Originally published at: http://appletalk.com.au/2016/05/tuesday-morning-news240516/
New schematics of the iPhone 7 corroborate earlier rumours claiming only the Plus form-factor will get a dual-lens camera, with neither model getting a Smart Connector. Those wishing for the camera bump to go away might have to keep wishing a little longer, because even without a dual-lens camera system, the regular-sized iPhone still looks like it’ll get a raised camera bump.
Meanwhile, reports from the supply chain say that orders for the next iPhone are higher than previously predicted. Between 72 and 78 million devices have been ordered by Apple, up on earlier predictions from Wall Street which pegged shipments at 65 million.
A company that makes equipment to build smartphone displays is reporting a four-fold increase in orders, thanks to a “leader in mobile products” ordering a entire year’s worth of equipment in a single quarter. The Verge says this lines up with previous rumours that the company will be moving to OLED-based displays for next year’s iPhone, along with whatever other ground-breaking changes they’ll be making.
The first developer beta of iOS 9.3.3 has been seeded to developers, although there probably won’t be any major changes. By this time it seems likely that Apple will be saving all the big changes for the iOS 10 release, which will probably be unveiled at WWDC this year.
New betas of OS X 10.11.6 and tvOS 9.2.2 have also been released by Apple, again with no significant changes worth writing about.
Spotify’s updated Family Plan pricing matches Apple Music and Google Play, offering six streaming seats for US$15. In Australia that price is $18, which is the same as Apple Music’s family plan which also offers six family members access to the all-you-can-eat streaming service.
MacStories has a review of Airmail 3 for the Mac, which launches today. It’s the latest in a long line of Mac email clients with iOS counterparts, and like many before it, Airmail 3 brings many of its iOS paradigms to the Mac to great effect.
Six Colors is reporting recent changes in Skype for Mac making podcasting a tiny bit more difficult than it used to be. The good news is, workarounds such as using Audio Hijack to record Skype audio still work OK, provided you’re capturing audio from Skype and your mic separately.
The Verge writes that Apple and Google are playing catch-up, which can only be a good thing for us consumers. The rivalry between Google’s AI smarts and Apple’s own natural language personal assistant is just heating up, and the only real winner will be the consumers that benefit from increased competition.
A fun list of WWDC guesses from Brent Simmons takes a stab at what Apple might announce on stage. A new Mac Pro? Sure, why not.