Filipe Espósito

Apple this week launched the Apple Musical Classical app in some Asian countries, including China and Japan. Although the app was launched last year in dozens of countries, it wasn’t available to users located in Asia until now.

HBO Max last year was rebranded to just “Max” following the platform’s merge with Discovery+. While the rebrand was first launched exclusively in the U.S., Warner (which owns the streaming platform) is set to turn HBO Max into just Max in Latin American countries next month.

As part of the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) antitrust legislation, big tech companies will be forced to change many of their services to comply with the new legislation. You’re probably already familiar with the upcoming changes to the App Store, but DMA will also affect messaging apps – and it looks like Meta has already been working on making WhatsApp compatible with third-party chats.

Samsung last week announced the new Galaxy S24 lineup, which comes in three different models: the S24, S24+, and S24 Ultra. While the new phones are available for pre-order and will hit stores later this month, Samsung kindly let me try out the base model of the Galaxy S24 a few days early. Read on as I detail what’s new in the Galaxy S24 and how it compares to the iPhone 15 lineup.

X (formerly known as Twitter) last year announced that it would no longer support SMS as a two-factor authentication (2FA) method for users who are not X Premium subscribers. Luckily for users, the platform is now rolling out support for passkeys in its iOS app to improve account security.

Back in 2022, the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service (FAS) in Russia accused Apple of anti-competitive practices when it comes to the iOS App Store. Last year, the regulator decided to fine the U.S. company 1.2 billion rubles (which was $17.4 million at the time), and now the Russian government claims to have finally received the money from Apple.

Apple has partnered with ZEISS to provide corrective lenses made specifically for Vision Pro, and customers can buy these optical inserts directly from Apple when ordering a Vision Pro. However, what some people may not know is that the device requires some kind of special pairing process to work with the ZEISS Optical Inserts.

Apple on Monday released iOS 17.3 along with other software updates that come with new features, including collaborative playlists for Apple Music subscribers. The feature lets you team up with other people to create shared playlists where everyone can contribute songs. And to promote the update, Apple has shared a new video about it with the hosts of Rap Life Review.

Apple on Monday released iOS 17.3 and macOS Sonoma to the public. The updates bring some new features, such as collaborative playlists in Apple Music and a new Stolen Device Protection mode for iPhone users. However, both updates also come with more than 10 security fixes. Read on as we detail what exactly has been fixed with today’s updates.

Following the release of iOS 17.3, macOS Sonoma 14.3, and watchOS 10.3, Apple is also releasing the tvOS 17.3 update for Apple TV users. There’s also a HomePod Software update available, so read on as we detail what’s new with today’s update.

Apple last week teased its new 2024 Black Unity collection for the Apple Watch, which includes a new watch band as well as a new watch face for the Apple Watch. The company is now releasing watchOS 10.3 to users, which enables the new Unity Bloom watch face.

Pre-orders for the Apple Vision Pro began this Friday in the United States, with prices starting at $3,499. Customers can also buy some accessories, such as a Travel Case and ZEISS corrective lenses. To buy these optical inserts, customers must upload a valid prescription – and Apple is now informing customers whether or not their prescription has been approved.

Apple recently announced a new offer for Apple Card holders. This time, the company is offering up to three months free subscription to most of its online services, including Apple TV+ and Apple Music. Read on as we detail how you can take advantage of the benefit.

After having sales of the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 banned in the US due to a patent dispute, Apple was able to put these models back in stores by switching off the blood oxygen feature. It was still somewhat unclear how exactly Apple was doing this, but 9to5Mac learned not only the method Apple has been using to limit the feature in the US, but also that this update was ready months ago.

Apple on Thursday began selling revised models of the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 in the US without the blood oxygen feature as the company faces a patent dispute with medical company Masimo. In the midst of this situation, Masimo CEO Joe Kiani said that Apple Watch users are better off without the blood oxygen feature, as he calls it unreliable.

Earlier this month, Apple confirmed that it will open its seventh retail store in Seoul’s Mapo District, near Hongik University Station in South Korea. Named Apple Hongdae, the store will open on Saturday, January 20, and the company has now teased what it will look like.

WhatsApp on Wednesday announced an update to its Channels feature, which lets someone broadcast messages to a large number of users who follow that channel. With the update, WhatsApp Channels now support audio messages, polls, and more. Read on as we detail what changes with the update.

After a long legal dispute, the US Supreme Court ruled today that Apple will have to relax some of its App Store policies. More specifically, the company now has to let developers offer alternative payment methods. Still, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney isn’t happy with the final terms and says the company will contest Apple’s “bad-faith compliance plan.”

iMessage is certainly one of the most popular messaging platforms in the US, which has resulted in long-standing discussion about its interoperability with non-Apple devices. While some users are waiting for the iPhone to get RCS support later this year, it seems that Meta has been taking advantage of this situation as WhatsApp’s daily active user base has grown in the U.S. But will it ever overtake iMessage?

A few months ago, developers with access to an Apple Vision Pro Developer Kit were given access to the App Store to download compatible iPhone and iPad apps. As Vision Pro arrives in stores in February, Apple has made it possible for developers to submit their apps to the App Store. Starting today, these visionOS apps are now rolling out to users.

Apple Vision Pro will arrive in stores in a few weeks, and more details about the product have been revealed over the last few days. We know, for example, how Apple plans to demo the device in its stores and that some apps won’t be available at launch. But there’s one feature that Apple may have cut from the final version of Vision Pro.