Friday, November 22, 2019

Hands-On With Apple's New Smart Battery Case for iPhone 11 Pro Max

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Apple on Wednesday unveiled new Smart Battery Cases designed for the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max, offering up extra battery life for its newest flagship smartphones.

The first Smart Battery Case orders are arriving to customers today and the cases are in stores, so we picked one up to give MacRumors readers a heads up on the features and the differences compared to last year's Smart Battery Cases.

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Design wise, the Smart Battery Cases for the ‌iPhone 11‌ and 11 Pro models look identical to the prior-generation battery cases, with the exception of the square-shaped camera cutout to accommodate the dual and triple-lens camera systems in the new iPhones.

This year's case has the same bump at the back, which houses the battery that charges the iPhone, and it's about the same thickness as last year's model.

There are volume up buttons at the side, a power button, and, on the right side, a brand new button that's designed to be a camera control. You can press the button to automatically launch the camera app, regardless of whether the iPhone is locked or unlocked.

Pressing the button the first time opens up the camera app, but when the app is opened, pressing again takes a photo. Pressing and holding captures a QuickTake video, and the single press also works with the selfie camera.

Apple is offering the ‌iPhone 11 Pro‌ and Pro Max Smart Battery Cases in black, white, and pink sand, while the ‌iPhone 11‌ ‌Smart Battery Case‌ is limited to black and white. The black shade of the new cases has shifted. Last year, Apple used a black case with a charcoal logo, but this year, the entire case is the lighter charcoal color with a deeper black logo.

There are two 1,430mAh battery cells inside of the ‌iPhone 11 Pro Max‌ version of the ‌Smart Battery Case‌, up from the 1,369mAh battery cells used last year in the iPhone XS Max ‌Smart Battery Case‌. The two battery cells are wired together into one battery, allowing the cases to offer 10.9Wh of energy (vs. 10.1Wh in the prior XS Max model).

Apple says that all of the new battery cases will add up to 50 percent more battery life to the iPhones, which translates to 9 hours of additional video playback for the 11 Pro, 10 hours of additional video playback for the 11 PRo Max, and 8.5 hours of additional video playback for the ‌iPhone 11‌.

With the ‌Smart Battery Case‌ attached to an iPhone, the iPhone will drain the case first before using the built-in battery, and this is automatic and can't be shut off. Battery life of the case can be viewed on the Lock screen when placed on a charger or in the Today view of the Notification Center.

Charging the case can be done using a Lightning cable or a Qi-based wireless charger. The iPhone will always charge before the case when charging the two together. For those with Lightning-based headphones and accessories, the Lightning port on the ‌Smart Battery Case‌ does have passthrough capabilities.

The Smart Battery Cases can be purchased from the Apple online store or from Apple retail stores, and all three new cases cost $129.


This article, "Hands-On With Apple's New Smart Battery Case for iPhone 11 Pro Max" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple CEO Tim Cook: 'I Will Fight Until My Toes Point Up' for DACA

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Apple CEO Tim Cook earlier this week sat down for an interview with ABC News after his visit to Texas with President Donald Trump, and today, ABC News has shared additional details from that interview.

Cook said that his focus is on policy over politics, and that he's focused on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which both Cook and Apple have been advocating for.

"No matter who is in the White House, the things I'm focused on are going to be the same. I am focused on DACA. We have 450 folks in Apple, employed at Apple, who are employed on DACA. I want those folks protected. Not just the 450 but the broader DACA people in America."
Cook in October signed an amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to uphold DACA and protect dreamers in the United States. Cook in the interview said that he's going to continue to fight against the Trump Administration's efforts to rescind DACA.
"I will fight until my toes point up on the subject because I think that it is so core to who we are as a people that we not turn our back on people that came into the country as kids, they were brought here well before they could make a decision on their own. These people are the core of what an American is."
Cook also spoke on privacy, and reiterated comments that he's made many times before. Apple, said Cook, does not want to know personal details about your life and is not trying to "vacuum up all your data."

Cook went on to say that he's "very worried" that in a world where "nothing is private," then freedom of expression, a classic part of what it means to be American, "just evaporates."

On the topic of breaking up tech companies like Facebook, Google, and Amazon, Cook said that he thinks there's too much focus on "fines and breakups" and not about how tech companies are collecting and using data that customers did not make an informed decision to give access to.

Cook's full interview can be read on ABC News, and his commentary from the other part of the interview can be read in our first article.

Note: Due to the political 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.


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MacRumors Giveaway: Win a Set of Classicbot Classic and iBot G3 Toys

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For this week's giveaway, we've teamed up with designer Philip Lee of Classicbot to offer MacRumors readers a chance to win a bundle that includes two of Lee's designer toys: the Classicbot Classic and the iBot G3.

Both the Classicbot and the iBot G3 are little robot toys that are modeled after classic Mac machines from Apple. The Classicbot Classic is modeled after the Macintosh Classic, sold in the early 1990s.


The Classicbot features a body that resembles a Classic Macintosh, along with movable arms and legs so it can be posed. There's a tiny mouse and a font suitcase that the Classicbot holds in a hand, and the detail is spectacular thanks to the precise injection molding technique used to make the toy.


Every part of the Classic Macintosh is included, from the display with two cute little robot eyes to the floppy disk drive and the vents, buttons, and ports on the back.

Classicbot Classic measures in at 10cm tall, and the arms, held on by magnets, can be removed for a more streamlined computer look.


Along with the Classicbot Classic, MacRumors readers who win the ‌giveaway‌ will get the iBot G3, which is modeled after Apple's iconic iMac G3, first introduced in 1998.


Available in either Bondi Blue or Tangerine, the iBot G3 features an anthropomorphized ‌iMac‌ with a face on the display, detachable arms, and movable legs.

As with the Classicbot Classic, the iBot G3 has been recreated faithfully, with an enclosure made from translucent plastic and impressive details like the CRT, ethernet ports, and ventilation fans.


The arms and legs can be detached and there's an included stand so it can be displayed in a more traditional computer shape as well. It comes with the ‌iMac‌ G3 mouse and keyboard.

Both the Classicbot Classic and the iBot G3 are designed to be figurines that are put on display, and they're the perfect desktop addition for any Apple lover. They also make great gifts. Philip Lee has a few other toys and figurines that MacRumors readers might be interested in, such as classic icon sets and Classicbot plushes.


Ahead of the holidays, we have five Classicbot Classic and iBot G3 sets to give away to MacRumors readers. To enter to win our ‌‌giveaway‌‌, use the Gleam.io widget below and enter an email address. Email addresses will be used solely for contact purposes to reach the winners and send the prizes. You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube channel, following us on Twitter, following us on Instagram, or visiting the MacRumors Facebook page.

Due to the complexities of international laws regarding giveaways, only U.S. residents who are 18 years or older and Canadian residents (excluding Quebec) who have reached the age of majority in their province or territory are eligible to enter. To offer feedback or get more information on the ‌giveaway‌ restrictions, please refer to our Site Feedback section, as that is where discussion of the rules will be redirected.

Classicbot Giveaway

The contest will run from today (November 22) at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time through 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time on November 29. The winners will be chosen randomly on November 29 and will be contacted by email. The winners will have 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address before new winners are chosen.


This article, "MacRumors Giveaway: Win a Set of Classicbot Classic and iBot G3 Toys" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Deals Spotlight: Apple's iPhone XS Max Smart Battery Case Drops to Just $59 at Amazon

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Apple may have just released Smart Battery Cases for the iPhone 11 lineup, but there are plenty of people still using last year's devices. If you're an iPhone XS Max owner looking to boost your battery life, Amazon has just dropped the price of Apple's Smart Battery Case in black to $59, more than 50 percent off of Apple's $129 list price.


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.

The case is currently listed as in stock, but supplies may run out quickly so be sure to take advantage of the deal while it's available.

For more deals, check out Amazon's discount on the new AirPods Pro and stay on top of our Deals Roundup and Black Friday Roundup as we hit the holiday shopping season.


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