by Let’s take a look at this week’s Apple news and headlines, including iPhone 16 Pro release dates, a bigger iPhone 16 battery, a surprise iOS update, Apple Intelligence delayed, iPhone Air plans, new Macs for 2024, and why Bing isn’t on your iPhone.
Apple Loop is here to remind you of some of the many discussions surrounding Apple over the past seven days. You can also read my weekly Android news roundup here on Forbes.
iPhone 16 Pro release date hints
It may have happened every year around the second Tuesday in September. However, until Apple announces the date, speculation about the launch date of the iPhone 16 family will continue. Everything points to it being the 10th, however, including the manufacturing line that is rapidly ramping up inventory for the big day:
“..[which] “This suggests that iPhone production is proceeding as planned, meaning no delays are anticipated at this point. If so, it means the likelihood of the iPhone 16 series launching in September is very high. Specifically, it leaves the possible date for the keynote that will unveil the hardware – alongside the Apple Watch Series 10 and possibly new AirPods – seemingly set to remain on Tuesday, September 10.”
(Forbes).
Customers watch the Australian release of the latest iPhone and Apple Watch models (Photo by James … [+]
There is a bigger battery in town
Apple is set to increase the size of the iPhone battery, one of the largest in recent years. This is not the first time that Apple has increased the size of the iPhone battery. The question now is what will it do with it: offer more endurance to the consumer or offer more power to the software?
“The biggest difference is in the capacity of the iPhone 16 Pro compared to the previous Pro model, with a more than 9% increase (303mAh). The iPhone 16 Pro Max, while not as spectacular as its smaller sibling, benefits from a more than 5% increase (254mAh). Combined with efficiency improvements, these increases should allow both devices to offer more sustained real-world usage on a single charge.”
(Mac Rumors).
A quick iOS update
This week, an iOS update was released. Rather than a planned upgrade with more features, it’s more of a security patch aimed at improving encryption on iCloud services:
“Apple didn’t mention any new features, but the main thing is a problem fix. The company describes it this way: “This update includes important bug fixes and resolves an issue that prevents Advanced Data Protection from being enabled or disabled.”
(Forbes).
iOS AI Delayed
Speaking of iOS, the big software update of the coming year will be generative AI and the awkwardly titled back-acronym Apple Intelligence. As Android prepares for the reveal of the second generation of AI, Apple will delay the launch of the core implementation until the month after the new phones launch, before the key software arrives in late Q1 2025:
“That means early iPhone 16 buyers could miss out on some of Apple’s latest AI features announced at WWDC last month, including Rewrite, Image Playground, Genmoji, audio transcription, webpage summaries, and a revamped Siri.”
(Forbes).
The air around the iPhone
Looking further ahead, the iPhone 17 family is expected to welcome a new member. The slim iPhone has been the subject of much discussion over the past year, but now we have a name: iPhone AIr.
“It’s a name that makes sense, because Apple already has an iPad Air line that sits between the base iPads and the Pro models, and at one point was positioned as a thin option (even though the latest model isn’t as thin as the latest iPad Pro). The MacBook Air is also positioned as a thin device.”
(TechRadar).
New Macs this year
Apple may be putting the spotlight back on the Mac lineup later this year, but don’t expect too much. While the usual Apple Silicon M4 specs are still there, everything else remains pretty much “the same” except for the processor and the standardization of desktop I/O ports:
“With a new update coming to these models this fall, Gurman doesn’t expect much other than the introduction of new M4 chips. The M4 chip debuted in the iPad Pro in May, with no Mac models having received the new chip yet. Given that the iMac still uses Lightning accessories, I suspect we’ll also see USB-C accessories in the box of the 24-inch iMac model with M4 later this year.”
(9to5Mac).
And finally…
The Google antitrust documents continue to reveal the inner workings and thinking of Apple executives. One of them concerned whether Apple should switch to Microsoft’s Bing as its default search engine… or not:
“Google pays Apple billions of dollars a year to be the default search engine in Safari. But according to Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of services, there is no meaningful alternative. During the trial, he said that “Microsoft could never offer any price” to Apple to have the company pre-install Bing in Safari.
(The Rod).
Apple Loop brings you seven days of highlights every weekend here on Forbes. Be sure to follow me so you don’t miss anything 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.
