Apple today announced financial results for its fiscal 2020 second quarter ended March 28, 2020. The Company posted quarterly revenue of $58.3 billion, an increase of 1 percent from the year-ago quarter, and quarterly earnings per diluted share of $2.55, up 4 percent. International sales accounted for 62 percent of the quarter’s revenue.
“Despite COVID-19’s unprecedented global impact, we’re proud to report that Apple grew for the quarter, driven by an all-time record in Services and a quarterly record for Wearables,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “In this difficult environment, our users are depending on Apple products in renewed ways to stay connected, informed, creative, and productive. We feel motivated and inspired to not only keep meeting these needs in innovative ways, but to continue giving back to support the global response, from the tens of millions of face masks and custom-built face shields we’ve sent to medical professionals around the world, to the millions we’ve donated to organizations like Global Citizen and America’s Food Fund.”
Category: Apple
iPhone SE Teardown⇢
It probably shouldn’t be a surprise how much the new iPhone SE and 8 have in common, but iFixit shows just how many parts between the two phones are interchangeable — including the camera module.
Five Years of Apple Watch
This anniversary snuck up on me, but thankfully plenty of other folks have put together some great content marking the date.
Of course, Rene Ritchie has a great video up:
… and here are some links worth checking out:
- Joe Rossignol has written a nice timeline piece on MacRumors
- David Smith’s original batch of Apple Watch apps
- My review of the original Apple Watch
- MacStories’ overview of the original Apple Watch release
- A cool Twitter thread by Imran Chaudhri about some early design work on the Apple Watch.
My Impressions of the Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro
I received a Magic Keyboard for my 2018 11-inch iPad Pro yesterday, so this is not a full review, but rather a series of impressions.
The first thing I noticed is how much more solid this thing is then the Smart Keyboard Folio I’ve used for years. Of course, that includes the weight, but the overall build quality feels much, much better. This thing is stiff and exact, whereas the old style always felt a bit flimsy at times.
Bloomberg: ARM Macs Coming in 2021⇢
Mark Gurman, Debby Wu and Ian King:
The Cupertino, California-based technology giant is working on three of its own Mac processors, known as systems-on-a-chip, based on the A14 processor in the next iPhone. The first of these will be much faster than the processors in the iPhone and iPad, the people said.
Apple is preparing to release at least one Mac with its own chip next year, according to the people. But the initiative to develop multiple chips, codenamed Kalamata, suggests the company will transition more of its Mac lineup away from current supplier Intel Corp.
A New Breed of Laptop⇢
Federico Viticci has posted a hands-on report of the new Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro:
More than any other iPad accessory, the Magic Keyboard reinforces the idea that the same computer can transform into two radically different form factors at any given time. This philosophy goes beyond the design of a keyboard alone: it’s supported by the iPad’s hardware (with a magnet-based system that simplifies attaching the iPad and encourages pulling it out), software (with the new system pointer that disappears when not in use), and app ecosystem (with apps that can be used with multi-touch and the pointer). Considered through this lens, the Magic Keyboard delivers on the kind of hybrid computing experience I hoped the iPad would eventually achieve, and it’s here today.
Video: Using Ancient Apple Displays with the 2019 Mac Pro⇢
I was recently challenged to hook up a Studio Display to my Mac Pro, and things got out of hand from there:
TidBITS Turns 30⇢
One of the most insightful comments I’ve seen about the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus pandemic points out that we’re in a state of narrative collapse. Our societal stories, the tales we tell ourselves to make sense of the world and even how to navigate it, have failed us. We’re all reaching out to family and friends like never before to learn how they’re holding up, how they’ve chosen or been forced to deal, if they’re going to be OK. Events are changing too fast for anyone to gain a firm footing, and while the uncertainty horizon is slowly increasing, we can still really only forecast that next week will probably be like this week. Next month—who knows?
macOS Catalina to Change How Mac Notebooks Charge⇢
Apple has seeded a new developer build of macOS Catalina with some new tricks up its sleeve to improve the longevity of Mac notebooks by monitoring their battery temperature and charging data.
The feature works by analyzing the temperature of the battery over time, as well as the charging pattern the laptop has experienced—in other words, does the laptop frequently get drained most of the way and then recharge fully, or is it mostly kept full and plugged in? In the latter case, Battery Health Management is more likely to stop a bit short of full capacity in order to extend the battery’s long-term lifespan. (All charging data is kept private on the MacBook unless the Mac has been opted in to share anonymous analytics data with Apple.)
Radeon Pro W5700X Now Available⇢
Starting today, customers who purchase a Mac Pro can choose to add a Radeon Pro W5700X graphics card with 16GB of GDDR6 memory to their machines when using Apple’s build-to-order feature, a new option that was just added.
The card can be added to a custom machine for $600, while a dual-GPU option is $1,600. The single GPU option can be ordered on the Apple Store here for $1,000.
Mac Pro Feet and Wheels Now For Sale⇢
The wheels will run you an eye-watering $699 and require assembly:
Installation required. A 1/4-inch to 4 mm hex bit is included, but additional tools are necessary. Replacing the Mac Pro feet with wheels adds approximately one inch to the height of the frame.
The feet, on the other hand, cost $299 for the set.
Apple Announces New iPhone SE⇢
Apple has announced a new iPhone SE today.
It retains the design of the iPhone 8 with its 4.7-inch Retina HD display, but the following internal specs:
- A13 Bionic
- Single 12 MP camera with portrait mode for human subjects
- Touch ID
- Haptic Touch
- IP67 Rating
- Qi Wireless Charging
It starts at $399 for 64 GB of storage, but 128 GB and 256 GB models will be available as well, at $449 and $549, respectively. The phone is available in red, black and white. Preorders start Friday.