The rumor mill has it that the next-gen iPhone could feature a rear-facing 3D camera incorporating a laser scanner for purposes like augmented reality, while iOS 13 could deliver features like Dark Mode and CarPlay enhancements.

The laser sensor is thought to work at ranges up to about 15 feet, in contrast with the dot projection system on current iPhones’ front-facing TrueDepth cameras. Apple is also said to be talking to Sony about testing components.

Unlike TrueDepth’s dot projection system, the new system centers around a time of flight (TOF) system, which measures the time it takes for pulses of light to travel to and from a target surface.

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There are times when even a net profit of $19.9 billion is below expectations.

Apple on Tuesday announced its Q1 2019 profits, which were decidedly lower than the initial guidance of $89 billion to $93 billion. For the holiday quarter, Apple posted revenue of $84.3 billion and a net profit of $19.9 billion, a 5 percent drop over last year and the clearest sign yet sign that iPhone sales are slowing.

It’s unknown how much Apple’s iPhone units sales fell, as Apple has stopped providing these numbers. During the conference call, Apple CFO Luca Maestri did state that the iPhone XR is Apple’s best-selling phone, and the there are 900 million iPhones in use.

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Following up on the major FaceTime eavesdropping bug that was released earlier this month, a woman has claimed that her teenage son discovered the flaw and warned Apple about it last week. Now a video has surfaced as evidence for the teenager’s discovery dated January 23rd.

The bug, which has yet to be fixed, apparently lets users call anyone via FaceTime, and immediately hear the audio from their device. This occurs before the other user has accepting the FaceTime call.

Apple, in turn, has stated that the issue will be addressed in a software update “later this week”. The company has taken Group FaceTime offline for the time being while it works on a patch.

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If you’re a Fortnite fan, you’re going to like this.

The iOS version of Fortnite has been updated, complete with the following changes:

– Bluetooth support for MFi controllers.

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If you have an original Series 1 Apple Watch and it needs repairs, you might be able to finagle a newer model given the lack of parts on hand.

Repair parts are said to be temporarily constrained for 42mm models of the Apple Watch Series 1 and first-generation Apple Watch, nicknamed “Series 0”, per to an internal document distributed to Apple Authorized Service Providers on Monday.

Apple has permitted its Authorized Services Providers to offer a 42mm Apple Watch Series 2 as a substitute starting February through April according to the document.

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This is turning into a fairly significant mess.

Following the release of iOS 12.1.3, a number of users cited difficulty in accessing their cellular data, a bug which had also happened following the rollout of iOS 12.1.2.

The situation was so bad, wireless provider Sprint put out a warning. This had emerged after iOS 12.1.1 caused 4G issues. Now, it seems, the latest version of the operating system is also causing Wi-Fi issues for some users.

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Once again, it’s the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) filings that appear to foretell what Apple products are on the horizon.

In this case, a new new filing with six model numbers appears to indicate both a refresh of the standard-sized iPad as well as the rumored fifth-generation iPad mini.

The new filings with the EEC reveals the six model numbers are “tablet computers” and are registered to Apple. The numbers, published on Friday, advises the tablets are certified for sale in Russia, due to the inclusion of encryption-related features.

The six model numbers are A2123, A2124, A2133, A2152, A2153, and A2154. The sequential nature of the model numbers, and the grouping, suggests there are at least two different types of device they apply to, with the A2123 and S2124 likely to be for a different model to the rest.

It’s also thought that the presence of the filing could suggest that the new iPads might arrive in the relatively near future, albeit the exact date of this is unknown. Given that the last iPad launch took place in March 2018, excluding the iPad Pro refresh, it is likely that whatever Apple has planned for the iPad product family will be unveiled at around the same time.

The iPad refresh has been said to include elements borrowed from the iPad Pro, such as a larger display in a similar-sized body with a thinner construction. A 10-inch display has been touted, though a shift to Face ID from Touch ID has yet to be suggested.

Little has been rumored about the new iPad mini models, save for that they might ship at a lower price point than the more recent releases. If launched, it would be the first update to the product line in over three years.

Finally, a seventh iPad model designated A2126 was filed with the ECC on Friday.

Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.

Via AppleInsider and MySmartPrice

There’s a decent chance that the next-gen AirPods will feature “Hey, Siri” support.

Per the iOS 12.2 beta release for developers, an updated AirPods setup screen indicated that users will be able to talk directly to Siri using the next generation AirPods.

As such, the updated AirPods could be configured for Siri in the same way that iPhones and iPads currently are. The AirPods themselves will do the Siri recognition and send commands to the paired device. It was also noted that last September’s Apple event even featured a person using “Hey, Siri” with their AirPods.

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You’re not going to love this, but a group of security designers have apparently discovered that a new way of attacking the macOS with malware is being used.

The researchers have noted that malicious online advertising found to have used steganography to disguise its payload within an ad’s image files, in order to fool security systems.

Analyzed by Confiant and Malwarebytes, an attempt to infect Macs from January 11 until January 13 was performed by a “malvertizer” dubbed “VeryMal” by the firms. It is believed that the attempted attack ad was viewed on as many as 5 million Macs during the brief period of time it was active.

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Apple on Thursday released the first beta of iOS 12.2 for developers, complete with the following list of new fixes and features:

– Apple News for Canada – iOS 12.2 expands the availability of Apple News to Canada for the first time, with news sources available in either English or French.

– HomeKit TV Support – Apple recently announced that HomeKit support is coming to a number of third-party TVs, and iOS 12.2 introduces the infrastructure to allow users to add their TVs to HomeKit.

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