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- Monday May 13
- 20 mins agoInstead of simplifying the iPad, Apple made it more confusing than ever
Macworld Welcome to our weekly Apple Breakfast column, which includes all the Apple news you missed last week in a handy bite-sized roundup. We call it Apple Breakfast because we think it goes great with a Monday morning cup of coffee or tea, but it’s cool if you want to give it a read during lunch or dinner hours too. Simple is as simple does One of the first things they teach you at tech journalist school is to put yourself in the shoes of the casual reader. I’m immersed in the world of Apple products on a daily basis, but many of those who visit Macworld stubbornly insist on having a life. And things that might seem obvious to me, and to Apple’s head-in-the-clouds hipster marketing team, are baffling to them. It’s worrying for all concerned, then, when I’m the one finding Apple’s product range baffling. But that’s been the case with the iPad for years: between staggered launches, inconsistent naming conventions, and an excess of choice, the line-up at the start of this year was an absolute mess. Ripe, we all assumed, for a cool glass of “keep it simple, stupid.” But last week’s Let Loose event was disappointedly short of that particular beverage. First of all, Apple resolutely refused to prune the range to any significant degree. Yes, the 9th-gen iPad was dropped from sale and the 10th-gen model got a price cut, but Apple added another iPad Air to fill the void. So there are still six iPad models on sale, each with further choices of color, storage capacity, cellular connectivity, screen size… and now screen finish, as if the buying decision wasn’t complicated enough already. Apple Apple Apple Neither was any attempt made to untangle the iPad’s odd naming conventions. The cheapest model is still called simply “iPad,” making any attempt to discuss it a thoroughly Abbott and Costello experience. (“I’m going to buy an iPad.” “Which iPad?” “The iPad.” “But which iPad?” etc.) Then there’s the iPad Air, which counterintuitively isn’t the smallest or lightest model. The smallest Mac uses the “mini” branding, while the slenderest MacBook uses “Air;” only the iPad feels the need to have both. In fact, the names have even less meaning, because pixel for pixel the iPad Air is now bulkier and heavier than the iPad Pro, too. And at 1.36 pounds the 13-inch Air is by some distance the heaviest iPad currently on sale. Riddle me that one, naming sticklers. And this: If you buy an 11-inch iPad you’re actually still getting a 10.9-inch screen and the 13-inch AIr is actually 12.9 inches, while the 11-inch and 13-inch iPad Pro are accurately named. And what about the Apple Pencil, an iPad-only accessory so seemingly fundamental to its appeal that Apple plastered one across the launch event artwork? That went from baffling to incomprehensible. Ludicrously there are now four Apple Pencils on sale simultaneously, and it would take me multiple paragraphs, and a major increase in my blood pressure, to explain the differences and which model works with which iPad. At the risk of repeating myself, Apple should have taken this opportunity to strip back the iPad range to two brands: Air and Pro. As with the MacBook range, the former would focus on portability and keeping down cost and swallow up the rebranded iPad mini as a smaller screen option. The latter would focus on processing power, battery life, and state-of-the-art screen tech. If Apple wants to offer something cheaper as well, it can keep an older Air model on sale, much as it does with the MacBook range. Admittedly some niche buying options would be lost in this purge. But Apple would gain something far more valuable: clarity. And at long last customers–and experienced tech journalists-would have some hope of understanding what’s going on. Have your say Last week I said many of Apple’s events would be better off as an email, and this prompted some strong opinions. “I used to intently listen to Steve Jobs present the next big Apple product,” wrote John Scott. “But honestly, I don’t even watch the condensed versions now. The right people can do presentations and spur on their customers’ impulse buying. But nobody at Apple today has that personality. “The leakers also ruined it for any sort of surprises.” Another reader who asked to remain nameless was less impressed by my argument. “Sorry, but I look forward to these announcements as they display new products and services in their best light, with Apple presenters who are not ‘charisma-free executives,'” he wrote. “I’ll be online at 7am (as I suspect you will, too) to hear what they have to say and admire a company that makes some of the best designed and most functional products in the world.” Foundry Foundry Foundry Let Loose special Everything Apple announced during the ‘Let Loose’ event. Apple’s iPad event: 5 unexpected surprises you may have missed. Jason Snell explains how the iPad Pro’s M4 chip sets the iPhone and Mac on a new path. With the fourth model, the Apple Pencil strategy finally makes sense. The new iPad Pro is finally here with an M4 chip and OLED display. Apple announces the M2 iPad Air with a larger 13-inch screen. Apple debuts M4 processor in new iPad Pro. New sleeker, aluminum Magic Keyboard makes iPad Pro even more Mac-like. New Apple Pencil Pro adds a fourth stylus option for iPads. Apple has tragically killed off its last device that still had a headphone jack. Apple reveals new AI-enhanced versions of Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro. Trending: Top stories Apple’s so behind on AI it needs an intervention. Podcast of the week The drought is finally over! Apple has announced new iPad Pros, new iPad Airs, the Apple Pencil Pro, and more! We’re talking about the latest Apple product announcements in this episode of the Macworld Podcast. You can catch every episode of the Macworld Podcast on Spotify, Soundcloud, the Podcasts app, or our own site. Reviews corner Best VPN for Mac: Reviews and buying advice. The rumor mill The iPhone 17 may debut a new ‘slim’ model. Forget new iPads, Apple is actually working on a touchscreen Mac. And with that, we’re done for this week’s Apple Breakfast. If you’d like to get regular roundups, sign up for our newsletters. You can also follow us on Facebook, Threads, or Twitter for discussion of breaking Apple news stories. See you next Monday, and stay Appley. Apple Inc50 mins agoInitial M4 Geekbench scores go public, new chip tests 24 percent faster than the M3
Last week at its media event, Apple made the unconventional move of releasing its newest CPU, the M4, within its next-generation iPad Pro tablet, which is currently available for pre-order and will hit the shelves on Wednesday, May 15. Benchmarks for the new M4 iPad Pro units have surfaced over on Geekbench, and offer a […] Source08:00 amStay on track of project tasks, budgeting, and more with a $20 Microsoft Project license
Macworld No matter what profession you’re in, you likely deal or lead projects on a regular basis. Project organization and management can be a difficult task, but Microsoft Project Professional 2021 can help you start and end your projects successfully. Through May 22, Microsoft’s leading project management suite (4.4-star rated on GetApp!) is less than $20. It’s a one-time fee that opens lifetime access to tools for auto-population, task reports, and more. Project offers a wide range of pre-made project management templates to get started on the right foot and can be synced with Project Online and Project Server for greater ease of use. If you’re a project manager, you can benefit from this suite’s easy timesheet submission tools, which allow you to view time spent on projects and differentiate them from project work and non-project work. Managers and business leaders can also run what-if scenarios to see how your project may turn out, as well as auto-populate start and end dates. You can even get a visual representation of complex project schedules with integrated timelines. From May 13 through 22 at 11:59 PM Pacific, you can get lifetime access to Microsoft Project Professional 2021 for Windows for just $19.97. No coupon necessary! Microsoft Project Professional 2021 for Windows Only $19.97 at Macworld StackSocial prices subject to change. Accessories01:20 amApple Store workers in Maryland vote in favor of a strike over working conditions
Two years ago, Apple Store workers in Towson, Maryland voted in favor of unionization, making it the first Apple retail location in the United States to unionize. Now, those Apple Towson Town Center employees have authorized a strike, after “a year of negotiations with Apple management that yielded unsatisfactory outcomes.” more…Sunday May 1208:34 pmOpenAI's Sam Altman on iPhones, Music, Training Data, and Apple's Controversial iPad Ad
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman gave an hour-long interview to the "All-In" podcast (hosted by Chamath Palihapitiya, Jason Calacanis, David Sacks and David Friedberg). And speaking on technology's advance, Altman said "Phones are unbelievably good.... I personally think the iPhone is like the greatest piece of technology humanity has ever made. It's really a wonderful product." Q: What comes after it? Altman: I don't know. I mean, that was what I was saying. It's so good, that to get beyond it, I think the bar is quite high. Q: You've been working with Jony Ive on something, right? Altman: We've been discussing ideas, but I don't — like, if I knew... Altman said later he thought voice interaction "feels like a different way to use a computer." But the conversation turned to Apple in another way. It happened in a larger conversation where Altman said OpenAI has "currently made the decision not to do music, and partly because exactly these questions of where you draw the lines..." Altman: Even the world in which — if we went and, let's say we paid 10,000 musicians to create a bunch of music, just to make a great training set, where the music model could learn everything about song structure and what makes a good, catchy beat and everything else, and only trained on that — let's say we could still make a great music model, which maybe we could. I was posing that as a thought experiment to musicians, and they were like, "Well, I can't object to that on any principle basis at that point — and yet there's still something I don't like about it." Now, that's not a reason not to do it, um, necessarily, but it is — did you see that ad that Apple put out... of like squishing all of human creativity down into one really iPad...? There's something about — I'm obviously hugely positive on AI — but there is something that I think is beautiful about human creativity and human artistic expression. And, you know, for an AI that just does better science, like, "Great. Bring that on." But an AI that is going to do this deeply beautiful human creative expression? I think we should figure out — it's going to happen. It's going to be a tool that will lead us to greater creative heights. But I think we should figure out how to do it in a way that preserves the spirit of what we all care about here. What about creators whose copyrighted materials are used for training data? Altman had a ready answer — but also some predictions for the future. "On fair use, I think we have a very reasonable position under the current law. But I think AI is so different that for things like art, we'll need to think about them in different ways..." Altman:I think the conversation has been historically very caught up on training data, but it will increasingly become more about what happens at inference time, as training data becomes less valuable and what the system does accessing information in context, in real-time... what happens at inference time will become more debated, and what the new economic model is there. Altman gave the example of an AI which was never trained on any Taylor Swift songs — but could still respond to a prompt requesting a song in her style. Altman: And then the question is, should that model, even if it were never trained on any Taylor Swift song whatsoever, be allowed to do that? And if so, how should Taylor get paid? So I think there's an opt-in, opt-out in that case, first of all — and then there's an economic model. Altman also wondered if there's lessons in the history and economics of music sampling... Read more of this story at Slashdot.08:05 pmGet focused with this all-in-one Mac task manager for less than $30
A task manager app app for Mac and PC, Pagico 10 can help you plan more effectively with custom dashboards, status updates and more. (via Cult of Mac - Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)06:15 pmEnjoy a $149 Discount on the M3 MacBook Air
The M3 MacBook Air is the closest thing you have for an ultra-portable yet very capable laptop. Today, the 15-inch M3 MacBook Air with 8GB RAM and 256GB SSD is down to just $1,149.99 from its original price of $1,300 on Amazon. You probably know that the M3 chip is one of the latest to […] The post appeared first on iLounge.06:13 pmNew patent application hints at Touch Bar for Apple Pencil support
A new patent submitted by Apple hints at a comeback of the Touch Bar for the Apple Pencil. Under the patent title ‘Mountable tool computer input’, the patent discusses having a MacBook Pro with a positioned touch screen near a keyboard for providing more than just a set of keys. The touch screen has a […] The post appeared first on iLounge.06:10 pmApple possibly partnering with OpenAI for iOS 18 generative AI technology
A report claims that talks between Apple and OpenAI are nearing completion, which could mean iOS 18 will be powered by ChatGPT’s generative AI. The online leak claims that Apple and OpenAI ‘are finalizing terms’ for using ChatGPT on iOS 18. However, the report also said that Apple is still in discussion with Google for […] The post appeared first on iLounge.06:09 pmApple launches three macOS release candidates
Apple has released not just one, but three release candidates for the macOS in a single day. macOS 14.5 release candidate has gone live alongside two other versions for older systems ahead of the public release. Apple launched watchOS 10.5, tvOS 17.5, iPadOS 17.5, and iOS 17.5 on Tuesday, then followed it up with the […] The post appeared first on iLounge.06:07 pmThe M1 iPad Air Gets a $150 Discount
The fifth-generation iPad Air was the first to receive the Silicon chip, giving it a boost in the graphical and processing department. Today, the 64GB Wi-Fi model is down to just $449 from its original price of $600 on Amazon. Pair the lightest iPad in Apple’s lineup and the M1 chip and you have yourself […] The post appeared first on iLounge.06:05 pmRevamped Siri to be ‘The Core’ in Apple’s AI Foray
A New York Times report said that Apple will develop its AI technology with a revamped Siri ‘at the core.’ The decision to augment Siri was credited to senior executives, including John Giannandrea and Craig Federighi, heads of Machine Learning and AI Strategy and Software Engineering, respectively. The two apparently spent weeks testing ChatGPT and […] The post appeared first on iLounge.06:04 pmiPhone 16 Pro might have brighter display
The upcoming iPhone 16 Pro lineup will have a 20% brighter display, according to an online leak. A leaker by the handle ‘Instant Digital’ revealed that the next iPhone 16 Pro will have a display that’s 20 percent brighter when viewing SDR content. Peak HDR brightness is set at 1,600 nits while SDR will peak […] The post appeared first on iLounge.06:01 pmAuto label on AI-Generated content launches on TikTok
TikTok recently added a label to show viewers that the content is generated using AI. The announcement came in that an automatic label will be added to AI-generated content via third party platforms to prevent them from misleading or confusing viewers. Content created using AI has always had a label, but this time TikTok will […] The post appeared first on iLounge.06:00 pmiPad cellular is a major advantage over Macs, still to this day
Every time a new iPad Pro is announced, Apple’s enthusiasm over how powerful its most advanced tablet is provokes a certain level of public cynicism. Not because Apple’s claims are disputed. But because for all the power the iPad Pro boasts, it still runs iPadOS. And for some, that automatically makes it inexorably less capable than a Mac. But one significant area where the iPad has the undisputed upper hand on the Mac is in connectivity. You can’t get a Mac with cellular, but the iPad has offered cellular since its 2010 debut. And built-in cellular can prove a major advantage for someone who values having a truly portable computer. more…05:11 pmToday in Apple history: Bill Gates predicts doom for Apple’s biggest product
On May 12, 2005, Bill Gates said Apple's time on top, thanks to the iPod, was limited due to the arrival of cellphones. He was half right. (via Cult of Mac - Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)04:13 pmOriginal PlayStation games come to iPhone with new Gamma emulator
Gamma, a free emulator of the original Sony PlayStation, was added to the iOS and iPad App Stores on May 11th.Screenshots from the Gamma emulator on the App StoreGamma is similar to developer Riley Testut's Delta emulator, especially in terms of the interface. Like Delta, it allows customizable on-screen controller skins, and includes support for Bluetooth controllers as well as wired keyboards.It supports both Google Drive and Dropbox for backing up your own game disk images as well as automatically-saved progress. Users can choose their own preferred method or service to back up the games and save stages as well. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums04:06 pmUltra-thin M4 iPad Pro features new internal structure to improve stiffness and heat dissipation | 9 to 5 MacUltra-thin M4 iPad Pro features new internal structure to improve stiffness and heat dissipation
The is Apple’s thinnest product ever, with the 13-inch model measuring at just 5.1mm thick (excluding camera bump). The last time the iPad Pro was redesigned, with the 2018 model, there was a big controversy as people noticed it was relatively easy to bend their iPads, with some arriving bent out of the box. For this ultra-thin redesign, the question of rigidity and durability inevitably has relevance again. But, in an interview with Arun Maini, Apple SVP John Ternus addressed these concerns, noting that the new iPad has a redesigned internal structure meant to improve the device’s stiffness. more…03:53 pmApple's M3 MacBook Air dips to $949 today for Best Buy Plus members
The Mother's Day flash sale at Best Buy drops Apple's latest MacBook Air M3 down to $949 with a Plus membership.Best Buy Plus members can pick up an M3 MacBook Air for $949.Best Buy's Deal of the Day features triple-digit savings on several M3 MacBook Air laptops, with the standard 13-inch model on sale for $999 ($100 off), plus another $50 off for Plus members. Considering the cost of the Plus membership is $49.99 per year, it's like getting the first year for free.Buy for $949 Continue Reading on AppleInsider03:00 pmiPad chip list: Here’s what Apple Silicon is in every model
Curious what chip Apple has put in its iPads over the years or what A or M-series is in your current iPad? What about the original iPad? Read along for a look at the complete iPad chip list for what comes in every model going back to 2010. more…