Taking a look back at this week’s news and headlines from Apple, including potential iPhone 17 Air pricing, the iPhone SE cancellation, iPhone 17 camera designs, Genmoji finally arriving in macOS, consumers’ not sold on AI, AirPods Max problems, and happy birthday AirPods.
Apple Loop is here to remind you of some of the many discussions surrounding Apple over the past seven days. You can read my weekly roundup of Android news here on Forbes.
When it launched, the MacBook Air was a premium computer that benefited from new techniques and design decisions. Will the same be true for the rumored iPhone Air that will be part of next year’s iPhone 17 family?Or will Apple insert it as a replacement for the iPhone Plus and overlap with the Vanilla and Pro models?
“In details that fit with previous reports, Aaron Tilley and Yang Jie say, “Starting next year, Apple plans to introduce an iPhone that will be thinner than the approximately 8-millimeter profile of current models, said people familiar with the company’s plans. But then, it goes on: “The model is intended to be cheaper than Pro models, with a simplified camera system to reduce costs.”
(Forbes).
Apple’s iPhone SE is a mainstay of the portfolio, capturing the mid-range market. That won’t be the case for the first quarter of 2025, as new European regulations for USB-C charging hardware mean the current SE will be removed from sale. It’s going to be months before Apple can replace it with a new Apple Intelligence supporting iPhone SE:
“Apple was going to update the existing iPhone SE when the new style arrived. Tim Cook and his team would have undoubtedly liked to keep the iPhone SE unveiled in 2022 on sale for another 4 to five months until the arrival of the 2025 edition. Unfortunately, the European Union’s mandate for USB-C to become the universal charging port for customers’ electronic devices has put an end to that.
(Forbes).
Lots of chatter this week over the positioning of the camera lenses in the iPhone 17 main cameras. While new centerline options or changed triangular arrangements are out there, the feeling is that these are mockups just to ensure they are not the best way forward. After all, the current lenses are set up to be side-by-side in landscape mode for a reason:
“Secondly, one of the main reasons for replacing the iPhone 16 design was to allow the popular iPhone to record spatial videos for the first time when the phone was held in landscape orientation. It is strange that Apple would abandon this so quickly, it may simply be It will be successful through the software and the lens will be replaced, that is, if the symbol was cropped otherwise.
(Forbes).
While iOS and iPadOS received the emotionally harsh genmoji in the 18. 2 updates, macOS users were denied avatar technology. However, you can rest assured, as the software showed in the beta edition of macOS 18. 2 and will be available to the public in early 2025:
“With Genmoji, Mac users can input a text prompt to create a custom character that behaves just like an emoji on devices running iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, macOS Sequoia 15.1 and later. On earlier versions of iOS, iPadOS, and macOS, and on Android devices, Genmoji show up as an image.”
(MacRumours).
A timely reminder this week: Despite all the hype and activity around generative AI on smartphones, consumers are still convinced of the technology’s benefits, according to a new survey from SellCell:
“Smartphone users are generally satisfied with existing AI features, as the survey recorded that 73% of Apple Intelligence users and 87% of Galaxy AI users said the new features were “very useful” or “add little to no value. “to your smartphone experience.
(9to5Mac).
The newer AirPods Max would possibly come with a USB-C charging port (required by the EU). Still, the USB-C port lacks a feature introduced through the Lightning port. The ability to use a stressed connection.
“If you purchased Apple’s Lightning to 3. 5mm audio cable, you can connect your Lightning AirPods Max to any headphone jack and pay attention to a stressed accessory. This feature is wonderful for airplanes, recording podcasts, and a variety of other use cases. Technically, it doesn’t offer lossless audio playback, but it still has a great stressed playback option. . . Apple has made an update with the newer AirPods Max. There is now no way to perform stressed playback with AirPods. Max with USB-C.
(9to5Mac).
Eight years ago this week, Apple launched AirPods. Sticking with the stressed-out EarPods that have become a staple of iPhone and iPod ads, what promises did Apple make at the 2016 presentation and do you think it kept them?
“Priced at $159, the first-generation AirPods introduced key features such as one-tap pairing with Apple devices and in-ear detection for automatic play-pause functionality. Powered by Apple’s custom W1 chip, they delivered enhanced audio quality compared to wired EarPods and set a new standard for battery life in a compact, completely wireless design.”
(MacRumors).
Apple Loop brings you seven days worth of highlights every weekend here on Forbes. Don’t forget to follow me so you don’t miss any coverage in the future. Last week’s Apple Loop can be read here, or this week’s edition of Loop’s sister column, Android Circuit, is also available on Forbes.
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