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Following yesterday’s developer betas, Apple has seeded the second iOS 11.4 and tvOS 11.4 public betas. iOS 11.4 includes both AirPlay 2 and Messages on iCloud for testing, and tvOS 11.4 can be used for AirPlay 2 testing. iOS 11.4 beta also suggests we’ll see HomePod gain stereo support when the software update is ready, but the feature requires an unreleased version of the HomePod software to test. AirPlay 2 testing requires Apple TV 4 or Apple TV 4K with tvOS 11....

However unlikely—the United States Patent and Trademark office today published an Apple patent application that details a system of inductively charging an iPad through the Smart Cover. The idea is that rather than plugging in the iPad, the Smart Cover would include an inductive power transmitter that would allow it to pair with an inductive power transceiver embedded into the iPad. The result is the Smart Cover would become a wireless charging station, connecting to an external power source, and allowing you to power your iPad in various positions....

Update: Apple has confirmed its store opening and closure plans in a statement to TechCrunch: An unusual Apple retail plan is taking shape in Texas. According to public permits filed with the City of Dallas, Apple has secured a tenant location in the Galleria Dallas, a large shopping center less than 10 miles from Dallas Love Field airport. The mall is located midway between four existing Apple Store locations currently serving central Dallas and surrounding communities to the north....

Apple has released the fourth tvOS 11.4 developer beta for testing on Apple TV 4 and Apple TV 4K. tvOS 11.4 turns Apple TV into an AirPlay 2 speaker which supports multi-room AirPlay from iOS. The latest developer beta of tvOS follows the official release of tvOS 11.3 to all customers last month. The new version added support for frame rate matching to older Apple TVs and Apple Music highlighted new music video playlists....

Apple today released the third developer beta of macOS Catalina 10.15.3. This comes as Apple earlier this week released the third developer betas of iOS 13.3.1, iPadOS 13.3.1, watchOS 6.1.2, and tvOS 13.3.1. The company does not specify what’s new in the update, but it likely focuses on performance improvements, security updates, and bug fixes. Developers can update to the latest beta through System Preferences if they’re already enrolled in the Beta Program....

It’s been almost two weeks since Apple started a new beta cycle with the release of iOS 12.3 beta 1. The update brought with it the initial code-level support for some of the features announced during the “It’s show time” event, including assets for the Apple Card, which we revealed would be paired in a similar way to AirPods. Update 4/8: The second developer betas are now available for iOS 12....

Bloomberg reports today that Apple’s mobile payments solution Apple Pay is now supported at 2 million locations around the world. In addition to revealing that 2 million locations now support the service, the report also says that Chick-Fil-A, Crate & Barrel, and Au Bon Pain will also start rolling out support for the service soon. In the past, Chick-Fil-A has experimented with a QR-based solution for mobile payments, but that effort has ultimately flopped according to employees....

Apple and its partner NV Energy today confirmed plans for an expansion of their solar operations for up to an additional 200 megawatts of energy to support the growing needs of Apple’s data center in Reno. In addition to supporting Apple’s data center, the announcement notes that Apple will keep 5 megawatts of the new plant to sell to residential and commercial customers through NV Energy. Last summer Apple notably created a new energy subsidiary called Apple Energy LLC to begin selling excess energy from its solar farms and shortly after received approval to do so....

Two weeks after the release of the second beta of iOS 9 and a week after the launch day of Apple Music, Apple has released iOS 9 beta 3 to developers. The update is available to iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch users via Apple’s developer portal on the web and via an OTA rollout. The beta carries the build number 13A4293g. iOS 9 will be released in the fall, although a public beta will be available later this month....

Update: Users report that the removed Reddit clients are returning to the App Store as developers implement changes to remove the NSFW toggle. Following the release of the official Reddit iOS app last week, Apple today has pulled a handful of third-party Reddit clients from the App Store. While the change appears to be unrelated to the launch of the official Reddit client, it’s a surprise nonetheless. As for its reasoning for removing the apps, Apple says they violate clause 18....

Apple has now flipped on support for Apple Pay to more than 40 additional banks and credit unions across the United States. The new banks join a steadily growing list of over 400 institutions across the country with active support for Apple’s mobile payment service. Apple Pay also recently debuted in the UK with 9 of the major banks supported so far. You can find the latest additions of US banks below: 1st United Services Credit Union Align Credit Union Atlantic Regional FCU Bank of Marin Bank of Oklahoma Central Pacific Bank Community and Southern Bank Countryside Bank Dominion Credit Union DuPage Credit Union Dutch Point Credit Union First Bank of Dalton First Clover Bank First Collinsville Bank First County Bank First Midwest Bank First National Bank of McGregor First State Bank Nebraska Greater Iowa Credit Union Gulf Coast Educators FCU Harborone Bank Horizon Bank Illinois National Bank Jax Federal Credit Union LGE Community Credit Union Meadows Credit Union Meridian Trust Federal Credit Union Metro Health Services FCU Northwest Federal Credit Union Premier Bank SAC FCU The Bank of Commerce The Cooperative Bank The Paducah Bank and Trust Thomaston Savings Bank TTCU The Credit Union UniBank for Savings United Bank US Community Credit Union USE Credit Union USF Federal Credit Union West Alabama Bank & Trust Westerra Credit Union...

Apple has shared an interesting new ad promoting the colorful iPhone XR called Color Flood. The minute-long video mostly portrays a rather odd totalitarian society (or possibly a prison break?) where people are running through the streets in basic uniforms only distinguished by color. Most of the colors represent the iPhone XR shades — the design comes in black, white, red, blue, yellow, and coral — although there are mixes of green and purple uniforms in the ad as well....

Apple has released iOS 14.2.1 to the public today, bringing notable bug fixes for MMS messages, hearing devices, and lock screen responsiveness on the iPhone 12 mini. Head below for the full release notes. In fact, iOS 14.2.1 is only available to the iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, and iPhone 12 Pro Max. iOS 14.2.1 addresses several notable problems that iPhone 12 users have been reporting. A large number of iPhone 12 users had been reporting missing messages from group text message threads, and the MMS improvements in iOS 14....

Apple has released the third iOS 10.3.3 beta for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. The first beta version only included new wallpapers for the 12.9-inch iPad Pro and no other visible changes. We’ll update with any changes discovered below. iOS 10.3.3 beta 3 is currently available to registered developers; a public beta version for iOS 10.3.3 is also available although today’s update may not be immediately available. iOS 10.3.3 beta 3 Release Notes: For a look back at what changes Apple included with iOS 10....

Nearly a month after the release of the first-generation Apple Watch with Watch OS 1.0, a proven source has disclosed a collection of upcoming Apple Watch software and hardware updates. Currently in development, the features seek to enhance Apple Watch security, connectivity with other Apple devices, health and fitness features, Wi-Fi capabilities, and integration with third-party applications. Additionally, Apple is also priming major updates for the Apple TV in both the hardware and software departments, including Apple Watch integration....

Apple has released iOS 10.1.1 for iPhones and iPad, less than a week since the iOS 10.1 update which included iPhone 7 Portrait Mode. The bug fixes a specific issue with the Health app, where data was not showing for some users. There may also be improvements to other niggling issues, which are alluded to (“bugs”, plural) but only the Health fix is explicitly referenced in the release notes. The update is available for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch users....

iTunes 11.4 has been released following Apple’s announcement that iOS 8 will be available next week. The GM seed of the software is available now for developers, and the new iTunes update enables syncing with devices running the mobile update. Many users on OS X Yosemite trying to install the iOS 8 GM seed have run into a serious issue, however. The current version of iTunes 12 crashes after erasing a user’s device, leaving them stranded in DFU mode with no way to actually get back to a usable state (unless they have a Mavericks machine handy)....

Apple has released macOS 11.2.3 today and the build comes with important security updates that Apple is recommending for all users. A Safari security update is also available for Mojave and Catalina users. While Apple is beta testing macOS Big Sur 11.3, it released a public update today with 11.2.3. Apple says it features “important security updates and is recommended for all users.” The primary security fix addresses an issue with malicious content on the web involving memory corruption:...

Now would be a bad time to be a developer of an iPhone panoramic camera app. It appears that Apple will be allowing users to take panoramic photos in the photo app, if the code we’ve discovered below proves to make it into the final iOS 5 release. We’re not sure if/how to make it work or if it makes panoramas stitching together photos or making a movie. IF you’ve figured out how to get it to work, were all ears....

Alongside the release of iOS 13.5.1 and iOS 13.5.5 today, Apple has also released a pair of new updates for macOS. For developers, Apple has released the first beta of macOS Catalina 10.15.6, while there is also a new supplemental update for all with macOS Catalina 10.15.5. First, Apple says that the supplemental release of macOS Catalina 10.15.5 includes an important security fix that is recommended for all users. Here are the details on the patch:...