News on the sidelines week 15 - 21 September

You can use any USB-C cable or accessory to charge iPhone 15 models without restrictions, find the capacity of the Apple Watch 9 and Ultra batteries, any other Apple device can be charged through the iPhone 15, and strong demand for the iPhone 15 Pro Max The iPhone 15 models can be charged very quickly, and Apple TV problems can be solved through the iPhone 15. The 15GB iPhone 128 Pro does not record ProRes 4K video except under one condition, and iFixit increases the degree of difficulty in repairing the iPhone 14 for this reason. And other exciting news on the sidelines...

Apple's 5G modem is three years behind Qualcomm's best chip

In recent years, Apple has tried to design its own modem chip to replace the Qualcomm chips for the iPhone. She hired several engineers for this project, but things did not go well. Apple wanted the new chip to be ready by 2023, but that turned out to be very difficult. Apple's decisions and problems hindered its ideal production. The chip was very slow, overheated, and was too large to fit in an iPhone. Although Apple is good at making its own chips, making modem chips is not easy, it is very complicated. After testing, they found that their chips were far behind Qualcomm's chips. Therefore, Apple had to continue using Qualcomm chips. It may take until 2025 for Apple to make its own modem, and that's good enough. They even extended their deal with Qualcomm for another three years. So, it's been a tough road for Apple's modem project.

Amazon Alexa with Generative AI

Amazon revealed a group of new things. It revealed a future, smarter version of Alexa that competes with GBT Chat, Google Cold, and Microsoft Bing. For example, when you tell Alexa that you feel cold, it will understand that and work to raise the temperature of the place, if your home is smart, of course. Also know if it is too dark in the room and then turn on the lights. It translates into different languages ​​in real time.

As for Echo devices, it announced the new Echo Show 8 with improved sound, better design, and a faster processor. It also announced the Echo Pop Kids smart speaker for children. Amazon also announced Echo Frames and Carrera Smart Glasses with Alexa built-in.

It also announced eero Max 7, its first mesh Wi-Fi 7 system, offering dramatically increased speeds, less interference from neighboring networks, and improved latency.

What else to expect from Apple this year after the iPhone 15 event

It's unlikely there will be another Apple event in October, and analyst Ming-Chi Kuo doesn't expect there to be an announcement of new MacBooks or iPads until the end of this year. While there is a chance of new desktop Macs, such as the iMac with the M3 chip, there are no specific rumors about it. Apple may wait until after the launch of the Vision Pro glasses in early 2024 to announce the M3 chip. Most Apple products, including the iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods Pro, have been updated recently, so there may not be more updates this year. The new HomePod Mini, Apple TV, AirTag devices, and AirPods Max headphones are expected to be announced in 2024, but not in this year, 2023.

The iPhone 15 can charge another iPhone

Since the iPhone 15 models are equipped with USB-C ports, this means that you can use them to charge other iPhones, even older ones, using a dedicated cable prepared for that. If you connect two iPhone 15 models together, they will detect which one needs more power and share it.

Have you ever wondered what happened when you plugged random things into the iPhone 15's new USB port? Well wonder no more

Full iPhone 15/15 Pro Unboxing and first looks is now live: https://t.co/Q5loMQGoh1 pic.twitter.com/TUGh7jlg08

- Brownlee Brands (@MKBHD) September 19, 2023

You can also charge an Apple Watch or AirPods Pro 2, but the charging speed for other iPhones is very slow at 4.5 watts. So, this is good for small devices.

Apple and Goldman Sachs planned to launch an iPhone stock trading feature last year

According to three individuals familiar with the matter who spoke to CNBC, the feature served as a competitor to trading apps like Robinhood, allowing users to buy and sell stocks directly from their iPhone in a convenient way. Apparently one ability that executives touted was the ability to invest in Apple stock using excess cash. This feature would enhance the cooperation between Apple and Goldman Sachs, which now includes Apple Card, Apple Pay, and more recently, Daily Cash Savings.

It is noteworthy that work on the project began in 2020, when interest rates were low and there was record interest in stock trading. Apple developed this feature, and planned to release it sometime in 2022. When markets turned sour last year, Apple and Goldman Sachs put the project on hold; Due to fears of a backlash if users lost money in the stock market, they refocused attention on rising interest rates. Interest savings account for Apple Card users.

The infrastructure for the investment feature appears to be mostly built and ready to launch if Apple decides to go ahead with it, but there's no evidence or indication that it has plans to do so.

Finally: iPhone 15 models show the number of battery cycles

iPhone 15 users will now be able to know the number of battery cycles. Previously, you had to use third-party apps or do some complicated things to find this information. But now, you can simply go to Settings, then General, then About. There, you will see the new “Battery” section at the bottom of the page. It not only shows how many times your battery has gone through charging cycles, but also when it was manufactured and first used. This is useful; Because knowing the number of cycles helps you understand the battery condition. A charging cycle occurs when you use up to 100% of the battery capacity (when it is completely discharged), and this rarely happens. You can use 75% of your battery capacity in a day, then fully recharge it overnight. If you use 25% the next day, it will be counted as 100% discharged, thus counting as one charging cycle. It may take several days to complete the course. The battery capacity will decrease after a certain period of recharging. With lithium-ion batteries, the capacity decreases slightly with each full charge cycle.

So, this feature makes it easy to monitor your iPhone's battery health. Additionally, all iPhone 15 models feature battery health settings that limit charging to 80% to extend battery life throughout the day, and have the same battery life as iPhone 14 models.

Finally, a standalone WhatsApp on the iPad

WhatsApp is close to launching its application for iPad devices. In the latest beta, you can use WhatsApp on an iPad without needing an iPhone nearby. This means you can link your iPad to your WhatsApp account, just like you do with other devices. It's a useful feature because it allows you to use WhatsApp even if your main phone is offline. Messages and calls stay private and secure.

Before that, the WhatsApp application worked on Mac devices and not on iPad devices. Now, this is being tested, and you can try it out if you have the beta on iOS. It is not clear when it will be available to everyone.

iPhone 15 models feature new settings to strictly prevent charging beyond 80%

All iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro models feature a new battery status setting that prevents them from charging more than 80% at all times when enabled. The new setting is separate from the pre-existing Optimized Battery Charging feature, which intelligently delays charging by more than 80%. % even a more convenient time by becoming familiar with the daily charging routine of the device. When the 80% limit is enabled, the iPhone will never charge beyond that point at all.

On all iPhone 15 models, there are three options under Settings, then Battery, then Battery Health & Charging, then Optimize Charging. You will see these three options: “Optimized battery charging, Limit 80%, None.”
As with Optimized Battery Charging, a fixed limit of 80% can improve iPhone battery life by reducing the time the battery is fully charged. This new setting was previously discovered in iOS 17 code.

iFixit increases the difficulty of iPhone 14 repair

iFixit, a website that reviews and rates how easy it is to repair devices, has changed its score for the iPhone 14. Originally, it gave it a good score for ease of repair. But now they have reduced it from 7/10 to 4/10 because Apple has established a new rule for repair. If you want to repair your iPhone using Apple parts, you must make sure that these parts match your phone's serial number. This causes problems for independent repair shops. iFixit believes this rule makes it difficult for people to repair their iPhones without Apple's help. They also talk about a software tool that Apple has to check if parts are real and working well. iFixit says that although Apple is trying to be better at repair things, it still has a long way to go. So, they gave the iPhone 14 a lower score for this reason.

The iPhone 15 Pro with a capacity of 128 GB does not record ProRes 4K video except under one condition

The iPhone 15 Pro, specifically the 128GB model, can only record videos in ProRes quality up to 1080p at 30 frames per second, unless you connect an external storage device. This limitation does not affect the 256GB, 512GB and 1TB models, which can record in 4K ProRes. Apple does not mention this on its website, but it appears when comparing iPhone 15 Pro models in the App Store app.

This limitation was also present in the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro with 128GB storage capacity, but no one was able to use the external storage. This restriction does not include the iPhone 15 Pro Max, which starts with 256GB of storage. ProRes videos are large, and Apple believes that recording 4K ProRes on the 128GB model may not be a good experience. Therefore, it allows the use of external storage now so that the iPhone's storage space does not fill up quickly. ProRes is a high-quality video format used in things like commercials and movies. Note that the standard iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus devices do not support ProRes video recording at all.

Miscellaneous news

◉ Apple launched the iPhone payment feature in Brazil, allowing people to use the iPhone as a contactless payment method. Cloudwalk is the first platform to offer this for Brazilian companies, and will soon be joined by others such as Stone, Nubank, SumUp and Granito. You will need an iPhone XS or later. It is available in more than 700000 companies in the United States and is now available in Brazil, making it the sixth country after the United Kingdom, Australia, Taiwan and the Netherlands.

◉ Starting with iOS 17, iPadOS 17, and macOS Sonoma updates, Apple has made a change in how Voice Memos are stored in iCloud. It now encrypts not only recordings, but also their addresses. This means that if you update to these new versions, your Voice Memo titles on older devices may change to show only the recording date and time. Apple has already used encryption to keep Voice Memos secure during transmission and storage, as described in its support document.

◉ Starting with iOS 17 and tvOS 17 updates, if your Apple TV HD or Apple TV 4K is having issues and showing a black screen with an iPhone icon, you can now fix it with a nearby iPhone. Simply unlock your iPhone, bring it closer to your Apple TV, and follow the on-screen instructions on your iPhone to complete the recovery process. This will restart your Apple TV. Previously, if you had an HD Apple TV, you could restore it using a Mac and a USB-C cable, but this wasn't possible for 4K Apple TV models, and you had to contact Apple Support. Now, with this new way using your iPhone, you won't need to do that. This update also brings new features to Apple TV, like the FaceTime app and a redesigned Control Center.

◉ According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple may upgrade to 2nm chipsets by 2026 from the 3nm chipsets used in the iPhone 15 Pro, which are faster and more efficient. Apple usually uses chip technology for about three years, then upgrades. TSMC, the manufacturer of these chips, is collaborating with ARM to facilitate this transition. Apple and Nvidia could be among the first customers for these 2nm chips.

◉ Apple has introduced two new iCloud storage plans. These new plans come with 6TB and 12TB of storage and cost $29.99 and $59.99 per month, respectively. Apple suggests that the 6TB plan is suitable for photographers and content creators, while the 12TB plan is for more advanced users. The great thing is that these plans can be shared with family members if you use Family Sharing. iCloud Plus also offers some useful features like Private Relay for private web browsing, Hide My Email for creating temporary email addresses, HomeKit Secure Video support, and more.

◉ According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will get the camera feature that is currently available on the iPhone 15 Pro Max only. This feature is a special lens system called tetraprism, which allows you to magnify objects up to 5 times optically and up to 25 times digitally. at present. The iPhone 16 Pro may also have a larger screen, making room for this new lens system.

◉ iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro can be charged very quickly, up to 27 watts, if you use the appropriate charger. Some people thought they could charge faster, like 35W, but that's not true. Apple says that all new iPhones can charge half their battery in about 30 minutes if you use a 20-watt charger or better. So, the $27 39W charger should work well with the iPhone 15 Pro models.

◉ According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, there has been strong demand for the iPhone 15 Pro Max since it became available for pre-order. This demand is higher than what we saw on the iPhone 14 Pro Max last year. While the iPhone 15 Pro is not very popular, demand for it is weaker than it was for the iPhone 14 Pro, perhaps because more people prefer the Pro Max model this time. The iPhone 15 Pro Max features an improved telephoto lens that provides 5x optical zoom, and its starting price in the United States is $1199 for 256GB of storage. Kuo stated that the Pro Max has faced some production delays, and some models may not ship until November. Demand for the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus appears similar to last year's models.

◉ The Google Pixel watch does not have an official repair option, according to a Google spokesperson. If it is damaged, you can contact customer support for replacement options, but there are no repair centers. This differs from the approach Google takes with Pixel phones, which have repair centers and spare parts available. You can replace the screen of your Pixel watch, but finding the replacement part is difficult.

On the other hand, Apple offers repair solutions for the Apple Watch, with different costs depending on whether you have AppleCare Plus. Without it, the cost is $299 or $499, and with AppleCare Plus, the cost is $69 or $79. The Pixel watch screen is easily broken, and Google's warranty does not cover accidents such as drops. So, if it breaks, you may have to get a new one. The Pixel 2 is rumored to have a similar design.

◉ Apple shared some information about the USB-C port in the iPhone 15, and stated that all iPhone 15 models can charge things like the Apple Watch or AirPods with a capacity of 4.5 watts. The Pro version can transfer data at a whopping 10Gbps using USB 3.2 Gen XNUMX, but you'll need a dedicated cable for that. And if you want to use CarPlay in your car with a USB-A port, you can use a USB-C to USB-A cable.

◉ The battery capacity of the Apple Watch 9 and Watch Ultra 2 models was found in a Chinese regulatory database. As for the Apple Watch 9, the 41mm and 45mm models have 282mAh and 308mAh batteries, respectively, which is the same battery capacity as the Apple Watch 8. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 has a 564mAh battery, which is slightly larger than the Apple Watch 542's battery. Apple Ultra 36 mAh battery. Both Ultra models are said to have up to 2 hours of battery life due to the Ultra 9's brighter display and new features. These new watches also offer improvements like brighter displays, a faster SXNUMX chip, a “double tap” gesture, and more.

◉ The iPhone 15 series comes with a standard USB-C port, which means you can use any USB-C cable or accessory without restrictions, unlike previous iPhones that had restrictions on unapproved accessories. This report confirms that there will be no such restrictions on the iPhone 15 models. Like iPad and Mac devices equipped with USB-C ports, you can use your existing USB cables with the new iPhone devices without any significant problems.

◉ Apple said on Friday that it will issue an update to iPhone 12 users in France To address radiation concerns Raised by the country's regulators.

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