MacRumors

Following the announcement that all Galaxy Note7 devices in the United States will essentially be bricked through an upcoming software update, Samsung recently gave details on how it plans to address the exploding Note7 situation for users in the United Kingdom. The company won't go so far as to completely eliminate the ability to charge the Note7 in the U.K., but instead limit maximum battery charging capacity to 30 percent (via TechCrunch).

The update for users in the U.K. will hit December 15, four days before the update that will come to U.S. Note7 smartphones. Samsung said that it's "designed to further minimize customer risk and reinforce to customers to replace their device...as soon as possible." In the U.S., more than 93 percent of recalled Note7 devices have been returned, but worldwide there are still quite a handful of potentially harmful Note7 smartphones out in the wild, which has lead Samsung to take drastic measures with these software updates.

After the announcement of the U.S. software update last Friday, Verizon confirmed that it won't push the update to its Note7 customers "because of the added risk this could pose to Galaxy Note7 users that do not have another device to switch to." The carrier believes that while solving one problem, rendering the remaining Note7 smartphones useless could lead to even more emergency situations where the users are left without a way to contact help. Verizon also cited the need to keep in touch with family during the holidays as another reason it won't issue the update.

Today, Samsung announced an update to the Galaxy Note7 that would stop the smartphone from charging, rendering it useless unless attached to a power charger. Verizon will not be taking part in this update because of the added risk this could pose to Galaxy Note7 users that do not have another device to switch to. We will not push a software upgrade that will eliminate the ability for the Note7 to work as a mobile device in the heart of the holiday travel season. We do not want to make it impossible to contact family, first responders or medical professionals in an emergency situation.

Every other major U.S. carrier will support the December 19 update from Samsung, including Sprint, AT&T, and T-Mobile. The carriers will be rolling out the software update at different times, with T-Mobile on December 27, AT&T on January 5, and Sprint on January 8.

Apple has rejected "Samsung Pay Mini" on the App Store for undiclosed reasons, following an earlier report claiming the app would be available on iOS, according to ETNews.

Samsung confirmed Apple's rejection and said it will not resubmit the app, but rather focus solely on Android ahead of its expected launch at CES 2017 in the first week of January.

"Samsung Pay Mini" is reportedly an app that will extend Samsung Pay to other smartphones beyond Samsung's own Galaxy-branded devices, thereby competing with Android Pay.

The report claims Samsung has finished testing Samsung Pay Mini with some South Korean credit card companies, but it did not specify if the app will be made available elsewhere. Meanwhile, it said Apple Pay could launch in South Korea in the first half of 2017.

Uber has announced that users will today begin seeing a new update rolling out for the popular ride-hailing app, which transforms it into a themed Rogue One: A Star Wars Story experience. The visual update comes via a partnership with Disney, and replaces the usual Uber vehicle icons with a few easily recognizable starships from the Star Wars universe, including X-Wings.

In addition to the visual update, users will also be able to watch "exclusive video content" from the film during their Uber rides if they choose to turn on the Star Wars theme. Uber said that riders in "hundreds of cities globally" will gain access to the update, although it didn't specify which cities might be missing out on the new Star Wars experience.

Today we announced we’re collaborating with Disney on an activation that transforms the Uber rider app into a themed Rogue One: A Star Wars Story experience. The in-app experience, which Uber riders can opt-into, will unlock special Rogue One: A Star Wars Story features as well as access to exclusive video content.

Riders will have to opt-into the new Star Wars update, which they can do by tapping "Activate" on the related Rogue One: A Star Wars Story card that will begin greeting app users today. The theme will run from today, December 12, through December 18. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story opens in theaters December 16.

Last week, Uber faced blowback surrounding its newest version update, which introduced a way for the app to continue tracking each user's GPS location five minutes after their Uber ride is complete, no matter if the app is open or not. Uber said the move was to improve the overall performance and safety of the app, but many of its users responded negatively online.

As part of its Black Friday Deals Week, Amazon lowered the price of its Echo family of smart speakers, before returning them to their regular prices. Now Amazon has discounted the devices again for a limited time in the U.S. as part of a "Holiday Deals" promotion.

The full-size Echo speaker is $40 cheaper at $139.99, while the smaller Echo dot is available for $39.99 instead of its regular price of $49.99. Amazon Tap, the company's portable Bluetooth and Wi-Fi enabled speaker, has also seen its price reduced from $129.99 to $89.99. The Amazon Echo, Echo Dot and Amazon Tap all have voice-activated assistant Alexa built in.

MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon and may sometimes get paid if you click one of the above links.

Apple Maps has been updated with comprehensive transit data for Salt Lake City, Utah, enabling iPhone users in the city and certain suburbs to navigate using Utah Transit Authority public transportation, including the TRAX light rail system, FrontRunner commuter train, S-Line streetcar, and buses.

Apple introduced Transit in Maps as part of iOS 9 in select cities around the world, including Baltimore, Berlin, Boston, Chicago, London, Los Angeles, Mexico City, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Sydney, Toronto, and over 300 cities in China. The feature has its own tab in Apple Maps on iOS 10 when entering directions.

Transit routing is now available in several other cities around the world, including Atlanta, Columbus, Dallas-Fort Worth, Denver, Honolulu, Kansas City, Melbourne, Miami, Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Montréal, Pittsburgh, Portland, Prague, Rio de Janeiro, Sacramento, San Antonio, San Diego, and Seattle.

(Thanks, Bernd!)

The Unicode Consortium has announced a proposed update to its emoji documentation that provides support for regional flag emojis.

As noted by Emojipedia, the new functionality and guidelines would allow for Apple and other vendors to implement emojis for regions such as U.S. states, Canadian provinces and territories, or countries of the United Kingdom.

Flags representing California or Texas, for example, or England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, could be added in a future iOS update.

The Unicode Consortium stopped short of recommending specific flags for vendors to support, and it said there is no requirement that any of the regional flags be supported. In other words, Apple in particular would be free to choose which regional flags to add to its iOS and macOS platforms if any.

Emojipedia said the Emoji 5.0 update is likely to be released in the first half of 2017, although an official date has not been specified. The proposed update is currently available for public review and feedback until January 16, 2017.

Some apps such as WhatsApp have already worked around the existing Unicode standards to support flags for England, Scotland, Wales, and other regions.

Apple has announced it is on track to release Swift 3.1 in the spring of 2017, corresponding to some point between March and June.

Swift 3.1 is intended to be source compatible with Swift 3.0 and will contain a few enhancements to the core programming language.

Improvements will also be made to the Swift Package Manager, Swift on Linux, compiler, and Standard Library.

Swift 3.1 development should conclude around January 16, 2017 for major changes, at which point Apple's focus will turn to the development of Swift 4.

Swift is Apple's open source programming language for macOS, iOS, watchOS, tvOS, and Linux. Swift 3.0 was released in September with major improvements and refinements to the core language and Standard Library, major additions to the Linux port of Swift, and the first official release of the Swift Package Manager.

For this week's giveaway, we've teamed up with Pad & Quill to offer MacRumors readers a chance to win a huge prize package that includes a range of Pad & Quill products for the iPad, iPhone, Apple Watch, and MacBook. All of Pad & Quill's products are made from high-quality leather and are hand assembled.

The Pad & Quill holiday giveaway includes a Roll Top Leather Backpack, an Oxford Leather iPad Pro case for the 9.7-inch iPad Pro, a Woodline iPhone case, a Luxury Pocketbook iPhone Case, and a Classic Leather Band for the Apple Watch.

Pad & Quill's Roll Top Leather Backpack, priced at $319, fits up to a 15-inch laptop and has a dedicated pocket to keep your Mac or iPad safe from bumps and scratches. Its roll-top closure is waterproof and it has an internal zip pocket for accessories plus a quick-access side pocket.

Pad & Quill's iPhone cases are available for several devices, including the iPhone 7, 7 Plus, 6s, and 6s Plus. The Luxury Pocket Book Case houses the iPhone in a wood shell and protects it with a leather cover. Inside, there are 5 inner card pockets, a hidden cash pockets, and a clear ID pocket.

The Woodline case, also available for multiple versions of the iPhone, is a slimmer case that Pad & Quill says is the world's thinnest, strongest wood case. At 0.9mm thick, it doesn't add much bulk to the iPhone, but and comes in four finishes: American Cherry, Rosewood, Zebra, and American Walnut.

The Oxford Case for the 9.7-inch iPad Pro is a folio-style case that's slim and fits to the back of the iPad with adhesive. Made from Full-Grain Bridle Leather, it has an interior pocket for documents and the Apple Pencil. A built-in horizontal viewing stand lets you watch movies, and the soft leather interior keeps the screen safe from scratches.

The last product in the package, the Classic Leather Band for the Apple Watch, works with any Apple Watch model, first or second generation. Like all of Pad & Quill's products, it's made from leather and comes in several different colors and can be ordered with black or silver lugs.

One MacRumors reader will win the Pad & Quill prize pack. 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 the winner and send the prize. You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube channel, following us on Twitter, or visiting the MacRumors Facebook page.

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Samsung today announced that an update to its now-infamous line of Galaxy Note7 smartphones will render the remaining devices within the United States useless, as a means to further ensure the safety of its customers who still own the malfunctioning smartphone.

Even though "more than 93 percent of all recalled Galaxy Note7 devices" have been returned, Samsung's December 19 update will ensure no more danger befalls one of its customers. The update will prevent the ability to charge the smartphone -- which led to fires this fall -- and in total "eliminate their ability to work as mobile devices."

Consumer safety remains our highest priority and we’ve had overwhelming participation in the U.S. Note7 Refund and Exchange Program so far, with more than 93 percent of all recalled Galaxy Note7 devices returned. To further increase participation, a software update will be released starting on December 19th that will prevent U.S. Galaxy Note7 devices from charging and will eliminate their ability to work as mobile devices.

In today's press release the company also announced that it's expanded the recall of Galaxy Note7 smartphones, both original and troublesome replacement devices, thanks to cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, and carriers and retailers across the country. Consumers can still either replace their Note7 with another Samsung phone, or receive a refund.

Samsung officially recalled the Galaxy Note7 devices in early September after multiple accounts of users experiencing exploding batteries and fires originating from the smartphone. A month later it halted sales of the device worldwide, a move that was reported in October to cost the company around $2.3 billion.