iPhone Diary: Differences in iPhone 16 macro photos may be more software than hardware
Since the weather isn’t cooperative enough to do any outdoor shooting, I decided to start by putting the iPhone 16 Pro Max macro photography capabilities to the test, comparing to its predecessor. In principle, macro shots taken with this year’s phone should be much more detailed, given the new 48MP sensor. However, the differences between the two aren’t vast, and I suspect have more to do with processing than sensor resolution … more…

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Apple’s Apple Store continues censoring VPN apps in Russia
The App Censorship Project has discovered that the scale of VPN removal in Russia is even more extensive than previously reported… The post appeared first on MacDailyNews.

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Tim Cook reveals fave iPhone 16 AI feature and top hot dog condiment to Jimmy Fallon
An iPhone 16 filmed Tim Cook and Jimmy Fallon in Central Park, talking iPhone 16, Artificial Intelligence and Cook's favorite hot dog topper. (via Cult of Mac - Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)

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Apple TV+ unveils trailer for ‘Disclaimer’ limited series from Alfonso Cuarón
Apple TV+ on Tuesday revealed the trailer for “Disclaimer,” the acclaimed psychological thriller told in seven chapters, starring… The post appeared first on MacDailyNews.

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New ‘Disclaimer’ trailer reveals one of Apple’s most hyped TV+ series
Apple TV+ is preparing to debut one of its most ambitious series next month. ‘Disclaimer’ hails from an Oscar winning writer and director, stars Oscar winning lead actors, and is being presented by Apple as an ‘event’ series. Today, the first full trailer reveals exactly what we should expect. more…

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Logitech goes after Streamdeck with MX Creative Console
Logitech is expanding its line of digital creator peripherals with the MX Creative Console, a Stream Deck-like setup for Mac to help in imaging and video production workflows.Logitech MX Creative ConsoleWhile the keyboard and mouse are the usual tools of digital creators, peripherals have been introduced over time that promise to improve workflows. Following devices like the Elgato Stream Deck and the Loupedeck series, Logitech is offering its own take, in the form of the MX Creative Console.A two-part system, the MX Creative Console consists of a Keypad and a DialPad. The Keypad is similar in concept to the Stream Deck, in that it is a compact keyboard with nine full-color LCD display keys. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Apple Podcasts adds The New York Times to subscription program, boosting revenue with paywalled shows
Apple has a new high profile partner for its Podcasts subscription business in The New York Times. The Times is effectively paywalling its archive of popular podcast feeds like The Daily and Hard Fork. Podcasts app users can unlock the full archive and more with a paid subscription that contributes a percentage to Apple’s Services revenue. more…

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iPhone 16 Pro: Not much new, but everything is better [Review] ★★★★☆
Review: The iPhone 16 Pro is not an all-new iPhone, but it’s a much-refined iPhone. This year, the best gets a little better all around. (via Cult of Mac - Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)

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Spotify launches AI playlist creation to meet your specific music needs
AI is being infused into so many different services and software features we use every day. Now, it’s impacting the music we listen to as well. Today Spotify announced that it’s rolling out AI playlist generation—formerly in a limited test—to several new countries, including the US. Here’s how it works. more…

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This iPad and MacBook stand stashes a USB-C hub in its aluminum arm
The Casa Hub 360 stand works with laptops and tablets. Its sleek aluminum design puts a USB-C hub in the sturdy arm that lifts your device. (via Cult of Mac - Apple news, rumors, reviews and how-tos)

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Future Apple Vision Pro could help the injured avoid medication addiction
Apple is researching how the use of mixed reality in the Apple Vision Pro may provide pain relief for injuries.Apple Vision ProThe first generation of the Apple Vision Pro is quite comfortable, but it does weigh down on you. That's one aspect that Apple will certainly be working on for future generations, and especially the potential Apple Glasses.Alongside those engineering efforts, though, a newly-granted patent shows that Apple is also looking to bring the Apple Vision Pro more into its health products. Vision Pro, or potentially other devices, could instead "provide content that distracts a user's attention away from discomfort." Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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At least 4GB of iPhone storage required for Apple Intelligence
As iOS 18.1 approaches, it may be time to free up some space on your iPhone for Apple Intelligence. The new AI features will require 4GB… The post appeared first on MacDailyNews.

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iPhone 16 Pro Max ‘fails’ drop test… just like all other glass phones
Macworld With each passing year, Apple tries to make its costly smartphones more and more resistant to physical damage. In many respects this mission has been a success: certainly today’s iPhones are far more water-resistant than was the case a decade ago. And the Ceramic Shield feature introduced with the iPhone 12 in 2020 means the glass of the screen is harder to break, too. One of the trumpeted upgrades for the newest 16-series iPhones is the inclusion of a new version of Ceramic Shield, which Apple claims is “two times tougher than any smartphone glass.” That may be accurate, but don’t think it means you can toss your iPhone 16 Pro on the floor and walk away scot-free. The insurance firm Allstate Protection Plans regularly tests the drop- (and dunk-) resistance of various devices, and yesterday revealed how the iPhone 16 got on in the latest round of simulated spills. The news isn’t entirely positive. The company uses what it refers to as a “DropBot” to simulate falls from six feet (which is perhaps on the high side if we’re imagining the phone being dropped from a pocket or hand unless you’re a giant) to gives a general (and consistent) sense of how well each device stands up to this kind of impact. And the answer is that even the latest iPhones don’t stand up to it very well. “When dropped face down on a sidewalk from six feet, the 16 Pro Max shattered, and the display failed completely, rendering the device unusable,” Allstate reports. Dropping it on the back panel was less catastrophic, but still inadvisable: while remaining fully functional, the phone shattered and suffered significant damage to the camera housing. “So while the iPhone 16 may be the smartest smartphone to date, one thing hasn’t changed,” the company concludes. “It’s still made of glass.” This may sound bad… and certainly isn’t reassuring to hear. But as MacRumors points out in its coverage of the story, this is just a really hard test. The iPhone 16 Pro Max has glass on both front and back, and no glass-based smartphone has ever survived Allstate’s DropBot test.

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Apple Music Classical adds thousands of booklets to album listings
Apple Music Classical's new version 2.0 adds a new Recently Added section as well as thousands of album booklets.Apple Music ClassicalApple Music Classical was introduced in March 2023 as a curated experience for classical music. A year and a half later, the app has finally reached version 2.0.The update in the App Store on Tuesday introduces a few changes to the app, including a collection of album booklets for thousands of albums on the service. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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TikTok to shutter music streaming business in November
TikTok has announced plans to discontinue its music streaming service in November, ending a multi-year effort to compete with Apple Music… The post appeared first on MacDailyNews.

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Halide rejected from the App Store because it doesn’t explain why the camera takes photos
Halide may have been featured during the iPhone 16 keynote, but it seems that wasn’t enough to protect it from an over-zealous App Store reviewer. Lux co-founder Ben Sandofsky shared that the latest version of Halide was rejected from App Store … more…

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How to downgrade macOS update: Rollback Sequoia to Sonoma
Macworld macOS Sequoia arrived on Macs in September 2024. Many people have installed Sequoia and love it, while others have installed the updated only to regret it later. Perhaps you’ve discovered that an app you rely on no longer works or is buggy? Maybe you hate one of the new features? Or you are frustrated that your Mac can’t take advantage of all the new features. The good news is that it is possible to revert to a previous macOS version. Another issue is that sometimes when Apple updates the Mac operating system with new features, users encounter problems with the latest version and need to revert back to the previous macOS. Our advice is usually to wait a few days or weeks before installing a major update for this reason (although sometimes it’s recommended you install it straightaway if the update is necessary for security reasons.) Luckily it is possible to revert to the previous version of macOS from before the update, but, unfortunately, it isn’t as simple as finding the older version of the Mac operating system and reinstalling it–and it can mean you lose some of your data. Maybe you need to run an older version of the macOS on a Mac you are using to test apps as part of your job. We have a separate article that looks at various ways to downgrade to older versions of macOS. You may also want to look at other ways to install the older version of macOS, such as installing it on a separate volume (also known as dual booting) or running it on a separate drive. Below, we’ll run through the steps to downgrade your Mac from the latest version of macOS Sequoia to an older one, or from Sequoia to Sonoma. If you want to downgrade from a beta version of macOS we have a separate article dealing with downgrading from a beta version of macOS. If it’s iOS you want to roll back it’s not so simple because Apple stops older versions of iOS being available. Read about how to downgrade from iOS 18 to iOS 17. Foundry Foundry Foundry How to revert a macOS update It’s not always a completely new version of macOS you want to revert from. Apple issues multiple point updates throughout the year and if something breaks on your Mac following that update you may want to go back to the previous version. This could be from Sequoia 15.1 to 15.0, or it could be from macOS Sonoma 14.7 to 14.6. At the time of writing Sequoia hasn’t been updated beyond 15.0, but when it is it will be possible to drop back to the previous version of Sequoia. So, if there is something in an update to Sequoia that is causing problems for you, you can revert to an older version of macOS, but you will need to wipe your Mac to do so. The method will be determined by whether of not you already have a backup (and how old that backup is). With a backup from before your update: If you have a backup, all you need to do is wipe your Mac and then recover your backup with the older version of the backup from before your update to the new macOS. Without a backup: If you don’t already have a backup, you will need to backup the data on your Mac because the process involves wiping your Mac and then doing a clean install of the macOS you want. For your backup you should use a backup tool other than Time Machine*. You’ll find more details on how to use both of these methods to revert to an older version of macOS below. *Why you shouldn’t use Time Machine for this backup: Apple’s Time Machine is no good here because when it backs up your Mac it will back up the current version of macOS as well, and when you recover your Mac from the backup you’ll recover that version too. You could use a tool like Carbon Copy Cloner (which has a free 30-day trial or costs £52/$49.99), and doesn’t make you back up the operating system. Check out our recommendations here: Best backup software for Macs. We also have advice about How to back up a Mac. How to downgrade from Sequoia to Sonoma Chances are you arrived on this article because you have updated to Sequoia and regret it. The process is just the same as if you are reverting from a minor update to macOS. With a backup from before your update: If you have a Time Machine backup from before the update, you can revert to that, but you will lose any new data, so make sure you back up (but not with Time Machine, as explained above). Without a backup: If you don’t have a backup you will need to make one and then recover your data to your Mac after wiping your Mac and doing a clean install of macOS Sonoma. We’ll look at the various options and how you can downgrade from macOS Sequoia to Sonoma below. Foundry Foundry Foundry Option 1: Downgrade macOS using a Time Machine backup If you have an older Time Machine backup from before you upgraded the downgrade process is a lot easier. With your pre-Sequoia Time Machine backup in hand, you can recover your machine from before the update and then copy back any files you created after you installed Sequoia. This is our preferred method because Time Machine backs up your settings and apps so that when you recover from that backup everything is exactly the way you are used to it being, which can be comforting. As long as you have old backups you should be able to go back to a date before your upgrade and recover that version of your Mac. Just remember that anything you have done since then will be lost because you’ll wipe everything on your Mac as part of the process, so you will need to make a non-Time Machine backup of those files. Here’s how to recover the old version of macOS using Time Machine: Plug your Time Machine disk into your Mac. Restart your Mac. If you have an Intel Mac hold down Command + R until the Apple logo appears. If you have an M1 or later Mac you need to press and hold the power button until the Options menu comes up. When the options appear on the screen, choose ‘Restore From Time Machine Backup’ and click Continue. The next screen will show the words Restore from Time Machine, click Continue again. Next, select your Restore Source – this should be your backup drive. The next screen shows all your backups over time, pick the last one you made prior to updating to the newer version of the Mac operating system. (You can see which version of macOS the back up was made in). Once you have restored the older version of macOS from your Time Machine backup, you can recover the files you created since from your non-Time Machine backup. But what if you don’t have a Time Machine backup?… Option 2: Wipe your Mac and do a clean install of the older macOS Note that this method will erase your Mac, so do make sure you have a backup of important files. If you don’t have a Time Machine backup from before you updated your Mac, all is not lost. You can install an older version of macOS on your Mac, but you will need to wipe your Mac first. Wiping your Mac means you will lose your data if you don’t back it up. Remember backing it up with Time Machine won’t be useful here as you would recover Sequoia along with your data. Take a look at our recommendations in: Best backup software for Macs. We also have advice about How to back up a Mac. 1. Get the installer Screenshot Foundry The first stage of this method is to get the installer for the version of macOS you require, with the prerequisite that your Mac needs to be able to run it. See: macOS compatibility–the versions your Mac can run. We have links to some recent versions of macOS below so you can download the one you want. Sonoma Ventura Monterey Big Sur Catalina To start you need to grab the installer of whichever version of macOS you want to install from the Mac App Store using the links above. If you want an older version see this article: How to download old versions of macOS. When you click the link above it should take you directly to the Mac App Store, if that doesn’t happen close the Mac App Store if it is open and make sure you are using Safari.  Click on Get. The Software Update window from System Preferences will open and you should see a pop-up overlaying it with the version you want to download. Click on Download and confirm that you want to download the software (you’ll also see a warning that you are downloading an older version of the OS, ignore it.) Once it’s downloaded DO NOT click on Open – you don’t want to install it yet.  2. Create a bootable installer Foundry You won’t just be able to install Sonoma over Sequoia, or any old version of macOS over a newer one. In order to install an older version of macOS on your Mac you have to make a bootable installer that includes the installation files. To make a bootable installer, from which you can reinstall the older macOS, you will need a memory stick with at least 15GB space but we’d recommend more. You’ll need to reformat that drive and prepare it in Disk Utility and then use Terminal to input the createinstallmedia command for the version of macOS you are installing. In the case of Sonoma this is: sudo /Applications/Install macOS Sonoma.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia –volume /Volumes/MyVolume You will need to replace MyVolume with the name you have given to the drive you are using as the bootable installer. We recommend that you follow the steps outlined in this article: How to create a bootable installer of macOS to create your bootable installer. You will find all the createinstallmedia commands in that article. 3. Use the bootable installer to downgrade your Mac Foundry Now you have your bootable installer you should be able to install the older version of macOS on your Mac using it. Connect the bootable installer to your Mac. Open System Settings and click General > Startup Disk. Choose the external drive with your installer as the startup disk and click Restart. Your Mac will shut down and restart in Recovery mode. You will need to connect to Wi-Fi because your Mac will need to connect to the internet during this process. Access Wi-Fi settings from the Wi-Fi menu. Select Reinstall macOS from Utilities. Click Continue. 4. Set up your Mac as new and recover your backed-up files Foundry Now that you have wiped your Mac and installed the version of macOS you wanted you will need to run through the set-up process. See How to set up a new Mac for help with that. Once your Mac is up and running you can recover the data you backed up. How to fix problems downgrading a Mac These things don’t always go smoothly. Here are a few issues you might encounter: Wiping an older Mac If your Mac is old than the last few Intel Macs, or you aren’t running Monterey, you will need to erase your Mac following the steps in our tutorial on wiping a MacBook or Mac. We recommend that you follow that tutorial as there are a lot of steps you should take to ensure that you don’t create more problems for yourself. What to do if booting from external media doesn’t work If you are using a Mac with a T2 Chip then you need to ensure that you enable booting from external media or this will not work. To do this you need to access Recovery Mode and then choose Startup Security Utility from the menu. Here you will see a number of options including those for Secure Boot and those for Allowed Boot Media. It is in this second section that you will find Allow booting from external or removable media. You will need this selected to boot from a bootable drive. What to do if the old macOS won’t install If the above doesn’t work you may need to completely wipe your Mac before reinstalling macOS from the bootable drive. We explain in detail how to erase a Mac in this article: How to erase a MacBook or Mac: restore to factory settings and we advise that you follow that tutorial. If you have a Mac with T2 chip, or an M-series Mac erasing your Mac is very simple thanks to the Erase All Content And Settings option. This setting used to be found in the menu of System Preferences but with the arrival of System Settings it’s now located in System Settings > General > Transfer or Reset. Foundry Foundry Foundry Reinstalling an older macOS via Recovery mode Depending on the age of your Mac there might be an option to recover the original version of macOS it shipped with using macOS Recovery. You won’t be able to revert to something older than the macOS your Mac shipped with. Follow these steps to reinstall the version of macOS your Mac came with, or one that is close to that: Turn off your Mac. Restart it while holding down Shift + Option/Alt + Command + R to enter Internet Recovery Mode (make sure you are connected to the internet).  Choose the Reinstall macOS option. Click Install. This may allow you to install the operating system that your Mac shipped with. Unfortunately, when we tried this method we were unable to recover an older version of macOS, it seems that it works only for some Macs. How to avoid problems when you downgrade macOS Reversing an upgrade carries with it a number of wrinkles and pitfalls. Most of these are due to changes in file formats and settings between versions of the OS. So, for example, if you create a document or work on a file in a new version, whether it’s a beta or full release, of macOS and then try and open it in an older version, it may not work. To mitigate this, it’s wise to export any documents you’ve created or worked on in the newer OS in a standard file format. So, for example, if you use Scrivener or Ulysses, export documents as RTF files. That way, if the native files don’t survive the reverse upgrade, you’ll be able to re-import the RTF files. Take screenshots of preferences and settings Whenever you perform a clean install of macOS, which is what you’re doing here, it’s a good idea to take screenshots of any custom settings you’ve created in apps or in System Settings (or System Preferences). That makes it easier to re-create them later. You should also make a note of user account and password details for anything you’ve set up while running the new version of the OS. If you don’t use iCloud or Chrome to synchronise bookmarks, it’s a good idea to export those and make a copy. And unless you’re using the migrate data option outlined above, you’ll also need installers and license codes for apps you use. If those are downloads from the Mac App Store, you can just re-download them from the Purchased section in the App Store. If not, make sure you can download them from the vendor’s website. If you don’t use a password manager to store license codes, make sure you’ve got a copy of them before you start. Synchronize If you use Dropbox, OneDrive, Google Drive or any other form of cloud storage, make sure your data is in sync before you start the process of reversing an upgrade. It’s easy to forget that the files that live in your Dropbox folder, for example, are local files and that while synchronization is frequent, the loss of an internet connection will prevent it and you could have files in your local folder that haven’t yet been copied to the cloud. Clicking on the cloud service’s logo in your menu bar should tell you whether synchronization completed successfully and files are up to date. If you use Gmail, iCloud mail or any other IMAP server for your email, make sure it’s up to date and any drafts you’ve composed recently have been synchronized. If you use a POP3 account you’ll have to manually back up the mail database and restore it after you reverse the upgrade. Or, if you only have a few messages you need to keep, forward them to a Gmail account – you could set one up especially for that purpose.

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Bridging the AI Training Gap in the Workplace
Many employees lack sufficient AI training, creating a significant skills gap. Companies that address this issue can unlock innovation to drive organizational success. The post appeared first on TechNewsWorld.

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iPhone 16 vs iPhone 16 Pro compared — Going Pro in 2024
Apple's standard and Pro tiers of iPhones are more different than they've ever been. This is what you should consider when choosing between an iPhone 16 or an iPhone 16 Pro.iPhone 16 [left], iPhone 16 Pro [right]The Pro models of iPhone have been around for quite a few years, and it often provides owners a number of advantages over the non-Pro version. For the iPhone 16 generation, going Pro adds a little bit more to the overall package.But even so, some may not necessarily believe the few-hundred difference in price is actually worth going Pro for. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

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Jimmy Fallon and Tim Cook walk in Central Park, talking iPhone 16, AI, and mustard
With Apple CEO Tim Cook visiting New York for the iPhone 16 launch, comedian and The Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon took a walk with him in Central Park. Cook said that he tried to visit the Fifth Avenue store every iPhone launch “because it’s sort of the center of the world, and the enthusiasm is so incredible there” … more…

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