Apple generates a lot of news, and it can be hard to keep up. If your mind was on other things this week, our roundup of Apple-related headlines will bring you up to date.
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WWDC is go!
WWDC kicks off on on Monday 7 June so the week ahead is likely to be filled with Apple news and hopefully some nice new products, or at least some new software to get excited about. Get ready for the WWDC keynote on Monday – it will start at 6pm in the UK, or 10am if you are in California.
Check our our WWDC article where we discuss all the products that might launch at the show. Plus we’ve embedded Apple’s livestream at the top of that page, so you will be able to watch the WWDC Keynote as it happens. Read What will Apple launch at WWDC 2021.
One new product that’s a hot tip for WWDC is a new MacBook Pro. Adding heat to the rumour is a listing on a Chinese licensing authority database that reveals details about the upcoming duo of laptops. Read the latest 14in MacBook Pro and 16in MacBook Pro news for more .
While we’re discussing the MacBook Pro, the arrival of a mini-LED display also looks likely. Despite COVID-related delays and global component shortages Apple is back on track to launch new MacBook Pro models with mini LED.
Bugs & problems
Usually operating system updates are a cause for celebration, but some times Apple lets a problem slip in. With iOS 14.6 the problem seems to be rapidly depleting battery life and overheating.
Some iPhone users have complained that their batteries are draining more quickly and that their iPhones are overheating after installing iOS 14.6. There are reports that the problem is related to Podcasts or background activity in the Music app. Hopefully, Apple will fix the problem in iOS 14.7, which is currently being beta tested.
It’s not only iPhone users who are experiencing problems. Some Apple Watch Series 3 owners have reported problems updating to the latest version of watchOS. Usually Apple suggests deleting some apps to make space, but this time the company is saying to restore the system completely before updating. The problem seems to be lack of space on these 8GB Apple Watches. For more advice about updating the software on an Apple Watch read our guide.
In Apple’s M1 has a security flaw and it doesn’t matter we explain why a security hole called M1RACLES isn’t really a threat to M1 Macs, despite the error being reminiscent of the well-known Intel security deficiencies Meltdown and Spectre.
The rumour mill
Apple expert Mark Gurman over on Bloomberg has been talking AirPods. He predicts that we will see new AirPods that look like AirPods Pro thanks to their shorter stems in 2021, and AirPods Pro with no stems at all, but not until 2022. Read: New AirPods will have short stems or no stems.
That’s not all we heard of the AirPods this week. New AirPod cases that appeared online include a cut out for a speaker, leading to speculation that the new case will be able to chime if you lost it.
When the new iPhone arrives this autumn it will apparently offer support for mmWave in various places that can’t currently support the faster 5G format (fingers crossed for the UK). The new phones will also offer bigger, better batteries, according to another report. Read: iPhone 13 brings better battery and faster 5G.
The iPad Pro gained a mini-LED when Apple updated it in May 2021, but, apparently, the next iPad Air will not. Instead an iPad Air with OLED display will arrive in 2022. Apple is said to have negotiated deliveries of OLED displays with Samsung and LG to be used for the iPad Air.
The MacBook Air used to come in two sizes 11in and 13in (until the 11in model was discontinued) but it seems that we could have seen an even larger MacBook Air. An internal email from non other than Steve Jobs referenced a 15in MacBook Air.
Apple’s plans for the Mac Pro got some attention this week thanks to some new concept images that were designed based on leaks from Jon Prosser. Here’s how the smaller Mac Pro Apple is said to be working on could look:
Finally, if you thought you’d heard the last of Apple’s AirPower charger you’d be wrong. Apple reportedly continues to work on AirPower. Apple is also looking at introducing iPads that wirelessly charge too!
And that’s it for this week. See you next Saturday, and stay Appley!
Author: Karen Haslam, Editor
Macworld editor since 2008, Karen has worked on both sides of the Apple divide, clocking up a number of years at Apple's PR agency prior to joining Macworld two decades ago.
Karen's career highlights include interviewing Apple's Steve Wozniak and discussing Steve Jobs’ legacy on the BBC. Her focus is Mac, but she lives and breathes Apple.