WWDC was held online this year, but it was still packed with announcements, including iOS 14, iPadOS 14, macOS Big Sur, watchOS 7, tvOS 14, and Apple confirming its long-rumored plans to transition to its own custom-designed processors for future Macs. Sadly, there was no sight of a redesigned iMac, but that is still on the table for later this year.
With so many rumors shared every week, it can be hard to remember exactly what was leaked ahead of a particular Apple event. For that reason, we have put together a list of accurate and inaccurate rumors in relation to everything announced this week. The list is not comprehensive, but it covers many of the biggest leaks and rumors that surfaced.
Accurate Rumors
- Apple's plans to use its own custom-designed Arm-based processors in Macs were reported by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman and Ian King in April 2018.
- The ability to set third-party web browser and email apps as default in iOS 14 was revealed by Gurman.
- HomePod gaining support for third-party music services like Spotify was also revealed by Gurman. The report mentioned a possibility of being able to set Spotify as the default music app in iOS 14, which is not yet possible.
- Apple Watch sleep tracking was reported by Gurman, 9to5Mac, and MacRumors.
- iOS 14's home screen widgets were reported by 9to5Mac.
- iMessage's new mention function in iOS 14 was reported by MacRumors. Some other features that Apple was testing, including the options to retract a message or mark a conversation as unread, did not make the cut. Typing indicators were also not implemented directly in group chats and instead appear next to profile pictures for pinned conversations.
- iPadOS 14's new handwriting-to-text feature Scribble was reported by MacRumors.
- iOS 14's digital car key feature in the Wallet app was discovered in iOS 13.4 code by 9to5Mac and MacRumors. Apple plans to make the feature available in iOS 13.6 as well, according to BMW.
- iOS 14's App Clips feature was reported by 9to5Mac.
- CarPlay gaining wallpaper support was reported by 9to5Mac.
- Safari getting built-in translation on iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 was reported by 9to5Mac.
- Watch face sharing in watchOS 7 was reported by 9to5Mac.
- iOS 14 supporting the same devices as iOS 13 was reported by iPhoneSoft.
- Just hours before the WWDC keynote, the anonymous Twitter account L0vetodream leaked several accurate details, including macOS Big Sur's name and redesign, tvOS 14's Home app, watchOS 7's hand washing monitoring, and more.
Inaccurate Rumors
- A redesigned iMac with a T2 chip, AMD Navi graphics, and no Fusion Drive was to be announced at WWDC, according to Sonny Dickson. While those details may still prove to be accurate, the timing was incorrect. Apple plans to launch a redesigned 24-inch iMac in the fourth quarter of 2020, according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
- Apple planned to introduce a high-end, gaming-focused MacBook or iMac at WWDC, according to Taiwan's Economic Daily News. Of no surprise to Mac gaming critics, no such announcement was made.
- Apple was aiming to introduce high-end, over-ear headphones called "AirPods Studio" at WWDC, according to Jon Prosser. While the headphones are still expected to be released, this timing was incorrect. Just hours before WWDC, Prosser reversed course and said that there would be no hardware announcements at the event after all.
- Prosser also expected AirTags and MacBook Pro news at WWDC.
- Apple planned to release its AirTags item trackers and high-end, over-ear headphones in the first half of 2020, according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. The second half of the year begins Wednesday, July 1, so unless Apple announces these products on Monday or Tuesday of next week, this timeframe will be incorrect as well.
- Twitter user DongleBookPro leaked screenshots of iOS 14 that showed a wallpaper collections feature, but this is not present in the first beta.
- iPadOS 14 was rumored to drop support for the iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 4 per iPhoneSoft. Those devices remain supported.
- watchOS 7 does not yet include a "Kids Mode" that 9to5Mac uncovered.
- As mentioned above, not all of the iMessage features in testing that were reported by MacRumors made the cut, including the options to retract a message or mark a conversation as unread. Typing indicators were also not implemented directly in group chats and instead appear next to profile pictures for pinned conversations.
- iOS 14's renamed Fitness app does not yet allow users to download guided workout videos, a feature that was in testing according to MacRumors and CNBC.
- iOS was going to be renamed back to iPhoneOS per Jon Prosser. There was no change.
Looking ahead, there are still some rumors that remain to be seen, such as blood oxygen monitoring on Apple Watch Series 6 models in the fall and what proved to be a controversial claim that Xcode is coming to the iPad Pro by next year.
