MacRumors

Amazon today is taking up to $52 off Wi-Fi models of Apple's 11th generation iPad. Prices start at $299.00 for the 128GB Wi-Fi iPad, down from $349.00, a second-best price on this model.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Additionally, Amazon has the 256GB Wi-Fi iPad for $399.00 ($50 off) and the 512GB Wi-Fi iPad for $598.50 ($52 off). Free delivery estimates are placed around August 4 for these iPad models, but Prime members should be able to get same-day delivery in many locations.

The 11th generation iPad is mainly a spec bump for the tablet line, now featuring the A16 chip and more storage, with the same design as the 10th generation iPad. The new ‌iPad‌ starts with 128GB of storage, and is also available in 256GB and a new 512GB configuration. The previous model was only available in 64GB and 256GB configurations.

If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week.

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Skechers recently started selling a line of kids shoes that have a hidden compartment under the insole for inserting Apple's AirTag item tracker.

The idea here is that parents can put an AirTag in the shoes, and then track the location of those shoes (and the child wearing them) in the Find My app, which is available across the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and on the web at iCloud.com.

The shoes can provide parents with peace of mind by allowing them to keep track of their child's location in public. If a child gets lost in a busy shopping mall, for example, the parent could view their location in the Find My app. Or, a parent could double check that their child is where they are supposed to be at a certain time, such as school.

In a YouTube ad shared this week, Skechers said that kids cannot feel the AirTag under their feet while wearing the shoes, making it a discreet solution.

These shoes could also prove invaluable if a child is kidnapped, but one caveat is that the kidnapper would receive an alert on their iPhone or Android smartphone if an unknown AirTag has been following them for a little while. If the kidnapper is unable to find the AirTag, it will eventually start playing a sound. This is a safety feature that is designed to prevent people from using the AirTag for stalking purposes.

Another thing to keep in mind is that if the child does not have a device on them, the AirTag will rely exclusively on the Find My network to send its latest location to iCloud. In other words, the child will need to be around other people with Apple, Android, or other Find My network devices, in an area where there is cellular or Wi-Fi connectivity. If the child is somehow alone in an area without any internet connectivity, the AirTag's location would not update.

On its website, Apple says the AirTag should not be used to track people, but a parent using the accessory to track a young child is justifiable.

Alternatively, parents can give their child a cellular Apple Watch for location tracking purposes. The child does not need to have an iPhone.

The shoes are available for boys and girls in the U.S., Canada, and select other countries. In the U.S., prices start at $52 as of writing (an AirTag is not included). They come in a variety of styles, and they are machine washable, according to Skechers.

Saudia, the flag carrier airline of Saudi Arabia, now supports Apple's iPhone feature that makes it easier to share the location of AirTag-equipped baggage at airports, according to local media.

With iOS 18.2, Apple introduced a new Find My feature that lets you temporarily share the location of an AirTag-equipped item – such as a bag – with others, including participating airline staff, to help track it if it's lost or delayed.

Users running iOS 18.2, iPadOS 18.2, or macOS Sequoia 15.2 and later can generate a "Share Item Location" link in the Find My app. Recipients can view the item's location on a live-updating web map.

Apple says it collaborated with airlines to enable private and secure access to these links. Only a small number of people can view each link, and airline staff must authenticate using an Apple ID or a verified partner email to gain access.

As soon as customers find their item, location sharing is disabled. The owner can also stop sharing their location at any time, and the sharing link automatically expires after 7 days to ensure the privacy of passengers.

American Airlines rolled out support for the feature in February. Other airlines that also offer the feature include Delta, United, Air Canada, Virgin Atlantic, British Airways, Lufthansa, and more.

Apple has announced that customers in India can now connect with an Apple Specialist over a live video session while shopping for Apple products on its regional online store. It's the first expansion of the service outside of the U.S., where it debuted in March 2023.

The service connects customers with an Apple Store team member via a secure, one-way video call to browse the latest Apple products, discover new features, and learn about Apple's trade-in program, financing options, and more.

The Specialist appears on video, while customers remain on audio only. During the session, customers can get tailored, personalised advice, enabling them to compare iPhone models, for example. The service is offered in English, and customers on both iOS and non-iOS devices can use it.

Shop with a Specialist over Video is available to customers in India from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. India Standard Time from Monday to Friday on the Apple Store online. The move follows Apple's launch of the Apple Store app in India earlier this year.

Apple is expected to implement a $50 price increase across its iPhone 17 lineup when the new models launch in September as a way to offset rising component costs and China tariffs, according to a new investor note by Jefferies analyst Edison Lee.

The price hike is expected across all iPhone 17 models, including the regular iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air (replacing the Plus model), iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. Current iPhone models range from the base iPhone 16 starting at $799 to the iPhone 16 Pro Max at $1,199.

The analyst's prediction came as it gave AAPL stock a Hold rating, citing strong iPhone sales in the second quarter of 2025. U.S. telecommunications companies reported a 22% year-on-year equipment growth, their highest in six quarters, according to the analyst's note.

The Wall Street Journal reported in May that Apple was considering raising prices for its upcoming iPhone 17 models. The company reportedly aims to pair the potential price hikes with new features and design changes to justify the increased cost to consumers, rather than attributing them to U.S. tariffs on goods from China.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Update 9:31 a.m.: The error was apparently not a mistake by Apple and was instead reportedly caused by an issue on the Weibo client side that displayed the wrong video alongside Apple's post.

In a statement, an Apple spokesperson said the following: "Apple Support has only posted Apple content. We are working with Weibo to understand how this happened."

Our original article follows below.

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Apple's official Support account on China's Weibo had a serious case of mistaken identity on Tuesday after it accidentally posted a slick promotional trailer for Samsung's Galaxy Z Flip7.

In the embarrassing mix-up, the uploaded video clearly promoted Samsung's latest flip-style clamshell device rather than any Apple-affiliated product. Video capturing the blunder circulated across social media before the post was quickly deleted.

As for who is responsible for the error, the going theory is that it is an outsourced agency that handles marketing assets for both Apple and Samsung in the region. In other words, someone probably grabbed the wrong video file and hit publish without double-checking the content.

Apart from being humorous, the timing is notable given Samsung's strong position in the foldable market as anticipation grows for Apple's rumored first foldable iPhone.

• 2026 Foldable iPhone: All the Leaks So Far

Apple's ‌will be a book-style foldable with a crease-free 7.8-inch inner display, a 5.5-inch outer display, a titanium chassis, dual rear cameras, and Touch ID instead of Face ID. Apple is expected to launch the device in September 2026 as part of the iPhone 18 lineup.

A fourth Apple artificial intelligence expert has left the company to join Meta, reports Bloomberg. Bowen Zhang, who was on Apple's foundation models team, is the latest employee to abandon Apple for Meta.

The leader of Apple's foundation models group, Ruoming Pang, was one of the first Apple AI researchers to join Meta. Since then, several employees who worked under him have also left for Meta. Meta is aggressively hiring for its Superintelligence Labs, an AI division that's building advanced AI systems capable of performing at or beyond human-level intelligence.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been offering AI engineers massive compensation packages to lure them from other companies, and Pang reportedly received over $200 million. Pay from Meta reportedly includes a high base salary, a signing bonus, and stock awards, and the money offered to Pang exceeds the compensation of almost all Apple employees except for executives. Presumably, the other AI engineers that left Apple have also received offers that Apple isn't willing to match.

Last month, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said that Meta had been offering signing bonuses as high as $100 million. Meta has hired engineers and AI experts from Apple, OpenAI, and Anthropic. Bloomberg says Apple is "marginally increasing" the pay of its foundation models team, but is not paying at the level that Meta is.

With Apple losing key employees to Meta, it could continue to struggle to catch up in the AI race. Competitors like Google and Samsung have much more advanced AI features already, and this year, Apple was forced to delay promised Apple Intelligence Siri features until 2026.

Apple has been restructuring its AI teams, with AI efforts now overseen by Apple software chief Craig Federighi and Mike Rockwell, who led Apple Vision Pro development. Rumors suggest that Apple is considering using technology from Anthropic or OpenAI for future AI features, including an LLM version of ‌Siri‌, rather than its own models.

Apple's discussions to rely on third-party AI technology have reportedly led to falling morale on the foundation models team that is now losing employees to Meta. Multiple engineers are reportedly actively interviewing for jobs at other AI companies, while Apple executives are aiming to reassure team members that it remains committed to in-house AI development.

Apple today filed a response to the antitrust lawsuit it is facing from the United States Department of Justice, sharing rebuttals to the DoJ's claims and pointing out perceived flaws in the accusations outlined in the complaint.

According to Apple, the DoJ's lawsuit has the potential to "set a dangerous precedent" that would allow the government to dictate the design and function of technology, plus it threatens "the very principles that set the iPhone apart" from competing devices.

As a recap, the DoJ filed an antitrust lawsuit against Apple in March 2024, accusing Apple of an illegal monopoly in the smartphone market. To back up its accusation, the DOJ provided five examples of instances where Apple's decisions stifled competition and locked consumers into the ‌iPhone‌ ecosystem.

• Super apps - The DoJ claims that Apple blocks apps that offer "broad functionality," like WeChat or apps that offer mini games and other multi-app features.
• Cloud streaming - Apple has been accused of suppressing cloud streaming games by preventing them from being available on the App Store.
• Messaging apps - The DoJ took issue with the lack of an iMessage app for Android, the green bubble vs. blue bubble separation, and Apple's delayed support for RCS. The DoJ also believes that third-party apps should be able to send and receive SMS messages in lieu of the Messages app.
• Smartwatches - Apple is accused of restricting key functions from third-party smartwatches, preventing ‌iPhone‌ users from getting Apple Watch-like functionality from watches with "better user interfaces and services." The DoJ has also complained about the Apple Watch not being compatible with Android devices.
• Digital Wallets - The DoJ took issue with Apple's refusal to allow banking apps and other digital payment providers to access the NFC chip in the ‌iPhone‌ for payment purposes.

Many of the DoJ's claims have been weakened or are no longer relevant, because Apple has addressed them. With iOS 17.4, for example, Apple eliminated restrictions on cloud streaming apps and apps offering mini games on iOS, and super apps are and have been supported.

Apple adopted ‌RCS‌ since the DoJ's filing, improving messaging interoperability between Android and ‌iPhone‌ devices, though messaging apps cannot receive SMS or ‌RCS‌ messages instead of the Messages app. Apple opened up access to NFC in iOS 18.1, adding support for contactless NFC payments through third-party payment apps.

Apple does not believe that the DoJ fairly portrayed Apple's market position. The DoJ uses revenue as its metric for calculating market share instead of unit sales, which Apple says is "unreasonable." The DoJ also suggested that "performance smartphones" are a separate category from standard smartphones, even though that is not a recognized device category. Apple also argues that the U.S. numbers are not an accurate reflection of the global competition that it faces.

Apple points out that the complaints that led to the Department of Justice's lawsuit did not come from ‌iPhone‌ customers, but rather from a small number of developers that happen to include "some of Apple's largest and best-funded competitors." Apple claims that meeting the DoJ's demands would degrade the ‌iPhone‌ experience for consumers.

The antitrust laws do not impose upon Apple a duty to design its own product in a way that would better suit its rivals at the expense of consumers whose devices might be less secure, less private, and less intuitive as a result.

Ultimately this case is not about the millions of satisfied iPhone users or even the hundreds of thousands of iOS developers that enjoy economic success, it's predominantly about a few large companies free-riding on Apple's technology and innovation. The complaint is a misguided plea for a judicial redesign of one of the most popular and innovative consumer products of all time, under the guise of an antitrust case.

Much of Apple's response features Apple denying the DoJ's claims, one by one, which is standard for this type of filing. The legal dispute will now enter the discovery phase, with Apple aiming to prove that the DoJ's allegations are inaccurate. From there, a summary judgment will be handed down, which could lead to a trial and appeals. The entire process will span years.

The ‌App Store‌ ecosystem is changing rapidly enough that the DoJ's claims may not be applicable at all in the future. In the last year, Apple changed multiple ‌App Store‌ rules, both voluntarily and involuntarily. Apple's legal dispute with Epic Games, for example, resulted in Apple permitting developers to direct customers to third-party purchase options on the web with in-app links and no associated fees. Similar changes could further nullify the DoJ's allegations, so it should be interesting to see how the dispute plays out.

We're just six weeks away from the launch of new iPhone models, and rumors are ramping up as September creeps closer. We've heard plenty of details about the prospective colors for the iPhone 17 lineup, but leaker Sonny Dickson today shared ‌iPhone 17‌ dummy models that supposedly feature the shades that Apple has picked.

Dickson's images feature the iPhone 17 Pro models in black, white, dark blue, and orange. The orange shade is particularly bright and not typically in line with what Apple chooses for the Pro models. Apple's colors are often more muted, but it could be an issue of angle or lighting. Prior leaks suggested that the orange could be more of a copper color than a true orange, so we'll have to wait to see how closely the dummy model matches with the final color.

The dark blue shade is more of what we'd expect for an ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌, though even it isn't quite as subdued as what Apple usually chooses. It's worth noting that rumors have suggested the 17 Pro models could also be available in a gray color, which is missing here. There were also rumors of a color shifting shade that appears white but changes color with light, which also doesn't seem to be depicted.

As for the iPhone 17 Air, the dummy models are depicted in black, white, gold, and a light blue, similar to the light blue of the MacBook Air. Those are all four colors that we've seen rumored for the ‌iPhone 17 Air‌.

The ‌iPhone 17‌ models are shown in black, white, blue, and a purple that looks more like a pink. Rumors have suggested the ‌iPhone 17‌ could come in black, white, steel gray, purple, and light blue. The blues for the ‌iPhone 17‌ and ‌iPhone 17 Air‌ are similar, but not identical.

Dummy model designs are often accurate, but the colors the dummy models come in don't always provide the clearest picture of what an ‌iPhone‌ will actually look like. Differences in lighting, sheen, and material often mean that the final version of the ‌iPhone‌ looks a lot better than what leaks.

Adobe today announced several new and enhanced AI tools for Photoshop, with the additions aimed at making it easier for creators to tweak and clean up their images.

With Harmonize, Photoshop users can add a new object into an image or composition, and the app will analyze the surrounding content to automatically adjust color, lighting, shadows, and visual tone so that the object seamlessly fits in. Adobe says that the feature streamlines the creation of composite images and reduces the time needed for manual adjustments. Harmonize is available across Photoshop for desktop, the web, and mobile devices.

Generative Upscale provides resolution enhancements up to eight megapixels without impacting image clarity. The feature is able to improve image quality for print, or to boost the resolution of older files. Generative Upscale can be used on desktop and the web.

Adobe improved the Remove tool in Photoshop, and it now uses the latest Adobe Firefly Image Model. The updated Remove tool is able to more precisely erase unwanted objects from images, filling the gaps with realistic content. Edits will have fewer artifacts for a cleaner end result. The improved Remove tool is available for desktop and the web.

In Photoshop for the desktop, there's a new Projects option for managing and organizing creative work. Assets are aggregated into a shared, organized space, eliminating issues with collaboration and communication. Projects is designed to allow Photoshop users to share entire collections at once to cut down on versioning issues.

More information on the new features can be found on Adobe's website.

Apple today released the Safari 26 beta, allowing macOS Sequoia and macOS Sonoma users to download the browser and get the new Safari 26 features.

Safari 26 adds support for HDR images, SVG icon support, additional tracking protection, and more, with some of the most interesting new features listed below.

• HDR image support
• SVG icon support
• Support for reporting a website compatibility issue
• Option for preventing fingerprinting for known tracking scripts
• Filters out tracking parameters for links in regular browsing mode
• Option for showing extension keyboard shortcuts in Settings and support for customization
• WebGPU support

More on everything that's new in Safari 26 can be found on Apple's website.

If you are beta testing iOS 26, iPadOS 26, visionOS 26, or macOS Tahoe, you already have Safari 26 as it is included with the updates.

Apple is running a Summer Deal of the Day promotion in its Apple TV app, offering discounts on movie bundles through the Apple TV Store.

Today is the first day of the promotion, and Apple is selling The Hangover trilogy for $9.99. The movies are normally priced between $12.99 and $14.99 each.

The initial Deal of the Day is number 1 of 14, so Apple will presumably be offering a different discounted bundle every day for the next two weeks. The Summer Deal of the Day packages can be purchased from the Store section of the Apple TV app on any platform where the app is available.

Apple regularly offers discounted movie purchases and bundled deals that are more affordable than buying movies individually, but specific themed promotions are atypical.

A few months ago, we reported that select scenes in the post-apocalyptic film "28 Years Later" were shot with a rig of up to 20 iPhones. Now, the film's director Danny Boyle has discussed this feat in a YouTube video uploaded to the Apple TV channel today.

Boyle said that using iPhones provided "the ability to work in remote places, very quickly, and very lightly, leaving a light footprint."

"We wanted our landscape to look like it hadn't been touched for 28 years by any human, so it was very advantageous for that," he added.

"Director Danny Boyle pushed the power of iPhone to new cinematic heights in select scenes of 28 Years Later," says Apple. "In fact, the portable and powerful form factor of iPhone enabled the production team to build a custom rig using a unique 20 camera setup. Discover how his crew's camerawork innovations immerse audiences into shocking scenes."

"28 Years Later" was released in June, with the film building upon the events of "28 Days Later" (2002) and "28 Weeks Later" (2007).

The film grossed an estimated $150 million worldwide.

Apple today provided beta testers with updated beta firmware for the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4, allowing them to test the new AirPods features in iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS Tahoe. The firmware is only available to developers and public beta testers at the current time, and a device running ‌iOS 26‌, ‌iPadOS 26‌, or macOS 26 is required to install the update. The firmware has a build number of 8A5324b, up from 8A5308b.

The firmware adds several features that Apple is debuting alongside ‌iOS 26‌, ‌iPadOS 26‌, and macOS Tahoe.

The ‌AirPods Pro‌ 2 and ‌AirPods 4‌ support improved audio quality for phone calls and video calls, plus studio-quality audio recording for interviews, podcasts, and videos. There's also an option to use the AirPods as a camera remote with the Camera app to take photos or start a video recording.

With ‌iOS 26‌, ‌iPadOS 26‌, and macOS Tahoe, Apple added a beta firmware update installation option that's available from the AirPods settings interface when the AirPods are connected to an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, which facilitates the beta testing.

The iOS 18.6, iPadOS 18.6, and macOS Sequoia 15.6 updates that Apple released today address dozens of vulnerabilities, according to Apple's security support documents. None of the vulnerabilities are known to have been actively exploited in the wild, but it's still a good idea to install the new updates right away.

There are over 20 vulnerability fixes in iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6. An issue with Accessibility could let a Passcode be read aloud by VoiceOver, and parsing maliciously crafted audio could lead to memory corruption.

The update includes eight WebKit-related fixes that could disclose sensitive user information, cause Safari to crash, and result in memory corruption. For iPad users unable to update to iPadOS 18.6, Apple released iPadOS 17.7.9 with a number of security fixes.

macOS Sequoia 15.6 patches over 80 vulnerabilities that could lead to crashes, leak sensitive user data, and more. There are fixes for the Dock, Find My, Notes, Safari, Spotlight, System Settings, and other apps and features.

There are also macOS Sonoma 14.7.7 and macOS Ventura 13.7.7 updates for those who have older Macs that can't run ‌macOS Sequoia‌ 15.6.

Apple's other updates released today, including visionOS 2.6, tvOS 18.6, and watchOS 11.6, include fixes for between 17 and 19 vulnerabilities.

Apple recommends keeping your devices up to date with the latest software to avoid issues caused by any of these security vulnerabilities. Apple says that updating software is one of the most important things that a user can do to maintain the security of Apple products.

Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.6, the sixth major update to the ‌macOS Sequoia‌ operating system that launched last September. ‌macOS Sequoia‌ 15.6 comes a over two months after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.5.

Mac users can download the ‌‌‌‌macOS Sequoia‌ 15.6 update through the Software Update section of System Settings. It is available for free on all Macs able to run macOS 15.

‌macOS Sequoia‌ 15.6 is light on new features. According to Apple's release notes, the update provides important bug fixes and security updates.

More information on the features in ‌macOS Sequoia‌ can be found in our macOS Sequoia roundup. Apple will soon replace ‌macOS Sequoia‌ with macOS Tahoe, an update that is being beta tested ahead of a fall launch.

Apple today released iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6, the sixth updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating systems. iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 come more than two months after the release of iOS 18.5 and iPadOS 18.5.

The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update.

iOS 18.6 addresses a Photos-related bug that could prevent users from being able to share memory movies in the Photos app. Apple's release notes are below.

This update provides important bug fixes and security updates, and fixes an issue in Photos that could prevent memory movies from being shared.

The iOS and iPadOS 18.6 updates also bring changes to the App Store rules in the European Union. EU iPhone and iPad users will see a new interface for installing alternative app marketplaces or apps from a developer's website.

Apple's work on ‌iOS 18‌ and ‌iPadOS 18‌ is winding down, and the company is already beta testing iOS 26 and iPadOS 26. The updates are set to come out in September alongside new ‌iPhone‌ models.

Apple today released watchOS 11.6, the sixth update to the operating system that runs on the Apple Watch. watchOS 11.6 comes more than two months after Apple released watchOS 11.5. The update is compatible with the Apple Watch Series 6 and later, all Apple Watch Ultra models, and the Apple Watch SE 2.

watchOS 11.6 can be downloaded on a connected iPhone by opening up the Apple Watch app and going to General > Software Update. To install the new software, the Apple Watch needs to have at least 50 percent battery and it needs to be placed on a charger.

The watchOS 11.6 update focuses on bug fixes and security improvements, with no new features included. Apple's release notes are below.

This update provides bug fixes and important security updates for your Apple Watch.

Apple will soon replace watchOS 11 with watchOS 26, an update that is set to come out this fall.