These aren’t major releases, but they include some small new features in the Podcasts and Wallet apps along with a few bug fixes and numerous security improvements, none for vulnerabilities that are being actively exploited.
Of course, as detailed on the Apple Developer website, there will be some limits to prevent developers from abusing this feature. For instance, users will be notified of the subscription price change. Even then, Apple makes it clear that the price increase cannot occur more than once a year.
Other limits include a maximum increase of $5 for regular subscriptions or $50 for annual subscriptions.
Key among these are features for managing podcast storage across devices, tools to enable annual podcast subscriptions and the newly announced Apple Podcasts Delegated Delivery system — a feature that will soon allow creators to more easily distribute their podcasts directly to Apple Podcasts from third-party hosting providers.
Apple says this latter addition will save creators time and energy as they’ll be able to authorize their hosting provider to deliver both their free and premium podcast episodes to Apple Podcasts using the provider’s own dashboard. But it also gives Apple a means of competing with services like Spotify’s Anchor, which now provides tools for creation, hosting and distribution across all major listening apps.
Apple users can now request and send money from their Apple Cash card directly through the Wallet app with the launch of iOS 15.5.
The Studio Display firmware can be updated by connecting it to a Mac running macOS Monterey 12.4, which was also released today.
In honor of Global Accessibility Awareness Day, Apple is previewing a number of new accessibility features coming to iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Mac later this year. The company says that these new features will bring additional ways for users with disabilities to “navigate, connect, and get the most out of Apple products.”
One of the new features is called Door Detection, which Apple says can help users locate a door upon arriving at a new destination. Door Detection can help users understand how far they are from a door and describe its attributes, including whether it’s open or closed. If the door is closed, the feature can inform the user whether the door can be opened by pushing, turning a knob, or pulling a handle.
Designed with the help of behavioural scientists, the app prompts users with a series of questions to help assess if someone who has approached them might be fake.
This includes being on the look-out for flattery or offers which appear too good to be true.
The iOS-supported device with Apple Health integration has received a refresh for its built-in food log and macro tracker that lets you see the impact your nutrition has on metabolism in real-time.
How long do you think before Apple adds a new settings to allow Apple customers to reject any subscription price increases automatically?
Of course, Apple is not exactly a 'neutral' party here, however one defines neutral. The low price of Apple TV+ doesn't seem sustainable to me -- especially if Apple is going to add more sports programming into the service. (Even if Apple introduces an additional tier to watch sports programming, that price is likely to be less stable than the 'regular' Apple TV+.)
So, yes, I'm predicting a price increase for Apple TV+, not in an infinite timescale, but soon-ish.
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Thanks for reading.