Apple fined €25 million for slowing down older iPhones
There is a school of thought that suggests many devices have built-in obsolescence. When updates to iOS started to slow down older iPhones, it seemed Apple was providing evidence to support this beliefe.
Apple said that the throttling of iPhone 6, iPhone SE, and iPhone 7 handsets was an attempt to increase the life of phones with aging -- and therefore less than perfect -- batteries. But many people felt that the move was unreasonable, including the French consumer watchdog Directorate General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Prevention (DGCCRF) which has just handed out a €25 million ($27 million) fine.
Apple releases iOS update featuring U1 chip location tracking fix
The latest update to iOS will please anyone with privacy concerns. iOS 13.3.1 gives iPhone owners the chance to toggle the location-tracking U1 Ultra Wideband chip on and off -- something Apple promised a couple of months ago.
There was controversy when security experts discovered that the chip meant iPhones were periodically tracking people's location even when location services were disabled. Now it is possible to ensure that such tracking cannot be carried out.
Now you can use your iPhone as a 2FA key for Google apps
Two-factor authentication is a handy means of securing accounts, and now iPhone users are able to use their handsets as a security key for their Google accounts.
An update to the Google Smart Lock app brings the functionality to Apple fans, several months after the feature was made available to Android users. It's a security method that has been welcomed by many as it does not require the use of any additional hardware, just something you always tend to have with you -- your phone.
Apple may replace your iPhone XS, XS Max or XR Smart Battery Case for free
Apple has launched a new replacement program to help out people who have problematic Smart Battery Cases.
The company -- and users -- found that a number of Smart Battery Cases for iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR suffered from intermittent charging issues. The company says that affected units were produced between January 2019 and October 2019 and is offering free replacements to owners.
Dell Mobile Connect will soon let you control your iPhone from your laptop
Dell's Mobile Connect software already allows for handy control of Android smartphones from a Windows 10 laptop, and soon the same option will be made available to iPhone users.
The software has been around for a couple of years now, and Dell's planned expansion means that iPhone owners will be able to view their phone's screen on their computer, as well and easily transfer files between devices.
Apple says virtualization tools violate DMCA... but Corellium says the company is attacking jailbreaking
Apple has long played a game of cat and mouse with the developers of jailbreak tools, constantly amending the code of its mobile operating systems to prevent people from unlocking their iPhones and iPads.
In an ongoing spat with Corellium -- a company which virtualizes iOS for use by security researchers -- Apple has amended the lawsuit it brought against the company this summer saying the tools it produces infringe on copyright. Corellium has responded with an open letter saying that Apple's line of attack "should give all security researchers, app developers, and jailbreakers reason to be concerned".
Google Maps for Apple iPhone gets privacy-friendly 'Incognito Mode'
When Apple Maps first launched, it was laughably bad. Even Apple's most hardcore fans had to admit that Google Maps was far superior. To this day, Apple Maps has a reputation for offering a subpar experience, even though that is no longer true. In fact, Apple Maps is actually quite good, with many iPhone users using it regularly with great success. With that said, Google Maps is still better, although the gap is slowly shrinking.
What make Google Maps best? Besides its very accurate navigation, it is chock-full of useful features. It is a very robust and mature app, and it is continually improving. Case in point, today, Google Maps for iPhone is getting even better. You see, the search giant is adding a privacy-friendly called "Incognito Mode." While this is already available on the Android version, it is still a welcome addition to iOS.
Apple may have an entirely portless iPhone planned
If the predictions of noted Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo are correct, in 2021 the company could be planning to launch an iPhone that not only ditches the Lightning port, but doesn't replace it with USB-C or anything else.
Instead, the top of the range 2021 iPhone will not feature any sort of charging port; it will rely on wireless charging and wireless synchronization. Next year, the company is also said to be embracing 5G.
Apple: iPhone 11 Pro handsets check location to comply with regulations
It recently came to light that even with Location Services disabled, iPhone 11 Pro handsets appeared to be checking for location data, sparking concerns about privacy.
Having initially dismissed this as "expected behavior", Apple has now gone into more detail about what's actually happening. Rather than being a sinister case of tracking iPhone users, the company says that location checks are actually required because of the ultra wideband chips found in newer iPhones.
The Facebook app could be secretly using your iPhone camera behind your back
Facebook is hardy a name that synonymous with privacy, and a newly discovered issue with the iOS version of the Facebook app does nothing to improve the situation.
Web designer Joshua Maddux was alarmed to find that the app was secretly using the camera on his iPhone as he scrolled through his Facebook feed. The problem has been confirmed by others, but it appears to only affects certain iPhones and certain versions of iOS.
Apple warns users to upgrade their old iPhones and iPads or face GPS and time issues
Apple has issued a warning to owners of some iPhones and iPads, advising them to update their operating system within the next two weeks. The company warns that devices that do not upgrade iOS will experience problems with GPS and incorrect date and times -- which in turn could cause problems with iCloud, email and other services.
The cut-off date is 12:00 a.m. UTC on November 3, 2019 and Apple is eager for users to upgrade as soon as possible as when the date rolls around it may not be possible for affected devices to receive OTA updates.
Google is ready to fix a bug that gives iPhone users free full-quality photo backups
With the launch of the Pixel 4, many people were surprised to find that Google was not offering full-quality photos backups as it had done in the past. For iPhone users, however, the use of the super-efficient HEIC format means it is a different story.
iPhone users have been happy to discover that their original photos are being backed up for free because the compression used by HEIC is more efficient than Google's JPEG compression. Google refers to this as a "bug" and says it is working to address it.
Apple acknowledges that some iPhone 6s and 6s Plus handsets do not turn on, and launches free repair program
If you have an iPhone 6s or iPhone 6s Plus that won't start up, you are not alone. Apple has acknowledged a problem with a batch of handsets that means some iPhone purchased in the last year cannot be turned on.
Apple says that handsets bought between October 2018 to August 2019 are affected, and the problems stems from the failure of an unnamed component. The company has launched a free repair program for anyone experiencing the issue.
Pandora goes dark on Apple iPhone and iPad
I've never been much of a fan of dark mode -- especially on a desktop operating system. White text on a black background tends to annoy me. With Windows 10, for instance, I didn't really enjoy using the operating system until the light theme was introduced in the May 2019 update. Believe it or not, I use Apple Music instead of Spotify because I hate the latter's always-on dark interface. And yet, on iOS 13, I actually like Apple's implementation of dark mode -- in the evening, I have my iPhone and iPad switch to it.
Now that I am using dark mode on my Apple mobile devices, I am trying to use apps that auto-switch to dark when the operating system does. It is very satisfying to have a consistent interface where apps respect the user's dark desires. Today, the very popular music app, Pandora, finally introduces dark mode support for iOS 13 and iPadOS 13. In addition, the Pandora mobile app is getting enhanced Siri compatibility.
Apple iOS 13 and iPadOS bugs grant third-party keyboards 'full access'
If you're using a third-party keyboard on your iPhone or iPad, Apple has a warning for you. A bug in the recently released mobile operating system means that such keyboards could be granted "full access" permissions.
The bug means that third-party keyboards could capture any and all keystrokes entered by a user, including sensitive data such as usernames and passwords.
Recent Headlines
© 1998-2025 BetaNews, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy - Cookie Policy.