Apple released new software updates for all of its platforms on Tuesday. That includes the following:
Apple has released security updates to address a zero-day vulnerability that threat actors can exploit in attacks targeting Macs and Apple Watch devices.
Zero-days are security flaws that the software vendor is unaware of and hasn't yet patched. In some cases, this type of vulnerability may also have publicly available proof-of-concept exploits before a patch arrives or may be actively exploited in the wild.
Last year, Apple enacted App Tracking Transparency, a mandatory policy that forbids app makers from tracking user activity across other apps without first receiving those users’ explicit permission. Privacy advocates praised the initiative, and Facebook warned it would spell certain doom for companies that rely on targeted advertising. However, research published last week suggests that ATT, as it’s usually abbreviated, doesn’t always curb the surreptitious collection of personal data or the fingerprinting of users.
Apple is in the late stages of readying several new Mac models built on the forthcoming M2 chip, according to a report from Bloomberg citing both developer logs and people familiar with the matter.
Over the past couple of years, Apple has been transitioning nearly its entire Mac product line from Intel's chips to Apple's system on a chip, which includes a CPU, GPU, NPU, ISP, and more. The first generation of Macs running on Apple's silicon used the M1 chip and its more powerful variants, the M1 Pro, M1 Max, and M1 Ultra.
Apple Silicon Macs have gotten mostly glowing reviews on Ars and elsewhere for their speed, power efficiency, and the technical achievement they represent—the chips are scaled-up phone processors that can perform as well or better than comparable Intel chips while using less power.
iFixit's teardown of the Mac Studio found a monstrous thermal management system attached to a relatively small computer, among other things.
The teardown video depicted a somewhat complicated but not insurmountable process for getting inside that little metal rectangle. Once inside the device, there weren't many surprises. The video identified some ports, showed the removal of the logic board, and perhaps most notably, uncovered a dual-fan cooling system inside the machine.
Apple is working on a way for users to acquire iPhones as part of a subscription service, according to Bloomberg. The service could launch as soon as this year, but it could also arrive in early 2023.
The new offering would fit neatly into Apple's ongoing efforts to emphasize recurring subscription revenue. That model has worked well for big tech companies like Microsoft, which earn most of their revenue from subscriptions, albeit mostly not hardware ones.
Being a professional content creator is expensive. Not only do you need a high-end camera with accompanying equipment, you also need a beefy computer with enough processing power to handle all of your high-res footage. Apple loyalists of late could choose between the 24-inch iMac all-in-one ($1,299), the compact Mac Mini ($699), or the ridiculously expensive Mac Pro ($6,000). But with the new Mac Studio on the scene, there's now a near-perfect middle ground.
Apple's latest iPad refresh is minor on the surface, but there's a big step forward inside.
The new iPad Air refresh is mainly about two things: the M1 chip and 5G. Apart from those changes, the new tablet is very similar to its 2020 predecessor.
Will Apple ever ship a MacBook laptop with a touchscreen? Most likely not. But next week, Apple will begin shipping a device that closely resembles a MacBook with a touchscreen.
To be clear, Apple didn’t show off a MacBook during Tuesday’s virtual product launch event. But it did show off a tablet that feels a lot like a computer. (“What’s a computer?” you ask. We'll get to that.) Apple's new device is the 2022 iPad Air, the fifth generation of this product line. A few of its features have been updated to keep with the times: 5G connectivity, an ultrawide camera, a USB-C port.
