The iPhone 15 lineup has arrived, and here’s everything you need to know – The Verge

Death Stranding comes to life on iPhone and Mac next week

2024-01-23T12:42:33-05:00

You can tell it’s a future bike because of the LEDs. | Image: 505 Games / Kojima Productions

Some Mac, iPhone, and iPad gamers will finally be able to play as postapocalyptic Norman Reedus in Death Stranding Director's Cut on January 30th. Only iPhone 15 Pro models and Macs or iPads equipped with Apple's M-series chips can run the $39.99 game, though. At the moment, preorders are 50 percent off at $19.99, and pleasantly, it's a universal purchase, so you only have to buy it once to play it on multiple platforms.

Hideo Kojima announced the release of this director's cut for Macs at WWDC 2023 as part of a new push from Apple to highlight the potential of gaming on Apple Silicon devices, while Apple announced the iPhone 15 Pro port du …

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Belkin’s new 2-in-1 charging dock might blend into your bedroom

2023-10-30T20:52:36-04:00

Belkin has a new 2-in-1 charging dock that's all about the looks. Yes, it offers the types of features you'd expect from a $129.95 charger, including letting you fast charge iPhones with MagSafe as well as Apple Watches. But if you do pay up for the new charging dock, you're probably buying it because it looks great.

Offered in two neutral colors, sand or charcoal (basically white and black), "the dock achieves a stunning stone-like appearance, blending seamlessly into its environment whether it's placed on a nightstand, kitchen counter or desk," Belkin writes in its press release. Take Belkin's marketing language there with a grain of salt …

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Apple’s iOS 17.2 beta includes the new Journal app

2023-10-26T16:14:30-04:00

Apple has released the developer beta of iOS 17.2, and it includes the Journal app, a digital daily diary for users to log their activities.

The Journal app was first announced at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in June, and the company frames it as a way for users to self-reflect and practice gratitude.

A feature of the Journal app that's raised questions is how it uses machine learning to prompt user entries, using data like photos, workouts, location data, and more - perhaps good for people who need a little bit of inspiration. But as my colleague Victoria Song wrote at the time, not all our memories are happy, and it's not hard …

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iOS 17.1 arrives with updates to AirDrop, Apple Music, and more

2023-10-25T13:07:55-04:00

This year’s iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

Apple has officially released iOS 17.1, the latest version of its iPhone operating system. The update has been available in beta since late last month, during which time its biggest new feature has arguably been the ability to continue AirDrop transfers over a cellular connection if the two connected devices move out of Wi-Fi range after the sending process has started. Apple announced the feature back at its developer conference in June, but it didn't arrive in time for the main iOS 17 release last month.

As shown in iOS 17.1's beta releases, the update includes a handful of other minor tweaks and additions. There's a new Favorites feature …

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Apple addresses iPhone 15 overheating with a new iOS 17 update

2023-10-04T13:51:57-04:00

Over the weekend, Apple blamed several factors for reports of iPhone 15s running hot, pointing to problems with specific apps like Instagram and Uber, post-transfer background processing, and unspecified bugs in iOS 17. Today, the company released a new software update with patch notes saying that iOS 17.0.3 "addresses an issue that may cause iPhone to run warmer than expected."

In an update detailing the security fixes for this patch, Apple listed two fixes addressed on both iOS and iPadOS (via 9to5Mac). One is a kernel exploit for an attacker with local access to the device that Apple said "may have been actively exploited against version …

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Apple blames iOS 17 bugs and apps like Instagram for making iPhone 15s run hot

2023-09-30T14:43:26-04:00

Apple has acknowledged user complaints that iPhone 15 and 15 Pro phones are overheating, reports Forbes, but said that contrary to speculation, it has nothing to do with the phone's hardware design. Forbes noted an update to Instagram has already rolled out with version 302, released September 27th, to address some of the issues.

Bloomberg notes an unnamed Apple spokesperson specifically mentioning Instagram, Uber, and the game Asphalt 9 as examples of apps that could cause the devices to "run warmer than normal."

Apple also says there is no safety risk in the thermal issues but that other factors, like USB-C power adapters with more-than- …

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Make sure to update your iPhone 15 before transferring over data from your old phone

2023-09-26T17:16:45-04:00

If you've just picked up a new iPhone 15 device, before you transfer over your data from an older phone, make sure to update that new phone to iOS 17.0.2 first. An Apple support document says that the update, which came out on Thursday, fixes an issue that "may prevent transferring data directly from another iPhone during setup" (via MacRumors).

Initially, iOS 17.0.2 was only available for the just-launched iPhone 15 phones; the most current software for older iPhones available last week was iOS 17.0.1, which also launched on Thursday and included some big security updates. On September 26th, 9to5Mac reported that Apple released a new build …

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Apple’s Studio Display gets manual controls for its webcam

2023-09-26T15:04:09-04:00

Apple just released macOS Sonoma, and along with the new 14.0 version of its operating system, there's an update for its standalone Studio Display monitor that addresses some of our issues with its much-derided webcam (via MacRumors). Now, the Studio Display's camera offers manual control over framing and zoom, which you can adjust by moving the image back and forth or in and out within the video preview window.

From Apple's update notes:

Studio Display Firmware Update 17

Adds support for zoom, recenter, and manual framing to the built-in camera

Minor stability improvements

If you move too far one way or another, there's a Recenter butt …

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iFixit has good news and bad news about the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s repairability

2023-09-25T09:45:00-04:00

While Apple may have made the iPhone 15 Pro Max easier to repair physically, a teardown from iFixit reveals it still comes with the same parts pairing constraints as its predecessors.

Like the iPhone 14, iFixit found that the iPhone 15 lineup has a redesigned midframe that you can access by removing the device's screen or back glass. However, iFixit notes that the internals on the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max live behind the screen, rather than the back glass, as is the case with the base iPhone 15 and 15 Plus as well as the iPhone 14 lineup.

This inverted setup could make "critical repairs like battery swaps slightly riskier than on the 14," …

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The iPhone 15 Pro is teaching me to embrace digital zoom

2023-09-23T09:00:00-04:00

I promise digital zoom isn’t as icky as it used to be. | Photo by Allison Johnson / The Verge

If you want to hear a love story, ask any photographer about their favorite lens.

They'll probably get a little glimmer in their eye as they tell you about the fast 35mm they carry everywhere or the long portrait lens with the bokeh that hits just right. Camera bodies come and go, but your favorite lens is a lifelong relationship.

Phone camera lenses are a different story. They're built like a regular camera lens - only, you know, tiny - and they're with us literally everywhere we go. But I don't know anyone who would wax poetic about the 24mm equivalent wide angle on their iPhone or the 5x telephoto lens on their Pixel. Our relationships …

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