Several news outlets have reported on the newly released Beta compilers from IBM.
XL C and XL C++ for Mac OS X (download here) are PowerPC 970 optimized versions of IBM's compilers which have been show to improve Power4's SPEC performance (PDF) significantly.
Some early benchmarks (Ars Thread) demonstrate significant performance boosts -- up to +210% in Scalar performance in one particular PowerMac G5 Fortran application -- with more modest improvements in other measures. The code utilized in this benchmark appears to be the Jet3d codebase used in the early "NASA" G5 Benchmarks.
May has been a quiet stretch in terms of new Apple products, but the company did release two accessories on its online store this month.
First up was a new Pride Edition Sport Loop for the Apple Watch. The band features a rainbow design with 11 colors of woven nylon yarns. U.S. pricing is set at $49.
The band is part of Apple's 2026 Pride Collection, which also includes a new Pride...
April and May have been relatively slow months for Apple this year, but there is a lot to look forward to heading into WWDC 2026 and beyond.
Apple is expected to release at least 15 more products later this year, with some of them held up until the more personalized version of Siri launches.
Beyond the usual annual updates to iPhones and Apple Watches in September, Apple's all-new smart...
Last year, Apple launched CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles. Nearly a year later, CarPlay Ultra is still limited to Aston Martin's latest luxury vehicles, but that should change fairly soon.
In May 2025, Apple said many other vehicle brands planned to offer CarPlay Ultra, including Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis.
CarPlay Ultra...
