Apple Maps Conducting Pedestrain Level Surveys

Apple Maps is collecting pedestrian level data in California. On Friday, a man wearing a Lidar rig, GPS and multiple cameras as well as an Apple Maps backpack, was spotted in San Francisco, according to MacRumors. On its website, Apple said [via AppleInsider] that Pedestrian teams will be in a number of California counties. While cars conducting mapping are not such a rare site spotted in Los Angeles earlier in the week, but as MacRumors noted: “This is the first time we’ve seen someone collecting mapping data on foot.”

Unravel is a Foldable Wireless Charging Station

Perfect for travelers, Unravel is a foldable wireless charging station with three 10W Qi charging pads, as well as one USB Type-C port. Powered by a cable many already have, a patent-pending hinge design that folds into accommodating orientations, and a non-slip grip surface, Unravel is the solution to long Facetime calls, cluttered laptop bags, and limited power outlets. When you’re done using it, you just fold it up and put it in the 2″ travel case. Unravel met its Kickstarter goal in 40 minutes, and sitting at nearly $300k raised with a 12 hours left on the campaign. Rewards start at US$59 to get a charging station, and the estimated delivery is December 2018.

Stylish New Leather AirPods Case

AirPods are hugely popular but, let’s be honest, the charging case is hardly the most chic item Apple has ever released. Accessories maker NOMAD may have solved that problem. On Thursday, they are going to release the Rugged Case – a fully leather outer case for AirPods. Available in brown or black, you can put the AirPod charging case intro the Rugged Case, providing extra protection and a little bit more style. Priced at $29.95, the Rugged Case is available to pre-order now. Distribution will commence on Thursday, 15 November.

The End of 'Beautygate'

The iPhone XS and XS Max came with a feature called SmartHDR that increased the dynamic range of photos.  It also reduced the local contrast and the phone’s performance in low light. The lowlight issues were fixed by decreasing noise reduction, which, when combined with the lack of contrast created a smoothing effect. This was particularly noticeable in selfies and came to be known as ‘Beautygate’. With iOS 12.1 Apple tried to fix the problem. Did they succeed? A video from AppleInsider takes a look.

Here's How to Edit Depth Control on your iPhone XS/XS Max/XR

Apple put out a neat video over the weekend demonstrating how you can edit the Depth Control feature now available on the iPhone XS, XS Max, and XR. It shows the 4 simple steps needed to apply the effect – choose a portrait, tap edit, slide to adjust the depth, tap done. The functionality works in portrait mode and adjusts the amount of blur in the background of a picture. This Depth Control effect can be applied to photos you have already taken, and iOS 12.1 will also have a real time Depth Control feature.