New details about how Apple’s new subscription magazine service, expected to launch inside of a revamped Apple News application, surfaced on Tuesday. Apple is expected to announce the service during a March 25 press event.

Developer Steve Troughton-Smith dug through recent beta code for Apple’s software and discovered a bit about how the Apple magazine service, which could be called Apple News Magazines, may work.

Troughton-Smith noticed that users who subscribe to the service — which may largely be based on the digital magazine platform Texture that Apple acquired last year — will likely be able to download and store magazines for offline reading. That means magazines will be available even if a Wi-Fi or cellular connection is not. Apple will alert users through a pop-up when new issues are available, too.

Troughton-Smith also said that the magazines will be “PDF-based” and found genres that include health, fitness, food, cooking, entertainment, gardening, home, lifestyle, politics, science and technology, among other topics.

The code doesn’t reveal how much Apple will charge for the all-you-can-eat magazine and news subscription. Texture, which is still live, charges $9.99 a month for access to more than 200 magazines. Apple has reportedly been interested in bundling subscription news services, too, which might raise the price. The Wall Street Journal said in February that Apple has struggled with publishers who don’t want to split 50 percent of revenues from the app.

In addition to the magazine and news services, Apple will reportedly unveil a new video service on March 25 that will include original content and is expected to launch in April.

The rumour mill has not been kind to Apple AAPL -1.16%’s so-called iPhone 11. The 2019 iPhone has been labelled as ugly, boring and out of touch, but now the story has taken a twist. New information reveals Apple is making some surprising design changes…

iPhone 11 conceptEVERYTHINGAPPLEPRO

In a new video, hugely popular YouTube giant EverythingApplePro reports the iPhone 11 will respond to touch like no other smartphone.

Working with XDA Developer’s popular sleuth Max Weinbach, EverythingApplePro has learnt the iPhone 11 does not mark the end of 3D Touch (as was feared) but instead sees the phone double down on the technology behind it. In the biggest advancement of Apple’s ‘taptic’ engine to date, EAP explains it will be expanded to cover a 3×3 grid across the new iPhone’s entire display as well as adding more precise vibrations so input response is more tactile on every part of the screen.

This will enable the new iPhone to deliver far richer physical feedback to taps and gestures and it seems ripe for integration with third-party apps, particularly games.

Building on this, EAP also explains that Apple’s 2019 iPhone display will work underwater. This would be an industry first because, while many phones are water resistant these days, their displays have to be dry to operate properly. Yes, this opens up the potential for underwater photography without a case but a far more practical application is simply reliable operation in the rain – a common scenario where every phone performs erratically right now.

Moreover, while we have seen some eye-catching (and controversial) iPhone 11 designs mooted, EAP’s discovery shows Apple is adopting common-sense strategy as well. Building on Taptic’s class-leading position is smart and simply making a smartphone operate reliably in the rain is a (long overdue) no brainer.

While Apple AAPL +0.84% seems keen to tease its biggest iPhone plans (for obvious reasons), the company will be a lot less happy that this penny-pinching decision has leaked out… 

‘Great Secret Features’ and ‘Nasty Surprises’ are my regular columns investigating the best features / biggest problems hidden behind the headlines.

Apple iPhone XI conceptCONCEPT CREATOR

Speaking to official accessory makers, acclaimed Japanese tech site Macotakara has revealed Apple will ignore recent pledges about value and once again ship all its new 2019 iPhones (dubbed ‘iPhone 11’) with cost-saving slow 5W chargers. Moreover, upgrading to new iPhones to fast chargers will remain eye-wateringly expensive.

The reason for this is a one-two punch of stubborn inactivity.

Firstly, Apple will continue to ship not only slow chargers with new iPhones but slow charging USB-A cables as well. This means owners will need to buy both the 18W charger ($30) and one-metre USB-C cable ($20 or 2m for $35!) resulting in a total outlay of $50-$65 per location.

Secondly, Macokatara says Apple has decided not switch its 2019 iPhones to USB-C (as widely expected) and will retain the Lightning port, which means the company will retain control over licensing and third-party prices. This despite both the MacBook and iPad Pro ranges switching to USB-C last year, with the latter also bundling an 18W charger.

Apple has temporarily disabled its Group FaceTime feature in iOS and macOS to fix a major security flaw. A bug in Apple’s FaceTime video calling feature has allowed anyone to call a phone or Mac and listen in before the other person picks up. The flaw works by adding yourself to a FaceTime call before the recipient picks up, tricking FaceTime into thinking it’s an active call and forcing the person you’re actually calling to start transmitting audio.

Apple has now disabled the Group FaceTime feature on the server side, and reports suggest this has fixed the security flaw for most people. Some are still able to reproduce the flaw, but it’s likely that Apple is still in the process of replicating this across multiple servers. Apple is also planning to fix this on the client side with a software update later this week, but in the meantime it’s probably worth disabling FaceTime in the iOS settings. On the Mac, you can disable FaceTime by opening the app, then Preferences, then unchecking “Enable this account.”

Group FaceTime was originally introduced on October 30th with iOS 12.1, following a delay to its scheduled introduction. A lockscreen security flaw was discovered within days of the iOS 12.1 release, involving the new Group FaceTime feature. It’s not clear how long this latest FaceTime flaw has existed, but it could have been exploited for as long as three months.

Apple is naturally moving quickly to address this and protect iPhone, iPad, and Mac users worldwide. New York governor Andrew Cuomo issued a consumer alert late on Tuesday to warn residents of New York about the FaceTime security bug. “The FaceTime bug is an egregious breach of privacy that puts New Yorkers at risk,” says Governor Cuomo. “In light of this bug, I advise New Yorkers to disable their FaceTime app until a fix is made available, and I urge Apple to release the fix without delay.”

Apple engineers and key personnel were at the Consumer Electronics Show in January to preview parts and technology integral to the creation of augmented reality glasses, lending credence to rumors that the iPhone maker intends to launch a pair of branded AR glasses as soon as 2020. 

More than half a dozen incognito Apple representatives, including employees of known subsidiaries, visited AR waveguide suppliers at CES 2019, according to a person with knowledge of the meetings. Exhibitors at the expo included DigiLens, Lumus, Vuzix and WaveOptics, among others. 

Waveguides are commonly used in AR glasses as a means of routing graphical information from an output source to one or more display planes positioned in front of a user’s eyes. Magic Leap, for example, utilizes the technology in a mixed reality headset launched last year. 

Scoping out potential AR parts suppliers has become something of a tradition for Apple, as the company reportedly participated in similar meetings at CES 2018.

Apple did not immediately respond to AppleInsider’s request for comment.

Apple’s interest in waveguides lines up with previous reports suggesting the company is investigating technology related to head-worn displays. 

Shortly after Magic Leap debuted its headset last year, it was discovered that Apple purchased AR headset lens maker Akonia Holographics. According to Akonia’s website, which is no longer in service, the company’s flagship HoloMirror product was able to reproduce full-color, wide field-of-view images with a single layer of media. Compared to waveguide technology, HoloMirror’s design supposedly reduced system complexity, allowing for integration in smaller form factor devices like common eyeglasses. 

In 2017, Apple reportedly acquired Canadian AR startup Vrvana, which developed a hybrid headset called Totem. Marrying AR and VR into a single device, Totem utilized an array of cameras to enable 6DoF tracking and capture live views of the outside world for display on OLED panels located in front of a user’s eyes. 

Apple is rumored to be working on a pair of so-called “Apple Glasses,” an in-house designed AR headset that could debut in the next few years. Previous reports have claimed the project, referred to internally as “T288,” runs its own “rOS” operating system and employs ultra high-resolution 8K displays and a separate processing unit to overlay virtual images over real-world objects present in a user’s field of vision. 

Whether Apple intends to rely on HoloMirror, waveguide, mixed reality or another, unknown technology for its headset remains unclear. 

A burgeoning sector of the wider consumer electronics field, AR has become somewhat of a buzzword as top-tier industry players begin to show interest in producing their own solutions. Cellular providers are also getting in on the act, highlighting data-hungry devices like AR headsets as prime candidates for 5G integration. 

LG UPlus, a wireless subsidiary of Korean tech giant LG, was on hand at CES 2019 to take a closer look at AR products like the Vuzix Blade smart glasses, reports ZDNet Korea. The company is seeking out novel AR and VR devices as it aims to differentiate 5G communications amidst a network buildout this year, according to CEO and vice chairman Ha Hyun Hwoi.

Today, Office 365 is available for the first time on the Mac App Store, making it easier than ever for Mac users to download Word, Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote and the whole suite of Microsoft’s popular apps. Users can also purchase a subscription for Office 365 from within the apps, so they can get up and running instantly.Office 365 for Mac has been designed specifically to support features that are unique to the Mac experience — features like Dark Mode and Continuity Camera in macOS, as well as the MacBook Pro Touch Bar and the Mac’s industry-leading Trackpad.“We are excited to welcome Microsoft Office 365 to the all new Mac App Store in macOS Mojave,” said Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “Apple and Microsoft have worked together to bring great Office productivity to Mac users from the very beginning. Now, with Office 365 on the Mac App Store, it’s easier than ever to get the latest and best version of Office 365 for Mac, iPad and iPhone.”

“We are excited to announce that today Office 365 is arriving in the Mac App Store,” said Jared Spataro, corporate vice president at Microsoft. “We have worked closely with Apple to provide Mac users with the very best productivity experience — one that offers everything they know and love about Office through an experience uniquely designed for the Mac.”In business, as at home, employees want access to the best devices and apps to do their work. With Office 365 on the Mac App Store, these apps can now be easily distributed to employees using Apple Business Manager, a central dashboard where IT can deploy devices, apps and licenses. Now IT can quickly enable employees to get to work with their favorite Office tools across Mac, iPad and iPhone, with great new features designed specifically for Apple devices.

About the Mac App Store

The Mac App Store is the single largest catalog of Mac apps in the world. Newly redesigned this past year, the Mac App Store features a new look and rich editorial content for a more enjoyable experience when finding great, new apps for the Mac. Like the iOS App Store, the new Mac App Store celebrates apps, games, businesses and developers with an all-new Discover tab featuring compelling stories, in-depth interviews, helpful tips, collections of must-have apps and more. Users can also explore new Create, Work, Play and Develop tabs to find the perfect app for a specific project or purpose — from music, video and photography apps to business utilities and games.

Climate change is a disaster, but at least it might make people value their iPhones more.

That’s the key prediction in Apple’s environmental impact report, filed last year to the British nonprofit Carbon Disclosure Project and surfaced by Bloomberg’s Christopher Flavelle this week. CDP collected these impact reports — which include “risks and opportunities” posed by climate change — from about 7,000 companies, including 1,800 in the US, in an attempt to paint a picture of how President Trump’s environmental policies could ripple into all corners of the economy. Broad strokes: It will be bad.

But Apple saw one bright side, writing, “As people begin to experience severe weather events with greater frequency, we expect an increasing need for confidence and preparedness in the arena of personal safety and the well-being of loved ones.” More specifically, the company believes that the iPhone will become extra-useful when people realize they can use it as a flashlight, siren, or radio, or when they start asking Siri for first-aid instructions.IPHONES “CAN BE CHARGED FOR MANY DAYS VIA CAR BATTERIES OR EVEN HAND CRANKS”

This comment comes just a few weeks afterApple lowered its revenue expectation for the first quarter of 2019 by $9 billion, citing low iPhone sales — partly because of slowed growth in China and other developing markets, and partly because more people in the US are buying new batteries for old phones instead of shelling out for a $1,000 upgrade.

Anyway, iPhones “can be charged for many days via car batteries or even hand cranks,’’ the report states. Sure, there are YouTube videos that will show you how to do the former, and the latter is technically true but physically a little improbable. Most hand cranks require around two minutes of cranking to get enough charge to place a quick emergency call, so if you’re planning to rely on one for days at a time post-climate disaster, you should probably start working on your triceps right now. (A solar charger is a better idea!)

Apple, Google, and California are rebuffing Trump and trying to stay in the Paris climate deal

Apple is not the only major company that stands to benefit from impending disaster. The report filed by Home Depot predicts a rise in demand for air conditioners and ceiling fans. Google is a little worried that “fluctuating socio-economic conditions” will negatively affect its advertising business but suspects that Google Earth will become a more interesting product once the real Earth is on its last legs. “If customers value Google Earth Engine as a tool to examine the physical changes to the Earth’s natural resources and climate, this could result in increased customer loyalty or brand value,” its report states.

To be fair, an iPhone is useful in emergency situations, and not at all a luxury item at this point. Most people don’t have landline phones anymore, and smartphones have also made it increasingly unnecessary for some people to own home computers … or maps. (Though they hopefully do all own flashlights.) Both Apple and Google have used renewable energy for almost all of their global operations since April 2018, offsetting the rest by purchasing additional green energy, and they’ve openly sparred with Trump over the Paris climate deal.

A hand-crank iPhone future is not exactly what anyone at the company is dreaming of, and it’s more likely just a morbid thought that flitted through someone’s head while they were writing a report they didn’t think very many people would know or care about. Nevertheless, now it will be stuck in yours.