Apple's Image Playground is a new system-wide AI-powered image generation tool
During the 2024 WWDC, Apple announced an Image Playground — an entirely new AI application that can be used to generate images and emojis across iOS 18, macOS Sequoia, and iPadOS 18.Image Credit: AppleThe new app is called Image Playground, which was originally known as Generative Playground in pre-release versions of Apple's latest operating systems. AppleInsider exclusively revealed the existence of Image Playground in our reports on Apple's internal AI projects — Greymatter and BlackPearl.Image Playground was announced during Apple's WWDC keynote, as part of the company's new generative AI software dubbed "Apple Intelligence". Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Apple Announces visionOS 2 With 3D Photo Transformations and An Ultrawide Mac Display
Apple has announced visionOS 2 for its Vision Pro spatial computing headset, bringing mouse support, an ultrawide virtual Mac display option, and new Photo features. The company says it's expected to launch "later this year." The Verge reports: The most significant update, for all the productivity heads out there, is a new ultrawide virtual display feature. Apple says that in visionOS 2, you'll be able to connect a Vision Pro to a Mac to generate a dual 4K-equivalent curved ultrawide display. Right now, the virtual display feature only does a single up to 5K one. Also, the company will finally add mouse support to the Vision Pro -- at launch, the headset could work with trackpads like the one on a MacBook Air or the standalone Magic Trackpad 2, but oddly left out mouse support. You can still use one inside a mirrored display in the Vision Pro, but not outside of that screen in, say, an iPad or Vision Pro app. Apple says that in the new update, users will be able to convert any image in the Photos app to a spatial one. Also, visionOS 2 will have train support, so the Vision Pro's travel mode will no longer be limited to just airplanes. The company also says it's adding SharePlay to the visionOS Photos app, which means that you can share the app with another Vision Pro owner using Spatial Personas [...]. The company says Red Bull is making a new immersive sports series, while Apple is making its first scripted immersive feature. Apple also said that Canon is releasing a new spatial lens for the EOS R7, one designed specifically for creating content for the Vision Pro. Finally, the company is rolling out the Vision Pro abroad. Apple is going to start taking preorders in China, Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore on June 13th at 6PM PT, and it'll be available in those countries on June 28th. Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and the UK will get preorders later, on June 28th at 5AM PT, with the headset officially available on July 12th. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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Here’s a look at the revamped Settings app in iOS 18
iPhone Settings has become busier and busier over the years and iOS 18 looks to solve that with a redesign. It keeps the main attributes of the historical UI, but the new Settings in iOS 18 offers a reorganized and simplified experience with improved search. more…

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iOS 18 finally adds T9 dialling on iPhone
A long-requested feature for Android users switching to iPhone is the addition of T9 dialling. This is a shortcut to dialling phone numbers from your address book, by typing in letters on the keypad. For instance, to call John you’d press 5 6 4 (for J O H). On many Samsung and other Android phones, this would search for the closest alphabetical match to a person’s name in your contacts. iPhone has not had this feature … until now with iOS 18. more…

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AI-powered Siri is the new face of Apple Intelligence
Find out how artificial intelligence is transforming the Siri voice assistant into a tool that iPhone, Mac and iPad users actually want. (via Cult of Mac - Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)

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Apple introduces new ways for AirPods to communicate and interact
This fall, AirPods software updates will transform the way users respond to Siri, take calls with friends and loved ones, and immerse… The post appeared first on MacDailyNews.

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Apple's Journal app is getting new features in iOS 18, but it's still not on iPad
Apple has announced a handful of new features coming to its Journal app this fall, but for reasons only it knows, the company hasn't announced any plans to bring it to iPad.Journal in iOS 18Apple's Journal app made its debut on the iPhone in December, with a promise to help users document significant moments in their lives. Now, as part of the iOS 18 feature preview, Apple has unveiled a sneak peek of the exciting new features we can look forward to in Journal this fall.A new minimalist mood tracker enables users to easily record their state of mind to keep track of their mood over time. The time spent journaling can also be added as mindful minutes in the Health app. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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iOS 18 RCS rollout coming in the fall to bridge Apple & Android messaging gap
Apple is set to replace an aging texting protocol with a newer one to enhance compatibility with Android. Here's when it will roll out.RCS support will be added to the iPhone sometime in 2024RCS, or Rich Communication Services, is an upgrade to a smartphone's traditional text messaging system (SMS). It makes text messages more like iMessage with iOS 18.The RCS messaging protocol supports features like seeing when someone is typing, sending high-quality images and videos, and knowing when messages are read. Unlike the old SMS, RCS can use Wi-Fi and cellular data, making it more versatile and user-friendly. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Users will be able to send messages via satellite in iOS 18
Apple is bringing more functionality to satellite-based features of the iPhone, with iOS 18 bringing the option to send messages to other users.Messages via Satellite in iOS 18The introduction of Emergency SOS via Satellite provided users with a way to get assistance when they're out of cellular and Wi-Fi range. During WWDC 2024, Apple teased an expansion to the concept tht's on the way.As part of iOS 18 and as the name explains, Messages via Satellite will let users send messages using a satellite. If there's no cellular service and no Internet via Wi-Fi available, Messages will let users instead ping the message from a satellite. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Elon Musk calls iOS 18 a ‘security violation’ for integrating ChatGPT, says he will ban use of Apple devices at Tesla
iOS 18 includes a swathe of new Apple Intelligence features, as well as integration with ChatGPT for things like image generation and writing assistance. Users can optionally pass off their Siri requests to ChatGPT, for example. Elon Musk has just heard the news about iOS 18, and is weighing on with his elevated thoughts. He describes the OpenAI integration as an “unacceptable security violation” and threatens to ban the use of Apple devices at his companies, including Tesla, SpaceX and X. more…

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iOS 18 lets you replace the Lock screen’s flashlight and camera buttons with controls of your choosing
Today as part of its iOS 18 unveiling during the WWDC keynote, Apple shared that the upcoming software release provides a feature users have long asked for: the ability to replace the flashlight and camera buttons on the iPhone’s Lock screen with controls of your own choosing. Here’s how that works. more…

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iOS 18 lets you change widget sizes right from your home screen
In addition to major new home screen customization options in iOS 18, Apple has also made it easier to rearrange your home screen. Most notably, you can now adjust widget sizes right from your iPhone’s home screen. more…

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Apple reveals watchOS 11 with intelligent Smart Stack customization
Apple on Monday previewed watchOS 11, with features for Apple Watch that build on its leading sensor technology, advanced algorithms, and… The post appeared first on MacDailyNews.

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watchOS 11 brings a raft of new apps and features to the Apple Watch
Macworld At WWDC 2024 on June 10, Apple unveiled watchOS 11, the next operating system update for Apple Watch. The software brings new apps, new features, new face customization options, an upgraded Smart Stack, and extensive changes to the Apple Watch’s health and fitness functions. Here’s a taste of the new features coming to your Apple Watch later this year: New watch faces We’ll start with something that comes up nearly every year: new watch faces. Or perhaps we should say upgraded rather than new faces because this is a change to the existing Photos face. The way this will change in watchOS 11 is that you’ll be able to create custom faces more easily, thanks to assistance from the OS. The Watch will analyze thousands of your photos to make a recommendation of those that will work well as a face (based on composition, facial expression, and other factors) and then help you to crop and zoom to get the best positioning within the frame. You’ll get a range of personalization options beyond this, including font, layout, clock size, and more, and there’s also a Dynamic mode that will push a different photo each time you raise your wrist. Apple Apple Apple Fitness The Apple Watch’s main functions revolve around health and fitness, and it was no surprise that Apple focuses heavily on these areas in watchOS 11. On the fitness side, there’s a new metric called Training Load, designed to help users understand the strain that exercise places on the body and the way workouts are impacting their body. Workouts will be given an effort rating on a scale of 1 to 10, based on age, height, weight, heart rate, GPS data, and the workout type, but users can further modify this to account for factors such as stress. Then longer-term data can be used to analyze whether strain on the body “is ramping up, staying the same, or easing off so they can adjust their training for the best results.” watchOS 11 also brings the ability to pause Activity rings when you need a rest day or suffer an injury but don’t want to break a streak. (That’s a feature that’s been needed as long as Apple Watch has been a thing.) You can pause rings for as long as you want—a day, a week, even a month or more. Apple Apple Apple Those rings will also be more customizable than in the past. You can choose to modify the ring targets depending on the day of the week, so that calorie targets are lower on Sundays, for example, if that’s when you like to rest up. That’s another feature that’s been needed for a long time; it was always peculiar and inflexible for the Apple Watch to insist that your fitness patterns should be the same throughout the week. Another regular feature of watchOS updates is the addition of new workout types, and watchOS 11 is no exception. In this case the key factor is improvements in GPS positioning, which means more workout types can track distance and provide GPS map data, including Soccer, American Football, Lacrosse, Cross Country Skiing, Golf, Outdoor Rowing, and more. The Custom Workouts feature can now also be used for pool swims. Vitals There’s a new app for the Apple Watch, indeed a completely new app on any of Apple’s platforms, called Vitals. This brings together useful health-related metrics (including the new Training Load information discussed above) and makes them easy to browse in a single place. You can monitor your heart rate, for instance, and view how the current measurement compares to what’s typical for you. Outliers are flagged, in case they are worth checking with a medical professional, and the app explains what has changed from the norm and offers possible causes of this. Higher temperatures, for example, “could be due to many factors including illness or alcohol consumption.” Specifically, Apple says a notification can be triggered if two or more metrics are out of their typical range. Apple Apple Apple Pregnancy support Continuing the health and fitness focus, watchOS 11 (along with iOS 18 and iPadOS 18) is designed to support pregnant people “to reflect changes in their physical and mental health during this important time.” You’ll need to log the pregnancy in the Health app, and then the Apple Watch’s Cycle Tracking app will track gestational age, allow you to log symptoms, and prompt you to adjust the threshold for your high heart rate notification and similar features. Fall detection can adjust its sensitivity to account for the typically greater unsteadiness of pregnant people, while the Health app can be set to prompt the user to review their mental health on a regular basis. Translate Here’s another new app, but in this case it’s only new to Apple Watch. The Translate app uses machine learning to help you navigate conversations in other languages. (A total of 20 are supported.) This also provides Romanized pronunciation guides for languages using different alphabets. Apple Apple Apple Smart Stack Apple says the Smart Stack feature has become more capable. It can now feature Live Activities, enabling you to follow sports events or the progress of your Uber driver. The feature can use information about your routine, as well as the time and location, to suggest appropriate widgets–such as a weather-alert widget when bad weather is on the way. And there are new widgets based on Shazam, Photos, Distance, and more. The Smart Stack can also suggest a relevant Translate widget when you travel to a different country and includes access to the Check In feature, which also comes to Apple Watch for the first time. Check In Speaking of which… this useful personal-safety feature, previously available on iPhone as of the launch of iOS 17 last year, enables you to easily let friends and family know that you’ve reached your destination. And it now comes to the Apple Watch. It’s been integrated into the Workout app, which sounds perfect for those embarking on late-night runs, as well as Messages (as on the iPhone). Apple Apple Apple What about Apple Intelligence? The Apple Watch’s new Translate app and the Photos watch face customization algorithm each rely on machine learning, but it was notable at WWDC that the Apple Watch is getting far less access to Apple’s new AI developments, at least in this first wave. The Apple Intelligence features are coming to the iPhone, the iPad, and the Mac… but the Apple Watch wasn’t mentioned. It’s likely that watchOS will become part of Apple Intelligence at some point, but not yet. With one minor exception: Apple says “Summarised notifications, powered by Apple Intelligence, will be forwarded from iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max to Apple Watch.” Compatibility watchOS 11 is available for the Apple Watch Series 6 and later. Apple Watch Series 6 Apple Watch Series 7 Apple Watch Series 8 Apple Watch SE (2nd gen) Apple Watch Ultra Apple Watch Series 9 Apple Watch Ultra 2 That’s a big jump; watchOS 9 and 10 were both Series 4 and later, so both models have been removed from support. And in fact the 1st-gen Apple Watch SE has been dropped as well, even though it came out at the same time as the Series 6. watchOS 11 is available as a developer beta right away and a public beta will become available in July. The final version of watchOS 11 will roll out to the public in the fall. Apple Watch

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watchOS 11 adds long-awaited fitness features
WatchOS 11 will monitor your Training Load, enable you to pause your Activity Rings when you're sick, and track your pregnancy. (via Cult of Mac - Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)

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AirPods software update will let you refuse a telemarker's call by shaking your head
Apple is updating the software on AirPods this fall, with Siri Interactions and Voice Isolation among the inbound changes.AirPods will let you shake your head to decline a call without speaking. Handy if you're in an elevator. During Apple's WWDC 2024 keynote, it detailed many improvements coming to its various operating systems. It also took a moment to detail what is on the way for AirPods users.Siri Interactions offers new ways to work with the digital assistant using the earbuds. This includes being able to nod or shake their head to respond to Siri to answer or ignore a phone call in cases when the user cannot speak aloud. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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