MacRumors

Today we're tracking two different deals on Amazon, including all-time low prices on the M1 MacBook Air and steep discounts on a few AirTag accessories, available from just $9.00.

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.

M1 MacBook Air

Apple's 2020 256GB M1 MacBook Air has hit the all-time low price of $799.00 today on Amazon, down from $999.00. This price is only available on Amazon as of writing, and all three colors of Space Gray, Silver, and Gold are on sale.

This notebook is now about two years old, and there is a newer M2 MacBook Air that launched in the middle of 2022. The cheapest you'll currently find the M2 MacBook Air starts at $1,099.00 for 256GB, so anyone okay with a previous generation model can save a lot of money with the M1 era notebook.

AirTag Accessories

We're also tracking solid deals on a few AirTag accessories on Amazon, starting at just $9.00 for the AirTag Loop. You can get this one in Electric Orange and Capri Blue at this price, which is the best price we've ever seen.

Secondly, the AirTag Leather Key Ring is $19.00 in California Poppy and Meyer Lemon, down from $35.00. This is another record low price, and both colors are in stock and ready to ship directly from Amazon.

Head to our full Deals Roundup to get caught up with all of the latest deals and discounts that we've been tracking over the past week.

Apple is expected to announce new iPad Pro models and potentially more very shortly. Alongside the announcements, Apple will be rolling out a hashflag for the #TakeNote hashtag on Twitter. The hashflag is set to go live at 6:30 a.m. Pacific Time.

A hashflag is a custom icon that appears next to a specified hashtag on Twitter. In this case, a colorful Apple logo will appear next to #TakeNote.

It's likely that Apple will also announce a redesigned 10th-generation iPad alongside the new iPad Pro, and we might get release dates for iPadOS 16.1, iOS 16.1, and macOS Ventura as well today. We'll find out for sure very soon, so stay tuned.

Update: Apple today unveiled new iPad Pro models, an updated iPad, a new Apple TV, and more.

Mozilla today announced the launch of the next-generation version of Firefox, which adds several useful new features to the browser.

Firefox 106 adds a new private browsing shortcut that can be pinned to the desktop to make it easy to open up a Private Browsing window, plus Mozilla has redesigned the Private Browsing mode with a more modern look and a default dark theme.

A new Firefox View feature offers up access to 25 of a Firefox user's most recently closed tabs, and it will have a continuity feature that allows users signed into a Firefox Account to see the last three active tabs that were opened on other devices. Firefox View is limited to the desktop as of now.

There is a PDF editor shortcut that offers direct editing capabilities, plus Mozilla has introduced a text recognition feature. On macOS 10.15 and later, Mac users can separate and reuse text from an image.

The latest version of Firefox can be downloaded today on the Mac and on iOS devices.

A last-minute leak has insisted that the upcoming 10th-generation entry-level iPad will feature a landscape FaceTime camera.

An image of a screen protector allegedly for the upcoming ‌iPad‌ was shared on Twitter by Majin Bu and shows a horizontal cutout hole on the front for the ‌FaceTime‌ camera. The repositioning of the camera was previously rumored by the Japanese blog Mac Otakara. A landscape ‌FaceTime‌ camera would be better suited for video calls when the ‌iPad‌ is attached to an accessory, such as the Magic Keyboard.

Apple is expected to announce new M2 ‌iPad‌ Pros later today, as teased by Apple CEO Tim Cook and the Apple Store going down. An announcement of the 10th-generation ‌iPad‌, which is expected to feature an updated design and USB-C, is also possible. Stay tuned with MacRumors for ongoing coverage of today's expected announcement.

Apple's online storefront has gone down ahead of the expected announcement of new iPad models via press release.

Upon the online store going down, Apple CEO Tim Cook seemingly tweeted a teaser for a new product announcement with the hashtag "#TakeNote," which could allude to the Apple Pencil and the notetaking capabilities of the ‌iPad‌:

Yesterday, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that Apple was planning to unveil new iPad Pro models today. The announcement is expected to come via a press release on Apple's Newsroom site.

The next-generation ‌iPad Pro‌ models are expected to feature the M2 chip, MagSafe wireless charging, two new four-pin connectors on the top and bottom side edges, and camera upgrades. The update has been expected for some time, not least because the current ‌iPad Pro‌ models are over 18 months old.

Apple is also rumored to be planning to release a 10th-generation entry-level iPad with a larger 10.5-inch display, a USB-C port, flat edges, the A14 Bionic chip, 5G support on cellular models, and potentially a Touch ID power button and a landscape FaceTime camera. It remains unclear if this device will also be announced today alongside the new ‌iPad Pro‌ models.

Apple has restored Russian apps for social network VKontakte and webmail provider Mail.ru to the App Store, three weeks after removing them and other VK-owned apps in response to UK sanctions (via The Guardian).

The two services, which could be described as home-grown versions of Facebook and Gmail, were pulled following a package of sanctions enacted by the British government that affected tens of executives at Gazprombank, a Russian bank with links to VK. The sanctions were in response to sham referenda staged by Russian authorities in occupied areas of Ukraine.

"These apps are being distributed by developers majority-owned or majority-controlled by one or more parties sanctioned by the UK government," Apple said in a statement at the time.

It wasn't immediately clear why Apple restored the apps, since ownership of VKontake and Mail.ru has not changed since the apps were removed, and the leadership of Gazprombank and Sberbank remain sanctioned by the British government. However, it's possible Apple's decision was related to the use of both services by activists.

The apps re-appeared on App Stores globally on Monday, as flagged by monitoring project Apple Censorship. Benjamin Ismail, the project's director, told The Guardian:

The only thing we can say for sure is that, once again, Apple implements its App Stores policies in total opacity, thinking it will not be held accountable for its actions. While we are glad to see those apps restored, as some activists and members of civil society organisations were still using them when they were removed, we condemn Apple for its continuous, erratic, and non-transparent way of managing content in the App Store.

Both VKontake and Mail.ru apps were included in a list that Apple was legally obliged to show to new iPhone owners in Russia for download during initial setup, until Apple stopped selling its products in the country.

Update: A spokesperson for Apple shared the following statement:

The apps from this developer were removed from the App Store, as required by law, after multiple requests were made to the developer to provide documentation to verify that they were not in violation of UK sanctions. Subsequent to the removal, the developer has provided the requisite information verifying that they are not majority owned or controlled by a sanctioned entity. Thus, the apps have been reinstated to the App Store.

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.

YouTube has brought to an end a limited test that locked 4K videos behind its Premium subscription, according to one of its official Twitter accounts (via 9to5Google).

YouTube has supported 4K videos since 2010, and they have since been freely available to be viewed by anyone. At least, that was until earlier this month, when some users reported seeing a "Premium" label against 2160p/4K content, indicating only paying YouTube subscribers were able to view 4K content on the platform.

Currently, a standard YouTube Premium plan costs $11.99 in the United States and includes ad-free videos, background playback, and the ability to download videos for offline viewing. YouTube's experiment suggested it was actively considering 4K viewing as an added perk.

According to multiple tweets from the official TeamYouTube Twitter account, that experiment has now come to an end. YouTube representatives gave no reason for the change, but it's possible the negative online backlash to the test hastened its discontinuation.

Netflix has announced a new feature called Profile Transfer, allowing users to move their personalized recommendations, viewing history, My List, saved games, and other settings to a new account.

Netflix is pitching the feature as an easy way for users to transition to a new account if their living circumstances change and they can't or no longer want to share an account with someone else in the same household. From the press release:

People move. Families grow. Relationships end. But throughout these life changes, your Netflix experience should stay the same. Today, we’re launching Profile Transfer, a feature that lets people using your account transfer a profile — keeping the personalized recommendations, viewing history, My List, saved games, and other settings — when they start their own membership.

As The Verge notes, it's not hard to infer an ulterior motive for Profile Transfer, given the company's stated intent to crack down on account sharing. The feature guides users through the process of starting a new Netflix account from an existing profile, which is what they would presumably be required to do when Netflix begins restricting access to subscribers who share the same household.

Netflix in April said that it lost subscribers in the first quarter of the year, and it marked the first subscriber loss for Netflix in more than a decade. Netflix lost 200,000 subscribers, and said it expected to lose two million more in the second quarter.

The subscriber loss was partially attributed to account sharing, and Netflix estimates that 222 million paying households are sharing with an additional 100 million households that are not being monetized.

Netflix started testing an extra payment for those who share their Netflix accounts with people outside their households in March. In Netflix's current test markets of Chile, Costa Rica, and Peru, customers can pay an extra fee to share their accounts with two people outside of their household.

When the test was launched, Netflix said that it was working to "understand the utility of these two features" before making changes in other countries. Notably, Profile Transfer has been in testing since March in the same three countries, and is now rolling out more broadly. Other features geared towards monetization are expected to follow in its wake.

Apple plans to launch its first foldable in the form of a new iPad in 2024, analysts at CCS Insight claim.

According to the report, Apple plans to treat the ‌iPad‌ as a way to widely test foldable technology before adopting it on the iPhone. Ben Wood, CCS Insight's Chief Analyst, said in an interview with CNBC that it "doesn't make sense for Apple to make a foldable iPhone" in the current climate. "We think they will shun that trend and probably dip a toe in the water with a foldable ‌iPad‌," he added.

Apple is believed to be testing a foldable device with a display around 20-inches in size, according to reliable display analyst Ross Young, who expects the device to hit the market in 2026 or 2027. Foldable devices have slowly grown in popularity in recent years, with companies like Samsung having released multiple foldable devices.

Apple is said to be working with LG to create an ultra-thin cover glass that could be used on the company's future foldable products. The exact form factor of the foldable ‌iPad‌, including whether it would be a hybrid between an iPhone and an ‌iPad‌, remains unknown.

Following the release of iOS 16.0.3 last week, Apple has stopped signing iOS 16.0.2, meaning it is no longer possible to downgrade an iPhone to iOS 16.0.2. This leaves iOS 16.0.3 and the iOS 16.1 beta as the only iOS 16 versions that are still being signed.

Apple routinely stops signing older iOS releases over time in order to prevent users from downgrading to an outdated software version.

iOS 16.0.2 was released on September 22 and included several bug fixes and security updates. The update addressed a few issues affecting iPhone 14 Pro models, including the rear camera vibrating when shooting with some third-party apps and the display appearing completely black during device setup. iOS 16.0.2 also fixed a bug that resulted in some users facing excessive copy-and-paste permission prompts.

iOS 16.1 is expected to be released next week alongside iPadOS 16.1 and macOS Ventura.

Apple plans to announce new iPad Pro models with the M2 chip this Tuesday, October 18, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

Gurman previously said updated 11-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models would be announced "in a matter of days, and he has since narrowed down the timeframe to tomorrow. The announcement will likely occur in the form of an Apple Newsroom press release.

Key new features rumored for the iPad Pro include the same M2 chip as found in the MacBook Air and MagSafe wireless charging support. No major design changes are expected for the iPad Pro this year, suggesting the update will be a minor spec bump.

Apple is also rumored to be planning a new 10th-generation entry-level iPad with a larger 10.5-inch display, a USB-C port, flat edges, an A14 Bionic chip, 5G support for cellular models, and potentially a Touch ID power button and a landscape FaceTime camera. However, it's unclear if this device will also be announced tomorrow.

Gurman expects iPadOS 16 to be released to the public next week.

iOS 16 introduced a new privacy feature that requires apps to receive a user's permission before directly accessing their iPhone's clipboard to paste text from other apps, but some users experienced an issue that caused the prompt to appear excessively. Apple released iOS 16.0.2 with a fix for the issue and other bugs in late September.

Apple has continued to refine the copy-and-paste feature in the weeks since. In the Settings app on the fourth beta of iOS 16.1 and later, a new "Paste from Other Apps" menu appears for apps that have previously asked for permission to paste content from another app. The menu can be found in the Settings app → [App Name] → Paste from Other Apps.

The menu presents users with three options:

• Ask: The app must continue to request permission to paste content from other apps.
• Deny: The app cannot paste content from other apps.
• Allow: The app can paste content from other apps without asking for permission again.

The menu gives users more granular control and flexibility over the copy-and-paste permission prompts, which should help make the privacy feature less of a nuisance. Note that the menu does not appear for apps that have never requested clipboard permission.

Last month, an Apple engineer said the copy-and-paste permission prompt only appears when an app attempts to access the clipboard directly. The prompt does not appear when a user selects the "Paste" option in the menu that pops up after highlighting text or interacts with apps that have paste buttons based on the UIPasteControl framework.

iOS 16.1 remains in beta testing and is expected to be released later this month.

(Thanks, Youssef Salem!)

The iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max dominated other flagship smartphones, including Google's new Pixel 7 and Samsung's Galaxy S22 Ultra, in recent battery life tests.

The battery test was conducted by PhoneArena and compared some of the most popular flagship smartphones currently on the market, including the new Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, and last year's Pixel 6 Pro, against each other for battery life. In the first part of the test, each phone was put through a simulator to replicate typical web browsing. The iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max were the two winners of this specific test. The full results were as follows:

• iPhone 14 Pro Max: 19 hours and 5 minutes
• iPhone 14 Pro: 16 hours and 18 minutes
• Pixel 7 Pro: 14 hours and 19 minutes
• Pixel 7: 13 hours and 56 minutes
• Galaxy S22 Ultra: 13 hours and 17 minutes
• Pixel 6 Pro: 13 hours and 13 minutes

The second portion of the test included each phone playing back the same YouTube video until they died. Each phone started out at 100% brightness levels, according to the video. The results were as follows:

• iPhone 14 Pro Max: 11 hours and 0 minutes
• Pixel 7 Pro: 9 hours and 39 minutes
• iPhone 14 Pro: 9 hours and 14 minutes
• Pixel 7: 9 hours and 13 minutes
• Pixel 6 Pro: 9 hours and 10 minutes
• Galaxy S22 Ultra: 7 hours and 27 minutes

While on paper it may seem logical that given the results, the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max would have the largest physical batteries out of the smartphone, that's actually not the case.

The iPhone 14 Pro, in fact, has the smallest battery compared to the Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, Pixel 6 Pro, and the Galaxy S22 Ultra. The iPhone 14 Pro Max also has the smallest battery compared to the other large flagships, despite lasting the longest in all the tests.

• iPhone 14 Pro Max: 4323mAh
• iPhone 14 Pro: 3200mAh
• Galaxy S22 Ultra: 5000mAh
• Pixel 7 Pro: 5000mAh
• Pixel 7: 4355mAh
• Pixel 6 Pro: 5000mAh

WhatsApp is "far more private and secure" than Apple's iMessage platform, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has claimed in a new Instagram post.

In a post sharing a Meta billboard in New York City promoting WhatsApp over SMS or iMessage, Zuckerberg said WhatsApp is far better for privacy-concerned users thanks to its end-to-end encryption, ability to set messages to disappear after a set period of time, and its availability across multiple platforms.

WhatsApp is far more private and secure than iMessage, with end-to-end encryption that works across both iPhones and Android, including group chats. With WhatsApp you can also set all new chats to disappear with the tap of a button. And last year we introduced end-to-end encrypted backups too. All of which iMessage still doesn't have.

Apple and Meta have had an ongoing rivalry for some time, with the tension between the two tech giants growing more recently. Meta has accused Apple of hurting small businesses and its ads business by introducing measures that allow iPhone users to opt out of tracking in apps and websites across other websites.

In a meeting with staff, Zuckerberg said Meta's competition with Apple is "very deep" and "philosophical," pointing to the increasingly competitive AR/VR space which Apple is expected to officially enter with a headset early next year.

A third-party case for the rumored 10th-generation iPad appears to have hit the shelves early at a Target store in the United States.

Twitter user @roeeban today shared photos of a folio for an unreleased 2022 version of the entry-level iPad. The folio is designed by popular accessory maker Speck, which has been making cases for Apple products for well over a decade and likely has sources within Apple's supply chain in order to obtain design details about upcoming devices.

Notably, the case has a holder for the second-generation Apple Pencil, suggesting that the 10th-generation iPad will support the newer version of the Apple Pencil. The ninth-generation iPad is only compatible with the original Apple Pencil.

Here's a closer look at the mention of second-generation Apple Pencil support on the box:

Rumors suggest the 10th-generation iPad will feature a new design with a larger 10.5-inch display, a USB-C port, flat edges like the iPad Pro, and a landscape FaceTime camera, while the headphone jack is expected to be removed. The device is also expected to feature an A14 Bionic chip and 5G support on cellular models. It's not entirely clear if the device will have a Touch ID home button or a Touch ID power button.

The new iPad could be announced alongside the new iPad Pro this month. iPadOS 16 is expected to be released to the public next week.

Apple last updated the entry-level iPad in September 2021, with key features at the time including a 10.2-inch display, an A13 Bionic chip, an upgraded 12-megapixel front camera with support for the Center Stage feature, True Tone, and double the base storage. In the U.S., the 10.2-inch iPad starts at $329 with 64GB of storage.

Rumors suggest that these final two weeks of October will be busy for Apple, with new iPad Pro models, a trio of software releases, and more expected. Below, we've recapped the latest information regarding Apple's upcoming announcements.

• iPad Pro: Bloomberg's Mark Gurman expects updated 11-inch and 12.9-inch models of the iPad Pro to be announced "in a matter of days." New features rumored for the device include the same M2 chip as in the MacBook Air and MagSafe wireless charging support. No major design changes are expected.

• iPad: The 10th-generation entry-level iPad is expected to have an all-new design with a larger 10.5-inch display, a USB-C port, and flat edges. Other rumored features include an A14 Bionic chip, 5G support for cellular models, and potentially a Touch ID power button. The device could be announced alongside the new iPad Pro this month, but launch timing is a little less certain for this device.
• MacBook Pro: Next-generation 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models are "on track to launch in the near future," according to Gurman, but he does not expect them to be announced alongside the new iPad Pro. Gurman said Apple has often launched new Macs in November in recent years, such as the original 16-inch MacBook Pro in 2019 and the first Macs with the M1 chip in 2020.
• Mac mini: An updated Mac mini with an M2 chip is rumored to be in development, but a release date remains uncertain.
• Mac Pro: Gurman now expects the next Mac Pro with M2 Ultra and M2 Extreme chip options to launch in 2023.
• Apple TV: A new Apple TV could launch before the end of 2022, according to Gurman and analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Rumored features include an A14 chip, an increased 4GB of RAM, and potentially a lower price. There were also code-level references to a new version of the Siri Remote in the iOS 16 beta.
• iPadOS 16 and macOS Ventura: iPadOS 16 and macOS Ventura are on track to be released during the week of Monday, October 24, according to Gurman. iPadOS 16 will be labeled as iPadOS 16.1 due to its delayed release.
• iOS 16.1: Apple will likely release iOS 16.1 on the same day as iPadOS 16.1 given that the updates share the same build number.

Given that Apple apparently does not plan to hold an October event this year, the new iPad Pro models and other releases will likely be announced with Apple Newsroom press releases. In addition, Apple's software engineering chief Craig Federighi and marketing chief Greg Joswiak will likely discuss iPadOS 16 and macOS Ventura when they speak with tech columnist Joanna Stern at the WSJ Tech Live event on Tuesday, October 25.

Earlier today we tracked a return of a Prime Early Access all-time low price on the 2022 iPad Air, and now we're seeing a similar occurrence for the 2021 iPad. You can get the 64GB Wi-Fi iPad for $269.00, down from $329.00.

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.

This is the best price we've ever seen for the iPad, and it was a price introduced during last week's Prime Early Access event. Both Silver and Space Gray are in stock, with delivery windows given between October 19 and 22.

Our full Deals Roundup has more information on the latest Apple-related sales and bargains. For even more iPad deals, head to our full Best Deals guide for iPad. In that guide we track the best discounts online for iPad, iPad mini, iPad Air, and iPad Pro.

NBA 2K23 Arcade Edition is set to launch on Apple Arcade on Tuesday alongside the start of the 2022-23 NBA season. The game features updated rosters, a new "The Greatest" mode with the all-time greatest players, more immersive gameplay, and more.

"The Greatest" mode includes 20 of the greatest NBA players from the past and present, including Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, and many others. The 2K23 edition of the game also includes new in-game commentary from Kevin Harlan, Brian Anderson, Greg Anthony, Grant Hill, or Doris Burke.

Like the NBA 2K22 edition of the game, there remains an "Association" mode that tasks players with managing an NBA roster by making trades, signing free agents, scouting up-and-coming prospects, and controlling their team's finances, as well as a "MyCAREER mode" where players can start their own NBA journey with a custom player, position, and jersey number. There are also "Quick Match" and online multiplayer modes.

Apple Arcade is a subscription-based gaming service accessible through the App Store. Priced at $4.99 per month or $49.99 per year in the U.S., the service provides subscribers with access to over 200 games across the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV. All games on Apple Arcade are free of ads and in-app purchases.