We're now more than a month past the big iPhone 15 introduction, but things are still chugging along with Apple news and rumors, led by the iOS 17.1 and related updates that will be bringing some changes later this month.
There have also been a number of new rumors about the iPhone 16 and the Mac lineup, while we had a couple of special guests on the most recent episodes of The MacRumors Show, so read on below for all the details on these stories and more!
iOS 17.1 to Launch by October 24
Apple this week made the third beta of iOS 17.1 available to developers and public beta testers. The main change in this beta is tweaked behavior for the Action button on iPhone 15 Pro models.
iOS 17.1 is expected to be released to the public later this month alongside watchOS 10.1 and more. We've put together a list of eight new features and changes included in the software update. Notably, there is a tweak to cellular performance for the iPhone 12 in France due to a regulatory ruling, and regulators there have revealed that the update will be made available to the public by October 24.
iPhone 16 Pro Expected to Support Faster '5G Advanced'
The next-generation iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will be equipped with Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon X75 modem for faster and more power efficient 5G, according to tech analyst Jeff Pu. However, he expects the lower-end iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus models to stick with the Snapdragon X70.
Qualcomm says the Snapdragon X75 modem supports the latest "5G Advanced" standard, which is described as "the next phase of 5G" and an "evolution towards 6G."
Will Apple Release New Macs Soon? Here's What the Latest Rumors Say
Apple often releases new Macs in the fall, but whether that will happen this year is far from certain. It's the second week of October now, and there is still no sign that Apple will be hosting an event this month.
To help clear things up, this week we recapped all of the latest rumors about Macs. The next big feature expected for Macs is the M3 chip, which is expected to be a 3nm chip like the A17 Pro chip in the iPhone 15 Pro models.
Things are constantly changing, of course, and even since that recap a new rumor has surfaced claiming we could see updated iMac models with M2 and M2 Pro chips in the near future.
The MacRumors Show: Former Apple Executive Mike Bell Talks AirPort, CarPlay, and More
Last week, we had YouTuber and content creator Sara Dietschy joining Dan and Hartley on The MacRumors Show to discuss some of her favorite Apple accessories and more, while former Apple executive Mike Bell made an appearance this week to talk about some of his projects during his time at Apple, his current work at Lucid Motors, and more.
Listen to The MacRumors Show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or your preferred podcasts app. You can also copy our RSS feed directly into your podcast player, or watch a video version on our YouTube channel.
Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2
Apple this week introduced new firmware for both the AirPods Pro 2 with Lightning port and the AirPods Pro 2 with USB-C port. The new firmware is 6A303, up from the 6A301 update that was released in September.
Apple's release notes only mention unspecified bug fixes and other improvements, so we don't know details on what's new, but there are likely some refinements to new AirPods Pro 2 features added in iOS 17 such as Adaptive Audio, Conversation Awareness, and Personalized Volume.
MacRumors Newsletter
Each week, we publish an email newsletter like this highlighting the top Apple stories, making it a great way to get a bite-sized recap of the week hitting all of the major topics we've covered and tying together related stories for a big-picture view.
So if you want to have top stories like the above recap delivered to your email inbox each week, subscribe to our newsletter!
Top Rated Comments
Some people say that you shouldn't compare to last gen's tech, but rather 3-4 old phones because those are the people purchasing the new iphone 15 to upgrade but that is of course just stupid.
I want under screen camera's, get rid of the completely ridiculous "dynamic island" (a bad solution that only exists because they want an "edge to edge" screen, instead of just putting the speaker/camera hardware in the top 1mm of the screen. You don't need a notch, you don't need a dynamic island, just give me 1mm less screen and I'm happy), significant upgraded specs, not just a car with a top speed 1-2mph faster then last years model. Give me fair prices for storage upgrades, finally put in a decent battery, not just one that lasts longer then 18 hours but also one that doesn't degrade as fast so you can maybe start using your phone 5-6 years (if you are really into the whole environment thing, make this top priority)
Same goes for iOS17. I have yet to find differences between 16 and 17 on my 12 Pro. It just doesn't justify a major version increase. And I get it from a marketing perspective, you can't release the iphone 15 with iOS 16 on it. That way the difference between gens would be even less noticable, but please do reconsider this strategy. The huge amounts of bugs in 17.0 clearly showed you are better of releasing the new iOS in June, and the phones in September. That way all 0-day bugs have already been resolved and your "first week buyers" aren't unpayed beta testers. Oh and only do a major version increase when there is actually something new, not just because the calendar has moved 12 months.
I do disagree about iOS17. Coming from a 14PM to 15PM, both with iOS17, there is a noticeable difference vs. iOS16. I've yet to see a stutter or dropped frame and the phone runs smoother than any recent iOS version I can remember. The standby mode when charging in iOS17 is amazing, I use it nightly. The action button is actually really nice too. I've used it to launch various apps, or made it the silent mode toggle. You can launch Google assistant with it too, haha, which is awesome. On an iPhone 12 Pro you wouldn't notice much difference with iOS17 compared to 14 and 15 Pro which have always on displays.
USB-C port is long overdue and I am happy to never see Lightning ever again. I can use one cable for multiple devices again, as it should be. I even sold my Lightning APP2 for $135 and picked up the USB-C version for $199.