The surprise was that the staff put the project on the Consent Calendar. I cannot remember any large, complex commercial project ever going on the Consent Calendar. Apple was the only item on last night’s Calendar. And, under the rules, the Consent Calendar is approved as a whole – unless someone wishes to pull at item for discussion.
And in that crucial blink, the commissioners approved the Consent Calendar (aka Apple Glass House), and that was that – except for a staff report on the redesign of the Project Case List, after which they adjourned.
The proposal first came to light yesterday, and detailed a new 8,084 glass-roofed Apple Store to be built on the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, California. The store will be built in the space of an old Borders Bookstore.
Thursday December 11, 2025 8:49 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple seeded the second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to developers earlier this week, meaning the update will be released to the general public very soon.
Apple confirmed iOS 26.2 would be released in December, but it did not provide a specific date. We expect the update to be released by early next week.
iOS 26.2 includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, such as a new...
Wednesday December 10, 2025 2:52 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Google Maps on iOS quietly gained a new feature recently that automatically recognizes where you've parked your vehicle and saves the location for you.
Announced on LinkedIn by Rio Akasaka, Google Maps' senior product manager, the new feature auto-detects your parked location even if you don't use the parking pin function, saves it for up to 48 hours, and then automatically removes it once...
Apple has ordered 22 million OLED panels from Samsung Display for the first foldable iPhone, signaling a significantly larger production target than the display industry had previously anticipated, ET News reports.
In the now-seemingly deleted report, ET News claimed that Samsung plans to mass-produce 11 million inward-folding OLED displays for Apple next year, as well as 11 million...
Thursday December 11, 2025 11:28 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3 and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B30, up from 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 firmware is 8B28, up from 8B21.
There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3 are getting expanded support for Live Translation in the European Union in iOS...
Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below.
Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
Thursday December 11, 2025 10:31 am PST by Juli Clover
The AirTag 2 will include a handful of new features that will improve tracking capabilities, according to a new report from Macworld. The site says that it was able to access an internal build of iOS 26, which includes references to multiple unreleased products.
Here's what's supposedly coming:
An improved pairing process, though no details were provided. AirTag pairing is already...
Monday December 8, 2025 10:18 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today seeded the second release candidate version of iOS 26.2 to developers and public beta testers, with the software coming one week after Apple seeded the first RC. The release candidate represents the final version iOS 26.2 that will be provided to the public if no further bugs are found.
Registered developers and public beta testers can download the betas from the Settings app on...
Monday December 8, 2025 4:54 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple is actively testing under-screen Face ID for next year's iPhone 18 Pro models using a special "spliced micro-transparent glass" window built into the display, claims a Chinese leaker.
According to "Smart Pikachu," a Weibo account that has previously shared accurate supply-chain details on Chinese Android hardware, Apple is testing the special glass as a way to let the TrueDepth...
Wednesday December 10, 2025 12:22 pm PST by Juli Clover
The next-generation low-cost iPad will use Apple's A19 chip, according to a report from Macworld. Macworld claims to have seen an "internal Apple code document" with information about the 2026 iPad lineup.
Prior documentation discovered by MacRumors suggested that the iPad 12 would be equipped with an A18 chip, not an A19 chip. The A19 chip was just released this year in the iPhone 17, and...
Thursday December 11, 2025 4:19 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple's next-generation Studio Display is expected to arrive early next year, and a new report allegedly provides a couple more details on the external monitor's capabilities.
According to internal Apple code seen by Macworld, the new external display will feature a variable refresh rate capable of up to 120Hz – aka ProMotion – as well as support for HDR content. The current Studio...
It's somewhat disgusting the way planning comities / local governments pander to Apple.
Reminds me of the recent Cupertino city council meeting. The 'officials' were practically gushing over Steve Jobs and showing off their iPad's - it was cringeworthy.
At least pretend you're a professional...
It would probably be more surprising if they didn't gush over him given what Steve Jobs and Apple has done for Cupertino.
It's somewhat disgusting the way planning comities / local governments pander to Apple.
Reminds me of the recent Cupertino city council meeting. The 'officials' were practically gushing over Steve Jobs and showing off their iPad's - it was cringeworthy.
At least pretend you're a professional...
Professional? They're local government. These are your neighbors with a little bit of power, not some 5-term US Senators.
Plus, look, the buildings Apple designs look amazing, and they will bring in lots of money to the local community. Why wouldn't you kiss Apple's ass?
And after the decision all the board members walked out and collected their nice new shiny MBA's.
lol
Wouldn't it be hot inside?? Think greenhouse effect... I mean they will obviously use ACs...but still I don't think that's a good design....coming from Apple I expect more...
What's more...on a sunny day...I wouldn't want to feel like I'm "shopping" for products OUTSIDE...feels very cheap...feels like buying something from an illegal street merchant..
There are many things you can do to glass to help counter heat and an over abundance of sunlight, these things could easily be done to the roof without people noticing. Do you really think the Apple designers have no taken this into consideration and just plan on throwing plain old regular glass on the ceiling?
It's somewhat disgusting the way planning comities / local governments pander to Apple.
Reminds me of the recent Cupertino city council meeting. The 'officials' were practically gushing over Steve Jobs and showing off their iPad's - it was cringeworthy.
At least pretend you're a professional...
What would you have liked them to do exactly? The see a great looking structure being built by a reputable company who does a great job on their stores. A company who's stores bring in a lot of customers and revenue. This is an existing space being changed around for a new business. What should there concerns have been exactly where they needed to debate this?
I dont understand the point to this question. It would go to the same place as a regular roof.... On the roof and then it would flow off to the ground.
Look at the picture. The other roofs are flat and must have hidden drains. The water doesn't overflow down their sides.
So I think he's talking about how the Apple store's curved roof doesn't even appear to have gutters. Of course, that's almost certainly artistic license in that drawing. I highly suspect it does have hidden drains along the edges.
PS. Good thing it's not white painted glass. It'd be delayed for years while they work out the light leak and reflection issues :)