Could Apple finally solve the flaring issue on iPhone photos and videos? Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac
Lens flare has been a longtime issue with the iPhone’s camera. Apple could finally solve this issue on the iPhone 16 Pro with a new lens coating technology.
It’s common for flares to show up in photos or videos taken from an iPhone’s camera. The issue has been around for years, and Apple has made little improvement in this area over generations.
New ALD coating can help reduce lens flare
A rumor originating from China by leaker @Yeux1122 says Apple is testing new Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) equipment for a special coating that will help reduce lens flares. The company will seemingly only use the coating on the iPhone 16 Pro lineup.
Lens fare on iPhones has been an issue since the 2012 iPhone 5. Over the years, Apple has used various coatings and improved glass lenses to enhance light transmission and reduce flares. But despite the company’s best efforts, the issue remains and is mainly prevalent while recording videos. The new ALD coating might help Apple reduce flaring to a large extent, if not fix it entirely.
Besides reducing glare, the coating can help improve light transmission and unwanted flaring.
Apple working on big anti-reflective upgrades for future iPhones
The new coating could be one of the many camera upgrades Apple is planning for the iPhone 16 Pro. A previous leak indicates the iPhone’s camera module could get a radical redesign, helping it stand out from the previous generation of the phone.
Given this leak’s timing, there’s a possibility of the ALD coating not being ready for use in the iPhone 16 Pro series. In that case, Apple could use the coating on the iPhone 17 Pro in 2025.
I’m going to tell you that my Roomba S9 Plus is haunted, but don’t dwell on the haunting. The buttons are stuck, which may or may not be related. I have been living with the haunted Roomba and its broken buttons since last year, when it was still under warranty, but it only recently started waking me up in the middle of the night. When I finally contacted iRobot for support, they told me that my Roomba was dead (undead?!), and it would be impossible for them to fix it.
I need to live with the haunted Roomba or destroy it.
A Roomba S9 like mine, but not as haunted (Image credit: iRobot)
Again, let’s not dwell on the haunting part. There are many things you can replace on a Roomba. Of course, you can replace the filters. You can replace all of the cleaning elements, like the brushes and sweepers.
You can replace the battery, though you’ll need a screwdriver and some patience. The buttons, however, are sacrosanct. If the buttons get stuck, iRobot support tells me they cannot be replaced. There is no way to fix my Roomba S9 with broken buttons, and there is no workaround that will clear the robot of its ghosts.
A broken Roomba behaves like it’s haunted
Okay, now for the haunting. One day I was sitting in my living room and the Roomba started to vacuum. On its own. No schedule, nothing. I sent it home again. It kept happening, once a week at first, but it happened at inconvenient times.
My robot would start cleaning at 3 AM, on its own. I had a hunch and engaged the child lock. Now, instead of cleaning on its own, it would loudly yell “The buttons have been disabled. Please use your iRobot home app to clean.”
The Roomba on a blood red carpet (Image credit: TechRadar)
Something was pressing the buttons. I’m not saying it was a specific ghost, but it’s been a hard and tragic few years for many of us. I know people who have passed away who would want my floors clean. I know others who might want to pester me at night for fun. Once you believe there is a ghost in your robot vacuum, unsatisfied with unswept floors, that idea sticks.
Eventually, the unprovoked yelling started happening daily. I cleaned the Roomba thoroughly and replaced all of its cleaning parts. I plugged it into a surge protector after reading on Reddit that power surges can cause the vacuum to start a cleaning session. I vacuumed the vacuum itself to clear any dust or debris. Nothing helped.
My haunted vacuum becomes a poltergeist
One night the haunted Roomba went too far. It started screaming over and over again “The buttons have been disabled. Please use your iRobot home app to clean.” Over and over. There is no mute setting for the Roomba. A reboot didn’t help. My Roomba tormented me.
I shut it down by holding down the power button. It fell silent. I went to bed. Then I heard the beeping chime of the Roomba starting up. The robot refused to die.
The underbelly of the beast (Image credit: TechRadar)
I covered the Roomba with thick blankets to mute the sound, and eventually it ran out of battery power. I contacted Roomba, and they showed me how to remove the battery completely, to perform a hard reset. The hard reset failed. The screaming continued.
They suggested I set up a Do Not Disturb period for the entire day and night. That actually worked! For a few days, at least. My robot was silent. Then, in the middle of the night (always!), it started to chime as it powered down. Then it chimed again, powering up. Down. Up. Down. Up. It kept going. I unscrewed the battery, and now it sits like an autopsy patient on my table.
There is no fix for a haunted Roomba, or stuck buttons
This was my first robot vacuum, and I won’t be replacing it
Support from iRobot says “The issue you are describing means that the buttons of the robot are stuck, and unfortunately this issue is non-repairable.” They can’t fix it. My 18-month-old Roomba S9 Plus, which I got on sale for around $800 in November, 2022, is kaput.
That’s totally unacceptable. There must be some path to rectify this problem, and not just for me, for all owners. There can’t be a malfunction that causes the robot to die, with no hope of repair. iRobot must have some way to fix this issue, or it needs to offer Roomba S9 owners some way to trade our robots for a robot that actually works, and that is eligible for repairs when it breaks.
This was my first robot vacuum, and I won’t be replacing it quickly because it’s a huge expense that I cannot afford right now. Perhaps in the future, I’ll consider iRobot again, if I hear that reliability and service have improved. Until then, I’ll need another option. Maybe I’ll get a dustbuster, or maybe I’ll call the Ghostbusters.
A Braarudosphaera bigelowii cell magnified 1,000-fold.Credit: Tyler Coale
Researchers have discovered a type of organelle, a fundamental cellular structure, that can turn nitrogen gas into a form that is useful for cell growth.
The discovery of the structure, called a nitroplast, in algae could bolster efforts to genetically engineer plants to convert, or ‘fix’, their own nitrogen, which could boost crop yields and reduce the need for fertilizers. The work was published in Science on 11 April1.
New cellular ‘organelle’ discovered inside fruit-fly intestines
“The textbooks say nitrogen fixation only occurs in bacteria and archaea,” says ocean ecologist Jonathan Zehr at the University of California, Santa Cruz, a co-author of the study. This species of algae is the “first nitrogen-fixing eukaryote”, he adds, referring to the group of organisms that includes plants and animals.
In 2012, Zehr and his colleagues reported that the marine algae Braarudosphaera bigelowii interacted closely with a bacterium called UCYN-A that seemed to live in, or on, the algal cells2. The researchers hypothesised that UCYN-A converts nitrogen gas into compounds that the algae use to grow, such as ammonia. In return, the bacteria were thought to gain a carbon-based energy source from the algae.
But in the latest study, Zehr and his colleagues conclude that UCYN-A should be classed as organelles inside the algae, rather than as a separate organism. According to genetic analysis from a previous study, ancestors of the algae and bacteria entered a symbiotic relationship around 100 million years ago, says Zehr. Eventually, this gave rise to the nitroplast organelle, now seen in B. bigelowii.
Defining organelles
Researchers use two key criteria to decide whether a bacterial cell has become an organelle in a host cell. First, the cell structure in question must be passed down through generations of the host cell. Second, the structure must be reliant on proteins provided by the host cell.
By imaging dozens of algae cells at various stages of cell division, the team found that the nitroplast splits in two just before the whole algae cell divides. In this way, one nitroplast is passed down from the parent cell to its offspring, as happens with other cell structures.
A seagrass harbours a nitrogen-fixing bacterial partner
Next, the researchers found that the nitroplast gets the proteins it needs to grow from the wider algae cell. The nitroplast itself — which makes up more than 8% of the volume of each host cell — lacks key proteins required for photosynthesis and making genetic material, says Zehr. “A lot of these proteins [from the algae] are just filling those gaps in metabolism,” he says.
The discovery was made possible thanks to work by study author Kyoko Hagino at Kochi University in Japan, who spent around a decade fine-tuning a way to grow the algae in the lab — which allowed it to be studied in more detail, says Zehr.
“It’s quite remarkable,” says Siv Andersson, who studies how organelles evolve at Uppsala University in Sweden. “They really see all these hallmarks that we think are characteristic of organelles.”
Upgraded plants
Understanding how the nitroplast interacts with its host cell could support efforts to engineer crops that can fix their own nitrogen, says Zehr. This would reduce the need for nitrogen-based fertilizers and avoid some of the environmental damage they cause. “The tricks that are involved in making this system work could be used in engineering land plants,” he says.
“Crop yields are majorly limited by availability of nitrogen,” says Eva Nowack, who studies symbiotic bacteria at the Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf in Germany. “Having a nitrogen-fixing organelle in a crop plant would be, of course, fantastic.” But introducing this ability into plants will be no easy feat, she warns. Plant cells containing the genetic code for the nitroplast would need to be engineered in such a way that the genes were transferred stably from generation to generation, for example. “That would be the most difficult thing to do,” she says.
“It’s both a pleasure and very impressive to see this work build up to what is certainly a major stepping stone in understanding,” says Jeffrey Elhai, a cell biologist at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Vriginia.
Audio brand Sonos may soon completely redesign its S2 app by making it easier to set up its devices as well as “strengthen connectivity between its many speakers.” It’ll also introduce several new customization options. This nugget of information comes from TheVerge which claims to have received screenshots of the revamp from sources close to the matter.
According to the report, the company is removing all the navigation tabs at the bottom, replacing tabs with a search bar to help soundbar owners find music quickly. The home screen will serve as a central hub consisting of “scrollable carousels” housing playlists and direct access to streaming services.
Of course, you will be allowed to customize the layout to your liking. You can tweak the settings of a soundbar through the “Your System” section on the app.
The Now Playing screen will see revisions as well. Both the shuffle and repeat buttons are going to be present on the page. Plus, the volume slider in the mini-player will appear “no matter where you are in the app.”
Love it or hate it
For some people on the internet, this update has been a long time coming. The Verge shared links to posts from the Sonos subreddit of people complaining about how terrible the S2 app is. One of the more passionate rants talks about the software’s poor functionality, as the Redditor was unable to turn off their speaker’s alarms remotely despite it being connected.
Most of the reviews on app stores are positive, however several users on the Google Play Store listing do complain about an unintuitive UI and strange connection problems. People either love S2 or they hate it. There doesn’t seem to be any real middle ground.
The Verge states the S2 update will roll out for Android and iOS on May 7th although the date could change.
Get the hottest deals available in your inbox plus news, reviews, opinion, analysis and more from the TechRadar team.
Future plans
It’s worth mentioning that this isn’t the first time we’ve heard about the redesign.
Back in February, Bloomberg published a report detailing some of Sonos’ plans for 2024, such as their focus on a “revamped mobile app codenamed Passport.” At a glance, it appears Passport is the future S2 upgrade. Originally, the update was supposed to come in March, but the brand ran into development issues and were forced to delay it.
Bloomberg’s piece goes on to mention two new Sonos devices, codenamed Duke and Disco. The latter is said to be a set of earbuds able to connect to Wi-Fi. It’s supposed to be a Sonos take on Apple Airpods.
Not much is known about the Duke, but it does share a name with a pair of Sonos headphones that were discovered back in late March on the Bluetooth SIG website. 91Mobiles dug through the page revealing the device could allow music streaming over Wi-Fi, it’s slated for a June launch, and should cost $450. These next couple of months are looking to be a busy time for Sonos. But as always, take the info in this leak with a grain of salt.
It’s fair to say the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra‘s cameras haven’t had the smoothest of launches since the phone came out – but it sounds as though a fix is on the way to deal with the final three outstanding problems.
As per serial tipster @UniverseIce (via SamMobile), Samsung‘s engineers are on the case with solutions for below-par telephoto image quality, inaccurate white balance problems, and issues with abnormal red coloring in some situations.
While we’ve not heard a huge number of complaints about these problems specifically, they are out there. However, it’s worth noting that no timeframe has been given for this next update.
In our Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra review, we were very impressed with the performance of the camera modules, as well as the handset overall. While we didn’t notice any major issues like the ones this rumored update will address, other users clearly have.
Third time lucky
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra will improve many camera problems in the next “camera firmware update”, Including telephoto image quality, inaccurate white balance and abnormal red color.but they have not given an accurate timetable.I hope they can solve it in AprilApril 7, 2024
See more
You could say this is a case of third time lucky for Samsung and software updates for the Galaxy S24 camera: the first update in February improved shutter speed, video clarity, and automatic exposure and color selections.
Then we had a second update at the end of March, which included more improvements to camera quality and usability. One of those improvements was apparently to white balance – although this still seems to be a problem for some.
With so much image processing now done by smartphones after a photo is taken, there can be a wide variety of end results in terms of colors, brightness, white balance, and exposure. To some extent, it’s down to personal preference in how you want these settings managed – making it difficult for phone makers to please everyone simultaneously.
Get the hottest deals available in your inbox plus news, reviews, opinion, analysis and more from the TechRadar team.
However, for it to take months for a flagship phone’s camera to get up to its full potential isn’t ideal, and Samsung will be well aware of that. What’s more, the camera isn’t the only component that problems have been reported with.
With AI becoming more mainstream, we’re at the stage now where organizations are actively starting to experiment and identify ways it could help them to improve customer engagement.
Recent research carried out by Twilio has revealed that 79% of UK IT teams are actively implementing AI to varying degrees, or are in the advanced stages of planning for its adoption. But as with all new technology, it’s easy to get caught up in what everyone else is doing.
Rushing to invest and make moves can seem appealing if competitors are doing it, but without a clear sense of how AI could help with broader business goals – and crucially, helping them meet customer needs better – outcomes will be mixed at best.
Customer-centric AI can be a game changer
Unsurprisingly, given so many are either actively implementing it, or planning for its adoption, a majority of IT decision makers agree AI is a game changer for better relationships with their customers. More than four in five (86%) believe it could bring them closer to their customers and help them better address their unique needs. Its ability to analyze as well as apply context and prior learnings is genuinely game-changing for customer service and engagement at scale.
Businesses can create smoother customer journeys by using tools like AI-powered chatbots (54%) that IT decision makers highlighted as the biggest benefit of this advanced technology. These chatbots can help lighten the load for human agents by resolving simple but often time-consuming tasks, leaving human agents to deal with more complex queries.
Sam Richardson
The first chatbots on the market were meant to achieve this, and whilst they did have some impact, they were also a major source of frustration. Natural language and generative bots should be much better at this, although they will still need careful monitoring and nurturing.
As conversations and engagements take place, AI will also play a role by automatically creating, updating, and drawing on customer profiles to learn from past interactions. Incorporating chatbots can help agents triage queries based on urgency, redirect customers to other resources, and source answers more quickly, as well as re-route calls and enquiries to where they might be better resolved.
Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed!
Brands can also harness AI to improve how they personalize each interaction with every customer. Working with large amounts of data, AI can near-instantly draw from relevant context and past activity to offer solutions tailored to the individual and situation, reducing friction and increasing sales opportunities. In fact, the right AI tools can act more like an individual sales person for each customer by offering a truly unique experience for each person at a scale which was previously unthinkable.
Businesses can leverage the history they’ve built up of their customers through their previous purchases, interactions, and preferences to use these insights to serve them more effectively, eliminating situations like asking customers for information more than once, or long delays for responses. Leading companies are those that are wholly oriented around their customers, their needs and pain points – and they’re leveraging AI to do this.
With AI able to provide a more sophisticated customer experience by streamlining processes and speeding up decision making, it can play an important role in fueling growth and innovation for businesses. This is captured in Twilio’s State of Customer Engagement Report, which found that eight out of 10 companies that invested in customer engagement were able to meet their financial goals. If implemented correctly to prioritize the customer, brands will be able to experience higher revenues, greater customer loyalty, and a better return on investment.
Balancing technology and customer outcomes
While the benefits of AI might be clear, being able to realize them in practice is another matter. Investing in new technology in isolation will have limited effects without having a wider strategy for what the business would like to achieve with it. Twilio’s research found nearly half of the organizations surveyed (44%) start with their technology first and look for ways to use it, with just 34% starting with customer outcomes first, before then looking at the technology they could use to achieve them. Businesses must continually see AI and other emerging technologies in terms of what it could do for their customers, rather than making investments simply to keep up with competitors.
For example, the power of AI is limited without the associated data and processes in place to fully put it to work. Having a strong foundation of accurate, regularly updated first-party data for it to work with is essential. It’s only then that it becomes possible to fully realize the technology’s potential.
As consumers become increasingly receptive to the idea of companies using AI to improve their experiences, businesses must understand the evolution in the way they use technology is ultimately about helping them meet customer needs more effectively. AI allows businesses to treat every customer as if they have a physical employee dedicated to their needs, which is truly game-changing – but only if it’s underpinned by a solid data foundation, and a clear strategy on what ‘good’ looks like.
AI alone will not fix bad customer service. To truly transform customer experiences, there needs to be strong alignment across strategy, technology, operations and customer needs. This will ultimately make sure any investment in AI drives revenue growth and helps companies meet their financial goals.
This article was produced as part of TechRadarPro’s Expert Insights channel where we feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today. The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here: https://www.techradar.com/news/submit-your-story-to-techradar-pro
I’ve been a long-time fan of Pixel phones, but Google made a major change to the camera experience on the latest Pixel 8 Pro that effectively broke one of its most convenient features; and while I’ve patiently waited for a fix, it looks like Google has committed to leaving users in the lurch, rather than undoing its mistake.
I’ve reviewed at least one entry of every generation of the best Pixel phones since Google debuted the series back in 2016, and the camera is what keeps me coming back; so much so that I’ve mainlined one of Google’s smartphones since the Pixel 4 XL. My experience with the Pixel 8 Pro, however, is soured every time a simple camera UI tweak that Google has made stops me from getting the shot I want.
The Pixel 7 Pro has proven to be one of the company’s most capable phones yet, and while the jump to the Pixel 8 Pro brought better performance, an aesthetic refinement, more AI functionality and more impressive imaging hardware, I wasn’t enamored with the camera experience compared to that of its predecessor right out the gate.
If it ain’t broke… break it?
This is partly down to the revised image processing pipeline, which produces distinctly different images compared to the Pixel 7 Pro. This may be a result of the Pixel imaging team having to adjust to the 8 Pro’s new sensor hardware – but that doesn’t absolve them of the newest model’s added ‘Pro Controls’, which consolidate management over ISO, shutter speed, focus, white balance, shadows, and brightness.
The Pixel 7 Pro’s manual control layout (left) and the Pixel 8 Pro’s Pro Controls (right) (Image credit: Future | Alex Walker-Todd)
While bringing this functionality under a single menu might seem like a refinement between generations, the move actually results in more steps being required when it comes to the critical moment of capture. With the Pixel 7 Pro, a tap on your subject while framing up was all it took to bring up sliders for white balance, shadows, and brightness; you could then adjust each value on the fly from within the viewfinder, instantly.
By incorporating these adjustments into the Pro Controls along the bottom of the Pixel 8 Pro’s camera UI, the new layout requires more taps and swipes, not to mention the need to switch in and out of each slider individually. If all you’re trying to shoot is a static landscape this change doesn’t really matter all that much, but for those occasions when you have only a few fleeting moments to grab your shot – most likely of a moving subject – forget it.
Google bills the Pixel 8 Pro’s Pro Controls as a premium upgrade, but those who were familiar with the Pixel 7 Pro’s interface will likely consider the change anything but that. To add to the sting, in the pursuit of consistency across generations the subsequent Android 14 update to the Pixel 7 Pro’s camera app has hidden those white balance, shadows, and brightness sliders under a similar UI change (ISO, focus and shutter speed controls aren’t available on the 7 Pro), meaning that now nobody can enjoy what was one of the best features of the recent Pixel camera experience.
More unhappy customers
While it might seem like I’m blowing this seemingly small change out of proportion, a quick scout around online brings up numerous testimonies that echo my sentiment; change for change’s sake is the wrong way to implement an upgrade, especially if it’s at the user’s expense.
Android Authority‘s Rita El Khoury appears to have similar feelings, while numerous users on the r/GooglePixel subreddit have also noted Google’s bad call here. Original poster andrewhahalee said, “now you need 4 taps to turn on manual mode, scroll the bottom, tap the option and then adjust,” while user 465468 said, “Major step in the wrong direction…I think it’s a damn shame and really can’t understand how they would come up with that change.”
As such, while both the Pixel 7 Pro and Pixel 8 Pro remain among some of the best camera phones available right now, it would appear that it’s not competitors Pixel photography fans need to be aware of – it’s Google.
Apple today released macOS Sonoma 14.4.1, a minor update for the macOS Sonoma operating system that launched last September. macOS Sonoma 14.4.1 comes three weeks after macOS Sonoma 14.4.
The macOS Sonoma 14.4 update can be downloaded for free on all eligible Macs using the Software Update section of System Settings. There’s also a macOS 13.6.6 release for those who are still running macOS Ventura.
According to Apple’s release notes, the macOS Sonoma 14.4.1 update fixes an issue that could cause USB hubs connected to external displays not to be recognized. It also addresses an issue that could cause apps with Java to quit unexpectedly, and it fixes an issue that could cause Audio Unit plug-ins for professional music apps not to open.
iOS 18 will give iPhone users greater control over Home Screen app icon arrangement, according to sources familiar with the matter. While app icons will likely remain locked to an invisible grid system on the Home Screen, to ensure there is some uniformity, our sources say that users will be able to arrange icons more freely on iOS 18. For example, we expect that the update will introduce…
Apple today released iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1, minor updates to the iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 operating systems. The new software comes a couple of weeks after Apple released iOS 17.4 and iPadOS 17.4 with app changes in the European Union, new emoji, and more. iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software…
Apple’s iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models concurrently, which is why we sometimes get rumored feature leaks so far ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and already we have some idea of what to expect from Apple’s 2025 smartphone lineup. If you plan to skip…
On this week’s episode of The MacRumors Show, we discuss Apple’s rumored plan to refresh the entire AirPods lineup with a series of new models. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos The fourth-generation AirPods will reportedly feature a new design with a better fit, improved sound quality, and an updated charging case with a USB-C port. For the first time ever,…
An unpatchable vulnerability has been discovered in Apple’s M-series chips that allows attackers to extract secret encryption keys from Macs under certain conditions, according to a newly published academic research paper (via ArsTechnica). Named “GoFetch,” the type of cyber attack described involves Data Memory-Dependent Prefetchers (DMPs), which try to predict what data the computer will…
The latest 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air models have been available for two weeks now, and MacRumors videographer Dan Barbera has been using the 15-inch version since it launched. Over on our YouTube channel, Dan shared a review now that he’s been able to spend some quality time with the machine. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. The M3 MacBook Air is a perfect…
We’re getting closer to the launch of new iPad Pro and iPad Air models, while rumors about iOS 18 are continuing to ramp up with this week’s surprise revelation that Apple has been talking to Google and others about potentially helping power the generative AI features expected to be a major part of this year’s update. Other news this week saw the release of iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1…
Google Wallet looks set to become much more useful by supporting Apple Wallet files, it’ll finally be able to open and use tickets and passes created/saved in Apple’s proprietary .pkpass file format.
Android tipster Mishaal Rahman reported that the feature has been rolling out to some of his followers with several replies confirming they have access right now. However, the feature doesn’t seem to be available to everyone yet, which could mean the rollout is limited to certain regions.
In the past, some tickets and passes have only included an Apple Wallet link, which will only work with iPhones, leaving Android users out in the cold.
The improved compatibility would save Google Wallet users from needing to go through the difficulty of finding trustworthy third-party apps to convert the Apple passes. It could also prevent users from completely giving up on using digital passes altogether and having to dig through emails to find ticket confirmation or go back to the hassle of printing paper tickets.
Google Wallet may soon be able to import digital passes saved in Apple’s .pkpass format!One user on Telegram tells me that Google Wallet is now able to import .pkpass files. This doesn’t work for me yet, though. Let me know if this works for you!(Thanks to Cob on Telegram for… https://t.co/jjAL3o2mbA pic.twitter.com/O69NHNRs6LMarch 15, 2024
See more
The post features a recording from a user credited as Cob that shows the process of adding a work ID .pkpass file to Google Wallet. Using a file manager app the user opens the .pkpass file and is presented with several app options to use to open the file.
After selecting Google Wallet the user is prompted for permission with a screen explaining that Google may keep a record of passes for reference, while a continue button appears at the bottom of the screen.
Once the user proceeds, another permission request about Google’s use of data appears. After this is agreed to, the pass is added to the digital wallet and we can see a QR code and that all the data has been copied over correctly including job titles, staff number contact details, and an expiry date.
Digital Wallets have become a more integral part of our lives due to our move away from physical currency and how ubiquitous phones, smartwatches, and NFC payments have become. However, due to the popularity of Apple’s iPhone Apple Wallet seems to be slightly widely accepted with Google catching up.
This is the second recent big change to Google Wallet, which is replacing the previous app Google Pay that’s due to be discontinued on June 4, 2024 in the U.S. It appears Google is streamlining its payment apps which could allow it to better compete with Apple.
Both Google and Apple Wallet apps have advantages and disadvantages but are considered the best payment apps with Google Pay being released back in 2011, which later became Google Wallet. And Apple Passbook was announced in 2012 and became Apple Wallet.
Get the hottest deals available in your inbox plus news, reviews, opinion, analysis and more from the TechRadar team.
Apple this week updated GarageBand for Mac with an important security fix. Users should update the app as soon as possible due to this security vulnerability.
In a support document for the new GarageBand version, Apple said “a use-after-free issue was addressed with improved memory management”:
GarageBand
Available for: macOS Ventura and macOS Sonoma
Impact: Processing a maliciously crafted file may lead to unexpected app termination or arbitrary code execution
Description: A use-after-free issue was addressed with improved memory management.
CVE-2024-23300: Marc Schoenefeld, Dr. rer. nat.
GarageBand version 10.4.11 is available on the Mac App Store. The update also includes stability improvements and bug fixes, according to Apple.
While the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max are still around six months away from launching, there are already many rumors about the devices. Below, we have recapped new features and changes expected so far. These are some of the key changes rumored for the iPhone 16 Pro models as of March 2024:Larger displays: The iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will be equipped with larger 6.3-inch…
Apple appears to be internally testing iOS 17.4.1 for the iPhone, based on evidence of the software update in our website’s logs this week. Our logs have revealed the existence of several iOS 17 versions before Apple released them, ranging from iOS 17.0.3 to iOS 17.3.1. iOS 17.4.1 should be a minor update that addresses software bugs and/or security vulnerabilities. It is unclear when…
Resale value trends suggest the iPhone SE 4 may not hold its value as well as Apple’s flagship models, according to SellCell. According to the report, Apple’s iPhone SE models have historically depreciated much more rapidly than the company’s more premium offerings. The third-generation iPhone SE, which launched in March 2022, experienced a significant drop in resale value, losing 42.6%…
Apple’s next-generation iPad Pro models are expected to be announced in a matter of weeks, so what can customers expect from the highly anticipated new machines? The 2022 iPad Pro was a minor update that added the M2 chip, Apple Pencil hover, and specification upgrades like Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity. The iPad Pro as a whole has generally only seen relatively small updates in…
iOS 17.4 was released last week following over a month of beta testing, and the update includes many new features and changes for the iPhone. iOS 17.4 introduces major changes to the App Store, Safari, and Apple Pay in the EU, in response to the Digital Markets Act. Other new features include Apple Podcasts transcripts, an iMessage security upgrade, new emoji options, and more. Below, we…
Apple plans to release new iPad Pro and iPad Air models “around the end of March or in April,” according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. He also expects new Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil accessories for iPads to launch simultaneously. Apple is expected to release a larger 12.9-inch iPad Air In his Power On newsletter on Sunday, Gurman reiterated that Apple is preparing a special build of the…
Earlier this week, Apple announced new 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air models, the first Mac updates of the year featuring M3 series chips. But there are other Macs in Apple’s lineup still to be updated to the latest M3 processors. So, where do the Mac mini, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro fit into Apple’s M3 roadmap for the year ahead? Here’s what the latest rumors say. Mac Mini Apple announced …
Apple today announced three further changes for developers in the European Union, allowing them to distribute apps directly from webpages, choose how to design in-app promotions, and more. Apple last week enabled alternative app stores in the EU in iOS 17.4, allowing third-party app stores to offer a catalog of other developers’ apps as well as the marketplace developer’s own apps. As of…