Top Stories: iPhone 17 Air Details, Apple's Smart Glasses, and More

WWDC is coming up quickly with a number of software announcements in store, but we're also looking further ahead to hardware launches like the iPhone 17 lineup and even Apple's smart glasses project.

top stories 2025 05 24
This week also saw big news with former Apple design guru Jony Ive joining forces with OpenAI to build future AI-driven devices, while Fortnite returned to the U.S. App Store for the first time since 2020 amid the long-running dispute between Apple and Epic Games, so read on below for all the details!

iPhone 17 Air Battery Capacity and Weight Allegedly Revealed

Apple is expected to launch an all-new ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air later this year, and while there have been plenty of rumors about the camera's overall design and thinness, we haven't heard any details about the device's weight and battery capacity until now.

iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature
According to the leaker going by the account name "yeux1122" on the Korean-langauge Naver blog, the 6.6-inch iPhone 17 Air has a weight of approximately 145 grams, which is similar to that of an iPhone SE or iPhone 13 mini.

The leaker also claims the battery capacity of an iPhone 17 Air production sample is 2,800mAh, similar to that of the iPhone 12, though Apple reportedly may be able to use new high-density battery technology that could boost capacity by 15%.

Apple Announces WWDC 2025 Schedule, Including Keynote Time

With WWDC now less just over two weeks away, Apple has announced some additional details for the developer conference, including that the keynote will kick off on Monday, June 9, at the usual time of 10:00 a.m. Pacific. The Platforms State of the Union will follow at 1:00 p.m.

wwdc 2025 arch
Apple will also be hosting a variety of group and one-on-one labs during the week of primarily virtual events, while the company is promoting related community events that will be taking place around WWDC.

Apple Smart Glasses: Everything We Know So Far

At its I/O conference this week, Google showed off a set of lightweight smart glasses with deep Gemini integration that will rival the Meta Ray-Ban glasses and Apple's rumored future smart glasses, so we thought it would be worth taking a look at the state of the rumors on Apple's project.

Apple Glass
Apple's initial smart glasses reportedly won't offer a full augmented reality experience, but they will offer AI capabilities, microphones, and cameras to support capturing photos and video and features similar to visual intelligence on Apple's latest iPhone models that can look up information on the world around you. Apple's first glasses could arrive by the end of 2026.

Report: Apple's Next-Gen Version of Siri Is 'On Par' With ChatGPT

Amid a delayed launch for Apple Intelligence-powered Siri enhancements, Apple is looking even further ahead at what it can do to make Siri more competitive with ChatGPT and other chatbots. According to a report, Apple's "LLM Siri" is already considered "on par" with ChatGPT internally, but it's going to take a few years to fully swap out the existing "hybrid" architecture of Siri with this new "monolithic model."

Apple Intelligence General Feature
Meanwhile, Siri will reportedly take a backseat at WWDC next month as Apple focuses on other Apple Intelligence advances. And in general, Apple is said to be planning to be more cautious going forward about announcing new features that aren't ready to ship, seeking to avoid a repeat of the Siri situation.

macOS 16: Everything We Know So Far

Apple will be taking the wraps off of macOS 16 and other updates in just a few weeks at WWDC, so we've taken a look at what we're expecting to see with the next major update for the Mac.

macOS 16 visionOS Inspired Feature 1
Some design changes seem likely amid rumors that Apple is seeking to create a more consistent interface across its product lines, with some of the inspiration reportedly coming from visionOS. We're also expecting Google Gemini integration as an alternative to ChatGPT, a number of accessibility improvements, and more.

OpenAI Buys Jony Ive's AI Startup to 'Completely Reimagine What It Means to Use a Computer'

Former Apple design chief Jony Ive and several other Apple design team alumni are teaming up with OpenAI in an attempt to build an all-new family of AI-driven devices to revolutionize the way we interact with technology.

jony ive sam altman
OpenAI has acquired Ive's startup by the name of io for $6.5 billion, and they're aiming to create an unobtrusive "third core device" that people would likely use alongside a phone and a laptop, and it may look something like a neck-worn iPod shuffle.

Fortnite Returns to U.S. App Store

Popular game Fortnite is once again available in the U.S. App Store, as Apple has finally approved Epic Games' app submission. This is the first time that Fortnite has been on the iOS ‌App Store‌ since 2020, and it quickly went to the top of the App Store charts.

fortnite apple featured
Apple initially did not plan to allow Fortnite back in the ‌App Store‌, but the judge overseeing the ongoing legal battle between the two companies this week suggested that Apple and ‌Epic Games‌ work things out or face more time in court. The judge threatened to require the Apple official that oversees app decisions to appear in person in court, which apparently was enough to spur Apple to allow the game back on the ‌App Store‌.

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

iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday June 12, 2025 8:58 am PDT 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 simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
iPadOS 26 App Windowing

Apple Explains Why iPads Don't Just Run macOS

Friday June 13, 2025 7:46 am PDT by
iPadOS 26 allows iPads to function much more like Macs, with a new app windowing system, a swipe-down menu bar at the top of the screen, and more. However, Apple has stopped short of allowing iPads to run macOS, and it has now explained why. In an interview this week with Swiss tech journalist Rafael Zeier, Apple's software engineering chief Craig Federighi said that iPadOS 26's new Mac-like ...
iOS 26 Screens

Here Are All the iOS 26 Features That Require iPhone 15 Pro or Newer

Thursday June 12, 2025 4:53 am PDT by
With iOS 26, Apple has introduced some major changes to the iPhone experience, headlined by the new Liquid Glass redesign that's available across all compatible devices. However, several of the update's features are exclusive to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models, since they rely on Apple Intelligence. The following features are powered by on-device large language models and machine...
apple beta 26 lineup

Apple 'Sherlocked' These Apps at WWDC 2025

Wednesday June 11, 2025 7:14 am PDT by
Apple at WWDC previewed a bunch of new features coming in its updated operating systems, but certain changes will have been met with dismay by third-party developers who already offer apps with equivalent or similar features. In other words, their product has been "sherlocked" by Apple. When Apple creates an app or a feature that has functionality found in a third-party app, it is referred...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

Hate iOS 26's Liquid Glass Design? Here's How to Tone It Down

Wednesday June 11, 2025 4:22 pm PDT by
iOS 26 features a whole new design material that Apple calls Liquid Glass, with a focus on transparency that lets the content on your display shine through the controls. If you're not a fan of the look, or are having trouble with readability, there is a step that you can take to make things more opaque without entirely losing out on the new look. Apple has multiple Accessibility options that ...
maxresdefault

Everything Apple Announced at WWDC 2025 in 10 Minutes

Monday June 9, 2025 5:21 pm PDT by
At today's WWDC 2025 keynote event, Apple unveiled a new design that will inform the next decade of iOS, iPadOS, and macOS development, so needless to say, it was a busy day. Apple also unveiled a ton of new features for the iPhone, an overhauled Spotlight interface for the Mac, and a ton of updates that make the iPad more like a Mac than ever before. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel ...
CarPlay Liquid Glass Dark

Apple to Let iPhone Users Watch Videos on CarPlay Screen While Parked

Thursday June 12, 2025 6:16 am PDT by
Apple this week announced that iPhone users will soon be able to watch videos right on the CarPlay screen in supported vehicles. iPhone users will be able to wirelessly stream videos to the CarPlay screen using AirPlay, according to Apple. For safety reasons, video playback will only be available when the vehicle is parked, to prevent distracted driving. The connected iPhone will be able to...
Logitech Logo Feature

Logitech Announces Two New Accessories for WWDC

Friday June 13, 2025 7:22 am PDT by
Alongside WWDC this week, Logitech announced notable new accessories for the iPad and Apple Vision Pro. The Logitech Muse is a spatially-tracked stylus developed for use with the Apple Vision Pro. Introduced during the WWDC 2025 keynote address, Muse is intended to support the next generation of spatial computing workflows enabled by visionOS 26. The device incorporates six degrees of...

Top Rated Comments

iqapple Avatar
3 weeks ago
As a loyal Apple user for 20 years, I remember laughing my ass off when the CEO of Oura Ring said a while ago that "making a ring is hard, Apple can't do it." But honestly, in the last years, it's getting more and more clear that other companies are doing things Apple simply can’t anymore.

Of course, Apple is famous for coming late and doing it best, but even when they were late, they still used to do it with such smart details that nobody could come close for years. Even copycats were like 10 steps behind.


But now? It's like all the engineers at Apple just sit around creating new emojis or something. Last year, people made fun of Google for saying "AI" like 100 times in their big conference. Apple said it like 2 times and everyone went “wow so cool.” Now one year passed, and the stuff Google made live last week, there's just no way Apple can do that now. In fact, Apple just straight up lied to us for a whole year about AI.


I built my whole smart home system around Apple Home just cause I was a loyal fan. What did Apple do? Years later it still gives me 720p video. The Home app UI, what you can actually do with it, it’s just so limited that every day I’m like, why am I even still in this ecosystem?


I’m using Watch 8 now. Used 6, 4, and even the very first one. Still, even when I tighten it like it’s gonna cut off my blood, battery is 100%, all settings are correct, like 1-2 times per week during a run, it just randomly doesn’t measure my heart rate for a couple mins. Like, what the hell.


I downloaded the Apple Sports app a few months ago, turned on all the notifications, picked my team, thinking I’d get match-day alerts or something. Yeah, right. Nothing. My background updates are on. I've been using iPhones since iPhone 3, and the phone still can’t figure out when I’m asleep or not. I grab my phone in the morning and guess what, it starts updating apps. Like bro, were you sleeping too while you were on WiFi and plugged in all night? Why didn't you update then? Not just apps. Even for iOS updates it tells me to restart and do it myself.


I don’t remember being this disappointed 5, 10, 15 years ago. I honestly don’t even understand how they still make the best laptops on the market with this kind of mindset. Maybe they should just focus more on emojis and finally fall behind on that too.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
citysnaps Avatar
3 weeks ago

I don’t remember being this disappointed 5, 10, 15 years ago. I honestly don’t even understand how they still make the best laptops on the market with this kind of mindset. Maybe they should just focus more on emojis and finally fall behind on that too.
Going back that far, and even further back, with respect to new products I remember disappointment was expressed here everyday. And that most products were predicted to being flops (iPod, iPhone, iPad, Watch, etc).
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
switz Avatar
3 weeks ago
Under promise and over deliver makes for a successful company.

The entire Apple team from the Board of Directors to the lowest individual on the Apple payroll need a major shock of some kind to get back on track.

The current mantra seems to be over promise and under deliver. That mind set does not bode well for Apple's future.

Recent multi million or even billion dollar flops include the car and the googles. Then there is the extremely sad state of all of the Apple operating systems and their "pride and joy" Siri that is just as bad now as when it was announced over ten years ago. The "deceptive" advertising for AI on the iPhone 16 series vaporized the trust many customers have had in Apple.

A friend one said "I never told a lie that I did not. want to be true". Come on, Apple. Be truthful.

The barely noticeable incremental annual upgrades to the iPhone (their keystone product) is the Golden Goose whose age is rapidly reaching the stage of "NO More Eggs". Then what, Apple? A few emoji do not justify me spending nearly $1,800 for a new iPhone.

The Apple Board of Directors needs to step up and say the motivational speech: "Those not fired with enthusiasm, soon will be!" and that includes the entire senior management team.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Allen_Wentz Avatar
3 weeks ago
Hmm. One interesting little tidbit is the verbiage "acquired Ive's startup by the name of io for $6.5 billion" and where that all will go. Because "$6.5 billion" is not chump change and none of the individuals involved are dummies.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ssledoux Avatar
3 weeks ago
Well, innovation or not (I probably don’t use 1/2 the available features on most of my devices anyway), that iPhone Air is calling my name! A perfect size (between pro and pro max), at a weight possibly as light as the SE = dream phone.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
McTool Avatar
3 weeks ago

As a loyal Apple user for 20 years, I remember laughing my ass off when the CEO of Oura Ring said a while ago that "making a ring is hard, Apple can't do it." But honestly, in the last years, it's getting more and more clear that other companies are doing things Apple simply can’t anymore.

Of course, Apple is famous for coming late and doing it best, but even when they were late, they still used to do it with such smart details that nobody could come close for years. Even copycats were like 10 steps behind.


But now? It's like all the engineers at Apple just sit around creating new emojis or something. Last year, people made fun of Google for saying "AI" like 100 times in their big conference. Apple said it like 2 times and everyone went “wow so cool.” Now one year passed, and the stuff Google made live last week, there's just no way Apple can do that now. In fact, Apple just straight up lied to us for a whole year about AI.


I built my whole smart home system around Apple Home just cause I was a loyal fan. What did Apple do? Years later it still gives me 720p video. The Home app UI, what you can actually do with it, it’s just so limited that every day I’m like, why am I even still in this ecosystem?


I’m using Watch 8 now. Used 6, 4, and even the very first one. Still, even when I tighten it like it’s gonna cut off my blood, battery is 100%, all settings are correct, like 1-2 times per week during a run, it just randomly doesn’t measure my heart rate for a couple mins. Like, what the hell.


I downloaded the Apple Sports app a few months ago, turned on all the notifications, picked my team, thinking I’d get match-day alerts or something. Yeah, right. Nothing. My background updates are on. I've been using iPhones since iPhone 3, and the phone still can’t figure out when I’m asleep or not. I grab my phone in the morning and guess what, it starts updating apps. Like bro, were you sleeping too while you were on WiFi and plugged in all night? Why didn't you update then? Not just apps. Even for iOS updates it tells me to restart and do it myself.


I don’t remember being this disappointed 5, 10, 15 years ago. I honestly don’t even understand how they still make the best laptops on the market with this kind of mindset. Maybe they should just focus more on emojis and finally fall behind on that too.
Using Apple for 20 years and still doesn’t know that Apple doesn’t make emojis! The Unicode Consortium does that.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)