Instagram has introduced a new fast-forward feature for Reels that allows users to speed through videos by holding down on either edge of the screen. The action plays content at double speed, similar to a feature already available on TikTok.
The Meta-owned platform initially limited Reels to 15-second clips but has since expanded the maximum duration to three minutes, making playback controls increasingly necessary for users who want to quickly navigate through longer content.
To use the new feature, simply press and hold on the right or left side of their screen while watching a Reel. The video will then play at 2x speed, enabling you to skip to the parts that interest you most.
Instagram users have become accustomed to consuming quick, bite-sized content, so the ability to fast-forward increases the likelihood that they will watch Reels through to completion rather than scrolling past longer videos.
It's the latest in a series of TikTok-inspired features that Instagram has added in its ongoing effort to compete in the short-form video market. Previously, Instagram introduced Remix, a direct copy of TikTok's Duet functionality, which allows users to create content alongside existing videos.
Apple's upcoming "iPhone Fold" will feature a foldable screen with a 4:3 aspect ratio, according to a Chinese leaker who previously leaked the book-style device's display dimensions.
The Weibo-based account Digital Chat Station claims that Apple will adopt a "roughly" 4:3 aspect ratio on the inner display in order to achieve consistency between the outer display, as well as to ensure parity with existing iPad software.
Apple's iPad and iPad Pro models have maintained a 4:3 aspect ratio across generations. The ratio offers a balanced experience in both portrait and landscape orientation, making it particularly versatile for reading/browsing and split-screen multitasking. Only the 8.3-inch iPad mini has deviated from the traditional ratio, instead using an approximate 3:2 ratio due to its slightly taller and narrower dimensions.
Digital Chat Station previously revealed the alleged dimensions of the iPhone Fold, claiming the device has a 5.5-inch outer screen and an inner folding 7.8-inch screen. Reputable Apple industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has since corroborated the dimensions, additionally describing the inner screen as "crease-free."
Kuo says the device will feature a titanium alloy casing with a hinge made of metallic glass, and it will have a dual-lens rear camera with a front-facing camera for both folded and unfolded states.
Notably, Kuo says that the phone will forgo Face ID authentication, instead using a Touch ID side button as a means to save precious internal space. It will also be positioned as a "true AI-driven phone," with the larger screens allowing for a better multi-tasking AI experience.
Most estimates put the selling price of the iPhone Fold at around $2,000-$2,500 in the United States. Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman expects Apple's first foldable device to arrive as soon as next year.
In the mid-to-late 2000s, Facebook was all about staying connected with friends and family. However, as the social media platform added new features and grew over time, that core experience began to get drowned out.
That changes starting now, according to Meta, which today introduced a new feature that will "bring back the joy" of classic Facebook.
Specifically, Meta has redesigned the Friends tab on Facebook to focus on the "magic of friends." The page now shows content from only your Facebook friends, with no recommended content or other distractions. The tab will show your friends' posts, reels, birthdays, and more, and it will continue to show your friend requests too.
Until now, the Friends tab only showed your friends requests and people you may know.
The updated Friends tab is rolling out starting today in the U.S. and Canada, so you might not see it right away. The redesigned page appears to be a server-side change, with no update required, but installing the latest version of the app doesn't hurt. To access the tab, tap on your profile picture in the bottom-right corner, and select Friends.
You can pin the Friends tab, so that it is easily accessible from the bottom navigation bar. To do so, tap on your profile picture in the bottom-right corner, and then select Settings & Privacy → Settings → Tab bar → Customize the bar.
Meta promises to introduce other classic Facebook features throughout the year.
Nintendo today released a new iPhone app that can provide you with daily updates about company news, upcoming game releases, and more.
Nintendo Today! is available in the App Store for the iPhone for free, and it is also available in the Google Play Store for Android.
After signing into your Nintendo Account, you can scroll through a news feed with video clips, images, and other fun content. There is also a calendar tab that lists upcoming Nintendo Direct presentations, game releases, in-game events, and more. The app offers a Home Screen widget that lets you view the calendar at a glance.
The app will also keep customers informed about Nintendo's upcoming Switch 2 launch.
You can personalize the news feed by selecting your favorite Nintendo games, and you can theme the app's design based on popular Nintendo game franchises, like Super Mario, Animal Crossing, The Legend of Zelda, and others.
Apple today updated Final Cut Pro, its professional video editing software that runs on the Mac. Version 11.1 of Final Cut Pro includes several new features that improve video editing on the Mac.
With Image Playground, video editors can use Apple Intelligence to create stylized images, and Magnetic Mask workflows have been streamlined with a new keyboard shortcut to show or hide the Magnetic Mask Organizer. There are also new features for moving markets and naming audio effects, with Apple's release notes listed below.
- Add color corrections and effects to an adjustment clip above the timeline to apply them to a range of clips at once. - Get inspired with Image Playground and use Apple Intelligence to quickly create stylized images based on a description, suggested concepts, or people from your Photos library. (Requires macOS 15.2 or later on Mac models with M1 or later.) - Speed up your Magnetic Mask workflows with important bug fixes, performance improvements, and a new keyboard shortcut to show or hide the Magnetic Mask Editor. - Use the Quantec QRS (Quantec Room Simulator) effect to create natural and transparent audio reverbs that simulate real acoustic spaces. - Stay organized by renaming audio effects in the inspector. - Reveal the source of a multicam angle or synced clip in the browser. - Move markers in the timeline by dragging them in a clip, or remove markers by dragging them out of a clip.
Apple has also updated its Motion and Compressor software that accompanies Final Cut Pro. Motion has Image Playground integration, and Compressor offers machine learning-powered frame rate retiming.
Apple today updated both Final Cut Pro for iPad and Final Cut Camera, introducing a handful of useful new features that improve video editing and recording on Apple's mobile devices.
Final Cut Pro for iPad gains support for editing video in portrait orientation, and it includes new keyboard shortcuts. There's also Image Playground integration, and an option to capture video in 50fps.
- Expand your editing workflows with support for portrait orientation on your iPad. - Speed up your editing with keyboard shortcuts to nudge a selection, replace with gap, and lift or overwrite to the primary storyline. - Get inspired with Image Playground and use Apple Intelligence to quickly create stylized images based on a description, suggested concepts, or people from your Photos library. (Requires iPad with A17 Pro or M1 and later and iPadOS 18.2 or later.) - Capture in 50 fps for additional editing flexibility and delivery options.
The updated version of Final Cut Camera includes support for quickly swapping over to the Telephoto lens on the iPhone 14 Pro and later, recording in Spatial Audio on the iPhone 16 and later, and recording in 50fps video.
- Quickly switch to the 48 mm telephoto lens to capture the perfect shot. (Requires iPhone 14 Pro or later.) - Play back your Log videos in SDR or HDR with the vibrancy of the original scene by applying the Apple Log LUT. (Requires iPhone 15 Pro or later.) - Record videos in Spatial Audio for even more realistic and immersive sound. (Requires iPhone 16.) - Capture in 50 fps for additional editing flexibility and delivery options.
Final Cut Camera is software that is designed to let users record from up to four devices with footage imported into Final Cut Pro for iPad.
Apple today provided developers with a second release candidate version of an upcoming macOS Sequoia 15.4 update for testing purposes. The new RC is available a few days after Apple released the initial RC earlier this week.
Registered developers can opt-in to the macOS Sequoia beta through the Software Update section of the System Settings app. An Apple ID associated with an Apple Developer account is required to get the beta.
macOS Sequoia 15.4 brings Mail Categorization to the Mac for the first time, reorganizing the Mail app into dedicated categories like transactions, updates, promotions, and primary, a category that surfaces the most important emails first. The update brings a range of new emoji characters to the Mac.
For Apple News+ subscribers, there is a dedicated News+ Food section with recipes, articles about restaurants, and other related content. There's a new Sketch style in Image Playground, the option to create Memory Movies in the Photos app, and Apple Intelligence is expanding to new languages.
Apple plans to release macOS Sequoia 15.4 in early April, and the RC represents the finalized version of the software that will be launched to the public as long as no issues are found.
Apple today started notifying students who won the WWDC 2025 Swift Student Challenge, which took place from February 3 to February 23. Students who entered can sign in to Apple's Swift Student Challenge website to see their status.
A total of 350 winners have been selected, and the winners are eligible to attend the WWDC 2025 special event that will take place at Apple Park on Monday, June 9.
Of the 350, 50 will be named Distinguished Winners, and will be invited to Cupertino, California for a multi-day Apple Park event that will include the keynote meetup and additional opportunities to meet with Apple engineers and employees.
Those who are not chosen as Distinguished Winners can enter Apple's lottery for a chance to attend the Apple Park event. Apple is inviting students and developers to apply, but since space is limited, attendees will be selected through a lottery process. Winners will be notified on Thursday, April 3.
Swift Student Challenge winners who are not able to attend the Apple Park event will be able to follow along with Apple's WWDC announcements through the Apple Developer website and the Apple Developer app. Winners will also be able to enter to attend future WWDC events for the next two years.
Apple's Swift Student Challenge takes place annually and tasks students with developing an innovative coding project using Xcode or Swift Playground. Projects are judged based on technical accomplishment, creativity of ideas, and the content of the written responses explaining the project.
Swift Student Challenge winners also receive a one year membership in the Apple Developer Program and AirPods Max headphones.
WWDC 2025 will take place from Monday, June 9 to Friday, June 13.
Apple's custom silicon chips will begin to be manufactured in the United States at an accelerated pace as TSMC adjusts its timelines, although the chips produced domestically will be limited to older models for the foreseeable future, Nikkei Asia reports.
Exclusive Apple chip supplier TSMC has confirmed that future fabrication facilities in the United States will be brought online more quickly than its first Arizona-based plant, which was beset by delays. TSMC now expects new U.S. plants to take no more than two years to complete, a significant improvement over the five-year timeline required for its initial facility. Despite the expedited pace, the chips produced in these new plants will not power Apple's latest models, as the most advanced fabrication processes will remain exclusive to TSMC's operations in Taiwan.
The company's first U.S. plant, located in Phoenix, Arizona, began construction in 2020 and is expected to begin production in 2025. This facility is configured to produce chips using TSMC's N4 process, which is part of the broader 5-nanometer node family. This generation includes the A16 Bionic chip, originally introduced in 2022 with the iPhone 14 Pro and later used in the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, and the latest entry-level iPad. The S9 chip used in the Apple Watch Ultra 2 is also an N4 chip. These chips are no longer at the top of Apple's product line technologically and their production today simply supports continued manufacturing of the company's older or lower-end models.
TSMC has announced plans for a second Arizona plant that will support production of 3-nanometer chips, currently the most advanced node in mass production and used for chips like the A17 Pro, M3, A18, and M4. However, this second facility will not begin operations until 2028, at which point Apple's mainstream devices will likely have moved to 2-nanometer or more advanced silicon.
A third facility, expected to produce chips with the 2-nanometer process, is planned for completion before the end of the decade, though TSMC has not committed to a specific timeline beyond "before 2030." Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo expects the first 2nm Apple chip to be the "A20," debuting in the iPhone 18 lineup next year, again suggesting that the U.S. chips will lag well behind the technological requirements of future high-end Apple devices.
The disparity between US and Taiwanese chip production timelines is partially a result of TSMC's longstanding technical and organizational infrastructure in Taiwan, where all research and development continues to take place. The company's semiconductor dominance is also considered by some analysts to act as a "silicon shield," deterring potential military aggression from China by making Taiwan's stability a matter of international economic importance.
Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.
WhatsApp can now be selected as the default calling and messaging app on iPhone, if users so wish (via WABetaInfo).
A change in the latest version of WhatsApp available on the App Store (v25.8.74) causes the Meta-owned encrypted chat platform to now show up in the Messaging and Calling options list in iOS Settings ➝ Apps ➝ Default Apps.
Apple introduced a way for users to select their preferred default apps for iPhone in iOS 18.2. Apple initially said that the feature would be coming to the European Union, but it turned out to be available worldwide.
If you select WhatsApp for Messaging and/or Calling, your iPhone will automatically open the app when called upon instead of Apple's built-in options, Messages and Phone/FaceTime.
The design of Apple's Vision Pro has been overtly replicated by a new headset from Chinese smartphone maker Vivo.
In the months following Apple's announcement of the Vision Pro, several companies revealed or teased similar devices, including Samsung, which announced in 2024 that it was working on an Android-based XR headset in collaboration with Google and Qualcomm. Now, at the 2025 Boao Forum for Asia, Vivo unveiled its first mixed reality headset, called the "Vivo Vision."
Observers were quick to notice that the device's design closely mirrors that of Apple's Vision Pro, including a gray fabric facial interface, a curved glass front visor, two downward-pointing cameras, a knitted rear tension strap, and an external battery in an aluminum casing connected via a braided cable.
The "Vivo Vision" name is also a clear take on "Vision Pro." The company even adopted Apple's terminology, using the phrase "spatial computing" in promotional materials to describe the capabilities of its headset.
Vivo positioned its announcement as part of a broader push into AI and robotics. The company simultaneously revealed the establishment of the Vivo Robotics Lab, which it claims will use technologies developed for Vivo Vision in the development of consumer robotics. According to Vivo Executive Vice President Hu Baishan, the lab will focus on the "brain" and "eyes" of robotics.
Although Vivo did not disclose any hardware specifications, pricing, or technical capabilities, it is expected to launch in "mid-2025." No details have been provided regarding its availability outside of China.
The Vivo Vision joins a series of consumer electronic device designs that have been very strongly influenced by Apple, particularly in Asia where the company's products often serve as reference points for domestic hardware development.
The upcoming iOS 18.4 update for the iPhone adds an Ambient Music feature to Control Center. Below, we take a closer look at how it works.
iOS 18.4 is currently in beta, so the Ambient Music feature is not widely available yet. The update will likely be released to the general public next week.
To use the feature on iOS 18.4, open Control Center and tap on the plus sign in the top-left corner. Then, tap on "Add a Control" at the bottom of the screen, scroll down to the Ambient Music section, and add one or more of the controls.
Here is how Apple describes the four Ambient Music themes:
Sleep: Music for a restful sleep.
Chill: Music for relaxation.
Productivity: Music for focusing on tasks.
Wellbeing: Music for meditation and self-care.
You can add any of the four Ambient Music controls to your Control Center, and then tap on one to start a playlist of songs that matches the theme. The feature is free and easy to use, with no Apple Music subscription or app download required.
While the Ambient Music feature is turned on, music controls will appear on the screen, and there is also Dynamic Island integration on newer iPhones.
There are four playlists available for each theme, or you can set your own. To change the playlist, open Control Center, and then tap on the plus sign in the top-left corner of the screen. Next, tap on an Ambient Music control that you added to Control Center, and tap on the playlist name. A drop-down menu will show additional playlist options.
Sleep: Sleep Sounds, Bedtime Beats, Sound Bath, and Piano Sleep.
Chill: Piano Chill, Ambient Chill, Lo-Fi Jazz, and Pure Chill.
Productivity: BEATstrumentals, Binaural Frequencies, Pure Focus, and Classical Concentration.
Wellbeing: Pure Meditation, Spa, Beats & Breath, and Pure Calm.
To update your iPhone to iOS 18.4, once the update is released, open the Settings app and select General → Software Update.
Amazon today has a few models of Apple's M4 Mac mini at all-time low prices, starting at $499.00 for the model with 16GB RAM/256GB SSD, down from $599.00. Discounts reach up to $200 off in these sales, and include both M4 and M4 Pro models.
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You can also get the M4 Mac mini with 16GB RAM/512GB SSD for $699.00 on Amazon, down from $799.00, and the model with 24GB RAM/512GB SSD for $899.00, down from $999.00. Delivery dates have slipped into April for all models of the Mac mini.
Apple updated the Mac mini back in October 2024, introducing a redesigned computer that's smaller than the previous generation and featuring the M4 and M4 Pro chips. Regarding the M4 Pro model, Amazon also has that device on sale for $1,199.00, down from $1,399.00, which is a match for the all-time low price on this model.
If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week.
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An integrated version of Proton VPN is now available in Vivaldi's desktop browser, thanks to a new partnership between the two companies. The direct integration means that from today, Vivaldi users can browse the web without needing to download a separate virtual private network (VPN).
After logging into their Vivaldi account, users can use Proton's free VPN which has no bandwidth limits, with the option to upgrade to a paid version. The free version connect to servers in five randomly selected countries, and contains no ads, no data limits, and has a strict no-logs policy.
Paid Proton VPN accounts can also be used within Vivaldi, and start at $10 per month, offering faster VPN speeds, access to over 11,000 servers in over 110 countries, and other premium features.
Proton VPN is also available in Chrome and Firefox as downloadable browser extensions, but Vivaldi makes the integration more seamless, at least on desktop – Proton VPN integration does not extend to the company's mobile browser.
It's worth noting that having a separate VPN client installed on your Mac is much more secure than a browser-integrated VPN, because this ensures that all of your internet traffic is funneled through the encrypted network, rather than just your browsing.
Vivaldi prides itself on its extensive customization options, such as tab tiling, Tab Stacks, web panels, and workspaces. The browser is a free download from the company's website.
Starting today, the Apple Maps app on the iPhone, iPad, and Mac now displays Indigenous lands in Australia and New Zealand, such as reserves and protected areas.
In a press release, Apple said the mapping updates were informed by Indigenous peoples, cartographers, language holders, and others in each country.
In Australia, Apple said it referenced language data published by the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies.
In New Zealand, Apple said it collaborated with local Māori tribes and Indigenous cartographers to develop detailed place cards and map icons for Indigenous lands in the country. The place cards feature information about the local area, and communities can update them with destinations, photos, and text in their own languages.
The mapping updates are available now, with no software updates required.
More details about these mapping updates, and Apple's recent community initiatives in Australia and New Zealand, can be found in Apple's press release.
Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.
Apple is creating a new global head of stores role amid a series of changes to its leadership structure, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports.
The company is promoting Vanessa Trigub to a new role as "vice president of stores and retail operations." Previously, she handled retail operations and managed locations in the Americas West region. Going forward, she will supervise the heads of retail for Europe and the Middle East, Asia-Pacific, and the Americas East regions. The new, simplified structure for retail affords Trigub more responsibility. She started out at Apple as an intern around the launch of the original iPhone, and has since held roles in finance, mergers and acquisitions, and retail operations.
Apple retail continues to be ultimately overseen by senior executive Deirdre O'Brien. She will now have fewer direct reports and is still reshuffling the HR organization after Carol Surface's departure. Individuals involved in Apple's retail group reportedly believe that the company is preparing Trigub to be O'Brien's successor, who has now worked at Apple for over three decades.
Apple has not yet officially announced the changes. This is the second significant change in Apple's management in recent times; last week the company moved Siri from AI chief John Giannandrea to Vision Pro leader Mike Rockwell.
Last week, we covered a report claiming that Apple's book-style foldable iPhone (or "iPhone Fold," as we are provisionally calling it here) will use liquid metal hinges to improve durability and help minimize screen creasing. Today, a Chinese leaker provided more details on the properties of this hinge material that help to clarify why Apple chose it for its first foldable device.
According to the Weibo account Instant Digital, Apple has chosen metallic glass (amorphous metal) for the iPhone Fold's hinge mechanism. Industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has previously referred to Apple's use of "liquid metal," which is a common marketing term for the same thing.
Unlike traditional metals that have a regular, repeating crystalline atomic structure, metallic glass features a disordered arrangement of atoms that is more resistant to bending, deformation, and denting. Achieved through rapid cooling techniques, its unique structure is 2.5x harder than titanium alloy. It also features a smooth, glossy finish that makes it aesthetically similar to stainless steel.
Beyond the mechanical benefits, the corrosion resistance of metallic glass also ensures the longevity of the hinge mechanism under varying environmental conditions.
These combined features appear to make it an ideal choice for the hinge – a part of the device that's constantly under stress from folding and unfolding. Its natural resistance to bending and wear could also help the screen stay flatter over time and reduce the chance of visible creases forming, both of which are common issues in today's foldable phones.
According to Kuo, Apple has previously used metallic glass in smaller components like SIM ejector pins, but the iPhone Fold will mark the company's first major use of the material in a critical mechanical part. Dongguan EonTec is said to be the exclusive supplier of the amorphous alloy.
Previous reports suggest Apple's foldable iPhone will feature a 7.8-inch main display when unfolded and a 5.5-inch cover display. The device is expected to adopt a book-style design similar to Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold, rather than a clamshell form factor.
According to Kuo, the foldable iPhone may include two rear cameras, a single front-facing camera, and Touch ID integrated into the power button. The device could measure just 4.5mm thick when unfolded, and between 9mm and 9.5mm when closed.
Apple is preparing to sell new Beats-branded charging cables, according to placeholder product listings on a handful of reseller websites in Canada and Europe.
There are listings for three different 5-foot/1.5-meter cables, including USB-C to USB-C, USB-C to Lightning, and USB-C to USB-A variants. All of the cables have a tangle-free, braided design for extra durability and convenience. The cables will be available in at least three never-before-seen color options, including Bolt Black, Surge Stone, and Rapid Red, and it appears that they will be sold in one-pack and two-pack varieties.
The USB-C to USB-C cable supports 60W fast charging, and it has USB 2.0 data transfer speeds of up to 480 Mbps, according to one of the listings.
Here is the full product description for that cable:
Elevate your charging game and ditch the tangles, kinks and frays with our new reinforced braided cables. This package includes two 1.5-meter Beats USB-C to USB-C woven charging cables.
Key Selling Points • Each cable is made with a tangle-free woven design for extra durability and convenience. • Beats cables undergo thousands of hours of testing throughout the design and manufacturing process and are reinforced to help prevent fraying. • Compatible with all USB-C Apple and Android devices, the braided cables are built for charging, syncing, audio, CarPlay, and transferring data. • The cable lets you charge USB-C compatible Beats headphones or speakers while you listen to audio or stream lossless audio. • They support fast charging of up to 60 watts and can transfer data at USB 2.0 rates. For fast, efficient charging, pair a USB-C cable with a USB-C power adapter and conveniently charge your compatible iPhone or other devices from a wall outlet. • USB-C power adapter not included.
The cables were added to one reseller's website on Monday, March 24, while another lists an estimated in-stock date of Tuesday, April 8, but it is unclear if that date is accurate. Apple and Beats have yet to make any official announcements.
The USB-C to USB-C cable is listed at $24.95 in Canadian dollars, so it could be priced below $20 in U.S. dollars on Apple's online store.
The cables are designed for use with Apple devices, Android devices, and Beats headphones and speakers, according to the listings. However, they do not have any unique features compared to other equivalent cables, aside from having Beats branding. For Apple, the cables would help to boost the company's accessories revenue.
Apple acquired Beats in 2014, in part to gain access to the Beats Music app's underlying technologies, which helped it to launch the Apple Music streaming service the following year. Apple also gained ownership of the popular line of Beats headphones and speakers, and it released the first-ever Beats-branded iPhone cases last year. Now, it looks like Beats-branded cables will be the latest chapter of the story.
Update March 28: Based on additional reseller information, it appears these cables will be available in both 1.5m and 20cm lengths, although we have only seen the shorter version in the Bolt Black color. We have also seen a fourth Nitro Navy color for the 1.5m USB-C to USB-C cable, and it's unclear if that color option extends to the USB-A and Lightning cables.
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