MyAppleMenu

The Slightly-Larger Edition Wednesday, October 19, 2022

Apple Revamps iPad With New Design, Revs iPad Pro To M2, by Dan Moren, Six Colors

The redesign of the iPad—I hesitate to call it the “base-level iPad” for reasons that will be shortly apparent—makes it very similar to the iPad Air, including a USB-C port, Touch ID on the power button, and the same 12MP wide camera. It’s also very slightly larger than the iPad Air in every dimension by about a millimeter, and weighs in at 16 grams heavier. So I guess the “Air” is still earning its moniker there. Sort of.

Apple’s Magic Keyboard Folio For The New iPad Has A 14-key Function Row, by Jay Peters, The Verge

Apple has a new keyboard case for its redesigned lower-end iPad, the Magic Keyboard Folio, and unlike the company’s other keyboard covers for its tablets, this case has an entire row of 14 dedicated function keys.

[...]

Apple’s Magic Keyboard Folio comes in a two-piece design. The keyboard attaches to the bottom of the iPad while it’s in landscape mode and also has a large trackpad. The back panel / stand combo, which can be set up at different viewing angles, attaches to the back of the iPad.

New iPad Only Supports First-Gen Apple Pencil, Requires Adapter To Charge, by Hartley Charlton, MacRumors

The 10th-generation iPad only supports the first-generation Apple Pencil, meaning that it requires an adapter to charge separately via a wired connection since the device has moved to USB-C.

Logitech Crayon For iPad Now Available With USB-C Port, by Joe Rossignol, MacRumors

Apple today started selling a new version of the Logitech Crayon with a USB-C port for charging. The original model with a Lightning connector remains available.

Apple Removes Headphone Jack From New 10th Generation iPad, by William Gallagher, AppleInsider

The new 10th generation iPad now requires either wireless headphones, or the use of a USB-C adapter as it becomes the latest device to lose the famous 3.5mm headphone connector.

iPad Pro

Apple Announces New 11-inch And 12.9-inch iPad Pro With M2 Chip, New Apple Pencil Hover Feature, by Benjamin Mayo, 9to5Mac

The new iPad Pro also bring faster Wi-Fi networking, with support for the latest Wi-Fi 6E standards. This means downloads can be up to 2x faster when connecting to a 6E network. Cellular models now support more 5G bands for better worldwide coverage.

New iPad Pro Offers Clever 'Hover' Feature For Apple Pencil, Here's How It Works, by Chance Miller, 9to5Mac

Apple says that the new iPad Pro can now detect when the Apple Pencil is up to 12mm above the display. This means your iPad Pro can automatically detect when your Apple Pencil is nearing the display and you can “see a preview of your mark” before you actually make it.

One example cited by Apple is that text fields automatically expand when the Apple Pencil gets near the display for Scribble.

The iPad’s Erratic Odyssey Continues, by Jason Snell, Six Colors

I get it. The iPad Pro isn’t ready for a complete hardware redesign, nor did Apple want to redesign the Magic Keyboard this year. But the result is that the leading iPad is missing innovations that the cheap iPad offers. It’s weird.

New iPad Pro Says 'iPad Pro' On The Back So People Can See You Have An iPad Pro, by Stan Schroeder, Mashable

The new iPad Pro (6th generation) has a sign on the back that says "iPad Pro," and now everything is right with the world.

Apple TV

New Apple TV 4K, Powered By A15 Chip, Adds Dolby Vision And HDR10+, by Kevin Purdy, Ars Technica

The new Apple TV 4K adds HRD10+ and Dolby Vision, bumps the default storage capacities, and keeps Ethernet only on the more expensive model.

[...]

Notably, the two Apple TV 4K offerings have some substantial differences besides storage. The pricier model is the only one that offers an Ethernet port, and it's the only one that will work as a border router with Thread smart home accessories.

New Apple TV 4K With USB-C Remote, by Nick Heer, PixelEnvy

Apple has changed the charging port on the remote to USB-C, but chose this year to exclude a charging cable from the box.

New Siri Features And Redesign Coming To Apple TV With Future tvOS 16 Update, by Chance Miller, 9to5Mac

Alongside the new Apple TV 4K today, Apple has also announced some updates coming to tvOS 16. The company says that a future tvOS 16 update will bring an all-new Siri experience with a new design, personalized recommendations, and more.

OS Updates

macOS Ventura To Be Released To All Users On October 24, by Filipe Espósito, 9to5Mac

macOS Ventura (or macOS 13) comes with several new features. The next version of the operating system enhances the continuity features between iPhone and Mac, so that an iPhone can now be used as a computer webcam. Another new continuity feature lets you transfer a FaceTime call from an iPhone to a Mac or vice versa.

iPadOS 16 With Stage Manager, Weather App, And More To Be Available On October 24, by Sami Fathi, MacRumors

Unlike in past years, this year’s iPadOS and iOS updates were not released simultaneously. Instead, Apple decided to delay ‌iPadOS 16‌ until later in the fall to allow it more time to refine the update, including ‌Stage Manager‌. ‌Stage Manager‌ is the biggest new addition coming to ‌iPadOS 16‌ that offers users of select ‌iPad‌ models a new windowing system for apps.

Long-awaited iCloud Shared Photo Library Feature Launching With iOS 16.1, by Michael Potuck, 9to5Mac

iCloud Shared Photo Library was one of the headlining features when Apple first showed off iOS 16. And even before that, something like it was a highly requested capability for years. Now after being delayed past the initial iOS 16 launch in September, the iOS 16.1 release candidate notes have revealed that the highly anticipated feature will be arriving on October 24.

Apple Says iOS 16.1 Will Include Apple Card Savings Account, Key Sharing In Wallet App, by Chance Miller, 9to5Mac

Last week, Apple announced a new feature for Apple Card users that allows you to automatically add your Daily Cash rewards to a new integrated savings account. Apple didn’t announce a release date for this feature at that time, but the release notes for iOS 16.1 indicate that the new savings account option will be included in next week’s update.

Stuff

Apple Shares 9-Minute Keynote-Styled Video For New iPad And iPad Pro, by Sami Fathi, MacRumors

Apple today announced a new iPad Pro and entry-level iPad through press releases on its website and not through a typical digital event. Despite this, Apple has released a 9-minute video featuring different Apple employees talking about and presenting the new iPads.

Apple Hikes iPad Mini Prices Outside US, With Europe Faring Worst, by Tim Hardwick, MacRumors

Apple significantly increased the price of existing iPad mini models in non-US markets after updating its online store with new entry-level iPad and iPad Pro models on Tuesday.

Ableton Launches Note, A New App For On-the-go Producing, by Gemma Ross, Mixmag

A new music sketching app from Ableton will to allow users to create tracks on the go.

Note, which is currently only available on iOS devices, is a musical sketching tool and a place to “start ideas”, rather than created fleshed-out music.

Adobe Adds New Features To Almost Its Entire Software Suite, by Amber Neely, AppleInsider

Adobe MAX kicked off on Tuesday, and as expected, the company has announced a slew of new features and tools coming to its flagship products.

Develop

Live Activities On iOS 16.1: App Store Now Accepting Apps, Sports Scores Via TV App Potentially Delayed, by Joe Rossignol, MacRumors

Ahead of iOS 16.1 launching, Apple today announced that developers can now submit apps with support for the Live Activities feature to the App Store. Developers can build their app using the Xcode 14.1 Release Candidate, test, and submit it for review.

Notes

People Can’t Stop Turning On Their iPhone Flashlights By Accident, by Heather Kelly, Washington Post

To figure out why this was happening, I asked people struggling with the problem to demonstrate how they pick up and put away their phone. People who don’t have flashlight woes were careful not to touch the glass, holding their smartphone gingerly on the edges like a CD. The iPhone owners who did turn on their lights were more likely to hold on to the phone like it wasn’t a giant slab of touch-sensitive glass, griping the front and the back of the device between their fingers.

People of all ages appear to struggle with this issue. Tori Daniels, 25, says they have been turning on the flashlight for years, most recently when they walked into a pitch-black room and realized it was illuminated by their back pocket. Daniels says it’s a button-placement issue by Apple more than a user error.

Bottom of the Page

Does Apple has a vision of what the entire line of iPads will look like in the future? Does it have an unifying vision, but has problems -- supply chain? -- reaching it? Or does it think that different iPads will look and work differently?

The front-facing camera in two different locations on iPads launched on the same day doesn't seem to be indicate strength in Apple's design vision.

~

Thanks for reading.