MacRumors

Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming iOS 11.2 update to developers, just over two weeks after releasing iOS 11.0.3 and while the upcoming iOS 11.1 update is still in beta testing.

Registered developers can download the iOS 11.2 beta from Apple's Developer Center or over-the-air once the proper configuration profile has been installed from the Developer Center.

It's not yet clear what's included in the iOS 11.2 beta, but it could potentially introduce support for features that were not included in the original iOS 11 release.

Apple has said both peer-to-peer Apple Pay payments and iCloud support for iMessages will be introduced in later iOS 11 updates, and neither of these features has appeared in the iOS 11.1 beta, though employees have been testing Apple Pay Cash.

iOS 11 marks a major update to the operating system, with systemwide design tweaks, a new Lock screen experience, a revamped Control Center, and an entirely new interface for the iPad that includes a Dock, Drag and Drop support, and a redesigned App Switcher for better than ever multitasking.

Update: iOS 11.2 introduces a fix for an animation issue that caused the Calculator app to work improperly, 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. It also appears to introduce the TV app for Sweden and Norway.

In addition to journalist Steven Levy's first impressions of the iPhone X, Apple recently invited a number of YouTube channels to try out the highly-anticipated device at a nondescript building in New York City.

Brian Farmer and Noah Thomas of lifestyle website Highsnobiety shared a five-minute video in which they demo Animoji, 4K video playback at 60 FPS, Face ID, front-facing Portrait Mode, wireless charging, and other features.

YouTube personality Mark Watson, known as Soldier Knows Best, praised the iPhone X's design and performance. He said the new swipe-up gestures for unlocking the device and multitasking will take some time to get used to.

BooredAtWork.com's executive editor Enobong Etteh said the iPhone X is one of the best looking iPhones ever. His video provides a side-by-side comparison of the iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X, along with hands-on time with Face ID and Animoji.

Sam Beckerman went to New York on behalf of Canada's FASHION Magazine for an exclusive hands-on look at the new iPhone X. The video recaps her 10 favorite features of the device, such as Face ID, Animoji, and ARKit.

Beyond the event in New York, a few other videos of the iPhone X have surfaced on YouTube today. We've embedded videos from French channel TheiCollection, Popular Science, and The Ellen DeGeneres Show below.

iPhone X pre-orders began on Friday, with shipping estimates now at five to six weeks for orders placed today. The device launches November 3, with limited in-store availability for walk-in customers on a first come, first served basis.

Apple chief Tim Cook was among a group of leaders who met China's President Xi Jinping on Monday at an annual gathering of advisers to the Tsinghua University business school in the capital Beijing, according to Reuters.

Apple declined to comment on details of his visit. Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg, who also attended, stated that "every year this trip is a great way to keep up with the pace of innovation and entrepreneurship in China."

The meeting occurred just days before Apple launches its much-anticipated iPhone X in 55 countries, including China, with hopes the high-end smartphone can revive the company's sales in the world's second largest economy.

Apple shipped an estimated 11 million iPhones in China last quarter, up 40 percent from the year-ago quarter, according to research firm Canalys. The strong growth put an end to six consecutive quarters of declining iPhone sales in the region.

Canalys believes Apple's rebound, buoyed by the launch of the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus last month, could be short lived.

"Apple's growth this quarter is only temporary. The high sell-in caters to the pent-up demand of iPhone upgraders in the absence of the iPhone X. Price cuts on earlier models after announcing the iPhone 8 have also helped. However, Apple is unlikely to sustain this growth in Q4," said Canalys Research Analyst Mo Jia.

Despite being touted as widely expensive, excitement for the launch of the iPhone X is building in China. "While the iPhone X launches this week, its pricing structure and supply are inhibiting. The iPhone X will enjoy a healthy grey market status, but its popularity is unlikely to help Apple in the short term," added Jia.

iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus have quickly "run out of steam" in mainland China, despite being heavily discounted by online retailers such as Suning.com and JD.com, according to the South China Morning Post.

"The iPhone 8 might be the most poorly sold flagship iPhone model in China, as such huge discounts have never been seen before in the country," said Zhao Ziming, a senior analyst at Pintu Tank in Beijing.

While the iPhone X could help Apple in the fourth quarter, its high price and supply constraints might inhibit the company's growth in China in the short term, according to Canalys research analyst Mo Jia.

Apple was the fifth largest smartphone maker in China last quarter, behind local brands Huawei, Vivo, Oppo, and Xiaomi, according to Canalys.

Although the iPhone X has yet to launch anywhere in the world, Benjamin Geskin over the weekend began tweeting images and videos of the smartphone being unboxed for the first time, as well as a few pictures of the device preparing for shipment. Images of the iPhone X's retail packaging appeared on Apple's website following its announcement in September, but we haven't yet been able to catch a glimpse of the inside of the box.

In the first few Tweets, Geskin shared images of the iPhone X stacked and ready to ship, and you can catch more glimpses of the side of the packaging in a separate video. Unlike the iPhone 8's rear-focus cover art, the iPhone X packaging depicts the smartphone's large OLED display.

Geskin then Tweeted a link to Instagram user abraham950, who posted a brief unboxing video of the iPhone X. The video shows that the first thing you see when you open the box is Apple's "Designed by Apple in California" information packet, and below that sits the iPhone X itself.

In another Tweet, images were shared from an Instagram post that has now been deleted, showcasing a Silver iPhone X from Europe in the process of being unboxed.

One mobile retailer in Dubai has also received the iPhone X, with a user posting an Instagram video of the package as well as a quick shot of the setup screen and back of the device. In a video shared by the Instagram account @theapplehub, a user in Milan, Italy provided a glimpse at the setup process (which is impossible to complete right now because the device can't be activated yet), and zoomed in on the vertical dual-lens camera of the iPhone X.

As we near launch day on Friday, November 3, even more in-depth unboxing videos of the iPhone X will appear online as users in New Zealand and Australia begin receiving their devices. The first wave of iPhone X reviews also began arriving online today, including original iPhone reviewer Steven Levy's impressions of the device.

Apple set up an iMac Pro at the third annual FCPX Creative Summit in Cupertino, California over the weekend, providing attendees with a closer look at the powerful workstation ahead of its December launch.

Apple appears to have allowed attendees to take pictures of the iMac Pro at the event. French blog MacGeneration rounded up some of the photos shared on social platforms like Instagram and Twitter.

iMac Pro shares the same design as the standard iMac, but with an all-flash architecture, a new thermal design, and four Thunderbolt 3 ports. It's also distinguished by its sleek, exclusive Space Gray enclosure.

The all-in-one computer is bundled with matching Space Gray accessories, including the Magic Mouse 2, Magic Trackpad 2, and a wireless Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad introduced at WWDC 2017 in June.

Apple said the iMac Pro will also feature up to an 18-core Intel Xeon processor, top-of-the-line Radeon Pro Vega graphics, up to 4TB of SSD storage, and up to 128GB of ECC RAM, with a starting price of $4,999 in the United States.

The FCPX Creative Summit, hosted by Future Media Concepts, featured three days of training on Apple's professional video editing software Final Cut Pro X. Apple itself announced that Final Cut Pro X 10.4 will launch later this year.

Final Cut Pro X 10.4 will include new color tools, like color wheels and a white balance picker. It will include support for HEVC, the new video format introduced in iOS 11 and macOS High Sierra, and direct import of iOS for iMovie timelines. The new version of the software will also support VR and HDR workflows.

Apple has given a review unit of the iPhone X to Steven Levy, who was one of the first pre-release reviewers of the original iPhone ten years ago. Levy has had the iPhone X since last Tuesday and today shared his thoughts on the tenth-anniversary device (via Wired), which marks the publishing of the first official review and impression of Apple's latest smartphone ahead of the review embargo lifting later this week.

Levy mentioned that "the biggest change" for the iPhone X is its screen, which is about the same size as the display of an iPhone 8 Plus in the body of an iPhone 8. Compared to "bulky" sizes of Apple's Plus line and Android smartphones, Levy was a fan of this slimming down in size, and said that it was "greatly pleasurable" when used to watch a movie, stream a football game, or just swipe through Instagram.

When discussing Face ID, Levy said that it appears to be a reliable method of unlocking and wouldn't detect anyone other than his face, although there were moments when it wouldn't unlock for him personally. Levy also mentioned that hiding text previews will now be the default on iPhone X, and he called the device's Apple Pay implementation a "clearer way to do transactions."

Does it work? Pretty much. It seems reliable at fending off intruders. I have thrust my phone into several people’s faces—though considerably fewer than the million punims that Apple says I’d have to try before a false positive—and it has not fallen for any of them. I even offered up my own head shot to the camera: no go.

How it has dealt with my own real-life face is another matter. There have been times when, despite a clear view of my face, the iPhone X has ghosted me. (Apple tells me that perhaps I wasn’t making what the iPhone X considers eye contact. I wouldn’t want it to turn on every time my face was within camera range, would I?)

In his short time with the iPhone X, Levy said he has already "mastered the gestures" of the device and found himself trying to use them on an iPad. "My finger no longer drifts to the home button, but pathetically swipes upwards, to no avail." He further mentioned that, "now there's that awkward moment when I expect the iPad to unlock itself when the camera looks at my face."

Ultimately, Levy described the iPhone X as potentially a "halfway point" to a future beyond smartphones, and that its true potential will be unlocked when developers really begin to take advantage of the new hardware upgrades. You can read Levy's full review of the iPhone X on Wired right here.

In addition to Levy's iPhone X first impressions, the YouTube channel Booredatwork today posted a full eight minute review of the new smartphone, as well as a shorter Face ID-focused video. The review goes through many of the newest features coming to iPhone X, including working demonstrations of Portrait Mode selfies, various new gestures, Animoji, and more. The channel said the swipe-up gesture to go home "worked well," but all-in-all the new navigation gestures are "counterintuitive" at first after using a physical Home Button for so many years.

The video also included a side-by-side comparison of the iPhone X with an iPhone 8 Plus, and the reviewer was a fan of the iPhone X's ergonomics, mentioning that it should fit comfortably in all hand sizes. In a separate video, the channel showed the setup process of Face ID, which you can begin in Settings > Face ID and Passcode. As we saw in previous leaks, this process includes rotating your face in a circle a few times, and afterwards your iPhone X will be ready to use Face ID to be unlocked.

More reviews and impressions of the iPhone X will begin to appear online later in the week, ahead of the smartphone's launch day on Friday, November 3. Over the weekend, the first iPhone X orders began shipping out to customers, who will be among the first to get the device on Friday. For more information on the new smartphone, be sure to check out our iPhone X Roundup.

A luxurious, 400 horsepower BMW Z8 owned by late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs is headed to auction next month at Sotheby's in New York. The winning bid is estimated to reach between $300,000 and $400,000.

Jobs' ownership is documented through several service invoices accompanying the car, as well as a copy of a California registration or so-called "pink slip" in his name and at his personal residence, according to the listing.

"According to legend, Jobs was convinced to buy the Z8 by Larry Ellison the iconoclastic CEO of Oracle, who enthused to Jobs that the car was a paragon of modern automotive engineering and ergonomics," the listing says.

The roadster has a production date of April 1, 2000, and it was delivered to him in October of that year, according to Sotheby's. Jobs reportedly sold the car in 2003 to its current owner in Los Angeles.

Over the course of the last 17 years, the car has been driven just 15,200 miles from new, averaging less than 1,000 miles a year, the listing states. It is said to remain in "exemplary condition."

The silver-over-black car is equipped with several accessories, including its original BMW-branded Motorola flip phone that Jobs supposedly hated. The JOBS Z8 license plate was registered by the current owner.

BMW built just over 5,700 Z8s between 1999 and 2003. The car had a suggested price of $128,000 before options in the United States, and used models typically sell for anywhere between $165,000 and over $200,000.

The auction begins December 6 at Sotheby's "Icons" event, featuring supercars from Lamborghini, Ferrari, Jaguar, and other marques. The listing was brought to our attention by BMWBLOG.com.

(Thanks, Chris!)

After spending at least a thousand dollars on a brand new iPhone X, you may be debating whether it's really worth it to spend an additional few hundred dollars on an AppleCare+ plan to insure your shiny new smartphone.

AppleCare+ is an optional, premium warranty plan that extends an iPhone's warranty coverage to two years from the original purchase date of the device, and adds up to two incidents of accidental damage coverage, each subject to a service fee of $29 for screen damage, or $99 for any other damage.

AppleCare+ for iPhone X costs $199 upfront, compared to $129 for the iPhone 8 and $149 for the iPhone 8 Plus. As with virtually any form of insurance, AppleCare+ only pays for itself in the event you accidentally damage your device.

To determine if AppleCare+ is worthwhile, we first must look at how much it will cost to repair the iPhone X without the coverage.

Apple recently confirmed it will charge out-of-warranty rates of $279 for iPhone X screen repairs, and $549 for any other damage to the device, unless it is a manufacturing defect covered by Apple's standard one-year limited warranty.

With AppleCare+ for iPhone X, the price of a repair would be the $199 upfront cost of the plan plus a $29 to $99 incidental fee.

If you shatter your iPhone X's screen once, for example, you would pay $279 out of warranty. With the upfront cost of AppleCare+ coupled with the screen repair incidental fee, you would pay $228, so purchasing the plan can save you money in the long run if an accident happens.

If you shatter your iPhone X's back glass, having AppleCare+ is even more worthwhile. Apple's flat rate is $549 for this type of damage, while the upfront cost of AppleCare+ coupled with a $99 incidental fee totals $298.

The chart below shows that AppleCare+ will save you money in the long run if you damage your iPhone X in any way just once in two years.

Even if you never damage your iPhone X, AppleCare+ has one additional perk that can be quite valuable: 24/7 priority access to Apple support advisors via phone or online chat for two years after your iPhone X's purchase date. Without it, iPhone users are covered by just 90 days of complimentary telephone support.

There is no one-size-fits-all answer as to whether AppleCare+ is worth it, as it very much depends on how careful you are. But given the iPhone X's out-of-warranty repair fees are quite high, it may be more worthwhile than ever.

AppleCare+ can be purchased through Apple's online or retail stores. If not purchased alongside the iPhone, it can be added within 60 days, pending a diagnostic test to ensure no damage has occurred in that time.

It's also worth noting that if you cancel your AppleCare+ plan before the two-year coverage period expires, you'll get a partial refund based on the percentage of unexpired coverage, minus the value of any service already provided. A cancellation fee of $25 or 10 percent of the pro-rata amount, whichever is less, applies.

All prices above are listed in U.S. dollars. AppleCare+ and Apple's out-of-warranty repair fees vary in other countries.

While the iPhone X has reportedly faced production issues related to the TrueDepth camera, resulting in shipment delays, respected analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said supply of components for the facial recognition system is now stable.

In a research note with KGI Securities, obtained by MacRumors, Kuo added that Apple won't "repeat the mistake" of delayed production with next year's iPhone models, which he predicts will "arrive on time" under "stable supply."

Apple won't repeat the mistake of supply disruption & delayed production as seen with iPhone X. We believe shipments of new 2H18F iPhones will arrive on time under stable supply in late 3Q18F. And given no major spec upgrade of TrueDepth camera on these new models, we believe Apple will continue to use the same WLO for dot projector and 4P lens of infrared camera as iPhone X. We believe the supply of both components are now stable, leaving no need to switch to other solutions.

Kuo expects new iPhone models launching in the second half of 2018 to adopt the same wafer level optics for the TrueDepth system's dot projector, and the same 4P lens for the infrared camera, as the iPhone X.

iPhone X pre-orders began on Friday at 12:01 a.m. Pacific Time, and shipping estimates have remained at 5-6 weeks since a few hours after that time.

The first iPhone X orders began shipping out to customers today ahead of a promised delivery date on Friday, November 3, the official launch date for the device.

Apple hasn't updated order statuses from "Preparing for Shipment" and won't do so until later this week when packages begin hitting their destination countries, but iPhone X models shipping via UPS in the United States are in transit and can be tracked using a UPS My Choice account or, in some cases, by reference number on the UPS website.

Tracking by reference often requires a phone number and a zip code, but sometimes the order number minus the last two digits also works. Many of our forum members are seeing their orders on the UPS website at this point, but not every order has been transitioned to UPS as of yet, so it may take another day or two for all orders to show up.

Pre-orders for the iPhone X kicked off on Friday, October 27 at 12:01 a.m. Pacific Time, and orders slated for November 3 delivery shifted to preparing for shipment later that same day and customers began seeing charges on their credit cards.

At this point, pre-order supplies of the iPhone X are sold out and have been since minutes after pre-orders went live. Current delivery estimates for iPhone X orders placed today are at 5 to 6 weeks, so many devices won't be arriving until late November and December. Apple is working to ship out iPhone X models as fast as possible, though, and some customers have already seen their delivery dates improve.

While it's no longer possible to pre-order an iPhone X for launch day delivery, Apple will have iPhone X models in stock at retail stores on November 3, so there's still a chance to get a device without a long wait. Customers hoping to get an iPhone X at a retail store should plan to line up early.