iPad & iPhone User 188

Apple customers in the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Sweden and Poland can now use the company’s iPhone self-repair programme, which launched in the US in 2021. After years of resistance to user repairs, Apple finally moved to offer some accommodation for anyone who wishes to fix devices themselves, and it is now welcoming even more DIY repairers into its programme. The European countries have been added as drop-down menu options on the company’s selfservicerepair.com website. It’s not clear at this point if and when Apple plans to add more countries. The programme lets users order certified genuine replacement parts and repair tools for their Apple products (limited to the iPhone and Mac at present), and offers free manuals to help them perform the repairs. The company also encourages users…

Apple deployed illegal means to suppress unionization in Atlanta this year, according to a ruling from the NLRB. The Cupertino company is accused of “interrogating and coercing” employees, Bloomberg reports (fave.co/3WX1r31), discriminating against union supporters, and holding mandatory anti-union meetings. Despite the ruling, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has no power to impose punitive damages, but its actions may lead to a federal case if Apple declines its remedies. The NLRB concluded that Apple violated federal law by interrogating and coercing employees, and while the board has historically declined to rule against mandatory anti-union meetings, it is indicating that this may change in the near future. General counsel Jennifer Abruzzo argues that “captive audience” gatherings are inherently coercive and illegal, and is pursuing cases against other companies that may change…

Apple’s mixed-reality headset, arguably its most highly anticipated new product launch, has been hit by yet another delay. The respected industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicts that it may have been pushed back from the second quarter of 2023 to the second half of that year. In a Twitter thread largely focused on the impact of the delay on supplier firms, Kuo cites unspecified “software issues” as the reason for the change. One result of this, he says, is that fewer than 500,000 units will be shipped in 2023, down from the previous estimate of between 800,000 and 1.2 million. My latest survey indicates that themass shipment schedule of Apple’sMR headset may delay to 2H23because of software-related issues (vsthe previous estimate of 2Q23).(Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo)4 December, 2022 Kuo notes, however, that it “still needs…

Ever since the iPhone 14 Plus arrived in October, we’ve been hearing reports that it’s been sitting on shelves. Now it appears as though the situation is so dire, Apple may implement a whole new strategy with the iPhone 15. According to a post by yeux1122 on Naver, the flagging sales of the iPhone 14 Plus are “far beyond” even Apple’s lowest estimates and Apple is considering new strategies with the iPhone 15 to reverse the trend. Apple plans its phone releases years in advance, so it’s unlikely to cancel its plans for the iPhone 15 Plus. However, Apple is “seriously” considering a price reduction. The iPhone 14 Plus starts at £949 while the iPhone 14 Pro Max, which has the same screen size, costs just £250 more with numerous extra features:…

If you’ve been anxiously waiting for a new iPad mini and hoping it will fold, we have some bad news. According to well-respected analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the iPad mini 7 won’t be much different than the iPad mini 6. In a short Twitter thread (fave.co/3GeemH1), Kuo dumps some cold water on any lingering hopes that Apple may be working on a folding iPad mini mainly due to costs: “A foldable iPad will have a markedly higher price than an iPad mini, so such a replacement is not reasonable.” That makes sense, as foldable phones with smaller screens currently cost well over £1,000 and the iPad mini starts at £569, though we’re not sure what specific rumours he’s referring to. The most recent reports of folding displays from Apple referred to screens…

It was an eventful year for Apple. Not only did we get a new iPhone and iPad, updates to the Apple TV and AirPods Pro, a new standalone display, and a slew of software features, but we also got the first brand-new Mac and Apple Watch in years. But among all those new products, Apple also killed several older devices in 2022. Here are five Apple devices you won’t find for sale on Apple’s website anymore. 1. APPLE WATCH SERIES 3 If there was one product we would have bet a bundle on reaching retirement age in 2022 it would have been the Apple Watch Series 3. Approaching its five-year birthday with an aging design, pokey chip, and single sensor, it was overpriced at half of its £179 MSRP. Unfortunately, its demise…