MacRumors

A common request from Apple Watch users over the years has been the ability to use third-party watch faces, but watchOS 10 still does not support this. In an interview with Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger published today, Apple's VP of Technology Kevin Lynch and product marketing employee Deidre Caldbeck explained why.

The interview was spotted earlier by 9to5Mac's Benjamin Mayo, and the quotes below are machine translated from German.

Lynch said Apple puts a "huge amount of effort" into every watch face to ensure they work "uniformly and simply," and said Apple needs to plan ahead to make sure watch faces continue to work "if we want to change something or add new possibilities."

Caldbeck added that developers are able to create complications for their watchOS apps, which adds a layer of customization to watch faces by allowing for glanceable information to be displayed, such as a CARROT Weather forecast. Starting with watchOS 10, the new Smart Stack widgets feature offers space for up to three complications.

That's everything Apple had to say about the lack of third-party watch faces in the interview, which touches on several other watchOS 10 details.

watchOS 10 will be released later this year for the Apple Watch Series 4 and newer, and is currently available in beta for users with a free Apple developer account. A public beta is coming in July for users who do not wish to use the developer beta.

Apple this week shared a new action-packed video called "The Great Escape" on its YouTube channel in Turkey. The video, set in Istanbul's historic Grand Bazaar, was shot entirely on the iPhone 14 Pro with the use of additional accessories and software.

"The Great Escape" has received over three million views on YouTube since being uploaded on Sunday, showing the continued popularity of Apple's long-running "Shot on iPhone" marketing campaign. The video highlights several camera features available on the iPhone 14 Pro, such as Macro mode, Cinematic mode, and Action mode.

At this point, customers interested in purchasing an iPhone 14 Pro should consider waiting for the iPhone 15 Pro, which is expected to launch in September. Various camera improvements are expected for the next iPhones, including an improved sensor from Sony and a periscope lens on the iPhone 15 Pro Max that will enable up to 5-6x optical zoom.

Amazon has a few models of the Apple Watch Ultra for $729.99 today, down from the original price of $799.00. All of these sales require you to add the Apple Watch Ultra to your cart on Amazon and head to the checkout screen in order to see the final deal price.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Models on sale at this price include the White Ocean Band, Yellow/Beige Trail Loop, Blue/Gray Trail Loop, and Orange Alpine Loop. The first two Apple Watch Ultra models have estimated deliveries between June 21 and 24, while the latter two have slipped into July.

This $729.99 price tag remains the best price we've ever tracked for a majority of Apple Watch Ultra models, although there has been one exception. We saw the Yellow Ocean Band go down to $701.99 earlier in the year, but that rare sale has not returned recently nor has it expanded to other Ultra band styles.

There are also quite a few models of the Apple Watch Ultra at $749.99 right now on Amazon. Our full Deals Roundup has more information on the latest Apple-related sales and bargains.

When Apple releases iOS 17 in the fall, anyone who tends to use their iPhone's camera to scan QR codes can expect to find the process a little easier, thanks to a small but significant change coming in Apple's latest mobile operating system.

Apple first introduced iPhone Camera app support for QR code scanning in iOS 11. Back then, the URL link that the QR code generated would appear as though it was a push notification at the top of the screen.

Perhaps because this implementation was inelegant or confusing for some users, Apple in iOS 13 decided to redesign QR code scanning so that the link appeared as a yellow button within the camera viewfinder itself. However, in doing so, it created a new problem: The button would rove around in the viewfinder if the camera lens was also in motion, which made tapping it even more tricky than before.

Thankfully, in iOS 17, Apple has made another small, and this time welcome, change that improves the situation immeasurably. Now when you scan a QR code, the link button automatically appears at the bottom of the Camera interface. So instead of chasing the dancing link around the viewfinder, you can simply tap its fixed location above the shutter button.

In fact, there is a way you can get the QR code link to behave in a similar manner in iOS 16: As soon as you move the camera so that the QR code is no longer within the shot, it should drop to the bottom of the viewfinder and stay there. Still, when iOS 17 arrives later this year, you'll no longer need to perform this additional action to successfully tame an itinerant link.

Apple released the 24-inch iMac in April 2021 with the M1 chip and an ultra-thin design available in seven colors, including green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, blue, and silver. This is currently the only iMac in Apple's lineup, as the Intel-based 27-inch iMac and iMac Pro models were both discontinued over the past few years.

In his Power On newsletter last week, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reiterated that Apple has no plans to release an iMac with the M2 chip and will instead wait to update the computer with the M3 chip, which the company has yet to announce. Gurman expects the M3 chip to have similar CPU and GPU core counts as the M2 chip, but it is expected to use TSMC's 3nm process for significant performance and power efficiency improvements. All existing Apple silicon chips for Macs are manufactured based on TSMC's 5nm process.

Gurman expects the next iMac to launch by early 2024, and believes the computer will have a similar design as the current model, which starts at $1,299. This means the iMac will likely go around three years between hardware updates.

Other Macs expected to be updated with the M3 chip in the future include the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro, and Mac mini.

Apple's upcoming iPhone 15 will feature an upgraded Ultra Wideband (UWB) chip to optimize integration with the company's Vision Pro headset, according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

In his latest Twitter post, Kuo said upgrading the UWB processor, which Apple currently calls the U1 chip, is part of a plan to "aggressively upgrade hardware specifications to build a more competitive ecosystem for Vision Pro." Kuo goes on:

The ecosystem is one of the key success factors for Vision Pro, including the integration with other Apple hardware products, and related main hardware specifications are Wi-Fi and UWB.

iPhone 15 will likely see an specification upgrade of UWB, with the production process moving from 16nm to more advanced 7nm, allowing for improved performance or reduced power consumption for nearby interactions.

First debuting in the iPhone 11, the U1 chip powers several of Apple's location-based features like Find My, Precision Finding, and AirDrop. The U1 chip is also included in Apple Watch Series 6, the HomePod mini, the second-generation HomePod, AirTag trackers, and the charging case for the second-generation AirPods Pro.

Looking further ahead, Kuo says the iPhone 16 will feature support for Wi-Fi 7, "which will be more conducive to Apple's integration of hardware products running on the same local network and provide a better ecosystem experience."

Positioned as the next major generational Wi-Fi technology evolution, Wi-Fi 7 is expected to provide speeds of "at least 30" gigabits per second and could even hit 40Gbps, according to the Wi-Fi Alliance.

Wi-Fi 7 is also able to use 320MHz channels and supports 4K quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) technology, ultimately providing up to 2.4x faster speeds than Wi-Fi 6 with the same number of antennas.

Apple previewed its Vision Pro headset earlier this month at WWDC, but did not reveal all the details of its hardware specifications. The headset is set to launch early next year, and Apple reportedly plans to launch a more affordable model by the end of 2025.

Starting with iOS 17, iPadOS 17, and macOS Sonoma, Safari automatically removes tracking parameters from URLs while in Private Browsing Mode, in order to prevent cross-website tracking. When a tracking parameter is detected while browsing or copying a link, Apple says Safari strips the identifying components of the URL, while leaving the rest intact. The links will still work as expected, but will no longer have unique identifiers.

Apple calls this new feature Advanced Tracking and Fingerprinting Protection, and it also works for links shared in the Messages and Mail apps. It can even be enabled for regular Safari browsing. On the iPhone, open the Settings app, tap Safari → Advanced → Advanced Tracking and Fingerprinting Protection, and select All Browsing. Users can also turn off the feature in this menu if they prefer not to use it at all.

In a WWDC 2023 video for developers, Apple shared an example of a URL before and after the tracking parameters are removed. The original URL has a unique "click_id" parameter that advertisers can use to track a user's activity across websites. Safari automatically removes this parameter to protect the user's privacy.

iOS 17 and macOS Sonoma will be released later this year, and are currently available in beta for users with an Apple developer account.

With WWDC now in the rear-view mirror, we've finally had time to really dig into the new software updates and discover some of our favorite new features and changes.

New hardware was of course another big focus for WWDC, and while the Vision Pro isn't coming until next year, the updated MacBook Air, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro models began shipping out this week, so we're learning more about those as well. Read on below for all the details!

Top Five iOS 17 Features

Over a week has passed since Apple previewed iOS 17 at WWDC. The software update will be released later this year for the iPhone XS and newer, and is currently available in beta. Check out how to install the iOS 17 beta with a free Apple developer account.

We've put together a video and a list of the top five new features in iOS 17, including a useful new StandBy mode.

We also have an iOS 17 roundup with a detailed overview of the update.

M2 Ultra Chip Benchmark Results Reveal Impressive Performance Gains

The first benchmark results for Apple's high-end M2 Ultra chip surfaced on Geekbench 6 this week, providing a look at CPU performance improvements for the new Mac Pro and Mac Studio.

Due to Apple silicon's unified architecture, the new Mac Pro lacks graphics card support and user-upgradeable RAM. Check out our Mac Studio vs. Mac Pro Buyer's Guide for a comparison of the computers.

15-Inch MacBook Air Reviews: The Sweet Spot for Performance, Size, and Value

The new 15-inch MacBook Air launched in stores and began arriving to customers on Tuesday. One day earlier, the first reviews of the laptop were shared by select media outlets and YouTube channels, offering a closer look at the larger display and more.

Overall, many of the reviews found the 15-inch MacBook Air to be the perfect combination of performance, size, and value for most customers.

Mac Studio Reviews: M2 Ultra Chip, 8K Display Support

The new Mac Studio with M2 Max and M2 Ultra chips also launched on Tuesday, and reviews of the desktop computer are now available.

The Mac Studio is now equipped with an HDMI 2.1 port that supports an 8K external display at 60Hz, or a 4K display at 240Hz. Like many other new Macs, the Mac Studio now has faster Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity and support for high-impedance headphones.

Here's How Apple Watch Widgets Work in watchOS 10

Starting with watchOS 10, Apple Watch users can turn the Digital Crown to scroll through widgets in the new Smart Stack on any watch face.

We've put together a guide with a detailed overview of how the widgets work on watchOS 10. The software update will be released later this year for the Apple Watch Series 4 and newer, and is currently available in beta for anyone with a free Apple developer account.

Apple TV to Support VPN Apps on tvOS 17

tvOS 17 includes a handful of new features for the Apple TV, including FaceTime and a redesigned Control Center. Another new feature is support for VPN apps, although it remains to be seen if there will be any limitations in terms of how these apps can be used.

VPN apps could allow for Apple TV users to watch geo-restricted content from any location, such as the U.S. version of Netflix in another country. tvOS 17 will be released later this year for all Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD models.

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!

Since its introduction in iOS 7, AirDrop has become the favored means for iPhone users to instantly share photos, videos, documents, and more to nearby Apple devices with relative ease. Given its widespread popularity, the feature hasn't changed all that much over the years. But this year, Apple is stepping things up a gear by bringing several new capabilities to AirDrop that should make it more powerful than ever.

The following five features are coming with Apple's iOS 17 software update, which is expected to arrive in the fall. Are any of them likely to fundamentally change the way you use AirDrop? Let us know in the comments at the bottom of the article.

1. NameDrop

NameDrop was Apple's headline new AirDrop feature in its iOS 17 preview. Rather than type in the number of someone new to call or text them so that they have your number, NameDrop allows you to simply hold your iPhone near their iPhone to swap contact details.

When two iPhones are held close to each other, each person's Contact Poster appears (a picture of yourself that you can customize and edit, new to iOS 17). Users can then select which numbers and email addresses in their contact card that they want to share.

The feature also works between an iPhone and a nearby Apple Watch running an upcoming software update, which Apple says will be available "later this year."

2. New AirDrop Gesture to Share Content

The same iPhone-to-iPhone proximity gesture that works for NameDrop also allows users to share content like photos and files.

Simply bringing the two phones close together initiates the transfer over AirDrop, thereby removing the current requirement to manually select the person from the AirDrop device locator via the Share Sheet.

3. Continue AirDrop Over the Internet

The way AirDrop currently works, you have to stay within close proximity to the other person's device for any transfer to complete - if you leave AirDrop range, the transfer fails and the content isn't shared. This can be particularly frustrating when you're sending or receiving several large files like video content.

By contrast, if you leave AirDrop range in iOS 17, the content you are trying to share with someone continues to be sent securely, and in full quality, over the internet. The only requirement is that both you and your recipient are signed in to iCloud.

4. SharePlay Over AirDrop

Holding two iPhones close together can also be used to initiate a shared activity via SharePlay. This allows the two of you to listen to music or watch a movie together.

And thanks to a new SharePlay API, third-party developers can make their apps support the gesture, allowing you to drop into the same game together or watch the same stream while using your separate devices.

5. Explicit Image Blurring

iOS doesn't allow just anyone to share a photo or document to your device unless you actively choose to accept it. A longstanding issue with AirDrop however is that it displays a preview of the proposed shared content on your device's screen, whether or not you actually want to see it.

This had led people to be subjected to unsolicited nude and explicit images. To prevent this in iOS 17, Apple is introducing a new opt-in feature that is designed to automatically blur images sent over AirDrop that may have sensitive content like nudity. The content will be blocked, but can be viewed by tapping a "Show" button.

These Sensitive Content Warnings work like the Communication Safety functionality that Apple added for children, with all detection done on device so Apple does not see the content that's being shared.

On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we take a deep dive into the experience of using Apple's Vision Pro headset and what to expect when it goes on sale next year.

Dan is one of the lucky individuals who has had a chance to try out Vision Pro, so we discuss his personal experience with the device. We talk through the headset's comfort, external battery pack, eye-tracking, and input mechanisms, as well as its price point, and whether it can replace any existing Apple devices.

• Video: Trying the Apple Vision Pro Headset

We reflect on Vision Pro's eye tracking technology and what sort of trajectory the product line is likely to follow. We also touch on whether the 15-inch MacBook Air has lived up to expectations now that users have got their hands on it.

Listen to The MacRumors Show in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Castro, Google Podcasts, or your preferred podcasts app. You can also copy our RSS feed directly into your podcast player. Watch a video version of the show on the MacRumors YouTube channel.

If you haven't already listened to the previous episode of The MacRumors Show, listen to our discussion with Andru Edwards and Kevin Nether from the Apple Podcasts studio in Apple Park to discuss first impressions of the Vision Pro headset and the wave of other announcements the company made at WWDC this year.

Subscribe to ‌The MacRumors Show‌ for more episodes, where we discuss some of the topical news breaking here on MacRumors, often joined by exciting guests like Arnold Kim, Ben Sullins, Mark Gurman, Marcus Kane, Christopher Lawley, Frank McShan, David Lewis, Tyler Stalman, Jon Prosser, Sam Kohl, Quinn Nelson, John Gruber, Federico Viticci, Sara Dietschy, Luke Miani, Thomas Frank, Jonathan Morrison, iJustine, Ross Young, Ian Zelbo, Jon Rettinger, and Rene Ritchie. You can also head over to The MacRumors Show forum thread to engage with us directly. Remember to rate and review the show, and let us know what subjects you would like the podcast to cover in the future.

Repair website iFixit today shared a 15-inch MacBook Air teardown on YouTube, offering a closer look inside the laptop. As expected, the 15-inch MacBook Air has a similar internal design as the 13-inch model, with the only notable difference being two extra speakers.

"The new 15-inch MacBook Air also features a phenomenal new six-speaker sound system with two tweeters and two sets of force-cancelling woofers," said Apple. "The new speakers deliver twice the bass depth for fuller sound, and Spatial Audio with support for Dolby Atmos provides immersive experiences whether listening to music or watching movies."

The battery is also larger, but Apple says battery life is equal to the 13-inch model. As with the 13-inch model, the battery cells have adhesive pull tabs for easier removal, but the battery can only be accessed after several other components are disassembled.

The teardown offers a look at the 15-inch MacBook Air's logic board with the M2 chip and a single NAND chip for the 256GB model, which can result in slower SSD read and write speeds compared to 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB models.

Like other Apple laptops, iFixit said the 15-inch MacBook Air is very difficult to repair. In addition, RAM and storage cannot be upgraded after purchase.

Key advantages of the 15-inch MacBook Air over the 13-inch model include a larger display, larger trackpad, and six speakers instead of four. Both models have the M2 chip for equal performance, and very similar battery life. Apple began accepting orders for the 15-inch MacBook Air last week, and the laptop launched on Tuesday.

This week we began tracking a series of discounts on Apple's just-released 15-inch MacBook Air, and it's now sitting at a $100 discount on Amazon. Besides this great deal, we're tracking discounts on Beats and Bose headphones, Samsung's Smart Monitor M8, AirPods, and a few Anker accessories.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

15-Inch MacBook Air

• What's the deal? Take $100 off 15-inch MacBook Air
• Where can I get it? Amazon
• Where can I find the original deal? Right here

Apple's brand new 15-inch MacBook Air continued to receive discounts throughout the week, and it's now sitting at $100 off on Amazon for both the 256GB and 512GB models. Both sales represent new all-time low prices for the 2023 MacBook Air.

Headphones

• What's the deal? Save on Beats, Bose, and Master & Dynamic audio accessories

This week we saw a collection of sales crop up on headphones and earphones, with savings from companies including Bose, Beats, and Master & Dynamic. Starting with Beats, you'll find all-time low prices on Beats Studio Buds and Beats Fit Pro at Woot right now, starting at just $89.95.

Master & Dynamic is taking 30 percent off its MW08 Earphones with the code MW08 at checkout, knocking the accessory down to $209.30, from $299.00. Bose has a larger deal on an array of products, ranging from earphones to sound bars, and is providing up to 40 percent off these accessories.

Samsung

• What's the deal? Take $250 off Samsung Smart Monitor M8
• Where can I get it? Samsung
• Where can I find the original deal? Right here

Samsung's summertime discount on the 32-inch Smart Monitor M8 (Model M80B) is still available for the best price of the year at $449.99, down from $699.99. This deal coincided with the debut of the updated version of the monitor earlier this week, but no markdowns have appeared on that model as of yet.

AirPods

• What's the deal? Get up to $49 off AirPods Pro 2, AirPods 3, and AirPods 2
• Where can I get it? Amazon
• Where can I find the original deal? Right here

Amazon has a solid array of AirPods discounts this week, including $49 off AirPods Pro 2, $20 off AirPods 3, and $30 off AirPods 2. These are some of the best prices of the year on each model.

Anker

• What's the deal? Save on Anker's Bluetooth trackers, portable batteries, and more
• Where can I get it? Amazon
• Where can I find the original deal? Right here

Anker has a collection of sales this week on Amazon, providing solid savings on Eufy SmartTrack Bluetooth Trackers, portable batteries, MagSafe-compatible chargers, and more. A highlight of the sale is the PowerHouse 757 Portable Power Station at $899.99, down from $1,399.00. Visit our original article for the full list of deals.

Our full Deals Roundup has more information on the latest Apple-related sales and bargains.

Apple today released the third beta of macOS Ventura 13.5 to its public beta testing group, allowing the general public to try out the software ahead of its official launch. The macOS Ventura 13.5 public beta comes a day after Apple provided the third beta to developers.

Public beta testers can download the macOS 13.5 Ventura update from the Software Update section of the System Preferences app after installing the proper profile from Apple's beta software website.

There is no word as of yet on what's included in macOS Ventura 13.5, and no notable new features were found in the developer betas.

macOS 13.5 will be one of the last updates to the macOS Ventura operating system as Apple prepares for the fall launch of macOS Sonoma.

Apple today seeded the third betas of upcoming iOS 16.6 and iPadOS 16.6 updates to public beta testers, allowing non-developers to test out the software head of its official launch. The public betas come just a day after Apple provided the third betas to developers.

Those who have signed up their accounts for Apple's free beta testing program can enable the beta by opening up the Settings app, going to General, selecting Software Update, tapping on Beta Updates, and selecting the iOS 16 Public Beta option.

iOS 16.6 seems to be a relatively minor update, although Apple does appear to be laying the groundwork for the launch of the previously announced iMessage Contact Key Verification feature.

Development on iOS 16 is slowing down as Apple prepares for the September launch of iOS 17.

Apple has also seeded a new beta of watchOS 9.6 to public beta testers.

Apple at WWDC surprised us with the M2 Ultra chip, which is the key feature in the new second-generation Mac Studio. We thought we'd compare it to the first-generation ‌Mac Studio‌ with M1 Ultra chip to see whether it's worth upgrading.

Compared to the base ‌M1 Ultra‌, the base ‌M2‌ Ultra has a 24-core CPU (up from 20 cores) and a 60-core GPU (up from 48 cores). It has the same 64GB unified memory and 32-core Neural Engine.

In a real world Final Cut Pro export test with 4K footage, a 13 minute clip exported in five and a half minutes on the ‌M1 Ultra‌ machine, and just over three minutes on the ‌M2‌ Ultra. An export of an hour-long video took almost seventeen minutes on the ‌M1 Ultra‌ ‌Mac Studio‌, and just eight and a half minutes on the ‌M2‌ Ultra.

Over time, the ‌M2‌ Ultra is going to save a lot of exporting time for video editing, and other GPU-intensive tasks will likely see the same time savings.

The ‌Mac Studio‌ with ‌M2‌ Ultra we tested is equipped with an upgraded 2TB SSD, and on the BlackMagic Disk Speed Tests, we got read speeds of 5,455 and write speeds of 5,100. With a 1TB SSD on the ‌M1 Ultra‌ machine, we were seeing read speeds of 1,853 and write speeds of 5,092, so SSD speeds are up on the higher end at a minimum.

If you've already got an ‌M1 Ultra‌ ‌Mac Studio‌, it may be worth upgrading if you want to save time on video exports and similar tasks, but if you're not going to take advantage of the increased GPU speeds, it won't be worth the $3,999 starting price for the entry-level ‌M2‌ Ultra ‌Mac Studio‌. The ‌M2‌ Ultra ‌Mac Studio‌ is unquestionably the best desktop machine that Apple sells in terms of price and performance for professionals.

There is an ‌M2‌ Mac Pro, but it is priced starting at $6,999 for the same performance but with PCIe slots. What do you think of the ‌M2‌ Ultra chip? Let us know in the comments below.

Woot today has introduced a new discount event that's offering savings on a number of Apple products, including the 24-inch iMac, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro. All products in this sale are in "open box" condition, which means they are new and come in the original packaging, but instead of the Apple warranty they have a 90 day Woot warranty.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Starting with the 7-core GPU/256GB M1 iMac, this model is on sale for $949.99 in Silver, down from $1,299.00. This is an all-time low price on this model of the iMac, beating the previous low price we tracked on Amazon by about $50.

You can also get the 8-core GPU/256GB M1 iMac on sale for $999.99, down from $1,499.00. This sale is a match of the previous record low that we tracked on Amazon a few months ago, and on Woot it's available in Green, Yellow, Blue, and Pink.

Moving to MacBook Air models, the 256GB 13.6-inch MacBook Air from 2022 is discounted to $979.99 today on Woot, down from $1,099.00. This beats the typical deal price that we've tracked in the past by about $20, and Woot has all four colors on sale at this price.

Be sure to browse Woot's sale page to check out even more discounts going on during this event, which will end on June 20. 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.

Apple this week began selling its new Beats Studio Buds+ in the UK and most other countries, with the exceptions of Brazil, Mexico, and Taiwan, where the earbuds will be available starting mid-August. The earbuds first launched in the U.S. in May.

Key new features of the Studio Buds+ include a transparent design option similar to the Nothing Ear (2) earbuds, up to 36 hours of battery life with the included USB-C charging case, and up to 1.6× as much active noise cancellation as the original Studio Buds that launched in 2021. In the U.S., the earbuds are priced at $169.99.

Studio Buds+ are essentially a sportier alternative to the AirPods Pro, and have a more compact design without "stems" that drop below the ears. Other color options include Black/Gold and Ivory, and ear tip size options include XS, S, M, and L.

Studio Buds+ support features such as one-touch pairing with Apple devices, hands-free "Hey Siri" voice commands, and the Find My app. They also support similar Android features, such as Google Fast Pair, Audio Switch, and Find My Device. For more details about the earbuds, check out our hands-on coverage from last month.

With the advent of iOS 17 this coming fall, Apple Music is getting a handful of notable new features that should make using the Music app and the ‌Apple Music‌ streaming service in general a more immersive and enjoyable experience. Below, we run through all the changes and improvements that you can expect to arrive when iOS 17 is released later this year.

1. Collaborative Playlists

Perhaps one of the most requested features coming to ‌Apple Music‌ this year, Collaborative Playlists will give subscribers the ability to invite friends to add and edit songs in a shared playlist. Rival streaming services like Spotify have had similar features for a while now, so it's good to see that Apple has finally read the room.

When a person adds a song to a Collaborative Playlist, their profile picture appears beside the track. People invited to the playlist will also be able to react to their favorite songs using emoji.

Apple says Collaborative Playlists will be available in an update later this year, so this feature may not be included when ‌iOS 17 is released in the fall‌.

2. Crossfade

Another feature that rival music streaming services have had for some time is crossfade, and now it's coming to ‌Apple Music‌. That's right – soon you'll be able to smoothly transition between songs so the music never stops.

If you're running the first iOS 17 developer beta, note that trying to enable Crossfade in Settings -> Music invariably crashes the Settings app and locks you out of the Music settings menu. Apple clearly needs more time to iron out a few creases.

3. SharePlay for CarPlay

In iOS 17, when you're playing music via CarPlay, there's a new SharePlay option that lets you play from an iPhone other than the one that's connected to the car.

By accepting a notification or scanning a QR code, soon even passengers in the back seat will be able to play their favorite music and contribute to what's playing.

4. Camera Support for Karaoke

If you've not used ‌Apple Music‌ Sing before, the feature basically uses the app's built-in follow-along lyrics, while also adding a toggle to turn down the vocals of a song to replace them with your own.

In iOS 17, you'll also be able to watch yourself perform your favorite hits at your own karaoke party. That's because ‌Apple Music‌ Sing is getting support for Continuity Camera, which lets you wirelessly pair your iPhone or iPad with a Mac or Apple TV 4K and use it as a camera.

5. Redesigned UI

The ‌Apple Music‌ app user interface is receiving some nice quality of life improvements and design tweaks. The music player now features full-screen animated artwork on supported albums, allowing them to seamlessly blend into the media playback controls at the bottom.

In addition, when you minimize the music player, it takes on a depth effect that makes it appear as though it's hovering over the rest of the interface as you navigate through the app. Lastly, Apple is making non-synced lyrics easier to read by adopting a larger and more legible font.

Want to try the new ‌Apple Music‌ features for yourself? If you can't wait for the official release – and you have a spare iPhone that isn't your daily driver – the iOS 17 beta is now available to download on iPhones for free.