Posts in news

Apple Updates the Apple TV 4K with a New Siri Remote, Enhanced Video Support, and Color Calibration Tools

It has been a long time since the Apple TV was updated, but today the day for an update finally arrived with an all-new Siri Remote and other new and updated features.

The new Apple TV 4K announced today runs on the A12 Bionic chipset, which enables high frame rate HDR and Dolby Vision for the first time. Not only will 60 frame per second HDR content be streamable from video services, but it can also be AirPlayed to the Apple TV using an iOS device that supports recording HDR video. Apple didn’t mention it on stage, but the device’s tech specs reveal that the Apple TV 4K also supports HDMI 2.1, WiFi 6, and Thread, a feature that we covered recently on AppStories. Thread will enable the Apple TV 4K to act as a border router directing HomeKit device traffic in your home.

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Apple Shows Off New M1 iMacs in Beautiful, Vibrant Colors

I’m excited about the new iPad Pros, but the new 24” iMac took my breath away. I’ve long wanted Apple to return to the vivid colors of past Macs but wasn’t convinced the company would go that direction. Leading up to today’s event, mockups of iMacs in the pale color schemes of the iPhone 12 circulated. Today, however, Apple took the iMac in a wholly different direction with bright, saturated colors on the back of the new computer and paler hues on the front.

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Replay Apple’s April 20, 2021 Keynote and Other Videos

If you didn’t follow the live stream or announcements as they unfolded at Apple Park today, you can replay it on Apple’s Events site and catch the product videos on Apple’s YouTube channel.

The keynote video can be streamed here and on the Apple TV using the TV app. A high-quality version is also available through Apple Podcasts as a video and audio podcast or you can watch it on YouTube. First debuted last fall, there is also an American Sign Language version of the event, which is available here.

Apple also posted other product videos on its YouTube channel, which are embedded after the break.

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New iPad Pros Announced with the M1 Chipset, Thunderbolt, 5G, New Cameras, and a Liquid Retina XDR Display on the 12.9” Model

Apple today announced all-new iPad Pros featuring the same M1 chip found in the company’s latest Macs along with several other new features, including a Thunderbolt-compatible port, 5G connectivity on cellular models, updated cameras, and on the 12.9” model, a Liquid Retina XDR display that shares many of the specs as the company’s Pro Display XDR.

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Apple Announces Apple Podcasts Subscriptions

During today’s keynote event, Apple announced their new Apple Podcasts Subscriptions service. Launching in May in over 170 countries, the service will allow users to subscribe to premium podcasts directly from the Apple Podcasts app. Premium shows will offer access to various perks for users, such as removing ads, releasing shows early, or providing exclusive content.

Podcast creators can participate in the service for $19.99/year, and can use the redesigned Apple Podcasts Connect website to manage their subscription offerings. Apple has partnerships set up with some creators and companies to kick things off, including NPR, The Athletic, Tenderfoot TV, and Pushkin Industries.

Accompanying the new subscription service is an update to the Apple Podcasts app. The updated app will allow subscribing to premium podcasts, and will also display new “channels.” Podcast channels are groups of shows curated by creators, and can be either free or paid.

While the integration into Apple’s ecosystem means users can easily subscribe using their existing App Store accounts, it also means that Apple will be taking its usual 30% of revenue from podcast creators. This will drop to 15% after the first year, the same way it does for in-app purchases.

You can follow all of our April event coverage through our April 2021 Event hub, or subscribe to the dedicated RSS feed.

MacStories Unwind: Apple Event Announced, Spotify’s Car Thing, Fitness+ Expanded, and HomeKit Advice

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Sponsored by: MindNode – Ever Had a Geistesblitz?

This week on MacStories Unwind:

MacStories

Club MacStories

  • MacStories Weekly
    • Federico unveils MusicLink a shortcut that creates links to multiple music services and John shows how to link GoodTask and Craft using a shortcut
    • John recommends CardioBot
    • An interview with iOS developer and Sofa creator Shawn Hickman
    • Apps, and more.

AppStories

Unwind

Apple Expands Fitness+ Offerings with New Classes Designed for Pregnancy and Older Adults, New Trainers, and Time to Walk with Jane Fonda

Today, Apple announced an expansion of Fitness+ with new workouts for pregnancy and older adults. The company also expanded its existing offerings with new yoga, HIIT, and strength workouts for beginners and said Jane Fonda will be featured in the next episode of Time to Walk.

Ten pregnancy workouts will be added to Fitness+ led by trainer Betina Gozo who will be joined by Emily Fayette and Anja Garcia. Workouts for Older Adults will be led by trainer Molly Fox along with Gregg Cook, Dustin Brown, Bakari Williams, and Jhon Gonzalez. In addition, beginner classes will be added to Fitness+’s Yoga, Strength, and HIIT categories.

Jonelle Lewis is one of Fitness+'s new trainers who will teach Yoga classes.

Jonelle Lewis is one of Fitness+’s new trainers who will teach Yoga classes.

New Fitness+ trainers were announced too, with Jonelle Lewis joining as a Yoga and Mindful Cooldown trainer and existing trainer Anja Garcia joining the service’s group of HIIT trainers. Finally, Apple said that actor Jane Fonda will be featured in the next episode of the Time to Walk to commemorate Earth Day. Time to Walk is the walking workout feature added to the Fitness app in January.

Everything announced today will be available next week, beginning April 19th.

Apple Announces Online Media Event for April 20, 2021

As first confirmed by Federico on Twitter, Apple has announced a media event for April 20, 2021 at 10:00 am Pacific. The event will be held online only.

In an unexpected twist, the date of the event was leaked by Apple’s digital assistant Siri as reported overnight by MacRumors. When asked about the date of the next Apple event, Siri responded that it would be April 20th at Apple Park.

Based on changes coming with iOS 14.5, Apple is expected to introduce AirTags for tracking personal items, which is expected to work like the third-party Find My network devices announced last week. There has also been widespread speculation that the company will introduce new iPad Pros, and with the recent discontinuation of the iMac Pro, we may see new M1 Macs too. In addition to hardware, Apple will likely make iOS and iPadOS 14.5, watchOS 7.4, tvOS 14.5, and macOS 11.3 Big Sur updates available soon after the event.

Spotify Announces Car Thing: Dedicated Audio Streaming Hardware for Drivers

Source: Spotify.

Source: Spotify.

Spotify has announced Car Thing, a dedicated Bluetooth-enabled audio controller for your car. Car Thing, which is Spotify’s first foray into hardware, is currently available by invitation only to Premium subscribers in the US.

Spotify’s new device is unique in that it isn’t a standalone product; it requires a mobile phone to work. The device itself is a touch screen with a handful of physical buttons and a big knob for navigating the service’s offerings. Data for streaming music or podcasts is provided by your mobile phone, which connects to Car Thing over Bluetooth. Car Thing doesn’t have a rechargeable battery or built-in speakers either. Power is provided by a USB-C to USB-A cable that must be plugged into a power source, and sound can be routed to your car’s audio system with a dedicated cable or over Bluetooth.

Source: Spotify.

Source: Spotify.

Car Thing, which also comes with dashboard mounting hardware, is controlled using its touch screen, programmable buttons along the top edge of the device, the knob, which allows drivers to scroll through the service’s content, and Spotify’s new ‘Hey Spotify’ digital assistant feature. Ashley Carman of The Verge had an opportunity to try Car Thing for a couple of days and had this to say about the device:

The voice controls mostly worked — for some reason it only got tripped up on a Kid Cudi request — but I grew frustrated with the steps it took to control music. When a song that I didn’t like played, it took longer to say, “Hey Spotify, skip” than it would have to just tap the skip button on my phone. I generally felt like I could more efficiently navigate Spotify just by using my phone at stop lights. The device does shine, however, when you ask the voice assistant to start a playlist, and it registered those commands easily.

Carman also notes that currently, Car Thing requires a data connection because it can only stream audio, although Spotify did not rule out a future update for accessing any downloaded content.

Source: Spotify.

Source: Spotify.

Car Thing is a fascinating product. Many users who already rely on features like Apple’s CarPlay and Android Auto will probably be content to continue to use those options, which offer other apps and services too. However, for drivers with older vehicles that don’t have built-in entertainment systems or ones that integrate with Spotify already and heavy Spotify users who like the idea of a dedicated Spotify interface, Car Thing is an intriguing option. I’m very curious to hear more about what it’s like to use in practice and get my hands on one myself.

If you live in the US and are a Spotify Premium subscriber, you can sign up to join the waitlist to receive the Car Thing. If you’re chosen, Spotify will send you a free Car Thing and only charge you $6.99 for shipping.