News - page 513

Some retailers are pushing back against “elite cards” such as Apple Card, a new Bloomberg report claims. These cards’ high-end status means the banks charge higher transaction fees, which offset various rewards programs.

Apple isn’t the only elite card that comes with higher fees for businesses that accept them. The article says a regular Visa card costs $1.27 in swipe fees for a $100 purchase. Meanwhile, a high-end Visa Signature card carries fees of $1.75. These fees are divided between the network, the payment processor and the issuing bank.

Tim Cook has finished his visit to Japan and stopped off in Singapore for the next leg of his East Asian business jaunt.

On Twitter, Cook shared a photo of himself starting his day with a traditional Singaporean breakfast. Tiong Bahru Market is located in one of Singapore’s most vibrant neighborhoods. The area offers a variety of hipster stores and boutique art galleries.

Whether it’s designing its own pizza box or custom, err, sheets of paper, Apple sure likes having its own proprietary version of things it doesn’t deem quite good enough.

The same is true of the new Pro Display XDR with nano-texture glass for the Mac Pro. No, we’re not talking about the screen itself; but rather Apple’s insistence that you clean it using a special Apple-approved cleaning cloth. But there’s a good reason for it.

A graphic artist excited about a rumored low-cost iOS model created a video for it. This is a wish list of features for the iPhone SE 2, which could debut in only a few months.

Watch it now:

ConnectSense In-Wall Smart Outlet appears to be a no-frills power socket, but HomeKit support means its two plugs can be separately turned on or off with an iPhone. Plus, it monitors how much power is flowing.

Apple hit the gorgeous deserts of Saudi Arabia for its newest commercial which is hands down the dirtiest ‘Shot on iPhone’ ad we’ve ever seen.

The minute-long ad follows a group of Saudi ATV riders as they push themselves, their vehicles and the iPhone 11 Pro camera to the absolute limit. It’s pretty much the exact opposite of the wintery Shot on iPhone ad Apple put out last week and will have you ready to hit some warmer weather.

Strap in for a wild ride:

There’s a fresh update for macOS Catalina out today. Version 10.15.2 allows an iPhone to remote control a Mac’s music and video playback. And there are also other enhancements for the utilities Apple bundles with this operating system, including Photos, Music and Mail.

Treat yourself to a beautiful leather Apple Watch band from Noreve this fall.

Handmade in France by master craftsman using only the best materials, they’re immensely tough and even more attractive. And you can get yours for 20% less from the Cult of Mac Store — if you act fast!

U.S. Senators grilled Apple and Facebook execs over encryption practices today, threatening to regulate the technology if the companies don’t take action on their own.

Republicans and Democrats appeared unified in their disdain for end-to-end encryption. The technology, which Apple uses for iCloud and other services, sometimes thwarts law enforcement officials’ investigations into child abuse and mass shootings. Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of the harshest critics, demanded that the companies add backdoors to their encryption keys.

A black-and-silver Magic Keyboard, Mouse 2 and Trackpad 2 debuted in Apple’s product lineup today, but only a fortunate few can order them. As it stands now, these accessories are only available for people who also buy a 2019 Mac Pro.

But that’s likely to change soon.

If you just dropped $5,000 (minimum) on an Apple Pro Display XDR to go with your $53,000 maxed-out Mac Pro, you probably want a webcam. And, if you’ve got any headroom at all left on your Apple Card credit limit, Logitech has just the thing: a magnetic webcam designed to perch atop your pricey new monitor.

The company designed the new Logitech 4K Pro Magnetic Webcam exclusively for Apple’s new high-end display. And, unlike the rest of the Mac Pro kit, the price isn’t off the charts.

Adobe launched a major power boost today to Lightroom Mobile that adds Direct Import and Advance Export features to iOS and iPadOS.

Direct Import streamlines the workflow by eliminating the need to import photos into the Camera Roll. Users can now skip that by connecting a drive or SD card to transfer photos directly to Lightroom for iOS or iPadOS.

The last major iOS 13 update of 2019 is finally ready for your downloading pleasure.

After weeks of beta testing with developers, Apple released iOS 13.3 and iPadOS 13.3 to the public today. The update contains a bunch of critical bug fixes to along with some new Screen Time controls for parents.

The 2019 Mac Pro is finally available to order, with prices starting at $5,999. That’s not cheap … until you compare it to the cost of a maxed-out model with all the bells and whistles.

Add every available upgrade and Apple’s newest machine suddenly skyrockets to an eye-watering $52,748.

That’s $12,848 more than a Tesla Cybertruck!

Edison Mail, a popular third-party email client on iOS, is finally making the leap to Mac.

It ships with a number of nice features that give it an edge over the built-in Mail app. And it sports a cleaner, more modern user interface with a number of customization options.

There’s just one catch.

An update to Google’s Waze navigation app lets users warn other drivers about snow-covered roads that have yet to be plowed.

This feature is already available in both the iOS and Android versions.

The wait for the most powerful — and the most expensive — macOS computer ever just ended. Apple began taking orders for the 2019 Mac Pro this morning, after announcing the workstation that boasts a 28-core processor way back in June.

The companion 32-inch Pro Display XDR went up for sale today, too, also at a price that only professionals can afford.

The European Commission famously handed Apple a massive $14.5 billion bill in 2016. But from the sound of things it’s only going to get tougher with Silicon Valley’s biggest tech giants.

According to a new report, EU antitrust regulators are “considering taking a tougher line” against companies. This could affect the likes of Facebook, Amazon, Apple and Google.

Apple Cardholders have a new incentive to upgrade to a new iPhone starting today – 24 months with zero interest.

If any cardholder purchases an iPhone anytime between today and Dec. 31, they will get 6 percent back, rather than the standard 3 percent.

Tim Cook is on a business trip to Japan right now — and, as part of his travels, he paid a visit to the first Apple Store the company opened outside of the United States.

That store is located in Ginza, a trendy shopping district in Tokyo. “Our very first store outside of the US, Apple Ginza is always such a special place,” Cook tweeted. “Thanks for a wonderful visit!”

iPhone chip-maker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) enjoyed a 9% boost in revenue in November.

The increase can be attributed to strong demand for the company’s 7-nanometer chipsets, which power Apple’s latest crop of smartphones. And TSMC is confident the success will continue into the holidays.

Apple Card customers can enjoy 6% daily cash back on Apple purchases over the holidays.

Apple’s newest promotion arrives just in time for the all-new Mac Pro and Pro Display XDR, which go on sale today. But it applies to any Apple Store purchases — online and in-store — made through December 31.

Apple is suing an ex-employee who helped design iPhone and iPad chips up until the start of this year. Gerard Williams III left Apple earlier in 2019 to start a chip startup, Nuvia, which has hired at least 8 other former Apple workers.

And Apple’s none too happy about it.

Some Apple customers have stopped receiving email receipts for their App Store and iTunes transactions.

The issue appears to have arisen in late October, and it affects all purchases made through Apple’s digital storefronts — including subscriptions. But there is a way you can request receipts manually.

Apple thinks that two men accused of stealing secrets from its mysterious self-driving car project are likely to flee the country if they aren‘t closely watched.

Despite the drama surrounding their arrests, what makes this case most interesting is that it absolutely confirms that Apple has a self-driving car in development.