Sonos has kicked off its annual Super Bowl sale, offering discounts on speakers, subwoofers, and soundbars. This event will run through February 12 and offers up to $280 in savings on these Sonos products.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Sonos. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
The sale is split between solo products and bundles; we've listed all of the individual products on sale below as well as a few of the bundles. You can find the full list on Sonos' website, and note that no coupon codes are required as all sales have been automatically applied.
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we focus on Samsung's newly announced Galaxy S23 lineup, reviews of the new HomePod, and the latest rumors around Apple's first foldable device.
Following Samsung's announcement of the Galaxy S23, S23+, S23 Ultra, and Book3, we weigh up how some of the devices compare to the iPhone and MacBook Pro. We also look at the recent reactions to the new HomePod's audio quality, how it compares to the original, and the controversy around it continuing to leave white rings some wooden surfaces.
Finally, we take a look at this week's rollercoaster of rumors about Apple's plans for foldables. On Monday, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that Apple is planning to launch a foldable iPad with a carbon fiber kickstand in 2024. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman then said that he had not heard of any such device in the pipeline for next year. Display analyst Ross Young reiterated Gurman's sentiments, but added that Apple was working on a notebook with a 20.5-inch foldable display for 2025. Amid these reports, we try to get to the bottom of what is really going on with Apple's first foldable device.
If you haven't already listened to the previous episode of The MacRumors Show, be sure to catch up for a discussion with Tyler Stalman about first impressions of the new Mac mini and MacBook Pro models, as well as iPhone 15 camera rumors.
The latest version of macOS Ventura breaks compatibility with Pioneer's lineup of USB-connected CD/DVD/Blu-ray drives for the Mac.
Apple released macOS 13.2 in late January with support for a new Security Keys for Apple ID feature and various bug fixes. Unfortunately, users who have installed the update have said that their Pioneer disc drives are no longer recognized by their Mac, with complaints about the issue found across the MacRumors Forums, Reddit, Twitter, Apple Support Community, and elsewhere online over the past two weeks.
The root cause of the issue is unclear at this time, but Pioneer has acknowledged the matter on its website and says it is investigating.
"We have confirmed that our optical drives are not recognized by macOS Ventura 13.2 released by Apple on January 23, 2023," reads a notice on Pioneer's optical drive product listings. "We are currently investigating this symptom. We would like to ask our customers who are using our optical drives to refrain from updating to macOS Ventura 13.2."
We have reached out to Apple for comment and will update this story if we receive a response.
Update: The issue has been resolved with macOS 13.2.1, according to Pioneer.
Amazon today has a new Gold Box sale on Beats headphones, with multiple discounts matching all-time best prices we've ever seen on select headphones. In total, you'll find deals on Beats Studio Buds, Beats Fit Pro, and Beats Studio3 Wireless Headphones.
Starting with earbuds, Amazon has the Beats Studio Buds in all colors for $99.95, down from $149.95. This is ultimately a second-best price on the Beats Studio Buds, but still a solid deal at only $10 higher than the previous low price.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
Both versions of the Beats Fit Pro are discounted on Amazon right now: the regular Beats Fit Pro are $149.95 ($50 off) and the Beats Fit Pro x Kim Kardashian are $179.95 ($20 off). For the regular model, all colors except white are available at this all-time low price.
Finally, the over-ear Beats Studio3 Wireless Noise Canceling Headphones are available for $199.99, down from $349.95. This one is available in three colors: Matte Black, Midnight Black, and Shadow Gray.
Have you picked up a new HomePod? Perhaps it's your first. Then it might surprise you that Apple doesn't include an extensive manual in the box. That's why we've compiled this list of how-to articles to help you make the most of your new smart speaker.
Below, you'll find help on how to set up your new HomePod and master the basic controls, as well as how to get the best out of the many audio functions. We've also covered some of the more advanced features that Apple's latest speaker is capable of. Click the links to learn more, and be sure to bookmark this post.
How are you getting on with your new HomePod? Are there any other functions missing in our list that you'd like help with? Let us know in the comments.
A report commissioned by the Biden administration this week recommended new legislation to make major changes to Apple's platform restrictions and App Store policies.
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is the president's main advisor on telecommunications and Internet policy. In April last year, the NTIA announced that it had launched an investigation into competition in mobile app ecosystems. The investigation was triggered by an executive order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy from July 2021, with the aim of making recommendations for improving competition, reducing barriers to entry, and maximizing user benefit.
Months after its contents were shared with the White House, the NTIA this week published the "Competition in the Mobile Application Ecosystem" report – the first such report into Apple's ecosystem by a federal organization. On the basis of the investigation's findings, the report recommends:
Third-party app stores should be permitted and users should not be prevented from sideloading apps outside a gatekeeper's own app store. Legislative and regulatory measures should prohibit restrictions on sideloading, alternative app stores, and web apps.
Requirements that ban developers from using alternative in-app payment systems should be banned.
Third-party web browser apps should be able to offer full functionality and not face browser engine restrictions.
Pre-installed apps, default options, and anticompetitive self-preferencing should be limited, including in search results.
Users should be able to choose their own apps as defaults and delete or hide pre-installed apps.
App store review processes should be more transparent.
The report says that new legislation and additional antitrust enforcement actions will likely be necessary to remedy existing issues and boost competition in mobile app ecosystems. See the NTIA's full report for more information.
Apple's ecosystem has come under intense scrutiny by governments around the world in recent years, including in the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, the European Union, South Korea, Japan, and more, with a clear appetite from global regulators to explore platform restrictions around issues such as app sideloading, browser engines, and interoperability.
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.
After years of discussions with local authorities, Apple Pay in South Korea has been approved by the financial regulator, paving the way for the mobile payment system to launch in the first half of this year (via The Korea Herald).
"Having taken into consideration relevant rules and regulations and their interpretations, we confirm that credit card companies can push for the introduction of the Apple Pay service as they have obeyed necessary procedures," the Financial Services Commission (FSC) said in a release.
The FSC emphasized that credit card firms should not transfer fees arising from the use of Apple Pay to customers or shops, while calling for measures to ensure customer protection from such risks as the theft of personal information.
Market watchers initially expected the service to be launched late last year. But according to the report, experts now say that Apple Pay could be launched in the middle of the first half of this year.
Initial discussions on bringing Apple's digital payment system to the country began way back in 2017, but Apple struggled to gain registration as an electronic financial business operator while regulators investigated whether Apple Pay runs counter to local regulations and laws.
Negotiations around a possible launch also hit technical roadblocks because of South Korea's lack of wide NFC terminal adoption in retail stores at the time.
Adoption has increased since then, although the preponderance of Samsung smartphones in the country has allowed Samsung Pay to become the dominant payment method, therefore the launch of Apple Pay is expected to strengthen competition in the local mobile payment market.
Ever since its launch in the United States in 2014, Apple Pay has slowly expanded to more countries worldwide while at the same time expanding the list of financial institutions that support the feature. With Apple Pay, users can easily add their credit or debit cards from supported banks to their iPhone and Apple Watch to make purchases at contactless payment terminals around the world. Apple Pay is also available on the Mac for web purchases.
Apple's second-generation HomePod launches today, with the new smart speaker available for pickup at Apple Stores in the U.S. and select other countries. Online pre-orders also begin arriving to customers today, and pre-ordering is no longer required.
Apple customers can use the Apple online store or App Store app to order a HomePod for Apple Store pickup. Simply select the "I'll pick it up" option at checkout, enter your ZIP or postal code, and select the most convenient Apple Store location. Customers can then select a pickup date and 15-minute check-in window.
Priced at $299 and coming in Midnight and White color options, the new HomePod looks very similar to the original HomePod that Apple discontinued in 2021, but there are some subtle design changes and several new features.
The second-generation HomePod has a refined design with a larger backlit touch surface and a removable power cable, while inside there are five tweeters (as opposed to seven in the original model), four far-field microphones (as opposed to six), and new temperature and humidity sensors.
The new HomePod is powered by Apple's S7 chip, and comes with Thread support, a U1 Ultra Wideband chip to support music handoff, and Wi-Fi 802.11n connectivity. It also supports Spatial Audio. Two HomePods can be used together to form a stereo pair, but original HomePod owners should note that the new HomePod can't be stereo paired with the first-generation model.
The new $299 HomePod is available from today in Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, the UK, the US, and 11 other countries.
Apple will not launch a second-generation AirPods Max until at least the second half of next year, and could possibly wait until the first half of 2025 to refresh the headphones, according to Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
In his latest series of tweets outlining industry expectations, Kuo said he believes Apple's "next important acoustic product refresh time" will be between the second half of 2024 and the first half of 2025. Kuo lists three products due for a refresh in this window of time, including a second-generation HomePod mini, AirPods Max 2, and a "low-cost version" of Apple's AirPods.
As for what we can expect in AriPods Max 2, Kuo did not offer any additional details about Apple's premium over-ear noise canceling headphones, although features that would make sense for the next-generation pair include a USB-C port instead of Lightning, improved noise cancelation, longer battery life, new color options, a U1 chip for Precision Finding in the Find My app, and more. AirPods Max were first released in December 2020 for $549.
In a previous prediction, Kuo said that Apple is aiming for a $99 price for the more affordable standard AirPods. Currently, the $129 second-generation AirPods are the cheapest option from Apple, while the third-generation AirPods are priced at $169 with a Lightning charging case and at $179 with a MagSafe case. Analyst Jeff Pu has also predicted the arrival of lower-priced AirPods next year.
Apple will begin mass shipments of the second-generation HomePod mini in the second half of 2024, according to Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
In his latest tweet sharing industry information, Kuo said Apple supplier Goertek has "secured NPI and assembly orders for the HomePod mini 2, which will start mass shipments in 2H24." NPI stands for New Production Introduction, which is a structured process for transforming a product idea into a complete end-product that can be fully reproduced.
According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple is not actively working on a new version of the HomePod mini at this time, so Kuo's prediction comes as somewhat of a surprise. There are no obvious new features that are needed for the HomePod mini, and improvements to things like Siri and app integration can be made on the back end.
For his part, Gurman believes that Apple is working on "new speakers with screens and cameras," with Apple said to be developing HomePod models with a display and a camera to compete with the likes of Google's Nest Hub Max, Amazon's Echo Show, and Facebook's Portal. Whether this is the type of device Kuo is referring to when he says "HomePod mini 2" seems unlikely, but not impossible.
Regardless, Kuo clearly believes there is sufficient evidence to suggest that Apple plans to launch a new version of its smaller smart speaker, and by handing NPI and assembly responsibilities to Goertek, the supplier will be able to offset the negative impact caused by loss of orders due to production issues related to its AirPods Pro 2 production.
Apple today held its first earnings call of 2023, which covers the fourth calendar quarter of 2022. During the call, Apple CEO Tim Cook and Apple CFO Luca Maestri shared several interesting tidbits about recent product sales, services results, and more, and we've highlighted the most interesting parts of the call below.
AI
On the topic of artificial intelligence, particularly in services, Cook said that in the future, it will impact everything that the company does.
It's a major focus of ours. It's incredible in terms of how it can enrich customer lives, and look no further than some of the things that we announced in the fall with Crash Detection and Fall Detection, or a ways back with ECG. These have literally saved lives. We see an enormous potential in this space to affect virtually everything that we do. It is a horizontal technology, not vertical, so it will affect every product and every service that we have.
Services Revenue
While Apple's quarterly revenue was down five percent year over year, Apple's Services business hit an all-time revenue record of $20.8 billion. Services includes Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, iCloud+, AppleCare+, and more.
Apple now has more than 935 million paid subscriptions, up 150 million during the last 12 months. Apple also set revenue records for iCloud, payments, and Apple Music.
iPhone Sales
Apple in November issued a rare warning about iPhone 14 Pro shipment constraints, letting the market know that shipments would be lower than anticipated due to COVID-19 restrictions. The iPhone 14 Pro models were backordered throughout the holiday period, and as a result, iPhone sales were down year over year.
iPhone revenue was at $65.8 billion, down from $71.6 billion in the year-ago quarter. Production has since improved, and iPhone shipping times are shorter.
There were questions around whether customers opted for more affordable iPhones or would upgrade in the March quarter due to the November/December shortages, and Cook said that it is difficult to predict customer behavior. "It's hard to estimate recapture because you have to know what would have happened, how many people would have bought down, and it takes awhile to get those reports in during the quarter," Cook said. He added that Apple has made its "best guess" at recapture in the insight that it gave for the March quarter.
Cook also said that iPhone revenue would have grown in Q1 2023 had it not been for the supply shortage.
Wearables Revenue
Wearables revenue came in at $13.8 billion, down eight percent year over year. Despite the drop, Cook said that Apple continues to be "excited about the long term opportunity" in the wearables category.
The wearables category includes the AirPods and the Apple Watch at this time, but in the future, it will also encompass the mixed reality headset that Apple is expected to launch this year.
Though revenue was down, Apple CFO Luca Maestri said that the Apple Watch install base saw a new all-time record, largely because there were a record number of new users who purchased an Apple Watch during the quarter.
Macs and iPads
iPad revenue was up 30 percent thanks to the launch of new M2 iPad models, but Mac revenue saw a notable drop because there were no new Macs released in the final months of 2022.
Mac revenue was $7.7 billion, down from $10.9 billion in the year-ago quarter. iPad revenue was $9.4 billion, up from $7.2 billion in the year-ago quarter. Cook said that overall, Apple has a "low share and a competitive advantage with Apple silicon," which means the company is "well positioned within the market" in the long term.
March Quarter
Apple did not provide guidance for the upcoming March quarter, but did offer some directional insights. Apple CFO Luca Maesteri said that year over year, revenue is expected to be similar to the December quarter. Services and iPhone revenue are expected to be up, while Mac and iPad revenue will decline by double digits year over year.
Maestri explained that revenue will drop in those categories because of macro headwinds and challenging comparisons to the year-ago quarter due to product release timelines.
U.S. Manufacturing
Cook was asked whether manufacturing components in the United States (such as at TSMC's upcoming Arizona plants) would be more expensive than where components are manufactured now, and he said he wouldn't necessarily expect manufacturing to be pricier, as the person asking the question implied.
"We don't know what the impact will be at this point, but we're all in in terms of being the largest customer for TSMC in Arizona," said Cook. "We're very proud to take part in that."
Higher Average Selling Price
Cook was asked whether the higher average selling price that Apple is counting on for next quarter is "sustainable" in a tough macro environment, and Cook said that people are willing to "stretch" to get the best they can afford.
I would say that the smartphone - for us the iPhone - has become so integral into people's lives, it contains their contacts, health information, banking information, smart home, and so many different parts of their lives. It's a payment vehicle for many people. I think people are willing to really stretch to get the best they can afford in that category.
Read More
A more complete picture of Apple's earnings on a per-category basis can be found in our official results article.
It is Friday, February 3 in New Zealand and Australia, which means it is the official launch day of the second-generation HomePod in those countries. Customers in New Zealand and Australia are always first to get new devices because of time zone differences, though one lucky MacRumors reader was able to get his speaker yesterday.
Customers who pre-ordered a HomePod when the device was announced on January 18 are starting to receive their orders, and photos and first impressions will soon be showing up across the web on Instagram, Twitter, Reddit, and the MacRumors forums.
New Zealand does not have official Apple retail locations, so customers in Australia will be the first to be able to purchase a new HomePod in an Apple Store. Available store stock in Australia will give us an idea of what we can expect in other Apple Stores worldwide. The new HomePod is expected to be readily available.
Priced at $299, the second-generation HomePod is similar in size, function, and sound quality to the original model, but it does feature a larger touch display at the top, humidity and temperature sensors, and a U1 chip. Reviews for the speaker have been largely positive.
Following New Zealand and Australia, sales and deliveries of the HomePod will begin in Asia, Europe, and then North America, and Apple Stores will be opening at their regular times for walk-in purchases and so customers can pick up reserved devices.
The Apple Pay Later service that Apple has in the works is set to launch "soon," Apple CEO Tim Cook told CNBC ahead of today's earnings call for the first fiscal quarter of 2023.
Cook said that Apple employees are beta testing the Apple Pay Later feature, which will help Apple boost services revenue. "It will be launching soon," Cook said.
Apple Pay Later was first previewed at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June. It is similar to the buy now, pay later feature offered by PayPal, and it is designed to allow users to make multiple payments for their purchases.
With Apple Pay Later, a purchase can be split into four payments that can be made over the course of six weeks, and the option will be available where Apple Pay is accepted. Payments will be managed through the Wallet app.
There are more than two billion active iPhones, iPads, Macs, and other Apple devices worldwide, Apple said today in the earnings report covering the first fiscal quarter of 2023.
During the December quarter, we achieved a major milestone and are excited to report that we now have more than 2 billion active devices as part of our growing installed base," said Apple CEO Tim Cook. Two billion active devices is a new record for the company. Apple last shared its active install base in January 2022, when the company had 1.8 billion active devices worldwide.
Apple did not provide numbers for individual devices, but Apple has long had more than a billion active iPhones worldwide.
Apple today announced financial results for the first fiscal quarter of 2023, which corresponds to the fourth calendar quarter of 2022.
For the quarter, Apple posted revenue of $117.2 billion and net quarterly profit of $30.0 billion, or $1.88 per diluted share, compared to revenue of $123.9 billion and net quarterly profit of $34.6 billion, or $2.10 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter.
Apple's revenue was down approximately 5% year-over-year, a steeper decline than had been expected by analysts as Apple grappled with iPhone supply issues in particular but which also saw declines in Mac and wearables.
Gross margin for the quarter was 43.0 percent, compared to 43.8 percent in the year-ago quarter. Apple also declared a quarterly dividend payment of $0.23 per share, payable on February 16 to shareholders of record as of February 13.
“As we all continue to navigate a challenging environment, we are proud to have our best lineup of products and services ever, and as always, we remain focused on the long term and are leading with our values in everything we do,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “During the December quarter, we achieved a major milestone and are excited to report that we now have more than 2 billion active devices as part of our growing installed base.”
As has been the case for over two years now, Apple is once again not issuing guidance for the current quarter ending in March.
Apple will provide live streaming of its fiscal Q1 2023 financial results conference call at 2:00 pm Pacific, and MacRumors will update this story with coverage of the conference call highlights.
Apple today continued with its ongoing "Shot on iPhone" series, sharing a 30-minute film from Indian film director Vishal Bhardwaj. The movie was shot entirely on Apple's latest flagship smartphone, the iPhone 14 Pro.
The short film, called "Fursat," is described as a "magical story about a man so obsessed with controlling the future that he risks losing what he holds most precious in the present." It stars Ishaan and Wamiqa Gabbi, two popular Indian actors.
Apple has partnered with film directors in the past to showcase the capabilities of its smartphones in professional film settings. The iPhone 14 Pro models feature a 48-megapixel Wide lens and offer a new Action Mode with smooth-looking video that ignores shaking, motion, and vibrations.
Apple does not plan to name a replacement for vice president of industrial design Evans Hankey when she departs the company in the coming months, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Instead, the report claims that Apple's product design team will report directly to the company's operations chief Jeff Williams, in what is a major internal shift.
Apple plans to give key product designers larger roles within the team, but the new arrangement has still "irked" some of the employees, according to the report. Alan Dye will continue to lead Apple's software design team, the report adds.
"Apple's design team brings together expert creatives from around the world and across many disciplines to imagine products that are undeniably Apple," the statement said. "The senior design team has strong leaders with decades of experience. Evans plans to stay on as we work through the transition, and we'd like to thank her for her leadership and contributions."
Hankey succeeded Jony Ive as Apple's de-facto design chief after he left the company in 2019, reporting to Williams. The report notes that Apple could eventually choose to hire a new industrial design chief, but as of now the company has no such plans.
Apple has placed more of an emphasis on function over form since Ive left the company, although it's unclear if his departure directly led to such a change. For example, Apple brought back ports like MagSafe, HDMI, and an SD card reader on the high-end MacBook Pro, and Apple also revamped the Siri Remote with a more traditional touchpad and layout after some Apple TV users complained about the previous remote's design.
Numerous Mac users are repeatedly encountering a bug in macOS Ventura that throws up Login Items notifications for various background app processes every time they start up their machine, even when the processes in question have been disabled.
If notification previews are disabled (via System Settings -> Notifications -> Show Previews) the annoying notifications appear as "Login Items." If previews are enabled, the notifications are labelled "Background Items Added" and contain the message "[app/process name] added items that can run in the background. You can manage this in Login Items Settings."
Curiously, there is no option in System Settings -> General -> Login Items to remove background items added to macOS by installed apps. Users can only disable listed items by toggling switches. Doing this however seems to have no impact on the notifications, and in some cases can cause more to appear.
Complaints across Reddit, Twitter, Apple Support Community discussions, and various other app-specific forums repeatedly cite app processes such as Google Updater, Adobe CC Helper, and Dropbox as culprits, but these only appear to be referenced more often because they are popular apps with background processes. Almost any third-party background process can seemingly be referenced in the persistent Login Items notifications.
It did this when updating from 13.0 to 13.1 WHY
— ︎ ︎ ︎ ︎ (@Quinten0508) November 8, 2022
In all but a minority of cases, trashing or uninstalling the related apps does not fix the problem, and if the notifications do subsequently disappear, reinstalling the app usually brings them back. Some users have even erased their Mac and reinstalled macOS Ventura to defeat the bug, but are then hesitant to install the associated apps.
Only a few users have been successful at ridding their Mac of the notifications by carrying out the following actions, although caution should be applied and users do so at their own risk.
Open Finder, then select Go -> Go to Folder... in the menu bar.
Copy and paste the following address into the input field and press Enter: ~/Library/LaunchAgents
A Finder window will open at the LaunchAgents folder. Show the items as a list organized by name, then search for the app or developer name associated with the process that's causing the Login Items notifications.
Delete the .plist file, then empty the Trash.
Restart your Mac.
If the above steps don't work, look in the ~/Library/LaunchDaemons folder. If there are launch daemons in there associated with the app/developer, delete those too, empty Trash, and restart.
Based on reports, the bug has been around since early beta versions of macOS Ventura, but there have been more frequent incidences reported on Macs running macOS 13.1 and later. Apple is seemingly aware of the problem, but has not commented.
I’ve been trying to stop Microsoft Edge from doing this, too! Can’t find any settings anywhere in Edge to stop it. All I see to be able to do is remove it from Login Items…but then it’s back at login again! Very frustrating. I didn’t consent to this.
— Jeff (@gank41) November 10, 2022
Have you been affected by the Login Items notifications bug? If so, have you found a solution that worked for you? Let us know in the comments.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Sonos. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
