MacRumors

Noted leaker Evan Blass this evening tweeted a mysterious render of an iPad that features slimmer bezels, no Home button, and no notch with space for a camera.

Blass did not provide any information on the render, aside from the cryptic message "Seems to be something missing from this (encased) iPad..." which perhaps hints that he received the render from a case maker. Blass typically only shares leaks that he believes are from credible sources.

In this case, with no accompanying information, there's no way to determine whether or not this design is indicative of what a future iPad might look like. There is no notch or cutout for the camera, and the device is depicted running an older version of iOS, but for a simple rendering to show off a case, these features wouldn't matter. The lack of a front-facing camera and no visible notch in this particular render, if accurate, are not indicative of Apple's plans.

Rumors have indeed suggested Apple is working on an iPad Pro that's similar in design to what's pictured in the rendering. Apple is said to be planning to launch an iPad Pro with thinner bezels, a faster processor, a custom Apple-built GPU, and most importantly, Face ID.

With Face ID, the next-generation iPad Pro will not need a Home button, providing more room for the display. Future iPad Pro models are expected to come in physical sizes similar to the existing 10.5 and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models, and based on icon spacing, the rendering appears to depict the larger iPad Pro.

Exact display sizing for future iPad Pro models is unknown as of yet, but a recent rumor from Taiwan's Economic Daily News has suggested the smaller of the two tablets could feature an 11-inch display. Apple would not need to increase the actual size of the iPad Pro to introduce a larger display if the bezels are smaller.

Apple is believed to be planning to introduce new iPad Pro models sometime in the second half of the year. Bloomberg has suggested the devices will debut sometime after June, perhaps in September, while other sources have predicted a June WWDC launch.

Update: It appears the "rendering" is a fake photoshopped image, as it spotted in an auction listing for a 10.5-inch iPad Pro case along with the original image that was photoshopped. Evan Blass has deleted his original tweet.

In our latest video, available over on our YouTube channel, we took a look at apps and tools that are designed to help musicians use their iPhones and iPads to work on their craft and record high-quality music while wherever they are.

This is a bit of a niche video, but it is suitable for new musicians and those who want to find tools to better take advantage of their mobile devices.

Music Memos, an app that's always gone under the radar, is super useful for recording song lyrics or making notes on your compositions. There's a one-tap record button so it's easy to get started, and Music Memos will record the exact notes you're playing so you can come back to your work in the future.

For actually recording high-quality audio that's similar to what you'd get in a studio, the iPhone's microphone just isn't good enough. You're going to want an accessory like iZotope's Spire Studio, which is basically a miniature recording studio that can go anywhere. It's not cheap at $349, but it can capture great sound.

There are tons of other apps and tools out there, so if you're a musician who records with an iPhone or iPad, make sure to let us know which accessories and apps you prefer to use in the comments.

Apple today updated its Apple Store app, introducing new design changes and improvements to its dedicated iOS portal for purchasing Apple products both online and in retail Apple Stores.

Version 5.0 of the new Apple Store app includes what Apple describes as a "more personal, relevant in-store experience" with product and session recommendations, in-stock notices for products marked as favorites, and the option to scan and buy accessories right from the iPhone.

There's a new sessions tab, which is designed to allow users to find daily Apple Store sessions covering photography, music, and more, along with sessions based on owned products.

A revamped section for orders allows users to view invoices, edit shipping details and engraving messages, and cancel an individual item in an order that includes multiple items.

Apple says the app also offers a "better look" at the savings that customers can get when purchasing refurbished products.

What's New:
- Unlock a more personal, relevant in-store experience. Get product and session recommendations, see Favorites in stock, and scan and buy accessories right from your iPhone.
- With the Sessions tab, find daily sessions on photography, music, and more to take your creativity further. You can also choose a session based on products you already own.
- Manage your orders in more ways. Now view invoices, edit shipping details and engraving messages, or cancel an individual item in your order.
- Get a better look at the savings that come with buying refurbished products.
- Discover design updates and improvements throughout the app.

The Apple Store app can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Instagram today announced that it's making changes to the Instagram feed algorithm to address concerns users have had with the feed for quite some time now.

Instagram originally used a chronological feed, showing the newest Instagram posts first when you opened up the app, but the company changed that in June of 2016 to display posts based on relevancy. The change caused days-old posts to be displayed in some situations, which users were unhappy with.

Starting today, Instagram is planning to focus more on surfacing newer posts, a change the company is making based on user feedback. It won't be the same as the original chronological feed, but Instagram says new posts will show up first.

Based on your feedback, we're also making changes to ensure that newer posts are more likely to appear first in feed. With these changes, your feed will feel more fresh, and you won't miss the moments you care about. So if your best friend shares a selfie from her vacation in Australia, it will be waiting for you when you wake up.

Instagram is also disabling the feature that causes the Instagram feed to automatically refresh. Instead, Instagram is testing a "New Posts" button that will let users decide when to refresh a feed.

Tap the button and you'll be taken to new posts at the top of feed -- don't tap, and you'll stay where you are. We hope this makes browsing Instagram much more enjoyable.

Instagram says additional feed improvements will be introduced over the course of the next few months.

Earlier this month Apple shared a surreal new ad for the HomePod that was directed by filmmaker Spike Jonze and starred artist Tahliah Debrett Barnett, known as FKA Twigs. In the commercial, FKA Twigs arrived home from a long day at work and found a way to unwind by dancing around to Anderson .Paak playing from her HomePod, all while her apartment expanded and shape-shifted in unexpected ways.

In terms of CGI, VFX supervisor Janelle Croshaw points out that the biggest effect for the ad occurs when FKA Twigs dances with herself in a mirror. At one point in the video it's also revealed that the artist auditioned for Jonze's commercial using FaceTime. To check out the full short documentary on the making of "Welcome Home," visit Adweek right here.

The latest Apple Pay promo has launched today, offering users the chance to get up to three free restaurant deliveries in select apps.

To take advantage of the March Madness-themed promotion, customers can enter the code "HOOPS" at checkout in Grubhub, Seamless, and Eat24 (in apps or on websites), and pay for their orders via Apple Pay to get a free delivery.

The offer is limited to three redemptions per diner and three per device during the promo period, and does not cover the cost of the meal in the order. The new promo will end on April 2, 2018 at 11:59 p.m. CT.

Apple is also encouraging customers to checkout faster using Apple Pay within food apps like Pizza Hut, Subway, and BevMo!, as well as clothing and ticketing apps including Nike, SeatGeek, and GOAT.

The last Apple Pay promo was for TouchTunes and gave anyone on Spring Break the chance to add three free song credits to their account in the jukebox-like iOS app. Prior to that, promos have launched for Fandango and Instacart multiple times, Postmates, and more.

Apple's revamped iBooks app on iOS 12 will likely feature a "Today" tab that promotes books, authors, and related content on a daily basis.

That's according to Japanese blog Mac Otakara, which reports that Apple appears to be headhunting employees from publications to build out an editorial team that would curate the content to appear in the Today tab of iBooks. Apple has posted a series of iBooks editor job listings on LinkedIn in recent months.

The rumor makes sense given Apple plans to redesign the iBooks app with a similar layout as the App Store on iOS 11, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The new App Store features a Today section of its own that highlights apps, games, developers, sales, and other app-related content on a daily basis.

iBooks currently has five tabs: My Books, Featured, Top Charts, Search, and Purchased. Once the app is redesigned, it's reasonable to assume the tabs could become something like Today, Reading, Books, Audio, and Search.

Apple renamed the iBooks app to Books in the first iOS 11.3 beta, but the name was reverted to iBooks in the fourth beta and remains that way. Perhaps we'll see the simpler Books name return when iOS 12 is released. The software update should be previewed and enter beta testing at WWDC 2018 in early June.

Popular mobile game show app HQ Trivia has introduced native support for the iPad this week, after first launching its iOS app last fall only for the iPhone. According to the update, version 1.2.20 brings the app to iPad along with the ability for players to change their usernames in settings.

HQ on iPad is a simple, larger version of the trivia game that supports only portrait orientation and lacks Split View integration, as pointed out by The Verge, which is likely an effort to curb cheating. Prior to this week's update iPad users could play HQ on their tablets, but it was the iPhone version of the app with the option to choose 1X or 2X image upscaling, with black borders surrounding the areas of the screen not used by UI.

Since its launch last year, HQ has grown from around 14,000 contestants in a single show to 1.7 million people participating in a game this past Sunday that included a potential prize of $25,000. No one won that game after a winner was suspected of cheating, and now that amount is rolling over to an upcoming game this Sunday, March 25, resulting in a prize pool of $50,000.

HQ is available to download for free from the iOS App Store [Direct Link], and the game goes live every day at 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time and at 3:00 p.m. every weekday.

Apple is beginning to update Apple Maps with transit directions in Albuquerque, New Mexico, allowing residents of the city to navigate around it using various methods of public transportation.

To enable transit between two locations within Albuquerque, tap the "Transit" tab at the bottom of Apple Maps once you enter your route. This will surface a series of transit stops on the trip, along with relevant caution advisories, route detour information, fastest route options, and more.

One of the transit options available for Albuquerque residents is ABQ Ride, a local agency that operates within the city with a variety of bus routes for commuters. When applicable in certain cities, transit directions also support subways, trains, and ferries, and in 2016 Apple added support for Amtrack's full system of train routes across the United States and in select Canadian cities.

In 2015 Apple first launched transit in Apple Maps, limited to Baltimore, Berlin, Boston, Chicago, London, Los Angeles, Mexico City, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Sydney, Toronto, and around 300 cities in China. In the three years since then, Apple has expanded the feature to dozens of additional cities around the world.

Apple Maps rival Google Maps updated yesterday with an expansion of its own transit features, adding options for New York, Hong Kong, Taipei, Paris, Los Angeles, Delhi, Moscow, Singapore, Madrid, Barcelona, Kiev, and Budapest, with "more on the way."

(Thanks, Ram!)

YouTube today achieved a milestone, becoming the Top Grossing Free iPhone app in the U.S. App Store for the first time, according to data app analytics site Sensor Tower shared with TechCrunch.

Prior to today, the highest ranking YouTube had hit on the Top Grossing charts was #3, and the United States marks the first country where YouTube has reached the number one spot.

YouTube has been climbing up the Top Grossing charts at a more rapid pace since the 2015 launch of YouTube Red, YouTube's paid service that provides users with ad-free videos, music, and exclusive content. YouTube Red is priced at $9.99 per month.

Sensor Tower says YouTube grossed approximately $14 million in February of 2018, a 133 percent year-over-year increase from last year. In March, YouTube has already earned $12 million, with iOS revenue up 150 percent year-over-year.

YouTube's App Store revenue does not include the money YouTube brings in through YouTube Music, YouTube Gaming, Google Play, rental purchases, or money. It's limited to YouTube Red and Super Chat, a feature that allow viewers to tip content creators during live streams.

If you have an iPhone X, you're probably well aware of the Animoji feature within the Messages app, which is designed to let you send cute little animated videos of emoji animals that adopt your facial expressions and voice.

What you might not have known, though, is that Animoji can also be used as simple stickers. You can send a still Animoji image in Messages as a reaction, or use it like other iMessage stickers.

Sending a Still Animoji

Sending a non-animated Animoji with a custom expression is pretty simple -- you just need to tap.

1. Open a Messages conversation.
2. Tap the Messages App Store icon.
3. Choose Animoji.
4. Pick your favorite Animoji.
5. Make an expression.
6. Rather than tapping the red record button, tap right on the Animoji itself.

Once you've tapped on the Animoji, a still image of the expression you were making will be input into the chat bar, and you can tap on the blue arrow to send it to the person you're conversing with.

Using an Animoji as a Sticker

Animoji can be manipulated like any other sticker, and to do so, you're going to follow the same steps from above.

1. Open a Messages conversation.
2. Tap the Messages App Store icon.
3. Choose Animoji.
4. Pick your favorite Animoji.
5. Make an expression.
6. Instead of tapping, place a finger over the Animoji and drag it up into the Messages field, where it can be placed over any chat bubble, image, or sticker.

While in drag mode, an Animoji behaves like any other sticker. Keep your finger on it and use pinch gestures to make it smaller or slide a finger over the screen to rotate it to a different angle.