iOS 27 Shortcuts App May Write Custom Actions for You Using AI
Apple continues to develop a new feature for its Shortcuts app that will let users generate unique actions using Apple Intelligence models, based on backend code discovered by Nicolás Alvarez and confirmed by MacRumors. For those unfamiliar with the Shortcuts app, the tool lets users create custom workflows or actions – called shortcuts – to perform tasks automatically or with minimal interaction. Actions can include anything from sending messages to controlling smart home devices. The app emerged out of Apple's 2017 acquisition of Workflow, which was rebranded as Shortcuts the following year. As part of iOS 26, Apple added Apple Intelligence support to the Shortcuts app, allowing AI models to be incorporated into shortcuts. In contrast, the new version that Apple is working on will let users create actions using Apple Intelligence models – by issuing voice commands in natural language, for example. Last June, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported that Apple was working on the AI-driven feature for release in 2025, but he said that delays could see it launch in 2026. For iOS 27, Apple is expected to include a revamped Siri that functions like a genuine conversational chatbot and can interact with apps, so it's likely that the shortcuts generator will be part of its skill set.Related Roundup: iOS 27Tag: ShortcutsThis article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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AirPods Max 2 Review: Better Sound and ANC, Same Design Frustrations
The $549 AirPods Max 2 are set to launch tomorrow, and ahead of the debut of the new over-ear headphones, Apple sent a pair for MacRumors videographer Dan Barbera to check out. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. With the new H2 chip in the AirPods Max, Apple says Active Noise Cancellation is 1.5x better than the ANC in the prior-generation model, and ANC is indeed clearly improved. More exterior noise is eliminated than before, plus audio quality has changed. There's a new digital signal processing algorithm and a high dynamic range amplifier, and when comparing the AirPods Max USB-C to the ‌AirPods Max 2‌, you can hear the difference. There's more separation between highs, mids, and lows, and there's more bass than before, but it doesn't feel overdone. Audiophiles who pay attention to how music is mixed will appreciate the quality boost in the ‌AirPods Max 2‌. You're getting sound similar to the AirPods Pro 3, but with the over-ear form factor, which provides a wider soundstage and richer audio. Individual instruments are easier to pick out with spatial audio, and spatial audio feels more immersive. The ‌AirPods Max 2‌ are some of the best over-ear headphones you can get right now. You'll get the clearest sound over USB-C, since the ‌AirPods Max 2‌ support 24-bit 48kHz lossless audio. The USB-C AirPods Max had lossless audio support too, but the updated sound adds more depth. When you're using a wireless connection, there is a small difference between the ‌AirPods Max 2‌ and the prior version, since the ‌AirPods Max 2‌ are using Bluetooth 5.3. Unfortunately, Apple didn't update the AirPods Max form factor at all, and that's a major downside. These are still some of the heaviest headphones on the market at 385 grams, and Apple hasn't addressed any design complaints. There's been no change in weight, the headband is the same, and even the minimal case that no one likes is still around. Battery life hasn't changed at 20 hours of listening time, there continues to be no power button to turn the AirPods Max off, and there aren't even any new colors. The H2 chip brings several features that the AirPods Max should have gotten some time ago, so Apple is just bringing the headphones on par with the ‌AirPods Pro 3‌ and the AirPods 4. Adaptive Audio blends ANC and Transparency to adjust sound on the fly based on where you are, and Conversation Awareness pauses audio if you start to speak to someone. Real-time Live Translation is available on the ‌AirPods Max 2‌, and there are other nice-to-have features like Personalized Volume for customizing volume based on listening habits and Loud Sound Reduction to cut down on exterior noise. Phone calls sound better with Voice Isolation and improved microphones, and you can activate Siri without the need to say "Hey." ‌Siri‌ also supports interactions, so you can do things like nod to accept a call or shake your head to decline. Like the ‌AirPods Pro 3‌, the ‌AirPods Max 2‌ can be used as a camera shutter for the iPhone or iPad. The ‌AirPods Max 2‌ sound fantastic and are great at cutting down on noise, but it is a somewhat disappointing update because Apple didn't refine the design of the headphones. If you have the original AirPods Max from 2020, not much has changed except for the sound profile. Whether it's worth $549 to upgrade to the ‌AirPods Max 2‌ will depend on the person. Sound quality is up, but no new design makes the headphones feel dated. If you're new to the AirPods and want the best sound you can get via Apple-designed headphones, you won't go wrong with the ‌AirPods Max 2‌ as long as you don't mind the weight or the case. The ‌AirPods Max 2‌ will be available starting tomorrow.Related Roundup: AirPods Max 2Buyer's Guide: AirPods Max (Buy Now)Related Forum: AirPodsThis article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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iPhone 20 Rumored to Feature Radical Curved Design
Apple's 20th anniversary iPhone will feature a radical new curved design with slimmer bezels, according to a new report. The X user "@phonefuturist" shared the claims across two posts yesterday and today. The first suggested that the device, referred to as the "anniversary" iPhone, will feature a 1.1mm bezel around the display, along with a seamlessly curved design. The post included a mock-up image showing convex display glass curving down at the edges to meet a slim, iPhone X-like polished frame. The iPhone 17 Pro has a bezel size of approximately 1.44mm. In a follow-up post today, the same account today referred to the device as the iPhone "XX" for iPhone 20 and claimed Apple has been evaluating Samsung's under-panel camera (UPC) technology as an alternative to the under-display camera (UDC) approach more commonly discussed in rumors, but found the image quality insufficient. As a result, the post claims the iPhone 20 may ship with either a smaller Dynamic Island than the current ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ or a punch-hole cutout, paired with Samsung's "Polar ID" face authentication system. The claims should be taken with a considerable pinch of salt given the source's unknown credibility. That said, the information is being widely circulated on social media, and parts of it broadly align with the direction more established leakers and analysts have been pointing toward for the 20th anniversary iPhone. In addition to this information, Apple tried using Samsung's UPC instead of UDC to achieve full screen but the camera quality is still not good better than UDC. So the XX might come with a smaller dynamic island than even the 18 Pro or a punch hole and Samsung's polar ID. https://t.co/tuEer5uieF— Schrödinger (@phonefuturist) March 31, 2026 Apple is reportedly still targeting an all-screen design for the iPhone 20, though as recently as January, reports suggested the all-screen ambition may be in doubt due to the technical difficulty of hiding a front-facing camera beneath the display without degrading photo quality. The under-display camera problem is well documented. Current UDC implementations, including those used by some Android manufacturers, have struggled to match the image quality of conventionally positioned sensors. With UPC, the camera sits behind the panel but uses a perforated pixel structure rather than a fully transparent region. This means it can theoretically reduce the visual footprint of a cutout, though it has its own quality trade-offs. If Apple cannot resolve the camera quality issue before the device launches, a smaller ‌Dynamic Island‌ or a conventional punch-hole may represent the fallback position. The iPhone 18 Pro is already expected to be the first iPhone with a smaller Dynamic Island, so the iPhone 20 could take that reduction further still. Apple's 20th anniversary iPhone is expected to arrive in the fall of 2027. Tag: 20th-Anniversary iPhoneThis article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Amazon Leo Satellite Internet Coming to Delta Flights in 2028
Amazon today announced that it is bringing more high-speed Wi-Fi to Delta Air Lines customers via its Amazon Leo technology, which is powered by a constellation of thousands of satellites in low Earth orbit – roughly 370 miles above the planet's surface. Under the multi-year agreement, Delta will begin rolling out Amazon Leo in 2028 with an initial installation on 500 aircraft, "providing customers with high-speed, low-latency Wi-Fi from gate-to-gate." Each Delta aircraft will be equipped with a single purpose-built phased array antenna that supports download speeds up to 1 Gbps and upload speeds up to 400 Mbps. "We've designed Leo to provide high-speed internet to the billions of people on Earth without reliable connectivity, and this agreement with Delta is a great example of the impact and scale of the technology – bringing even faster in-flight Wi-Fi to tens of millions of passengers who fly Delta every year," said Andy Jassy, President and CEO of Amazon. "People increasingly want to stay connected wherever they are in the world, and Leo's speed and reliability is going to have a big impact for businesses, governments, and consumers. It's going to make the in-flight experience so much better, and it's going to change what's possible while traveling."Like Delta's existing commitment to passengers, Leo-powered in-flight Wi-Fi will be free for all Delta SkyMiles members.Tag: Delta AirlinesThis article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Apple Sets Privacy Rules for Third-Party Access to Live Activities and Notifications
As part of its interoperability compliance in the EU, Apple has been working on changes to iOS that allow AirPods-like pairing and notification forwarding for third-party wearables on iPhone. In the iOS 26.5 beta released on Monday, Apple added Live Activities forwarding, and the company has now revised its Developer Program License Agreement with new rules on how the forwarding features should be accessed. In a new section titled "3.3.3 (J), Accessory Notifications Framework and Accessory Live Activities Framework," Apple says that third parties "may not use Forwarding Information for advertising, profiling, training models, or monitoring location." It also states that they "may not disseminate the Forwarding Information to any other Application, or any other device besides Your Authorized Target Accessory." The new section goes on to state that developers can't store forwarded notification data on servers, in the cloud, or on any remote device, and the data can only be decrypted on the accessory itself, not on a server or anywhere else along the way. Besides formatting adjustments, the forwarded information can't be altered in any way that changes its meaning, while the accessory that receives the notification can't share that data or its encryption keys with any other device, including the user's own iPhone. In other words, the data must be locked to the device it was sent to. Even if a developer's app doesn't use these frameworks at all, Apple says it reserves the right to forward that app's notifications to a third-party accessory if the user enables it. Last September, Apple complained that its obligations under the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) would cause feature rollout delays in the bloc, but it also warned of new privacy and security threats. Apple based these threats on companies' submitted requests, which included the complete content of a user's notifications, as well as the full history of Wi-Fi networks a user has joined. Apple said it had explained the risks of such requests to the European Commission, but the concerns had not been accepted as valid reasons to turn them down. The new developer rules appear to be Apple's best effort to mitigate the risks regardless. Taken together, they make it clear that Apple wants no tracking, no profiling, no cloud copies, and no sharing between devices, with developers bearing full responsibility for their app's compliance with the new rules. Tag: European UnionThis article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Ollama Now Runs Faster on Macs Thanks to Apple's MLX Framework
Ollama, the popular app for running AI models locally on a computer, has released an update that takes advantage of Apple's own machine learning framework, MLX. The result is a hefty speed boost on Macs with Apple silicon. According to Ollama, the new version processes prompts around 1.6 times faster (prefill speed) and nearly doubles the speed at which it generates responses (decode speed). Macs with M5-series chips are said to see the largest improvements, thanks to Apple's new GPU Neural Accelerators. The update also includes smarter memory management, which should make AI-powered coding tools and chat assistants feel noticeably more responsive during extended use. Ollama says the new performance boost should especially benefit macOS users who run personal assistants like OpenClaw or coding agents like Claude Code, OpenCode, or Codex. The preview release is available to download as Ollama 0.19 – just make sure you have a Mac with more than 32GB of unified memory to run it. Support is currently limited to Alibaba's Qwen3.5, but Ollama says support for more AI models is planned.This article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Apple Leans Into Little Finder Guy With New TikTok Videos
When promoting the MacBook Neo, Apple found a surprise hit with a tiny anthropomorphized version of the Mac Finder icon, which people have taken to calling Little Finder Guy. Little Finder Guy starred in some of Apple's early March TikTok videos, and Apple is now targeting Finder fans with a trio of new videos. Three tutorials on Apple's TikTok account star Little Finder Guy. Videos feature Stacks on the Mac desktop, ring light for video apps, and dictation. The tutorials are all shown on the ‌MacBook Neo‌, and each one includes Little Finder Guy. Most of the comments on the videos are about Apple's new Finder mascot. Stephen Hackett of 512 Pixels has created a .3mf file for 3D printing a Little Finder Guy for those that have a printer available. Android has long had a 3D mascot that's a hybrid between a bug and a droid, which Google calls The Bot, so now there is an Apple equivalent.Tags: Apple Ads, TikTokThis article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Safari Technology Preview Turns 10: A Decade of Testing Apple's Web Technologies
Today marks the 10th anniversary of Safari Technology Preview, a version of Safari that's aimed at testing new web technologies. Apple first announced ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ for Mac on March 30, 2016, and rolled it out that same day. At the time, Apple said that it wanted to get feedback from developers on browser development using a method more easily accessible than WebKit. "Get a sneak peek at upcoming web technologies in macOS and iOS with ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ and experiment with these technologies in your websites and extensions," reads the description on Apple's developer website. ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ can be used side-by-side with the main Safari browser, and it can be set as the default if users prefer it. Though it is designed for developers, it does not require a developer account to download and use. ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ has a purple icon to distinguish it from the standard version of Safari. STP is compatible with macOS Sequoia and macOS Tahoe right now, and when macOS 27 launches, it will work with ‌macOS 27‌ and ‌macOS Tahoe‌. Apple regularly releases updates for ‌Safari Technology Preview‌, and over the last decade, we've had 240 versions. Apple provides detailed release notes for each update, highlighting new additions and bug fixes in STP that will later come to the primary version of Safari. ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ can be downloaded from Apple's developer website.Tag: Safari Technology PreviewThis article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Everything New in iOS 26.5 Beta 1
iOS 26.5 is now available for developers, and while it doesn't include any new Siri capabilities, there are some major changes for the European Union, and smaller tweaks for features available worldwide. Suggested Places In the Maps app, there's a new "Suggested Places" feature that recommends locations to visit based on trending places nearby and recent searches. When Apple launches ads in Maps, it will also show ads. Ads in Maps iOS 26.5 lays the groundwork for ads in the Maps app. Apple plans to implement ads this summer, with businesses able to purchase ads that are shown in search results and Suggested Places. Code in iOS 26.5 says the following: "Maps may show local ads based on your approximate location, current search terms, or view of the map while you search." Ads will have a clear "ad" label. RCS End-to-End Encryption Apple re-enabled end-to-end encryption (E2EE) for RCS messages between iPhone and Android users in iOS 26.5. Apple tested the feature in the iOS 26.4 beta, but not include E2EE in the final version. There is a toggle for End-to-End Encryption in the Messages section of the Settings app, and the feature is enabled by default. E2EE for ‌RCS‌ means that conversations between iPhone and Android users are encrypted and cannot be intercepted and read by a third party. European Union Third-Party Wearable Changes Apple is working on new interoperability features in the EU to comply with the requirements of the Digital Markets Act. Apple has tested these features in prior betas, but the Live Activity sharing feature is new. Proximity pairing - Devices like earbuds will be able to pair with an iOS device in an AirPods-like way by bringing the accessory close to an iPhone or iPad to initiate a simple, one-tap pairing process. Pairing third-party devices will no longer require multiple steps. Notifications - Third-party accessories like smart watches will be able to receive notifications from the iPhone. Users will be able to view and react to incoming notifications, which is a capability normally limited to the Apple Watch. Notifications can only be forwarded to one connected device at a time, and turning on notifications for a third-party device disables notifications to an Apple Watch. Notifications from select apps can be forwarded, or from all apps. Live Activities - Live Activities are able to sync to a third-party wearable, similar to other notifications. This is a feature that appears to be new to iOS 26.5. There's no word on when the EU third-party wearable features will launch, and Apple also tested them in the iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 betas before removing them when the software was released to the public. Magic Accessories When you connect an accessory like a Magic Keyboard to an iPhone over USB-C, the iPhone will automatically establish a Bluetooth connection with the accessory. iPhone to Android Transfer When switching from an iPhone to an Android device, there appears to be a new setting for selecting which message attachments to transfer over. There are options for All, 1 year, or 30 days. Apple Books There are mentions of new awards in the Apple Books app, which are likely for year-end wrap-ups. Keyboard Layout iOS 26.5 has an Inuktitut keyboard layout option.Related Roundups: iOS 26, iPadOS 26Related Forum: iOS 26This article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Apple Pulls Vibe Coding App 'Anything' From App Store, Escalating Enforcement
Apple has removed a "vibe coding" app from its App Store, reports The Information. AI app building app "Anything" was pulled from the ‌App Store‌, and Anything co-founder Dhruv Amin was told that his app violated Guideline 2.5.2. "Vibe coding" is a term used for code generated using AI based on natural language with no coding experience necessary. Anything and other apps like it let users create apps, websites, and tools with text-based prompts. Apple started removing vibe coding apps from the ‌App Store‌ earlier in March, and the company said that certain features in the apps that were pulled violate code execution rules. In a statement to MacRumors, Apple said that there are no specific rules against vibe coding, but the apps have to adhere to longstanding guidelines. Apple specifically mentioned Guideline 2.5.2, which is the rule Anything apparently violated. Apps should be self-contained in their bundles, and may not read or write data outside the designated container area, nor may they download, install, or execute code which introduces or changes features or functionality of the app, including other apps. Educational apps designed to teach, develop, or allow students to test executable code may, in limited circumstances, download code provided that such code is not used for other purposes. Such apps must make the source code provided by the app completely viewable and editable by the user. "Anything" launched on iOS back in November with no issue, and Amin says the tool has been used to publish thousands of apps in the ‌App Store‌. The app let users create and preview vibe code apps on the iPhone, and it raised $11 million at a valuation of $100 million back in September. While Anything was removed from the ‌App Store‌ on March 26, Apple has been blocking updates to the app since December. Amin submitted an update that would allow vibe coded apps to be previewed in a web browser instead of in the app to attempt to comply with the 2.5.2 rule, but Apple blocked the update and pulled the app. Apple previously blocked iOS updates to Vibecode and Replit, vibe coding apps used to generate other apps.Tag: App StoreThis article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Apple Lays Groundwork for Ads in Maps With iOS 26.5
Apple is planning to introduce ads to the Apple Maps app in the near future, and the iOS 26.5 beta lays the groundwork for the feature. Code in the update says the following: "Maps may show local ads based on your approximate location, current search terms, or view of the map while you search." Apple also says that a user's location and ads interacted with in ‌Apple Maps‌ are not linked to an Apple account to protect user privacy. Apple does not plan to collect or store Maps app data, or share it with third parties. Last week, Apple said that ads are coming to the Apple Maps app for iPhone and iPad in the U.S. and Canada "this summer." Businesses in the U.S. and Canada will be able to show ads in search results and at the top of a "Suggested Places" section in the app, which is new in iOS 26.5. Suggested Places displays recommendations for locations to visit based on trending places nearby, recent searches, and more. Ads in the Maps app will have a clear "Ad" label, much like the ads shown in the App Store search results.Related Roundups: iOS 26, iPadOS 26Tag: Apple MapsRelated Forum: iOS 26This article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Apple Testing AirPods-Like Pairing, Live Activities and Notification Forwarding for Third-Party Wearables in EU With iOS 26.5
For the last several months, Apple has been working on interoperability changes that are set to be implemented in the European Union to comply with the Digital Markets Act. Apple is developing AirPods-like pairing and notification forwarding for third-party wearables. Testing on these features started back in iOS 26.3 and continued in iOS 26.4, but the options have not yet launched. Apple is still testing them in iOS 26.5, and both notification forwarding and proximity pairing for wearables are included in the iOS 26.5 beta. Today's update also appears to include a new feature forwarding Live Activities to a third-party wearable device, so Live Activities will be included under the notification forwarding umbrella. Third-party wearables like earbuds will be able to use proximity pairing, similar to AirPods. Bringing a set of earbuds close to an iPhone or iPad will initiate an AirPods-like one-tap pairing process, so pairing third-party earbuds and other wearables will no longer require multiple steps. Apple is also planning to allow third-party accessories like smartwatches to receive notifications from the iPhone. Users will be able to view and react to incoming notifications, which is a capability currently limited to the Apple Watch. Notifications are only able to be forwarded to one connected device at a time, and turning on notifications for a third-party device disables notifications on an Apple Watch. Apple has not provided details on when these features will launch in the European Union, but the European Commission said that Apple will roll them out in Europe in 2026. Developers can test third-party TVs, smartwatches, and headphones with the new options. The notification forwarding and proximity pairing features are only going to be available to device makers and users in the EU.Related Roundups: AirPods 4, iOS 26, iPadOS 26Tag: European UnionBuyer's Guide: AirPods (Neutral)Related Forums: AirPods, iOS 26This article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Apple Intelligence Accidentally Goes Live in China Before Regulatory Approval
Apple accidentally started rolling out Apple Intelligence features in China before receiving regulatory approval, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Some Chinese users began seeing ‌Apple Intelligence‌ features listed as available and active in the Settings app on their iPhones, but Apple made no formal announcement. Gurman says that Apple is not planning to launch the feature imminently, and that its availability was a mistake. Apple has since removed the ‌Apple Intelligence‌ features. Gurman claims that Apple would not launch AI features in China without an announcement, nor would it launch AI in China in the middle of the night local time. The feature also currently uses Google reverse image search, and Google is banned in China. Apple has not been able to launch ‌Apple Intelligence‌ features in China because the country restricts foreign AI technology. Apple is partnering with Alibaba to power ‌Apple Intelligence‌ capabilities, but Apple needs regulatory approval from China's Cyberspace Administration (CAC). The CAC has to test and approve all AI models before AI services are able to launch in China, and there have been ongoing delays with that process. It is unclear when ‌Apple Intelligence‌ features will come to China, but Apple is eager to launch in the country. Chinese smartphone makers like Huawei and Xiaomi have a variety of AI features available to customers, which puts Apple far behind in the AI race.Related Roundups: iOS 26, iPadOS 26Tags: Apple Intelligence, ChinaRelated Forum: iOS 26This article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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New Siri Features Absent From iOS 26.5 Beta, Likely Pushed to iOS 27 in September
The iOS 26.5 beta that Apple released today includes no new Apple Intelligence Siri functionality, which suggests we're going to be waiting until iOS 27 to see any of the promised ‌Siri‌ features. Apple was initially targeting iOS 26.4 for new ‌Siri‌ capabilities, but in February, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that the company wasn't going to make that goal due to ongoing accuracy issues. He said that Apple could postpone some or all of the new ‌Siri‌ features until iOS 26.5 and ‌iOS 27‌. At the time, Apple engineers were apparently using iOS 26.5 for internal ‌Siri‌ testing, and the employees said the update included all of the ‌Apple Intelligence‌ ‌Siri‌ features that Apple promised back at WWDC 2024, but there are no signs of those additions to ‌Siri‌ now that the beta is available to developers. It's possible that ‌Siri‌ features could come in a later beta of iOS 26.5, but that's looking less and less likely as we get closer to June and the ‌iOS 27‌ WWDC debut. Last week, Gurman said that ‌iOS 27‌ would include a standalone Siri chatbot app and all of the ‌Apple Intelligence‌ ‌Siri‌ features, indicating members of the public won't get a smarter ‌Siri‌ until ‌iOS 27‌ launches in September 2026. When Apple introduced ‌Apple Intelligence‌ ‌Siri‌ in June 2024, it said the feature set would launch in an update to iOS 26 coming in 2025. When spring 2025 rolled around, Apple announced a delay and said that ‌Siri‌ was not ready and needed more time. After that setback, Apple made no promise other than saying the revamped version of ‌Siri‌ would launch in 2026. Behind-the-scenes rumors suggested Apple was targeting iOS 26.4 and development was further delayed, but Apple never publicly mentioned the iOS 26.4 update. As long as Apple launches the new ‌Siri‌ features before December 2026, it will be on track to deliver what it promised. The version of ‌Siri‌ that Apple has planned for ‌iOS 27‌ will go above and beyond what was demonstrated at WWDC 2024. ‌Siri‌ is turning into a full chatbot, with a standalone ‌Siri‌ app and feature set that will put the personal assistant on par with Gemini, Claude, ChatGPT, and other AI chatbots.Related Roundups: iOS 26, iPadOS 26, iOS 27Tag: SiriRelated Forum: iOS 26This article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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iOS 26.5 Beta Continues RCS End-to-End Encryption Testing for iPhone and Android Messages
Apple tested end-to-end encryption (E2EE) for RCS messages exchanged between iPhone and Android users in the iOS 26.4 beta, but Apple made it clear the functionality was not going to launch in the iOS 26.4 update. E2EE for ‌RCS‌ was removed before iOS 26.4 was released, but the feature is back in the iOS 26.5 beta as Apple continues testing it. In the Messages section of the Settings app, the End-to-End Encryption toggle is back in the ‌RCS‌ options, and like before, it is turned on by default. End-to-end encryption ensures that messages sent between devices cannot be intercepted and read by a third party. Right now, ‌RCS‌ messages sent between Android and iPhone users do not have E2EE, but ‌RCS‌ messages between Android users do. iMessages exchanged between iPhone users have always had end-to-end encryption. E2EE is in beta and is not available to all devices or carriers in iOS 26.5. Conversations that are encrypted have a lock symbol.Related Roundups: iOS 26, iPadOS 26Tags: Android, RCSRelated Forum: iOS 26This article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Amazon Big Spring Sale Last Chance Deals: AirPods Pro 3, MacBook Pro, and More Best-Ever Prices
Amazon's Big Spring Sale is set to end tomorrow, March 31, so you still have a little while to shop some of the best prices of the year so far on AirPods, MacBooks, and much more. In this article we're recapping all of the best deals you can still get before the event ends, including a few accessory sales. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running. AirPods The best current AirPods deal during the Big Spring Sale is the AirPods Pro 3 for $199.00, down from $249.00. You can also get a pre-order discount on the brand new AirPods Max 2. $50 OFFAirPods Pro 3 for $199.00 $19 OFFAirPods Max 2 for $529.99 Apple Watch Series 11 Amazon this week has all-time low prices on the Apple Watch Series 11, with $100 discounts across numerous models of the smartwatch. We first started tracking the return of these deals last month, but this sale has now expanded with many more options on both 42mm and 46mm GPS models. $100 OFFApple Watch Series 11 (42mm GPS) for $299.00 $100 OFFApple Watch Series 11 (46mm GPS) for $329.00 You can get the 42mm GPS Apple Watch Series 11 for $299.00, down from $399.00, and the 46mm GPS model for $329.00, down from $429.00. On Amazon, you'll find four of the 42mm GPS models on sale at this all-time low price, and four of the 46mm GPS models on sale as well. $100 OFFApple Watch Series 11 (42mm Cell) for $399.00 $100 OFFApple Watch Series 11 (46mm Cell) for $429.00 M4 iPad Air Amazon is taking up to $100 off the brand new M4 iPad Air during its Big Spring Sale this week. Specifically, Amazon has up to $80 off the 11-inch M4 iPad Air and up to $100 off the 13-inch M4 iPad Air. All of these discounts have been automatically applied and do not require a coupon code or a Prime membership. $40 OFF11-inch M4 iPad Air for $559.00 $50 OFF13-inch M4 iPad Air for $749.00 The new iPad Air features the M4 chip, C1X modem, and N1 networking chip, which brings support for Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6. In terms of design, the 2026 models are identical to the 2025 iPad Air tablets, with an edge-to-edge display, slim bezels, and aluminum chassis. M5 Pro/M5 Max MacBook Pro Amazon is offering new all-time low prices on Apple's M5 Pro/M5 Max MacBook Pro, with up to $149 off select models without the need of a membership or clipping a coupon. $149 OFF14-inch M5 Pro MacBook Pro (24GB/1TB) for $2,049.99 $149 OFF14-inch M5 Pro MacBook Pro (24GB/2TB) for $2,449.99 We're also tracking similar steep discounts on the 16-inch models, including a few M5 Max options. These discounts reach up to $199 off original prices, and as of writing we're only tracking these deals on Amazon. $149 OFF16-inch M5 Pro MacBook Pro (24GB/1TB) for $2,549.99 $199 OFF16-inch M5 Pro MacBook Pro (48GB/1TB) for $2,899.99 Anker Anker's new Prime 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Station has been marked down to $104.99 during the Big Spring Sale, down from $149.99, with no need for a coupon. This accessory just launched last month, and Amazon's sale today represents a new all-time low price. $45 OFFAnker Prime 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Station for $104.99 The Prime 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Station features Qi2.2 support, which lets a compatible MagSafe ‌iPhone‌ charge at up to 25W. It's the same speed as Apple's ‌MagSafe‌ charger, and it is 10W faster than the standard Qi2 ‌MagSafe‌ chargers. You can also simultaneously charge an Apple Watch and AirPods with the device. There are plenty of other Anker discounts happening on Amazon this week, including the Prime 14-in-1 Thunderbolt 5 Dock back at its all-time low price of $339.99, down from $399.99. Anker's popular 3-in-1 MagSafe-Compatible Charging Cube is also down to a new all-time low price of $79.03, down from $129.99. $60 OFFAnker Prime 14-in-1 Thunderbolt 5 Dock for $339.99 Wall Chargers Nano USB-C Wall Charger - $27.99, down from $39.99 6-in-1 USB-C Power Strip - $59.99, down from $109.99 140W 4-Port GaN USB-C Charger - $89.99, down from $99.99 14-in-1 Prime Thunderbolt 5 Dock - $339.99, down from $399.99 Wireless Chargers 3-in-1 MagSafe-Compatible UFO Charger - $69.99, down from $89.99 3-in-1 MagSafe-Compatible Foldable Charging Station - $79.99, down from $109.99 3-in-1 MagSafe-Compatible Charging Cube - $79.03, down from $129.99 3-in-1 Prime Wireless Charging Station - $104.99, down from $149.99 Prime MagSafe-Compatible 3-in-1 Charging Station - $149.99, down from $229.99 Portable Chargers SOLIX C300 Power Station with Lantern - $169.99, down from $249.00 Prime Power Bank 26,250 mAh - $199.99, down from $229.99 SOLIX C1000 Gen 2 Portable Power Station - $428.99, down from $799.00 SOLIX C2000 Gen 2 Portable Power Station - $749.00, down from $1,499.00 If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week. Deals Newsletter Interested in hearing more about the best deals you can find in 2026? Sign up for our Deals Newsletter and we'll keep you updated so you don't miss the biggest deals of the season! Related Roundup: Apple DealsThis article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Apple Releases First watchOS 26.5, tvOS 26.5 and visionOS 26.5 Betas
Apple today provided developers with the first betas of upcoming watchOS 26.5, tvOS 26.5, and visionOS 26.5 betas for testing purposes. The software comes a week after Apple launched the 26.4 versions of each platform. The software updates are available through the Settings app on each device, and because these are developer betas, a free developer account is required. There's no word on what's in the software as of yet. watchOS, tvOS, and visionOS often get few features in each new beta, with updates primarily focusing on bug fixes and performance improvements. Apple will likely provide public beta testers with access to the tvOS 26.5 and watchOS 26.5 betas in April, but visionOS 26.5 will remain limited to developers.Related Roundups: Apple TV, Apple Vision Pro, watchOS 26Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy), Vision Pro (Buy Now)Related Forums: Apple TV and Home Theater, Apple Vision Pro, Apple WatchThis article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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First macOS Tahoe 26.5 Beta Now Available for Developers
Apple today provided the first beta of an upcoming macOS Tahoe 26.5 update to developers for testing purposes, with the update coming six days after Apple launched ‌macOS Tahoe‌ 26.4. Developers can download the ‌macOS Tahoe‌ 26.5 update by opening up the System Settings app, selecting the General category, and then choosing Software Update. Beta Updates will need to be enabled, and a free developer account is required. ‌macOS Tahoe‌ 26.5 could introduce some Apple Intelligence Siri features, though recent rumors suggest the new capabilities will be held until iOS 27. The beta is limited to developers right now, but a public beta is expected in the next week or two.Related Roundup: macOS TahoeRelated Forum: macOS TahoeThis article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Apple Seeds First iOS 26.5 and iPadOS 26.5 Betas to Developers
Apple today seeded the first betas of upcoming iOS 26.5 and iPadOS 26.5 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming a week after Apple released iOS 26.4 and iPadOS 26.4. Registered developers can download the betas from the Settings app on the iPhone or iPad by going to the General section and selecting Software Update. It's possible iOS 26.5 and iPadOS 26.5 will include new Apple Intelligence Siri features, but it's sounding like those capabilities are going to be held until iOS 27. Apple is planning to implement end-to-end encrypted RCS messages at some point, so that functionality could come in iOS 26.5, plus Apple has been planning to implement notification forwarding and proximity pairing for third-party wearables in the EU. It's not known what other features might be included in iOS 26.5, but we'll provide updates when we've installed the new software. Related Roundups: iOS 26, iPadOS 26Related Forum: iOS 26This article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Apple Discontinued More Than Just the Mac Pro This Month
While it felt inevitable, it was still big news last week when Apple announced that the Mac Pro was discontinued after a nearly 20-year run. Apple discontinued a lot more than just the Mac Pro this month, though, as outlined below. Mac Studio with 512GB of RAM Apple no longer allows customers to configure the Mac Studio with 512GB of RAM, with the maximum amount of unified memory now limited to 256GB. Apple has not publicly commented on removing the 512GB of RAM option, but it was likely because of the ongoing memory chip shortage, which has resulted in the price of RAM chips skyrocketing. It is possible that Apple could allow the Mac Studio to be configured with 512GB of RAM again one day, once supply catches up to demand. 14-inch MacBook Pro with 512GB of Storage The new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips start with at least 1TB of storage, and Apple also decided to bump the minimum storage for the lower-end 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M5 chip to 1TB. This means the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M5 chip and 512GB of storage was discontinued. Keep in mind that the 14-inch MacBook Pro now starts at $1,699, whereas a configuration with 512GB of storage previously started at $1,599. Pro Display XDR Apple discontinued the Pro Display XDR this month after releasing the Studio Display XDR, which effectively replaces it. Released alongside the 2019 Mac Pro, the Pro Display XDR featured a 32-inch screen with LED backlighting, 6K resolution, a 60Hz refresh rate, P3 wide color, up to 1,600 nits of brightness, one Thunderbolt 3 port, and three USB-C ports. In the U.S., the monitor started at $4,999, but the optional Pro Stand cost $999 extra. The Studio Display XDR has a lot of superior features compared to the Pro Display XDR, including mini-LED backlighting, a 120Hz refresh rate, up to twice as much display brightness, speakers, a camera, Thunderbolt 5 support, and a lower $3,299 starting price that includes a stand. However, it has a smaller 27-inch screen. More Of course, Apple also discontinued previous-generation versions of the iPad Air, MacBook Air, and many other products this month, as we already listed.Related Roundups: Studio Display, Mac Studio, MacBook ProBuyer's Guide: Displays (Buy Now), Mac Studio (Caution), MacBook Pro (Buy Now), Mac Pro (Don't Buy)Related Forums: Mac Accessories, Mac Studio, MacBook Pro, Mac ProThis article, "" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

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Increased HTTP 5xx errors in Philadelphia colo
Apr 9, 14:30 UTCResolved - Between 14:41 and 16:34 UTC on April 9th, 2026, we experienced an elevated level of HTTP 5xx errors affecting traffic through our Philadelphia (PHL) data center. The issue has been mitigated now.

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Russia SMS Carrier Maintenance – Bee Line
THIS IS A SCHEDULED EVENT Apr 13, 14:00 - 15:00 PDTApr 9, 02:27 PDTScheduled - The Bee Line network in Russia is conducting a planned maintenance from 13 April 2026 at 14:00 PDT until 13 April 2026 at 15:00 PDT. During the maintenance window, there could be intermittent delays delivering SMS to Bee Line Russia handsets.

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Synthethcis Manager
Apr 9, 09:51 UTCInvestigating - Some customers in the US region may be experiencing delayed Synthetics Checks execution data in queries with Synthetics Job Manager.

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Scheduled maintenance- Cloud Manager Analytics
THIS IS A SCHEDULED EVENT Apr 14, 05:30 - 07:30 UTCApr 9, 08:22 UTCScheduled - We will be performing scheduled maintenance on our servers responsible for Cloud Manager Analytics in Dallas starting at 05:30 UTC on April 14th, 2026. The maintenance period is expected to last 2 hours ending 07:30 UTC, April 14th, 2026. While existing graphs will continue to be displayed normally, please be aware that a slight delay in graph updates may be observed during the process.

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Unable to open manage portal and StatusPage intermittently
Apr 9, 00:10 PDTInvestigating - Customers might intermittently experience issues when accessing Statuspage capabilities.

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Twilio Voice Maintenance
THIS IS A SCHEDULED EVENT May 11, 05:00 - 06:30 PDTApr 8, 19:02 PDTScheduled - Twilio will conduct planned maintenance on the Australia Twilio network from 11 May 2026 at 5:00 PDT until 11 May 2026 at 6:30 PDT. During the maintenance window, no service disruptions are expected. Although redundancy may be temporarily lost, the service itself will remain unaffected.

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Endpoint Root Certificate Update – April 9th at 00:00 UTC
Apr 9, 01:52 UTCCompleted - The scheduled maintenance has been completed and all relevant New Relic endpoints have been transitioned to the DigiCert Global Root G2 certificate.For further details, see https://support.newrelic.com/s/hubtopic/aAXPh000000HVSPOA4/action-required-root-certificate-update-on-april-1-2026.Apr 9, 01:12 UTCVerifying - The scheduled update to our digital security certificates (SSL) is now complete. We have successfully transitioned all relevant New Relic endpoints to the DigiCert Global Root G2 certificate.We are currently monitoring platform stability and will provide a final update once the window is officially closed.Apr 9, 00:00 UTCIn progress - Scheduled maintenance is currently in progress. We will provide updates as necessary.Apr 1, 17:11 UTCUpdate - Permanent G2 Certificate Transition Postponed to April 09, 2026To allow customers additional time to update legacy environments and avoid data drops, New Relic is postponing the permanent transition to the DigiCert Global Root G2 certificate by one week.The final cutover is now scheduled for 00:00 UTC on April 09, 2026.Please note: This is the final postponement. Because the industry-wide deadline for G1 distrust is April 15th, we cannot delay this change any further without risking a total service interruption for all New Relic customers. Systems not updated by April 9th will lose the ability to send telemetry data to New Relic.Any further updates will be posted on status.newrelic.com, as well as our forum: https://support.newrelic.com/s/hubtopic/aAXPh000000HVSPOA4/action-required-root-certificate-update-on-april-1-2026Mar 18, 17:54 UTCScheduled - On April 2nd at 00:00 UTC, New Relic will permanently transition to the DigiCert G2 root certificate for all endpoints. This aligns with an industry-wide security change. On April 15th, 2026, major browser trust stores and security authorities will officially distrust the legacy DigiCert G1 Root Certificate. To maintain its strong continued security posture, New Relic is updating its infrastructure to utilize modern root certificates prior to this deadline. Most modern systems and agents are designed to handle this change automatically.If your systems do not recognize and trust these newer root certificates when the update is applied, the secure handshake will fail and would result in a telemetry data drop, meaning your metrics, events, traces, and logs may stop reporting to the New Relic platform. This risk is primarily associated with legacy Java agents (older than v6.4.2), certain Docker images, and systems using pinned certificates. Any further updates will be posted on status.newrelic.com, as well as our forum: https://support.newrelic.com/s/hubtopic/aAXPh000000HVSPOA4/action-required-root-certificate-update-on-april-1-2026

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Spain SMS Carrier Maintenance – Telefonica
THIS IS A SCHEDULED EVENT Apr 11, 14:00 - 22:00 PDTApr 8, 15:24 PDTScheduled - The Telefonica network in Spain is conducting a planned maintenance from 11 April 2026 at 14:00 PDT until 11 April 2026 at 22:00 PDT. During the maintenance window, there could be intermittent delays delivering SMS to Telefonica Spain handsets when sending via long codes and short codes.

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UPDATE: **Summary** AppSheet customers are experiencing redirection to asia-southeast.appsheet.com instead of their intended application URLs. **Description** Beginning on Wednesday, 2026-04-08 14:05 PDT, we are experiencing an issue with AppSheet that caused users to be erroneously redirected to the asia-southeast region. Our engineers have identified the cause was due to a recent change and have reverted. Our internal telemetry shows the signs of recovery and are currently monitoring the recovery status. We expect full service recovery within an hour. We will provide an update by Wednesday, 2026-04-08 16:30 PDT with current details **Customer Symptoms** Users are automatically redirected to asia-southeast.appsheet.com, which may cause “Not Found” or 403 errors when attempting to access their apps. **Workaround** None at this time.
Incident began at 2026-04-08 21:05 (times are in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC)).Summary AppSheet customers are experiencing redirection to asia-southeast.appsheet.com instead of their intended application URLs. Description Beginning on Wednesday, 2026-04-08 14:05 PDT, we are experiencing an issue with AppSheet that caused users to be erroneously redirected to the asia-southeast region. Our engineers have identified the cause was due to a recent change and have reverted. Our internal telemetry shows the signs of recovery and are currently monitoring the recovery status. We expect full service recovery within an hour. We will provide an update by Wednesday, 2026-04-08 16:30 PDT with current details Customer Symptoms Users are automatically redirected to asia-southeast.appsheet.com, which may cause "Not Found" or 403 errors when attempting to access their apps. Workaround None at this time. Affected products: AppSheet

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Network performance issues in MIA and ATL regions
Apr 8, 19:30 UTCResolved - Between 19:47 and 21:57UTC on April 8, 2026, Cloudflare identified and mitigated a network performance issue specifically affecting our Miami and Atlanta regions. Users may have experienced increased latency or intermittent connectivity due to degraded routing paths in the Southeast. Our engineering team has since stabilized the connection and confirmed that all systems are back to full operational capacity; we will continue to monitor these nodes closely to ensure ongoing performance.

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SCL (Santiago) on 2026-04-13
THIS IS A SCHEDULED EVENT Apr 13, 14:30 - 18:00 UTCApr 8, 17:58 UTCScheduled - We will be performing scheduled maintenance in SCL (Santiago) datacenter on 2026-04-13 between 14:30 and 18:00 UTC.Traffic might be re-routed from this location, hence there is a possibility of a slight increase in latency during this maintenance window for end-users in the affected region. For PNI / CNI customers connecting with us in this location, please make sure you are expecting this traffic to fail over elsewhere during this maintenance window as network interfaces in this datacentre may become temporarily unavailable.You can now subscribe to these notifications via Cloudflare dashboard and receive these updates directly via email, PagerDuty and webhooks (based on your plan): https://developers.cloudflare.com/notifications/notification-available/#cloudflare-status.

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UPDATE: **Title:** Customers may experience delays in receiving and sending emails. **Description:** We are aware of an issue with Gmail users experiencing delays in receiving and sending emails beginning at Wednesday, 2026-04-08 06:30 PDT. Mitigation work is currently underway by our engineering team. We do not have an ETA for mitigation at this point. We will provide an update by Wednesday, 2026-04-08 12:00 PDT with current details. **Symptoms:** Customers may experience delays in receiving and sending emails. **Workaround:** None at this time.
Incident began at 2026-04-08 13:30 (times are in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC)).Title: Customers may experience delays in receiving and sending emails. Description: We are aware of an issue with Gmail users experiencing delays in receiving and sending emails beginning at Wednesday, 2026-04-08 06:30 PDT. Mitigation work is currently underway by our engineering team. We do not have an ETA for mitigation at this point. We will provide an update by Wednesday, 2026-04-08 12:00 PDT with current details. Symptoms: Customers may experience delays in receiving and sending emails. Workaround: None at this time. Affected products: Gmail

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Copilots “Ask” mode is not working correctly
Status: InvestigatingCopilot’s ‘Ask’ mode is currently malfunctioning, causing repeated prompts, duplicate messages, and eventual crashes when users try to build Zaps. This is causing that mode to be unable to build Zaps for users. For any users being affected by this, we can ask users to switch to “Build” mode in Copliot instead, as this mode is not affected and working correctly.Affected components Copilot (Degraded performance)

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Errors related to Custom Actions and Code by Zapier steps
Status: InvestigatingWe have discovered the issue may appear in Code by Zapier steps as well, and are continuing to investigate the root cause.

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SMF (Sacramento) on 2026-04-08
THIS IS A SCHEDULED EVENT Apr 8, 16:00 - 23:00 UTCApr 8, 15:24 UTCScheduled - We will be performing scheduled maintenance in SMF (Sacramento) datacenter on 2026-04-08 between 16:00 and 23:00 UTC.Traffic might be re-routed from this location, hence there is a possibility of a slight increase in latency during this maintenance window for end-users in the affected region. For PNI / CNI customers connecting with us in this location, please make sure you are expecting this traffic to fail over elsewhere during this maintenance window as network interfaces in this datacentre may become temporarily unavailable.You can now subscribe to these notifications via Cloudflare dashboard and receive these updates directly via email, PagerDuty and webhooks (based on your plan): https://developers.cloudflare.com/notifications/notification-available/#cloudflare-status.

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