MacRumors

Apple is set to report its earnings results for the fourth quarter of its 2017 fiscal year at 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time today.

The fiscal quarter reflects Apple's sales between July 2 and September 30 of 2017.

Apple provided the following guidance for its fourth quarter back on August 1:

• revenue between $49 billion and $52 billion
• gross margin between 37.5 and 38 percent
• operating expenses between $6.7 billion and $6.8 billion
• other income/expense of $500 million
• tax rate of 25.5 percent

Apple's guidance suggests the company will report at least its second best fourth quarter earnings results in its history.

MacRumors.com compiled fourth quarter estimates from several financial institutions and analysts tracking Apple and the company's stock. The figures are listed below, ranked from highest to lowest in quarterly revenue.

Apple's fourth quarter earnings results will provide the first official indication of how well the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 are selling. The devices became available to pre-order on September 15, just over two weeks before the quarter ended, and launched in stores one week later on September 22.

Multiple reports have suggested that demand for the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus has been tepid, but that could be a side effect of pent up demand for the iPhone X. Apple staggered the release of its high-end smartphone, for which pre-orders began October 27, nearly six weeks after the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus.

The most interesting takeaway will be Apple's guidance for the quarter we're in right now, which encompasses the launch of the iPhone X and the busy holiday shopping season. Over the past year, analysts have repeatedly predicted the highly-anticipated device will drive a significant "supercycle" of upgrades.

A high guidance range would suggest that Apple expects the iPhone X to sell very well, while a lower one would suggest that either demand is lower than thought or that Apple continues to face issues with ramping up supply of the device.

In addition to iPhone sales, investors will be looking for continued growth of Apple's services category, which includes the likes of the App Store, iTunes Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay, AppleCare, and licensing fees. Apple's services revenue grew 22 percent to an all-time record of $7.3 billion last quarter.

Apple's services category has become the size of a Fortune 100 company, according to chief executive Tim Cook.

Cook and Apple's financial chief Luca Maestri will discuss the company's earnings results on a conference call at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time. MacRumors.com will transcribe the call as it unfolds for those unable to listen.

The iPhone X's facial recognition abilities continue to be found at the center of privacy concerns, with the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Democracy and Technology today raising questions over how "effectively" Apple can enforce certain privacy rules surrounding face scanning (via Reuters). Specifically, the privacy defending groups are worried about how certain pieces of facial data can be taken off the iPhone X by developers who seek to create entertainment features with the new smartphone's facial software.

Facial data that is used to unlock the iPhone X -- or data related to "Face ID" -- is securely stored on the device itself and not in iCloud. However, Apple will let developers take certain pieces of this facial data off the user's iPhone "as long as they seek customer permission and not sell the data to third parties," according to terms seen in a contract by Reuters. This means that developers who want to use the iPhone X's front-facing camera can get a "rough map" of the user's face, as well as a "stream of more than 50 kinds of facial expressions."

The data that developers can gather -- which can then be stored on the developer's own servers -- is said to help monitor how often users blink, smile, or even raise an eyebrow. Although this data can't unlock the iPhone X, according to documents about Face ID sent to security researchers, the "relative ease" with which developers can gain access to parts of a user's facial data and add it to their own servers has led to the new concerns raised by the ACLU and CDT today.

That remote storage raises questions about how effectively Apple can enforce its privacy rules, according to privacy groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Democracy and Technology. Apple maintains that its enforcement tools - which include pre-publication reviews, audits of apps and the threat of kicking developers off its lucrative App Store - are effective.

[...]But the relative ease with which developers can whisk away face data to remote servers leaves Apple sending conflicting messages: Face data is highly private when used for authentication, but it is sharable - with the user’s permission - when used to build app features.

According to Jay Stanley, a senior policy analyst at the ACLU, the privacy issues surrounding facial recognition in the context of unlocking a smartphone "have been overblown." Stanley explained, "The real privacy issues have to do with access by third-party developers." The experts concerned about Face ID in this context are also not worried about "government snooping," but more about marketers and advertisers tracking how a user's expression reacts to their ads.

Apple has strict policies against developers using face data for advertising and marketing, but those concerned groups cited worry about the company's "inability to control what app developers do with face data once it leaves the iPhone X." Stanley said that "the hard part" for Apple will come from having to find and catch the apps that might be violating these policies, meaning that the big household names probably won't be of concern to Apple, "but there's still a lot of room for bottom feeders."

Now that the iPhone X is in the hands of reviewers, many have said that Face ID works quite well in many different conditions. Some outlets have taken to try and fool Face ID with large pieces of clothing, sunglasses, and "twin tests," the last of which have come back with mixed results. In its ongoing efforts to reassure customers of Face ID's security and privacy, Apple released an in-depth security white paper in September to highlight and explain some of these features of Face ID.

iPhone X pre-orders began shipping to customers earlier this week, and with just hours remaining until the device launches around the world, most orders have now been updated with a "shipped" status on Apple's website.

MacRumors readers continue to report improved delivery estimates, with some customers who were previously quoted a November 17-24 window now expected to receive their iPhone X around November 8. Many of these customers, but not all, are enrolled in the iPhone Upgrade Program and ordered a silver model.

iPhone X pre-orders destined for the United States are passing through UPS and FedEx hubs in Anchorage, Alaska, as usual, with UPS shipments headed to its Worldport facility in Louisville, Kentucky. From there, the iPhone X orders will begin to make their way to customers around the country.

The truest of Apple aficionados can take the UPS tracking number they receive, once their iPhone X has been shipped, and match their device's departure scan with UPS flights on FlightAware. The page hasn't been updated since the iPhone 7 launch, but the flight information appears to remain accurate.

The calendar is already turning to Friday in Australia and New Zealand, two countries where the iPhone X will launch first. Long lines are forming at Apple Stores across the Asia-Pacific region, including the Orchard Road location in Singapore.

Channel NewsAsia shared a video on its Facebook page of Apple trying to get customers to form a single queue at the Orchard Road store.

If you didn't pre-order and plan on lining up for a chance to purchase the iPhone X tomorrow, our iPhone Launch Meetups section in the MacRumors discussion forums is a useful resource. The vast majority of Apple Stores will open at 8:00 a.m. local time on Friday, and supplies wil likely be very limited.

The iPhone X will be in the hands of customers in less than 48 hours, but ahead of the device's launch, our new videographer, Dan Barbera, was able to spend some time with an iPhone X demo device to get a look at the new smartphone before its public release.

Because this is a demo device that's going to be in retail stores for customers to check out before making a purchase, Face ID was disabled, but Dan was able to check out the design of the iPhone X and give us a good look at the new gestures needed to operate the device.

We just wanted to give MacRumors readers a quick close-up of the iPhone X ahead of its launch with this first video, but starting this Friday, we'll be doing a much deeper dive into the iPhone X in a series of videos. We have a lot of content planned, so make sure to stay tuned to MacRumors.com and subscribe to our YouTube channel if you haven't done so already.

Apple CEO Tim Cook sat down with NBC's Lester Holt on tonight's NBC Nightly News broadcast, where he spoke about Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, the need for tax reform in the United States, and more.

As was shared in a clip of the interview earlier today, Cook commented on Russia's use of social media to interfere with the 2016 election and the congressional hearings executives from Facebook, Twitter, and Google have been attending to discuss the role Russia might have played. Cook said he believes the social networks in question have been learning "along the way a lot" and that fake news is a major issue.

I think they learned along the way a lot. And you know, it's best to ask them if they should have projected it or not. I don't believe that the big issue are ads from foreign government. I believe that's like .1 percent of the issue.

The bigger issue is that some of these tools are used to divide people, to manipulate people, to get fake news to people in broad numbers, and so, to influence their thinking. And this, to me, is the No. 1 through 10 issue.

Cook went on to say that we'll likely learn a lot more in the hearings in regard to the particulars of what went on, and he said companies have a responsibility to make sure technology is "good." "I do think that technology itself doesn't want to be good," he said. "It doesn't want to be anything. It's up to the creator of the technology and the user of the technology to make it good."

Cook also spoke on tax reform. Corporate tax rates, he says, "should have been fixed years ago." "Let's get it done now," he added.

I believe that tax reform is sorely needed in this country. We don't focus on the individual side, but for corporations, we think we have a pretty deep perspective on this. The biggest issue with corporations in this country is that if you earn money outside of the United States, which most companies increasingly will, the only way that you can bring it into the US and invest is if you pay 40 percent. And this is kind of a crazy thing to do. So what do people do? They don't bring it to the United States.

During the interview, which took place on Apple's campus, Cook showed Holt an iPhone X and explained Face ID features and security, topics Apple has covered multiple times in past executive interviews and through a detailed Face ID support document.

All Face ID data is stored on device, not on Apple's servers, Cook reiterated. "We don't have it intentionally because it's yours," he said. As he has done many times in the past, Cook also highlighted Apple's focus on privacy and said that if he had to re-do the legal controversy with the FBI over San Bernardino, he'd "make the same decision today."

On the topic of selling user data, Cook said that's not something Apple does.

It's something that we don't do because you are not our product. We take a very pro-privacy view. Apple doesn't know what the content of your messages are. We encrypt FaceTime end-to-end. We don't know what you're saying. And we think that's the way people would expect.

A final topic of discussion covered the evolution of the iPhone over the course of the last 10 years and whether it's reached where Steve Jobs had envisioned it would go.

"You know, we knew from the launch it was going to change the world. But frankly, it's gone far beyond what we would have dreamed," Cook said.

NBC Nightly News hasn't yet shared the full video of Cook's interview, but it should be available soon on the NBC website and will include his full commentary on a range of issues.

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.

High demand for the iPhone X will drive an upgrade "supercycle" this holiday season that could see shoppers spending the bulk of their holiday cash at Apple Stores, according to a note from Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty (via Business Insider).

Given the high price of the iPhone X, which starts at $999, the iPhone X could "absorb" $30 billion of discretionary spending during the holidays, impacting other retailers. Huberty believes customers will be drawn to all of the new features in the iPhone X, and will reduce spending in other categories in order to afford the device.

"Apparel is a wallet share donor to other categories, with cell phones/technology and services being two of them. We see this upgrade supercycle coupled with the very high $999 iPhone X average selling price as a significant headwind to Specialty Retailers and Department stores in the fourth quarter."

After spending upwards of a thousand dollars on a phone, Huberty believes customers will be left thinking things like "'I just bought a $1,000 phone last month, I don't really need another pair of jeans.'"

Combined, Huberty believes iPhone X, iPhone 8, and iPhone 8 Plus could take approximately $52.6 billion of spending away from other categories this holiday season. Given the limited supply of the iPhone X, other retailers could be impacted by sales of the device well into 2018 as Apple works to reach supply/demand balance.

Apple has not provided insight into iPhone X sales thus far, but the company has said demand for the new device, which sold out in just a few minutes after pre-orders went live, is "off the charts."

Trend Micro's annual Mobile Pwn2Own contest took place in Tokyo, Japan today at the PacSec security conference, and security researchers spent the day attempting to hack into the iPhone 7, the Samsung Galaxy S8, the Google Pixel, and the Huawei Mate 9 Pro in an effort to win prizes totaling more than $500,000.

Apple's iPhone 7, running iOS 11.1, the latest version of the iOS 11 operating system, was successfully breached twice by Tencent Keen Security Lab. The first hack targeted a Wi-Fi bug and won the team $110,000 and 11 Master of Pwn points, while the second hack targeted the Safari Browser and earned Tencent Keen Security Lab $45,000 and 12 Master of Pwn points.

They used a total of four bugs to gain code execution and escalate privileges to allow their rogue application to persist through a reboot. They earned $60,000 for the WiFi exploit and added $50,000 for the persistence bonus - a total of $110,000 and 11 Master of Pwn points.

Tencent Keen Security Lab was on the clock once more as they targeted the Safari Browser on the Apple iPhone 7. It took them just a few seconds to successfully demonstrate their exploit, which needed only two bugs - one in the browser and one in a system service to allow their rogue app to persist through a reboot. As the second finisher in the Browser category, they earned half of the cash award at $45,000, but still earned the full 13 Master of Pwn points.

Security researcher Richard Zhu was also able to leverage two bugs to exploit the Safari browser and escape the sandbox to successfully run code on the iPhone 7, earning him $25,000 and 10 Master of Pwn points.

Along with the iPhone 7, researchers were able to find exploits for the Samsung Galaxy S8 and the Huawei Mate 9 Pro, earning a total of $350,000.

Trend Micro hosts Pwn2Own in an effort to promote its Zero Day Initiative, designed to reward security researchers for disclosing major vulnerabilities to tech companies like Apple and Google.

Pwn2Own continues on through tomorrow, so additional exploits may be uncovered. Apple representatives have been known to attend Pwn2Own competitions in past years, and all vulnerabilities discovered are disclosed to Apple. The company then has 90 days to produce patches for all iOS-related bugs before they're publicly disclosed.

Apple CEO Tim Cook will appear in an interview with NBC's Lester Holt on this evening's NBC Nightly News broadcast, NBC unveiled in a tweet this afternoon.

One of the topics of discussion will include Russia's use of social media to interfere with the 2016 presidential election. In a teaser clip airing ahead of the interview, Cook says the use of social media to spread fake news and manipulate people is a major problem.

"I don't believe that the big issue are ads from foreign government. I believe that's like .1 percent of the issue," Cook told NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt in an exclusive interview airing Wednesday night.

"The bigger issue is that some of these tools are used to divide people, to manipulate people, to get fake news to people in broad numbers, and so, to influence their thinking," Cook said. "And this, to me, is the No. 1 through 10 issue."

Cook's commentary on Russia comes just after representatives from Facebook, Twitter, and Google testified before congress over what role Russian interference on social media networks may have played in the election. On Facebook alone, an estimated 126 million Americans viewed Russian-backed ad content during the campaign.

During the testimony, execs from the three social networks faced tough questions and were lambasted for not doing more to prevent Russia from taking advantage of social media to spread misinformation.

Another topic of conversation will include US tax reform, with Cook telling Holt that tax reform is sorely needed and "should have been fixed years ago."

NBC Nightly News premieres at 6:30 p.m. eastern time in the United States.

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.

Apple's new Face ID facial recognition system coming in the iPhone X unlocks an iPhone more slowly than Touch ID did, according to Tom's Guide.

Tom's Guide is one of the sites that was provided with an iPhone X for evaluation this week, and reviewer Mark Spoonauer compared Face ID and Touch ID unlocking times with a stopwatch.

I've been using Face ID on the iPhone X for more than 24 hours, and I don't need a stopwatch to tell you that it unlocks my phone slower than when I was using Touch ID on my older iPhone 7 Plus. I used a stopwatch app anyway to prove my point.

It took 1.2 seconds for Spoonauer to unlock the iPhone X from pressing the side button on the side of the device and another 0.4 seconds to swipe up to get to the lock screen, while getting to the Home screen on an iPhone 7 Plus using Touch ID took 0.91 seconds.

When using Raise to Wake and swiping up on the display as the iPhone is recognizing a face (as Face ID is meant to be used, according to John Gruber), unlocking was faster at a total of 1.16, but Spoonaeur still found it to be slower than Touch ID.

In a raw comparison like that, Touch ID seems like the faster unlocking method, but as TechCrunch's Matthew Panzarino points out, in actual day-to-day usage, Face ID has benefits over Touch ID because it's a more streamlined interaction.

With Touch ID, to do something like open up a notification, you need to tap the notification and then use Touch ID to open the notification, a two step gesture. With Face ID, it recognizes your face as the phone is raised while you're tapping the notification, a quicker, less involved action.

Panzarino says that while Face ID is slower when placed head to head with Touch ID, it's "much more fluid and faster to actually 'do things.'"

Face ID is a first-generation technology, and early Touch ID was also much slower than it is today. In the future, Face ID will improve and get much faster, but even in the interim, it seems to be a more natural biometric authentication method that won't require thought or attention once users become accustomed to the way that it works.

Right now, Face ID is only available to a select number of people who have been provided with early iPhone X review units, but once it launches on Friday, we'll have a much better understanding of just how it works and how it compares to Touch ID in real world usage.

Apple today released the first public beta of iOS 11.2 to its public beta testing group, one day after seeding the beta to developers and more than a month after releasing the iOS 11 update. The new iOS 11.2 beta comes just after the release of iOS 11.1, which was provided to the public yesterday.

Beta testers who are members of Apple's beta testing program will receive the iOS 11.2 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. iOS betas are not always stable and should not be installed on a primary device.

While there are several major features that Apple has promised will come in later iOS 11 updates, including AirPlay 2, peer-to-peer Apple Pay, and iCloud support for iMessages, none of these features appear to be present in the current iOS 11.2 beta.

The iOS 11.2 update fixes an animation bug in the Calculator app that caused some numbers and symbols to be ignored when entered in rapid succession. The update removes the animations from the calculator app so calculations can be done quickly with no need to pause between entering numbers to obtain the correct result.

In addition to the Calculator bug, iOS 11.2 introduces a new Now Playing option for controlling content on the Apple TV in Control Center, redesigned camera emoji, and a new loading animation for Live Photos effects.