Apple has released a fifth beta of iOS 6.1 to registered developers. It is currently available via Apple’s iOS developer center. iOS 6.1 runs on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch, and includes a number of enhancements for both users and developers. For example, developers are welcoming new iOS Maps APIs to better integrate Apple’s mapping database into App Store apps. End users will find new features such as movie ticket ordering via Siri, improved lock screen media controls, and various other tweaks....

Apple today released a new version of its iTunes Connect app for iOS during a demo of new features for the iTunes Connect developer portal at the company’s WWDC 2016 conference. During its presentation, Apple noted that app review times “have gone way down” and offered a brief overview of changes it made to App Store policies. Apple recently completely revised guidelines to include easier to read language and an overall improved experience....

Apple has released a supplemental update for macOS High Sierra incorporating various bug fixes for Macs. Apple says it improves ‘installer robustness’, fixes a graphical problem with Adobe InDesign and addresses an issue with mail not sending from Yahoo accounts. To update, open the Mac App Store and navigate to the Updates tab on a machine running macOS High Sierra. Whilst Apple lists three very specific fixes in the release notes, the security notes indicate that the update also includes two important fixes....

Following today’s keynote, Apple has released the first betas for Xcode 9 and Swift Playgrounds 2. Today also marks the release of Swift Playgrounds 1.5 which will allow young developers to take control of robots, drones, and musical instruments. Xcode 9 brings in support for Apple’s newly announced iOS 11 and macOS 10.13. Official release notes are not yet available, but will see details in the Developer Center soon. The Swift Playgrounds 2 beta introduces support for Swift 4 and the iOS 11 SDK....

Apple continues to restrict employee travel in response to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak. Bloomberg reports today that Apple has put new travel restrictions in place for Italy and Korea, and is also making other recommendations to employees. In a memo to employees today, Apple announced that it is instituting a new set of travel restrictions for Italy and South Korea. Employees are only allowed to travel to these regions, as well as China, for “business-critical reasons....

Apple has just published the entire video of this week’s “There’s more in the making” event on YouTube. During the two-hour event held in Brooklyn, New York on Tuesday, Apple announced the new iPad Pro with its edge-to-edge display, a much-anticipated new generation of the Mac mini, the new MacBook Air and more. This is the first time an iPad has ditched the Home button in favor of a gestural user interface similar to what’s been introduced with iPhone X last year....

Today brings another development as part of the never-ending patent battle between Apple and VirnetX. Reuters reports that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit rejected Apple’s bid for a rehearing in the patent case. In a November ruling, a three-judge panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit voided a jury’s calculation that Apple should pay $503 million in damages for infringing VirnetX patents. That part of the ruling was a victory for Apple, but it wasn’t all good news....

When Apple launched the Apple Watch, it presented the wearable as equal parts technology and jewellery, with many seeing it as the company’s entry into the fashion industry. The original gold Apple Watch Edition seemed to epitomise those ambitions. Apple hired some big names in the fashion world to help it navigate this new world, among them Yves Saint Laurent CEO Paul Deneve, Tag Heuer’s Patrick Pruniaux and, of course, Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts …...

DisplaySearch analyst David Hsieh noted today that Apple’s upcoming product launches and refreshes will keep the LCD supply chain in Asia very occupied during the remainder of 2012. The DisplaySearch blog explained: Apple’s business appeals to the LCD supply chain for various reasons related to production stability, but the displays are very technologically specific and present many challenges. As Hsieh further noted, Apple requires light and slim displays with high resolution, minimal power consumption, maximum color saturation, etc....

With drops in revenue and iOS device sales in what CEO Tim Cook called a “challenging quarter,” highlights from Apple’s Q2 2016 earnings today include an increase in Apple Music subscribers, more cash for Apple’s capital return and share repurchasing programs, and a “huge number of Android switchers and new to Mac customers.” Cook said the company had record switchers from Android and others platforms in the quarter and also noted an increase of 56% for iPhone sales in India despite an overall decline for iOS device sales....

Following earlier confusion about whether Apple or Foxconn was bidding for a stake in Toshiba’s chip-making division, it appears that the answer could be ‘both.’ Reuters cites a report by public broadcaster NHK that Apple would be making its own bid alongside the existing Foxconn one. If the deal went through, it could be bad news for Samsung – but there are a couple of hurdles to be overcome before agreement could be reached …...

Apple today shared a trio of new TV ads, all advertising its Apple TV+ service. Apple TV+ debuted in November with 8 original shows, and the company has steadily grown the library ever since. Uptake of the $4.99/month service remains unclear, with analyst consensus pitting TV+ as taking about 3-5% of the US streaming market. Depending on your perspective, that’s either a flop or a good start, considering TV+ is a new service that relies solely on brand new originals rather than established franchises and a back catalog....

Apple today published its annual meeting of shareholders notice and proxy statement. Filed with the SEC, the document confirms that Apple will hold its annual meeting of shareholders on March 1st, 2019 at Steve Jobs Theater. Apple first started holding its annual shareholder meeting at Steve Jobs Theater last year, and that is a trend that will continue in 2019. The meeting will take place at 9 AM PT. Due to limited seating at Steve Jobs Theater, Apple is asking shareholders to register in advance if they plan to attend the meeting....

Apple TV+ went live on November 1. The service offers a free year to any customer who has purchased an iPhone, iPad, Apple TV box or Mac since September 1, and will cost everyone else $4.99 a month. This approach should provide ease of access to the hundreds of millions of Apple users around the world (making the subscription a no-brainer for them). According to Apple, the steaming service is available in over 100 countries....

[Update: Apple has pulled the ISPW restore images as well.] Apple has temporarily pulled the over-the-air update for iOS 12 developer beta 7 after testers reported widespread issues with sluggish performance after updating. The issues may only affect users who update using the OTA software update and not manually with the IPSW file. Registered developers can still update to today’s beta release using the restore image found on the developer center....

Apple is releasing the first public betas of its next round of software updates today. This includes iOS 14.5 and iPadOS 14.5 which launched to developer beta testers earlier this week. Head below for details on what’s new. So what’s new in iOS 14.5? As it turns out, quite a bit. The update includes the groundwork for Apple’s new App Tracking Transparency privacy feature, which requires apps to request permission from users before tracking them across other apps and websites....

CNN is reporting that recent Wikileaks cables have revealed that Apple assembled an anti-counterfeit team in 2008 to combat counterfeited iPhones and iPod touches. Apple’s early plans to attack Chinese counterfeits were to go after retailers and street vendors, work with police to raid manufacturing facilities, and to go after online retailers. Counterfeiting Apple products has been a huge issue in recent years. Most recently, fake Apple stores have opened up selling almost identical products to Chinese consumers....

Who knew, Apple has deep pockets? The company is reportedly spending billions of dollars a year on Apple TV+ original content, will pay about $480 million for the Texture acquisition which ultimately became News+, and is reportedly also spending several million dollars per game in Apple Arcade. The Financial Times says the company is spending ‘several million dollars each’ on more than 100 games, putting Apple Arcade’s budget in excess of $500 million dollars....

As we get close to the Lion launch, several tipsters have provided more information regarding the Apple retail overnight and days after. Tonight, Apple retail will hold an overnight from approximately 11pm – 7 am to give the retail staff enough time to update the stores visual elements with new marketing materials and re-image all display Macs with Lion. As previously reported, our tipsters say most stores have recently received an external LaCie hard drive containing Lion installs, but we have received new information that the drives contain 3 different install images for Lion; Normal, Pro, and Joint Venture....

Update: Apple has confirmed that this year’s Back to School deal will again be a free pair of Beats headphones. This year it’s the Beats Solo3. Apple’s higher education website is currently down, with a ‘back soon’ message. The message says ‘We’ll be back. We’re busy updating the Apple Store for you. Please check back soon.’ … This is in readiness for a Back to School deal. Last year’s deal launched on the same day last year....