The store features a combined Genius Bar and Apple Pickup station, so customers can receive support and collect their online orders in a single area. This combination now exists at a handful of Apple's new or renovated retail stores, such as Apple Bridge Street and Apple Old Orchard, according to the Retail Archive account.
Today at Apple creative sessions will also be offered at the store, for free.
Apple MixC Hefei opens to the public on Saturday, January 18, at 10 a.m. local time. The store features a wide, curved glass entrance.
In its press release previewing the store, Apple reminded customers that it is currently offering special-edition AirPods 4 with an engraving for the Year of the Snake in China. They will be available to purchase at the store.
Thursday December 11, 2025 8:49 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple seeded the second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to developers earlier this week, meaning the update will be released to the general public very soon.
Apple confirmed iOS 26.2 would be released in December, but it did not provide a specific date. We expect the update to be released by early next week.
iOS 26.2 includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, such as a new...
Wednesday December 10, 2025 2:52 am PST by Tim Hardwick
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...
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...
Thursday December 11, 2025 11:28 am PST by Juli Clover
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3 and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B30, up from 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 firmware is 8B28, up from 8B21.
There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3 are getting expanded support for Live Translation in the European Union in iOS...
Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by Tim Hardwick
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 ...
Thursday December 11, 2025 10:31 am PST by Juli Clover
The AirTag 2 will include a handful of new features that will improve tracking capabilities, according to a new report from Macworld. The site says that it was able to access an internal build of iOS 26, which includes references to multiple unreleased products.
Here's what's supposedly coming:
An improved pairing process, though no details were provided. AirTag pairing is already...
Monday December 8, 2025 10:18 am PST by Juli Clover
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...
Monday December 8, 2025 4:54 am PST by Tim Hardwick
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...
Wednesday December 10, 2025 12:22 pm PST by Juli Clover
The next-generation low-cost iPad will use Apple's A19 chip, according to a report from Macworld. Macworld claims to have seen an "internal Apple code document" with information about the 2026 iPad lineup.
Prior documentation discovered by MacRumors suggested that the iPad 12 would be equipped with an A18 chip, not an A19 chip. The A19 chip was just released this year in the iPhone 17, and...
Thursday December 11, 2025 4:19 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple's next-generation Studio Display is expected to arrive early next year, and a new report allegedly provides a couple more details on the external monitor's capabilities.
According to internal Apple code seen by Macworld, the new external display will feature a variable refresh rate capable of up to 120Hz – aka ProMotion – as well as support for HDR content. The current Studio...
The process of retrieving an item from an Apple Store can be highly perplexing.
Upon arrival, customers are prompted to check in at the front. Afterward, they are randomly directed to a table. Standing there, feeling uncertain, you are approached by an individual who inquires, “May I assist you? I see you have been standing here for a while.” It is important to note that I was standing there because I had assumed that after the initial check-in and being directed to stand by a table, someone in the back would retrieve my item.
After re-checking in with this individual and further waiting, the item is finally brought out. This entire process can take anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes, leaving customers bewildered by the unnecessary complexity.
I still find the Apple store concept strange how there's no obvious sales counter to go to if you need help. On one hand I understand the idealistic "just find an Apple store employee and they will help" concept, but when it's busy, you walk in and have no idea where to go or what to do. When that happens (which isn't often), it's frustrating as heck.
I will only go to an Apple Store if I have to. It is like a zoo and no one knows what they are doing. Took me 20 mins just for someone to help me get an iPad last month. I should've just done it online.
The Apple store is the very worst consumer experience if you just want to BUY something. As said above, you are told to stand by a table and then wait. FOREVER. I did it once.
Now they bring me stuff in 2 hours for $8, which is less time and $$ than subwaying down to Lincoln Center and back and fiddle-farging around at the Apple Store.
I really don’t understand the store as a store. It’s an experience place. Got an afternoon free? Go to the Apple Store.
Can? You mean will have to wait for pickup until all the people in front of them who need support have been taken care of?
What problem is this solving, exactly?
There is a 0% chance that all of this means that you wait in a line behind Genius Bar customers in order to pick up your online order. This just means that the pickup people and the Genius Bar people use the same very long table. That’s it. Picking up and getting support are two separate things.
