are certainly not guaranteed.

Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming iOS 12.1.1 update to its public beta testing group, one day after seeding the same beta to developers and two days after the release of the iOS 12.1 update.

Beta testers who have signed up for Apple's beta testing program will receive the iOS 12.1.1 beta update over-the-air after installing the proper certificate on an iOS device.

Those who want to join the beta testing program can sign up on Apple's beta testing website, which gives users access to iOS, macOS, and tvOS betas.

The iOS 12.1.1 update introduces some significant improvements to the FaceTime interface, and it re-adds the feature that's designed to let you take a Live Photo while on a FaceTime call.

In iOS 12.1.1, FaceTime features a reworked bottom bar that includes quick access buttons for muting a call and flipping the camera. Sliding up on the bottom bar brings up additional options with conversation participants.

Previously, FaceTime users were required to tap on three dots to access a secondary menu with these features.

The update also includes a new option in the Apple News app that lets you hide the side bar if desired.

Apple's 2019 iPhones will come equipped with an upgraded Face ID camera system, according to a new note to investors from often reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

According to Kuo, next-generation iPhones will feature a new flood illuminator that will improve Face ID by lowering the impact of invisible light from the environment. Kuo believes the upgraded sensor will be included in all 2019 iPhone models, which he has previously said will again consist of two OLED iPhones and one LCD iPhone.

We believe that Apple will raise the output power of the flood illuminator VCSEL to lower the impacts from invisible lights of environment in order to improve the Face ID user experience. The higher power VCSEL with higher ASP needs increased requirements of design and production, increased materials for array design, and longer testing times. Therefore, the VCSEL supply chain can add higher value.

Kuo's note also suggests a Time of Flight (ToF) 3D camera will be introduced in iPad models in late 2019 or early 2020, and could expand to the iPhone in the second half of 2020. He continues to believe that Apple has no plans to adopt ToF in 2019.

According to Kuo, a ToF 3D camera would allow for 3D models to be captured via the iPad and then edited with the Apple Pencil for an "all-new productivity experience." On the iPhone, eventual ToF support will allow for new AR experiences and improved photo quality.

We give a greater than 50% probability that the new iPad in 4Q19/1Q20 may adopt ToF (our previous forecast that the 2H19 new iPhone will not adopt ToF remains unchanged). We believe that 3D modeling captured by ToF and then edited by an Apple Pencil on an iPad will create an all-new productivity experience for design applications in a totally different manner from computers.

We estimate that ToF will likely be adopted by the new iPhone in 2H20 at the latest. The iPhone's adoption of ToF will create the new AR experience and improve photo quality. We expect that Apple's ToF design may adopt the higher-than-1,000nm wavelength VCSEL (vs. current Face ID's 935-945nm) for better system design and user experience.

A time-of-flight camera system is designed to determine the distance between objects by measuring the time-of-flight of a light or laser signal between the camera and the subject at each point in the image.

Kuo previously said he does not believe Apple is ready to implement this kind of camera system in the iPhone because it would not create the "revolutionary AR experience" that Apple is aiming for. Kuo believes that for the AR experience Apple wants, the company would need 5G connectivity, augmented reality glasses, and a more powerful Apple Maps database.

Though new iPhones are a good year away, we've been hearing rumors for months. We're expecting upgraded A13 chips in the upcoming devices, and there have been rumors of either a reduced notch or no notch at all, which could be a component of the improved TrueDepth camera system.

Rumors have also suggested Apple is considering a triple-lens rear camera system for at least some 2019 iPhone models, but it's not clear how that meshes with rumors suggesting a ToF implementation is off of the table for the 2019 lineup. A triple-lens camera could still provide benefits to photo taking, such as 3x optical zoom and better performance in poor lighting conditions.

Nearly six weeks after the release of macOS Mojave, web drivers for Nvidia graphics cards released in 2014 and later remain unavailable for the latest operating system, resulting in compatibility issues. This includes Nvidia graphics cards based on its Maxwell, Pascal, and Turing architecture.

While some customers have expressed frustration towards Nvidia, a spokesperson for the company informed MacRumors that "while we post the drivers, it's up to Apple to approve them," and suggested that we contact Apple. We followed that advice, but Apple has yet to respond to multiple requests for comment.

As a result of the lack of web drivers, external GPUs with an Nvidia graphics card released in 2014 or later have compatibility issues with any Mac running macOS Mojave. Likewise, any Mid 2010 or Mid 2012 Mac Pro upgraded with 2014-or-newer Nvidia graphics is incompatible with the operating system.

Nvidia warns that affected customers who upgrade to macOS Mojave may experience degraded rendering and performance on that version, according to discussions on the Nvidia Developers Forums and MacRumors Forums.

macOS Mojave requires a graphics card that supports Apple's graphics framework Metal, but until updated web drivers are released, many newer Nvidia graphics cards such as the GeForce GTX 1080 are incompatible with the operating system. In the meantime, some users have downgraded back to macOS High Sierra.

Nvidia's Quadro K5000 and GeForce GTX 680 are already Metal-capable and compatible with macOS Mojave, according to an Apple support document.

macOS Mojave is compatible with any MacBook, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, iMac Pro, Mac mini, and Mac Pro released in 2012 or later, in addition to Mid 2010-Mid 2012 models of the Mac Pro with a Metal-capable graphics card.

Nvidia graphics cards based on Kepler architecture, which Apple offered in various Macs between 2012 and 2014, are fully compatible with macOS Mojave. Apple has since switched to AMD as its dedicated graphics card provider.

There is some debate as to whether Apple, Nvidia, or both companies are to blame for the lack of web drivers, which are usually released within a few days after a major macOS release. If we learn any new information, we'll share it.

A series of benchmark results have shown up on Geekbench for the new iPad Pro, and its new eight-core A12X Bionic chip is truly a powerhouse.

The new iPad Pro achieved single-core and multi-core scores of 5,025 and 18,106 respectively based on an average of two benchmark results, making it by far the fastest iPad ever and comparable even to the performance of the latest 15-inch MacBook Pro models with Intel's six-core Core i7 chips.

We've put together a chart that compares Geekbench scores of the new iPad Pro and various other iPad, Mac, and iPhone models.

That the new iPad Pro rivals the performance of the latest 15-inch MacBook Pro with a 2.6GHz six-core Core i7 processor is impressive, but even more so when you consider that the tablet starts at $799. The aforementioned MacBook Pro configuration is priced at $2,799, although with 512GB of storage.

Even the new 11-inch iPad Pro with 512GB of storage is only $1,149, less than half that of the Core i7-equipped MacBook Pro.

At its special event in Brooklyn on Tuesday, Apple said the new iPad Pro achieves up to 90 percent faster multi-core performance compared to the previous-generation models, and the Geekbench results support that claim. In fact, the new iPad Pro's multi-core score is 94 percent higher than last year's models.

The configured-to-order 15-inch MacBook Pro with a 2.9GHz six-core Core i9 chip is still faster than the new iPad Pro in terms of both single-core and multi-core performance, as is the iMac Pro, but Apple's flagship tablet is quickly becoming one of the fastest products that it sells due to its advanced chip design.

The benchmark results also indicate that the new iPad Pro models have either 4GB or 6GB of RAM depending on the configuration. On Twitter, well-known developer Steve Troughton-Smith said 6GB of RAM is limited to the 1TB configuration, with 4GB of RAM in the 64GB, 256GB, and 512GB configurations.

With the iPad Pro now rivaling some higher-end Macs in performance, there is a compelling case for Apple to start using its own ARM-based A-series chips in some Macs. Apple reportedly plans to do exactly that as early as 2020.

Apple has held talks with iHeartMedia to buy a stake in the U.S. radio company, according to a new Financial Times report citing people familiar with the matter.

iHeartMedia is currently $20 billion in debt, with audiences gradually turning away from radio in favor of digital music services like Spotify, Apple Music, and Pandora. The radio group filed for bankruptcy in March, and has been in contact with several potential investors ahead of a deadline later this month to file a reorganization plan with the bankruptcy court.

iHeartMedia is hoping Apple will take an equity stake worth millions of dollars, according to FT sources, although discussions between the two companies are still in the early stages and no deal has been agreed. Apple declined to comment, while iHeartMedia did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

The report suggests Apple is angling for a deal in order to gain a platform for wider distribution of its Beats 1 radio station and increase awareness of Apple Music:

A partnership could see Apple Music’s Beats 1 radio station, which is only available through its apps, make its debut on broadcast radio. Extra distribution would give Beats 1 and Apple Music greater awareness among older audiences who are later adopters of streaming services. A deal would also put the Apple station into more cars or kitchens.

Despite being billions of dollars in debt, iHeartMedia remains the largest radio broadcaster in the United States, with more than 850 stations operating across the country. One music industry executive who spoke to FT described the potential deal as a "power move" by Apple, as it aims to persuade more artists and labels to strike exclusive or early releases for its streaming service instead of its biggest rival, Spotify.

Apple Music surpassed 50 million subscribers and free trial users earlier this year, giving it a bigger share of listeners in the U.S. than Spotify, although Spotify is still the global leader with more than 80 million paying users around the world. Earlier this year, Apple acquired music recognition app Shazam for $400 million in order to improve Apple Music's listening recommendations.

Following the introduction of new iPad Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac mini models at yesterday's event, Apple provided some YouTubers with MacBook Air review units, and the first unboxing videos are now available.

For its last several product releases, Apple has been providing early review units to smaller YouTubers, a strategy that lets us get opinions on the new device from less mainstream sources. Today's unboxing videos provide some interesting MacBook Air tidbits and a first look at Apple's newest notebook.

The MacBook Air features a Retina display with slim black bezels like the MacBook or MacBook Pro, three color options, a slimmer body, two Thunderbolt 3 ports, a 1.6GHz Core i5 8th-Generation Amber Lake chip from Intel, integrated Intel UHD 617 graphics, a T2 chip for security, built-in Touch ID, a third-generation butterfly keyboard, and a Force Touch trackpad.

Full reviews of the MacBook Air from media sites will be shared next week, and the new machines are set to start arriving to customers who placed an order on November 7.

If you missed Apple's "There's more in the making" October 30 event that focused on new iPad Pro models and Macs or if you just want to rewatch, the event video in its entirety is now available from Apple's YouTube channel, in addition to the Apple Event website.

At the event, which was held at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York City, Apple unveiled its fall iPad and Mac lineup. The company debuted overhauled iPad Pro models with an edge-to-edge display, no Home button, slim bezels, and a TrueDepth camera system for Face ID.

The new iPads, priced starting at $799 for the 11-inch model and $999 for the 12.9-inch model, feature USB-C instead of Lightning, have no headphone jack, and have a super fast A12X Bionic chip.

Apple also introduced a revamped $1,199 MacBook Air with a Retina display that features slimmer bezels, a smaller body, upgraded Amber Lake chips, a T2 chip, Touch ID, a third-generation Butterfly keyboard, a Force Touch trackpad, and Thunderbolt 3 ports.

The third major product that saw a debut at the October event was an upgraded Mac mini, now available in Space Gray with 8th-generation quad and 6-core Intel chips, up to 64GB RAM, up to 2TB storage space, Thunderbolt 3 support, and a T2 chip for enhanced security. Apple's new Mac mini is priced at $799.

We had extensive coverage of all of Apple's product unveilings yesterday, which is worth checking out in case you missed any of the tidbits that were announced. We've added links to our event-related articles below, so make sure to check those out.

iPad Pro

• Apple Reveals New 11-Inch and 12.9-Inch iPad Pro Models With Slim Bezels and Face ID
• New 11 and 12.9-Inch iPad Pro Models Have No Headphone Jack
• 2018 iPad Pro Hands-On Impressions: 'Might Be the Truest Embodiment of a Tablet Yet'
• Apple Announces New Magnetic Apple Pencil Featuring Tap Gestures and Wireless Charging
• Apple Launches New USB-C Accessories for USB-C iPad Pro Models
• New Apple Pencil, Smart Keyboard Folio, and Smart Folio Accessories Now Up for Pre-Order
• Apple Pencil 2 Not Compatible With Older iPads and Original Apple Pencil Won't Work With New Models
• Apple's New iPad Pro Models Ship With 18W USB-C Power Adapter
• 2018 iPad Pro With 1TB Storage Has 6GB RAM, Lower Capacities Have 4GB
• AppleCare+ for New iPad Pro Models Priced at $130, Out-of-Warranty Repairs Cost Up to $649
• Apple's New iPad Lineup, from Mini to Pro: $329 to $1,899
• MacRumors Hands-On Photos of Apple's New iPad Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac mini

MacBook Air

• Apple Announces New MacBook Air With 13-Inch Retina Display and Touch ID
• Apple's New MacBook Air Features Impressive Battery Life That Bests MacBook and MacBook Pro
• 2018 MacBook Air and Mac mini Hands-On: Long-Awaited Updates Don't Disappoint
• Apple Shares T2 Security Chip Guide Detailing Privacy Features 'Never Before Seen on Mac'
• Apple's New MacBook Air Uses MacBook-Class 5W Amber Lake Chips

Mac mini

• Apple Announces New Space Gray Mac mini With 4-Core or 6-Core Intel Processor and Up to 64GB RAM, Starting at $799
• A Maxed Out Mac Mini With Full Upgrades Will Cost You $4,200
• Apple Highlights Mac Mini Use in Live Concerts, Theater, and Data Centers
• Apple's New Mac Lineup, From Mini to iMac Pro: $799 - $13,199

Software Updates

These weren't part of the event, but Apple yesterday released major software updates for iOS devices, the Apple TV, Macs, and the Apple Watch, which you won't want to miss out on.

• Apple Releases iOS 12.1 With eSIM Support, Real-Time Depth Control, Group FaceTime, New Emoji and More
• iOS 12.1 Includes Addresses Two Major iPhone XS/XR Issues: 'BeautyGate' and Cellular Connectivity Problems
• Apple Releases macOS 10.14.1 With Group FaceTime and New Emoji
• Apple Releases tvOS 12.1 Update for Fourth and Fifth-Generation Apple TV
• Apple Releases watchOS 5.1 With New Color Watch Faces and Updated Emoji
• Apple Updates Shortcuts App With New Weather, Alarm, Conversion and Photos Options
• PSA: Group FaceTime's Video Chat Not Available on Older iOS Devices
• watchOS 5.1 Update Bricking Some Apple Watches

Other Announcements

• Apple Online Store Lists Blackmagic eGPU 'Pro', Available Late November for $1,199
• Apple Quietly Announces AMD Radeon Pro Vega Graphics Options Coming to MacBook Pro
• Apple Quietly Eliminates Rose Gold 12-Inch MacBook

Apple's new iPad Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac mini models can be purchased now from the Apple online store, with the products set to be delivered starting on November 7.

AppleCare+ for Mac with accidental damage coverage is now available in Canada, Mexico, and many countries across Europe and the Middle East, including Austria, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom.

AppleCare+ for Mac was previously limited to the United States, Australia and New Zealand, and Japan, but its availability expanded to the aforementioned countries following the conclusion of Apple's special event in Brooklyn on Tuesday.

AppleCare+ provides up to three years of hardware coverage and tech support for an eligible Mac, effective on the purchase date of the plan. This includes up to two incidents of accidental damage, each subject to a service fee that varies based on damage to the screen, external enclosure, or other components.

In the UK, for example, the per-incident fees are £79 for screen or external enclosure damage, and £229 for other damage.

The accidental damage fees are in addition to the cost of the AppleCare+ for Mac plan itself, which varies. The plan is available for the MacBook, MacBook Air, 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro, iMac, iMac Pro, Mac Pro, and Mac mini.

AppleCare+ for Mac benefits are in addition to any legal rights provided by consumer law in the aforementioned countries.

AppleCare+ can be purchased alongside a new Mac on Apple's website, at Apple retail stores where available, and at select Apple Authorized Resellers or Apple Authorized Service Providers. It can also be added within 60 days of a Mac's purchase date, pending an inspection or diagnostic test.

In these countries, AppleCare+ for Mac replaces the basic AppleCare Protection Plan for Mac, which didn't include accidental damage coverage. Apple continues to offer the AppleCare Protection Plan for Mac in certain countries, such as Spain, Finland, Norway, Poland, Taiwan, Singapore, and Brazil.

A month and a half after release, Apple's iOS 12 operating system is installed on 63 percent of active devices released over the course of the last four years, according to updated iOS 12 installation statistics shared on the App Store support page for developers.

Following the release of iOS 12, Apple has been sharing details on installation rates in a new way, providing information on both newer and older devices.

While 63 percent of devices released in the last four years are running iOS 12, 60 percent of all iOS devices out in the wild have the update installed.

Among all iOS devices, 29 percent continue to run iOS 11 while 11 percent run an earlier version of iOS. As for devices released within the last four years, 30 percent continue to run iOS 11 while 7 percent have an earlier version of iOS installed.

iOS 12 installation has grown 10 percentage points over the course of the last two and a half weeks, as the update was installed on 53 percent of devices released within the last four years back on October 10.

Between October 10 and October 29, the date Apple last collected installation numbers, the new iPhone XR was released, which likely explains the 10 percent jump in active devices using the new operating system. The iPhone XR, like the XS and XS Max, came pre-installed with iOS 12.

We'll probably see another significant jump in installation numbers the next time Apple provides an update as the new iOS 12.1 update is likely spurring people who haven't yet upgraded to iOS 12 to download the update.

iOS 12.1 introduces 70 new emoji characters, which are always a big draw, and it introduces support for Group FaceTime, allowing iOS users to video chat with up to 32 people at once.