Apple has released an official extension for the Windows and Mac versions of Chrome that lets you use passwords stored in your iCloud Keychain. For anyone who uses Chrome as their browser and iCloud Keychain in lieu of a dedicated password manager, this could make bouncing between Windows and Mac computers much easier.
This should make life easier for people using this part of iCloud, but it’s not enough to take me away from 1Password.
Jason Snell is back with the annual Six Colors Report Card, and as always, it was an honor to take part in it.
It was a notable year for the Mac and the Apple TV, but in very different ways.
Apple today announced financial results for its fiscal 2021 first quarter ended December 26, 2020. The Company posted all-time record revenue of $111.4 billion, up 21 percent year over year, and quarterly earnings per diluted share of $1.68, up 35 percent. International sales accounted for 64 percent of the quarter’s revenue.
This pretty much sums it up:
iPhone revenue was $65.6 billion, up 17% YOY; Mac was $8.7b, up 21%; iPad $8.4b, up 41(!)%; Wearables/Home/Accessories, $13b up 30%; and Services, $15.8b, up 24%. Every geographic segment that Apple reports was up as well. Everything is up, up, up.
The current iMac design hails from 2012, so it’s no big surprise that Apple is readying a new, modern iMac, but Gurman has two other interesting things in his report:
Apple is also working on a pair of new Mac Pro desktop computers, its priciest Mac machines that don’t come with a screen included, the people said. One version is a direct update to the current Mac Pro and will continue to use the same design as the version launched in 2019. Apple has discussed continuing to use Intel processors for that model rather than moving to its own chips.
It is no secret that more Apple silicon Macs are on their way. For the first three models, the new versions are more or less the same as their Intel counterparts, just way faster and better. The Mac mini, MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro with M1 all look just like the older models.
That may be changing soon, and for the better.
Juli Clover, writing at MacRumors:
According to Kuo, Apple is developing two models in 14 and 16-inch size options. The new MacBook Pro machines will feature a flat-edged design, which Kuo describes as “similar to the iPhone 12” with no curves like current models. It will be the most significant design update to the MacBook Pro in the last five years.
Apple today announced a set of major new projects as part of its $100 million Racial Equity and Justice Initiative (REJI) to help dismantle systemic barriers to opportunity and combat injustices faced by communities of color. These forward-looking and comprehensive efforts include the Propel Center, a first-of-its-kind global innovation and learning hub for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs); an Apple Developer Academy to support coding and tech education for students in Detroit; and venture capital funding for Black and Brown entrepreneurs. Together, Apple’s REJI commitments aim to expand opportunities for communities of color across the country and to help build the next generation of diverse leaders.
No spoilers, but on yesterday’s episode of Connected, we had to contend with how big the iPhone’s notch is, and how it may have changed sizes over the years since the introduction of Face ID in 2017.
Just looking at a pile of iPhones isn’t that helpful when trying to investigate such minutiae. What you need is detailed documentation.
Thankfully, Apple provides just that, in the form of a document named “Accessory Design Guidelines for Apple Devices,” which is freely available on Apple’s developer website.
I’m thrilled to let everyone know that the iOS 14 edition of iOS Access for All is now available in ePub format. The book contains more information about iOS accessibility than ever, including details, tips and step-by-step guides covering all the new and updated accessibility features in iiOS 14.
As promised, I’ve emailed new books to those who purchased the ePub edition of the iOS 13 edition after the new book was announced. If you buy the ePub from this site now, you’ll receive the iOS 14 edition right away. Updates for those who purchased the PDF and combo editions are coming soon, and I’m hoping to have an update posted in the Apple Books Store later today for people who wish to purchase it there.
There have been a lot of rumors in the last few weeks about Project Titan, Apple’s electric car program. While reports vary on when Apple may actually deliver a car to market, it’s clear that something is being worked on inside Apple.
Patently Apple noticed two filings, both awarded this week:
The first is about climate control:
In Apple’s patent summary they note that the patent figures presented in their filing provide a vehicle climate control system for controlling climate conditions in various cabin regions of a vehicle cabin, where the climate control system is configured to control one or more vehicle components to change the set of climate conditions associated with one or more cabin regions to approximate a set of optimal comfort conditions.
Mr. Macintosh, with the order in which you should try things when reinstalling macOS on an Apple silicon Mac:
- macOS Recovery
- System Recovery – (Will boot automatically if macOS Recovery is unavailable)
- macOS Big Sur USB Installer Drive – (External boot for macOS Installers is enabled by default on Apple Silicon)
- Apple Configurator 2 REVIVE option – This option will reinstall macOS Recovery (retains user data on the SSD hard drive)
- Apple Configurator 2 RESTORE option – This option will Reinstall macOS Recovery, ERASE your SSD hard drive and reinstall macOS
These Macs are great, but the weirdness they bring to the table just builds on what the T1 and T2 brought with them.
As pointed out by MacRumors, it seems that iCloud account authentication has been rocky today, no doubt due to the number of new iOS devices and Macs unwrapped this morning.