This week’s top stories: iPhone X Plus details, an Apple Pay credit card, iPhone SE 2 pictures, more

In this week’s top stories: New iPhone X Plus details, iPhone SE 2 leaks continue, Apple wins a round-face watch patent, and more. Read on for all of this week’s top stories…

This week, a supply chain report suggested that this year’s ‘iPhone X Plus’ will be roughly the same size as the iPhone 8 Plus. This is despite the screen size difference, with the iPhone 8 Plus sitting at 5.5-inches and the iPhone X Plus expected to be 6.5-inches.

Furthermore, that same report suggested that iOS 12 will add support for horizontal Face ID. Currently, Face ID is limited to working only in portrait mode. This change is likely to be a major improvement when the facial recognition technology comes to iPad.

In addition to new iPhone X Plus details, this week was also abound with iPhone SE 2 speculation. A pair of questionable leaks suggested that the device will adopt an iPhone X-like notch design, with the same body as the original iPhone SE.

Apple recently was granted a patent for a round-face Apple Watch design, suggesting that it was not necessarily a rejected design. Notably, Apple filed for this patent 8 months after the initial Apple Watch was released –  perhaps suggesting (or not suggesting) the idea isn’t dead just yet.

A Wall Street Journal report suggested on Thursday that Apple is partnering with Goldman Sachs to introduce an Apple Pay branded credit card early next year. While Apple currently partners with Barclays for an Apple Rewards card, this one is expected to be more lucrative for customers.

Finally, the latest Unicode text handling flaw emerged this week – representing a way to crash iPhones and iPads by sending a simple emoji. More about that flaw, which works even on the iOS 11.4 beta, can be read here.

These and the rest of this week’s top stories below…

iOS | macOS | tvOS | watchOS |

• iOS 11.4 beta 4 for iPhone and iPad now available
• ‘Black dot’ bug is the latest Unicode text handling flaw to crash iPhone and iPads, works on iOS 11.3 and iOS 11.4
• iOS 11.4’s USB Restricted Mode prevents tethered cracking attempts, Lightning becomes charge-only

Mac + Apple Watch |

• Apple wins patent for round-faced Apple Watch, seemingly not a rejected design
• Jony Ive opens up about Apple Watch origin and the watch he ‘admires most’ in Hodinkee interview
• Apple Watch Series 3 with LTE expands to four new countries
• Apple faces class action lawsuit over failing MacBook butterfly keyboards

iPhone | 

• iPhone X Plus said to be iPhone 8 Plus size, iOS 12 to bring horizontal Face ID support, more
• iPhone SE 2 render with iPhone X-style display now shown off from all sides, according to case maker
• Apple now performing rear camera repairs for iPhone X Face ID issues
• Case maker Olixar believes iPhone SE 2 will feature iPhone X-esque design with slim bezels and notch
• Comment: Why I don’t believe the iPhone SE 2 renders but wish I did

Accessories |

• Philips Hue 3 upgrades smart lighting app with refined design, fast controls, photo scenes
• HomePod Diary: A second one just replaced the Sonos Play 5 in our bedroom
• HomePod likely gaining Calendar support alongside iOS 11.4 release
• Netgear expands Orbi lineup with first mesh modem/router combo

Privacy |

• Apple wins patent for round-faced Apple Watch, seemingly not a rejected design
• Apple cracking down on applications that send location data to third-parties

AAPL Company |

• Microsoft says it would love to work with Apple to bring iMessage support to Windows
• Apple lands on Jet․com with deals on MacBooks and more, beats Amazon on inventory
• Apple planning to upgrade TV app with service subscription feature within next year
• Ralph Nader pens open letter to Tim Cook criticizing $100B buyback, suggests lowering prices & more instead

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This week’s top video |

• Friday 5: How Cardhop makes managing contacts fun [Video]
• Hands-on: OWC’s Envoy Pro EX Thunderbolt 3 SSD is a great mix of price and performance [Video]
• LumaFusion 1.6 adds support for GNARBOX portable backup and editing system [Video]
• How I use my iPad: Yoink – a powerful drag and drop companion app [Video]

Happy Hour Podcast #172 |

This week Benjamin and Zac welcome a clue that suggests HomePod will soon work with Calendar, new details about the 6.5-inch iPhone X Plus and an iOS 12 Face ID rumor, quick impressions from Google I/O, Hodinkee’s new Jony Ive interview on Apple Watch, and our watchOS 5 wish list.

9to5Mac Happy Hour is available on iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play Music, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

9to5Mac Daily |

Listen to a recap of the top stories of the day from 9to5Mac. 9to5Mac Daily is available on iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

• 9to5Mac Daily 068: May 7, 2018
• 9to5Mac Daily 069: May 8, 2018
• 9to5Mac Daily 070: May 9, 2018
• 9to5Mac Daily 071: May 10, 2018
• 9to5Mac Daily 072: May 11, 2018

Making The Grade |

Making The Grade is a weekly series from Bradley Chambers covering Apple in education. Bradley has been managing Apple devices in an education environment since 2009. Through his experience deploying and managing 100s of Macs and 100s of iPads, Bradley will highlight ways in which Apple’s products work at scale, stories from the trenches of IT management, and ways Apple could improve its products for students.

• Making The Grade: Where the iPad still excels over Chromebooks regardless of price
• Making The Grade: Does repairability of Mac laptops matter?
• Making The Grade: AppleCare+ is a terrible investment for iPad deployments
• Making The Grade: Is Apple TV a worthy add-on in the classroom?
• Making The Grade: Which case do I recommend for iPad deployments?
• Making The Grade: How iPads put digital whiteboards on life support

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Featured in top image: Dell 38-inch UltraSharp Curved Monitors, Grovemade’s Desk Shelf System, Nixie Tube Clock, Apogee Quartet, KRK VXT6 Studio Monitor speakers, Classicbot Classic Vintage Mac Toy. Read about the setup over on 9to5Toys as part of the ‘Behind the Screens’ series.