Tim Hardwick
Tim is a Senior Editor at MacRumors and has been writing for the site since 2016. Formerly a magazine journalist, his work has appeared in over 30 newsstand print publications and online brands covering a range of topics, from the latest trends in technology to the mysteries of ancient history.
Based in the UK, Tim's current role at MacRumors involves editorial oversight and how tos, in addition to covering daily news and contributing occasional reviews. Tim can be reached at tim@macrumors.com, Telegram (@waxeditorial) or Twitter.
Based in the UK, Tim's current role at MacRumors involves editorial oversight and how tos, in addition to covering daily news and contributing occasional reviews. Tim can be reached at tim@macrumors.com, Telegram (@waxeditorial) or Twitter.
Tim Hardwick's Articles
iPhone 17 Pricing Helped Apple Buck China's Q2 Smartphone Decline
Apple grew iPhone shipments in China by 24.4 percent year over year in the second quarter of 2026, making it the fastest-growing smartphone brand in a market that shrank overall, according to preliminary figures released today by research firm IDC.
Total shipments in China fell 4.3 percent to roughly 66 million units, amounting to a fifth consecutive quarter of decline. Apple and Huawei were ...
Read Full Article • 27 comments
WhatsApp Beta Reveals iCloud Backup Alternative for iPhone
WhatsApp is developing a first-party cloud storage option for chat backups on iPhone, providing users with an alternative to iCloud for the first time, according to app tinkerer WABetaInfo.
Code found in the WhatsApp beta for iOS (version 26.28.10.16), available through TestFlight, suggests that users will eventually be able to pick their preferred backup destination directly from the app's...
Google Chrome's Gemini AI Features Roll Out to UK Users
Google has announced the rollout of Chrome's latest AI features to Mac and PC users in the U.K., indicated by a new "Ask Gemini" button with a sparkle icon in the upper right side of the browser.
Gemini in Chrome can work across multiple tabs, which is supposed to make it useful for comparing and summarizing information from several websites at once.
It also integrates with Google...
iPhone 18 Pro: Three Ways Apple's Chip Redesign Boosts Performance
An unconfirmed image of the iPhone 18 Pro's motherboard was recently shared online that appears to suggest that the A20 Pro chip is built on a new packaging technology. It might not sound exciting, but it could deliver an instant jump in real-world performance over the A19 Pro currently used in the iPhone 17 Pro models.
The image shows an apparent A20 Pro chip integrated using TSMC's...
How to Install iOS 27 Public Beta on Your iPhone
Apple has made available the first public beta of iOS 27, bringing a more stable version of the software to a wider audience following lengthy testing by developers. Keep reading to learn how to prepare your device for the beta software and how to install it.
Signing up to get the iOS 27 or iPadOS 27 public beta is simple once you know how – it can be done by enrolling an iPhone or...
Apple Stock Hits Record Territory as Traders Sour on AI Spending
Apple shares have rallied 15 percent since their worst day on the stock market in more than a year, adding almost $600 billion in value since June 25 and returning the stock to record territory (via Bloomberg).
The rebound comes as investors grow uneasy about the mind-boggling sums of cash continually being poured into the AI data center buildout, despite there being no obvious indicator for ...
Meta Pulls AI Image Feature From Instagram Days After Launch
Remember that new feature Meta announced last week that let people use public Instagram posts and reels to generate AI content? It didn't last long. Meta pulled the feature from Instagram late on Friday, following widespread criticism over privacy concerns.
"Our intent was to provide a useful creative tool and to give people control over whether their public content could be referenced in...
5 New Waze Features Rolling Out Now: Here Are All the Details
Google today announced that Waze is getting a handful of new features, including some Gemini-powered personalization enhancements for Conversational Reporting.
Conversational Reporting already uses Gemini when users report traffic incidents like slowdowns, but now you can use it to suggest map updates like road closures or outdated addresses. Saying something like "The road is closed here"...
Report: Apple Agreed to Intel Chips Amid White House Tariff Talks
Apple faced pressure from the White House to use Intel's chipmaking plants while it was negotiating relief from semiconductor tariffs last summer, reports The Wall Street Journal ($).
In August 2025, Apple CEO Tim Cook was in Washington to lobby the Trump administration to drop its proposed 100 percent tariff on semiconductor imports – a levy that would have raised costs across Apple's...
EU: Facebook and Instagram's Infinite Scroll May Break Digital Rules
Meta has been warned by the European Commission that its endlessly scrolling Facebook and Instagram feeds may violate the EU's new Digital Services Act rules.
In preliminary findings published on Friday, the Commission said that its investigation into features such as infinite scroll, autoplay, push notifications, and highly personalized recommender systems, found that Meta "did not...
OpenAI's ChatGPT Atlas Browser Is Shutting Down
OpenAI says it is shuttering its ChatGPT Atlas browser. When it was released last October, the company said the agentic browser was designed around the question "What if you could chat with your web browser?" The query was at least novel, but the answer was apparently not all that compelling.
As part of a slew of ChatGPT Work-related announcements on Thursday, OpenAI confirmed plans to...
Apple Reportedly Slashes iPhone 17 Demand Forecast Amid Rising Costs
Apple has significantly lowered its demand expectations for the standard iPhone 17 because of rising hardware costs, a Chinese leaker claimed today.
According to the account "Fixed Focus Digital" on Weibo, some production lines for the standard iPhone 17 this week shifted from an earlier 15 percent reduction to plans to suspend roughly one-third of their capacity. The leaker also claimed...
Foldable iPhone Ultra Battery Capacity Allegedly Registered by Supplier
Apple's battery supplier has registered two new battery cells believed to be destined for the company's rumored foldable iPhone, according to a prolific Chinese leaker.
In a post on Weibo, the leaker known as Digital Chat Station said that the two cells have rated capacities of 1,921mAh and 2,962mAh, for a combined minimum rated capacity of 4,883mAh. "The supply chain is also predicting a...
Stop Others Using Your Instagram Photos in AI Prompts: Here's How
On July 8, Meta launched Muse Image, an AI image generator now built into Meta AI, Instagram, and WhatsApp. It can do the typical text-to-image generative trick, but one feature in particular is causing controversy: Anyone can mention (@) a public Instagram account inside the Meta AI app, and it will use that account's photos as the basis of an AI-generated image.
If your Instagram account...
DuckDuckGo Browser Now Blocks YouTube Ads on iPhone and Mac
DuckDuckGo's free web browser now blocks most video ads on YouTube, and the feature is on by default for iPhone and Mac users running the latest version of the app.
Announced on Wednesday, YouTube Ad Blocking stops ads that play before and during videos on YouTube's website, and DuckDuckGo says the result is the regular YouTube experience minus the interruptions, so features like viewing...
Meta's 'Super Sensing' Prototype Glasses Quietly Record Everything
Meta has prototyped "super sensing" smart glasses that use cameras and audio recordings to capture the wearer's every moment, reports the Financial Times ($).
The smart glasses continuously collect audio while taking photos every few seconds, allowing the user to leverage AI to help query what they saw or heard, or recall their day, according to the report's sources.
Meta's current AI...
iPhone 18 Pro Max Said to Be Thicker and Heavier Than Predecessor
Apple's upcoming iPhone 18 Pro Max could be noticeably thicker and heavier than its predecessor, suggesting a trade-off behind the device's rumored larger battery.
Chinese leaker Ice Universe today claimed the iPhone 18 Pro Max will measure around 9mm thick and weigh approximately 240 grams. That would make the device around 0.25mm thicker and roughly 7 grams heavier than the current iPhone...
Next Year's iPhone Air 2 to Feature Four Key Upgrades
The iPhone Air launched last year as Apple's thinnest phone to date, but its single rear camera quickly became the most common complaint about an otherwise well-received device. Next year, Apple is set to address that.
A report from Bloomberg says the second-generation iPhone Air, expected in spring 2027, will gain a second rear camera. An Ultra Wide lens will join the existing Wide lens,...
Report: Cheaper Apple Vision Pro Display Work Winds Down at Samsung
Apple has suspended development of the display for a cheaper, lighter version of the Vision Pro that it originally planned to launch in the next few years, according to The Elec.
The Korean outlet says Apple supplier Samsung Display is set to internally wind down the panel project – known in the industry as "G-VR" – with development set to be formally terminated by September.
G-VR is ...
Samsung Galaxy Unpacked Event Set for July 22 With Foldable iPhone Rival Expected to Debut
Samsung has announced it will introduce its latest Galaxy smartphones at a July 22 event, including what is believed to be a Galaxy Z Fold 8 with new passport-style dimensions similar to Apple's upcoming book-style foldable iPhone.
It's no secret that Samsung has been working on a new foldable form factor to go head-to-head with Apple's rumored iPhone Ultra, and the company has been hinting...
