Apple has launched a new microsite today called “Why Mac” to make its case on why it’s the computer to pick. The new marketing features updated imagery of the current Mac lineup, a short pitch on why it thinks Mac is the best choice, and five aspects that set Mac apart from the competition. Apple’s new “Why Mac” microsite showed up today alongside the all-new iMac arriving to customers today. Here’s the company’s 30-second elevator pitch for why people, institutions, and businesses should pick Mac:...

Much like Apple did when introducing its standalone iTunes U app at its education event last January, it is also planning to launch a standalone app for podcasts. A report from AllThingsD first mentioned Apple’s plans to include the app in iOS 6 this fall. We also heard that the app is in the works for a release with the final version of iOS 6. Apart from the podcast app that AllThingsD noted would allow users to “discover, download and play” on iOS devices, we heard separately that Apple is working on podcast-producing technology, perhaps for inclusion into this app....

Apple is bringing a variety of Waze-like features to Apple Maps with the release of iOS 14.5. The update gives users the ability to report speed traps, accidents, and other road hazards using Siri, CarPlay, or through the Apple Maps app on iPhone. When you use Apple Maps for the first time after updating to iOS 14.5, the Siri navigation voice will tell you about the new features. Apple is giving users a handful of different ways to report these hazards....

Apex Legends has begun a precipitous fall from grace over the past few months, according to a new report that confirms its financial earnings have dipped drastically in back-to-back months. Concerns over the viability of long-term Apex Legends support have been cropping up ever since popular Twitch streamer Shroud declared he felt the game wasn’t very good anymore, suggesting that he would much rather play PUBG or other battle royale titles....

Apple’s long-going mini-battle with iPhone copycat, Meizu, has taken an interesting turn today. Apparently another Chinese company, Herron Network Information Co., has sued Apple along with the Chinese Patent Bureau over patents the company calls “invalid.” According to MeizuMe: Apple apparently was very vague about their iPhone-related patents in China simply patenting a rectangular shaped device with round edges, a vertical oriented screened-device, and a device with a round button under its display....

Apple and GE (General Electric) today announced a new partnership to build enterprise ‘industrial’ apps for the iOS platform. This includes a new development SDK focused on the Internet of Things. Tim Cook said GE is an “ideal partner with a rich history of innovation”. GE will make apps for itself and its business clients, and deploy iPhones and iPad as standard across the organization. Apple has partnered with several high profile companies to deliver iOS apps for enterprise, as it attempts to penetrate iPad deeper into the enterprise....

Apple shares are up 2% in pre-market following an earnings beat that included better-than-expected iPhone sales. Whereas most analysts predicted Apple’s holiday quarter revenue would hit somewhere in the $88 billion range, the company reported $91.8 billion in a quarter that spanned October 1 through December 31, or 92 days. That means Apple (almost) averaged $1 billion in revenue per day. Last year, Apple reported revenue of $84.3 billion as iPhone sales declined....

According to a new report from The San Jose Mercury News, Apple is further increasing its presence in Santa Clara, California. The report, citing public records, says that Apple has leased a 62,000-square-foot building and is heavily renovating the space… The new property is located near the corner of Bowers and Walsh Avenues, and real estate experts in the area say it’s the latest instance of Apple displaying its affection for Santa Clara:...

Apple has announced today that it is expanding the availability of contactless student IDs in Apple Wallet to several new universities. This comes just in time for the start of the 2019 school year, with Apple touting that the expansion means over 100,000 students will be able to access their ID from iPhone and Apple Watch. Here are all of the new universities adding support for accessing student IDs via Apple Wallet:...

Ransomware is not uncommon on Windows machines, but has so far only been seen once on Macs and not at all on non-jailbroken iOS devices. However, Dutch site AppleTips reports that hackers are trying to fool people into thinking their devices have been compromised after gaining access to an Apple ID. Hackers use Find My iPhone to lock the phone, displaying a message demanding a ransom for access. This device is locked....

Apple’s iPhone 11 models could soon support new strobe and flash accessories for photography that connect via the device’s built-in Lightning connector, according to sources briefed on new specs shared with manufacturers in Apple’s Made-for-iPhone (MFi) licensing program. The specs could allow for new types of accessories like a Made-for-iPhone battery case with a built-in flash that connects over Lightning. The new specs will allow an accessory’s strobe or lighting component to sync with the device’s integrated flash and also relay the strobe sync signal wirelessly to additional accessories....

Apple fixed these, too, while improving reliability of Thunderbolt Target Disk Mode performance. Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) updates also addressed problems with Lion Recovery from an Internet connection. Thunderbolt updates are available by choosing Software Update from the Mac menu, unlike the updated iPhoto which is deployed via the Mac App Store client. Release notes after the break… What’s New in iPhoto 9.2.1 Addresses an issue that could cause iPhoto to quit unexpectedly on Macs with the 3ivxVideoCodec plug-in installed...

Apple has announced that its new Metal 2 Developer Kit, which launches later today, will support external graphics units over Thunderbolt 3. That means that eGPU setups featuring units like the Akitio Node, will officially support AMD’s popular RX 580 GPU. But not just that, the Metal 2 developer kit will make it possible to connect to VR headsets. Apple is partnering with Valve to support SteamVR, along with support for the Unreal 4 engine and Unity....

Apple Music for Android has received a huge revamp today to match the release of iOS 10 for iPhone and iPad last September. That redesign is now making its way to the streaming service’s Android app. The interface is nearly identical with features like iOS 10-specific features including lyrics and an improved Library available on Android for the first time. Jumping from version 1.2.1, today’s 2.0 update is modeled exactly after iOS 10’s design with large headers denoting what section of the app you are viewing....

Apple Music is joining several other music streaming services in a movement to stop promoting R. Kelly’s music in its playlists as he is facing multiple sexual misconduct and assault allegations. According to Rolling Stone, Apple’s decision on the songwriter was made several weeks ago, and is now starting to take effect. Other music streaming services such as Spotify and Pandora are also taking similar approaches. Apple Music, Spotify, and Pandora all say that artists will be judged on a “case-by-case” basis, and the severity of the artist’s offenses will determine whether the services will stop promoting the artist, or if their music will be removed completely from the catalog....

[UPDATE 6/6: Going to Uber…] Axios reports that Apple Music executive Bozoma Saint John plans to leave her role at the company. Saint John has served as the Head of Global Consumer Marketing for Apple Music since the company’s Beats Music acquisition in 2014. Bozoma Saint John has also made several public appearances and given press interviews during her role at Apple. Saint John demoed iOS 10’s Apple Music update on stage at last year’s WWDC, an appearance which was widely praised, and even an Apple Music ad alongside Eddy Cue and James Corden....

Apple Music has started teasing a special announcement coming soon, on the main Browse tab in the Music application. The teaser comes as Apple is rumored to announce a new lossless audio tier for its music subscription service, perhaps with Spatial Audio enhanced 3D music. We’ve already heard rumors that Apple was planning to launch a new hi-fi music tier imminently, possibly alongside new AirPods on May 18th. The beta Android version of Apple Music somewhat tipped the hat on the news, with the app readying support for 24-bit/48kHz and 24-bit/192kHz lossless music streaming....

Apple News monetization – or lack of same – is still a huge problem, say large publishers, who describe the situation as ‘abysmal’ and ‘atrocious.’ We heard back in September that while traffic was growing, ad sales weren’t generating meaningful revenue for publishers. Indeed, we saw one stark example back then … Media and marketing site Digiday has spoken with seven publishers, who suggest this is a widespread issue. Publishers said there were three problems with Apple News monetization....

Apple has just started sending out emails to WWDC student scholarship winners informing that they are now eligible to this year’s conference free of charge. Steps for claiming a ticket will be arriving in winners’ inboxes soon. Those who didn’t win a ticket are also being notified. Apple notified winners in the ticket lottery earlier this month that they would have a week to purchase a ticket to the event for $1,599....

The popular Apollo for Reddit iOS app has received a solid update today with support for Family Sharing, following users, a range of new icons, open links on clipboard, and much more. Apollo for Reddit offers a fantastic experience on iPhone and iPad and today’s 1.10.6 update offered a host of new features and improvements. First up, Apollo Pro or Ultra subscriptions now work with Family Sharing. This was a big request from users and developer Christian Selig has delivered!...