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Apple reported its quarterly results for the all-important holiday quarter and if anyone had any doubt about its ability to sell things, well, I’ll let the numbers tell the story: In the quarter ending 31 December, 2020 (Apple’s Q1 of fiscal 2021), Apple posted revenue of $111.4 billion for a ridiculous 21 per cent year-over-year growth. That’s simply staggering and the first time the company has surpassed $100 billion in sales. Every product category posted year-over-year growth, with the iPhone, Wearables, and Services all posting record highs. Here are the eye-popping revenue numbers with their year-over-year growth: iPhone: $66 billion (17%) Mac: $8.7 billion (21%) iPad: $8.4 billion (41%) Wearables: $13 billion (29% Services: $15.8 billion (17%) It’s gotten to the point where Apple is running out of room to…

A recent report from Bloomberg gives us some updated information on Apple’s virtual reality and augmented reality plans. Mark Gurman, who has a very good record with these sorts of insider-info leaks, says that Apple plans to first sell a very high-end VR (virtual reality) headset as early as next year before moving on to AR (augmented reality) glasses in a few years. The report claims that Apple “isn’t looking to create an iPhone-like hit for its first headset”, but rather a high-end, expensive, niche product that would appeal to developers and well-heeled consumers, preparing everyone for an eventual mass-market AR glasses product. The headset, code-named N301, is expected to be more expensive than VR products from Oculus, so much so that Apple may only sell a single unit a…

The more things change, the more things stay the same. For the past several years, the comic strip Doonesbury has been in re-runs for its weekday strips; this past week’s series, hailing from 1995, dated from the release of Windows 95, in which one of the strip’s characters pointed out the superiority of Apple’s Macintosh, only to be brought back down to earth by the reality of Microsoft’s platform dominance. More than a quarter of a century later, Apple has become one of the most valuable and pervasive companies in the world, but, some things clearly haven’t changed that much. CEO Tim Cook said in the firm’s latest quarterly financial call, “...we really don’t have a significant share in any market”. Cook was speaking specifically of the iPhone, which is…

Apple’s new AirPods Max have arrived, bringing a wealth of audio splendour to your ears, so long as you have the copious funds required to buy them. But what if you have trouble connecting them to your iPhone or other device? Here’s the quick and easy way to reboot them or even return the AirPods Max to factory settings if things go awry. HOW TO REBOOT AIRPODS MAX If you find you’re having problems with audio or the connection to your device, then a good idea is to quickly reboot the AirPods Max to see if that clears the issue. Yes, it’s the old ‘have you tried turning it off and on again?’ solution. To do this, look for the two buttons on the upper edge of the right enclosure.…

Apple’s no stranger to introducing and popularizing new technologies. The original iMac wasn’t the first to use USB, but it drove adoption of the standard. Multitouch displays existed before the iPhone, but it was the first real commercial product offering it. Sometimes those technologies take a while to gestate, though. And there may be no better example in recent years than Apple’s take on ultra-wideband, or UWB. Like those other technologies, ultra-wideband isn’t new as a concept, but it’s something that hasn’t really found a home in the consumer market. In 2019, Apple released the iPhone 11 series and included a custom chip dubbed the U1. During the introduction, Apple talked up the amazing properties of the U1, and how it could be used to not only track the location…

Apple launched its hotly-anticipated new fitness service in December, but after the initial shine of a ‘new Apple thing’ wore off, it has proven to be rather unremarkable. Fitness+ is just… okay. If you want to work out along with fitness videos, and you own an Apple Watch, it will let you do that. It’s a quality set of videos, well-produced with excellent instructors. But that’s really all it is. The launch of Apple’s new ‘Time to Walk’ feature offers hope that Fitness+ will break out of its ho-hum existence in the well-trodden ground of so many other fitness video services. Apple’s opportunity in fitness is so much greater than streaming pre-recorded workout videos. WELL-MADE WORKOUT VIDEOS IS NOT ENOUGH At its heart, Fitness+ is a nice set of well-made…

What started out with an earnings warning, stock drop and store closures ended up being a very successful year for Apple. Nearly every product in Apple’s catalogue saw a refresh, a couple of new ones joined the fray, and tens of millions of devices were sold to happy customers. Here’s our 2020 Apple product report card, where we give each segment of Apple’s business a grade from A to F. iPHONE New products: iPhone SE, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max Michael Simon: First came the iPhone SE, which somehow made the iPhone 8 feel fresh again with a speedy chip, better camera and lower price tag. Then we got OLED displays and 5G support across the board, better cameras, a new design and…

There’s the thing about being one of the most prominent – and, by some measurements most valuable – companies in the world: it paints a hell of a target on your back. Apple has long found itself on the receiving end of attacks from competitors, smaller challengers, and the government, and that hasn’t changed in recent years. But as we flip our calendars over to 2021, there are already a handful of battles in progress that could have marked effects on Apple’s business in both the short and long terms. Of course, a company with as many resources as Apple may be able to weather the occasional squall, but every once in a while you get a perfect storm that’s harder to fend off. Let’s take a look at these…

Apple’s recent announcement might not have been as exciting as a new iPhone, but its impact could be just as monumental. As part of its previously announced $100 million investment in the Racial Equity and Justice Initiative, the tech giant recently unveiled several ways it will be using its sizable investment. First and foremost, Apple will be launching a “first-of-its-kind global innovation and learning hub” called the Propel Center (pictured left) in partnership with the Southern Company and “a range of community stakeholders”. Apple is contributing $25 million to the Atlanta campus, which it says “is designed to support the next generation of diverse leaders, providing innovative curricula, technology support, career opportunities, and fellowship programs”. The centre will offer a wide range of classes, including a curriculum focused on music…

According to the Economic Daily News, which has a somewhat shaky track record but did accurately predict the iPhone SE more than a year before its release, Apple has a couple of folding iPhone prototypes moving their way through development. Apple’s folding phone ambitions have previously been revealed through rumours and patents, but the Economic Daily News sheds a bit more light on the technology. The publication says Apple is developing two new devices with plans to bring just one of them to market. One of the phones reportedly has a dual-screen design that comes together to form a single screen, while the other opens vertically like the Galaxy Z Flip. The report says that Apple is testing both models at its Foxconn factory in Shenzhen to gauge the durability…

Price: £549 from fave.co/2KUPqfm Apple’s latest expansion of the AirPods brand is a set of large over-the-ear wireless headphones. The AirPods Max look great, sound great and are quite comfortable despite their heavy weight. They’re also £549, a difficult price to justify when the competition (primarily the Sony WH-1000XM4 and the Bose 700) are around £200 to £250 less. In some ways, the AirPod Max give you what you pay for. Build quality is unmatched at any price, and there are some clever design flourishes. But there are also a few compromises worth noting, like a ‘Smart Case’ that is anything but. For those embedded in the Apple ecosystem, the AirPods Max will be worth considering when they’re on sale for £449 or less, but it’s otherwise hard to justify…

No matter what Apple product you buy, you can be assured of three things: it’ll ‘just work’ out of the box, it’ll do exactly what you want it to do and it’ll last as long as you need it to. That’s the not-so-secret secret to Apple’s success. It might sell more devices than ever, but it’s never going to be like Google or Amazon and blanket the landscape with products, so the ones it makes are built to make an instant impact. Instead of cramming as many features as possible into the latest iPhone, for example, Apple chose the ones that will matter most, even if it means lagging behind its competitors with things such as super zoom and 120Hz displays. It’s all part of Apple’s philosophy: a thousand nos…

Apple has launched a new component of Fitness+ designed to get people out of their homes and away from their TVs. Called Time to Walk, it’s the first outdoor element of Fitness+ and opens the service up to a new world of workouts. Apple seemingly goes out of its way to not call them podcasts, but Time to Walk is a very much in the vein. Each ‘experience’ is an audio-only episode ranging from 25 to 40 minutes that requires an Apple Watch and a pair of Bluetooth headphones. Each episode features a famous guest who recorded their stories while ‘walking outside or in locations that are meaningful to them’, so it will feel like you’re going on a walk alongside them. At launch, there are four episodes featuring musicians…

Price: £199 from fave.co/3coFFRU Razer is stepping out of the world of gaming with the release of Opus, a pair of over-the-ear active noise cancelling (ANC) headphones priced at £200. Opus is THX certified, has a very muted design (especially for Razer), and a fairly limited feature set. The sound is relatively clear and powerful and favours a bright sound stage, but the noise cancelling is lacking against some of the top ANC headphones such as the Sony WH-1000XM3 despite it’s advanced design. It’s available now in Midnight Blue, with a Black option coming at a later date. FEATURES The Razer Opus features 40mm drivers inside a lightweight headset with plush leatherette memory foam ear cushions, weighing in at 265g. It connects by a 3.5mm analogue cable (included) or Bluetooth…

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Okay, for most of us 2020 wasn’t the best of times. But on the iOS front, Apple definitely seemed to be in a feast-or-famine mode. The company released five new iPhone models (don’t forget the second-generation iPhone SE), and there was a major iPad Air revision that basically turned it into a low-end iPad Pro. The iPad Pro got an underwhelming update – but an amazing new accessory in the Magic Keyboard for iPad. There was more to cheer than boo in the iPhone and iPad world in 2020, and that puts it pretty much ahead of most of the world. But can 2021 deliver something better? It’s time for some predictions. LUCKY NUMBER 13 The past two…

We’ve heard rumours that Apple is on the verge of launching some products with Mini LED display technology. It could come to MacBooks, iPads, iMacs – anything with a display, though it’s unlikely to ever end up in Apple Watch or iPhone (which use OLED displays). What is a Mini LED display and what will it do for you? This short explanation may help you understand why this technology can be such a big step forward for Apple’s products. A BETTER BACKLIT LCD To understand Mini LED, you first have to know the basics of how a traditional backlit LCD works. That’s what we have in all our iPads, MacBooks and iMacs today. It can get complicated, but in short, there’s a backlight (usually white), with an LCD layer on…

Apple has launched a new limited-edition Apple Watch Series 6, Sport Band, and watch face, as well as “a variety of new and updated collections and exclusive content that highlight and amplify Black creators, artists, developers, and businesses” to celebrate Black History Month in February. The Apple Watch Series 6 looks the same as the Space Gray aluminium model with one change: on the back, there is a laser-etched bold ‘Black Unity’ around the heart-rate sensor where the model description is. Apple has decreased the kerning on the rest of the words to fit the phrase, which appears in the top right of the circle. The special-edition watch also includes a new Black Unity Sport Band, which has ‘Truth. Power. Solidarity’ laser-engraved onto the interior of the black fastening pin…

We all saw it coming. Despite a global pandemic and economic and political unrest, the indefatigable Apple money machine would continue to chug away. Traditionally, the last three months of the calendar year are Apple’s best, and Apple’s been on an upswing in recent quarters. If you placed a bet that the company’s first financial quarter of 2021 (covering the holiday season of 2020) would be an all-time record – well, you would’ve won, but only a sucker would’ve taken the bet. All product categories and regions were up. It was a veritable downpour of up arrows. And yet, amid Apple CEO Tim Cook’s continued embarrassment that Apple continues to generate enormous sales and profits at a time when so much of the world is in turmoil, there were (as…

Apple has moved to clarify the conditions under which its new AirPods Max will turn themselves off. The headphones haven’t got a physical power button, and there have been some complaints about users having to use the (widely criticized) case to trigger low-power mode and preserve battery life. In fact, Apple says in an updated support article, putting the AirPods Max in the Smart Case immediately triggers low-power mode, but it isn’t the only way to do this. And there’s a deeper, ultra-low-power mode that offers still greater battery preservation. When the headphones are taken off and put to one side – but not in the case – they will enter low-power mode after five stationary minutes. After another 72 hours like this, the headphones will go into an even…

The year has barely begun and we already have our first heavyweight smartphone battle of 2021. Samsung has released its line-up of Galaxy S21 phones a little earlier than usual this year, and it’s clear they have Apple’s newest phone in its sights. Samsung hasn’t reinvented the S21 as much as it’s retooled it to take on the iPhone 12, with a lower price point, sharper design, and some new camera tricks. Here’s how the two £800 smartphones stack up. DESIGN Samsung’s Galaxy S is always at the forefront of Android smartphone design and the S21 continues that tradition. Samsung has crafted a truly unique design where the metal sides seamlessly blend into the camera array, as if it were snapped onto the back. The back is made of plastic…

Apple has added an intriguing new feature to the Apple Watch, strictly for those that subscribe to its Fitness+ service. Time to Walk allows you to take a walk while listening to a celebrity’s inspiring tale. The catch is, the celebrity was recorded while they were taking a walk as well, so it sounds a bit like they’re walking along with you. It’s a fun little feature, and while certainly not groundbreaking nor worth subscribing to Fitness+ for on its own, it’s the kind of unique proposition that Apple should continue to add to the service. Here’s how it works. START WITH YOUR WATCH SETTINGS Open the Watch app on your iPhone or the Settings app directly on your Apple Watch. Scroll down to Workout and select it. Then scroll…

Price: £399 from fave.co/36xYiyV Audeze is one of the only headphone makers devoted exclusively to using planar-magnetic (PM) drivers in its products. The company offers a wide range of models, from reference over-ear designs to gaming-specific cans to in-ear monitors, all of which are based on PM technology. I have little experience with planar-magnetic headphones. Many years ago, I reviewed the Stax SR-007 MK2 electrostatic headphones, which use a somewhat similar technology, but they require a special amplifier and are extremely expensive. But I’ve never spent any quality time with PM headphones. So, when I got the opportunity to review the Audeze LCD-1, I jumped at the chance – and now that I’ve given them a good listen, I’m very glad I did. PLANAR-MAGNETIC TECHNOLOGY Most headphones use dynamic drivers…

As 2021 has arrived (and with it, hopefully, an upward swing at last), it’s time to cast our glances to the year ahead. While Apple has no shortage of priorities for the next 10 months, one area that seems as though it might get more attention than usual is the company’s main digital storefront, the App Store. Services continue to be good business for Apple, and the App Store is a major component of that market, but it’s also not without its challenges. Apple has already instituted some changes to its long-running App Store practices, and recent developments have also made it clear that further changes are likely on the way. So what do we have to look forward to in 2021? CUT IT OUT Apple’s newly unveiled Small Business…