MacMost: News & Notes

Apple has two new features right now that are of note to those looking to buy new Apple products. From now until the end of the year they are offering 6% cash back on specific Apple products. This is double the usual 3% back you get when using and Apple Card plus Apple Pay to buy hardware directly from Apple.

Apple released new battery cases for the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max this week. Similar to previous battery cases, these fit around the iPhone and connect through the Lightning port to add a second battery to the iPhone, tightly integrated with iOS so that the user can see the battery levels for both. Connecting the unit then charges both batteries.

As part of yesterday’s announcement of a new MacBook Pro 16-Inch model, Apple added more information about the upcoming Mac Pro desktop tower, giving us an update on the release date: December.

Apple released a new top-end model of MacBook Pro today, with an increased screen size and new keyboard. A base price of only $2,399 includes 16GB of RAM and a 512 GB SSD.

While iPhone numbers were down 9 percent from last year, services such as iCloud, Apple Music and the App Store showed continued double-digit growth contributing more than $10 billion.

Apple released the first major update to macOS Catalina today. It is available in System Preferences, Software Update. New features include support for the AirPods Pro that go on sale tomorrow, updates to the Home app and Siri, and a host of bug fixes including several for the Photos app.

The new version of iOS and iPadOS is available today through Settings, Software Update on all compatible devices. The new update will be needed for anyone getting the new AirPods Pro, also announced today.

Apple announced the new AirPods Pro, a significant update to the AirPods with a new shape and active noise cancellation. This advance model is priced at $249 and available on Wednesday.

Apple released minor updates to macOS Catalina, iOS 13 for iPhone and iPadOS for iPad today. These updates include a variety of small bug fixes, but no new features.

Apple has expanded the availability of Apple TV content to Roku boxes and TVs with the release of an App on the Roku platform. This will make the upcoming Apple TV+ service available to a larger base of customers, as well as existing Apple TV functions such as library sharing, movies and TV shows.

The latest Mac operating system has arrived with a general release today. Catalina has been in developer and beta testing since June. It joins iOS 13 and other device operating systems that Apple released last month to bring the entire line of Apple hardware up-to-date.

Apple has been quick to release minor updates to iOS 13.1 and iPadOS 13.1. The second update, 13.1.2, has a whole list of bug fixes for users. Most notably, it fixes a Camera app bug and a car Bluetooth connection bug. It also fixes a problem where sometimes the flashlight feature didn’t work.

The new major update for iPad, known as iPadOS or iOS 13.1 for iPad is now available. This major release includes changes to the home screens, new features and switches Safari to a default-desktop browser instead of a mobile one. Version 13.1 is the first version of iPadOS, corresponding to iOS 13.1. iOS 13.0 was a short-lived iPhone-only release.

New iPhones arrived directly by mail or for in-store pickup today across the world. The Apple Watch series 5 also debuted in stores. Even with a time-slotted reservations system, lines formed at many Apple Store locations.

Apple will release iOS 13 for the iPhone today. Recipients of new iPhones tomorrow will have it preinstalled, but anyone with an iPhone X-model, 8, 7, 6s, SE or 7th-generation iPod touch can update to it later today.

At today’s announcement Apple gave us release dates and prices for their two highly-anticipated services. Apple Arcade, which brings exclusive games to Macs, iPhones, iPads and Apple TVs will launch on September 19 with a free one-month trial and a price of $4.99/month.

As expected, Apple announced new iPhone models today with the iPhone 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max. The new models add more cameras, a faster processor, battery battery life and durability. The price of the iPhone 11 is also better than the pervious generation at $699. These new models can be ordered on Friday and will be available new week.

Apple has sent out press invitations to its 2019 fall event which will take place at Apple headquarters on September 10. This is the exact date that many rumors sites predicted.

In an unusual move that surprised many, Apple released a developer beta of iOS 13.1 yesterday and then a public beta of 13.1 today. However, a final version of iOS 13 has yet to be released. This is the first time Apple has made a move like this.

The Appel Card has launched and is now available to all users of iPhones with iOS 12.4. The new credit card from Apple and Goldman Sachs can be applied for in the Wallet app with accounts being approved and activated immediately. The physical card takes about a week to reach customers.