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As expected, Apple today has released iOS 13.3, iPadOS 13.3, tvOS 13.3, and watchOS 6.1.1 to the public. These updates include bug fixes and performance improvements, as well as some notable new features and customization options. iOS 13.3 and iPadOS 13.3 For the iPhone and iPad, iOS 13.3 and iPadOS 13.3 include support for Communication Limits in Screen Time. This allows you to set specific limitations on who and when you can communicate with....

Update May 25: Following yesterday’s story, The Verge reported today that Apple has confirmed it removed the Airfoil Speakers Touch app after its recent 3.0 update introduced the ability to stream over AirPlay from other iOS devices. Apple said it is against Review Guideline 2.5: Apps that use non-public APIs will be rejected. Verge explained: We have seen Apple both reject and remove apps for many reasons in the past. It is often due to an icon or name that is too close to one of Apple’s own apps....

A report earlier this week suggested that Apple Pay will launch in the Czech Republic next week. It now looks like Apple Pay might also come to Saudi Arabia on the same day. According to local advertisements from Al-Rajhi Bank in Saudi Arabia, Apple Pay will launch in the country on February 19th, 2019. That’s the same date that has been rumored for a Czech Republic launch of Apple Pay, as well....

It looks like Apple may actually use Reno Nevada for something more than a Tax haven. According to several local reports, Apple is currently considering building a new data center in Nevada. KRNV & MyNews4.com reported today that Apple representatives attended a Washoe County Commission meeting to discuss plans to invest $1 billion over 10 years and build a new data center at the Reno Technology Park: The report claimed Apple said it plans to begin construction in August and hopes to finish by the end of 2012....

macOS Catalina launched earlier this month, bringing the new Mac Catalyst platform to the masses. Mac Catalyst makes it easier for developers to bring their iPad apps to the Mac, but some developers have faced challenges doing so. In a new statement to CNET, however, Apple says that it is learning a lot as more developers adopt Catalyst. Todd Benjamin, Apple’s macOS product marketing director, says that the goal of Catalyst is to give iPad app developers “a huge head start” when coming to the Mac ecosystem....

iOS 10.3 introduces new capabilities like Find My AirPods, but one change that went somewhat under the radar is a new feature aiming to improve Siri and artificial intelligence as a whole. As detailed by ZDNet, a new iCloud Analytics feature aims to collect data from users and use it do improve Siri and other smart features. We’ve noted several times that Apple desperately needs to improve Siri, especially if a standalone Siri Speaker is in the pipeline....

Although most users have likely installed OS X 10.9.2 by now, after its release late last month, Apple is providing a reminder to those who haven’t. Laggards like myself who are still running OS X 10.9.1 have begun to see notifications like the one below over the past day, pushing the critical update which included a fix for the well-publicized SSL bug found in both iOS 7 and OS X Mavericks....

Apple today updated its list of officially supported banks and credit unions for Apple Pay, adding over 35 new institutions across the US, Canada, Russia and Japan. Today’s additions to the list follow an additional 40 banks and credit unions that Apple added in the U.S. in November, as well as the launch of the company’s new Apple Pay Cash feature for person to person payments via Siri and iMessage that arrived in the US earlier this month....

Apple is promoting a new TikTok challenge in Brazil featuring the Apple Watch. With the hashtag #DançarTbConta – which translates to “Dancing also counts [as an exercise]” – Apple takes advantage of the popularity of the app in the country while promoting dance exercise on the Watch. Although it’s not the first time Apple is promoting an ad on TikTok, it’s the first time the company is doing so in Brazil....

Apple is releasing iOS 14.1 to the public today ahead of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro release on Friday. iOS 14.1 brings support for new iPhone 12 features as well as a long list of bug fixes and performance improvements. Apple has also released iPadOS 14.1 with support for the new iPad Air, which will also be available on Friday. iOS 14.1 brings support for 10-bit HDR video playback and editing in the Photos app for the iPhone 8 and later This comes as the iPhone 12 adds support for recording videos in 10-bit HDR quality....

Apple has seeded developers and the public with macOS 11.3 beta 4 today. The release comes two weeks after beta 3 arrived. macOS 11.3 comes with new sorting options in Reminders, expanded support for Xbox/PlayStation controllers, autoplay in Apple Music, and more. macOS 11.3 beta 4 is available and the OTA should be showing up in System Preferences > Software Update if you’re enrolled in the developer or public beta program (keep checking back if you don’t see it yet)....

Apple has long offered customers the ability to finance larger purchases and pay them off over time. In the U.K., however, the company is removing that option from its online store… Apple previously allowed U.K. customers to finance purchases through PayPal Credit or through Barclays. The former required a £99 minimum purchase, while the latter required a £399 minimum purchase. As first noted by MacRumors, however, both of those options have been removed from Apple’s website....

Dutch bank ING has confirmed that Apple Pay is coming to the Netherlands ‘soon.’ The announcement was made on the company’s website. The announcement continues … iCulture notes that there had been several earlier clues, but also some false alarms. ING introduces Apple Pay in the Netherlands We will keep you informed on this page and via social media. And when the time comes, you will receive a message in the Mobile Banking App....

Apple is continuing to promote its mobile payment service through special promotions with partners, and this week’s Apple Pay deal offers up free jukebox credit in bars and restaurants with TouchTunes. TouchTunes is an iPhone app that lets you pay to request music played in venues that use the entertainment system — it’s like a modern take on the classic jukebox experience. Customers paying with Apple Pay in the TouchTunes app will receive three free credits for song requests just for using Apple’s mobile payment service....

Apple has released the seventh beta for macOS 11.3. The software features new sorting options in Reminders, expanded support for Xbox/PlayStation controllers, autoplay in Apple Music, mentions of the first Apple Silicon Macs, and more. macOS 11.3 beta 7 is available now and the OTA should be showing up in System Preferences > Software Update if you’re enrolled in the developer or public beta program (keep checking back if you don’t see it yet)....

Apple has released the third iOS 9.3 public beta to non-developer testers today. iOS 9.3 public beta 3 follows this week’s third developer iOS 9.3 beta release as well. The latest beta cleans up issues introduced in the last version while adding some new features as well. iOS 9.3, which is expected to be released to everyone next month, adds loads of new features for iPhones and iPads including Night Shift mode to change the display temperature for evening reading, Touch ID/secure passwords to protect Notes, new 3D Touch shortcuts on the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, enhancements to the Health and Activity apps, iCloud for iBooks PDF syncing, and much more....

Pictured above: The Rosenstraße Galerie Apple store in München According to a German-language blog, Macerkopf.de, the Mac maker will open four more stores in the country this year. Hamburg should get its second store this year, Augsburg will get one and the aforementioned Berlin store is due later this year. The latest news is that another store is set to open in Sulzbach near Frankfurt as well, pointing to several job openings in the Sulzbach, Hessen region....

Apple is preparing for upcoming openings of two new notable retail stores including its first in Mexico and its second store in Cologne, Germany. Both stores are preparing for openings with Apple’s usual practice of large barricades blocking public view while the company puts on finishing touches and prepares for grand openings, as pictured above and below. The first store in Mexico has been covered with a colorful barricade with text that translates to “Hello Mexico, we have much to celebrate,” a welcome for the country’s first official Apple retail store to be located in the Centro Santa Fe shopping mall....

Apple has rolled out a more granular System Status Page for its slew of online services, as noted by The Next Web. The new page covers the system status of all of Apple’s internet services, stores, and individual iCloud features. Additionally, the new website features an easy to track time graph of downtime across all of Apple’s online services. Earlier today, we noted that Apple’s iCloud services had been seeing unexpected downtime over the past few days....

iBeacon, Apple’s new framework for using low-cost Bluetooth LE devices to beam notifications to nearby smartphones and tablets, will soon be getting a bigger push from Apple and third-party manufacturers through its Made-For-iPhone program. While “iBeacon” is often used in the media to describe any Bluetooth beacon, Apple is now implementing tighter control over who can use the ‘iBeacon’ branding. Much like it requires for manufacturers placing the “Made-for-iPhone” branding on Apple authorized devices, Apple is now requiring manufacturers meet certain specifications before using ‘iBeacon’ on their products....