Apple released macOS Sierra 10.12.2 on Tuesday with a fix for the video artifacting issue many Touch Bar MacBook Pro users have been experiencing. The update also ensures System Integrity Protection is enabled on the new laptop model, and improves Auto Unlock reliability, too.
Product News
Apple AirPods Finally Available, Delivering Dec 21
Apple’s AirPods are finally available for order and will start delivering to customers on December 21st, just in time for the Christmas holiday. The wireless earbuds were originally scheduled for an October release, but were delayed until now.
Apple Squashes 11 Security Holes in iOS 10.2
Apple released iOS 10.2 on Monday, and the company was much quicker than normal in releasing the security patch notes for the release. According to those notes, there are 11 security holes fixed in the release. Most of those holes are serious, and some allowed access to various aspects of a device when it should be locked.
Apple Ships iOS 10.2 with TV App, New Emojis, and Music Star Ratings
Apple shipped iOS 10.2 on Monday. The update includes a long list of improvements and changes, including the new TV app. That app gives iPhone and iPad users unified access to their movies and TV shows in line with the app of the same name on tvOS for Apple TV. Apple also emphasized redesigned emoji and the addition of 100 new one. Bryan Chaffin’s favorite feature, though, is the return of Star Ratings to Music.
Setapp Brings Netflix-style Downloads to Mac Apps
Paying a monthly subscription to watch as many TV shows and movies as you want is a pretty good business model for Netflix, and MacPaw thinks it’ll work for software, too. The company’s trying that out with its new Setapp service where subscribers pay a monthly fee to get access to a growing list of apps from several developers.
Apple Beta Testing Improved iCloud Photos Interface
Apple is now beta testing a number of improvements to iCloud.com Photos, including a new sidebar, easier navigation between photos, and initial support for the Touch Bar on the 2016 MacBook Pro.
Apple Adds Online Form for Checking iPhone 6s Battery Replacement Eligibility
Apple added an online form for checking your iPhone 6s eligibility for a battery replacement program. The program itself was announced in November, but it was initially up to customers to figure out if their serial number was eligible. The form allows owners to simply enter that serial number and be told if it’s eligible.
Netflix Finally Introduces Offline Viewing for iOS & Android
Want to binge on your favorite Netflix shows but can’t spare the mobile bandwidth? Netflix today finally introduced offline viewing for iOS and Android, letting users download select TV shows and movies for viewing anywhere, regardless of connectivity.
Grab the New iOS-Inspired 5K Color Burst Wallpapers for Mac
Do you love those colorful iOS 10 wallpapers? It looks like they’ll soon be available in the next update to macOS Sierra, but here’s how you can download them now in full 5K resolution.
AT&T's DirecTV Now Streaming Service Launching on Nov 30 with Free Apple TV Offer
AT&T is finally ready to launch its DirecTV Now streaming TV service to entice cord cutters into paying for television channels. The service launches on Wednesday, November 30th, and early subscribers can get a free Apple TV, too.
![10 Black Friday Sales Apple Customers Might Have Missed [Update]](https://www.macobserver.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/black-friday-sale-wide.webp)
10 Black Friday Sales Apple Customers Might Have Missed [Update]
Black Friday has some of the biggest sales in retail, but you can also find a lot of software on sale. I put together a list of nine Black Friday sales that will appeal to Apple customers that you might have otherwise missed, plus a reminder that Apple is doing a promo.
Apple Launches Multi-Touch Repair Program for iPhone 6 Plus
Apple has launched a repair program for iPhone 6 Plus devices that suffer a flickering display or Multi-Touch issues. The program’s description specifies devices that experience these troubles “after being dropped multiple times on a hard surface and then incurring further stress on the device.”
TOMS Straps for Apple Watch Include Solar Power Donation
TOMS announced Thursday a line of straps for Apple Watch. The straps are part of the Made for Apple Watch program from Apple, and continue TOMS’s philanthropic practice of including a charitable donation with each purchase.
iPhone 7 Plus Ship Times Hold at 3-4 Weeks or Higher
Wait times for Apple’s iPhone 7 Plus remain at 3-4 weeks or 3-5 weeks, with none showing less than 3 weeks as of this writing. Almost 7 weeks after the initial ship date, that’s an unusual delay for Apple, and the question is why.
Apple Offers Refurb iPhone 6s/Plus on Apple Store Starting at $449
Apple began offering refurbished iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus devices on the Apple Store Tuesday. Refurbished iPhone 6s models start at US$449 with 16GB of storage, while 16GB iPhone 6s Plus models start at $529. 64GB iPhone 6s Plus are currently priced at $589.
Apple Follows Mystery iTunes 12.5.3 Update with Bonus Mystery iTunes 12.5.3 Update
You remember that iTunes 12.5.3 update Apple released a couple of days ago? The one where the patch notes were the same as the patch notes from iTunes 12.5.2? Well good news. There’s a new iTunes 12.5.3 update waiting for you in the Mac App Store. It’s a new build of the same update. And oh yeah, the patch notes explain nothing.
Plugable Claims New MacBook Pro Doesn't Recognize Some Thunderbolt 3 Docks
Device maker Plugable said Thursday that Apple’s new MacBook Pro with Touch Bar is incompatible with Thunderbolt 3 docks that use a particular Texas Instrument chip. If accurate, it means at least some early Thunderbolt 3 docks already on the market will not work with Apple’s newest Mac laptop.
CMRA Adds a Camera to Your Apple Watch Band, But in a Cool Way
Remember Samsung’s watchband camera tumor on the Galaxy Gear smartwatch? The idea was interesting but the execution fell flat—a mistake Glide doesn’t plan on making with its CMRA watchband camera for the Apple Watch. The CRMA goes a step further, too, by including a second FaceTime-style camera.
Apple iTunes 12.5.3 Update Released, Contents Remain a Mystery
Apple released iTunes 12.5.3 late on Monday. It’s unclear what the update actually changes because the accompanying patch notes are the same as patch notes that came with iTunes 12.5.2, and that’s true both in the Mac App Store and on Apple’s Support site.
Apple Fixes 2 Bugs in iTunes 12.5.2 Update
Apple released iTunes 12.5.2 on Thursday. The update fixes two bugs, one dealing with album playback order, and the other an issue with lyrics showing in Beats 1.
Apple Discontinues 11-inch MacBook Air, MagSafe Now on Death Row
Farewell, 11-inch MacBook Air, we knew you well. Apple dropped the diminutive Mac laptop from its online store on Thursday following the “hello again” event where new Retina MacBook Pro models were introduced. The 13-inch MacBook Air is still available, but now the 12-inch MacBook is the smallest screen laptop Apple offers.
Apple Adds Support for 3 Video Codecs in Sierra and El Cap
Apple released Pro Video Formats v2.0.5, an update to the video codecs supported in OS X El Capitan and macOS Sierra. The update comes out at the same time as Final Cut Pro X 10.3, which was announced during Apple’s “hello again” media event.
tvOS 10.0.1 Update Improves Security, Skips Single Sign-on
When Apple released macOS Sierra 10.12.1 and iOS 10.1 on Monday it also slipped tvOS 10.0.1 out, too. The update is available for the fourth generation Apple TV, and offers security and bug fixes, but doesn’t give us iOS 10’s promised single sign-on feature.
Apple Releases watchOS 3.1 with Charging Fix, Message Effects Improvements, More
Apple released watchOS 3.1 Monday, an update with a mix of improvements and bug fixes. On the improve side if the ability to replay bubble and full-screen effects in Messages. On the bug-fix side, a charging issue for Apple Watch Series 2 was fixed, and more.