WWDC 2016 Preview Rumors: No new hardware but plenty of Siri, iMessage may get money transfers via ApplePay

Recently departed (but still friend of the site!) Mark Gurman went on the Jay and Farhad Show this evening and gave his predictions for WWDC 2016 and beyond. Most of the conversation material was either posted previously on 9to5mac or elsewhere but there were certainly some new “whispers”… more…

Filed under: iOS Devices Tagged: App Store (iOS), Apple Inc, Apple Worldwide Developers Conference, iOS, iPhone, Mac OS, OS X

OS X 10.12 & Mac: What will Apple show off for Mac at WWDC 2016?

Apple’s WWDC 2016 will be light on new hardware announcements this year, but that will give the company plenty of stage time to show off big new releases on the software side. Siri for Mac, a Siri SDK for developers, an Apple Music and iTunes refresh, Touch ID features, and possibly a first look at new Macs, Apple has a lot of interesting in-development projects it could show off for Macs and OS X 10.12 at WWDC 2016. Below we roundup the rumored features for the next release of Apple’s Mac operating system and explore some of the possible new hardware we might see at the event later this month.

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Filed under: AAPL Company, Apps, Mac Tagged: 10.12, Apple Music, Mac, MacBook, MacOs, OS X, Siri, Siri SDK, Touchscreen, WWDC 2016

Comment: Customers deserve a proper response after service outages and botched software updates

It’s been a rough couple of days for Apple’s services. Apple Music took a lengthy hit on Wednesday with subscribers being signed out, then a widespread outage hit multiple services including iCloud on Thursday for several hours. All this during a quarter when Apple is selling itself to investors as a services company, not just the iPhone company, but these outages are way too common.

And it’s not just services. Apple had to re-release iOS 9.3.2 for the 9.7-inch iPad Pro, a minor bug fix update that bricked the company’s latest tablet for a lot of customers. Mistakes happen but it’s Apple’s response after everything is resolved that bothers me…

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Filed under: Opinion Tagged: Apple Music, icloud, iOS

9to5Toys Lunch Break: 12.9-inch iPad Pro from $550, Transcend JetDrive 256GB $125, Bluetooth Car Kit $20, more

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: TwitterRSS FeedFacebookGoogle+ and Safari push notifications.

TODAY’S CAN’T MISS DEALS:

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Best Buy is taking up to $249 off 12.9-inch iPad Pro: Wi-Fi 32GB from $550 w/ .edu (Reg. $799), more

Save $429 on Apple’s 12.9-inch 128GB iPad Pro Wi-Fi + Cellular by going w/ a refurb for $650 shipped

Apple’s 12.9″ 128GB iPad Pro Wi-Fi + Cellular is all the way down to $800 (Reg. $1,079)

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Put an extra 256GB of storage in your MacBook Air for $125 shipped (Reg. $155)

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Smartphone Accessories: Aukey Bluetooth Car Kit with 3-Port USB Car Charger $20 Prime shipped (Reg. $28), more

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Apple’s latest 11-inch MacBook Air is on sale from $600 shipped w/ .edu, 13-inch 128GB as low as $800, more

Apple 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro (latest version) 2.7GHz/8GB/256GB $1,200 shipped (Reg. $1,499)

vpn-unlimited-lifetime-sub-dealVPN Unlimited: Lifetime Subscription for $29 ($500 value)

World Class Mac Bundle: 8 outstanding apps for $25 w/coupon (Orig. $401)

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App Store Free App of the Week: Sago Mini Road Trip goes free for the first time in over a year ($3 value)

NBA 2K16 for iOS now matching lowest price ever in celebration of NBA Finals: $4 (Reg. $8)

MORE NEW GEAR FROM TODAY:

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Loopy HD, Jimmy Fallon’s favorite iOS music app, goes free for the first time (Reg. $4+)

MORE DEALS STILL ALIVE:

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Best Buy’s 3-Day Sale includes Beats Solo2 On-ear Headphones for $80 (Reg. $120), more

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Raspberry Pi 3 bundle has everything you need to get started: $70 shipped (Reg. $90)

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Review: Pelican’s impressive Elite Luggage is built like a tank, but is it worth the price tag?

NEW PRODUCTS & MORE:

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The Star Wars Ultimate Collection brings incredible recreations of movie props to your home

Filed under: Tips and Tricks Tagged: 9to5Toys, Amazon, Apple, Best Buy, iOS, iPad, iPad Pro, Lunch Break, Transcend

Apple staff voting on new community themes, including making Apple products affordable

Apple is inviting staff to vote for one of 20 different ‘community themes,’ a list of worthy projects ranging from using technology to boost environmental sustainability to empowering the elderly. One of the projects is geared to making Apple products more available to those who would not normally be able to afford them.

Our themes are a result of global collaboration, innovation, and passion. They’re rich with intention and supported by detailed ideas. Each one reflects our belief that we can leave the world better than when we found it.

The internal document references Apple’s approach of ‘a thousand no’s for every yes’ and says that votes will determine which themes go forward into further development and testing …

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Filed under: AAPL Company Tagged: Apple

PSA: Many UK retailers now allowing unlimited-value Apple Pay transactions

Apple Pay is arguably more useful in the UK than in Apple’s home market of the U.S. as contactless terminals have been in widespread use for many years – at least, in the bigger cities. But the standard £30 ($44) limit on contactless transactions has so far mostly been applied to Apple Pay too.

We knew a year ago that this was going to change over time, and it seems that rollout of the upgraded payment terminals has now reached many major retailers …

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Filed under: Apple Pay Tagged: Apple pay, UK

Huawei’s plan is to take on Samsung and Apple to become the “world’s biggest smartphone maker”

Huawei has told a Hong Kong conference that it is aiming to overtake both Apple and Samsung to become the world’s biggest smartphone maker within five years, reports the WSJ. Huawei director Richard Yu made the statement at the Wall Street Journal and f.ounders-held Converge technology conference.

“We want to be the number-one smartphone maker in the world. It’s a long distance race, and we have the patience,” said Yu.

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Filed under: iOS Devices Tagged: china, Huawei, iPhone