Benjamin Mayo

While Apple regularly gets lambasted for lack of promotion for its streaming service, Apple TV+, the company seems to be trying harder in recent weeks. It just dropped a ‘New for June’ sizzle reel, hyping what users can expect to stream on the service this month.

The new premieres include comedy series Stick, movie Echo Valley, season two of The Buccaneers, and Taron Egerton drama Smoke. Here’s everything new on Apple TV+ in June …

Apple has appealed parts of the Digital Markets Act law citing user privacy concerns. Specifically, Apple is contesting the interoperability requirements that say data like notification content and WiFi networks should be made available to third-parties.

Apple says the DMA as written allows others to “access personal information that even Apple doesn’t see”. This is because features like notification rendering and WiFi network data are currently handled on-device and stored in an encrypted fashion, so Apple cannot see that stuff. However, the DMA does not necessarily require third-party agents who would be able to access this same data to commit to the same standards of privacy and security.

Apple is gearing up for a sweeping set announcements at WWDC, kicking off on June 9, as reported by Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.

We’ve been hearing about a significant redesign coming as part of iOS 19 for iPhone and iPad, as well as design updates for macOS 16 too. However, it turns out Apple’s ambitions are even greater. In the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, Gurman says that both watchOS and tvOS will also see significant redesigns, and visionOS will get some touch-ups as well.

President Trump has just blasted Apple in a post on his account on TruthSocial. The president said that he has “long ago informed” Apple CEO Tim Cook that iPhones sold in the United States should be manufactured and built in the United States, “not India, or anyplace else”.

He continues by threatening that if this does not happen, “a tariff of least 25% must be paid by Apple”. The details of the ‘tariff’ are unclear, but the outburst has nonetheless shook investors and Apple company stock has already dropped 3% in response to the announcement.

After my last WiFi-enabled smart scale broke and refused to connect to the Internet anymore, I sought something simpler and cheaper to replace it. The old scale had all sorts of fancy service integrations that I never used. I just wanted something that would track my weight and report the measurements to the Health app on my iPhone.

The Eufy C20 smart scale is what I landed on and I’m very happy with it — and it’s pretty cheap too. Here’s how it works …

Apple just announced the first new musical Peanuts special in more than three decades. The new instalment entitled ‘Snoopy Presents: A Summer Musical’ will stream on Apple TV+ on July 18.

The special hails from Apple’s deal with WildBrain, where TV+ is the streaming home of all classic Peanuts specials as well as new originals. A feature-length animated Snoopy movie is also currently in development.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman continues his iOS 19 tidbits streak by revealing two upcoming new features in the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, which was published today.

Gurman says that iOS 19 will include a major localization focus on supporting customers in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and India. Specifically, that entails a new Arabic-English software keyboard for iPhone and a new calligraphy pen for Apple Pencil users.

OWC has just announced their new OWC Thunderbolt 5 Dock, adding up to 11 ports of I/O expansion for your M4 MacBook Pro with M4 Pro or M4 Max, which was the first Apple laptop to feature the latest generation of Thunderbolt port. It joins the likes of the Anker Prime Docking Station and the CalDigit E5 in the market. The OWC dock is set to start shipping in July.

Thunderbolt 5 enables higher bandwidth, which allows the OWC dock to sport three daisy-chained Thunderbolt 5 ports, as well as power things like 2.5Gb/s Ethernet, and feed multiple high-res external displays.

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today tweeted that he does not forecast major updates to the AirPods lineup coming this year. Instead, he reiterates that new AirPods Pro with Infrared cameras are set to arrive in 2026.

This contradicts reporting from other publications that have suggested AirPods Pro 3 will launch in 2025, including new features such as improved active noise cancellation.

If you are a fan of Apple’s own-brand over-ear headphones, the AirPods Max, you may be wondering when to expect a new generation model. Apple revised the headphones last fall, adding a USB-C port, but the model was otherwise unchanged. Despite costing the most, AirPods Max lack features that are available in even the cheapest AirPods 4, and are driven by the outdated H1 chip.

And if you believe analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, you’ve still got a while to wait before Apple will be ready to release a next-generation model. In a tweet, Kuo reports that next-generation AirPods Max will not arrive until 2027.

Update: The SwitchBot Wallet Finder is currently on sale, at one of the lowest prices we’ve seen.

I have an AirTag on my keychain to keep track of my keys, but obviously an AirTag is too big and bulky to fit inside a wallet. That’s what the SwitchBot Wallet Finder is for.

Disguised inside a thin, credit-card form factor, the SwitchBot Wallet Finder connects to the Find My app on your iPhone, so you can follow its location, and it even houses a speaker so you can make it beep to help you find your wallet when it inevitably gets lost somewhere in your home. Read on for my review …

The Murderbot Diaries is a wildly popular book series by Martha Wells. Apple has now adapted the series for television, with Murderbot premiering today with the first two episodes on Apple TV+. New episodes roll out weekly.

The sci-fi comedy features Alexander Skarsgard as an awkward human-reclusive SecUnit robot. It is sent on assignments by a group of research scientists, protecting them from space worms and other dangers, while all it really wants to do it is relax in a corner and watch soap operas on its helmet TV.

After months of delays, Apple officially announced the launch of next-gen CarPlay, now with a new brand name of ‘CarPlay Ultra’. From today, CarPlay Ultra is available with new Aston Martin vehicle orders in the United States and Canada, and a software update will also bring the technology to existing vehicles. Apple also said Hyundai, Kia and Genesis are working on adding CarPlay Ultra to their cars, but did not disclose a timeframe.

CarPlay Ultra integrates vehicle controls with the CarPlay experience, including taking over display of the instrument cluster and gauges, toggles for air conditioning and driver assistance systems, advanced media controls and more.

In comments to press this morning, President Donald Trump said he has an issue with Apple’s handling of the tariff policy in regard to iPhone production.

Trump wants Apple to build iPhones domestically in the United States, but has clearly seen the recent news that Apple will source most of the iPhones sold in the US quarter from India, rather than China. “I don’t want you building in India”, he said …

Apple stock soared almost 6% at market open today, following the announcement of an easement of US tariffs on China. The countries agreed over the weekend to cut reciprocal tariffs from 125% to 10%. However, the deal is set to expire in 90 days as talks over a longer-term resolution continue.

Naturally, investors in Apple are reacting positively to the news. Tariffs on Chinese production hurt Apple’s bottom line, as they directly affect the cost of making the iPhone, which accounts for more than half of the company’s revenue.

All iPhone 16 models feature a USB-C connector, replacing the old Apple Lightning connector. Via this USB-C port, you can connect to a vast number of accessories and peripherals. iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max support faster USB-3 speeds over the USB-C port, enabling up to 10 Gbps data transfer speeds.

USB-C makes it easy to connect displays, external storage, cameras, and charge using the same cable as all your other devices. Here’s what you can do with your new iPhone and its shiny new port …

Over the last decade, CarPlay has become ubiquitous on almost all makes and models of cars. Consumers love it too. In fact, Apple has said before that 80% of new car buyers require CarPlay as a specification before making their purchase.

However, this argument is less satisfactory when it comes to electric vehicles. Aside from Tesla or Rivian, almost all EVs come with CarPlay installed, but its utility is greatly diminished. CarPlay support for electric vehicle routing is just weak. Apple really needs to step on the gas and get its act together …

In court testimony yesterday, Apple SVP Eddy Cue told the judge that usage of search in Safari fell for the first time ever in April, suggesting users are turning to AI alternatives like ChatGPT instead.

This led to Google investors getting cold feet on the search giant’s outlook, with the company stock dropping about 8% in response. However, Google has now formally contested Cue’s comments in a company blog post.

Apple is going to add AI search providers to the Safari browser on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Bloomberg reports Apple SVP Eddy Cue made the disclosure in court testimony today, stating “we will add them to the list — they probably won’t be the default” in reference to providers like Perplexity and Anthropic.

Cue also revealed that the number of searches through Safari fell for the first time ever in April, suggesting users are looking to AI sources as alternative ways to find information.