Apple

Bloomberg reports that Steve Hotelling is retiring from Apple. I had never heard of him, but this paragraph from Bloomberg underscores just how much he’s contributed to Apple’s products:

The executive is named on hundreds of patents, including ones related to the iPhone and iPad’s multitouch screen, and known for being one of the inventors of Touch ID — a key feature for authenticating users on Apple devices. “No one was more brilliant than Steve,” said a longtime peer at the company.

Some of chip chief Johny Srouji’s direct reports will be taking over Hotelling’s work.

In the tvOS 17.2 release candidate, the two apps push users toward the TV app, according to 9to5Mac. The change, assuming it sticks around when tvOS 17.2 is released publicly, isn’t much of a surprise; Bloomberg reported in October that Apple was planning to discontinue the iTunes Movies and TV shows apps in favor of the TV app.

Bloomberg’s sources say that the conclusion to the European Commission’s probe into iMessage should spare Apple from needing to offer other companies some level of interoperability with the service.

The investigation officially ends in February, with new Digital Markets Act rules aimed at Big Tech’s ”platform gatekeepers” coming into full effect in March, with the intent of creating a level playing field for all.

According to a report in The Elec, LG Innotek is working on an under-display camera (UDC) that might find its way into future iPhones.
But that could take some time. Apple reportedly wasn’t happy with recent component samples it was sent, and one analyst thinks the iPhone won’t get a UDC until 2027 (though the Face ID cutout could disappear and move under the screen earlier in 2025).

Apple announced collaborative playlists for Apple Music at WWDC, and while it appeared in some iOS 17.2 betas, it’s not present in Tuesday’s iOS 17.2 release candidate, 9to5Mac reports. Barring an unexpected surprise, you shouldn’t expect to see collaborative playlists in the final release.

Apple’s iOS 17 website still says the feature is coming “later this year,” but at this rate, I doubt that’s going to happen.

Then you should watch this excellent video from Quinn Nelson at Snazzy Labs. He breaks down exactly what it's doing behind the scenes and why it will likely be a challenge for Apple to stop it from working.

As MacRumors writes, Apple designated the original iPhone SE “vintage” today. The 2016 budget phone crammed the A9 chip — same as Apple’s priciest model at the time — into the flat sides, metal back, and chamfered edges of the 5S.

The first SE got its last major OS update with iOS 15 over two years ago, and it’s been five since Apple last sold it. Does that make our iPhone SE video review vintage, too?

My everlasting search for a new Sonic game that isn’t soul-crushing or a technical mess may have come to an end but there’s a catch: it’s only available on Apple Arcade.

Sonic Dream Team, which Polygon makes sound like a better version of Sonic Superstars, launches today on Apple Arcade.

Also coming today to Apple Arcade is another dream game, Disney meets Animal Crossing sim Disney Dreamlight Valley: Arcade Edition, along with Puzzle & Dragons Story and Turmoil+.

Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon reached theaters first on October 20th, and starting tomorrow, December 5th, the movie will go on sale via the usual digital outlets in over 100 countries in a collaboration with Paramount.

But when will the Apple Studios-produced historical crime drama become available globally on the company’s own subscription streaming service? There’s no release date listed yet.

This video from CNBC offers a behind-the-scenes look at the facilities where Apple tests its M-series chips for Macs and the A-series chips for iPhones. You can see the labs at around 3:21 and 7:05.

Aside from that, Johny Srouji, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware, also hints at the possibility of the company developing its own modems, stating “We care about cellular and we have teams enabling that.”

The Wall Street Journal reports that the two companies have considered bundling Apple TV Plus and Paramount Plus together for a cheaper price than paying for both streaming services separately.

Details are slim, but If it comes to fruition the combined service would join similar entertainment bundles that aim to combat rising customer defections, like Verizon’s $10 bundle for Netflix and Max.

As part of its ongoing partnership with (Red) — a brand dedicated to fighting HIV/AIDS — Apple has released an all-red version of the Apple Watch Series 9, alongside some exclusive watch faces to mark World AIDS Day.

The watch joins existing (Product) Red variants for the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 13, and iPhone SE, but there’s no sign of the new iPhone 15 series joining the lineup.

The updates fix two WebKit vulnerabilities that “may have been exploited against versions of iOS before iOS 16.7.1,” according to an Apple support page. macOS Sonoma 14.1.2 is out, too, with fixes for the same vulnerabilities.

The company is working with Amkor to have Apple Silicon chips tested and packaged in Arizona, not far from the TSMC plant in Phoenix where some of the chips are being produced.