To go along with the AirPods and the HomePod, Apple is rumored to be working on a set of high-end over-ear headphones that, like its other two products, will be Apple branded rather than Beats branded.
The rumor originated in a February report from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who often accurately predicts Apple's plans. Kuo says Apple is planning to launch high-end over-ear headphones that marries the convenience of AirPods with better sound quality.
Designers over at Curved.de have taken these rumors and created renderings imagining what Apple-branded over-ear headphones could look like.
The headphones take design elements from the HomePod, such as the acoustic fabric covering and the touch panel that includes a visible Siri waveform, and existing Beats headphones like the Solo3.
On headphones, of course, you wouldn't see the waveform while wearing them so this may not be an entirely realistic concept, but it's interesting to see the HomePod design distilled down into headphones.
Curved.de has imagined the headphones in both black and white, with the touch panel also able to display other graphics like a rainbow Apple logo, and there's a simple wireless charging stand included in the concept.
Ming-Chi Kuo believes Apple could release the headphones as soon as the fourth quarter of 2018, which is fairly late in the year, so we could see them delayed until 2019. Kuo's rumor has been corroborated by Bloomberg, with the site adding that noise-canceling features could be included.
Is this what you think Apple-branded headphones might look like? Let us know in the comments.
For this week's giveaway, we've once again teamed up with ROLI, this time to give away one of the company's LightPad Block M music making devices.
For those unfamiliar with ROLI, it's a company that makes a fun, modular music creation system called Blocks, designed for everyone from beginners to professionals.
The Lightpad M, priced at $200, is a key component in the ROLI system. Lightpad M supports pressure-based multi-touch gestures on its light-up grid surface to make music. The Lightpad M can recreate the sounds of cellos, flutes, drums, violins, and hundreds of other instruments with simple, intuitive touch gestures.
It also supports beats, chords, melodies, and more, and it ships with more than 200 sounds, with options to add more through an accompanying suite of apps that work with the Lightpad M.
Gestures include a strike for sounding a note, a side to side glide to change pitch, an up and down slide to modulate sound, a press for a deeper sound, and lift to change resonance.
There's a soft, silicone top layer on the Lightpad M for precise control, and the top of the square-shaped accessory lights up in hundreds of colors when touched. Microkeywaves on the silicone surface of the Lightpad M offer pleasing tactile feedback, and it's sensitive enough that even a light touch makes music.
You can fit the Lightpad M in the palm of your hand, so it's small enough to go anywhere, and it offers a wireless connection.
We have a ROLI LightPad Block M to give away to a MacRumors reader. To enter to win, use the Rafflecopter widget below and enter an email address. Email addresses will be used solely for contact purposes to reach winners and send prizes. You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube channel, following us on Twitter, or visiting the MacRumorsFacebook page.
Due to the complexities of international laws regarding giveaways, only U.S. residents who are 18 years or older and Canadian residents (excluding Quebec) who have reached the age of majority in their province or territory are eligible to enter. To offer feedback or get more information on the giveaway restrictions, please refer to our Site Feedback section, as that is where discussion of the rules will be redirected.
The contest will run from today (April 6) at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time through 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time on April 13. The winner will be chosen randomly on April 13 and will be contacted by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address before a new winner is chosen.
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.
Russia appears to be following through on its threat last year to 
