Apple News
Judge rules Apple can remove apps from App Store ‘with or without cause,’ dismissing Musi lawsuit
A federal judge has ruled in Apple’s favor in a lawsuit brought by the developers of Musi, a popular free music streaming app that pulled songs from YouTube. The decision upholds Apple’s removal of the app from the App Store in 2024 and affirms the company’s broad authority under its Developer Program License Agreement.
Jon Brodkin for Ars Technica:
Musi built a streaming service without striking its own deals with copyright holders. It did so by playing music from YouTube, writing in its 2024 lawsuit against Apple that “the Musi app plays or displays content based on the user’s own interactions with YouTube and enhances the user experience via Musi’s proprietary technology.” Musi’s app displayed its own ads but let users remove them for a one-time fee of $5.99.
Musi claimed it complied with YouTube’s terms, but Apple removed it from the App Store in September 2024. Musi does not offer an Android app. Musi alleged that Apple delisted its app based on “unsubstantiated” intellectual property claims from YouTube and that Apple violated its own Developer Program License Agreement (DPLA) by delisting the app.
Musi was handed a resounding defeat yesterday in two rulings from U.S. District Judge Eumi Lee in the Northern District of California. Lee found that Apple can remove apps “with or without cause,” as stipulated in the developer agreement… Lee granted Apple’s motion to dismiss the complaint. She ordered it to be dismissed with prejudice and without leave to amend.
MacDailyNews Take: Another win for Apple’s ironclad control of the App Store! This decisive ruling not only reinforces Apple’s broad discretion over its ecosystem but also serves as a stark warning to any future developers thinking they can successfully challenge App Store removals. Apple’s platform, Apple’s rules.
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Apple CEO Cook heads to China amid growing pressure on App Store policies
Apple CEO Tim Cook appeared at a company event in China on Wednesday, following the recent reduction in App Store fees for developers in the country earlier this month.
He attended a celebration at an Apple Store in Chengdu, the southwestern Chinese city, to mark the company’s 50th anniversary, according to a post from the municipal government on WeChat.
The US company said last week that its typical commission on purchases will drop to 25% from 30% for its mainland China App Store, a major concession in a hugely lucrative market where the company faced the risk of antitrust intervention by local regulators.
The move is effective March 15 and applies to apps for both iOS and iPadOS, Apple said on its developer website, noting the shift follows “discussions with the Chinese regulator.”
After the announcement, Chinese ruling party’s flagship newspaper called for Apple to further ease App Store restrictions and fix “monopolistic” practices. The frank editorial underscored how Apple, which has clashed with Tencent Holdings Ltd. and ByteDance Ltd. over its iOS App Store policies, may continue to face pressure from Beijing.
MacDailyNews Take: As we wrote just yesterday:
Cook’s going to need to schedule yet another CCP kowtow tour (and further accelerate assembly in India) ASAP!
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Key Apple Home hardware exec defects to rival Oura in blow to oft-delayed HomeKit push
Brian Lynch, who has led Apple’s home devices hardware engineering efforts since 2022, is leaving the company to join Finnish health technology company Oura Health Oy as senior vice president of hardware engineering, according to a report by Mark Gurman of Bloomberg News.
Lynch’s departure represents a notable setback for Apple’s home devices division, which has been grappling with product delays in its smart home ambitions, including advancements tied to HomeKit and related hardware. The unit oversees development of connected home products, an area where Apple has faced challenges in delivering new or refreshed offerings amid broader industry competition.
Apple’s smart home ambitions (including a long-rumored smart display/hub often called “HomePad” or J490, refreshed HomePod models, updated Apple TV integrations, and broader HomeKit ecosystem pushes) have faced repeated postponements.
Recent reports tie these delays primarily to challenges in overhauling Siri with advanced AI capabilities (Apple Intelligence integration), which is central to the user experience for these devices. Hardware is reportedly ready or near-ready in some cases, but launches are being held back to align with a more capable Siri — potentially pushing major reveals to fall 2026 alongside iOS 27.
Earlier expectations had some products slated for spring 2026 or even 2025, but Siri bottlenecks have kept shifting timelines.
Oura Chief Executive Officer Tom Hale confirmed the hiring to Bloomberg News on Tuesday, highlighting the Finnish company’s aggressive push to strengthen its hardware leadership. Oura, the pioneer behind the popular Oura Ring series for health and fitness tracking, has seen rapid growth in the emerging smart ring category and has previously recruited talent with Apple experience, including its current head of design, Miklu Silvanto, who formerly worked in Apple’s design unit.
Lynch served as Apple’s senior director in charge of home devices hardware, a role focused on engineering for products like smart home accessories and ecosystem integrations. No specific effective date for his transition was detailed, but the move was announced amid ongoing reports of turbulence in Apple’s home hardware group.
This executive shift comes as Apple continues to navigate delays in its smart home roadmap while competitors like Oura expand in adjacent wearable health spaces. Oura’s Ring 4, for instance, has positioned the company as a leader in discreet, screen-free health monitoring, tracking metrics such as sleep, activity, and heart rate.
The departure adds to recent executive churn in Apple’s hardware teams, underscoring the competitive talent landscape in consumer electronics and wearables.
MacDailyNews Take: Something’s rotten in Cupertino. Whether it’s planned succession cleanup, frustration with delays, or just the allure of fresh challenges elsewhere, Tim Cook’s team isn’t sticking around like it used to.
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Apple rolls out first public Background Security Improvement for iPhone, iPad, and Mac
Apple has quietly deployed its inaugural public Background Security Improvement, delivering targeted protection to iPhone, iPad, and Mac users without requiring a full operating system overhaul.
This new lightweight update focuses on bolstering security for key components, including the Safari browser, the WebKit framework, and various system libraries. These elements often require frequent, smaller patches to stay ahead of emerging threats between major software releases.
The specific fix in this release tackles a cross-origin vulnerability in WebKit’s Navigation API. By enhancing input validation, Apple prevents maliciously crafted web content from potentially bypassing the Same Origin Policy—a critical safeguard that isolates web content from different sources.
Apple describes the system as a way to “deliver lightweight security releases for components such as the Safari browser, WebKit framework stack, and other system libraries that benefit from smaller, ongoing security patches between software updates.”
The update arrives via these versions:
• iOS 26.3.1 (a) for iPhone
• iPadOS 26.3.1 (a) for iPad
• macOS 26.3.1 (a)
• macOS 26.3.2 (a) for Mac (with the latter likely tailored for newer hardware like the MacBook Neo running an updated build of macOS Tahoe)
Background Security Improvements were first introduced in iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1, and macOS 26.1, with several beta tests conducted earlier this year to refine the delivery mechanism. This marks the first time the feature has reached the general public.
Users can check for and install these updates manually: On iPhone or iPad, head to Settings > Privacy & Security; on Mac, navigate to System Settings > Privacy & Security. Many devices will apply them automatically in the background when enabled.
MacDailyNews Take: This approach allows Apple to respond more swiftly to web-related risks, particularly those tied to browser engines, ensuring stronger ongoing protection for billions of users across its ecosystem.
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tvOS 26.4 to unleash ‘Genius Browse,’ smarter way to uncover hidden gems in the Apple TV app
Navigating the endless wave of fresh releases on streaming platforms often means overlooking hidden gems in music, series, and films alike.
Apple addresses this challenge head-on with tvOS 26.4 by introducing an innovative tool designed to make finding worthwhile content far easier and more intuitive.
Called Genius Browse, this smart new capability is built directly into the Apple TV app. It’s already accessible in the current beta release and should roll out publicly to everyone shortly.
Ryan Christoffel for 9to5Mac:
Expanding the old ‘Genius’ term popularized in iTunes, and still in use within macOS Tahoe’s Music app today, ‘Genius Browse’ makes it easy to find your next TV show or movie to watch.
When navigating the Home tab inside Apple’s TV app, tvOS 26.4 adds a row of Genius Browse categories to choose from.
When you select one of the categories, you’re given a list of recommended titles to check out.
What’s especially helpful is that as you navigate through each recommendation, you’ll see a new row of related titles appear underneath it. So you’re not limited to just the initial batch of recommendations—rather, each featured title unlocks another layer of title-specific recommendations.
MacDailyNews Take: What’s especially great is that Genius Browse can be personalized to individual user profiles and also works with every Apple TV app-compatible third-party services like Peacock, HBO Max, Prime Video, Disney+, and more.
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Chinese Communist Party’s flagship paper urges Apple to fix ‘monopolistic’ policies
Apple must ease its App Store restrictions and address “monopolistic” practices, according to the Chinese Communist Party’s flagship newspaper, People’s Daily, just days after the iPhone maker made a significant concession by agreeing to lower its commission fees in the local App Store.
The move demonstrates that Chinese regulators are making progress in combating anti-competitive behavior, the paper said in a Tuesday commentary. However, it noted that Chinese users and developers continue to face numerous barriers, including the inability to use third-party payment services. The market is now closely watching whether Apple will ultimately tear down its “fence” and fully open its ecosystem.
The frank editorial underscored how Apple, which has clashed with Tencent Holdings Ltd. and ByteDance Ltd. over its iOS app store policies, may continue to face pressure from Beijing. Last week, the US company announced that it’s dropping its typical commission on mainland app store purchases to 25% from 30% — a big climbdown by the Cupertino, California-based firm in its most important market after the US.
“In point of fact, Apple’s App Store has long been criticized by the market for alleged monopolistic practices,” the People’s Daily wrote. “In contrast, Android is highly open, supporting not only Google Play Store but also app stores from manufacturers like Huawei and Xiaomi, as well as third-party app stores.”
“Tougher antitrust scrutiny of big tech firms has become an irreversible trend,” the People’s Daily wrote. Stronger regulation is needed to safeguard fair competition as AI deepens tech companies’ influence on daily life, it wrote.
MacDailyNews Take: Cook’s going to need to schedule yet another CCP kowtow tour (and further accelerate assembly in India) ASAP!
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Apple CEO Cook discusses privacy, future of AI, and the company’s 50th anniversary
As Apple nears its 50th anniversary, CEO Tim Cook is taking time to reflect on the company’s storied legacy while turning his gaze toward the future.
During a recent visit to Wadleigh Secondary School in Harlem, New York, where students are gaining skills far beyond music alone, Cook discussed creativity, artificial intelligence, privacy, and Apple’s growing commitment to music education. He sat down for an interview with “Good Morning America” co-anchor Michael Strahan to share his insights.
Shafiq Najib, Randi Simon, Erin Brady for ABC News:
The visit comes as Apple marks a major milestone, the company’s 50th anniversary. “What a reflection,” Cook said of Apple’s longevity.
When asked about Apple’s biggest contributions over the past five decades, Cook pointed to innovation across industries. “You know, you can focus on the product moments, reinventing music, reinventing the smartphone, bringing the creative arts to the table, the creative graphics. Saving people’s lives with the watch,” he said.
On artificial intelligence, AI, Cook said the technology has the potential to be transformative, depending on how it is used. “I think AI is so profound and can be so positive, but, you know, technology doesn’t wanna be good, and it doesn’t wanna be bad. It’s in the hands of the user and the hands of the inventor,” he said.
Cook also reiterated Apple’s stance on privacy as a fundamental right, emphasizing how the company handles user data.
“We do as much as possible on the device,” he explained. “And the device is encrypted, which means that even Apple doesn’t have access to it. And then when we can’t answer a question on your device, we send it to something called Private Cloud Compute, which is essentially, think of it as a big device in the sky that has the same kind of security and architecture as your phone.”
MacDailyNews Take: Check out the video:
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Apple TV announces ‘My Brother the Minotaur,’ premiering April 24th
Apple TV on Tuesday announced the all-new animated kids and family adventure series “My Brother the Minotaur,” from Academy Award-nominated animation studio Cartoon Saloon and the award-winning children’s media company Dog Ears, to premiere globally on Friday, April 24. Centered on universal themes of growing up, feeling different and discovering where you belong, the series celebrates finding the people who truly see you, and the places that feel like home.
Apple TV’s “My Brother the Minotaur,” a new animated kids and family adventure series, will debut April, 24, 2026.
A thrilling mix of folklore, mystery and adventure about a young minotaur – half boy, half bull – found and raised in the human world. With the help of his fiercely loyal human brother, he recruits a bold group of friends to uncover the mystery of his minotaur past and fulfill his destiny, all while battling dark forces determined to see him fail.
Apple TV’s “My Brother the Minotaur,” a new animated kids and family adventure series, will debut April, 24, 2026.
The animated series features voice performances from rising stars Ely Solan, Billy Jenkins, Luciana Akpobaro, and Billie Boullet, alongside Michael Sheen, Brian Cox, Andy Serkis, and T’Nia Miller.
“My Brother the Minotaur” is produced for Apple by Dog Ears and Cartoon Saloon. Gerry Shirren and Fionnuala Deane serve as executive producers on the show, with producers John McDaid, Nora Twomey, Tomm Moore, Paul Young and Nuria Blanco. “My Brother the Minotaur” was created by Donal Mangan and directed by Maurice Joyce.
The exciting slate of recent offerings for kids and families on Apple TV features the latest family musical specials “Snoopy Presents: A Summer Musical”; “Lulu Is a Rhinoceros” based on the beloved children’s book of the same name by father-daughter duo Jason and Allison Flom; the music-driven animated comedy series “BE@RBRICK” from DreamWorks Animation; “Goldie,” inspired by Emily Brundige’s award-winning 2019 short film of the same name; Peanuts series “Camp Snoopy”; the second season of beloved animated series “Frog and Toad,” based on the Caldecott and Newbery Honor-winning books; “Me,” an elevated cinematic coming-of-age story from Barry L. Levy; and “Wonder Pets: In the City,” from Jennifer Oxley.
Award-winning all-ages offerings now streaming globally on Apple TV also include the BAFTA Award and Emmy Award-winning live-action animated hybrid special “The Velveteen Rabbit,” BAFTA Award and Humanitas Prize-winning “El Deafo,” BAFTA Award-winning “Lovely Little Farm,” “Duck & Goose,” “Get Rolling With Otis,” Spin Master Entertainment’s “Sago Mini Friends,” Annie Award-nominated “Not a Box,” GLAAD Media Award-nominated “Pinecone & Pony,” The Jim Henson Company’s Emmy Award-winning “Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock,” “Harriet the Spy” and “Slumberkins,” Sesame Workshop’s “Helpsters,” Joseph Gordon-Levitt, HITRECORD and Bento Box Entertainment’s “Wolfboy and the Everything Factory,” Jack McBrayer and Angela C. Santomero’s Emmy Award-nominated “Hello, Jack! The Kindness Show,” Peanuts and WildBrain’s Emmy Award-nominated “Snoopy in Space,” “The Snoopy Show,” and Peabody and Emmy Award-winning series “Stillwater” from Gaumont and Scholastic Entertainment. Live-action offerings include Bonnie Hunt’s DGA Award and WGA Award-nominated “Amber Brown,” DGA Award-winning “Best Foot Forward,” “Surfside Girls,” WGA Award-winning “Life By Ella,” Sesame Workshop and Sinking Ship’s Emmy Award-winning “Ghostwriter,” Emmy Award and Environmental Media Association Award-winning “Jane,” and Scholastic’s “Puppy Place.”
Also featured are “Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth,” the Emmy Award-winning television event based on the New York Times bestselling book and TIME Best Book of the Year by Oliver Jeffers, and specials from Peanuts and WildBrain, including Emmy Award-nominated “Snoopy Presents: It’s the Small Things, Charlie Brown,” “Snoopy Presents: Lucy’s School,” Humanitas Prize and Emmy Award-nominated “Snoopy Presents: To Mom (and Dad), With Love,” “Snoopy Presents: One-of-a-Kind Marcie,” “Snoopy Presents: Welcome Home, Franklin,” Emmy Award-winning “Snoopy Presents: Who Are You, Charlie Brown?” and “Snoopy Presents: For Auld Lang Syne.”
To date, Apple Original films, documentaries and series have been honored with 773 wins and 3,340 award nominations and counting, including multi-Emmy Award-winning and history-making comedies “The Studio” and “Ted Lasso,” global cultural phenomenon “Severance,” Apple’s most-viewed drama “Pluribus,” Academy Award Best Picture winner “CODA” and Academy Award winner “F1,” the highest-grossing sports feature of all time.
MacDailyNews Note: Apple TV is available on the Apple TV app in over 100 countries and regions, on over 1 billion screens, including iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K, Apple Vision Pro, Mac, popular smart TVs from Samsung, LG, Sony, VIZIO, TCL and others, Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices, Chromecast with Google TV, PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles, and at tv.apple.com, for $12.99 per month with a seven-day free trial for new subscribers. For a limited time, customers who purchase and activate a new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K or Mac can enjoy three months of Apple TV for free.
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Apple Original Films unveils trailer for ‘Outcome,’ starring Keanu Reeves, Jonah Hill, Cameron Diaz, and more
Apple Original Films on Tuesday unveiled the trailer for director Jonah Hill’s upcoming dark comedy, “Outcome,” starring Keanu Reeves, Hill, Cameron Diaz, Matt Bomer, Susan Lucci, Laverne Cox, David Spade, Martin Scorsese, Atsuko Okatsuka, Roy Wood, Jr., Welker White, Kaia Gerber, and Ivy Wolk, premiering globally on Apple TV on Friday, April 10, 2026.
“Outcome” is a dark comedy that centers on Reef Hawk (Reeves), a beloved Hollywood star who must dive into the depths of his hidden demons after he is extorted with a mysterious video that’s sure to shatter his image and end his career. With the support of his lifelong besties Kyle (Diaz) and Xander (Bomer), along with his crisis lawyer Ira (Hill), Reef embarks on a soul-searching journey to make amends with anyone he could have possibly wronged in hopes of identifying the blackmailer. Co-writer and director Hill brings a unique lens to Reef’s wild but spiritually cleansing, nostalgic and eye-opening trip down memory lane, where confronting his past might be the only way to rescue his future.
Directed by Hill, the Apple Original Film “Outcome” is written by Hill and Ezra Woods, produced by Matt Dines, Alison Goodwin, and Hill under their Strong Baby banner, with Adam Merims serving as executive producer.
Apple TV offers premium, compelling drama and comedy series, feature films, groundbreaking documentaries, and kids and family entertainment, and is available to watch across all your favorite screens. After its launch on November 1, 2019, Apple TV became the first all-original streaming service to launch around the world, and has premiered more original hits and received more award recognitions faster than any other streaming service in its debut. To date, Apple Original films, documentaries and series have been honored with 773 wins and 3,337 award nominations and counting, including multi-Emmy Award-winning and history-making comedies “The Studio” and “Ted Lasso,” global cultural phenomenon “Severance,” Apple’s most-viewed drama “Pluribus,” Oscar Best Picture winner “CODA” and Academy Award nominee “F1,” the highest-grossing sports feature of all time.
MacDailyNews Note: Apple TV is available on the Apple TV app in over 100 countries and regions, on over 1 billion screens, including iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K, Apple Vision Pro, Mac, popular smart TVs from Samsung, LG, Sony, VIZIO, TCL and others, Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices, Chromecast with Google TV, PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles, and at tv.apple.com, for $12.99 per month with a seven-day free trial for new subscribers. For a limited time, customers who purchase and activate a new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K or Mac can enjoy three months of Apple TV for free.
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By missing AI, Apple is winning AI
In an era when tech giants are burning hundreds of billions on massive AI data centers and infrastructure bets, Apple is conspicuously spending far less, yet quietly positioning itself to claim the real prize: ownership of consumer AI at the device level. With 2.5 billion active devices already in users’ hands, Apple’s on-device focus, powered by efficient chips and model commoditization, lets it intercept queries locally, preserve privacy, and sidestep the hyperscalers’ costly cloud dependency. Yes, Apple missed the generative AI revolution (as evidenced by the chaos in Apple’s AI management ranks over the past few years), but, far from lagging behind, this catch-up strategy — rooted in the conviction that the future belongs to whoever owns the end user — could turn Apple’s biggest apparent miss since Steve Jobs initially overlooked the digital music revolution into one of the company’s most decisive victories.
Daniel J. Arbess for The Wall Street Journal:
The four hyperscalers — Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, and Microsoft — are investing $700 billion this year in artificial-intelligence infrastructure. Apple? A mere $14 billion. A chart of these figures circulates on social media. It looks like four skyscrapers and a mailbox…
[Apple] is making a cold-eyed bet that the most frenzied build-out in the history of American capitalism will produce inadequate returns.
Last October Apple announced the M5 chip, embedding a neural accelerator in every GPU core. This wasn’t marketing theater. Apple’s own benchmarks show the M5 running a 30-billion-parameter model—capable of drafting legal briefs, debugging code, synthesizing research—in under three seconds on a standard MacBook Pro. Eighteen gigabytes of memory. No internet. No subscription. No API key…
Apple recently announced a milestone of 2.5 billion active devices. It has already distributed its existing data center — one device at a time — into the pockets and onto the desks of a quarter of the world’s connected population. When Apple licenses Google’s Gemini for roughly $1 billion a year to handle what its on-device models can’t, it is renting the penthouse while its competitors mortgage the building. If a better model shows up next year — from Anthropic, DeepSeek, the open-source community — Apple switches landlords…
New devices with “Apple Intelligence” will locally handle the tasks, email summaries, writing assistance, photo editing, translation and search, that would otherwise generate cloud inference calls. Billions of daily queries will never touch a server. Hundreds of millions of knowledge workers on iPads and MacBooks currently paying $20 a month for ChatGPT or Copilot can get equivalent capability baked into hardware they already own.
MacDailyNews Take: Once again the best model for many tasks, Grok, goes unmentioned. But, we digress.
Apple still has time to catch up, and even leap over rivals, especially when it comes to AI-powered Siri. – MacDailyNews, August 11, 2025
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Apple’s $599 MacBook Neo just broke the laptop market
Apple has just unleashed its most disruptive laptop in over a decade with the MacBook Neo, a strikingly affordable $599 machine that shatters the company’s traditional $999+ entry point and blurs the lines between iPhone and Mac like never before. Powered by the very capable A18 Pro chip from the iPhone 16 Pro era rather than Apple’s M-series silicon, this colorful, premium-feeling device (in Silver, Blush, Citrus, and Indigo) delivers macOS performance that outpaces many Windows 11 laptops and renders budget Chromebooks obsolete for millions.
Given the same hardware profile, it’s not a huge leap to suggest that the iPhone 16 Pro’s hardware could run macOS. Now consider that we have a new generation and improved performance in the iPhone 17 Pro, along with continued software optimisation. It stands to reason that the iPhone 17 Pro, with its A19 Pro chipset, will also run macOS comfortably (and I would not be surprised if Apple undertakes annual updates to the Neo line using the previous year’s A-series chipset).
A look across the competition reveals smartphones that run in both ‘handheld’ and ‘desktop’ modes; one of the most prevalent is Samsung’s Galaxy S range, which supports Samsung DeX, the desktop experience. Hook up the smartphone to a monitor and peripherals, and you’re ready to go with a very portable workstation.
There lies the promise and the challenge to Apple. The flex with the A18 Pro chipset shows that, on a technical level, it’s very much possible…
Think about the disruptive impact of essentially moving to a Mac with your iPhone, converting millions of users to macOS users with a simple HDMI cable and an Apple Magic Keyboard. There would be no point in any of these customers considering a Chromebook, and those looking for a lightweight Windows 11 laptop can ignore the temptation because they already have such a system in their pocket, just waiting for a larger screen to connect to.
The MacBook Neo is one of Apple’s most disruptive releases in over a decade. The laptop market will have to react to Apple moving away from its $999 floor price for a Mac, and Apple’s ecosystem will need to cope with a move away from maintaining the prestige of the Apple brand in exchange for a lower price, looking to capture more market share. Why let the disruption stop there?
MacDailyNews Take: Thermal limitations. When you can get a real Mac for $599 (desktop Mac mini or laptop MacBook Neo; $499 for education), there is no need to try to force a $1,099 or higher iPhone Pro to be a Mac. Yes, it would be a cool parlor trick; nothing more.
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Apple Watch Ultra 2 dips below $500 in substantial deal
The Apple Watch Ultra 2 has seen its price drop to under $500 for the first time since its 2023 debut, offering adventure enthusiasts and fitness trackers a compelling entry point into high-end smartwatch territory.
Apple Watch Ultra 2The deal, spotted on Amazon, prices the GPS + Cellular 49mm model at just $499 — a steep $250 reduction from its original $799 launch price.
This marks the lowest price tracked for the Ultra 2, coming on the heels of the Apple Watch Ultra 3’s release in September 2025, which introduced enhancements like 5G cellular and satellite connectivity.
Available configurations include the rugged titanium case paired with options like the Blue Ocean Band, in small and medium sizes, though stock and pricing are subject to change.
Apple rarely discounts its flagship products significantly, making this an opportune moment for buyers who don’t need the latest model’s bells and whistles. The Ultra 2 continues to receive full support for the newest WatchOS updates, ensuring longevity and access to cutting-edge software features.
Unveiled in September 2023, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 was designed for extreme sports, outdoor adventures, and demanding environments, boasting a 49mm corrosion-resistant titanium case and the brightest display Apple has ever produced at up to 3,000 nits for visibility in harsh sunlight.
It introduced innovative features like the double tap gesture, allowing users to perform actions such as answering calls or playing music by simply tapping their index finger and thumb together twice, powered by the advanced S9 SiP chip with a 4-core Neural Engine.
Battery life stands out with up to 36 hours of normal use and an extended 72 hours in Low Power Mode, while water resistance reaches 100 meters, supporting recreational scuba diving to 40 meters via the Oceanic+ app.
Health and fitness tracking are robust, including on-device Siri for quick health data queries, precision heart rate monitoring, and new watchOS 10 capabilities like topographic maps, cycling power zones, and mental health logging.
MacDailyNews Take: For those seeking a durable, feature-packed smartwatch without breaking the bank, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 remains a top contender. Interested buyers should check Amazon promptly, as deals of this magnitude on Apple gear tend to vanish quickly.
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Apple acquires MotionVFX
Apple has acquired MotionVFX, a leading developer of professional plugins, visual effects, templates, and motion graphics tools primarily designed for its Final Cut Pro video editing software.
The deal, announced on March 16, 2026, brings the Polish company, founded by Szymon Masiak in 2009, into Apple’s fold. MotionVFX has long been a prominent third-party provider in the Apple ecosystem, creating high-quality add-ons such as transitions, titles, cinematic effects, tracking tools, AI-assisted features, and more for Final Cut Pro, as well as compatibility with Apple’s Motion, Blackmagic Design’s DaVinci Resolve, and in some cases Adobe Premiere Pro.
Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed by Apple or MotionVFX.
In a statement posted on its website, MotionVFX expressed enthusiasm about the move, noting alignment with Apple’s core principles.
“Apple’s products align with our own focus on quality, ease of use and great design,” the company said. It described the acquisition as “the beginning of something wonderful” and an opportunity to “continue to empower creators and editors to do their best work” as part of the Apple team.
The acquisition underscores Apple’s ongoing emphasis on strengthening its professional creative tools and services segment. Final Cut Pro remains a cornerstone of Apple’s pro apps lineup, and MotionVFX’s expertise in effects and motion design could help enhance the software’s capabilities, potentially integrating more advanced built-in tools, improving the experience for video editors on Mac, iPad, and beyond, or expanding the ecosystem of resources available to users.
MotionVFX has been a trusted partner in the Apple community for years, with its products frequently recognized and featured in discussions around Final Cut Pro workflows. The company has offered extensive libraries (sometimes numbering thousands of design elements) helping editors achieve polished, professional results more efficiently.
This move comes amid Apple’s broader push into services and creative software, where recurring revenue from apps, subscriptions, and enhanced pro tools plays an increasingly important role in the company’s financials.
MacDailyNews Note: No immediate changes to MotionVFX’s existing products or subscription offerings (such as its CineStudio and Design Studio plans) were detailed in the announcement. Video editors and Final Cut Pro users will likely watch closely for any future integrations or updates stemming from the acquisition.
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Apple kicks off 50th anniversary celebrations with Alicia Keys performance at Apple Grand Central in New York City
On March 13th, Apple kicked off celebrations for its 50th anniversary with a special performance by 17-time Grammy Award-winning artist and producer Alicia Keys at Apple Grand Central in New York City. Keys delivered an incredible set of her timeless songs from the venue’s iconic steps. iPhone 17 Pro brought the energy and intimacy of the event to life.
Throughout the month, the company is commemorating the milestone around the world. Each gathering highlights human creativity and ingenuity in action, and showcases the remarkable things people can do when they have the right Apple products in their hands.
Apple Grand Central, New York
With multiple decades in the industry under her belt, Keys has never stopped thinking different.
Keys became one of the first artists to release her catalog in Spatial Audio on Apple Music and headlined an Apple Music Live performance. In 2024, Alicia Keys: Rehearsal Room was among the first Apple Immersive experiences for Apple Vision Pro, offering fans a unique glimpse into her creative process during an intimate rehearsal session.
Customers fill Apple Grand Central for a special event on March 13. Customers fill Apple Grand Central for a special event on March 13. Tim Cook and Alicia Keys greet the audience at Apple’s 50th anniversary celebration in New York City.
MacDailyNews Note: Apple Inc. (originally Apple Computer Company) was founded on April 1, 1976, by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne.
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Apple unveils new $549 H2-powered AirPods Max 2
Apple today announced AirPods Max 2, bringing even better Active Noise Cancellation (ANC), elevated sound quality, and intelligent features to the iconic over-ear design. Powered by H2, features like Adaptive Audio, Conversation Awareness, Voice Isolation, and Live Translation come to AirPods Max for the first time. The new AirPods Max also unlock creative possibilities for podcasters, musicians, and content creators, with useful features like studio-quality audio recording and camera remote.
AirPods Max 2 will be available to order starting March 25 in midnight, starlight, orange, purple, and blue, with availability beginning early next month.
“With the incredible performance of H2, AirPods Max are upgraded with up to 1.5x more effective ANC for the ultimate all-day listening experience,” said Eric Treski, Apple’s director of Audio Product Marketing, in a statement. “The sound quality is remarkably clean, rich, and acoustically detailed — and when combined with capabilities like Personalized Spatial Audio, AirPods Max 2 deliver a profoundly immersive experience.”
Active Noise Cancellation Gets Even Better
Thanks to H2 and new computational audio algorithms, AirPods Max 2 deliver ANC that’s up to 1.5x more effective than the previous generation. This reduces even more noise — like airplane engines or commuter trains — so users can fully immerse themselves in music, work, or phone calls.
With a new digital signal processing algorithm optimized for H2 and the microphone array on AirPods Max, Transparency sounds even more natural so users can stay aware of their environment and those around them.
AirPods Max 2 deliver ANC that’s up to 1.5x more effective than the previous generation, thanks to H2 and new computational audio algorithms.
Highest-Fidelity Listening Experience
AirPods Max 2 feature a new high dynamic range amplifier for even cleaner audio while maintaining the incredible sound signature of AirPods Max. Spatial Audio content sounds better than ever, with improved localization of instruments, more accurate and consistent bass response, and more natural-sounding mids and highs.
For the highest-quality audio across music, movies, and games, the new AirPods Max support 24-bit, 48 kHz lossless audio when connected with the included USB-C cable. Lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio enable music creators to fully utilize AirPods Max throughout their entire professional workflow on Logic Pro and other music creation apps. Using the USB-C cable, AirPods Max are the only headphones that let musicians both create and mix in Personalized Spatial Audio with head tracking.
Reduced wireless audio latency also makes gaming even better. For those using AirPods Max 2 and playing in Game Mode, iOS, macOS, and iPadOS games feel even more responsive and immersive.
AirPods Max 2 feature a new high dynamic range amplifier for even cleaner audio while maintaining the incredible sound signature of AirPods Max.
Intelligent Features Come to AirPods Max
H2 ushers in an array of features that make AirPods Max 2 even more intelligent and convenient.
• Adaptive Audio adjusts the levels of ANC and Transparency in response to the environment automatically to optimize the audio experience.
• Conversation Awareness helps lower content volume and reduce background noise when a user starts speaking to someone nearby.
• Live Translation, powered by Apple Intelligence,3 helps users communicate across languages in person.
• Voice Isolation uses advanced computational audio powered by H2 to prioritize the voice during calls, while blocking out ambient noise.
• With camera remote, users can capture content at a distance by pressing the Digital Crown to take a photo and start or stop video recording while using the Camera app or compatible third-party camera apps on iPhone or iPad.
• Studio-quality audio recording allows interviewers, podcasters, singers, and other creators to record their content with higher-quality audio and more natural vocal texture.
• Loud Sound Reduction helps users prevent exposure to loud environmental noise while preserving the sound signature of what they’re listening to.
• Personalized Volume automatically fine-tunes the listening experience for users based on their preferences over time.
• Siri Interactions allow users to conveniently and privately respond to Siri announcements by simply nodding their head yes or gently shaking their head no.
AirPods Max 2 and the Environment
Apple 2030 is the company’s ambitious plan to be carbon neutral across its entire footprint by the end of this decade by reducing product emissions from their three biggest sources: materials, electricity, and transportation. AirPods Max 2 are made with 100 percent recycled rare earth elements in all magnets, 100 percent recycled polyester in the ear cushion, and 100 percent recycled gold plating and tin solder in all Apple-designed printed circuit boards. The paper packaging is 100 percent fiber-based and can be easily recycled.
Pricing and Availability
Customers in the U.S. and more than 30 other countries and regions can order AirPods Max 2 starting Wednesday, March 25, on apple.com/store and in the Apple Store app. They will arrive to customers, and will be in Apple Store locations, beginning early next month.
AirPods Max 2 start at $549.
AppleCare delivers exceptional service and support, with flexible options for Apple users. Customers can choose AppleCare+ to cover their new headphones, or in the U.S., AppleCare One to protect multiple products in one simple plan. Both plans include coverage for accidents like drops and spills, theft and loss protection on eligible products, battery replacement service, and 24/7 support from Apple Experts. For more information, visit apple.com/applecare.
New subscribers may get Apple Music free for three months with the purchase of AirPods Max 2. See apple.com/promo for details.
Live Translation may not be available in all regions or languages. For feature and language availability and system requirements, visit support.apple.com/en-us/121115.
MacDailyNews Take: Yum!
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Apple TV’s ‘Margo’s Got Money Troubles’ opens SXSW with world premiere event
Last week, at the Paramount Theatre in Austin, Texas, Apple TV celebrated the upcoming launch of “Margo’s Got Money Troubles” with a star-studded opening-night premiere at the SXSW Film & TV Festival. The eight-episode Apple Original series will premiere globally on Wednesday, April 15, 2026 with three episodes, followed by new episodes every Wednesday through May 20, 2026.
Writer and executive producer Eva Anderson, executive producer Michelle Pfeiffer, writer, showrunner and executive producer David E. Kelley, executive producer Elle Fanning, Thaddea Graham, and executive producer Matthew Tinker attend the world premiere of Apple TV’s comedic drama series, “Margo’s Got Money Troubles,” at the opening night of the 2026 SXSW Film & TV Festival at the Paramount Theatre on March 12, 2026 in Austin, Texas. “Margo’s Got Money Troubles” premieres globally on Wednesday, April 15, 2026.
Red carpet attendees included series stars and executive producers Elle Fanning and Michelle Pfeiffer, cast member Thaddea Graham, showrunner, writer and executive producer David E. Kelley, writer and executive producer Eva Anderson, director and executive producer Dearbhla Walsh, director Kate Herron, executive producer Dakota Fanning, and book author and executive producer Rufi Thorpe. Also in attendance at the premiere were wrestling consultants Summer Rae and Chris Jericho, cast members Lindsey Normington, Kailena Mai, and Annalise Basso, costume designer Mirren Gordon-Crozier and production designer Richard Bloom.
Hailing from A24 and multi-Emmy Award winner David E. Kelley, and based on Rufi Thorpe’s bestselling novel of the same name, “Margo’s Got Money Troubles” stars and is executive produced by Academy Award, Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award nominee Elle Fanning; Golden Globe Award winner and Academy Award and Emmy Award nominee Michelle Pfeiffer; and Academy Award and Emmy Award winner Nicole Kidman.
Elle Fanning in “Margo’s Got Money Troubles,” premiering April 15, 2026 on Apple TV.
“Margo’s Got Money Troubles” is a bold, heartwarming and comedic family drama following recent college dropout and aspiring writer, Margo (Fanning), the daughter of an ex-Hooters waitress (Pfeiffer) and ex-pro wrestler (Nick Offerman), as she’s forced to make her way with a new baby, a mounting pile of bills and a dwindling amount of ways to pay them. The ensemble cast is also led by Emmy Award winner Offerman, Thaddea Graham, Academy Award winner Marcia Gay Harden, Academy Award nominee and Emmy Award winner Greg Kinnear, Michael Angarano, Rico Nasty, and Lindsey Normington.
Nicole Kidman in “Margo’s Got Money Troubles,” premiering April 15, 2026 on Apple TV.
“Margo’s Got Money Troubles” is produced for Apple TV by A24. Kelley serves as showrunner, writer and executive producer alongside Elle Fanning, Dakota Fanning and Brittany Kahan Ward for Lewellen Pictures; Kidman and Per Saari of Blossom Films; and Matthew Tinker for David E. Kelley Productions. Pfeiffer, author Thorpe, Eva Anderson, and Boo Killebrew also executive produce. BAFTA Award and Emmy Award winner Dearbhla Walsh directs the pilot and serves as an executive producer. Additional directors include Kate Herron and Alice Seabright.
Michelle Pfeiffer (left) and Elle Fanning in “Margo’s Got Money Troubles,” premiering April 15, 2026 on Apple TV.
The series marks the most recent collaboration between Kelley and Apple TV, following the Emmy Award-nominated global hit drama “Presumed Innocent,” which is now in production on its second season.
Apple TV offers premium, compelling drama and comedy series, feature films, groundbreaking documentaries, and kids and family entertainment, and is available to watch across all your favorite screens. After its launch on November 1, 2019, Apple TV became the first all-original streaming service to launch around the world, and has premiered more original hits and received more award recognitions faster than any other streaming service in its debut. To date, Apple Original films, documentaries and series have been honored with 772 wins and 3,337 award nominations and counting, including multi-Emmy Award-winning and history-making comedies “The Studio” and “Ted Lasso,” global cultural phenomenon “Severance,” Apple’s most-viewed drama “Pluribus,” Oscar Best Picture winner “CODA” and Academy Award nominee “F1,” the highest-grossing sports feature of all time.
MacDailyNews Note: Apple TV is available on the Apple TV app in over 100 countries and regions, on over 1 billion screens, including iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K, Apple Vision Pro, Mac, popular smart TVs from Samsung, LG, Sony, VIZIO, TCL and others, Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices, Chromecast with Google TV, PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles, and at tv.apple.com, for $12.99 per month with a seven-day free trial for new subscribers. For a limited time, customers who purchase and activate a new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K or Mac can enjoy three months of Apple TV for free.
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Apple’s feature film ‘F1’ scores Best Sound at the 98th Annual Academy Awards
Sunday night, at the 98th Annual Academy Awards, Apple’s history-making film “F1” won Best Sound from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. This Academy Award win marks the latest honor for “F1” following its record-breaking box office run as the highest-grossing sports feature of all time. The film is now streaming globally on Apple TV.
In addition to four Academy Award nominations including Best Picture, the Apple Original Film from Jerry Bruckheimer and Joseph Kosinski has also been recognized as one of the National Board of Review Top 10 Films of 2025, landed two Critics Choice Award wins for Best Editing and Best Sound, and a Best Sound win at the 2026 BAFTA Film Awards, in addition to wins at the Cinema Audio Society Awards; Visual Effects Society (VES) Awards; British Film Designers Guild Awards; African American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) Film Awards; and the Irish Film & Television (IFTA) Awards. The film has received nominations for the Actor Awards presented by SAG-AFTRA, Golden Globes, Producers Guild of America Awards, Costume Designers Guild Awards, Art Directors Guild Awards, ACE Eddie Awards, the Casting Society’s Artios Awards, Grammy Awards, Society of Composers & Lyricists Awards and NAACP Image Awards, among many others.
This year’s Academy Award win follows Apple’s history-making wins at the 2022 Academy Awards, when “CODA” became the first motion picture starring a predominantly Deaf cast in leading roles to win Best Picture, and the first-ever film from a streaming service to land Best Picture. “CODA” star Troy Kotsur was the first Deaf male actor to win Best Supporting Actor, and writer-director Siân Heder landed her first-ever Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. In 2023, beloved Apple Original Film “The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse” won the Oscar for Best Animated Short Film. In 2024, Apple made history again when “Killers of the Flower Moon” landed landmark representation for Indigenous artists, as Lily Gladstone became the first Native American to land a nomination for Best Actress, and Indigenous artists Robbie Robertson and Scott George were recognized with first-ever nominations in the Best Original Score and Best Original Song categories, respectively. Martin Scorsese also made history as the most-nominated living director, bringing his total to 10 total lifetime Academy Award nominations for Best Director.
Dubbed “the greatest that never was,” Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt) was FORMULA 1’s most promising phenom of the 1990s until an accident on the track nearly ended his career. Thirty years later, he’s a nomadic racer-for-hire when he’s approached by his former teammate Ruben Cervantes (Javier Bardem), owner of a struggling FORMULA 1 team that is on the verge of collapse. Ruben convinces Sonny to come back to FORMULA 1 for one last shot at saving the team and being the best in the world. He’ll drive alongside Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris), the team’s hotshot rookie intent on setting his own pace. But as the engines roar, Sonny’s past catches up with him and he finds that in FORMULA 1, your teammate is your fiercest competition — and the road to redemption is not something you can travel alone.
Apple TV offers premium, compelling drama and comedy series, feature films, groundbreaking documentaries, and kids and family entertainment, and is available to watch across all of a user’s favorite screens. After its launch on November 1, 2019, Apple TV became the first all-original streaming service to launch around the world, and has premiered more original hits and received more award recognitions faster than any other streaming service in its debut. To date, Apple Original films, documentaries and series have been honored with 773 wins and 3,337 award nominations and counting, including multi-Emmy Award-winning and history-making comedies “The Studio” and “Ted Lasso,” global cultural phenomenon “Severance,” Apple’s most-viewed drama “Pluribus,” Academy Award Best Picture winner “CODA” and Academy Award winner “F1,” the highest-grossing sports feature of all time.
MacDailyNews Take: Congrats to all of those responsible for sound on “F1!”
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Apple’s ongoing Siri and AI struggles ripple into hardware launch delays
LLM Siri is Apple’s major, next-generation overhaul of Siri that shifts the assistant to a foundation built on large language models (LLMs), similar to the technology powering Grok, ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and other modern AI chatbots. Unfortunately, due to myopic “leadership,” Apple missed the Generative AI (GenAI) revolution and has been struggling to catch up every since. Apple’ future home automation and other products depend on a Siri that actually works, so the LLM Siri delays are causing rippling product delays.
Mark Gurman for Bloomberg News:
For more than a year, Apple has been trying to break into the smart home market and create its next big moneymaker. But repeatedly now, the company has struggled to do so because of its shortcomings in AI.
Apple has built an impressive new smart home device dubbed J490 that is still under wraps. As I’ve reported a number of times, it looks like a square 7-inch iPad that can be affixed to a half-dome-shaped speaker or onto a wall. It features a watchOS-like interface with apps, but the highlight is a personalized Siri experience. The idea is to have the device recognize your face when you walk up to it and then show personalized content. It was originally planned for release in March 2025 but was delayed when the new Siri overhaul slipped last year.
Apple then aimed to bring the device to market this month, when the personalized version of Siri was supposed to launch as part of iOS 26.4. Unfortunately, the new Siri is now running behind again and probably isn’t launching until closer to the end of the year. With the latest delay, the new hardware is getting postponed again.
The current plan is for a September debut, but given the ongoing struggles in AI, should anyone be completely confident it will arrive in six months? Probably not.
MacDailyNews Take: Going from the visionary Steve Jobs to Tim Cook was, for stability, smart for the first five years or so. But, having glorified operations manager Cook sit there iterating Job’s products for fifteen years? Well, the chickens have been roosting at Apple Park for quite some time now.
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Apple’s Liquid Glass isn’t going anywhere: Years of refinements ahead for new design language
Apple’s Liquid Glass user interface isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Apple’s new design language stems from a multi-year development process that began with visionOS. Given the extensive timelines and deep integration across iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and other platforms (as seen with the unified rollout in 2025–2026 versions like iOS 26 and macOS Tahoe), any significant pivot or reversal from Liquid Glass would almost certainly require years to plan, develop, and implement.
Mark Gurman for Bloomberg News:
To that end, the latest internal versions of iOS 27 and macOS 27 don’t reflect major design changes, and there’s no sign that another overhaul is currently in active development.
Liquid Glass was a massive undertaking across Apple’s entire design organization, and I haven’t been able to find any evidence suggesting there were designers internally opposed to it during development. Apple’s executive team was also fully behind the interface.
In interviews during WWDC last year, Apple marketing chief Greg Joswiak and software engineering head Craig Federighi were both effusive about the new design language. “Glass has some really useful properties when it comes to user interfaces,” Federighi told Joanna Stern. “It just looks super cool.” Joswiak added that users “love” the visionOS interface that inspired it.
And if Apple has actually entered what some think is a new design era, it’s been a bumpy start. The first icons rolled out under the current regime — the ones for Apple’s new Creator Studio apps bundle — are some of the most underwhelming from the company in a while.…
There are legitimate concerns about readability and the way certain transparent elements overlap with text and icons. And while the design works particularly well on the iPhone and iPad, it still needs refinement on the Mac and Apple Watch.
For that reason, I expect years of gradual improvements — much like what Apple went through following the introduction of iOS 7.
MacDailyNews Take: It’ll take time, but it’ll get there. Liquid Glass has already improved during the first beta rounds. The decision to speed up the spread of Liquid Glass (developed over years for visionOS) across Apple’s platforms was recent, due to Apple’s AI misses, stumbles, and delays.
Liquid Glass is a six-month rush job because it’s meant to be a shiny object to distract from the current lack of Apple Intelligence innovations as that catch-up work continues, BUT, Liquid Glass shows much promise!
Yes, Liquid Glass sometimes presents legibility issues, but those can be solved and, likely, are being solved as you read this.
When, not if, Apple launches a Siri — or whatever name with which they, hopefully, rebrand it; “Siri” is just too tarnished at this point — that is not an abject neglected embarrassment (reportedly by WWDC next June, at the very latest), Liquid Glass will be much further along and a lot of the current readability issues will have been tackled. – MacDailyNews, September 17, 2025
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