Since 2015, Daring Fireball's John Gruber has hosted a special live episode of his The Talk Show podcast from WWDC each year, with senior executives from Apple routinely participating as guests for the episodes. While the executives typically do not break major news during these appearances, the lively conversations have offered some interesting insights and perspectives on various topics surrounding Apple's WWDC announcements.
In his March blog post, Gruber faulted himself for not seeing the "red flags" that were appearing as early as last year's WWDC, with Apple apparently showing off planned Apple Intelligence features that were not actually functional at the time and some of which may not even yet be functional.
He faulted Apple for showing off what amounted to vaporware at last year's WWDC, a significant departure from Apple's history over the past several decades of almost always shipping features close to their suggested timelines even when they have been pre-announced before they are fully ready.
Gruber's comments were notable given his status as one of the most well-known Apple pundits, not to mention the fact that Apple had chosen him to be the one to share the news days earlier that the Apple Intelligence-powered Siri revamp had been delayed.
It's hard not to view Apple's move as a form of retribution for Gruber's criticism, and also potentially an acknowledgement that Gruber would be liable to ask Apple executives some difficult questions about what occurred to force the Siri delay and where things go from here.
AI-powered search tool Perplexity today gained Perplexity Labs, a feature that provides subscribers with a way to create reports, spreadsheets, web apps, and dashboards that are backed by "extensive research and analysis."
The company says that if Perplexity Search is a 24/7 answer machine, Perplexity Labs is akin to having an entire team available for help.
Perplexity Labs can work on its own for 10 minutes or more, using tools for deep web browsing, code execution, chart creation, and image generation. It is able to complete what would have "taken days of work" in a 10 minute period, developing marketing plans, analyzing finances, creating meal plans, and more. Perplexity has examples of what Perplexity Labs is able to do in its Projects Gallery.
Perplexity Pro subscribers have access to Labs as of today, and it can be selected from the mode selector interface on the web or in the iOS app. Mac app support is coming soon. Perplexity Pro is priced at $20 per month.
With the next-generation version of iOS and other 2025 software updates, Apple is planning to change its numbering scheme. Rather than iOS 19, which would logically follow iOS 18, Apple is instead going to call the update iOS 26. Apple plans to use 26 across all of its platforms (the number representing the upcoming year), which will presumably be less confusing than having iOS 19, macOS 16, watchOS 12, and visionOS 3. But what does the change mean for the iPhone?
If Apple is looking to streamline naming, it could make sense for future iPhone models to follow the same year-based numbering. An iPhone 26 or iPhone 26 Pro that launches with iOS 26 would be more logical than an iPhone 17 that runs iOS 26, at least until that iPhone 26 needs to be updated to iOS 27 or iOS 28.
Year-based numbering for iPhones would make it clear to consumers when an iPhone came out. The average iPhone user that doesn't upgrade on the regular probably can't tell you the year that their iPhone launched, because there's no obvious link between the iPhone 14 and 2022, or the iPhone 16 and 2024.
Apple may already have a naming conundrum in the works where some kind of transition will make sense. This year, we're on track to get the iPhone 17. In 2026, the iPhone 18, and in 2027, the iPhone 19. But 2027 is the 20th anniversary of the iPhone, so will Apple want its 20th anniversary device to be the iPhone 19? Apple didn't make that choice in 2017 at the iPhone's 10th anniversary, and we never ended up with a iPhone 9 because we got the iPhone X instead.
Apple uses year-based numbering for its Macs, though not overtly. The MacBook Air is just the MacBook Air, but when you're looking for tech specs or comparison info on Apple's site, you'll find that the latest model is in fact the MacBook Air (M4, 2025). iPhones could also just be "iPhone" and appended in the same way.
There is a disconnect in Mac naming and the way Apple is doing software update naming going forward, though. Macs are named for the year they're released, but iOS and its sister updates are going to be named for the coming year on launch. iOS 26 in September 2025, iOS 27 in September 2026, iOS 28 in September 2027, and so on. Mac-like numbering for the iPhone would be the sensible choice instead of the year-ahead numbering, but it's doubtful that Apple will want to launch an iPhone (2025) running iOS 26.
Apple could also go with iPad numbering for the iPhone in the future. iPads aren't named like iPhones, and have historically used generations. The low-cost iPad, for example, was the iPad (5th generation) and then (6th generation) and (7th generation) and so on. More recently, Apple is using chips to differentiate between different generations of the iPad. So there's the M2iPad Air, and the M3 iPad Air, along with the A16 iPad (11th generation) and the A17 Pro iPad mini. Chip-based naming probably won't work for the iPhone like it does for the iPad and some Macs because there are multiple iPhones that use the same chip. Apple would need to do something like iPhone (A19), iPhone Air (A19), iPhone Pro (A19), and iPhone Pro Max (A19), which is no better for marketing.
Apple might not change iPhone numbering at all, given that naming across iPads, Macs, iPhones, and other devices has never exactly been straightforward. Whether Apple intends to streamline device names going forward may become clearer at the June 9 Worldwide Developers Conference. We'll hear about the plan to go from iOS 18 to iOS 26 at the keynote event, and the way that Apple frames it might just provide some insight into whether we can expect a similar change for the iPhone to match.
Apple has announced that its Den Haag store in the Netherlands will be temporarily closed for renovations starting this Sunday, June 1.
The store is located in The Hague, the capital city of South Holland.
First opened in 2014, Apple Den Haag is one of the company's flagship stores, located in a covered walkway with historical architecture. The remodeled store will likely feature an Apple Pickup station for online orders, improved accessibility, and more.
Apple has not indicated when the store will reopen, but remodeling often takes months.
Apple has two other stores in the Netherlands, in Amsterdam and Haarlem.
Apple's iPhone 17 lineup will include four iPhones, and two of those are going to get all-new display sizes. There's the iPhone 17 Air, which we've heard about several times, but the standard iPhone 17 is also going to have a different display size.
We've heard a bit about the updated size before, but with most rumors focusing on the iPhone 17 Air, it's easy to forget. Display analyst Ross Young today reiterated the screen sizes expected for the entire iPhone 17 lineup, and it serves as a good reminder about what to expect from Apple's lowest-priced flagship.
The iPhone 17 will feature a larger 6.27-inch display, which will make it the same size as the current iPhone 16 Pro display. With the 16 Pro and Pro Max, Apple introduced larger displays, while the 16 and 16 Plus stayed the same size as the 15 and 15 Plus.
iPhone 17 - 6.27-inch display, up from 6.12 inches.
iPhone 17 Air - 6.55 inches.
iPhone 17 Pro - 6.27-inch display, identical to iPhone 16 Pro.
iPhone 17 Pro Max - 6.86-inch display, no change from iPhone 16 Pro Max.
Apple rounds 6.27 to 6.3 inches and 6.86 to 6.9 inches, so basically, we're going to get an iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro that are 6.3 inches, and the iPhone 17 Pro Max at 6.9 inches. The iPhone 17 Air has a new display size that Apple will likely round to 6.6 inches. It will be slightly smaller than the 6.7-inch display of the iPhone 16 Plus it replaces.
Aside from that new display size, the iPhone 17 is shaping up to be the iPhone with the fewest changes in 2025. The iPhone 17 Pro models and the iPhone 17 Air are rumored to have a new horizontal rear camera bar, but the iPhone 17 camera will look the same as the iPhone 16 camera.
There are features to look forward to though, such as the 120Hz ProMotion refresh rate that's rumored to be expanding to the entire iPhone 17 lineup, an improved 24-megapixel selfie camera, and a faster A19 chip.
I've been testing out the Clarity 5K Touch for a few weeks, and I've come away impressed with the display quality and overall functionality, though the regular $1,600 price tag may give some potential customers pause when weighing it against other non-Apple 5K display options.
Alogic's Clarity 5K Touch offers a resolution of 5120 × 2880, and packing that many pixels into a 27-inch display means it can show a 2560 × 1440 HiDPI desktop in excellent true Retina quality at typical viewing distances. This yields crisp text and graphics without potential performance penalties and visual artifacts that can result from non-pixel-perfect scaling at lower pixel densities.
Display quality on the Clarity 5K Touch was excellent in my testing, essentially indistinguishable from my MacBook Pro (aside from ProMotion support) or my usual LG UltraFine 5K external displays running in Retina mode. Text and images appear super-sharp on the display, with individual pixels not visible until I get quite close to the display, as you'd expect at this pixel density. The display offers a 1,000:1 contrast ratio and up to 400 nits of typical brightness, which is a bit lower than Apple's notebooks and the Studio Display which can offer 500–600 nits of typical SDR brightness indoors, but the Clarity 5K Touch was plenty bright enough in my workspace.
Color calibration appeared excellent out of the box, with everything looking vibrant yet natural and closely matching the other displays in my setup. The Clarity 5K Touch supports 100% of the sRGB gamut and 99% of the Adobe RGB and DCI-P3 gamuts, and it features HDR400 support.
The Clarity 5K Touch is a glossy display, and while Alogic says it features an anti-reflective finish, the glossiness is very evident if you use it in an environment where there is any significant amount of glare such as direct lighting or nearby windows. Depending on the relative locations and angles of those lighting sources and your seating position, the glare can interfere with visibility at times, so that's something to be aware of as you consider where you're planning to use the display.
The display's construction feels solid, with the stand made primarily of silver aluminum for good heft and stability. A hole in the stand neck helps route cables to minimize their visibility. In addition to adjustable height over a range of 145 mm, the Clarity 5K Touch also supports tilt (5º forward to 20º back), swivel (up to 25º left or right), and pivot adjustments for maximum flexibility. You can pivot the display all the way to 90 degrees if you prefer to use the display in portrait orientation, while tilt and swivel help you get the display in just the right position, which is especially helpful in trying to mitigate glare. Support for 100×100 VESA mounts is also included if you prefer a different mounting solution.
The display body features a silver plastic enclosure on the rear with ventilation holes toward the top and bottom, which is perfectly adequate in my opinion considering I'm hardly ever going to look at the rear of it. Even so, it's a simple and clean design, just without the high-quality aluminum you'd find on an Apple display.
Around the screen itself, the black bezels aren't the thinnest I've encountered, with uniform size around the top and sides and a slightly chunkier bottom bezel, some of which no doubt going toward housing the touchscreen hardware. The bezels are essentially entirely underneath the display glass aside from a very narrow plastic strip around the perimeter, which does help hide them a bit, especially if using a dark desktop and/or dark mode.
One area where the Clarity 5K Touch tops the Apple Studio Display is in the connectivity department, with Alogic's display offering not only a USB-C connection option but also a pair of HDMI 2.0 ports and a DisplayPort 1.4 port, allowing you to hook up multiple devices and easily switch the display between them or even show multiple sources simultaneously with picture-in-picture modes. The USB-C and DisplayPort ports support up to 5K resolution at 60 Hz, while the HDMI ports support up to 5K resolution at 30 Hz, so while you're not going to get the sharpest gaming response out of this display, I've found it to be perfectly acceptable for less demanding daily work.
Other than some resolution and orientation options managed through the Settings app on your Mac, the various inputs and other display settings are handled through an on-screen display menu system, which is a bit lacking in the visuals department as is par for the course on these types of controls. Buttons hidden along the bottom right edge of the display allow you to move through the various settings, and you'll need to use these buttons to adjust speaker volume and display brightness, as native Mac keyboard control for these is not supported.
In addition to those various connectivity options for display sources, the Clarity 5K Touch also includes a USB-B 3.0 port for upstream data, and the display includes a pair of USB-A 3.0 ports (5 Gbps data, 7.5W charging) to serve as a hub for connecting wired accessories as long as there is either a USB-C or USB-B connection to the computer to facilitate data transfer. There's also a 3.5mm audio jack for connecting headphones or a speaker system, though it is output-only, so microphone input is not supported.
When connected over USB-C, the Clarity 5K Touch can support up to 65 watts of charging to a connected computer, but this drops to 45 watts when the display is in HDR mode. That's enough to keep something like a MacBook Air, or potentially even a 14-inch MacBook Pro, charged up, but it may not be able to keep up if you start getting into demanding workflows on more powerful machines, especially on a 16-inch MacBook Pro. And you certainly won't be able to fast charge a depleted MacBook Pro battery via the display. That said, it was able to keep up with my 16- inch MacBook Pro just fine in daily work.
Then there are the unique touchscreen capabilities of the Clarity 5K Touch, as Alogic claims it's the world's first 5K touchscreen display and we've yet to see anything to dispute this among the small number of 27-inch 5K displays on the market. I've already covered much of this functionality in my reviews of Alogic's earlier 4K touchscreen display, and the idea remains essentially the same here.
Install a Mac driver from the Alogic product page (Windows machines should support the functionality out of the box) and grant the appropriate permissions, and you'll be able to interact with macOS via up to 5-point multitouch or any active stylus supporting Microsoft Pen Protocol (MPP) 2.0, such as Alogic's Clarity Active Stylus Pen.
The UPDD Commander app provided as part of the driver installation isn't the prettiest Mac app you'll ever see, but it offers an array of customization settings to help optimize the touchscreen experience, including setting up functions for a wide variety of tap, press, swipe, and drag gestures with varying numbers of fingers. For example, you can set up a one-finger tap as a traditional mouse click and a two-finger tap as a right click, swipes in various locations can do things like show or hide the Dock, invoke Mission Control, or minimize windows. Two-finger rotation and pinch gestures can also be configured to manipulate on-screen content, and you can even set up different actions for gestures depending on which app you're in.
As with my previous reviews of this family of displays, I still find the touch functionality to be more appropriately used as a secondary input method, as it is not very efficient (not to mention tiring on the arm) to try to use touch input as a full-time control and it is a bit clunky to be constantly shifting from mouse to keyboard to touch. So if you're looking to turn your Mac, into a full touch experience, you'll likely be disappointed.
That's not to say the functionality doesn't come in handy though, and the most useful scenario for touch input in my opinion is in a multi-display setup where the Clarity 5K Touch serves as a secondary monitor. I keep Mail, Slack, and a few other apps perpetually open on a display off to the side of my main display, and it's nice to be able to reach over and quickly tap or swipe to look at emails or scroll through my feeds without having to move my mouse cursor back and forth across multiple displays. Everyone's situation is different, however, so consider how you might use a touch-capable display in both your workflow and your physical setup.
The glossy display will pick up fingerprints over time as you touch it, but it's generally not a big deal as you long as you keep the glare of bright lighting away from the screen. Otherwise, an occasional wipe down with a microfiber cloth cleans it right up.
The built-in 5-watt speakers provide a good amount of volume and provide a surprisingly immersive sound that I think comes from their rearward-firing orientation reflecting off the wall behind my desk, though overall the sound is a bit hollow as is common with integrated display speakers housed in plastic enclosures.
The Clarity 5K Touch does not include a built-in webcam, but Alogic does sell an illuminated light bar with 12-megapixel 4K autofocus webcam that connects via USB-C and features touch controls and a magnetic remote control dial to help light up your workspace.
The Clarity 5K Touch is normally priced at $1,599.99, though it's currently on sale for 10% off, bringing the price down to $1,439.99. That's just a bit cheaper than the starting price of Apple's Studio Display, though Alogic does give you a much more adjustable stand at no additional charge.
And while Alogic's display lacks the tight macOS integration and built-in webcam found on the Apple Studio Display, Alogic of course delivers the unique touchscreen functionality, so that will likely be a major consideration for potential customers. If you think the touchscreen functionality might be useful, then the Clarity 5K Touch is your only option currently on the market. If not, you might want to consider the Apple Studio Display or potentially one of the few other 27-inch 5K displays that are currently available at sometimes significantly lower prices.
Note: Alogic provided MacRumors with the Clarity 5K Touch display for the purposes of this review. No other compensation was received. MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Alogic. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
MacRumors readers have a few days left to get 20 percent off a collection of Anker's best charging accessories before our exclusive code expires on May 31. In order to get this deal, head to Anker's website and add an accessory to your cart, then enter the code Ankermacrumors2025 at checkout to see the discount.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Anker. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
Our exclusive 20 percent off code works on most accessories sitewide, including Anker's new "high power" charging accessories. This exclusive discount code does not stack with existing discounts on Anker's website, but it can be used on multiple items in the same cart.
In the lists below, we've collected a few examples of the best products available at a discount with our exclusive promo code, but remember that it works sitewide. You have until May 31 to take advantage of this promotion, so be sure to browse Anker's best products on its website before the end of the month.
It's also worth noting that Anker is hosting a new "on-the-go" summer sale, and some of the discounts in that event are steeper than our 20 percent sitewide discount. Be sure to check and compare both discounts in your cart before you place your order to ensure you have the best deal.
If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week.
Deals Newsletter
Interested in hearing more about the best deals you can find in 2025? Sign up for our Deals Newsletter and we'll keep you updated so you don't miss the biggest deals of the season!
As it faces increasing legal pressure in the United States, Apple today shared the results of a commissioned study that delves into the success of the App Store ecosystem and the money that it's earned developers large and small through digital and physical purchases.
Prepared by Professor Andrey Fradkin from Boston University Questrom School of Business and economist Dr. Jessica Burley from Analysis Group, the study suggests that the U.S. App Store facilitated $406 billion in developer billings and sales in 2024, and for 90 percent of those sales, developers paid no commission to Apple.
That figure incorporates both digital and physical sales, and for the latter category, Apple has never collected a commission. $277 billion of the total includes sales of physical goods and services, while $53 billion is from digital goods and services (some of which are subject to Apple's fees), and $75 billion is attributed to in-app advertising. Apple counts sales of physical goods, digital goods, services, and advertising made through its App Store apps.
"For more than 15 years, the App Store has created incredible opportunity for app developers, entrepreneurs, and businesses of all sizes," said Tim Cook, Apple's CEO. "That includes the many U.S. developers who are innovating, building their businesses, and finding exceptional success on the App Store. We'll continue to invest in powerful tools, technology, and resources to help developers in the U.S. and around the world take their apps to new heights and create transformative experiences for users."
The size of the App Store ecosystem has tripled since 2019, when it was responsible for $142 billion in billings and sales, and the study indicates that earnings for U.S.-based developers have more than doubled in the same amount of time. For small developers in particular (those earning less than $1 million annually), earnings have increased 76 percent between 2021 and 2024. Nine of the top 10 apps in the U.S App Store were made by U.S. developers, and there were 12.4 billion app downloads worldwide in 2024, a 36 percent increase compared to 2019.
Spending on physical goods more than tripled between 2021 and 2024, and spending on digital goods and services and in-app advertising more than doubled. General retail spending and grocery delivery drove much of the increase in spending on physical goods, and in the digital category, games saw the highest earnings.
The study touts several App Store benefits for developers:
App distribution and the ability to list apps on storefronts in 175 countries and regions.
Xcode and Swift for creating apps.
TestFlight for testing apps.
Seamless payment and commerce system for app monetization.
App review process that prevents fraudulent transactions.
App Store Connect for tracking app performance and engagement.
Over 250,000 APIs and frameworks including HealthKit and Metal.
Online and in-person programs for app development.
Integrated hardware and software technology.
App discovery and engagement.
And benefits for consumers:
Lower malware and fraud due to App Store review process.
Privacy control with features like App Tracking Transparency and Privacy Nutrition Labels.
Purchase management and protection for apps and subscriptions.
Tools for families and kids, such as Family Sharing and Ask to Buy.
Screen Time for managing app and online activity.
The study that Apple commissioned comes as Apple is fighting a major U.S. App Store rule change that was implemented earlier this year as part of its ongoing legal fight with Epic Games. Apple was ordered to allow developers to add links and buttons in their apps that direct customers to purchase options available outside of the App Store, which provides developers with a way to sell digital goods and services to consumers without in-app purchases and without paying Apple a fee. Apple does not have control over how links and buttons look, nor can it collect fees from those out-of-app purchases at this time.
Apple has appealed the decision, but while the appeals process plays out, the App Store rule change is in effect in the United States. Apple uses commissioned studies like this to share its position in the court of public opinion and with the court that will have the final legal say on how the App Store will run.
Amazon today has a few models of Apple's M4 Mac mini on sale at record low prices, starting at $488.63 for the model with 16GB RAM/256GB SSD, down from $599.00. Discounts reach up to $122 off in these sales, and this time around there isn't a discount on the M4 Pro model.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
In terms of the 16GB/256GB SSD model, this is a new record low price. You can also get the M4 Mac mini with 16GB RAM/512GB SSD for $689.99 with the on-page coupon, down from $799.00, and the model with 24GB RAM/512GB SSD for $876.22, down from $999.00.
Apple updated the Mac mini back in October 2024, introducing a redesigned computer that's smaller than the previous generation and featuring the M4 and M4 Pro chips. If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week.
Deals Newsletter
Interested in hearing more about the best deals you can find in 2025? Sign up for our Deals Newsletter and we'll keep you updated so you don't miss the biggest deals of the season!
Apple TV+ series "The Morning Show" is returning later this year.
Apple announced that a 10-episode fourth season of the show begins September 17, with new episodes to follow each Wednesday through November 19.
"The Morning Show" was one of the first shows available on Apple TV+ when the streaming service launched in 2019, and it involves fictional journalists who work for a TV news station. The fourth season of the show will open in spring 2024, and it will explore topics like the rise of misinformation, according to Apple:
With the UBA-NBN merger complete, the newsroom must grapple with newfound responsibility, hidden motives and the elusive nature of truth in a polarized America. In a world rife with deepfakes, conspiracy theories and corporate cover-ups — who can you trust?
The award-winning drama series stars Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon, who also serve as executive producers. The star-studded ensemble cast has also included the likes of Steve Carell, Billy Crudup, and Jon Hamm.
Apple's announcement offers more details about the show's return.
In the U.S., Apple TV+ costs $9.99 per month, or $99 per year. The streaming service is available through the Apple TV app on a wide variety of devices, and on the web at tv.apple.com, with a free seven-day trial available.
It looks like Apple really will be jumping to iOS 26 this year.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman was first to report that Apple was planning to start tying the version numbers of its software platforms to release years. For example, Gurman expects Apple to announce iOS 26 at WWDC next month, instead of iOS 19.
"I can independently confirm that Apple's '26' version branding is real," he said, in a post shared on X on Wednesday.
Yes, iOS 26, not iOS 25. Even though iOS 26 is likely to be released in September 2025, it would be the current version for the majority of 2026. Gurman said Apple will be using a year-ahead naming convention, similar to car makers. For example, the 2025 Honda Civic began arriving to dealerships in late 2024, even though it has 2025 branding.
This naming convention is expected to extend to all of Apple's major operating systems, including macOS. Zivkovic said that internal versions of macOS tested this week were still labeled macOS 16 in some places, but macOS 26 in others.
The names of Apple's next operating systems, according to Gurman:
The next major version of macOS, now dubbed "macOS 26," is rumored to drop support for several older Intel-based Mac models currently compatible with macOS Sequoia.
According to individuals familiar with the matter cited by AppleInsider, the following Macs will not be supported by the next version of macOS:
These Macs were the oldest supported by macOS Sequoia, and their omission in development builds suggests they are likely to be excluded from macOS 26's official compatibility list.
This would mark the second consecutive year that Apple has narrowed support for Intel-based Macs, while continuing to deliver the full feature set primarily to Apple Silicon devices. macOS 26's compatibility list is expected to be as follows:
macOS 26's first developer beta is expected to exceed 17GB in size—approximately 2GB larger than the initial beta of macOS Sequoia. The update is expected to borrow heavily from the design language of visionOS with 3D translucent materials and rounded window elements. The design changes are said to be among the most significant visual updates to macOS in years.
Apple is rumored to be shifting the naming system used by its software platforms toward consistent year-adjacent numerical titles. As a result, we are expecting the next major version of macOS to be "macOS 26" rather than "macOS 16."
macOS 26 will be officially introduced at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), which starts on June 9, with the first developer beta expected to be released immediately following the keynote address. Public beta testing typically follows in July, with a full public release in the fall.
A federal court has ruled that President Donald Trump exceeded his authority in attempting to impose sweeping tariffs on imported goods, including Apple products, halting plans that could have dramatically raised iPhone prices across the United States (via CNET).
The U.S. Court of International Trade yesterday issued a unanimous decision blocking a series of tariff orders that the Trump administration attempted to implement using emergency executive powers. The panel of three judges determined that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) of 1977 does not permit the president to unilaterally impose duties on foreign goods without Congressional approval. The case specifically affects tariff proposals that would have significantly impacted Apple.
The Trump administration threatened to apply a 25% tariff on all iPhones produced outside the United States. The administration cited IEEPA as justification for imposing these and other related tariffs in recent times. In its opinion, the court found that such an interpretation would constitute "an improper abdication of legislative power" and would render the president's trade authority effectively unlimited.
An unlimited delegation of tariff authority would constitute an improper abdication of legislative power to another branch of government. Regardless of whether the court views the president's actions through the nondelegation doctrine, through the major questions doctrine, or simply with separation of powers in mind, any interpretation of IEEPA that delegates unlimited tariff authority is unconstitutional.
The decision invalidates a set of executive tariff orders issued in April as part of the Trump administration's "Liberation Day" initiative, which intended to reset the balance of trade through a broad set of import duties. The full set of proposed tariffs had not yet gone into full effect but had already introduced substantial market uncertainty, particularly for Apple, which depends heavily on international manufacturing.
The tariffs could have raised the retail price of the most expensive iPhone model—the iPhone 16 Pro Max with 1TB of storage—from $1,599 to more than $4,300 in a worst-case scenario, according to CNET. Similarly, the base iPhone 16E with 128GB of storage could have reached $1,617 under the most aggressive tariff schedule.
The projections were based on a combination of existing and proposed tariffs: a 30% duty on Chinese goods rising to 145% in August, along with a separate 25% Apple-specific tariff proposed by the administration. CNET estimates that a price increase of $50 to $130 was already likely for the iPhone 17 lineup, regardless of the tariff issue; Apple has not raised iPhone prices since 2020.
The U.S. Court of International Trade ruling came in response to two lawsuits filed by the Liberty Justice Center on behalf of five U.S. businesses and another filed by a coalition of 12 states led by Oregon.
Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.
During the first quarter of 2025, Apple's iPhone 16 was the best selling smartphone in the world, according to estimates provided by Counterpoint Research. After the iPhone 16, the iPhone 16 Pro Max, iPhone 16 Pro, and the iPhone 15 were the other top four smartphones. Samsung's Galaxy A16 5G took the fifth spot in the rankings.
Last year, it was Apple's Pro iPhone that was the best seller. In Q1 2024, the iPhone 15 Pro Max was the top selling smartphone, narrowly beating out the iPhone 15.
Apple has narrowed the gap between its standard smartphones and its Pro lineup in terms of performance and feature set. The iPhone 16 has an A18 chip that's almost as fast as the A18 Pro in the iPhone 16 Pro Max, and it also has the same Action button and Camera Control button.
Of the top 10 best selling smartphones in Q1 2025, Apple secured five of them. The top four, and then the 10th spot with the iPhone 16 Plus. Samsung's flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S25 Ultra, took the 7th spot, while the other smartphones on the list are lower cost options.
The $600+ iPhone 16e was only on sale for part of the quarter, but it did take the sixth spot in Counterpoint's top 10 list for March 2025, which was the first full month that it was available for purchase. The iPhone 16e is expected to sell better in its first year than the iPhone SE did during its first year thanks to its higher-end feature set.
Counterpoint's report focuses on rankings rather than unit sales, and while it does not break down sales by country, it does say that the iPhone 16 sold particularly well in Japan and the Middle East and Africa (MEA) market. In China, the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max suffered because of government subsidies favoring lower-cost devices and competition from Chinese companies like Huawei.
Google is updating the Google Photos app with a redesigned AI-powered editor that's designed to simplify photo editing. The updated editing tool provides AI suggestions to combine multiple effects for quick but eye-catching edits, plus it has a feature for tapping into specific parts of an image to get specific editing tips.
The updated interface will feature AI tools like Reimagine and Auto frame alongside standard controls like brightness and contrast. The updated editor in Google Photos is rolling out to Android users first, but Google plans to bring it to iOS users later this year.
Google is also making it easier to share albums from Google Photos with others, by allowing users to generate a QR code for an album. The QR code can be shared with people nearby, printed for group events, or sent digitally. Anyone with the QR code can view or add photos to an album.
The new features are coming in celebration of the 10th anniversary of Google Photos. Since it launched in 2015, Google Photos has become one of the most popular photo storage options. Google says that more than 1.5 billion people use Google Photos each month, with more than nine trillion photos and videos stored.
Apple today released a new update for Safari Technology Preview, the experimental browser that was first introduced in March 2016. Apple designed Safari Technology Preview to allow users to test features that are planned for future release versions of the Safari browser.
Safari Technology Preview 220 includes fixes and updates for CSS, DOM, JavaScript, Media, Rendering, Web Animations, Web API, Web Inspector, and WebRTC.
The current Safari Technology Preview release is compatible with machines running macOS Sonoma and macOS Sequoia, the newest version of macOS.
The Safari Technology Preview update is available through the Software Update mechanism in System Preferences or System Settings to anyone who has downloaded the browser from Apple’s website. Complete release notes for the update are available on the Safari Technology Preview website.
Apple’s aim with Safari Technology Preview is to gather feedback from developers and users on its browser development process. Safari Technology Preview can run side-by-side with the existing Safari browser and while it is designed for developers, it does not require a developer account to download and use.
The creators of Shortcuts, an app that was acquired by Apple and deeply integrated into iOS and macOS, today unveiled their latest project, Sky. Sky provides an AI helper that can assist you with everything that you do on your Mac.
Sky is designed to float unobtrusively over what you're doing, so AI is just a click away. It understands what's on your Mac's screen, and is able to take actions using the apps that you have installed. It's able to help with answering questions, writing, planning, coding, and much more, and it can be customized with prompts, scripts, and shortcuts.
Sky knows what apps you have open, what you're doing, and what actions are possible based on that information. Sky has built-in integrations for Calendar, Messages, Notes, Safari, Finder, Mail, and screenshots, so it is able to do things like make a calendar event for a dinner based on a conversation you've had, and look up an ideal place to go. Custom prompts and tools integrate natively with Sky, and the AI can take into account everything it's been given when performing tasks.
MacStories' Federico Viticci was able to test Sky, and he said that it's an app that's going to "fundamentally change" his macOS workflow and the way he uses automation day-by-day. Viticci provided an example of the way Sky can simplify a task.
Sharing a link to an article in Safari requires a multi-step process, but rather than going through the Share Sheet and sending a message, you're able to tell Sky to send a link and a summary to [person]. Sky gets the link, summarizes the webpage, and sends an iMessage to the specified person in natural language, all with one command. There are a wide range of tasks that Sky can complete thanks to deep integration with any app, including Finder.
Sky works with either GPT 4.1 or Claude, but with its deep macOS integration, it is able to do more than one of the LLMs alone. The app supports creating custom tools with natural language, which makes it accessible to anyone. Sky is also able to use Claude to create customized tools using shell scripts and AppleScripts.
Sky is set to launch this summer, and those interested can sign up to join the waitlist. Pricing has not yet been announced, but the app is expected to have a free component.
Meet the pico-mac-nano, a super tiny yet functional Macintosh replica created by 1-bit rainbow, a website that sells parts for vintage Apple products.
Inside the miniature 3D-printed Macintosh 128K case is a small Raspberry Pi Pico microcontroller, along with a 2-inch LCD screen. The replica Macintosh is actually usable, as it runs an emulated version of the classic Mac operating system, and it has USB keyboard and mouse support with an included USB splitter cable.
1-bit rainbow is selling the pico-mac-nano for £56, but it has gone out of stock after it received attention on tech blogs. The website says orders will resume "soon," and you can enter your email to be notified. Or, you could create one yourself, as the pico-mac code and 3D-printable case files are freely available on GitHub.
1-bit rainbow's Nick Gillard shared more details about the pico-mac-nano in a blog post.
