Apple returns to the future by focusing on Macs



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Apple took a break this week focusing on iPhones and its expanding service offering, such as streaming video, to give a bit of love to its venerable Mac computers.

Earlier this week, Apple unveiled MacBook Air and MacBook Pro 13-inch updates, while also putting an end to its 12-inch MacBook. The new computers feature slim designs, Intel processors and, in the case of the MacBook Pro, Apple's Touch ID technology that allows users to verify their identity with their fingerprints instead of passwords.

Also this week, we read reports that Apple was planning a major overhaul of the iPhone in 2020 and 2021 and that the company was working on five new iPads. And with the new Apple TV streaming video service ready for this fall, a report suggests Apple spend a lot of money on one of its most promising original series, See.

It was a busy week for those who follow the Apple news. So, read on to find out more:

New MacBook

Apple has two new MacBooks. The first is an updated MacBook Air with a 13-inch Retina display and a new faster Intel processor to improve performance. Similarly, the new 13-inch MacBook Pro features new Intel processors, but it also features a Touch Bar and a Touch ID, which enhance the security of fingerprint and fingerprint input. l & # 39; device. The MacBook Air starts at $ 1,099 ($ ​​999 for students) and the MacBook Pro at $ 1,299 ($ ​​1,199 for students). They are both available now.

Problem of Apple analyst

Apple's shares started the week on a negative note after Jun Zhang, an analyst at Rosenblatt Securities, downgraded the company's shares into a sale. Zhang, who set a target price of 150 USD, said that he did not believe that Apple's shares could rise over the next 12 months. Apple's shares started Monday at $ 204.23, but were down 2.4% to $ 199.37 after Zhang's investor note. At the time of writing these lines, Apple 's shares had rebounded to $ 203.11.

Many Apple TV + Spending

Apple is not shy spending on some of his most promising series Apple TV +, the the Wall Street newspaper reported this week. The media announced that Apple was spending $ 15 million per episode for its next science fiction drama See featuring Game of thrones and Aquaman star Jason Momoa. This puts Apple in line with competitors Netflix and Amazon, who have increased their broadcast budgets to be more competitive compared to traditional television series, according to the report.

Popularity of Mac growing

Apple's Mac shipments grew 9.6% from one year to the next in the second quarter, according to IDC market research. In the second quarter of 2018, Apple shipped 3.7 million Macs worldwide, compared to 4.1 million in the same period in 2019. This was enough to put Apple in fifth place among computers shipped worldwide. Lenovo ranks first with 16.3 million computers, followed by 15.4 million HP and 11.6 million Dell. Acer has just beaten Apple with 4.3 million computers delivered during this period.

A problem of walkie-talkie

Apple has disabled Apple Watch Walkie Talkie feature that allow users to communicate with their voices via their smartwatches. Apple told the TechCrunch tech information site that Walkie Talkie had a bug that would have allowed hackers to spy on Apple Watch users via the device's microphone. Apple said it did not believe the bug had been exploited, but it disabled Walkie Talkie until it could fix the problem.

A zoom problem

The popular videoconferencing service Zoom said this week that it had fixed a flaw that would have allowed hackers to target Mac users and turn on their video cameras to spy on them. The flaw was specific to Mac Zoom users.

Five new iPad

Apple is planning perhaps five new iPads later this year, though a recent report is accurate. MySmartPrice technology site discovered this week lists for five new models of iPad in the database of the economic body of the Eurasian Economic Commission. The model numbers are for iPads that have not been released yet. All are expected to work on the iPadOS operating system that Apple plans to release in the fall. It is worth noting that one of the models points to a 10.2-inch iPad that could replace the 9.7-inch screen size offered by Apple since the launch of the iPad in 2010. Of course, Apple has not commented.

A change of the iPhone

Apple will unveil a brand new range of iPhones with redesigned designs, in 2020, Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst at TFI International Securities, told investors this week. Kuo did not provide much details about Apple's three new iPhone plans, but he stated that their successors in 2021 would switch to a built-in fingerprint sensor for the screen. check the identity of the users. In older models of the iPhone, Apple includes a Touch ID physical button for fingerprint detection, but has moved to a face scanner called Face ID in recent years. Kuo said that Apple would return to Touch ID with an in-screen design in 2021.

One more thing

Apple could have a growing problem of employee retention on his hands. According to a CNBC report released this week, Anthem, a health insurance company, is requiring Apple employees to work on projects that enhance Anthem's customer applications and services. Anthem allegedly poached six Apple employees in recent months in the areas of software engineering and product design.

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