Top Stories: Apple Vision Pro Launch Recap, iOS 17.4 Beta Features, and More

Apple Vision Pro has been out for a week, so regular users are starting to get settled in with the new device and sharing their thoughts on it while teardown experts have been digging into the hardware.

top stories 10feb2024
Beyond all the news surrounding Apple's long-anticipated headset, this week also saw more progress on iOS 17.4 and related operating system updates expected to launch next month, fresh iPhone 16 rumors, and more, so read on below for all the details on these stories and more!

Apple Vision Pro Apps to Check Out

Following the launch of Apple's new Vision Pro headset on Friday, we shared an in-depth list of apps optimized for the visionOS operating system, from both larger and smaller developers.

Vision Pro Apps Feature
Apple announced that over 600 apps have been optimized for visionOS so far, and our list highlights many notable ones, while we've also shared a video looking at ten of our favorites.

Vision Pro is also compatible with more than one million iPad and iPhone apps.

iFixit Shares Apple Vision Pro Teardown

Repair website iFixit recently shared written and video teardowns of the Apple Vision Pro, providing a closer look inside the headset. The headset is an engineering feat, with an array of cameras, sensors, fans, and many other precisely-arranged components.

iFixit Vision Pro Teardown
iFixit also shared some technical details about the Vision Pro's internal and external displays, battery pack, repairability, and more in a separate video.

iOS 17.4 Beta: All the New Features

Apple last month confirmed that iOS 17.4 will be released at some point in March. The upcoming software update includes several new features and changes for the iPhone, as outlined in our list.

iOS 17
Key new features include major App Store changes in the EU, Apple Podcasts transcripts, SharePlay for the HomePod, and new emoji. The update also prepares for the launch of next-generation CarPlay later this year.

Apple also released iOS 17.3.1 with a text-related bug fix.

Apple Testing Slim Camera Bump Design for Base iPhone 16

The standard iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus models launching later this year could be equipped with a slim, vertical, pill-shaped rear camera bump, according to leaked schematics.

iPhone 16 Camera Lozenge 2 Colors Gray
The return to vertically-aligned rear camera lenses would allow for spatial video recording on the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus. The feature is currently exclusive to the Pro models in the iPhone 15 lineup.

Apple Now Selling Refurbished 14-inch M3 MacBook Pro

Apple this week added the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the standard M3 chip to its online refurbished store for the first time since the laptop was released in November. Prices are discounted by around 15%.

macbook pro bb cyber
Apple's certified refurbished products are nearly indistinguishable from brand new models, in our view, so they can be an attractive choice for customers who are looking for a discount directly from the company.

The MacRumors Show: One Week With Apple Vision Pro ft. Quinn Nelson

On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show podcast, special guest Quinn Nelson of Snazzy Labs joined Dan and Hartley to discuss what it's been like using the Apple Vision Pro over the past week since its launch.

The MacRumors Show Quinn Nelson Talks Vision Pro Thumb 1
The MacRumors Show now has its own YouTube channel, so be sure to subscribe for the latest episodes. The show is also available through your preferred podcast app.

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!

Popular Stories

Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature 1

Apple to Make More Foldable iPhones Than Expected

Tuesday December 9, 2025 9:59 am PST by
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...
iOS 26

15 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.2

Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by
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 ...
Google maps feaure

Google Maps Quietly Added This Long-Overdue Feature for Drivers

Wednesday December 10, 2025 2:52 am PST by
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...
iPhone 14 Pro Dynamic Island

iPhone 18 Pro Leak Adds New Evidence for Under-Display Face ID

Monday December 8, 2025 4:54 am PST by
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...
iOS 26

Apple Seeds Second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to Developers and Public Beta Testers

Monday December 8, 2025 10:18 am PST by
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...
Johny Srouji

Apple's Chipmaking Chief Johny Srouji Responds to Report About Him Potentially Leaving

Monday December 8, 2025 9:23 am PST by
Apple's chipmaking chief Johny Srouji has reportedly indicated that he plans to continue working for the company for the foreseeable future. "I love my team, and I love my job at Apple, and I don't plan on leaving anytime soon," said Srouji, in a memo obtained by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Here is Srouji's full memo, as shared by Bloomberg:I know you've been reading all kind of rumors and...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

10 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Monday December 1, 2025 2:40 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
google pixel 10

Switching Between iPhone and Android Will Get Easier With New Apple and Google Collaboration

Monday December 8, 2025 11:10 am PST by
Apple and Google are teaming up to make it easier for users to switch between iPhone and Android smartphones, according to 9to5Google. There is a new Android Canary build available today that simplifies data transfer between two smartphones, and Apple is going to implement the functionality in an upcoming iOS 26 beta. Apple already has a Move to iOS app for transferring data from an Android...
Apple Fitness Plus expansion hero

Apple Fitness+ Coming to 28 New Regions With Digital Voice Dubbing

Monday December 8, 2025 6:19 am PST by
Apple today announced that Fitness+ is expanding to 28 new markets on December 15 in the service's largest international rollout since launch, accompanied by new language dubbing and a K-Pop music genre. Apple Fitness+ will become available in Chile, Hong Kong, India, the Netherlands, Singapore, Taiwan, and additional regions on December 15, with Japan scheduled to follow early next year....
Johny Srouji

Apple Chip Chief Johny Srouji Could Be Next to Go as Exodus Continues

Sunday December 7, 2025 10:41 am PST by
Apple's senior vice president of hardware technologies Johny Srouji could be the next leading executive to leave the company amid an alarming exodus of leading employees, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. Srouji apparently recently told CEO Tim Cook that he is "seriously considering leaving" in the near future. He intends to join another company if he departs. Srouji leads Apple's chip design ...

Top Rated Comments

sza Avatar
24 months ago
For those who bought the Vision Pro, is it picking up dusts in your drawer already?
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
notabadname Avatar
24 months ago
This deserves the attention it is getting, as revolutionary as the original iPhone or iPad. The price is totally in line with the amazing tech stuffed into this. It is an actual laptop, for your face - not just a couple of half-baked, pixilated eye screens to let you virtually ride a roller coaster, as its predecessors have been. M2 Chip, R1 chip, 5,000 patents. 12 cameras, two infrared beams and receivers, six microphones, Lidar scanner. And a Micro OLED display with Approximately 11.5 million pixels driving the display at a ppi of 4,800. No display tech has ever come anywhere close. (And the list of tech is longer, those are just some impressive highlights. People complain that Apple doesn’t innovate anymore, and only worries about emojis for the iPhone. I’d say this kind of drops the mic.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)