It’s been an interesting journey for Apple as it has figured out its manufacturing plans for the new Mac Pro. While the US factory that produced the 2013 Mac Pro in Austin, Texas is indeed handling the 2019 Mac Pro after all, that’s not the case for international customers. Back in June, not too long after the Mac Pro was first unveiled, we heard that Apple was reportedly going to use its vendor Quanta to manufacture the pro desktop in China, marking a shift from the previous generation Mac Pro that was made in the US....

Refreshed 2015 MacBook Air and Pro models are now available at major US retailers following their announcement at Apple’s Spring Forward event on March 9th. B&H offers $5 off and no tax at the time of purchase outside of New York on the new MacBook Airs and MacBook Pros as well as a free copy of Parallels. 2014 versions are discounted. MacMall also offers $5 off the new MacBook Airs and Pros and tax only in a few states....

With Samsung having argued in its opening statement that the $2B sum being claimed by Apple for five alleged patent violations was “a gross, gross exaggeration,” Apple called two expert witnesses to explain why it believes the sum is reasonable. Re/code reports that first MIT professor John Hauser carried out a form of trade-off analysis to determine the value of individual features to customers. Apple used a similar analysis from Hauser in the first Apple-Samsung trial in which he found customers might pay as much as $100 more for a Samsung phone that included patented features …...

If you were wondering why manufacturers seemed to be rather slow in launching HomeKit-compatible devices, it may all be down to Apple’s stringent security requirements. Forbes reports that manufacturers are finding it hard to incorporate the extremely secure encryption standards demanded by Apple in order to achieve MFi certification for their products. While mains-powered WiFi kit is coping, the processing workload in battery-powered Bluetooth LE devices is leading to extremely slow response times, say manufacturers … Apple is requiring device makers using both WiFi and Bluetooth LE to use complicated encryption with 3072-bit keys, as well as the super secure Curve25519, which is an elliptic curve used for digital signatures and exchanging encrypted keys....

Apple this evening has released a handful of new resources for developers who are building augmented reality applications. The company has outlined the best practices for building such applications in its Human Interface Guidelines, it said in a blog post. Apple published an update to its developer website this evening announcing the release of the new Human Interface Guidelines for ARKit. The company has made the documentation available via its ARKit website, as well....

macOS High Sierra didn’t get any stage time at Apple’s iPhone X event, but the company has updated its website with release details. All attention was on the new iPhone lineup along with the Apple Watch Series 3, amongst other updates at Apple’s special event at Steve Jobs Theater today. While there was no mention of macOS on stage, Apple has updated its website with a release date of September 25 for macOS 10....

Apple TV 4K gets a 50% discount today while a new TV sale drops The Office Complete Series to $30. Apple’s HomePod is also down to $229 in a limited promotion at OWC. Hit the jump for all that and more in the latest 9to5Toys Lunch Break. Apple TV 4K is just $90 for a limited time at AT&T AT&T offers the Apple TV 4K 32GB Streaming Media Player for $90....

After several months of speculation, it appears that Apple Pay is now rolling out to users in Taiwan. According to a report from The China Post, Apple’s mobile payment platform has started rolling out to users in the country… To coincide with the launch of Apple Pay, Apple has launched the Apple Pay information page on its Taiwan website. The website offers a variety of details on Apple Pay in the country, including banks, retailers, and more....

Apple’s own app currently dominates podcast listening, but the company’s lead over rival platforms could be threatened by two factors, it’s been suggested … Writing for MacWorld, Jason Snell says that there has been growing frustration among podcast advertisers that they get almost no data on audiences thanks to Apple’s privacy focus. A brand buying a web ad can see how many people viewed it, how many people clicked on it and – cookie settings permitting – how many saw the ad and subsequently visited the website without clicking through....

Approximately two weeks following the previous seed, Apple has released iOS 7.1 beta 5 to developers. The new beta is currently available for those running earlier versions of 7.1 via Software Update in Settings. Previous betas revealed some minor user-interface changes in the Phone application. Release notes for this new beta indicate some Siri improvements for international users. “This seed adds new natural-sounding Siri voices for English (Australia), English (United Kingdom), Japanese, and Chinese (Mandarin – China),” according to the release notes provided by a developer....

[UPDATE 6/7: iOS 9.3.3 beta 2 is also now available to public beta testers.] Apple started testing iOS 9.3.3 with developers and public beta testers near the end of May, and today the second beta version of the pre-release software has been released for developer iPhones, iPads, and iPod touches. The update marks the first iOS 9.3.3 beta available for the 9.7-inch iPad Pro, which missed out on the first beta version during the iOS 9....

In addition to macOS 10.12.5, Apple has released a minor version update to iTunes for macOS. iTunes 12.6.1 includes ‘minor app and performance improvements’ according to release notes. The update is available through the Mac App Store now. Apple has also released iOS 10.3.2 for iPhone and iPad, watchOS 3.2.2 for Apple Watch, and tvOS 10.2.1 for Apple TV for all users following several developer and public beta versions. Apple last updated iTunes to version 12....

Apple has just released OS X 10.7.2, which brings iCloud to the desktop. The new update weighs in at 435.5 MB, which can be obtained in Software Update, and brings several bug fixes and stability fixes to Lion. Along with iCloud and bug fixes, Safari 5.1.1 is included. Apple has also released iOS 5. Find anything; tips@9to5mac.com Check out this support document detailing the 10.7.2 update. Full release after the break:...

The latest drone flyover of Apple’s under construction Campus 2 headquarters in Cupertino arrives today showing recent progress at the site expected to officially open its doors early this year. The footage comes courtesy of drone pilot and YouTuber Matthew Roberts. In the video, we can see that Apple has done a lot of cleaning up in recent weeks as it continues with landscaping and earthwork on the surrounding site. Apple expects to wrap up the landscaping work sometime in Q2 this year, according to its latest general project schedule, but it could begin moving in as early as later this month....

After 25 hours to make its case in the Apple vs. Samsung trial in San Jose, Calif., Apple wrapped up 14 hours this afternoon by calling CPA Terry Musika to the stand. The Verge reported that, while on the stand, Musika broke down just how much money Apple lost due to Samsung’s patent infringement, which is the highlight of the entire case. According to Musika and Apple’s calculations, the company lost 2 million iPhone and iPad sales or $488....

Earlier today a new survey over Apple Music usage surfaced with data over Apple’s new venture into the streaming music space, and Apple has decided to respond (vaguely) to at least one data point. MusicWatch’s survey results said that some 61 percent of its participants have turned off the auto-renew function on Apple Music, hinting that they would not be paying subscribers after the three-month free trial period. With the message being potentially interpreted that only 39 percent of current Apple Music users planning to become paid users this fall, Apple has responded to the survey by clarifying (somewhat) that a higher 79 percent of users that started the trial are continuing to use it, leaving only 21 percent of Apple’s 11 million subscribers as defectors....

Apple Store, UTC in San Diego has been hit with a “Notice of Failed Inspection” through the county’s Price Accuracy Inspection Program for charging customers a higher than advertised price. The notice, which Apple has to display in the window of the Apple Store for ten days through November 22, reads: We spoke with an employee at the Apple Store, UTC who told us the pricing discrepancy wasn’t related to pricing on Apple’s own products, but rather a third-party accessory....

Update: Foxconn has denied the Reuters report, stating that the claim is “completely inaccurate and totally without foundation.” The company told us that increased automation will result in reduced recruitment, but that there are no plans to reduce its workforce “now or anytime in the future.” Foxconn, the lead assembler for iPhones, is planning to cut its workforce despite widespread expectations that Apple will today announce record sales of its smartphones, reports Reuters....

Apple’s announcement that its upcoming Apple TV+ service will have ‘dozens’ of original shows when it launches in the fall puts it in a hopeless position in the short-term, say analysts. They believe Apple can make a success of it long-term, but the company will have to be willing to burn through huge amounts of money for years to get there … Business Insider saw the investors note from Morgan Stanley, noted for taking a generally upbeat of the company’s activities....

Apple today officially announced its long anticipated revamped Apple TV set top box, marking one of the biggest jumps forward for a product category the company previously classified as a hobby project. Prior to today’s event we reported extensively on Apple’s development of the new Apple TV and the features it planned for the device and developers. While proclaiming that “The future of TV is apps,” Tim Cook and team highlighted the key areas of the updated hardware and software: new powerful hardware, a modern OS, an all-new user experience, developer tools, and an App Store....