According to New Scientist (via Gizmodo), the Mars Perseverance rover uses the RISC CPUs that Apple went all in on before switching to Intel. The iMac G3 was colorful (you could see through it), and it ultimately saved Apple from bankruptcy.
The PowerPC 750 was a single-core 233MHz processor with 6 million transistors, which is now considered slow, but it was the first to incorporate dynamic branch prediction and is still used in modern processors.
Given that the Perseverance launch was in July 2020, you could be wondering why it’s using such an old processor. What it comes down to is reliability.
There’s also a pretty big difference between the iMac G3 CPU and the one inside the rover. This PowerPC 750 chip can withstand 200,000 to 1,000,000 Rads and temperatures between -55 and 125 degrees Celsius.
Given that Mars doesn’t have the same type of atmosphere as Earth, one flash of sunlight could damage the rover before its adventure can even begin.
“A charged particle that’s racing through the galaxy can pass through a device and wreak havoc,” James LaRosa at BAE Systems told NewScientist. “It can literally knock electrons loose; it can cause electronic noise and signal spikes within the circuit.”
Apple used PowerPC chips on Mac until 2005, then switched to Intel. Nowadays, Apple is making a new transition to its own Apple Silicon processors, starting with the M1 chip on MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and Mac Mini.
Global technology leader Xiaomi today introduced a brand new form of charging – Mi Air Charge Technology. Revolutionizing the current wireless charging methods, Mi Air Charge Technology enables users to remotely charge electronic devices without any cables or wireless charging stands. Today, we enter a true wireless charging era.
Mi Air Charge Technology – 5W remote charging
The core technology of Xiaomi’s remote charging lies in space positioning and energy transmission. Xiaomi’s self-developed isolated charging pile has five phase interference antennas built in, which can accurately detect the location of the smartphone. A phase control array composed of 144 antennas transmits millimeter-wide waves directly to the phone through beamforming.
On the smartphone side, Xiaomi has also developed a miniaturized antenna array with built-in “beacon antenna” and “receiving antenna array”. Beacon antenna broadcasts position information with low power consumption. The receiving antenna array composed of 14 antennas converts the millimeter wave signal emitted by the charging pile into electric energy through the rectifier circuit, to turn the sci-fi charging experience into reality.
Currently, Xiaomi remote charging technology is capable of 5-watt remote charging for a single device within a radius of several meters. Apart from that, multiple devices can also be charged at the same time (each device supports 5 watts), and even physical obstacles do not reduce the charging efficiency.
Future living rooms will be fully wireless
In the near future, Xiaomi’s self-developed space isolation charging technology will also be able to work with smart watches, bracelets and other wearable devices. Soon our living room devices, including speakers, desk lamps and other small smart home products, will all be built upon a wireless power supply design, completely free of wires, making our living rooms truly wireless.
This is a revolutionary innovation of wireless charging.
This is also a bold attempt to turn the whole house wireless.
It’s not science fiction, it’s technology.
This is Xiaomi’s self-developed remote charging technology.
Time to Walk is an inspiring new audio walking experience on Apple Watch for Fitness+ subscribers, created to encourage users to walk more often and reap the benefits from one of the healthiest activities.
Episodes feature personal stories, photos, and music from influential people to inspire Apple Watch users to walk more
Apple unveiled Time to Walk, an inspiring new audio walking experience on Apple Watch for Fitness+ subscribers, created to encourage users to walk more often and reap the benefits from one of the healthiest activities. Each original Time to Walk episode invites users to immerse themselves in a walk alongside influential and interesting people as they share thoughtful and meaningful stories, photos, and music. Time to Walk can be enjoyed anytime and anywhere with Apple Watch and AirPods or other Bluetooth headphones.
“Walking is the most popular physical activity in the world, and one of the healthiest things we can do for our bodies. A walk can often be more than just exercise: It can help clear the mind, solve a problem, or welcome a new perspective,” said Jay Blahnik, Apple’s senior director of Fitness Technologies. “Even throughout this challenging period of time, one activity that has remained available to many is walking. With Time to Walk, we’re bringing weekly original content to Apple Watch in Fitness+ that includes some of the most diverse, fascinating, and celebrated guests offering inspiration and entertainment to help our users keep moving through the power of walking.”
Country music star Dolly Parton reflects on career, family, and growing up in rural Tennessee in her Time to Walk episode.
In his Time to Walk episode, NBA player Draymond Green reflects on the virtues of failure and tuning out criticism.
In her Time to Walk episode, Emmy Award winner Uzo Aduba talks about lifelong relationships and keeping the faith.
Musician Shawn Mendes shares how a slower pace has helped him personally and creatively in his Time to Walk episode.
Each Time to Walk episode is shaped by the guest’s personal, life-shaping moments and includes lessons learned, meaningful memories, thoughts on purpose and gratitude, moments of levity, and other thought-provoking topics, recorded while walking outside or in locations that are meaningful to them. The narrative comes to life through photos that appear on Apple Watch, perfectly timed to amplify a corresponding moment the guest shares. Following the guest’s stories, the experience extends with the guest introducing a short playlist of songs that has given them motivation and inspiration, so the listener can continue their walk to a soundtrack intimately connected to each guest.
Time to Walk launches today with four episodes from the following guests:
Country music star Dolly Parton has won nine GRAMMYs and is also a celebrated actor, businessperson, and humanitarian. Dolly reflects on her career, family, and growing up in rural Tennessee. “I’ve loved walking ever since I was a little girl in the Smoky Mountains,” Parton says. “I think it’s so important to be able to get out and walk if we can during this time. I do my best thinking when I walk. And while many of us feel confined during this time, I’m hopeful that people will take a walk down memory lane with me and we can all feel a little more freedom taking the time to walk together.”
NBA player Draymond Green won three basketball championships with the Golden State Warriors, helping to change how the game is played. He reflects on the virtues of failure and tuning out criticism. “There’s nothing better than a walk in nature, getting lost in my thoughts, and taking a deep breath of fresh air,” Green says. “Take all the stresses of your day and let them blow away with the wind. I hope sharing my stories with those who go on a walk with me will give them the same drive to chase their dreams that I had in chasing mine.”
Musician Shawn Mendes went viral on social media at 15, had his first platinum album by 19, and has toured the world. He shares how a slower pace has helped him personally and creatively. “Taking a walk is a great way to clear your mind,” Mendes says. “It’s the most simple thing you can do to calm the body and soul, reflect, and slow down. I hope people get to feel the same sense of calm I do while walking and can bring that to their own experiences.”
Emmy Award winner Uzo Aduba found stardom on the series, “Orange Is the New Black,” but only after many rejections. She talks about lifelong relationships and keeping the faith. “I love walking either by myself or with my dog,” Aduba says. “It’s a time to connect and have the conversations with myself that can often get overlooked throughout the day, and bring peace of mind. The experience of walking and telling my stories gave me that familiar feeling that walking brings, answering questions that need to be answered, and addressing topics that need to be addressed. I’m so excited to share that with those who take the time to walk with me.”
Once a Time to Walk episode is selected on Apple Watch, a Walk workout automatically begins and users can go at any pace that suits them.
Guests record their Time to Walk episodes while walking outside or in locations that are meaningful to them.
New episodes will appear in the Workout app on Apple Watch from a different guest each Monday through the end of April. Users can browse and enjoy previous Time to Walk episodes when it is most convenient for them.
Time to Walk episodes are automatically downloaded to Apple Watch with a Fitness+ subscription, and users can start an episode directly from the Workout app. Once a Time to Walk episode is selected on Apple Watch, a Walk workout automatically begins and users can go at any pace that suits them while listening with AirPods or paired Bluetooth headphones. New episodes ranging from 25 to 40 minutes will appear automatically in the Workout app on Apple Watch, and users can also browse episodes in the Fitness+ tab in the Fitness app on iPhone. For Apple Watch customers who use a wheelchair, Time to Walk becomes Time to Push, and automatically starts an Outdoor Wheelchair Walk Pace workout.
Pricing and Availability
Time to Walk is the latest addition to Apple Fitness+, the first fitness service built around Apple Watch, which also brings studio-style workouts to iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV 4K or Apple TV HD, intelligently incorporating workout metrics from Apple Watch for a first-of-its-kind personalized and immersive experience users can complete wherever and whenever is convenient for them.
Apple Fitness+ is available in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the UK, and the US.
Three months of Apple Fitness+ are included for customers who purchase Apple Watch Series 3 or later, and one month of Fitness+ is included for existing Apple Watch users.1
Fitness+ is available as a subscription service for $9.99 (US) per month or $79.99 (US) per year.2
Fitness+ can be shared among up to six family members for the same price, making it easy for other Apple Watch users in the household to enjoy the service.
Fitness+ is included in the Apple One Premier plan, which, where available, also gives customers access to Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, and 2TB of iCloud storage for $29.95 per month, and can be shared among up to six family members.
Fitness+ requires Apple Watch Series 3 or later paired with iPhone 6s or later, or iPhone SE, with watchOS 7.2 or later and iOS 14.3 or later.
Time to Walk requires AirPods or other Bluetooth headphones paired with Apple Watch.
Once Time to Walk episodes are downloaded, a WiFi or cellular connection is not required.
Apple Distinguished Educator Mike Lang is using Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy to show his kindergarten and first grade students at Laura Dearing Elementary School they have the power to change the world.
Neon signs are not the only things shining bright in Las Vegas. Mike Lang, technology instructor at Clark County School District’s Laura Dearing Elementary School on the East Side of Las Vegas, is putting the spotlight on his students as civic servants and activists in their local community.
“My hope for all my students is that they see and consider themselves as citizens of the world who are responsible for helping others be successful,” Lang says. This month, Lang initiated a three-part project with his kindergarten and first grade students to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy and instill a sense of civic duty in them. “That’s the ultimate goal: We want people who are going to be informed, passionate, patriotic in the true sense of that word, and who are going to be empathetic.”
The first part of Lang’s project is designed to show kids that they are valuable, using children’s book author Christian Robinson’s “You Matter” as a starting point for self-reflection. “Kids have to have a level of self-esteem to believe that their point of view matters, their story matters, their opinions matter, and their ideas matter,” he says. “It’s important for students to understand they have inherent power just because they are themselves.”
Students will use iPad to capture and edit images of themselves, their family, and their neighborhoods, and then craft their stories about why they matter using the PBS KIDS ScratchJr coding app on iPad. Next, the students will research Dr. King’s life and legacy using Brad Meltzer’s book “I Am Martin Luther King Jr.,” and compare and contrast themselves to him by creating double exposure portraits of themselves with the civil rights leader. Finally, in the “I’m a Dreamer, Too” segment of the project, Lang will ask them how they can be of service to each other and their neighbors. The students will complete interactive workbooks in Keynote for each part of the project, and he will compile their thoughts into a collated book of their ideas, which they will have the opportunity to share with community organizers and legislators in Las Vegas later this semester.
Kindergarten and first grade students at Laura Dearing Elementary School are creating speeches inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream.”
Incorporating interactive workbooks in Keynote on iPad, Apple Distinguished Educator Mike Lang’s three-part learning project is designed to show students they matter, help them examine Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life, and encourage them to be the change they want to see in their Las Vegas community.
Lang has been teaching in the Clark County School District for 14 years. Prior to arriving in Las Vegas, the Washington, D.C.-native taught fourth graders in Pascagoula, Mississippi, before traveling overseas to teach English in the small town of Miaoli City in Taiwan. It was there that he discovered how technology could be used as a tool for learning. And it all started with an iPod. “I was trying to figure out a way to teach English to kids that spoke Mandarin in a way that would be engaging,” Lang says.
After purchasing an iPod in Taiwan in 2004, Lang leaned on American music — from classic rock to hip hop — to immerse his students in the English language. And when he arrived in Las Vegas three years later, he set out to acquire as many iPod shuffles and nanos he could get his hands on, using the audio editing software Audacity on Mac to record his lessons and distribute them to his students.
“I saw how technology could transform and transfer information to students far more efficiently than me trying to explain it,” Lang says. “I became a digital learning coach after that and started to spread the gospel of having kids make things with devices. I’ve been blessed to grow with the evolution of digital in classrooms.”
Today Lang sees himself — and all teachers, really — as architects. Paying tribute to American architect Louis Sullivan and his book “Kindergarten Chats,” in which Sullivan established the phrase “form follows function,” Lang believes every lesson plan requires the right form and function to be successful for all students. “You have to have the right blueprints for the right tasks,” Lang says. “It takes a lot of craftsmanship and looking at it from an architect’s point of view to say, how do you encourage the user to use your product and use it dynamically and use it in ways that perhaps you didn’t even intend it to be used?”
In a way, Lang’s overarching philosophy on teaching can be applied to the way his students see and shape themselves in the world. At the completion of the project, his students will have a blueprint of ideas for changing their community and the roles they can play in making that change happen.
With Lang’s project already underway, today also marks the launch of Apple’s second challenge in the “Taking Action on Racial Equity and Justice” learning series, “Make a Positive Impact in Your Community.” The “Challenge for Change” series includes a set of conversation guides based on the challenge-based learning framework and designed to help educators, community leaders, and individuals have thoughtful conversations on issues related to race and inequality. “We as educators have to enter the classroom every day with the idea that one, if not all, of our students could change the world,” Lang says. “It can be a Martin Luther King Jr., it can be a Bernice King, could be a Coretta Scott King, someone who would hopefully be a beacon to which other people rally.”
Announced this morning in a call to action from The King Center’s Dr. Bernice A. King, the second youngest daughter of Dr. King, this challenge encourages people to give back to their “beloved communities,” which Lang believes must start in schools.
“Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy of striving to be excellent, striving to do what’s right, and striving to be fair goes beyond race. It’s economics and empathy, and this idea of solidarity with all human beings,” says Lang. “My hope is that my students come to the realization that there is a basic humanity that we need to always be beholden to, not only within their class, not only within their school, but within their community, their city, their country, and the world.”
Apple Distinguished Educator Mike Lang believes it is the responsibility of every teacher to ensure their students understand the role they can play in changing the world.
How many of you don’t particularly like have to carry a key fob around for your car? Much like how you can store all of your payment cards in a digital wallet and then make payments on the go with your phone, what if it was possible to leave your car keys at home but still be able to drive off?
That’s a question that standards bodies like the Car Connectivity Consortium and the FiRa Consortium have been pondering. Samsung wants in on the action as well. It announced new partnerships today which will enable you to unlock your Audi, BMW, Ford or Genesis car with a Galaxy S21.
Samsung is harnessing the power of UWB to get rid of your key fob
Samsung announced during its Galaxy S21 launch event today that the company is working with these auto manufacturers to bring the digital key functionality to the Galaxy S21. The feature is expected to go live later this year.
Since there are industry-backed standards bodies working on the tech, the digital keys will be shareable across smartphones, regardless of the brand or platform. So you could, in theory, share the digital key for your car with a friend who uses an iPhone.
Samsung is also embracing the ultra-wideband technology (UWT) for the digital car keys that will allow cars and phones to communicate with one another.
The company’s description of the feature suggests that it will utilize UWB or Ultra Wide Band technology. The handset would recognize pulses of low-power energy from UWB-equipped cars to unlock the doors exactly when you reach it. NFC would most likely be the fall back and it would require taking the phone out of the pocket and tapping it to the car.
The AR viewfinder for UWB-equipped phones and cars.
The UWB tech will also make it easier to locate your car in a parking lot, a very useful feature for those who tend to forget where they parked. Samsung is bringing an augmented reality-powered viewfinder to its UWB-equipped devices for this purpose. Samsung’s UWB-equipped phones include the Galaxy S21+ and Galaxy S21 Ultra, the Galaxy Z Fold 2 and the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.
Samsung has also expanded their SmartThings functionality to cars that allows drivers of compatible vehicles to start and stop their car as well as adjust the climate control system.
During its digitally hosted Galaxy Unpacked event, Samsung announced that it has partnered with Audi, BMW, Ford and Genesis to introduce digital car key feature that allows unlocking of the car door using the Samsung mobile phone. The feature may be available as soon as August 2021.
The digital key can also be shared across mobile devices, regardless of brand of platform. One will be able to share car keys digitally when a friend or family member with just a few taps on the phone.
Near-field communication (NFC) technology used on the devices enables owners to ‘tap’ their phone near the door handle to unlock the car. The electronics company is also embracing the ultra-wideband technology (UWT) for the digital car keys that will allow cars and phones to communicate with one another. The car will unlock itself as soon as the driver reaches the door.
Samsung has also expanded their SmartThings functionality to cars that allows drivers of compatible vehicles to start and stop their car as well as adjust the climate control system. Using the car’s display, drivers can also control smart home functions such as temperature setting, vacuum cleaning and washing machine operation.
As Samsung and Google have worked closely together to improve the Android Auto experience, the in-car interface has become much more enhanced, supporting a whole lot of smart and remote functionalities.
The dream of using your phone to unlock your car door (instead of carrying around a bulging key fob) may be one step closer today: Samsung has announced partnerships with Audi, BMW, Ford, and Genesis to do just that, saying the feature may be available as soon as August 2021. And excitingly, those digital car keys should work with Apple iPhones and across other Android brands, too.
That’s because Samsung is part of multiple standards bodies that are working on the tech, including the the FiRa Consortium and the Car Connectivity Consortium, of which Apple is also a leading member. “You’ll even be able to share your digital key across smartphones, regardless of brand or platform,” Samsung’s Kevin Chung announced during the company’s Galaxy S21 event today.
Samsung says it’s trying to add additional car companies, too: “We’re actively working to expand our automobile partnerships with the goal of offering this feature across a wide variety of car makes and models,” the company added in a statement early this evening.
Unfortunately, it’s not yet clear which automakers will support the coolest, securest version of this tech: UWB. It uses small, standardized beacon-like pulses of low-power energy, preferably from multiple parts of your car at once, to figure out exactly where you are in relation to your car’s handle from a sizable distance away.
Samsung says with the new digital keys, “you’ll be able to unlock your car door when you reach it, no sooner, no later,” but I’m pretty sure it’s only referring to UWB there. The fallback is NFC, where you’d likely need to pull your phone out and tap it to your car, like you do with tap-to-pay NFC transactions today.
Samsung also showed off how the tech can let you find your car in a crowded parking lot, with an augmented reality viewfinder it says it’s bringing to Samsung phones — but the fine print says it only works with UWB-equipped cars and UWB-enabled phones.
Every iPhone 11 and iPhone 12 comes with UWB now, but Samsung says only the Galaxy Z Fold 2, the new S21 Plus and S21 Ultra (so, not the S21?), and the “Galaxy Note 20+” (presumably referring to the Note 20 Ultra, which has UWB) will support the AR viewfinder.
Apple is also waiting for carmakers to adopt UWB and had to roll out its own version of digital car keys with NFC to start, and only on the 2021 BMW 5 Series. But BMW announced earlier today that it’ll support UWB, branded as “Digital Key Plus,” with the electric BMW iX.
Samsung’s also introducing a UWB-based tracking tag for finding your lost gadgets later this year, though — like the car keys — it’s starting off with a less impressive Bluetooth version instead that won’t let you locate them as precisely.
As part of its $100 million Racial Equity and Justice Initiative commitment, Apple is supporting the launch of the Propel Center (rendering above), an innovation hub for the entire HBCU community that will provide curriculum, internships, and mentorship opportunities.
Cupertino, California — Apple today announced a set of major new projects as part of its $100 million Racial Equity and Justice Initiative (REJI) to help dismantle systemic barriers to opportunity and combat injustices faced by communities of color. These forward-looking and comprehensive efforts include the Propel Center, a first-of-its-kind global innovation and learning hub for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs); an Apple Developer Academy to support coding and tech education for students in Detroit; and venture capital funding for Black and Brown entrepreneurs. Together, Apple’s REJI commitments aim to expand opportunities for communities of color across the country and to help build the next generation of diverse leaders.
Commitments build on Apple’s $100 million pledge and include a first-of-its-kind education hub for HBCUs and an Apple Developer Academy in Detroit
“We are all accountable to the urgent work of building a more just, more equitable world — and these new projects send a clear signal of Apple’s enduring commitment,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “We’re launching REJI’s latest initiatives with partners across a broad range of industries and backgrounds — from students to teachers, developers to entrepreneurs, and community organizers to justice advocates — working together to empower communities that have borne the brunt of racism and discrimination for far too long. We are honored to help bring this vision to bear, and to match our words and actions to the values of equity and inclusion we have always prized at Apple.”
Jared Bailey, a senior at Morehouse College, has integrated Apple’s coding and creativity curricula into his public health and community service work as part of the school’s partnership with Apple, a collaboration that is expanding further with the launch of the Propel Center.
Last June 2020, Apple announced REJI in the wake of protests around the world following the killings of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and countless others. The initiative builds on Apple’s work to advance racial equity in education, the economy, and the criminal justice system, and is led by Apple’s vice president of Environment, Policy and Social Initiatives, Lisa Jackson. REJI complements Apple’s internal efforts to improve diversity and inclusion at every level of the company.
“Every individual deserves equal access to opportunity regardless of skin color or zip code,” said Jackson. “For too long, communities of color have faced gross injustices and institutional barriers to their pursuit of the American dream, and we are proud to lend our voices and resources to build new engines of opportunity that empower, inspire, and create meaningful change.”
Apple’s Support for HBCUs Expands with the Propel Center
Apple is working with Southern Company and a range of community stakeholders to support the launch of the Propel Center, a first-of-its-kind innovation and learning hub for the HBCU community. Apple’s $25 million contribution will enable the Propel Center to support HBCU students and faculty through a robust virtual platform, a physical campus in the historic Atlanta University Center, as well as on-campus activations at partner institutions.
The center is designed to support the next generation of diverse leaders, providing innovative curricula, technology support, career opportunities, and fellowship programs. The Propel Center will offer a wide range of educational tracks, including AI and machine learning, agricultural technologies, social justice, entertainment arts, app development, augmented reality, design and creative arts, career preparation, and entrepreneurship. Experts from Apple will help develop curricula and provide ongoing mentorship and learning support, along with offering internship opportunities.
The Propel Center campus (rendering above) — equipped with state-of-the-art lecture halls, learning labs, and on-site living for a scholars-in-residence program — will be located in the historic Atlanta University Center district.
The Propel Center was imagined and designed by Ed Farm, a groundbreaking organization that works to promote innovation and educational equity. The initiative builds upon Apple’s partnership with Ed Farm and the company’s work with three dozen HBCUs, bringing coding, creativity, and career opportunities to campuses and communities across the US.
“We’re thrilled to be partnering with Apple on this extraordinary project,” said Anthony Oni, Ed Farm’s founder and chairman of the board, and a vice president at Southern Company. “The Propel Center will help cultivate leadership and drive innovation in tech and beyond, acting as a springboard for change in communities across America.”
As part of Apple’s ongoing partnerships with HBCUs, the company is also establishing two new grants to support HBCU engineering programs. Apple’s new Innovation Grants will help HBCU Colleges of Engineering develop their silicon and hardware engineering curriculum in partnership with Apple’s experts. The new Faculty Fellows Program will support HBCU educators pursuing R&D with mentorship programs, curriculum development assistance, and funds to equip their lab spaces.
Building on its longstanding scholarship program with the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, Apple is also now offering scholarships to 100 new Apple Scholars from underrepresented communities. In addition to financial support, the Apple Scholars program includes mentorship and career development experience at Apple.
MaKisha Funderburke will collaborate with Apple and Clark Atlanta University, where she is a professor, to create the curriculum framework for the Propel Arts program, one of the many educational tracks that will be available to all HBCU students and faculty through the Propel Center.
Hailee Bryant-Roye, an early-childhood education major at Tennessee State University, has been able to pursue new teaching and learning opportunities with Apple’s Everyone Can Code and Everyone Can Create curricula, offered through the company’s collaboration with TSU. She’ll have access to additional programming, mentorship, and internship opportunities through the Propel Center.
Apple’s First US Developer Academy to Open in Downtown Detroit
Later this year, Apple will open an Apple Developer Academy in Detroit — the first of its kind in the US. Detroit has a vibrant Black entrepreneur and developer community, with over 50,000 Black-owned businesses, according to US Census data. The academy is designed to empower young Black entrepreneurs, creators, and coders, helping them cultivate the skills necessary for jobs in the rapidly growing iOS app economy. Launched in collaboration with Michigan State University, Apple Developer Academy courses will be open to all learners across Detroit, regardless of their academic background or whether they have any previous coding experience.
The Apple Developer Academy will offer two programs in Detroit. A 30-day introductory program is designed for learners who are considering app economy careers and looking to better understand what it means to be a developer. The full academy program is an intensive 10- to 12-month program that will help aspiring developers build the skills needed to participate in the iOS app economy, and even start their own businesses. Apple expects the academy’s programming to reach close to 1,000 students each year with a curriculum that covers coding, design, marketing, and professional skills.
And next month, Apple will host the inaugural cohort of its Entrepreneur Camp for Black Founders and Developers for a virtual experience, offering one-on-one code-level guidance from Apple experts and engineers, as well as mentorship, inspiration, and insights from top Apple leaders.
Empowering Entrepreneurs Through New Funding Partnerships
To address systemic barriers to access and funding faced by Black and Brown entrepreneurs, Apple is today announcing two new investments in the venture capital and banking spaces, with both projects designed to provide capital to minority-owned businesses. The company will invest $10 million with Harlem Capital — an early-stage venture capital firm based in New York — to support its investments in 1,000 companies with diverse founders over the next 20 years. In addition to providing capital to entrepreneurs of color, Harlem Capital will also lend its expertise to Apple’s broader efforts to advance access to economic opportunity. The firm will offer guidance and mentorship to students at the Detroit Developer Academy and participants in Apple’s Entrepreneur Camp for Black Founders and Developers. Apple will also support Harlem Capital’s internship program, focused on opening doors for aspiring women and minority investors.
The company will also invest $25 million in Siebert Williams Shank’s Clear Vision Impact Fund, which provides capital to small and medium-size businesses, with an emphasis on minority-owned companies. The fund looks to support businesses that operate in or serve underserved markets, and that foster inclusive growth initiatives.
Lifting up Community Organizations
As part of its REJI work, Apple continues to build on its contributions toward community colleges, nonprofit advocates, and local organizations working to empower and expand opportunity for the next generation.
Apple is making a contribution to The King Center, a living memorial to the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to share his teachings and inspire new generations to carry forward his unfinished work. Next week, Dr. King’s daughter and the CEO of The King Center, Dr. Bernice A. King, will issue a call to action encouraging young people to give back to their communities as part of Apple’s “Challenge for Change” series — a set of conversation guides and learning-based challenges on issues related to race and inequality.
Apple’s contribution to The King Center joins the company’s previous donations to nonprofit organizations that advance equity and justice, including the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and the Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery, Alabama.
Apple’s support for The King Center will bolster the organization’s work to share Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s teachings and inspire new generations to carry forward his unfinished work.
The end is officially here for Adobe Flash. As previously announced, Adobe has confirmed that it will no longer provide support for Flash Player after December 31, 2020, and it will block Flash content from running in Flash Player beginning on January 12, 2021.
The writing has been on the wall for the end of Adobe Flash for years. Way back in 2017, Adobe announced its plans to drop support for the Flash plug-in by the end of 2020, and it is now making good on that promise.
As Adobe has worked to wind down Flash over the last three years, Apple’s message has been consistent. The company emphasized on its WebKit blog at the time of Adobe’s announcement that the transition from Flash began in 2010 for Apple users:
Apple users have been experiencing the web without Flash for some time. iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch never supported Flash. For the Mac, the transition from Flash began in 2010 when Flash was no longer pre-installed. Today, if users install Flash, it remains off by default. Safari requires explicit approval on each website before running the Flash plugin.
But of course, the relationship between Apple and Adobe in regards to Flash had been strained for years, ever since Steve Jobs famously published his “Thoughts on Flash” piece back in 2010 to address what was a major point of criticism at the time for iPhones and iPads as computer replacements.
I wanted to jot down some of our thoughts on Adobe’s Flash products so that customers and critics may better understand why we do not allow Flash on iPhones, iPods and iPads. Adobe has characterized our decision as being primarily business driven – they say we want to protect our App Store – but in reality it is based on technology issues. Adobe claims that we are a closed system, and that Flash is open, but in fact the opposite is true.
In the letter, Jobs bemoaned Flash for its many flaws, including things like reliability, security, battery life, and performance. While Adobe contested Jobs’ claims at the time, Apple never did bring Flash to the iPhone and iPad, and Flash’s downfall began shortly thereafter.
Adobe has a website dedicated to providing information about the end-of-life plans for Flash, saying that users should uninstall Flash from their computers immediately to “help protect their systems.”
Since Adobe will no longer be supporting Flash Player after December 31, 2020 and Adobe will block Flash content from running in Flash Player beginning January 12, 2021, Adobe strongly recommends all users immediately uninstall Flash Player to help protect their systems. Some users may continue to see reminders from Adobe to uninstall Flash Player from their system.
Since Adobe will no longer be supporting Flash Player after December 31, 2020 and Adobe will block Flash content from running in Flash Player beginning January 12, 2021, Adobe strongly recommends all users immediately uninstall Flash Player to help protect their systems.
Some users may continue to see reminders from Adobe to uninstall Flash Player from their system. See below for more details on how to uninstall Flash Player.
UPDATED: December 2, 2020
As previously announced in July 2017, Adobe will stop supporting Flash Player after December 31, 2020 (“EOL Date”).
Open standards such as HTML5, WebGL, and WebAssembly have continually matured over the years and serve as viable alternatives for Flash content. Also, major browser vendors are integrating these open standards into their browsers and deprecating most other plug-ins (like Flash Player). See Flash Player EOL announcements from Apple,Facebook,Google,Microsoft and Mozilla.
By providing more than three years’ advance notice, Adobe believes that there has been sufficient time for developers, designers, businesses, and other parties to migrate Flash content to new standards. The EOL timing was in coordination with some of the major browser vendors.
After the EOL Date, Adobe does not intend to issue Flash Player updates or security patches. Therefore, Adobe will continue to prompt users to uninstall Flash Player and strongly recommends that all users immediately uninstall Flash Player.
To help secure users’ systems, Adobe will block Flash content from running in Flash Player beginning January 12, 2021.
Major browser vendors will disable Flash Player from running after the EOL Date.
Flash Player may remain on your system unless you uninstall it. Uninstalling Flash Player will help secure your system since Adobe does not intend to issue Flash Player updates or security patches after the EOL Date. Adobe will block Flash content from running in Flash Player beginning January 12, 2021 and the major browser vendors will continue to disable Flash Player from running after the EOL Date.
Click “Uninstall” when prompted by Adobe in Flash Player, or follow these manual uninstall instructions for Windows and Mac users.
Since Adobe is no longer supporting Flash Player after the EOL Date, Adobe will block Flash content from running in Flash Player beginning January 12, 2021 to help secure users’ systems. Flash Player may remain on the user’s system unless the user uninstalls it.
As the EOL Date approaches, the number of Flash-supported browsers and operating systems will continue to decrease so Adobe strongly recommends that all users immediately uninstall Flash Player.
Apple Safari version 14, released for macOS in September 2020, no longer loads Flash Player or runs Flash content. Please visit Apple’s Safari support for more information.
Adobe will continue issuing regular Flash Player security patches, and maintain certain OS and browser compatibility through the end of 2020.
No. Adobe will remove Flash Player download pages from its site after the EOL Date. Adobe will block Flash content from running in Flash Player beginning January 12, 2021.
No. These versions of Flash Player are not authorized by Adobe. Users should not use unauthorized versions of Flash Player. Unauthorized downloads are a common source of malware and viruses.
Adobe does not intend to issue Flash Player updates or security patches after the EOL Date. Adobe strongly recommends that all users uninstall Flash Player immediately.
AirPods Max bring the magic of AirPods to an all-new wireless over-ear design with high-fidelity audio, Active Noise Cancellation, spatial audio, and more.
AirPods Max feature incredible high-fidelity audio, Adaptive EQ, Active Noise Cancellation, and spatial audio
Apple announced AirPods Max, innovative wireless headphones that bring the magic of AirPods to an over-ear design with high-fidelity sound. AirPods Max combine a custom acoustic design, H1 chips, and advanced software to power computational audio for a breakthrough listening experience with Adaptive EQ, Active Noise Cancellation, Transparency mode, and spatial audio. AirPods Max come in five gorgeous colors, including space gray, silver, sky blue, green, and pink, and are available to order starting today, with availability beginning Tuesday, December 15.
“AirPods are the most popular headphones in the world, beloved for their effortless setup, incredible sound quality, and iconic design. With AirPods Max, we are bringing that magical AirPods experience to a stunning over-ear design with high-fidelity audio,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “The custom acoustic design, combined with powerful H1 chips, and advanced software enable AirPods Max to use computational audio to wirelessly deliver the ultimate personal listening experience.”
AirPods Max feature a breathable knit mesh canopy, distributing weight to reduce on-head pressure. AirPods Max come in silver, space gray, sky blue, pink, and green.
Custom Acoustic Design
From the canopy to the ear cushions, every part of AirPods Max is carefully crafted to provide exceptional acoustic performance for each user. The breathable knit mesh canopy, spanning the headband, is made to distribute weight and reduce on-head pressure. The stainless steel headband frame provides strength, flexibility, and comfort for a wide variety of head shapes and sizes. Telescoping headband arms smoothly extend and stay in place to maintain the desired fit.
Each ear cup attaches to the headband through a revolutionary mechanism that balances and distributes ear cup pressure, and allows it to independently pivot and rotate to fit the unique contours of a user’s head. Each ear cushion uses acoustically engineered memory foam to create an effective seal — a critical factor in delivering immersive sound. The Digital Crown, inspired by Apple Watch, offers precise volume control and the ability to play or pause audio, skip tracks, answer or end phone calls, and activate Siri.
The Digital Crown provides precise volume control and the ability to play or pause audio, skip tracks, answer or end phone calls, and activate Siri. The noise control button easily switches between Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency mode.
AirPods Max ear cushions use acoustically engineered memory foam to create an effective seal for immersive sound, and an Apple-designed knit textile wraps each ear cushion for added comfort.
From the canopy to the cushions, every part of AirPods Max is carefully crafted to provide a comfortable fit and exceptional acoustic performance for each individual.
Breakthrough Listening Experience
AirPods Max feature a 40-mm Apple-designed dynamic driver that provides rich, deep bass, accurate mid-ranges, and crisp, clean high-frequency extension so every note can be heard. A unique dual neodymium ring magnet motor allows AirPods Max to maintain total harmonic distortion of less than 1 percent across the entire audible range, even at maximum volume.1 Equipped with an Apple-designed H1 chip in each ear cup, a custom acoustic design, and advanced software, AirPods Max use computational audio to deliver the highest quality listening experience possible. Utilizing each of the chips’ 10 audio cores — capable of 9 billion operations per second — computational audio powers a breakthrough listening experience that includes Adaptive EQ, Active Noise Cancellation, Transparency mode, and spatial audio.
AirPods Max custom acoustic design features a 40-mm dynamic driver and a unique dual neodymium ring magnet motor.
Adaptive EQ: AirPods Max use Adaptive EQ to adjust the sound to the fit and seal of the ear cushions by measuring the sound signal delivered to a user and adjusting the low and mid-frequencies in real time — bringing rich audio that captures every detail.
Active Noise Cancellation: AirPods Max deliver immersive sound through Active Noise Cancellation so users can focus on what they are listening to. Each ear cup features three outward-facing microphones to detect environmental noise, while one microphone inside the ear cup monitors the sound reaching the listener’s ear. Using computational audio, noise cancellation continuously adapts to the headphone fit and movement in real time.
Transparency Mode: With AirPods Max, users can switch to Transparency mode to simultaneously listen to music while hearing the environment around them — ensuring everything, including a user’s own voice, sounds natural while audio plays perfectly. Switching between Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency mode can be done with a single press using the noise control button.
Spatial Audio: AirPods Max use spatial audio with dynamic head tracking to place sounds virtually anywhere in a space — delivering an immersive, theaterlike experience for content recorded in 5.1, 7.1, and Dolby Atmos. Using the gyroscope and accelerometer in AirPods Max and iPhone or iPad, spatial audio tracks the motion of a user’s head as well as the device, compares the motion data, then remaps the sound field so it stays anchored to the device, even as the user’s head moves.
AirPods Max deliver a breakthrough listening experience with Adaptive EQ, Active Noise Cancellation, Transparency mode, and spatial audio.
AirPods Max combine a custom acoustic design, Apple H1 chips, and advanced software to power computational audio for the ultimate personal listening experience.
The Magic of AirPods
AirPods Max join the existing AirPods family in delivering unparalleled wireless audio, whether a customer is listening to music, making phone calls, enjoying TV shows and movies, playing games, or interacting with Siri. The magical setup experience customers love with today’s AirPods and AirPods Pro extends to AirPods Max with one-tap setup, followed by automatic pairing with all the devices signed in to a user’s iCloud account, including iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, Apple Watch, and Apple TV.
AirPods Max automatically detect when they are on a user’s head using the optical and position sensors. Once in place, AirPods Max play audio and can pause once removed or when the user simply lifts one ear cup. With AirPods Max, voice calls and Siri commands are crisp and clear due to beam-forming microphones that block out ambient noise and focus on the user’s voice.
AirPods Max feature the magical one-tap setup experience that customers love with AirPods.
Battery and Performance
AirPods Max feature great battery life with up to 20 hours of high-fidelity audio, talk time, or movie playback with Active Noise Cancellation and spatial audio enabled.
AirPods Max come with a soft, slim Smart Case that puts AirPods Max in an ultralow power state that helps to preserve battery charge when not in use.
When stored in the soft, slim Smart Case, AirPods Max enter an ultralow power state that preserves charge.
Additional Features
Automatic switching allows users to seamlessly move sound between iPhone, iPad, and Mac. When playing music on Mac, users can easily take a call on iPhone and AirPods Max will automatically switch over.
Audio Sharing makes it possible to easily share an audio stream between two sets of AirPods on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Apple TV 4K. Simply bring AirPods Max near the device and connect with a single tap.
Siri capabilities include the ability to play music, make phone calls, control the volume, get directions, and more. Siri can also read incoming messages as they arrive with Announce Messages with Siri.
Pricing and Availability
AirPods Max are available to order starting today for $549 (US) from apple.com and in the Apple Store app in the US and more than 25 other countries and regions. AirPods Max will begin shipping on Tuesday, December 15.
AirPods Max require Apple devices running iOS 14.3 or later, iPadOS 14.3 or later, macOS Big Sur 11.1 or later, watchOS 7.2 or later, or tvOS 14.3 or later.
AirPods start at $159 (US) and AirPods Pro are available for $249 (US).
Customers can add personal engraving to AirPods Max, AirPods Pro, and AirPods for free on apple.com and in the Apple Store app.
Customers are able to find the same great shopping and support services at apple.com/shop, in the Apple Store app, and at Apple Store locations. Customers can get shopping help from Apple Specialists, choose monthly financing options, get special carrier offers for iPhone, trade in eligible devices, and get Support services and no-contact delivery or Apple Store pickup options. Customers are encouraged to check apple.com/retail for more information on the health and safety measures in place, and the services available, at their local store.
Pickup options include in-store, curbside, or Express storefront, and vary by store. Same-day delivery may also be available. Customers can check apple.com/retail for services available at their local store.
With Apple Card, customers in the US get 3 percent Daily Cash back when they buy directly from Apple and have the option to choose Apple Card Monthly Installments so they can pay over time, interest-free.
There’s a running joke in my recent iPad reviews: I just get to say “it’s an iPad,” and everybody knows what that means. It’s a sign that the product isn’t changing year over year, sure. But more importantly, it’s a promise that it’s good, that it will do what you expect it to do, and that you don’t need to overthink how it will fit into your life.
Not very many products reach that level. Even the iPhone has ups and downs, with some years being a little more inconsistent than others. But minus a rough start and a cellular hiccup a couple of years ago, the Apple Watch has been on a very steady trajectory: slightly better every year. It starts at the same $399 price point as last year, and cellular or material upgrades will add to that cost.
Compared to the Series 4, the Series 5 has only a few minor updates. Chief among them is a new always-on screen. Compared to the rest of the smartwatch market, the Apple Watch Series 5 is in a completely different league.
GOOD STUFF
Finally, an always-on screen
Big, beautiful display
New apps round out its capabilities
BAD STUFF
Battery life hasn’t improved
Still no third-party watchfaces
Doesn’t work with Android phones
Relative to the Series 4, there are four new things on the Apple Watch Series 5. The first is that Apple is offering new materials for the casing. You can get it in the standard aluminum and steel, but you can also spend more for titanium or ceramic now.
There are some subtle weight differences on the more expensive materials, and they also have sapphire glass on the front of the Watch. But you should not spend the extra money on those more premium materials in the hope that they’ll be better from a feature perspective. They’re the same Apple Watch; you’d just be paying more for something fancier. Some people like doing that!
The second new feature is the big update this year: an always-on screen. I feel like a lot of users have been asking for this since the very first Apple Watch was announced five years ago alongside the iPhone 6 and Apple Pay. It’s something other smartwatches were already doing back then, and it was annoying that Apple didn’t figure out a way to do it.
Now it has, and in typical Apple fashion, it’s saying it was able to do so because of some slick new screen technology that mitigates the usual battery trade-offs. Specifically, Apple says it can dynamically change the screen’s refresh rate from as fast as 60Hz to as slow as 1Hz, updating just once per second.
Doing that allows the screen to draw radically less power when it’s in ambient mode. It also means that if you want an always-on display, you’re going to have to pony up for the Series 5. It’s not something that will be added to older models via software updates.
The technology that makes that possible is a low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO for short) display that Apple developed. The tech behind an LTPO version of an OLED screen is interesting — especially since it was first introduced in the Series 4 — but it’s not something you really need to understand. The screen looks identical to the Series 4; it’s just as big and bright.
What last year’s Watch lacks are the chips to control the refresh rate on that LTPO screen so it won’t be able to do always-on. Specifically, the Series 5 has an “ultra-low power display driver, efficient power management integrated circuit and new ambient light sensor,” according to Apple.
I love the always-on screen on the Series 5. Apple’s implementation is better than other smartwatches I’ve used for two reasons: it legitimately doesn’t hurt the battery life as much, and Apple keeps a little color visible in ambient mode.
For whatever reason, I’ve never been able to get earlier Apple Watches to show their screens with subtle wrist movements. I’ve always had to cartoonishly raise my arm. An always-on screen means I am a little bit less of a jerk in conversations and meetings.
AN ALWAYS-ON SCREEN WAS MY NUMBER ONE FEATURE REQUEST — IT TOOK FIVE YEARS, BUT WE GOT IT
But the big question is battery life: Apple claims it still gets 18 hours with standard use, and I have gotten that. So, box checked — except that the Series 4 usually outperformed that estimate. I won’t go so far as to say that the Series 5 gets notably worse battery life than the Series 4, but at best, it’s on par. You’ll be charging it every day.
But let’s not grade on a curve here. The Apple Watch is better than any other computer-on-your-wrist-style smartwatch by a country mile, but there are other watches with smart features that can last for days, weeks, or even months. The Garmins and Fitbits and Withings of the world are all meant for different things than the Apple Watch, but many can do some of the basics, like notifications and weather, nearly as well.
The last two new features on the Apple Watch Series 5 are a built-in compass and cellular bands that can work internationally. The former could be useful for day hikers, while the latter really only allows the cellular version to make emergency calls anywhere in the world. To get service in more places, you’ll need to wait for Apple to make more carrier deals.
So to sum up: new case materials, new always-on screen, a compass, and more cellular bands. All in all, that’s a very minor update. But the truth is that Apple could have done literally nothing, and the Apple Watch would still have been the best smartwatch for iPhone users by far.
If you have a current Apple Watch and are thinking of upgrading, I strongly recommend you wait for watchOS 6 to arrive for your current Watch. It might be good enough for you to hang on to what you have or, more rarely, these updates can make older Watches feel slower. Either way, it’s worth it to wait a bit.
The big headline feature for watchOS 6 is that it has an independent App Store that allows you to download and install apps without needing your iPhone. It does exactly that, but make sure you have your iPhone handy the first time to enter some passwords. There will be other times when some of the apps will not work on your Watch until they can communicate with a paired app on your iPhone. Apple tells me that after watchOS 6 launches, many fully independent Watch apps will be available and featured on the main page of the Watch version of the App Store.
I think the hope is that an onboard App Store may spur more usage and make supporting the Apple Watch more worthwhile to third-party developers. We’ll see, but I’m not holding my breath just yet. So far, it’s been a moneymaker mainly for Apple. Apple has done a decent job of curating apps for the main page on the App Store, but otherwise, it’s not as easy to browse as it is on your phone.
The new App Store on the Watch doesn’t make it any more independent from the iPhone, however. You still need an iPhone to set up and use the Apple Watch, even if you have a Watch with an LTE connection and its own version of the App Store. This is still an accessory to the iPhone and not a truly independent device. Though, with watchOS 6, you can start to see the hazy outlines of that path.
Alongside the App Store are a few new and updated apps directly from Apple. The most important in my mind is the new Cycle Tracking app for tracking menstrual cycles. It took Apple longer than it should have to prioritize features designed for the health of people who have periods. But now that it’s here, it seems as though the company has done a good job.
Apple has taken a cautious approach. The complication doesn’t show information, for example, and it won’t be overconfident in guessing the dates for your predicted periods and fertility windows. If you’re planning on using this to gather data for family planning purposes, you should talk to your doctor before acting on any of the data this app collects.
Apple also has put some thought and care into whether and when to show various Cycle Tracking options, depending on the age and gender information it knows. You can also turn certain types of tracking (like fertility) off if you want. There’s a specific onboarding flow that happens on the phone only because it’s better able to communicate information and nuance than your tiny Watch screen.
And if you’d like to remove the Cycles app entirely, for the first time, watchOS 6 will allow users to delete some of Apple’s own apps from the Watch. (To do that, you need to have your app view set in the hexagonal grid view. Then, long-press any app to go into jiggly mode, at which point, you’ll be able to tap an X to uninstall.)
Other new apps include an updated Reminders app and a Voice Memos app, both of which sync automatically with their paired apps on the iPhone. There’s also a Calculator app. (Why the Apple Watch has a first-party Calculator app while the iPad does not is a riddle for all iPad users.)
The Apple Watch can now also detect ambient noise. If it gets too loud, it will warn you, and it will also track your overall ambient noise level over time. It confirmed that the BART trains in San Francisco are ridiculously loud.
Apple put in a few new watchfaces, as usual. And as usual, I find them to be nice but always a few degrees off from what I actually want. I respect that Apple is opinionated about the aesthetics of the Apple Watch, but I’m increasingly annoyed that it won’t allow third-party watchfaces.
However, Apple has finally made a change that I’m over the moon about: on most watchfaces, when you set a custom color, it sets all of the complications to monochrome to match that color. I found too many of them to be garishly colorful before, and now I can tone them down to my preferred color.
Last and (given its reputation) possibly least, Siri has a few small updates. It’s able to recognize music when you ask for it, and it can present answers to questions with web links now, too. Yes, you can still open webpages on the Apple Watch. And yes, it’s still as adorable as ever. Fortunately, it also still defaults to opening specific articles in Safari Reader Mode.
If you’re interested in the cellular version, I can report that it works about the same in watchOS 6 as it did before, which is to say everything works, but it all feels just a little slower and worse than it would if you had your phone with you. Calls aren’t as crisp, latency is a bit higher when using data, and, of course, it’ll ding your battery more. But again, slightly worse than ideal for the Apple Watch is still many multiples better than most of the competition.
It is about time that Apple added an always-on screen to the Apple Watch Series 5, but that’s not the best thing about it. Nor is it the LTPO technology that enables it or the new compass or the noise meter or any single one of the features I’ve brought up in this review.
The best part of the Apple Watch is that I’m able to talk about those features at all. Every other smartwatch I have used in the past few years (and, reader, I have used a lot) has failed to cross very basic thresholds of usability. Some don’t last more than 12 hours, some can’t seem to open apps in fewer than 10 seconds, some are hard to navigate, and some have really buggy software.
The lion’s share of the blame for those issues lies with the various companies that have tried and failed to make great smartwatches. But I want to save some portion for Apple because it allows the Apple Watch to have deeper and better integrations with the iPhone than it will give to third parties. It automatically “just works” with Apple’s apps, notification frameworks, and — critically — iMessage.
That Apple integration cuts both ways. Because it’s tied so closely to the iPhone, the possibility that it will ever be an option for Android users seems to be getting smaller. That’s a shame because there are many, many more Android users, all of whom don’t have great smartwatch options.
In fact, look closer at the Android world, and you will see just how far ahead the Apple Watch truly is. Google’s Wear OS platform is in the midst of its umpteenth strategic reboot, and it’s not going well. Samsung’s Tizen platform is better, but it has struggled to gain wider adoption among anybody but Samsung users. Fitbit has hung on to a loyal following for its basic fitness trackers, but its attempts at more advanced smartwatches have been disappointing.
It’s as if the Apple Watch is in high school and taking AP courses while everybody else is repeating the 7th grade for the third time. Sure, the Apple Watch Series 5 hasn’t reached anything close to its full potential yet, but right now, this thing is an overachiever.
Oprah’s Book Club connects readers around the world by celebrating selections on Apple Books and author interviews on Apple TV+.
“Caste” is now available on Apple Books; Winfrey narrates an exclusive excerpt in a new video and will be the first-ever guest editor for Apple News
Winfrey’s conversation with Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and author Isabel Wilkerson will debut this fall for free, exclusively on Apple TV+
In partnership with Apple, Oprah Winfrey is unveiling the newest selection for Oprah’s Book Club, “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents,” by Isabel Wilkerson. The book is available now on Apple Books in both ebook and audiobook formats at apple.co/OBCCaste, and customers can enjoy it across iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and CarPlay.
Publisher Penguin Random House calls “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents” a masterful portrait ofthe unspoken caste system that has shaped America. Through an immersive, deeply researched narrative and stories about real people, Wilkerson explores how America has been defined by a rigid hierarchy of human rankings throughout its history and even today.
“This might be the most important book I’ve ever chosen for my book club,” said Oprah Winfrey. “‘Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents’ provides a new way of seeing racial inequality, giving rise to countless aha moments and helping us truly understand America as it is now and how we hope it will be.”
“I am honored and thrilled that ‘Caste’ has been chosen for Oprah’s Book Club and that its humanitarian insights will now reach a wider audience,” said Isabel Wilkerson. “This work shows that the term racism may be insufficient in our current era. We need new language, a new framework for understanding our divisions and how we got to where we are. ‘Caste’ gives us this language. ‘Caste’ allows us to see ourselves through a different lens and the chance to work toward healing from the wounds of artificial hierarchy. We must first see it to begin to resolve it.”
“Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents” is available now on Apple Books in both ebook and audiobook formats.
Customers can read and listen to an exclusive excerpt of “Caste” on Apple News and further explore the themes highlighted in “Caste” in curated collections on Apple Books and Apple Podcasts. Next week, customers can listen to Apple Music’s Beats 1 host Ebro Darden interview Wilkerson about how her book is reflective of the times. Later this month, customers can also read a collection of related articles on Apple News, curated by Winfrey as the app’s first-ever guest editor, and next month, they can enjoy a “Caste” discussion guide on Apple Books to helphost their own conversations around the book and the important issues it explores.
Apple Books gives readers an easy way to discover ebooks and audiobooks, and the Reading Goals feature helps make reading a daily habit more easily.
Oprah’s Book Club connects a worldwide community of readers to stories that truly matter by today’s most thought-provoking authors. Readers around the world can easily discover Oprah’s Book Club through the Apple Books app on iPhone and iPad (apple.co/OprahsBookClub), learn more about the latest selection, and browse previous selections. Customers can also follow Oprah’s Book Club on Apple Books for updates.
Apple Books makes discovering and enjoying ebooks and audiobooks effortless on iPhone and iPad. Customers can tap on the Book Store tab to browse all available titles, top charts, editorially curated collections, and books by genre, as well as the dedicated Audiobooks tab to find great new stories to listen to, including ones narrated by celebrities and popular narrators. The Reading Now tab makes it easy for customers to get right to their latest book or audiobook, or uncover a new favorite with personalized recommendations, and they can track their progress by using the Reading Goals feature and make reading a daily habit. Customers can also enjoy Apple Books on Mac, or listen to their audiobook library on Apple Watch and CarPlay.
Audiences can watch all “Oprah’s Book Club” episodes for free exclusively on Apple TV+.
Customers can also enjoy Oprah’s Book Club through the “Oprah’s Book Club” series available for free exclusively on Apple TV+, where they can watch all of Winfrey’s discussions with Book Club authors. In the “Caste” episode, which will premiere this fall, Winfrey will speak with Wilkerson for an important and insightful discussion about the book and the history it explores. Apple TV+ is available on the Apple TV app on iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, iPod touch, Mac, select Samsung and LG smart TVs, Amazon Fire TV and Roku devices, as well as at tv.apple.com.
About “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents” (Penguin Random House)
Drawing parallels between the caste systems of America, India, and Nazi Germany, Wilkerson outlines a revolutionary framework for understanding how caste plays out across civilizations, both historically and today. Backed by years of research, she identifies eight ideological pillars that underlie all caste systems. Using riveting stories from the lives of Martin Luther King Jr., baseball’s Satchel Paige, an ordinary single father and his toddler son, and many others, Wilkerson shows how the insidious undertow of caste is experienced by each of us every day. She documents how the Nazis studied the racial systems in America to plan their debasement of the Jews; she discusses why the cruel logic of caste requires that there be a bottom rung for those in the middle to measure themselves against; she writes about the surprising health costs of caste, in depression and life expectancy, and the effects of this hierarchy on our culture and politics. Finally, she points forward to ways America can move beyond the artificial and destructive separations of human divisions, toward hope in our common humanity.
