Week 4, August 2021
“I think we have a duty to maintain the light of consciousness to make sure it continues into the future.” — Elon Musk
1. Apple promotes national parks this week with donations for Apple Pay purchases at Apple
● Apple announced today that it will make a donation in support of the National Park Foundation for all purchases made through the Apple Store in the US this week using Apple Pay. There’s also an Apple Watch Activity Challenge on the schedule for this week.
2. Apple to launch iPad 9 in September, considering Titanium finish for new models
● As we approach September, new rumors about Apple’s next gadgets become even more regular. Now, a report claims that Apple will launch iPad 9 next month and that will help boost its tablets shipments up to 60 million units.
3. WhatsApp for Desktop launches public beta for macOS users
● WhatsApp is launching a public beta for its desktop app. macOS and Windows users can now enroll in the program and try all the latest features coming to the app.
4. WhatsApp for iPad coming as the company works on multi-device support 2.0
● WhatsApp for iPad might finally be arriving after years of wait. For the past few months, Facebook has been working on multi-device compatibility and Mark Zuckerberg himself already hinted that the app was indeed coming for Apple’s tablet, and now there are more pieces of evidence about it.
5. Apple’s ‘The Tragedy of Macbeth’ to Premiere at the London Film Festival
● Upcoming Apple TV+ movie “The Tragedy of Macbeth” is set to premiere at the BFI London Film Festival on the final day of the event, Sunday, October 17. Apple also plans to offer preview screenings of the film at London Film Festival partner cinemas across the UK.
6. Apple Shares ‘The Morning Show’ Season 2 Trailer
● Apple has today shared a trailer for the second season of “The Morning Show” and highlighted the impending return of the award-winning Apple Original drama series. The second season of the show will feature ten episodes and continues to star Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon, who also serve as executive producers.
7. Touch ID Not Returning With iPhone 13, Despite Apple Testing Under-Screen Sensor
● Despite having tested and worked on the technology, Apple has decided not to include an under-screen Touch ID sensor with the upcoming iPhone 13, continuing to leave customers with Face ID as the only biometric authentication option for the iPhone.
8. Microsoft Increasing Price of Commercial ‘Microsoft 365’ Plans Next Year
● Effective next year, pricing for all commercial plans of Microsoft 365 will be increased as a way to compensate for the “increased value” Microsoft’s suite of tools has provided to customers over the last ten years, Microsoft has announced.
● Apple can be expected to launch an updated high-end Mac mini with a new design and a faster “M1X” Apple silicon processor in the “next several months,” Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reports. This presumably means the new Mac mini may launch alongside the redesigned 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pros this fall.
10. Twitter working on rules and replay option for its ‘Spaces’ live audio platform
● Twitter has been working hard to improve Spaces, the social network’s live audio platform that launched earlier this year after the huge success of Clubhouse. Now, the Spaces platform is about to get even more options, including replay and even rules for participants in a live chat.
11. ‘Magic’ is a free Mac app that lets you draw anything with the trackpad
● Magic is a new macOS app created by young developer João Gabriel, who’s one of the winners of Apple’s WWDC Swift Student Challenge. the app takes advantage of the good quality of the MacBooks’ built-in trackpads (or Magic Trackpad if you have one) and lets users create fun drawings using just their fingers.
