Apple today released a firmware update for the Beats Solo Buds, marking the first new software the earbuds have received since their June 2024 launch. The firmware has a build number of 3A130, up from the 3A112 firmware the Solo Buds shipped with.
We don't know what's included in the new firmware, and Apple does not typically provide information about Beats firmware updates.
The Beats Solo Buds are priced at $80 and are Apple's smallest and most affordable Beats-branded earbuds. While the earbuds offer a custom-built acoustic architecture and ergonomic design, active noise cancellation is not available.
Firmware updates for Beats headphones are delivered over-the-air. Firmware will be installed while the Beats headphones are charging and are in Bluetooth range of an iPhone, iPad, or Mac that's connected to Wi-Fi. On Android devices, users need to download the Beats app for Android and connect the Android device to a power outlet to initiate a firmware update.
Apple uses custom Inferentia and Graviton artificial intelligence chips from Amazon Web Services for search services, Apple machine learning and AI director Benoit Dupin said today at the AWS re:Invent conference (via CNBC).
Dupin said that Amazon's AI chips are "reliable, definite, and able to serve [Apple] customers worldwide." AWS and Amazon have a "strong relationship," and Apple plans to test whether Amazon's Trainium2 chip can be used for pre-training Apple Intelligence and other AI models. Amazon announced rental opportunities for the Trainium2 chip today.
Apple has used AWS for more than 10 years for Siri, Apple Maps, and Apple Music. With Amazon's Inferentia and Graviton chips, Apple has seen a 40 percent efficiency gain, and with Trainium2, Dupin said Apple expects up to a 50 percent improvement in efficiency with pre-training.
Nvidia is the market leader when it comes to GPUs for AI training, but companies like Amazon are aiming to compete with lower-cost options.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals have disappeared for many products, but you can still find multiple Beats headphones and speakers at up to 52 percent off on Amazon. You'll find many of the same prices at other retailers like Best Buy as well.
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This sale includes major discounts on products like the Beats Solo Buds, which have hit $49.99, down from $79.99. These are a solid entry-level option and feature up to 18 hours of playback, USB-C, and Spatial Audio.
For an upgraded model, Amazon has the Beats Studio Buds for $79.99, down from $149.95. These have up to 9 hours of playback (up to 36 hours with charging case), USB-C, active noise cancellation, transparency mode, and an IPX4 rating for sweat and water resistance.
For speakers, there's also $50 off the 2024 model of the Beats Pill, now down to $99.95 in multiple colors. You'll also find a few steep discounts on over-ear headphones, like the Beats Studio Pro at $199.99, down from $349.99.
Be sure to visit our full Deals Roundup to shop for even more Apple-related products and accessories.
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Apple today seeded the fourth beta of an upcoming visionOS 2.2 update to developers for testing purposes, with the beta coming a week after the third visionOS 2.2 beta.
visionOS 2.2 can be installed by going to the Software Update section of the Settings app on the Vision Pro and opting into Beta Updates.
The visionOS 2.2 update adds a new feature for the Mac Virtual Display option, allowing it to be set to Wide and Ultrawide. The Ultrawide setting is equivalent to two 4K displays side-by-side, and it is a notable improvement over the current Mac Virtual Display that's available in visionOS 2.1.
The Mac Virtual Display allows the Vision Pro to be connected to a Mac with the Vision Pro serving as the display for the machine. The virtual Mac desktop works just like a standard desktop with an external display, but Vision Pro does not support multiple displays. As a solution, Apple has added the option for a wider display to maximize space.
Samsung kicked off its Cyber Week sale a few days ago, offering discounts across smartphones, smartwatches, tablets, computers, and home appliances. Many of the deals in this sale are the same prices we tracked during Samsung's Black Friday sale, making Samsung one of the few retailers to keep these best-ever prices around all week.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Samsung. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
Right now, Amazon has the 27-inch ViewFinity S9 5K Display at an all-time low price, beating Samsung's Cyber Week deal. You can get this monitor for $767.99 ($832 off). Another notable Samsung monitor deal is on the 32-inch Smart Monitor M8, available for $399.99 on Samsung's own website ($300 off).
During this sale, if you purchase a select Samsung gaming monitor, you'll also get the 27-inch Odyssey G3 Gaming Monitor for free ($229.99 value). One of the best monitors to purchase with this offer is the 57-inch Odssey Neo G9 Curved Gaming Monitor for $1,599.99 ($1,129.99 off).
Other than monitors and TVs, we're also now tracking quite a few deals on refrigerators, tablets, and computers below. These sale prices will be live for this week only, so be sure to check out Samsung's event before the best prices of the year disappear.
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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Interested in hearing more about top deals as we head into the holidays? Sign up for our Deals Newsletter and we'll keep you updated so you don't miss the biggest deals of the season!
Apple's third-generation iPhone SE, introduced on March 8, 2022, has now reached the milestone of being over 1,000 days old.
The iPhone SE debuted in 2016 as Apple's answer to customers who wanted a more affordable iPhone without sacrificing key features. The first SE model was based on the design of the iPhone 5s but packed the then-flagship A9 chip and latest camera technology. Subsequent iterations followed a similar formula: the second-generation iPhone SE in 2020 adopted the iPhone 8's design and added the A13 Bionic chip, while the third generation launched in 2022 with another leap in processing power thanks to the A15 Bionic chip. Over the years, the SE line has become synonymous with classic design paired with modern internals.
When the third-generation iPhone SE was unveiled, it brought significant upgrades over its predecessor, including the A15 Bionic chip—the same processor used in the iPhone 13 lineup—longer battery life, and 5G connectivity, which extended high-speed wireless access to Apple's budget-conscious customers. However, the exterior design was starting to show its age even upon the device's unveiling in 2022. The third-generation SE retained the 4.7-inch Retina HD display and thick bezels of the iPhone 8, a design that effectively first debuted in 2014 on the iPhone 6. Likewise, its LCD screen felt out of step with Apple's more modern OLED displays. Face ID was also noticeably absent.
As the iPhone SE 3 crosses the 1,000-day threshold, there are a vast array of corroborated rumors about its successor. Expected to launch in the spring of 2025, the fourth-generation iPhone SE is shaping up to be a significant upgrade. Unlike its two predecessors, the iPhone SE 4 is rumored to abandon the iPhone 8's design entirely in favor of a modern aesthetic inspired by the iPhone 14.
The new model is expected to feature a larger 6.1-inch OLED display to provide deeper blacks, better contrast, and improved energy efficiency. Face ID is also set to replace Touch ID, marking the end of the physical Home button on the iPhone and embracing the all-screen design that has become a hallmark of contemporary iPhones.
Under the hood, the iPhone SE 4 is anticipated to be powered by the A18 Bionic chip, the same processor from the iPhone 16 lineup, along with 8GB of RAM to support Apple Intelligence. Another major change will be the adoption of USB-C, following Apple's broader transition away from the Lightning connector. Camera upgrades are also on the horizon, with the SE 4 likely to feature a single 48-megapixel rear camera, a dramatic improvement over the 12-megapixel sensor in the SE 3. Despite these substantial upgrades, Apple is reportedly committed to keeping the iPhone SE 4 priced below $500, maintaining its appeal as an affordable entry point into the Apple ecosystem.
For those considering the iPhone SE 3 today, the advice is clear: wait. While the iPhone SE 3 remains a capable device, it is difficult to justify its purchase when a redesigned, feature-packed successor is on the horizon. The dated design and hardware limitations of the current model make it markedly less future-proof compared to Apple's other offerings. With the iPhone SE 4 expected to deliver a more modern design with a larger display, OLED technology, Face ID, faster performance, and other improved features at a similar price point, holding out for its release in 2025 is by far the smartest choice.
Apple today announced that the true crime podcast "Hysterical" by Dan Taberski has received an Apple Podcasts Award for 2024 Show of the Year.
Apple Podcasts Award
The podcast investigates a mysterious illness that spreads among a group of high school girls in upstate New York. The seven-part series debuted in July, and it reached the number-one spot in the Top Shows chart, according to Apple.
Apple has been revealing several year-end charts and awards over the past few weeks, including the most popular podcasts of the year.
Apple has significantly hiked its investment proposal to Indonesia and is now offering $1 billion in a bid to resolve the ongoing iPhone 16 sales ban in the country, according to the country's investment minister Rosan Roeslani (via Reuters).
Speaking to lawmakers on Tuesday, Roeslani said the government expects to receive a written commitment from Apple within a week. "Whoever benefits from the sales must invest here, create jobs here," he added. The investment is described as a "first phase" of Apple's potential involvement in the country. The offer marks a tenfold increase from Apple's previous proposal earlier this month.
The negotiation stems from Indonesia's October ban on iPhone 16 sales after authorities determined Apple had not met the country's requirement for 40% domestic content in smartphones. The government previously rejected Apple's initial $10 million offer, followed by a $100 million proposal that included plans for research and development facilities and developer academies.
The government is particularly interested in having Apple establish local manufacturing partnerships and source components domestically. Apple has maintained developer academies in Indonesia since 2018, but the country currently hosts no Apple manufacturing facilities. Apple has not responded to requests for comment regarding the latest investment proposal.
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.
A UK class action lawsuit against Apple over App Store commission fees will proceed after judges dismissed the company's attempt to block the case, Bloomberg reports.
Led by competition policy professor Sean Ennis, the suit alleges Apple's 15-30% commission on App Store sales creates an anti-competitive tax on the UK technology industry. The lawsuit seeks £785 million ($995 million) in damages on behalf of UK app developers. The case could potentially benefit up to 13,000 developers who have sold apps or in-app subscriptions to iOS users since July 2017.
The lawsuit follows similar challenges worldwide over Apple's App Store policies. Apple in January announced changes to its App Store terms in response to European Union regulations, but these modifications have also faced criticism from EU watchdogs for potentially making conditions worse for developers.
This latest legal challenge expands on a previous suit filed last year, which initially represented around 1,500 UK developers. Professor Ennis, who previously worked at the U.S. Department of Justice and European Commission, secured funding for the case through Harbour Litigation Funding.
Apple has consistently defended its App Store practices, maintaining that most developers pay no commission and that the platform provides valuable security and development resources. The company also emphasizes that developers can reach users through web browsers, where Apple's rules don't apply.
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 has launched Apple Music Replay for 2024, giving subscribers early access to their personalized music listening statistics and trends for the year.
iPhone users on iOS 18.1 or later can now access the Replay 2024 experience directly in the Apple Music app, from the Home, New, and Search tabs. Users with previous iOS versions can still access the experience at replay.music.apple.com.
Apple already offered monthly replays since February, but now users can view their stats for the full year.
Expanded listening insights in Replay 2024 include:
Top 100, 500, 1000 Listeners: Expanding the Top 100 listener insight from previous years, listeners can now also discover whether they've made it in to the Top 500 or Top 1000 listeners of any of their favorite artists or genres.
Listening Streaks: Now users can learn the longest consecutive number of days they’ve played from Apple Music.
Replay By Month: Relive your year through the months, with your #1 songs, artists, and albums from each month of 2024.
Top Artist Streak: Based on their most-played music of each month, users can now discover if they're a loyal fan with the top artist streak - available to users if they've had an artist as their #1 artist of the month for multiple consecutive months.
Date of First Play: Fans can find out the date they first listened to their top song, artist, and album this year.
Apple Music Replay generates a Highlight Reel featuring animated cards showcasing your top artists, songs, albums, and genres for 2024 so far. You can also discover if they rank among an artist's top fans with percentage-based "super-fan" designations, providing insight into how you compare to other listeners globally. The cards are accompanied by background music relevant to each statistical highlight.
Apple Music Replay shows precise timestamps for when users reached significant listening milestones throughout the year. The service also provides year-over-year comparisons, allowing subscribers to see how their music preferences have evolved since 2023.
Starting this year, the Replay experience is also available in the Apple Music for Artists app and dashboard. All qualifying artists with an Apple Music for Artists account can access their Replay insights, including the total number of minutes Apple Music subscribers have listened to their music in 2024, the cities that listen to their music the most, their song discovered the most via Shazam this year, and more.
Apple today announced that its Vision Pro headset will be launching in Taiwan on Tuesday, December 17, with pre-orders beginning this Thursday, December 5, at 9:00 a.m.
Apple's localized Vision Pro page for Taiwan highlights the pre-order and launch dates and provides all of the usual details about the high-end headset. The online Apple Store for Taiwan has a purchasing page already live where potential customers can check out pricing and options such as storage capacities and ZEISS optical inserts.
Apple has two retail stores in the Taiwanese capital of Taipei, and the stores will be offering 30-minute demo sessions of the Vision Pro headset. More details on the demo sessions will be announced once pre-orders begin.
Taiwan will mark the thirteenth country or region with Vision Pro availability. After launching in the United States in February, availability expanded to Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the U.K., China, Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore in June and July. The most recent additions prior to today's announcement were South Korea and the United Arab Emirates just a few weeks ago.
The foldable smartphone market has stalled with customer interest in foldables waning, but that could change when Apple debuts a foldable iPhone, according to display analyst Ross Young.
In a report on the current foldable smartphone market, Young says that Apple is expected to "enter the foldable market" in the second half of 2026. Apple's "dominant position in flagship smartphones" could potentially lead to significant growth for the foldable market in 2026, ultimately leading to a record year for foldables.
Young expects more than 30 percent growth in the foldable market in 2026, followed by continued 20 percent growth in 2027 and 2028.
There have long been rumors suggesting that Apple is developing a foldable iPhone, and some analysts believe that Apple will finally debut a foldable iPhone around September of 2026.
The first foldable iPhone could be between 7.9 and 8.3 inches in size, and it may have a "clamshell" design like Samsung's Galaxy Z Flip. A clamshell iPhone would fold in half vertically rather than horizontally, allowing for a full-size iPhone when unfolded, and a smaller, pocketable device when folded.
California Apple employee Amar Bhakta has filed a lawsuit against Apple for alleged labor violations, accusing the Cupertino company of suppressing employee speech, invading employee privacy though surveillance and inspecting personal data, and clawing back earned wages (via Semafor).
Bhakta sued Apple after Apple prohibited him from speaking about his work experience on podcasts and also instructed him to remove information about his "working conditions and work experiences" from his LinkedIn profile. He says that Apple's policies prevent employees from adequately describing their job responsibilities, accomplishments, and professional growth on sites like LinkedIn, hindering their ability to find employment.
Further, Bhakta claims that Apple employees are prohibited from disclosing the skills, knowledge, and experience they gained at Apple when working for a subsequent employer, plus they are not allowed to speak with each other or outsiders about problems at work like harassment, discrimination, or unfair treatment.
Apple employees are required to use Apple devices, software, and services, and the devices "collect and use the valuable personal data" of employees during non-work periods. The lawsuit states that employees have to agree to physical, video, and electronic surveillance by Apple, with Apple able to search Apple and non-Apple devices and other property when an employee is on "company premises," including in a home office. The Apple ecosystem is described as a "prison yard" for employees, with workers subject to "Apple's all-seeing eye" both on and off duty.
The lawsuit takes issue with Apple's requirement that employees use Apple collaboration tools with an iCloud account, often a personal iCloud account. Bhakta says Apple allowed him to choose to use an Apple-owned iPhone or a personal iPhone for work, and when he chose his personal phone, Apple installed an eSIM and VPN, and required him to use his personal iCloud account to collaborate with colleagues. He claims that Apple has forced him to remain an Apple consumer, and that he is required to continue to patronize Apple.
Bhakta was hired at Apple in July 2020 as a Digital Ad Tech/Operations Manager, and he was required to sign documents listing the Apple policies that are cited in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit seeks damages for violations of the California Labor Code as well as "appropriate injunctive relief" to protect California Apple employees from future violations.
The original Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp game was shuttered last week on November 29, almost exactly seven years after it launched. Because it was a freemium game, there are players who invested a lot of money in various items in the game, so Pocket Camp Complete allows those players to continue to play the base version of the game.
Nintendo has stopped all events and updates now that the online version of Pocket Camp has been discontinued. Pocket Camp saves can be transferred to Pocket Camp Complete and the game has many of the same features, but there is no support for visiting and interacting with other players or receiving gifts. It does not have in-app purchases, nor is there an online connection.
Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp Complete is available from the App Store for $9.99. Saves can be transferred until June 2, 2025, and transferring a save requires a Nintendo Account.
Alongside Apple's annual Apple Pay donation campaign supporting The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria that's currently underway around World AIDS Day, the company has historically offered a selection of its products under the related (RED) brand.
While we recently noted that Apple has been scaling back its (PRODUCT)RED portfolio over the past few years, the company's Beats brand yesterday announced a collaboration with British Nigerian designer Yinka Ilori for (BEATS)RED Beats Solo 4 headphones with a limited-edition packaging design.
Unfortunately, there's a catch, which is that these new (BEATS)RED headphones aren't available for sale as they are a custom product to help create awareness around World AIDS Day and the (RED) campaign.
To mark our long partnership with (RED) and continue supporting their mission, we created these custom Beats Solo 4 headphones.
As part of the collaboration, artist and designer @YinkaIlori_ brings his bold and kaleidoscopic approach to exclusive special-edition packaging. pic.twitter.com/dhJnqTNgai
— Beats by Dre (@beatsbydre) December 1, 2024
According to Women's Wear Daily, Beats notes that the packaging design is a tribute to "resilience, community and hope," that "blend[s] traditional African aesthetics with contemporary design." Ilori says his design celebrates "the collective effort of nurturing" and was inspired by "the metaphorical sense of planting seeds and watching them grow into something beautiful."
Cryptocurrency platform Coinbase today announced the launch of a new feature designed to let people buy cryptocurrency using Apple Pay.
Apple Pay is available for all fiat-to-crypto purchases (aka paper currencies like the U.S. dollar) in Coinbase Onramp, a tool that developers and websites can use to accept crypto payments from customers.
With Apple Pay integration in Coinbase Onramp, a customer can use Apple Pay to buy an item or a service, paying in dollars that are converted to cryptocurrency for the merchant. Coinbase promises a straightforward verification process and free offramping.
Coinbase says that Coinbase Onramp users can expect a faster end-to-end experience with fiat-to-crypto conversion that takes seconds, access to the most popular payment methods, and easier onramping for U.S. customers that use Apple Pay.
Developers who already use Coinbase Onramp don't need to do anything, and their customers will see Apple Pay available as an option when making an eligible purchase.
Apple today informed developers that App Store review times could increase as the 25th approaches, with Apple recommending that developers start getting their apps and games up to date and ready for the season.
There was a time where Apple would shut down App Store Connect entirely during the week of Christmas and not accept new app or app review submissions at all, but reviews now continue throughout the holiday.
Apple says that it is anticipating a high volume of app submissions, and reviews could take longer to complete between December 20 and December 26. Developers should submit time-sensitive submissions early to ensure they get through review in time.
The busiest season on the App Store is almost here.
Make sure your apps and games are up to date and ready. App Review will continue to accept submissions throughout the holiday season.
Please plan to submit time-sensitive submissions early, as we anticipate high volume and reviews may take longer to complete from December 20-26.
Developers often like to offer sales, promotions, and new content during December as people receive new devices, App Store gift cards, and more during the holiday period.
Tesla will soon allow Apple Watch users to unlock and control their vehicle using a dedicated watchOS app for the first time.
Tesla today announced that, starting later this month, owners will gain the ability to use their Apple Watch as a digital key for their car, providing functions previously limited to the smartphone app. The upcoming watchOS app will enable users to unlock or lock their vehicle, open the trunk and frunk, check the battery status, and adjust climate control settings.
Currently, Tesla owners using smartwatches have to rely on third-party applications like Watch for Tesla to perform many of these functions. Tesla will automatically install the Apple Watch version for users who update the companion app on their iPhones later this month as the new version rolls out. Users of Wear OS devices currently have no timeline for receiving a similar app. The watchOS app is part of Tesla's broader annual holiday update, which includes features like remote access to Sentry Mode recordings and improvements to navigation.
Update: As of December 3, the Tesla app for Apple Watch is available for download.
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Apple Podcasts Award
