In line with previous rumors, Apple has officially revealed that its massive new retail store inside Manhattan's Grand Central Terminal will be opening on Friday, December 9th. The opening date was made official today with an updated message on the digital signage installed on the construction barrier surrounding the store.
Apple Store, Grand Central. Arriving Friday, December 9.
One MacRumors reader has also provided us with an overhead shot of a portion of the store, revealing that Apple has installed the wood tables where it will display its products for customers to test out. A small portion of the store's Genius Bar can also be seen in the photo.
Meanwhile, in the wake of yesterday's disclosure of Apple's lease terms for the store, which total $60 per square foot and no revenue sharing with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, The New York Post now reports that the State of New York is investigating the deal.
State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli has launched an investigation into whether the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) gave Apple overly generous terms on its lease for the shop, which is slated for a splashy opening next week.
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“The article in the New York Post about the MTA’s contract with Apple in Grand Central Terminal is a cause for concern,” DiNapoli said in a statement yesterday. “This is a prime property, and I intend to make sure that the MTA hasn’t given away the store.”
The MTA has pointed out that Apple is paying four times the rent paid by the previous tenant, the restaurant Metrazur, and that Apple is investing in new infrastructure, including an elevator, to support the store.
In addition, Apple paid $5 million to Metrazur in order to buy out the restaurant's lease, with the MTA arguing that the payment makes Apple's 10-year lease on the store equivalent to $180 per square foot in annual rent. But even considering that payment, which does not go to the MTA, Apple's lease rates remain below that of many other tenants in the terminal and well below market rates charged in other prime shopping areas of Manhattan.
Thursday November 13, 2025 11:35 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3, the AirPods 4, and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 firmware is 8B21, all up from the prior 8A358 firmware released in October.
There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods 4 with ANC, and AirPods Pro 3...
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iOS 26 extended pinned conversations in the Messages app to CarPlay, for quick access to your most frequent chats. However, some drivers may prefer the classic view with a list of individual conversations only, and Apple now lets users choose.
Apple released the second beta of iOS 26.2 this week, and it introduces a new CarPlay setting for turning off pinned conversations in the Messages...
Tesla is working to add support for Apple CarPlay in its vehicles, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports.
Tesla vehicles rely on its own infotainment software system, which integrates vehicle functions, navigation, music, web browsing, and more. The automaker has been an outlier in foregoing support for Apple CarPlay, which has otherwise become an industry standard feature, allowing users to...
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Apple recently teamed up with Japanese fashion brand ISSEY MIYAKE to create the iPhone Pocket, a limited-edition knitted accessory designed to carry an iPhone.
iPhone Pocket is available to order on Apple's online store starting today, in the United States, France, China, Italy, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. However, it is already completely sold out in the United...
Friday November 14, 2025 10:02 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Starting with the upcoming tvOS 26.2 update, currently in beta, additional profiles created on the Apple TV no longer require their own Apple Account.
In the Settings app on the Apple TV, under Profiles and Accounts, anyone can create a new profile by simply entering a name and indicating whether the profile is for a kid. The profile will be associated with the primary user's Apple Account,...
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While it was rumored that Apple planned to release new versions of the HomePod mini, Apple TV, and AirTag this year, it is no longer clear if that will still happen.
Back in January, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple planned to release new HomePod mini and Apple TV models "toward the end of the year," while he at one point expected a new AirTag to launch "around the middle of 2025." Yet,...
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Apple released the first iOS 26.2 beta last week. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics in Apple Music, and more.
In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date....
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Today marks the fifth anniversary of the Apple silicon chip that replaced Intel chips in Apple's Mac lineup. The first Apple silicon chip, the M1, was unveiled on November 10, 2020. The M1 debuted in the MacBook Air, Mac mini, and 13-inch MacBook Pro.
The M1 chip was impressive when it launched, featuring the "world's fastest CPU core" and industry-leading performance per watt, and it's only ...
Walmart's Black Friday sale has officially kicked off today, with an online shopping event that's also seeing some matching deals in retail locations. There are quite a few major discounts in this sale, including savings on headphones, TVs, and more.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Walmart. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us...
Wednesday November 12, 2025 3:29 pm PST by Juli Clover
Apple today provided developers with the second beta of iOS 26.2, which adds a few new features worth knowing about.
Measure App
Apple's Measure app now features a Liquid Glass design for the level, with two Liquid Glass bubbles instead of white circles.
Games App
There's now an option to sort games in the Games app Library by size, in addition to Name and Recent.
CarPlay
The...
So because the MTA "Ripped off" the taxpayers by signing a legally binding contract that is most likely irrevocable--the state government will spend more taxpayer money investigating it.
Nevermind the fact that at Apple's average of $5600 per square foot of revenue, this 23,000 sq foot space will generate over $11 million dollars in sales tax revenue alone for New York each year. That's around $478 per square foot if you're doing the math.
The simple fact is that Apple's stores generate exponentially more revenue than any other retail operation that would open there. The MTA could have paid Apple $50 per square foot to take the space and still come out ahead for New York. That doesn't even account for the boost that other retailers will see on top of what comes directly from Apple.
There is a reason why politicians run for office instead of running businesses or doing real work. They are incapable of it, and this is a shining example.
Money the store will bring in for the Terminal, and surrounding businesses, is why the MTA did this, which is smart. Kill the deal at this point, and Apple walks, you'll get a Forever 21 in there with a Starbucks attached.
Okay, who actually owns the building? Does the City/State or is it privately owned?
I thought it was privately owned, but the article mentions that transit authority handled the deal.
If it is privately owned, then who cares what deal was made to get Apple in the door? I'm sure malls across the country give deals to certain retailers to come to their malls.
Let's say someone in the state of NY figures out that the contract is too generous to Apple. And they want more money. Doesn't matter. The contract is signed. If they want out, Apple will probably allow them to cancel the contract as long as they pay Apple back all the money that Apple invested. And then someone will figure out that this is a very, very expensive plan.
"So I took the time to actually read the underlying and related articles. Apple is paying 4x the rent the prior tenant was. In addition to that they built out an area that was not being rented at all to add square footage to the overall effort. It turns out this space is considered "oddball" because it is not formatted in a way very many tenants could find a way to make it work. While it is true they are not paying a percentage of gross in addition to rent, they are paying four times the prior rental rate to offset it."
One can always count on NY State Democratic lawmakers to be investigating something that can generate high profile news stories. It's their eventual road to the governors office (Spitzer, Cuomo, etc.)
Lucky thing no Republicans ever hype some relatively trivial story to garner cheap, high profile news stories. I know they're too morally upstanding to stoop to such low tactics. :D
It's only those dopey Democratic politicians who work the media for their advantage. Darn them for such crummy tactics.:rolleyes: ;)
