iPhone 12 - Page 20 of 30

ARM Macs ahead: Apple announces next special event

Apple’s third autumn event is just around the corner: For the 10. November, the group invited again to a product presentation, which will again take place purely online and will be broadcast as a stream. As usual, Apple does not reveal in advance which devices will be presented there. In addition to the logo illuminated from the background, the invitation only contains the reference to “one more thing” – “one more thing”. Apple founder Steve Jobs used the sentence several times to present – often surprising – new hardware (or software) shortly before the end of a keynote.

Watch – iPads – iPhones – Macs It is after the announcement of Apple Watch Series 6 and iPad Air 4 and the presentation of the iPhone 12 now Apple’s third event in close succession. The first Macs with Apple’s own ARM-based processors – “Apple Silicon” – are likely to be on the program. The company has already announced its introduction for the current year 2020, without giving any specific details about the hardware so far. A “Developer Transition Kit” for developers consists of a Mac mini with Apple’s A 12 Z processor, which is also in the iPad Pro is – but this is not a product that is ultimately offered to end customers, stressed Apple.

It is widely expected that it will be the first Macs, in which a variant of Apple’s A 13 chip is likely to be used, is one or more notebooks. The speculations range from the return of the compact and 86 discontinued 12 “- MacBooks up to a 12” MacBook Air and 13 “MacBook Pro with Apple Silicon. The latter two model series are considered the most popular Macs. Even before the major architecture change, Apple has just set a new sales record for Macs – Can book sales – after the MacBook Air and 12 “MacBook Pro with a more reliable keyboard were reissued.

macOS Big Sur before the introduction Apple should also have a release date for macOS 11 Call Big Sur, the company is already testing macOS 11. 0.1. On Macs with Apple Silicon, the binary code translator Rosetta 2 should ensure the seamless transition possible and existing programs with x 86 _ 64 – continue to execute instructions – with the exception of virtualizers. Manufacturers like Parallels want to offer new virtualization tools for ARM-Macs.

Apple-Silicon-Macs will only execute signed code, as was already known in advance – as well as iOS apps for the first time. If an iOS developer does not actively decide against it, his apps can also be downloaded to the new Macs in the future.

In addition to the first ARM Macs could use the event for Apple to present “AirTags” – key fobs that can be located via Bluetooth and ultra-broadband and integrate into Apple’s “Where is” system so that they can also be found when any other iPhone User randomly walks past the key lost on the way. Apple headphones have also been expected for a long time.

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Moment announces MagSafe-compatible iPhone 12 cases and mounts

Moment has announced its first range of products to work with MagSafe, the new magnetic accessory system built into Apple’s 2020 iPhones. The line includes cases and a broad selection of mounts that’ll let you attach a variety of things to your iPhone 12, or your iPhone 12 to a variety of things.

Moment’s products don’t carry Apple’s Made for iPhone branding, but the company says it’s developed a magnet array of its own called “(M)Force” that provides extra strength. Magnets aren’t proprietary, of course, so anyone can make products that physically attach to the iPhone 12.

Here’s the full list of products.

Cases, $49.99: Moment has new versions of both its thin and rugged cases that include MagSafe-compatible magnets and work with Qi wireless charging. The cases also have wrist strap loops and mounts for Moment’s add-on camera lenses.
Tripod mounts, $39.99 and $49.99: These tripod mounts use Moment’s (M)Force magnets so you can attach your phone without needing a separate clamp, even if it’s in a case. They work in both portrait and landscape mode. The Pro Tripod Mount adds an extra cold shoe for attaching other accessories like microphones or lights.
Multi-threaded mount, $29.99: This cheese plate-style mount includes two 3/8-inch female threads and three 1/4”-20 female threads for attaching to ball heads, tripods, or anything else compatible. It works with and without a phone case.
Cold shoe mount, $29.99: This is a simple mount that adds a cold shoe to your iPhone. The arm is adjustable for different case and phone sizes.
Car vent mount, $29.99: This mount attaches to the air vents on your car so you can magnetically attach your phone without a grip or clamp.
Wall mount, $19.99: The wall mount looks similar to the car vent mount, except instead of a press-fit attachment it has 3M adhesive on the back. Moment says it’s “super thin” and will stick to “almost anything flat.” There’s also a hole in the middle so it can be attached to walls with a screw.

Budget roundup: the latest low-cost speakers, headphones, and earbuds

Music can be said to be the universal language: while our tastes in tunes may differ, there are few people who don’t have their own favorite songs to listen to. New technologies have increased the quality of that music — however, we can’t all afford the types of speakers and headphones that offer the most superior sound.

But if you’re a music fan with a strict budget, don’t despair. There are audio devices out there that offer good or even excellent sound without forcing you to take out a loan. The following are reviews of various speakers and headsets (both headphones and earbuds) that will allow you to really enjoy your playlist. Read on, and see if you can’t find something that will fit your needs perfectly.

Headphones and earbuds

Razer Opus review: surprisingly competent wireless headphones

For the money, Razer’s new $200 Opus noise-canceling, wireless headphones come with almost everything I want in a set of headphones: comfort, good sound quality, and long battery life — with a few extra features as a bonus. For instance, the ear cups can swivel 90 degrees to rest on my chest, then into an even more compact form to fold up into the included hard case. These headphones can automatically pause when you remove them from your ears, as well.

SONY WF-XB700z: BEST WIRELESS EARBUDS ON A BUDGET

Sony’s entry-level earbuds were released without much fanfare, but I think they’re a real standout. They’ve already seen sale prices of below $100, and for that, you get a pair of earbuds that can kick out powerful bass and latch into your ears with remarkable stability — no support fins or hooks required. The WF-XB700 earbuds sound downright terrific for the price, the connection stability is rock solid (with no audio sync issues when watching videos), and their ingenious charging case always makes clear that everything is charging as it should, thanks to a slightly transparent lid.

ONEPLUS BUDS REVIEW: CHEAP AIRPODS FOR ONEPLUS PHONES

The aggressively priced $79 OnePlus Buds have an AirPod-like rigid design that’s all hard plastic — marking a shift away from the Bullets, Bullets Wireless 2, and other OnePlus earbuds that used silicone tips for a sealed-off, in-ear fit. The OnePlus Buds require a OnePlus phone if you want to get the most from them, so these really won’t appeal to owners of other Android devices. You won’t get features like wireless charging or noise cancellation at a price this low, but if you’ve found yourself envious of Apple’s AirPods and don’t like how in-ear earbuds feel, it’s hard to beat the value factor here.

BEATS FLEX REVIEW: WIRELESS EARBUD BASICS DONE RIGHT

The new $50 Beats Flex are a very smart play from Apple’s Beats division. One reason why is obvious: with the iPhone 12 lineup no longer shipping with included earbuds, this neckband-style option could prove to be a popular substitute. The Beats Flex earbuds are significantly less expensive than the Beats X they’re replacing — not to mention AirPods. They offer a lengthy 12 hours of battery life, have a comfortable fit, and eliminate the anxiety of losing a truly wireless earbud.

Speakers

IKEA’S NEW SPEAKERS ARE THE MOST AFFORDABLE WAY TO GET SONOS IN YOUR HOME

Sonos and Ikea kicked off what has the makings of a long-term partnership in August 2019. You can now purchase the Symfonisk table lamp speaker ($179) or Symfonisk bookshelf speaker ($99) from your local Ikea or from the home furnishing store’s website; these devices aren’t available from third-party retailers like Best Buy or even directly from Sonos. They look Ikea on the outside, but both are very much Sonos speakers on the inside and seamlessly integrate with other products in the company’s lineup like the Sonos One, Beam, Play:5, Play:1, and more.

Marshall’s Emberton is a basic but brilliant Bluetooth speaker

Marshall’s new $149 Emberton Bluetooth speaker gives the beloved Logitech Ultimate Ears Boom a run for its money. For starters, it charges over USB-C for quick, no-fuss charging, and it borrows the excellent joystick-like controls from Marshall’s recent lineup of headphones. Instead of having to learn a few combinations of buttons to change the song or check the battery’s level, everything is dead simple here. As some companies try to find clever ways to let you control your devices, such as swipes or gestures, there’s something to be said for physical buttons being easy, accessible, and fun.

AMAZON ECHO DOT (2020) REVIEW: HAVE A BALL

It’s no surprise that alongside the big redesign to the 4th Gen Echo, Amazon has also redesigned the Echo Dot. The new 4th Gen Dot shares the new spherical design of its larger sibling, just on a smaller scale. It’s immediately available in three different variations: the standard model for $49.99, a version with a built-in LED clock for $59.99, and a Kids Edition that comes in a cute tiger or panda design for $59.99.

Anker unveils iPhone 12 charging accessories, Doraemon versions coming on Wednesday

Anker unveiled a new line-up of charging accessories that target the iPhone 12 series and specifically the new direction taken by Apple. So, yes, there is a USB-C charger – three of them, in fact – two cables and a MagSafe wireless adapter.

The power bricks output 20W, which can charge an iPhone 12 or 12 Pro battery from 0% to 50% in half an hour. Calling these things “bricks” is not entirely accurate as the smallest option is based on the Anker Nano, which is properly tiny.

These specifically are Doraemon-themed charging accessories, the pre-sale of which will start on November 4 (Wednesday) in China. Sales will go through the official Anker store, JD and Tmall.

Anyway, the mid-sized charger goes up to 65W, so that it can charge your laptop too – it needs 2 hours to fully fill MacBook Pro’s battery. The largest adapter has two ports so it can charge a phone and a laptop (or tablet, power bank, etc.) simultaneously.

Moving on to the cables, there are two of them – USB-C to Lightning (for iPhones) and USB-C to USB-C (for iPads and MacBooks). Anker has made these durable, with tests showing they can be bent 12,000 times.

Anker’s new Doraemon-themed charging accessories for the iPhone 12 series

If you want to go wire-free, the MagSafe adapter supports up to 15W for new iPhones and the standard Qi wireless charging for older devices (and things like AirPods Pro). This adapter is made out of aluminum alloy so it can better dissipate heat even though it’s quite thin. A 0-50% charge with MagSafe takes an hour.

It goes without saying that Anker also has “plain” versions of all these charging accessories. But if you are a fan of Doraemon, then you can keep an eye out for these coming out later this week. Also, other than the Lightning cable, these are compatible with non-Apple devices since Anker’s PowerIQ includes support for both USB Power Delivery and QuickCharge.

Source (in Chinese) | Via

Apple One allows more iCloud storage

The standard iCloud storage variants that Apple’s new service and content bundle One brings with it should not be sufficient for many users. In the case of the single-user package, 15, 95 Euro only 50 GByte with – too little for a fully occupied new iPhone 12 in its smallest version secure. For the family package to 17, 95 Euro are at least 100 GByte, but up to six people have to be together divide. With the single-user package, Apple only adds the cheapest iCloud package to One, which normally costs EUR 0 99 for which 200 GByte from the family package would be without One 2, 99 Euro due.

Buy iCloud storage space – but without any discount As is now shown in a support document that has so far only been updated in English, Apple has forbearance with One subscribers who need a little more cloud space: They can if desired namely also upgrade. However, you don’t save a cent, you simply pay the normal iCloud tariffs on top of it. In practice this means: 100 GByte storage space including one for the single place costs for example 15, 94 Euro, one in single place with 2050 GByte 24,94 Euro. Additionally 200 GByte, i.e. in total 250 GByte, would be 17, 94 Euro. For the family package, in turn 0, 99 Euro (plus 50 GByte), 2, 99 Euro (plus 200 GByte) or 9, 99 Euro ( plus 2 TB).

A maximum of 4 Tbytes is possible – but not with us In the USA there is also the Premier Package as a third Apple One bundle. In addition to iCloud storage of 2 TByte, Apple Music, Apple Arcade and Apple TV +, this also provides the news and magazine service News + as well as the Fitness + sports videos. 29, 94 Apple wants US dollars for this. With the 9, 99 dollars for another 2 TByte you get 39, 94 dollars per month. The maximum possible iCloud storage space with Apple One is 4 TB. Otherwise Premier corresponds to the family package, i.e. six users can be registered.

Not entirely uncomplicated procedure Apple One started at the end of last week. The service can be tested free of charge for a month, but only those services that the user does not currently have, the rest continues to run normally (and paid for). If you already have paid iCloud storage space, it will continue to run normally in the trial month; then, if it does not differ in size from the one in One, it will be switched for free. The same applies to smaller tariffs – money may be given back. If, on the other hand, your own iCloud storage space is larger than that of Apple One, both are combined. Here you have to cancel the iCloud storage space if necessary.

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App store dispute: Apple warns of loss of income

Apple has warned its investors of the negative consequences of the worldwide dispute over the App Store. In the latest stock market report of the iPhone corporation it is said, should the commission, which the company keeps on sales in the App Store, reduced or in some other way in its scope or eliminated, “the financial condition of the company and the operating result could be significantly negative to be influenced”. We’re talking about the famous 30 percent fee that Apple collects for paid apps, in-app sales and in-app subscriptions and that of the Group is currently trying to defend with all legal teeth and claws.

Stock market crisis at Apple Apple reported growth in the service business again in the third quarter. Of the 14, 5 billion US dollars in sales, a no small part should come from the App Store – even if the company does not explicitly say this identifies. Because of the delayed iPhone 12 Apple made a billion dollars less profit. In addition, sales in China, the second most important market, fell by 15 percent compared to the previous year. On the NASDAQ technology exchange in New York, Apple’s share lost more than 5 percent on Friday.

Apple has been taking its commission since the introduction of the App Store – it celebrated 2020 his twelfth birthday. After one year, the fee is reduced to 15 percent if it is an in-app subscription. Video services, on the other hand, are given special curiosities such as lower tariffs and their own means of payment – which in turn disturbs other app providers.

Regulators and app industry against Apple The iPhone group is currently fighting in the USA with the game company Epic Games, which Apple has challenged in court. Epic Games sees itself as part of a larger coalition of exasperated app providers. At the same time, antitrust authorities or parliamentary committees are also taking action against Apple, for example in the USA, Europe and Japan. You ask the question whether Apple has a kind of monopoly and is exploiting it mercilessly. Apple countered, among other things, that the iPhone is not a market leader – and therefore not a monopoly – and that the fees are also used to improve the app store and provide developers with adequate technology such as APIs.

Whether Apple is now planning to reduce the commission itself is unclear. The company has to make a political decision here. Sometimes it was already approaching developers. For example, digital in-app events on Facebook should not necessarily force commission payments in the future.

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Mac upswing: Notebooks in particular are doing well

Two of Apple’s hardware areas, which some analysts already considered a thing of the past, celebrated sales records in the last quarter: the tablet iPad and especially the Mac.

The computer line, which has been on the market for 36 years, increased total revenues to 9 billion US dollars. In the full fiscal year, which Apple always ends in September, the Mac achieved sales of 28, 6 billion dollars, which is also a record is.

Macs never with so much sales In its most recent 10 – Apple’s K report to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) provided further details. Accordingly, portable machines in particular drove the business. This was especially the MacBook Pro, it is said. Here Apple 2019 and 2020 once again added some innovations. Last year the 16 inch MacBook Pro with an improved keyboard came on the market, then followed 2020 finally an equally optimized 13 – inch model. The new MacBook Air 2020 – also including an improved keyboard and released in spring – is well received, according to Apple, especially in the school segment.

According to the group, the segments outside the iPhone have grown by 30 percent. It is no longer enough to compensate for the reduced profits due to the delayed iPhone 12. After all, a billion dollars less was earned as a result, which the investors on the American technology exchange NASDAQ did not like at all. Most recently, Apple shares fell again by 5.6 percent on Friday.

New Boost from ARM-Macs? The new ARM-Macs could bring new boosts to Apple’s computer line. Thanks to its own processor technology, the devices can work more energy-efficiently and are even slimmer than Intel Macs, on which the company was recently always slowed down by the CPU supplier. The transition will not be completely painless, however, as not every software title simply continues to run and developers sometimes have to make adjustments – despite the “Rosetta 2.0” emulation layer. (bsc)

Top 10 trending phones of week 44

Apple’s new iPhone 12 lineup used the relatively calm week to reinforce its grip on our trending chart.

The iPhone 12 Pro Max keeps its lead, while the 12 Pro and 12 rejoin it on the podium after the Mate 40 hype died down a bit.

The OnePlus Nord N10 5G was the clearly the most significant announcement of the week, shooting up to fourth, while the N100, which debuted alongside it didn’t make the top 10.

The Huawei Mate 40 Pro+ is the only member of the lineup to retain its spot on the chart with the Mate 40 Pro and the RS Porsche Design losing their inertia and getting relegated.

The Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro has gained a couple of spots to claim sixth, while the Poco X3 NFC is up by three in seventh.

In a trend opposite to its stablemates the iPhone 12 mini has lost ground and now sits in eight, ahead of the returning Samsung Galaxy M51 – the only smartphone by the Korean company to make the cut this week. That’s still better than the last one when Samsung had no representative whatsoever.

LG’s newly released K92 5G captured the final available spot, sending the Redmi Note 9 Pro down.

Week 44 in review: Xiaomi Redmi K30S, OnePlus Nord N10 and N100 official

Welcome to your week’s recap. The biggest story was the arrival of the OnePlus Nord N10 5G and the N100 are both affordable midrangers with LCDs, but only the N10 5G has a high refresh rate screen, which OnePlus has called a non-negotiable part of any OnePlus phone. The Nord N10 5G costs €350/£330, while the N100 is €200/£180.

Xiaomi had an accouncement of its own – Redmi K30S. The Redmi K30S is a rebranded Xiaomi Mi 10T for markets where Redmi’s brand is more recognized. Reservations for the phone are open and the first flash sale is coming November 11. The Redmi K30S starts at CNY2,599 ($390/€325)

The Apple 12 mini made an appearance on video a full 9 days before it’s set to arrive on pre-order. The main attraction was seeing the phone compared to the iPhone 12 and 11 Pro Max, giving us a scope of just how small it is.

Huawei published a timeline of the 27 devices that will receive EMUI 11, which could turn out to be the final EMUI OS. Huawei is said to make the transition to its Google-less Harmony/HongMeng OS for its future smartphones.

Word has it that Samsung will ship the Galaxy S21 without earbuds and a charger, just like Apple. We expect the entire industry to transition to smaller retail packages in favor of a reduced carbon footprint, eventually.

Speaking of the Galaxy S21, we saw renders of what could prove to be the Galaxy S21 Ultra with a 108MP main camera and an extra sensor (to the S20 Ultra).

Finally, Apple may be forced to stop receiving payments from Google to provide it with the search duties on iPhone. It’s said Apple is developing its own search engine to give direct access to sites, bypassing Google.

See you in a week!

iPhone 12: camera replacement only at authorized centers

To replace the camera modules of new iPhone 12 you need to go through a software authorization procedure with an app available only to repairers authorized

by Andrea Bai published 01 November 2020 , at 09: 01 in the Apple channel

Apple iPhone

The new generation of iPhone smartphones 12 from Apple presents a new small obstacle to repair procedures that could severely restrict unauthorized third party support activities, through and a new procedure to be performed for the replacement of the camera modules.

It is no news that Apple designs its devices with restrictions on what it can or not be replaced by unauthorized technicians. With iPhone 12 Apple has enforced that following the replacement of the camera modules, proceed with a software authorization so that the phone can work correctly: in all previous iPhone generations it has always been possible to replace the camera without further steps. The new procedure has been discovered by some technicians who collaborate with iFixit, which also points out that statistically the camera and the display are two of the parts that most frequently require repair or replacement.

Software authorization or iPhone camera replacement 12 does not work

This software authorization can only be performed using an Apple proprietary app named System Configuration which is available, as you can easily guess, only for official repair centers such as Apple Store or authorized resellers for assistance procedures .

If the replacement is carried out without software authorization, the camera seems to work correctly when the phone is started, and then shows operational problems such as the inability to use the different lenses and even become completely useless. This behavior was initially considered a bug, but was later confirmed to be expected behavior within Apple’s official repair manual.

The software authorization procedure, however, is nothing totally new: it was previously required but only for those repairs that could go to compromise the safety of the device . It is also true that the camera is increasingly integrated with the SoC functions for computational photography and for this reason Apple wanted to take some additional precautions. However, there is the concern, raised by iFixit, that it is only a coercive measure to push users not to repair their devices or to go only to authorized centers.

Apple One subscription is now available. You can save a lot

The Cupertino giant has several interesting solutions in its portfolio of services, including iCloud cloud, Apple Music, Apple TV + and the Apple Arcade game platform. Paying for each of the services separately is unfortunately not a cheap matter. The company, realizing how important this segment of its activity is for it, decided to combine selected products into one common package with a fixed subscription fee. I am talking about Apple One, which was to appear in the first users in the fall and which can be activated from yesterday evening. We check how profitable the service proposition of the American company is and whether it is really worth using.

Enough waiting. The Apple One package, which is a combination of Apple TV +, Apple Arcade, Apple Music and Apple iCloud, has officially debuted. Check how much you can actually save on it.

Apple’s quarterly financial results show the brand’s strength

Looking at Apple’s financial results yesterday, it is easy to conclude that services are one of the most important segments of the Cupertino giant’s activity . In order to increase the number of subscribers who regularly pay for access to Apple TV +, Apple Arcade, Apple Music and Apple iCloud, the company decided to combine these solutions into one. Of course, while lowering its price, I am sure that this strategy will bring tangible results. After the trial period ends, Apple Arcade and Apple TV + will definitely opt for the Apple One plan.

Apple iPhone 12 officially – 4 5G smartphone models for each

In Poland, we can use two plans. The first “For You” is an individual package containing 50 GB of iCloud space and access to the aforementioned services. We will pay for it 24, 99 PLN per month. A “Family” plan has also been prepared, in which we share 200 GB of iCloud space and access to Apple TV +, Apple Arcade and Apple Music. The subscription cost is 39, 99 PLN per month. It is worth remembering that in both cases we can use a free 30 – day trial period. However, if 50 or 200 GB of iCloud space is insufficient, you can easily enlarge “cloud” package.

Source: Apple

Apple iPhone 12 Pro in for review

Our review of the iPhone 12 is already up, but we’ve also been spending some quality time with the more premium iPhone 12 Pro. But while the review team is still doing its thing here go a few early thoughts.

The iPhone 12 Pro certainly makes a better first impression than the iPhone 12. For starters the frame isn’t aluminum but stainless steel. It feels better too and it’s shinier.

The rear glass is nicer to touch too, thanks to its matte finish (the regular 12 gets a shiny one). Finally the iPhone 12 Pro gains 25 grams on the regular 12, making it feel denser and more solid.

Otherwise Apple made the iPhone 12 Pro and 12 the same exact dimensions so any case that would fit one, would also work on the other.

The next big difference between the 12 Pro and regular iPhone 12 is the 12MP 52mm f/2.0 2x telephoto camera on the iPhone 12 Pro. We’re fans of telephoto cameras, but would have to say that having the same old 2x camera from the 11 Pro isn’t nearly enough to justify the $200/€243/£200 premium on the Pro.

Moving to the screens and we have a minute difference. The iPhone 12 and 12 Pro both feature 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED panels with HDR10 support and 1170x2532px resolution, but the iPhone 12 tops at 600 nits, while the iPhone 12 Pro brings it a bit further to 800 nits. We can’t say it’s a noticeable difference when the two are side by side, though. Both also have the same peak brightness of 1200 nits for HDR content though.

Finally there are storage options and RAM. The iPhone 12 Pro has a base storage of 128GB with the upgrade tiers of 256GB and 512GB, while the iPhone 12 starts at 64GB and brings it all the way up to 256GB. The iPhone 12 gets 4GB of RAM, while the Pro has 6GB – something that might seem like a decent upgrade, but doesn’t seem to make a huge difference at least in these early days.

So overall, the iPhone 12 Pro has a few things to justify its price premium over the iPhone 12. Which is much smaller if you need to equalize storage. Overall we’d say paying more for the Pro is worth it if you enjoy the perspective of the telephoto camera or plan on carrying it without a case and enjoy the nicer build quality. But we’re also here to tell you that the iPhone 12 feels just as fast than the Pro, is a bit lighter thanks to its aluminum frame, and comes in nicer colors. This year the line between Apple’s regular and Pro lines is very much blurred.

A quick word for iPhone 11 Pro users looking to get an iPhone 12 Pro. The 12 Pro looks bigger but doesn’t feel like that, mainly due to its virtually unchanged weight. The flat edges make the iPhone 12 Pro a different-feeling phone in the hand and we welcome the change. Apple was able to make a phone like no other in the market – one with flat sides and a fully-flat display and it almost feels revolutionary after so many years of lightly to outrageously curved devices.

Yet upgrading from the iPhone 11 Pro to the 12 Pro is hard to justify. Yes, the new phone is faster and yes, it has a bigger screen, but neither is a big difference. As we see it the only reasonable upgrade path for 11 Pro owners is the 12 Pro Max if you can live with the much larger phone.

Stay tuned for our detailed iPhone 12 Pro review, coming in the first days of the next week!

iPhone 12 cameras can only be replaced by official Apple technicians, 12 Pro is unaffected

Back when Apple added a fingerprint reader to the iPhone 5s, it made it impossible to replace by anyone other than an authorized technician. That makes some sense – a bogus reader may circumvent security. But over the years more and more components have become difficult to replace.

During its teardown and testing of the iPhone 12, iFixit found that taking the camera out and replacing it with an identical module from another phone causes issues. And not just the error report you get when you swap screens (“Unable to verify that this iPhone has a genuine Apple display”).

No, this looks more like a bug. The camera works, but develops constant issues – it hangs occasionally, some camera modes stop working and the ultrawide camera refuses to turn on in photo mode. Strangely, it works just fine for videos.

Here’s a demonstration:

Even more strange is that doing the same procedure with an iPhone 12 Pro goes without a hitch – the new module works just fine, wide, ultrawide, tele camera, all of them, all camera modes too.

iFixit explains that Apple has changed its training manuals. Starting with the iPhone 12 series, changing the display and camera requires the use of the System Configuration tool, which will connect to Apple’s servers before reprogramming the new component to work properly.

Previously (starting with the XR/XS generation), this was only required when changing batteries. Changing security components – Touch ID or Face ID (which is embedded into the display and can’t be changed separately) – is a whole different can of beans and requires reprogramming the Security Enclave.

Hugh Jeffreys, who runs one of the largest tech repair channels on YouTube, encountered the same issues as you can see in the video below. The bit about the camera starts at 8:50, but you can watch the whole video, which is an in-depth assessment of the iPhone 12 repairability (or lack thereof).

Source

Snapdragon 875 could be 25% faster than its predecessor, leaked AnTuTu result shows

The Snapdragon 875 chipset is code-named “Lahaina” and it may be significantly faster than expected – an early benchmark shows a score of over 847,000 points in AnTuTu. This is much higher than its predecessor, which currently tops the charts with 663,000 points or so.

That’s a jump of over 25%, a huge leap for a yearly upgrade. Of course, these results will need to be corroborated before the Qualcomm team can pop the champagne.

For comparison, the iPhone 12 scored 660,000. While the Kirin 9000 and Exynos 1080 posted scores of 696,000 and 693,000, respectively – enough to top current Snapdragon 865 phones, but nowhere near the alleged result of the 875.

Interestingly, AnTuTu’s charts are currently led by Snapdragon 865 (the vanilla chip, not the plus). The AnTuTu team explains (link in Chinese) that RAM and storage configurations also play a role in the final score, so high capacity UFS 3.1 storage might offset the minor clock speed deficit of the non-plus chipset.

Another post mentions that Oppo has been testing an overclocked version of the 865, which will go up to 3.2 GHz or so. The prime core in the 865+ is clocked at 3.09 GHz.

Qualcomm will officially unveil the Snapdragon 875 (and, potentially, other chips as well), and if this benchmark result is to be believed, the event will be a must-see.

Source

iPhone 12: Apple apparently makes unauthorized repairs more difficult

Apple seems to be putting another stop to unapproved iPhone repairs: For all models of the new iPhone 12 – from mini to Pro to Pro Max – According to an internal document, it is necessary to carry out a “system configuration” for the first time after replacing the screen or after replacing the camera system. A special app from the manufacturer is required for this, to which only authorized technicians have access, as the repair service provider iFixit reports.

iPhone warning for third-party batteries Such a system configuration is already for the battery replacement in iPhones from year of manufacture 2018 Requirement. If the battery of a third-party manufacturer is used in these models by an independent workshop, the operating system displays a warning for several days that it “cannot be verified that this iPhone has an original battery from Apple,” it says. Information about the battery condition is also not available.

The use of the iPhone will not be affected, emphasizes Apple. The measure is intended to protect the iPhone customer, who is warned of a damaged or “poor quality” battery.

What specific side effects of the unauthorized exchange of the display and camera on the iPhone 12 without subsequently carrying out the system configuration remains open for the time being. According to tests by iFixit, at least the original screens of two iPhone – 12 – models could be exchanged without major side effects. The repair service provider only sometimes received the erroneous warning that the display was “possibly not real”. By switching from LCD to OLED, the approved screen replacement for the iPhone 12 has become significantly more expensive.

Original iPhone parts only recently for independent workshops With the iPhone 12 Pro is it was also possible to insert the camera module of one device into another device, so iFixit. With the iPhone 12 (without Pro) there were considerable problems after the exchange, which made normal use of the camera practically impossible.

Apple has only recently started making original iPhone parts and special tools available to independent repairers if they join Apple’s “Independent Repair Provider Program” and comply with regulations. That should preserve the “safety and quality”, so the group. Previously it was impossible for independent repair shops to obtain original Apple parts.

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