Apple is said to be introducing high definition audio playback in iOS 8 alongside new versions of its In-Ear Headphones and Lightning connector, according to a report from Mac Otakara (Google Translate).
Building off of a report last month which claimed that Apple will announce high-fidelity iTunes music downloads at this year's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), the post notes that Apple will enable high-quality audio files to be played on iOS 8 compatible devices.
Currently, iOS 7's stock Music app cannot play high quality 24-bit audio files that contain a sampling frequency beyond 48 kHz. Additionally, while third-party apps such as Onkyo's HF Player and FLAC Player are able to play said audio files, users are still limited to onboard playback at a 16-bit rate. Apple is also said to be preparing an upgraded Lightning cable to accommodate high-definition playback on Made For iPhone (MFi) audio accessories, although it isn't clear when the company would introduce the updated wire.
Finally, the report notes that Apple is working on a new version of its In-Ear Headphones to accommodate high-quality audio playback. The premium in-ear headphones have not been updated since 2008, however the product is still officially sold by Apple at its retail locations and in its Online Store for $79.
Apple is expected to introduce iOS 8 at WWDC 2014, which will kick off on June 2. In addition to potentially enabling high-definition audio playback, the new mobile operating system is expected to include major improvements to Siri and Maps along with a rumored "Healthbook" app that displays various fitness and health-related information.
Apple will also likely debut OS X 10.10 at the event, and may introduce Beats Electronics co-founders Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre as new senior advisers following a likely forthcoming announcement regarding its acquisition of the audio company.
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices.
Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of May 2025:
Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X ...
Wednesday May 28, 2025 11:56 am PDT by Juli Clover
With the design overhaul that's coming this year, Apple plans to rename all of its operating systems, reports Bloomberg. Going forward, iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, watchOS, and visionOS will be identified by year, rather than by version number. We're not going to be getting iOS 19, we're getting iOS 26.
iOS 26 will be accompanied by iPadOS 26, macOS 26, tvOS 26, watchOS 26, and visionOS 26...
The popular messaging app WhatsApp has teased a long-awaited iPad app, which would be offered alongside its existing iPhone and Mac apps.
The official WhatsApp account on X today reacted with an eyes emoji to a post saying that WhatsApp should release an iPad app. This could be a hint that Meta is gearing up to release WhatsApp for iPad, which has already been available for beta testing via...
WWDC 2025 is just two weeks away as of today, with Apple's opening keynote scheduled for Monday, June 9 at 10 a.m. Pacific Time.
During the keynote, Apple is expected to announce iOS 19, iPadOS 19, macOS 16, watchOS 12, tvOS 19, visionOS 3, and other software updates, along with new Apple Intelligence features. In some years, there are also hardware announcements at WWDC, but there are no...
Apple has scrapped some of the features that it had planned for its long-rumored smart home hub device, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
"I'm told that Apple has pulled some bolder features from the device that could reappear in subsequent models," wrote Gurman, in his Power On newsletter this week. However, he did not reveal any of the specific features that were pulled.
Apple made...
Apple is reportedly preparing to implement significant iPhone hardware redesigns each year for the next three generations.
According leaks from the Chinese supply chain disclosed by Weibo user "Digital Chat Station," Apple plans to carry out a series of phased industrial design changes affecting different parts of the iPhone across three consecutive years: 2025, 2026, and 2027. The changes...
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Apple recently raised prices for its iCloud+ plans in Brazil, Chile, and Peru, according to a support document updated last Thursday.
The table below outlines the price changes in each country.
Country
Old Prices
New Prices
Brazil
50GB: R$ 4.90
200GB: R$ 14.90
2TB: R$ 49.90
6TB: R$ 149.90
12TB: R$ 299.90
50GB: R$ ...
I like what they are doing. The smartphone market is probably at a point, where there are only little changes from year to year (similar to the pc market).
So concentration on the small things like better audio, better pictures in low light and other stuff seems like a good idea
Interesting. Apple's old in-ear 'headphones' were awful. Very uncomfortable (no matter which of the 3 sizes I tried) and sound quality not appreciably better than the standard earbuds.
Of course new Apple in-ear headphones are rumoured to be coming, just days after I bought replacement ear-pods :) If only I knew...
I used to have in-ear headphones from Etymotic and despite all their sonic advantages, I came to the conclusion that paying a lot for everyday headphones is not worth it. The earpods sound great considering their price and like all headphones, they eventually have to be replaced because some part of them gets damaged or they get lost. By all means, spend big on home or office headphones but paying a lot for portable/everyday headphones is a waste of money and the benefits are very small, considering all the environmental noise in most urban environments, public transport, etc.
Apple is said to be introducing high definition audio playback in iOS 8 alongside new versions of its In-Ear Headphones and Lightning connector, according to a report from Mac Otakara (Google Translate).
