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Monday, January 14, 2019

HomePod Now Counts Toward Apple Music Device Streaming Limits for Single Memberships, Apple Encouraging Family Upgrades

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When it launched, Apple's HomePod smart speaker did not count toward an Apple Music subscription's device streaming limit. This meant that single-user Apple Music subscribers could stream one song on an iOS device and another on HomePod simultaneously, without one stream ending the other. Recently, this ability has disappeared for many Apple Music users, who are now unable to stream music on both HomePod and an iOS device at the same time.

While single memberships transition to this method of HomePod streaming, Apple Music family memberships will be able to continue to stream multiple songs on both iOS devices and HomePod without any of the streams getting interrupted. Moreover, when HomePod interrupts music streaming on an iPhone, a new pop-up box on iOS displays an option for single membership subscribers to upgrade to an Apple Music family plan. The box explains that up to 5 other people can stream their music at once using the family plan.

According to a tipster, posts on Reddit, and a few accounts on the MacRumors forums dating back to last summer, the timeline for this change is murky. As far back as August 2018, MacRumors users cczhu mentioned not being able to play music on both HomePod and Apple TV simultaneously. Similar experiences were shared later in the year, with HomePod counting towards an account's device streaming limit when playing Apple Music on other Apple products, and now it appears that this tweak has hit many more users.

Over the weekend, a few users on r/HomePod posted similar stories. According to Reddit user veteran_t, on Saturday they noticed music playing on their iPhone paused a playlist on their HomePod. Deciding to speak with Apple Support, a senior specialist told the user that any claims about HomePod not counting toward an Apple Music subscription's device streaming limit are third party quotes. The specialist continued by saying Apple never advertised this feature and that veteran_t's HomePod is now working in the originally intended way.

(Thanks, Jason!)

Related Roundup: HomePod

Buyer's Guide: HomePod (Neutral)

This article, "HomePod Now Counts Toward Apple Music Device Streaming Limits for Single Memberships, Apple Encouraging Family Upgrades" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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from MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors - All Stories http://bit.ly/2VSsC0c

YouTube App Now Natively Supports 2018 iPad Pro Displays, But Home Indicator Overlaps Menu Bar

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YouTube updated its iOS app over the weekend with native support for the layout and resolutions of the latest 11-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro displays, but as noted on Twitter and Reddit, the home indicator now overlaps the bottom menu bar.

Two steps forward, one step backward for now, but hopefully Google addresses this issue in a subsequent update to the app. On the iPhone X and newer, the menu bar is positioned slightly higher as to not overlap with the home indicator.

Spotify also recently updated its iOS and watchOS apps with native support for the 2018 iPad Pro, iPhone XS Max, and Apple Watch Series 4.

Tag: YouTube

This article, "YouTube App Now Natively Supports 2018 iPad Pro Displays, But Home Indicator Overlaps Menu Bar" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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from MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors - All Stories http://bit.ly/2CjwGxN

Apple Pay Expected to Launch in Czech Republic and Slovakia in Late February to Early March

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Apple Pay will launch in the Czech Republic and Slovakia in late February to early March, according to Seznam Zprávy and Živé.

Czech Republic's two largest banks Česká spořitelna and Komerční banka, along with mBank, MONETA, and Air Bank, will reportedly be among the first financial institutions to offer Apple Pay to customers in the Czech Republic. Equa Bank and Banka CREDITAS may follow suit within the first half of the year.

Apple Pay has been gradually expanding across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. The service launched in Belgium and Kazakhstan in November, made its long-awaited debut in Germany last month, and is "coming soon" in Saudi Arabia.

Apple Pay first launched in the United States in October 2014 and has since expanded to many regions, including the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Belgium, China, Singapore, Switzerland, France, Germany, Japan, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Russia, New Zealand, Brazil, Poland, Ireland, and Ukraine.

(Thanks, Peter Dräxler and Lee Richards!)

Related Roundup: Apple Pay

Tags: Czech Republic, Slovakia

This article, "Apple Pay Expected to Launch in Czech Republic and Slovakia in Late February to Early March" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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from MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors - All Stories http://bit.ly/2RKHWgi

How to Use AirPods With Your Mac and Customize Controls

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If you've set up your AirPods with your iPhone and your Mac is signed in to iCloud with the same Apple ID, then your AirPods should be ready to use with your Mac.

Ideally, all you need to do is put your AirPods in your ears, click the Bluetooth icon in your Mac's menu bar, select your AirPods from the dropdown list, and click Connect.

If you don't see your AirPods in the Bluetooth menu, you can pair them manually with your Mac in the following way.

How to Pair AirPods With Your Mac

On your Mac, launch System Preferences from the Apple menu bar ( -> System Preferences...).
Click the Bluetooth pane.
Make sure Bluetooth is turned on.
With your AirPods in their charging case, open the lid.
Press and hold the button on the back of the charging case until the status light between the AirPods flashes white.
Select your AirPods in the Bluetooth devices list and click Connect.

Next time you want to use your AirPods with your Mac, place them in your ears and they should automatically pair. If they don't (if they pair with your nearby iPhone instead, for example) simply click the Bluetooth icon in your Mac's menu bar, select your AirPods in the dropdown list, and click Connect.

Customizing AirPod Controls

Apple AirPods support a number of gestural touch controls that you can customize, including the option to change tracks with a double tap.

All of these options can be accessed in the Settings app while the AirPods are connected to your iPhone or iPad. But you can also access them when your AirPods are connected to your Mac. Here's how:

On your Mac, launch System Preferences from the Apple menu bar ( -> System Preferences...).
Click the Bluetooth pane.
In the Bluetooth devices list, click the Options button next to your AirPods.

From this menu, you can enable or disable manual ear detection, choose to use the left or right AirPod microphone, and choose what happens when you double tap an AirPod.

Double-tap options include Siri, Play/Pause, Off, Next Track, and Previous Track. Note that you can also set different gestures for the left and the right AirPod.

Related Roundup: AirPods

Buyer's Guide: AirPods (Caution)

This article, "How to Use AirPods With Your Mac and Customize Controls" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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from MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors - All Stories http://bit.ly/2Fqflaq

iPhone Chipmaker Dialog Reports Low Sales Projection for Fourth Quarter

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Apple supplier Dialog Semiconductor reported on Monday that its projected sales for the fourth quarter of 2018 would be at the low end of its original target (via CNET).

The German chipmaker, whose partnership with Apple makes up around 75 percent of its revenue, said its preliminary revenue for Q4 2018 was approximately $431 million. That figure only just falls into the guidance range of $430 million to $470 million the company reported in October.

The news comes just two weeks after Apple lowered its own revenue guidance by up to $9 billion for the first quarter of its 2019 fiscal year.

Apple CEO Tim Cook offered up a number of explanations for the decline, including the timing of the iPhone XS, XS Max, and XR launch compared to the timing of the iPhone X launch last year, a slowing Chinese economy, and the company's $29 battery replacement program, all of which led to fewer iPhone upgrades than expected.

Last October, Apple agreed to a business arrangement with Dialog to license its iPhone power management technology and transfer technical assets, in a deal worth $600 million. Dialog's shares rose as much as 34 percent on the news, their highest since 2002.

As part of the agreement, Apple acquired some of the Anglo-German chipmaker's assets and 300 of its R&D staff, or around 16 percent of Dialog's workforce. The deal represents a huge investment for Apple, which will take over Dialog facilities in Italy, Germany, and the U.K., expanding its chip research and development significantly across Europe. Subject to regulatory approval, the deal is expected to close in the first half of 2019.

The agreement followed a report earlier the same month claiming Apple would design its own power management chips as early as 2018, which came as a serious blow for Dialog, the exclusive designer of the current main power management chip for iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch models.

Dialog's shares initially dropped on news of today's revenue projection, but then climbed in German trading, according to the Financial Times. The company was recently up 2.5 percent, cutting its 12-month loss to roughly 10 percent, said the paper.

Tag: Dialog

This article, "iPhone Chipmaker Dialog Reports Low Sales Projection for Fourth Quarter" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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from MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors - All Stories http://bit.ly/2QLqiEz