In addition to the release of iOS 14 beta 3, Apple today has also released watchOS 7 beta 3 to developers. watchOS 7 includes new features such as sleep tracking, new watch face features, fitness improvements, and more. watchOS 7 beta 3 can be installed by developers through the companion Apple Watch app on iPhone or by heading to the Settings app on the Apple Watch itself. If you don’t yet see the new beta on your device, be sure to keep checking as it’s still rolling out to all developers....

Apple today is releasing the fourth developer beta of iOS 13.4 and iPadOS 13.4. This update comes a week after the third release of iOS 13.4 for developers. iOS 13.4 includes new features like iCloud Drive folder sharing and much more. Update: The fourth developer betas of iOS 13.4, macOS Catalina 10.15.4, iPadOS 13.4, and tvOS 13.4 are now available. watchOS 6.2 remains in its third beta version. Apple is also releasing the fourth public beta versions today as well....

After years of rumors and speculation, Apple has spoken publicly for the first time about their plans to restore the historic Tower Theatre in downtown Los Angeles into a flagship retail location, screening renderings of the space and discussing their goals for the project. In a new interview with the Los Angeles Times, Apple’s senior director of retail design BJ Siegel explained that the planned stored will be “in the upper echelon of what Apple does,” noting its distinction from the other three Apple retail locations in the L....

Apple has officially announced its new wireless charging accessories for the iPhone 12. In an all-new line of MagSafe for iPhone accessories, there are cases, chargers, and more. There are a variety of accessories from Apple under the new MagSafe for iPhone branding, including new silicon, clear, and leather cases, wireless chargers, and a wallet case. There is also a MagSafe Duo charger that allows you to charge your iPhone and Apple Watch at the same time....

Last year’s Back to School $100 gift card We heard from sources that Apple Stores began receiving several boxes of $100 App Store/iTunes Store/iBookstore cards. These cards are apparently for a reboot of Apple’s “Back to School” promotion. With the boxes delivering this weekend, it seems likely the promotion will kickoff tomorrow. Apple is holding its Worldwide Developers Conference today and plans to announce several new Macs. It would be the perfect time to kickoff the Back to School promotion for 2012....

In a move which hit Apple harder than other smartphone brands, India increased the import tax on smartphones from 10% to 15% in December. Less than two months later, it has just decided to increase the rate again, this time to 20% … Bloomberg reports that the decision was detailed as part of a budget announced today. Import tax hikes hit Apple particularly hard as it currently imports all models other than the iPhone SE....

Apple’s Black Friday shopping event is now live in the United States. Don’t go celebrating too much — the deals aren’t the best. Apple is giving away up to $200 in gift cards with select purchases (that excludes newer hardware like AirPods Pro or 16-inch MacBook Pro). Check out the latest offers on 9to5Toys for the best deals from Black Friday through Cyber Monday. Apple’s premium brand means it is not known for offering deep discounts on Black Friday – Cyber Monday shopping season, and this year is no exception....

The online Apple Store is down as Apple readies the site to take pre-orders of the new iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3. The iPad Air 2 is 18% thinner than the original Air, adds Touch ID, M8 motion-sensing chip and an AX8 processor that Apple says is 40% faster than the previous model. It also has camera and wifi improvements, and is available in gold … The iPad mini 3 is essentially identical to its predecessor bar Touch ID and the gold color option....

Apple Stores will begin stocking Apple Watch bands later this week in “limited” quantities, according to a message sent to retail stores, with the majority of bands being the fluoroelastomer Sport Bands. According to the notice, this strap inventory will primarily be for customers who would like to swap the band that comes pre-bundled with their Apple Watch after their purchase. Secondary to this, these early band shipments for stores will be available as replacements for worn-out bands from the various store Apple Watch try-on stations…...

Apple has fallen 24 places in a huge annual survey of corporate reputations. The Harris Poll Reputation Quotient shows that the company fell from 5th to 29th place … Reuters reports that Google also fell sharply from #8 to #28, while Tesla saw the biggest gain, from 9th to 3rd place. Harris Poll CEO John Gerzema attributed Tesla’s climb to Elon Musk’s PR ability. Elon Musk’s Tesla climbed […] on the strength of sending Tesla Roadster into space aboard a SpaceX rocket – despite fleeting success delivering cars on time on earth, Gerzema said....

Apple has been accused of violating the patents of a Boston-based company through its launch of Apple Pay. Universal Secure Registry CEO Kenneth Weiss says he ‘was the first in the space, and the secure payment technology that he developed goes right to the core of Apple Pay.’ In an interview, Weiss says that the patents cover all three key elements of Apple Pay. While it’s not unusual for more than one company to be simultaneously working on the same technology, Weiss says that in this case both Visa and Apple were aware of his technology four years prior to the launch of Apple Pay …...

While Apple hasn’t spilled the beans on its upcoming video streaming service, we’re learning more about its catalog and other tidbits regarding the project. The Hollywood Reporter has today reported that Apple is recruiting ex-Sony executive Tamara Hunter. At Apple, Hunter will be head of casting. She will be reporting to Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht. Hunter’s role at Apple will be similar to her previous role at Sony Motion Pictures....

Even though nobody has gotten their hands on the new 12-inch MacBook released today, Apple has already gone ahead and released a new software update. The update focuses on bluetooth compatibility with third-party devices. Weighing in at 157.8 MB, it will be a relatively small update to download once configuring your new machine. If you’d like to download the update beforehand, in preparation for your new MacBook purchase, it can be obtained here from Apple Support’s website....

Apple has just released iTunes 10.1.2 and it is available via Apple’s iTunes download page and the Mac and PC software update application. The update is required for iTunes to function with the Verizon iPhone 4. Apple specifically says the “CDMA iPhone 4,” so this may be a hint at a CDMA iPhone 4 hitting carriers other than Verizon Wireless in the United States. The update also brings many important stability and performance enhancements....

After launching iCloud.com beta for developers, Apple has released a beta upgrade of their suite of iWork iOS apps to developers. This updated iWork package – with Pages, Keynote, and Numbers – allows developers to begin a document on their iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch and view on their other devices – in addition to the iCloud.com portal. This might even be iWork.com’s successor, but we will have to wait and see what Apple does with the new feature....

Following this morning’s launch of 10.8 Mountain Lion on the Mac App Store, Apple just launched a separate app as an OS X Server for Mountain Lion. It allows users to add sever functionality to the OS for $20. It is definitely a significant price drop from the $49 Lion server and the $500 or so it cost to add the functionality before that. OS X Server is the next generation of Apple’s award winning server software....

In addition to releasing iOS 8.1.1 for iPhone and iPad users, Apple has released OS X Yosemite 10.10.1 with bug fixes and performance improvements for Macs running the latest version of the desktop operating system. Mac users that have experienced WiFi performance issues running Yosemite should expect improvements with this bug fix release. The update is available for Macs running OS X Yosemite through the Updates tab of the Mac App Store....

Apple today is releasing the fourth developer and public betas of iOS 13.1 to testers. This comes after the release of the third developer beta last week. iOS 13.1 will be officially released later this month on September 30th. The focus of iOS 13.1 is adding back features that were removed from iOS 13 beta testing, such as Shortcuts Automations and Share ETA in Maps. Both of those features are present in iOS 13....

In March, Apple agreed to pay $500 million to settle a United States lawsuit over iPhone performance throttling. Now, the judge in that case has given the deal preliminary approval, with final approval slated to come later. As reported by Law360, U.S. District Judge Edward J. Davila told both parties via Zoom on Friday that he wants to extend the final approval deadline because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Judge Davila instructed both sides to confer about a new date “for a final settlement approval hearing that would take place sometime in December....

Update: Apple has now pulled the GameStore app from iTunes and the App Store. Spotted by Flo’s Weblog at Schimake.com, an application called GameStore, published by Apple, made its way onto iTunes Dec. 31. What exactly GameStore is used for -at this point- is still unknown. At first glance, it appears to be some type of internal test app for in-app purchases and payments. The official description for the app through its iTunes page is as follows: “This application allows you to buy different things from within the app....