Table of contents for 205 in iPad & iPhone User

In a surprising twist a month after its release, Apple changed the configuration of the GPU in the new iPad Air. The technical specifications for the iPad Air now say that its M2 chip has a 9-core GPU, instead of the 10 cores stated during the product’s release at May’s ‘Let Loose’ event. Apple’s iPad Air press release (fave.co/3KsxmEv) and the iPad Air specifications page in the support section (fave.co/3X9eMsD, different from the specs on the product page) had listed a 10-core GPU at the time of writing. Both of those web pages have since been corrected. During the iPad Air section of the ‘Let Loose’ event video (fave.co/3KwX8Y0), Apple doesn’t actually state the M2’s number of CPU and GPU cores. Apple says that all of its GPU performance claims…

At least once a year (and frequently twice) Apple shakes up the colours of its iPhone range. This is the subject of surprisingly feverish speculation: is yellow going to face the axe in 2024? Will white make the cut? What’s the fate of green? The latest word, in fact, is that white is in and yellow is out, at least on the standard iPhone models. On the Pro and Pro Max for 2024, meanwhile, we’re believed to be getting a new ‘rose’ finish. This is all according to Ming-Chi Kuo (fave.co/3X8dIFa), a reputable analyst with a long history of decently accurate predictions. In Apple land, rose generally means a pinkish gold. It was highly popular back in the days of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 7, but has been scarce…

In early April, Apple made a surprise decision to allow retro game emulators in the App Store. With them, you can now play old classic games from early game consoles and arcades, but the legalities around doing so are a little complicated. Here’s what you need to know about retro game emulation on iPhone and iPad, including some of the top apps, how they work, and what to do about ROMs. WHAT IS RETRO GAME EMULATION? The processor in your iPhone (or laptop or home PC) is many times more powerful than the processors used in old classic arcade games or home consoles like the NES, SNES, Genesis, Game Boy, and so on. That means today’s devices are capable of playing older games without breaking a sweat, which is where…

Apple’s iPads now all use the universal USB-C connector port rather than Apple’s old Lightning connector. The M1/M2/M4 iPad Pro models use the even more capable but identical-looking (and compatible to USB-C) Thunderbolt connection (USB4). What many people don’t realise is that the USB-C port is good for more than charging or plugging in wired earbuds. Apple’s tablets can also be used with other peripherals that transform it into an even more versatile computer. As such, iPad owners have a wide range of USB-C accessories available to them unless their older iPad still uses the Lightning connector. Some of the USB-C hubs connect directly into the iPad. Others require a cable connection; some come with both, which helps when the iPad is in a protective case. We have also included…

Apple’s location services are handy, with many useful functions such as Find My, maps, routes, and Emergency SOS calls. However, researchers at the University of Maryland (fave.co/3yPHS6d) have discovered a crucial vulnerability in the way Apple’s location services work, which could allow an unauthorized person to access data on millions of routers and potentially information on a person’s movements without much effort. Erik Rye and Dave Levin from the University of Maryland have discovered one aspect of Apple’s location services that works strangely. POSITIONING VIA WLAN INSTEAD OF GPS GPS and its constant queries are energy-intensive, so smartphone manufacturers try to use alternatives when available. An economical method of determining a device’s location is to analyse the data from surrounding Wi-Fi networks and calculate location based on the networks detected…

Price: £99 from fave.co/4bNt3PV Battery cases – phone cases that host a small battery so you can recharge a fading phone on the move – used to be a must-have option for iPhone users but are now rare. Apple made a great battery case, the Apple Smart Battery Case, that was initially laughed at for its humped back but was a cherished phone-power saviour for many of us. Apple stopped making them when it released the iPhone 12. Back in those days, the most well-known and trusted battery case brand was Mophie, now owned by accessory maker Zagg, with its ultra-popular Juice Pack range. However, the last Mophie Juice Pack release was in 2019, for the iPhone 11 series. Owners of the iPhone 12, 13 and 14 had no Apple…

Sonos has been a beloved brand for years, especially among Apple fans. It’s easy to see why: from the slick product design to the thoughtful eco-friendly packaging, Sonos offers a very Apple-like experience. Their home speakers and sound bars have a very ‘it just works’ quality that may not satisfy the kind of audio nerds that demand extreme control via a large receiver, but for everyone else looks and sounds great. One audio area Sonos hasn’t even attempted, in almost 20 years on the market, is headphones. Sonos Ace changes all that. The first headphones from the Sonos brand, the Ace are direct competitors to the likes of AirPods Max, Bose QuietComfort Ultra, Sony WH-1000XM5, et al. In other words, they’re over-the-ear wireless headphones with active noise cancelling and a…

When Apple unveiled the new iPad Pro and iPad Air at its Let Loose event in early May, the most notable change was the new location for the front camera. Following the 10th-gen iPad’s lead, Apple finally moved the camera to the longer ‘landscape’ edge, making FaceTime calls much more natural when docked. However, while the camera placement is an obvious nod to users favouring the iPad as a landscape device, Apple didn’t change the orientation of the Apple logo on the back of the device, which is the same as it has been since the original iPad launched in 2010. However, a new report from French-language site Numerama (fave.co/4e6LtwK) claims that Apple might be finally ready to go all-in on landscape. In an interview with some of the members…

Apple has placed a job ad (fave.co/3yKXUOL) for a senior Android engineer, in a signal that its walled garden strategy may soon have to change. The new recruit will work on an Apple TV app for Google’s mobile platform. The ad, which inexplicably calls the platform ‘android’ with a lower-case A in three out of five instances, says the Apple TV app team “is looking for a proactive, hard-working and experienced senior android [sic] engineer to lead the development of fun new features, and to help build an application used by millions to watch and discover tv [sic] and sports”. There has technically been an Android TV+ app before now – the Chromecast version of the service runs on Android – but this appears to be something more squarely aimed…

It’s kind of hard to believe today, given how wildly successful the iPhone has been, that in the product’s early days there was only a single iPhone model for sale. It wasn’t until ten years ago, in 2014, that Apple introduced two different iPhone models, the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. But that opened the floodgates, and Apple has spent the last ten years trying to find the right combination of new iPhone models to maximize the money it makes from its most important product. If reports are true, next year Apple’s going to be switching things up again, dropping the iPhone Plus for a dramatic new model. After the discontinuation of the iPhone mini after two years and the (apparent) death of the iPhone Plus after three, what…

Apple did an interesting thing when it revealed its new M4 iPad Pro: of the four storage options available, the 1TB and 2TB models come with an M4 chip with 10 CPU cores. The lower-priced 256GB and 512GB iPad Pros have a CPU with nine processing cores, one fewer than the higher-storage models. It’s the first time Apple has offered an M-series CPU with an odd number of cores. Tying the additional CPU core to higher storage tiers is something of an up-sell. Someone who might not want to pay Apple’s high storage prices might be swayed by the more powerful chip. It’s an intriguing tactic, but the question is, how much improvement does that single additional core provide? Well, that’s what benchmark tools are for. Using Geekbench 6, we…

Price: £49 from fave.co/4aJLfJ6 If you’re serious about getting a better handle on your iPhone gaming, consider a gamepad, an external device that provides physical controls – actual buttons, joysticks, direction pads, and more. One like the GameSir 2Xs Type C controller, which works with the iPhone 15 series of phones. The ‘Type C’ in the name gently refers to its USB-C connector that plugs into the iPhone 15 (it also works with Android phones). The 2Xs cradles the iPhone; just pull the 2Xs apart and place the iPhone in. The cradle is rubberized, so there is minimal risk of scratching the phone. It also gently squeezes the phone for a secure fit. The USB-C connector is adjustable so regardless of how thick or thin the phone is, the fit…

Price: £199 from fave.co/3yOadtz The Beats Solo 3 were released in late 2016, and 7.5 years is definitely too long to wait for a refresh of the “affordable” on-ear model of one of the world’s most popular headphone brands. As you would expect, a lot has changed. Gone is the ancient Apple W1 chip in favour of a proprietary technology platform that supports lots of modern features for both Apple and Android devices. Sound quality is improved and the battery lasts 25 percent longer. But they still look like Beats, and sound like Beats, and do very little to move the brand or category forward. There’s nothing wrong with the Solo 4 headphones – they’re good. But with such a long gap from the prior model, they only just meet…

Reports have emerged that Apple could be changing the iPhone’s design. According to Ice Universe on X (fave.co/3yO6dJu), the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max will “become the world’s narrowest bezel mobile phone,” beating out the Galaxy S24’s 1.52mm bezels. The current iPhone 15 Pro models have bezels that are 1.55mm thick, so we’re not talking about a dramatic difference. However, as Ice Universe points out, the slimmer bezels will bring the iPhone 16 Pro “very close to the dream form [factor].” My friend confirmed that iPhone 16 Pro will reduce bezel, surpassing Galaxy S24 to become the world’s narrowest bezel mobile phone, which seems to be very close to the dream form. ICE UNIVERSE (@UniverseIce) 2 June, 2024 Rumours have been swirling for months that Apple is planning to…

iPhones are great gaming devices, thanks to powerful chipsets such as the A17 Max, along with bright, high pixel density OLED displays capable of 120Hz refresh rates. The iPhone also has a huge library of games, with iOS often getting the newest premium games before Android does and, thanks to Apple’s superior hardware and software integration, you can expect excellent performance. If you enjoy mobile gaming and want to know the best iPhone for gaming, then we’re here to help. We’ll run through our recommendations of the best iPhones for gaming and then explain some of the main things to consider when choosing the one that matches your needs. BEST iPHONE FOR GAMING 1. Apple iPhone 15 Pro Price: £899 from fave.co/4c37o68 This has all the power of the iPhone…

Which iPad should you buy? There are a lot of choices and it can be confusing. There are four different varieties of iPad, listed below, and each is available with or without cellular (including 5G on certain models), which costs extra. That’s before we get into storage capacity, colours, and second-hand alternatives. Our in-depth buying guide assesses the whole range of iPads sold by Apple and explores all the factors that should influence your buying decision, such as value for money, how much storage you need and whether or not to buy a cellular version. We also reveal whether an updated version of each device is likely to be launched soon – answering the question of whether now is a good time to buy an iPad. SPECIFICATIONS iPad (10th gen)…

Technology improvements are a bit like going to a movie or a magic show: you want to be wowed, but it works best when you don’t see what’s going on behind the scenes. You don’t want to know about the trapdoor, or the strings holding people up as they soar through the air, even if it gives some appreciation for the difficulty of the production, it robs it of some of its power and awe. Apple ends up having to ride this line a lot. At the root of its ethos has been the desire to provide technology that feels magical and amazing to its customers. With every year that goes by and every new device that comes out, Apple wants to boast about its impressive new functionality, but some…

Price: £79 from fave.co/3yOU2Mu If you own multiple Apple portable devices such as an iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods as many of us do, a one-piece charging station is a great way to save desk space, tidily gather everything together and reduce cable clutter. You can then relax in the knowledge that you don’t have to root around for three or more separate cables and wall chargers. Everything is immediately at your disposal. Multi-device chargers come in various shapes and sizes: flat pads, taller stands, folding travel packages and power banks. The Anker MagGo Wireless Charging Station (3-in-1 Pad) is a long flat strip with flexible charging modules for iPhone, AirPods and Apple Watch. It uses the latest Qi2 wireless charging technology that is based on Apple’s own MagSafe standards.…

Can a Sonos home audio product succeed if it’s isolated from the company’s synergistic networking ecosystem? We’re about to find out as Sonos wades into the crowded and hyper-competitive noise-cancelling headphone market with the £449 Sonos Ace. The Sonos brand is nearly synonymous with whole-home audio, thanks to the company’s pioneering work building speakers and amplifiers that connect over wireless mesh networks, but its first headphones are based on Bluetooth 5.4, not Wi-Fi. As such, Sonos will be competing with such entrenched brands as Apple, Bose, Sennheiser, and Sony. Sonos’ first cans – available in black or soft white – arrived on 5 June. As befits a product in this price range, the Sonos Ace will feature custom-designed 40mm drivers; support for both Dolby Atmos and Sony 360 Reality spatial…