Apple is rolling out the third macOS 10.12.5 developer beta through the Mac App Store. macOS Sierra 10.12.5 beta is currently only available to developers. Public beta versions usually come a few days after developer versions if not the same day. The upcoming update follows macOS 10.12.4 which brought Apple’s color shifting Night Shift feature to the Mac for the first time. Apple is also running developer betas for iOS 10....

Apple’s ad-tracking system is under attack by a privacy activist with a successful track record of fighting Facebook and other tech giants. Apple uses its own system known as IDFA (IDentifier For Advertisers) to assign a unique code to each of its devices, so that advertisers can track who has seen particular ads. But privacy campaigner Max Schrems claims that this breaches European law… Background We explained earlier in the year how IFDA works, and controversy over a change in iOS 14....

Following its detailed reports on displays used in the new iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3, today DisplayMate published a scientific analysis of color accuracy for the six best mobile displays it’s tested this year. Despite ranking high in some categories in the test, Apple’s new entries, the iPhone 6 Plus and iPad Air 2, end up at the bottom of the list overall. The test ranked the devices in four categories— Entire Color Gamut, Facial Skin Tone Colors, Organic Colors, and Blue Region from Cyan to Magenta Colors— in order to determine an overall color accuracy score....

With a long-running EU investigation into the legality of Apple’s tax arrangements in Europe still showing no signs of reaching a conclusion, the size of last year’s UK tax bill isn’t likely to help its cause. Apple’s latest accounts show that it paid just £12.9M ($17M) in UK corporation tax despite making an estimated £2B ($2.6B) profit in the country. As the Mail Online notes, this is the equivalent of just two hours’ profits on its global sales …...

When Apple announced its new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus models earlier this week, it only provided preorder and shipping info for a handful of initially launch countries. The company has now confirmed a second wave of iPhone 6 launches for a long list of countries will kick off on September 26. Many of Apple’s websites abroad are now listing the September 26 order date. Here’s 20+ countries we’ve found so far:...

The switch to Lightning headphones has been a headache for some, but Apple says that a fix is coming for a bug that’s plaguing some users. A variety of complaints have surfaced on Twitter that say the volume controls on Lightning EarPods become nonfunctional after a short amount of time… Essentially, after the Lightning headphones have been plugged in for a few minutes, the buttons stop functioning, while audio continues to play....

For iOS 13, iPadOS 13, and macOS Catalina beta testers, Apple is trying out a new sign-in process for iCloud on the web. When you head to beta.icloud.com on a device running the betas, you can now sign-in to your account using Face ID or Touch ID. When you visit iCloud in Safari on a device running the iOS, iPadOS, or macOS betas, you’ll see a new pop-up asking if you’d like to sign-in using your Apple ID with biometrics....

Oregon news outlet The Bulletin reports that Apple has purchased nearly 200 acres of land in Prineville, Oregon this week. The property purchased this week is directly adjacent to Apple’s already existing facility in the city. Apple reportedly paid $3.6 million for its new 200 acre plot. Apple hasn’t specified its plans for the land to Prineville yet, although in April it filed for an application to expand its data center operations....

Update 2: Apple has released the fifth public beta of iOS 11.1. Update: Apple has also released the fourth beta of tvOS 11.1 to developers, as well as macOS High Sierra 10.13.1 Apple today has released iOS 11.1 beta 5 to developers. The update comes just a few days after Apple released beta 4. iOS 11.1 includes changes such as hundreds of new emoji, the return of the 3D multitasking gesture, and more....

Apple has released updated versions of Safari for OS X users running 10.10 Yosemite, 10.9 Mavericks, and 10.8 Mountain Lion. The latest versions of Safari for each respective OS X version now comes to Safari 8.0.2, Safari 7.1.2, and Safari 6.2.2. Earlier this month Apple released updates for Safari for OS X, but later pulled the releases after a short period. Today’s update addresses a number of issues relating to iCloud Drive, iCloud Keychain, and what Apple calls a rare issue caused by the previous release....

Apple has revamped its plans for a new flagship San Francisco store in Union Square after concerns that a popular bronze fountain and sculpture would be removed, and that the building design wouldn’t offer sufficient visual interest from the exterior, reports SFGate. The building design, designed to provide 45 percent more space than its existing Stockton store, also faced accusations that the steel and glass cube would be too boring for passers-by....

In addition to a failed attempt to hire the stars of the BBC series Top Gear for its reported plans to develop in-house content, Re/code reports that media head Eddy Cue also approached sports commentator Bill Simmons. Simmons ended up signing with HBO, the deal including a new podcast from October – which is likely to be available on iTunes. Apple showed interest in signing up former ESPN star Bill Simmons to an exclusive audio podcast deal....

Apple today said that it is working on a fix for iPhone 8 users experiencing crackling sounds from their device’s earpiece. Since the iPhone 8 was released last week, some users have reported a “static” and “crackling sound,” but that shouldn’t be the case for much longer… In a statement to The Verge, Apple says the issue affects a “small number” users and noted that it is working on a fix for the issue that will be included in an upcoming iOS release....

Dust off those iPhone nano rumors! Bloomberg is reporting that Apple is working on a smaller, cheaper version of the iPhone for sale off contract. The prototype was about one-third smaller than the iPhone 4, said Bloomberg’s source. (kinda like a HP Veer?) To keep prices down, the smaller phone will use a processor, display and other components similar to those used in the current iPhone 4. As we already found out, Apple’s also has a Dual Mode iPhone in the pike for the summer time:...

Earlier this week, Apple debuted a new ad for the iPhone X that highlights the ease of Apple Pay with Face ID. Now, the company has shared an addition ad in a similar format, this time showcasing Apple Pay Cash via iMessage… The ad is a short, 15-second video that shows off the process of paying someone directly in the Messages application, using Face ID for the authentication process. Apple Pay Cash launched as part of iOS 11....

In addition to reviving the iTunes Festival channel ahead of the music event, Apple has pushed out an additional channel on Apple TV. Showtime Anytime, the premium cable and satellite television network, is now available for streaming content on Apple TV. The channel includes free full episodes of select episodes of certain shows. In addition to acting as an on-demand channel, Showtime Anytime on Apple TV also supports viewing live broadcasts with an authenticated subscription to supported TV providers....

By now you’ve probably heard about Apple’s ambitious new “spaceship” campus, which will serve as the company’s new headquarters once completed. While some details of the facility haven’t been revealed to the public, a new building permit uncovered by BuildZoom has given us an idea of how much money Apple will be spending on its new in-house auditorium. The 1,000-seat theater is going to cost Apple somewhere around $161 million. It will be worth the money though, as it’s expected to be used for most product unveilings, and will give Apple even greater control over the keynote experience....

Apple has recently picked up one of Tesla’s senior designers, Andrew Kim. After spending two years at the automaker working on design for many Tesla vehicles, even unreleased models, Kim is now continuing his design work on undisclosed projects at Apple. After spending three years in design at Microsoft, most recently working on the company’s HoloLens, Andrew Kim left for Tesla in 2016. He worked on about all of the company’s vehicles, including the upcoming Model Y, next-gen Roadster, and Tesla Semi....

Earlier this month, Apple announced a series of Today at Apple sessions that focus on creating posters inspired by Apple TV+ shows. That Today at Apple series began yesterday, and Apple has shared new YouTube videos highlighting the creativity. On YouTube this afternoon, Apple has shared two videos showcasing using iPad Pro and Apple Pencil to make posters inspired by For All Mankind and Dickinson. In the For All Mankind video, illustrators Justin Erickson and Paige Reynolds from Phantom City Creative showcase how they made their posting using an iPad Pro and Apple Pencil....

Apple is releasing today tvOS 14.6 and HomePod 14.6 for all users. After a few weeks in beta, the software is now available through the set-top-box and the Home app. Different from tvOS 14.5 which brought Adjust Color Balance feature to all available Apple TVs and support for the latest PlayStation 5 DualSense and Xbox Series X controllers, which can be used to play games, tvOS 14.6 and HomePod 14.6 don’t bring anything more than bug fixes....