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
Apple's 2024 Back to School Sale Launches, Up to $150 Gift Card With Mac or iPad
Apple has launched its annual Back to School promotion for college students in the United States. This year's promotion offers a free Apple gift card with the purchase of an eligible Mac or iPad. Apple is also offering students 20% off AppleCare+ plans.
Apple is offering a $150 gift card with any new MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, or iMac, and a $100 gift card with the purchase of any new M4 iPad ...
Read Full Article • 108 comments
macOS Sequoia Adds iCloud Support for macOS 15 Virtual Machines
Apple is introducing a notable enhancement to its virtualization framework in macOS Sequoia by enabling Mac users to sign into iCloud within macOS virtual machines (VMs).
Previously, users could not sign into iCloud on macOS VMs, which limited the framework's utility for developers needing to test iCloud features and for users looking to sync their apps with iCloud. As spotted by ArsTechnic...
Apple Education Store Down in US and Canada, Back to School Offer Expected Soon
Apple's online education store has gone down in the United States and Canada, as Apple prepares to launch its annual Back to School promotion for university students.
Apple's back to school sales provide students with a free Apple gift card when purchasing a Mac or an iPad, and this year's promotion could help Apple push the new M2 iPad Air and M4 iPad Pro models.
Last year, Apple...
watchOS 11 Gets 'Check In' Feature That Supports Outdoor Workouts
Apple in iOS 17 added a Check In feature to Messages that allows you to let a loved one know when you've made it back home safely. With watchOS 11, Check In is also coming to Apple Watch, but it's not just in the Messages app that you can activate it.
Anyone who has used a Garmin watch will probably be familiar with its LiveTrack feature, which creates a real-time view of your location...
5 Biggest Changes Rumored for iPhone 16 Pro Max
Given Apple's rumored plan to add an all-new high-end tier to its iPhone 17 series in 2025, this could be the year for Apple to bring its boldest "Pro Max" model to the table — the kind of iPhone 16 upgrade that stands tall above its siblings, both figuratively and literally.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
If you have been holding out for the iPhone 16 Pro Max,...
Apple Explains iPhone 15 Pro Requirement for Apple Intelligence
With iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia, Apple is introducing a new personalized AI experience called Apple Intelligence that uses on-device, generative large-language models to enhance the user experience across iPhone, iPad, and Mac.
These new AI features require Apple's latest iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max models to work, while only Macs and iPads with M1 or later chips will...
How to Use Google Gemini AI on iPhone
Gemini is Google's state-of-the-art AI model, designed to compete with other large language models such as OpenAI's ChatGPT-4. On iPhones, you can chat with Gemini right within the Google app. Keep reading to learn how it's done.
Apple recently announced a partnership with OpenAI to bring ChatGPT to iOS 18 later this year, and Apple has suggested that it is looking into partnerships with...
watchOS 11 Lets You Schedule Activity Goals for Each Day of the Week
In the watchOS 11 beta, the Activity app for Apple Watch lets you schedule custom activity goals for different days of the week, and also lets you pause your goals if you need to rest up.
If you tap the +/- button when viewing your Move, Exercise, or Stand goals in the Activity app, a new Change Daily Goal option takes you to a schedule list for the days of the week, allowing you to set each ...
iOS 18: Calendar App Design Changes and Reminders Integration
Apple in iOS 18 has given the Calendar app a major update, adding some welcome interface design changes, not to mention long-awaited integration with Reminders.
In the month-by-month calendar view, the month now appears in large bold font in the top left, while the Events list toggle has been replaced by a new button that lets you choose between Compact, Stacked, Details, and List views.
...
Apple's Phone App Finally Supports T9 Dialing in iOS 18
T9 dialing, or Text on 9 keys, is a predictive text technology that emerged in the late 90s to make it easier to type text messages on devices with limited input options, such as traditional mobile phones with numeric keypads. Each number key (2-9) on a T9 keypad is mapped to a set of letters. For example, the key "2" corresponds to "ABC," "3" to "DEF," and so on.
Android phones have had the ...
iOS 18: These Apple Intelligence Features Won't Be Ready Until 2025
Apple is not expected to introduce its most significant Apple Intelligence features in September when iOS 18 sees a public release. Instead, many will come alongside a Siri overhaul in a future iOS 18 update that's set to be introduced in 2025.
That doesn't mean Siri will not have any improvements when iOS 18 initially launches. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Siri in iOS 18 will...
Apple Developing Thinner MacBook Pro, Apple Watch, and iPhone
Apple intends to slim down the MacBook Pro, Apple Watch, and iPhone, with the new ultra-thin M4 iPad Pro a sign of the company's new design trajectory, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
When the M4 iPad Pro was unveiled last month, Apple touted it as the company's thinnest product ever, and even compared it to the 2012 iPod nano to emphasize its slim dimensions.
Writing in the latest ...
Kuo: Apple Watch Series 10 to Get Larger Screen and Thinner Design
This year's Apple Watch Series 10 will be thinner and come in larger screen sizes than previous models, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
In his latest industry note -10-and-98075c44ce92">shared on Medium, Kuo said the screen size options on the next-generation Apple Watch will increase from 41mm to 45mm, and from 45mm to 49mm, while being encased in a thinner design. For reference,...
How to Downgrade From the iOS 18 Beta to iOS 17
If you installed iOS 18 Beta or iPadOS 18 Beta through Apple's Developer Program or Software Beta Program, you may decide you want to downgrade because of usability or stability issues. Keep reading to learn how it's done.
Apple's beta versions of its major software updates can be notoriously buggy, especially the early releases. You may find apps not working properly, poor battery life,...
visionOS 2: Spatial Personas Can Touch Fingers, High Five, Fist Bump Each Other With Visual and Audio Feedback
First introduced in April, spatial Personas in Apple Vision Pro are designed to feel as if they are in the same physical space, and to enhance the experience, the lifelike avatars will soon be able to interact directly with each other using some new gestures in visionOS 2.
Previewed at WWDC last year, spatial Personas allow Vision Pro users to "break out of the familiar FaceTime tile and...
watchOS 11: Smart Stack Gains Live Activities and Suggested Widgets
Introduced in iOS 16, Live Activities changed the way users interact with their iPhone. Instead of getting multiple notifications when tracking a delivery or a sports score, for example, users see a single, dynamically updating Live Activity with real-time information right on their Lock Screen.
Starting in watchOS 11, when a Live Activity begins on your iPhone, it now automatically shows on ...
iPadOS 18 Brings a New Customizable Tab Bar and Sidebar UI to Apps
In iPadOS 18, Apple has redesigned the tab bar experience for many apps like Podcasts, Apple TV, and Apple Music. Previously in these apps, tabs sat at the bottom of the interface. When in portrait orientation however, tab bars now sit at the top of these apps to be closer to other navigation controls, while a customizable sidebar appears in landscape mode.
In Apple apps other than the...
iOS 18's New Game Mode Makes iPhones Faster and More Responsive
With iOS 18, Apple is adding Game Mode to iPhone. A similar Game Mode was added to macOS Sonoma last year, and the same performance-enhancing features apply, according to Apple.
When enabled, Game Mode optimizes the gaming experience by giving the game the highest priority access to your iPhone's processor, while lowering usage for background tasks.
Apple says Game Mode also improves the...
Apple Reportedly Not Paying OpenAI to Use ChatGPT in iOS 18
Alongside its Apple Intelligence feature set, Apple on Monday announced a partnership with OpenAI that will allow Siri to access ChatGPT directly in iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia to provide better responses in relevant situations. But according to a new Bloomberg report, nobody is paying cash to anybody for the arrangement.
From Mark Gurman's report:
Apple isn't paying OpenAI as part ...
iOS 18 Actively Recommends Charging Limit Based on iPhone 15 Usage
On iPhone 15 models, iOS 18 will recommend that users set a particular charging limit for their device based on their recent usage habits, with the aim of potentially improving their iPhone battery's lifespan by reducing the time that the battery is fully charged.
All four iPhone 15 models feature a setting that prevents the devices from charging beyond 80% while toggled on, and iOS 18...
