Apple today announced that its hit sci-fi series "Silo" is returning for a third season starting Friday, July 3, and it shared a teaser trailer.


"Silo" follows the lives of 10,000 people living in an underground bunker to escape the seemingly toxic wasteland outside. The people are unaware of why the silo was built, and those who seek the truth face deadly consequences. Rebecca Ferguson stars as Juliette Nichols, an engineer who attempts to unravel the mysteries surrounding the silo following a loved one's murder. The show is based on Hugh Howey's best-selling book series, and it is one of the most popular original series on the Apple TV streaming service.

The third season will have 10 episodes, with one released every Friday through September 4.

Apple already renewed "Silo" for a fourth and final season as well.

"With the final two chapters of 'Silo,' we can't wait to give fans of the show an incredibly satisfying conclusion to the many mysteries and unanswered questions contained within the walls of these silos," said showrunner and executive producer Graham Yost, regarding the third and fourth seasons of the show.

About Season Three (Spoilers Ahead)

Apple says the third season "continues the saga of a dystopian society."

"In the present, Juliette Nichols (Rebecca Ferguson) survives her forced 'cleaning' but returns with memory loss as the silo recovers from rebellion and faces a dangerous new threat," says Apple. "Meanwhile, in the 'Before Times,' journalist Helen Drew (Jessica Henwick) and Congressman Daniel Keene (Ashley Zukerman) uncover a conspiracy that pulls them into a chain of events with catastrophic, irreversible consequences."

Trailer

Apple TV

In the U.S., Apple TV is priced at $12.99 per month or $129 per year, with a free one-week trial available for new subscribers. Apple TV is also included in Apple One and Peacock bundles, with all of the options outlined on Apple's website.

You can stream Apple TV in the Apple TV app, which is available on the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV 4K, Apple Vision Pro, Android, PlayStation, Xbox, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, select smart TVs, on the web at tv.apple.com, and more.
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Apple recently cracked down on Cal AI, an app owned by MyFitnessPal that tried to skirt Apple's in-app purchase rules. Apple told TechCrunch that it briefly pulled the calorie-counting app last week for violating purchasing guidelines and using a deceptive billing design.


When the app was pulled last week, there was speculation that it was removed for implementing web-based payments, something that is now allowed in the U.S. Apple said that's not the whole story, though, and the app was violating other guidelines.

Apple's ongoing legal battle with Epic Games led a judge to force Apple to allow U.S. developers to include links to external payment systems in their apps, but apps that are not classified as reader apps also have to include an in-app purchase option. Apps like Netflix and Spotify that offer streaming content are considered reader apps, but Cal AI is not.

As a non-reader app, Cal AI was allowed to direct users to a non-Apple purchase option for a subscription, which it did with a purchase flow using Stripe, but the purchase option should have been displayed alongside an in-app purchase option. Apple said Cal AI bypassed its required in-app purchase flow, misled customers by displaying the weekly calculated pricing more prominently than the amount the user would be billed, and had a free trial toggle that did not make the subscription's automatic renewal clear.

The app also prompted users who declined the initial subscription to agree to a second, different subscription purchase flow, leading to multiple negative reviews for its confusing third-party payment options.

Cal AI fixed the issues that Apple brought up, and the app returned to the App Store. TechCrunch suggests that Cal AI was experimenting to see whether Apple was still enforcing its rules following the court ruling requiring it to allow external payments in apps. With the Cal AI crackdown, Apple made it clear that it is indeed policing external payments.

MyFitnessPal and Cal AI have not commented on the situation. After returning to the ‌App Store‌, Cal AI is once again the number four app on the ‌App Store‌'s Health and Fitness charts.
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In an all-hands meeting with employees today, Apple's future CEO John Ternus teased an "incredible road map ahead."


"I'm not exaggerating when I say this is the most exciting time to be building products and services at Apple in my entire career," said Ternus. While the meeting was private, Ternus' comments were reported by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

Appearing alongside Apple's current CEO Tim Cook at the Steve Jobs Theater, Ternus expressed optimism about artificial intelligence in particular.

"AI is going to create almost unlimited potential," said Ternus. "We're going to be able to keep unlocking possibilities that are going to create entirely new opportunities for our products and services, and I'm so excited about what that's going to mean for our users." Unsurprisingly, he did not provide any specific details at this time.

"We are about to change the world once again," he said.

Ternus ensured that design remains "core" to Apple, and he promised that the company is still committed to user privacy and environmental responsibility.

As for Cook, he told employees he is "healthy" and plans to serve as Apple's executive chairman for "a long time." Apple said Cook will "assist with certain aspects of the company, including engaging with policymakers around the world."

Ternus will become Apple's CEO on September 1.
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Tim Cook today told employees he plans to be at Apple "for a long time" in his new role as executive chairman. Cook shared the information in an all-hands meeting detailed by Bloomberg.


"I am healthy. My energy is high, and I plan to be in this role for a long time," said Cook. He said he will support current hardware engineering chief John Ternus in any way necessary when Ternus takes over as CEO, and he plans to continue to offer knowledge and experience whenever it's needed. "Apple will be my top priority," he said. "It's who I am at my core, and I can't imagine it any other way."

Cook is stepping down from his role as Apple CEO, handing the company over to Ternus. Apple announced the upcoming change yesterday, and said that Cook will remain on as executive chairman, where he will "assist with certain aspects of the company, including engaging with policymakers around the world."

During the meeting, Cook told employees that he thinks he can help with strengthening Apple's global relationships. When asked why he is stepping down now, Cook said that it was a good time because Apple is "doing great," the product lineup is "incredible," and Ternus is ready for the role. "These three things all intersected, and they intersect now. And so now was the time," said Cook.

Cook is set to remain CEO through September 1, 2026, at which point he will move into his new role and Ternus will take over as CEO. Cook will see Apple through WWDC, but Ternus will be leading the company by the time the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Fold launch.
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Apple today provided public beta testers with new releases of upcoming iOS 26.5, iPadOS 26.5, macOS Tahoe 26.5, watchOS 26.5, and tvOS 26.5 updates for testing purposes. The public betas come a day after Apple provided the betas to developers. These are the third iOS 26.5 and iPadOS 26.5 betas, but the second ‌macOS Tahoe‌ 26.5 public beta.


After signing up for beta testing on Apple's beta site, public beta testers can download the updates using the Software Update section of the Settings app on each device.

iOS 26.5, iPadOS 26.5, and ‌macOS Tahoe‌ 26.5 include a new Suggested Places feature for recommending nearby locations to visit, and Apple is also gearing up to start showing ads in Maps.

Apple is testing end-to-end encryption for RCS messages between iPhone and Android users again, and there are proximity pairing, notification forwarding, and Live Activities for third-party wearables in the EU.
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AI has moved quickly from experimentation to production. Customers want measurable business outcomes, along with security, governance and responsible AI built in from day one. Microsoft partners are a meaningful differentiator to deliver these objectives. They turn ideas into deployable solutions by prioritizing the highest value use cases, building the right data and security foundations and establishing adoption and measurement capabilities so customers can run AI reliably in production.

Frontier Transformation is where AI becomes a repeatable, governed capability embedded into the flow of work, business processes and customer engagement. Customers are quickly moving from targeted pilots to operating AI at scale with a foundation built upon identity, data protection, compliance, monitoring and change management. As organizations expand from custom agents to agent-led processes, unified governance is essential so leaders can manage risk, track performance and scale with confidence.

Two essentials: Intelligence and Trust

Frontier Transformation depends on two essential elements: intelligence and trust. Customers want solutions grounded in their unique work intelligence, including their data, business context and operational realities. They also expect trust by design, with AI artifacts observable, managed and secured across the technology stack so they can deploy responsibly and scale with confidence.

A success framework for Frontier Transformation

Microsoft has developed a powerful framework for success as partners enable AI transformation for customers across all segments, industries and geographies:

1. Enriching employee experiences: enabling businesses to empower employees with world-class tools and capabilities to activate a thriving, productive workforce
2. Reinventing customer engagement: applying AI and agentic solutions to break through with customers, accelerate revenue growth, become more efficient at customer acquisition and deliver more personalized solutions
3. Reshaping business processes: redesigning workflows across the business, enhanced by AI and agentic capability
4. Bending the curve on innovation: AI acceleration is a powerful catalyst for business transformation and for addressing society’s biggest challenges — curing disease, addressing climate change and famine and other meaningful advancements

The “what” matters, and so does the “how.” Organizations that scale successfully put AI where people already work, enable innovation close to the business challenge and build observability at every layer so leaders can measure quality, govern risk and manage AI like a production system.

More than 90% of the Fortune 500 use Microsoft 365 Copilot, reflecting how quickly AI is becoming part of everyday work.(1) IDC predicts 1.3 billion agents in circulation by 2028(2) and 80% of the Fortune 500 are already using Microsoft agents, led by operationally complex industries like manufacturing, financial services and retail.(3) As customers move from piloting AI to agents embedded in their flow of work, governance and security need to scale with them.

Microsoft’s approach is straightforward: Copilot drives action in the flow of work, agents orchestrate workflows across systems and Microsoft Agent 365 provides a unified control plane designed to govern and secure agents at scale, with the same tools businesses use for employee administration, such as Microsoft admin center, Defender, Entra and Purview.

Partners are creating impact right now in three areas. First, agentic workflows that remove operational friction and orchestrate end-to-end work across operations, finance, supply chain and service. Second, Customer Zero maturity. Partners who adopt Copilot and agents internally build credibility and move faster because they have meaningful, real-world experiences that they translate into their go-to-market plans. Third, security as the foundation. There is no AI at scale without secure identity, protected data and strong governance.

Microsoft 365 E7 and Agent 365: The Frontier Suite

In March, Microsoft introduced Wave 3 of Microsoft 365 Copilot and announced Microsoft 365 E7: The Frontier Suite, with general availability of Microsoft 365 E7 and Microsoft Agent 365 on May 1, 2026.

Microsoft 365 E7 brings together Microsoft 365 E5 for secure productivity, Entra Suite for identity and access control, Microsoft 365 Copilot for AI in the flow of work and Agent 365 as the control plane to govern and scale agents. It is grounded in shared intelligence from Work IQ, the layer that brings together signals from the Microsoft 365 environment, including content, context and activity, so AI can operate with the right business grounding and policy awareness.

Microsoft Agent 365 provides a unified control plane for agents, enabling IT, security and business teams to observe, govern and secure agents across the organization. This applies to any agents an organization uses, whether they are built on Microsoft AI platforms, delivered by ecosystem partners or introduced through other technology stacks. It also applies the same security and compliance capabilities teams already rely on, including Microsoft Defender, Microsoft Entra and Microsoft Purview.

Some customer scenarios require custom agents. Microsoft Agent Factory is designed to accelerate the move from experimentation to execution. The Microsoft Agent Factory Pre-purchase Plan (P3) adds licensing flexibility across Copilot Studio, Microsoft Foundry, Fabric and GitHub, with tiered discounts intended to support broader adoption rather than isolated pilots. It also enables inclusion of tailored, role-based skilling at no additional cost to the customer, reducing adoption friction and increasing delivered value.

The opportunity for partners is end-to-end, and this is where the partner’s strategy really matters. Shifting from transaction-first to outcome-first, partners who iterate quickly, establish clear guardrails and build an operating rhythm for adoption move customers from interest to impact.

Over time, every organization will employ people who can direct and govern agents as part of daily work. Partners can make that capability real through packaged offers, change management and managed operations. Publishing those packaged offers in the Microsoft Marketplace adds a scalable route to market, improving discoverability and enabling a more repeatable buy-and-deploy motion as customers expand agent usage.

Partner success: What governed scale looks like in practice

“AI is at the forefront of everything we do. Through our ‘learn, use, create’ methodology and our AI Academy, we really support partners with learning paths.”
— Nicole Clark, Global Alliance Manager, Arrow Electronics

Partners are embracing Frontier Transformation by modernizing foundations, driving adoption, designing security into delivery and building agents that automate repeatable work and orchestrate business processes.

• Cognizant treated legacy automation as a platform modernization effort. Using Microsoft Power Platform, Copilot agents and governance frameworks, Cognizant migrated and modernized automation and scaled it across teams, consolidating platforms, lowering costs and reducing manual work through agent-led workflows.
• EPAM’s work with their customer Albert Heijn demonstrates what agent-first execution looks like in frontline scenarios. By delivering an employee-facing virtual assistant inside the retailer’s staff app, EPAM supported scenarios like restocking, onboarding and faster access to product and inventory information, with enterprise governance and observability in mind.
• Insight’s Flight Academy shows what it looks like to treat adoption as a program, not an announcement. Through a structured approach, Insight enables teams to build AI fluency in daily work and reinforces usage with practical learning and internal momentum that can scale beyond early enthusiasts.
• aCloud demonstrated a repeatable security pattern with their customer Jurong Engineering Limited (JEL) by bringing together Microsoft Purview, Microsoft Sentinel, Microsoft Defender XDR and Microsoft Security Copilot, paired with co-design workshops and cross-team alignment to strengthen compliance readiness.
• Arrow Electronics showed how distributor-led enablement can accelerate partner execution by using ArrowSphere to streamline Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) lifecycle management and ArrowSphere Assistant to surface AI-driven insights for renewals, upsell opportunities and Copilot adoption, complemented by a security dashboard that strengthens posture visibility and supports trust-by-design conversations.

Find more stories of partners innovating and driving meaningful outcomes for customers with Microsoft technology.

This same disciplined approach is especially relevant in the small and medium business space (SMB), where Microsoft partners offer end-to-end capability through managed services offerings and solutions packaged into repeatable motions, tailored to this customer segment.

SMB momentum: Scaling work with Copilots and agents

As Microsoft 365 Copilot Business expands AI built for work to organizations with fewer than 300 users, SMBs have a practical path to adopt AI more broadly. CSP partners are well positioned to guide that journey with a motion that combines adoption, security and ongoing management.

New Omdia research illustrates that CSP is a durable growth model for partners. In a study of 267 CSP partners across 36 countries, 79% rated CSP authorization as good, very good or excellent, and 88% would recommend it to other partners.(4) Omdia also found that 60% of CSP partner revenue is now tied to value-added services, with licensing acting as the entry point to broader, services-led engagements.(6)

“We’re bringing customers resources that only a partner can deliver to them: our relationship with Microsoft, technical training and programs that push them further and faster to learn technologies like Microsoft Copilot Studio, Foundry and Fabric.”
— Chance Weaver, Global VP of AI Adoption, Pax8

SMB demand is also expanding. For CSP partners, the near-term opportunity is to standardize advancing Copilot and agents from conversation to consumption. Lead with a simple, repeatable motion: outcome selection, security baseline, deployment, adoption and optimization cadence. Renewal moments are often the easiest time to introduce change when paired with a clear business case and time-bound offers.

A simple, scalable approach is to roll out in stages:

1. Deploy Microsoft 365 Copilot Business broadly, paired with a strong foundation of identity, data protection and compliance.
2. Target high-propensity accounts with tools such as Microsoft CloudAscent and the AI Business Solutions & Security Insights dashboard to deepen adoption and standardize responsible prompting.
3. Extend with agents to take on repeatable tasks and support key business processes, with governance and security built in.

Microsoft provides CSP partners with a powerful set of tools to combine licensing, lifecycle management and optimization into one customer relationship. Omdia notes that partners value operational advantages such as monthly billing flexibility and managing licenses through Partner Center for real-time provisioning and 24/7 license management. Partners can review the CSP incentives guide to understand the latest CSP incentives and how they map to an SMB motion.

Microsoft supports SMB-focused partners by combining product, security and go-to-market resources that make it easy to deliver a repeatable motion. That includes tools to assess readiness, prioritize the right use cases and track adoption over time, plus role-based skilling to build sales and technical and delivery confidence across Copilot, security and agents. For partners building managed services offerings, Microsoft Marketplace also provides a scalable route to market, improving discoverability and enabling customers to buy through familiar procurement paths, while Partner Center brings licensing and lifecycle management into the same operational flow.

Program momentum and updates

The Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program continues to be the primary way we invest in partners as they build, sell and deliver cloud and AI solutions. Our focus is simple: enable partners to build capability, accelerate demand, differentiate in the market and scale repeatable delivery.

In February 2026, Microsoft introduced a wealth of expanded benefits updates across Copilot, security, Azure credits and go-to-market resources. These updates are designed to strengthen how partners run their business and accelerate the ability to take solutions to market. We continue to evolve partner benefits packages as a practical growth lever, combining product, support and advisory benefits so partners can invest with confidence.

To enable AI Transformation, Microsoft is introducing program updates and offers in the coming months. These updates are intended to enable partners, including services partners, channel partners and software companies, to build and deliver agents across the Frontier product stack. 

• Differentiation via Frontier Partner specialization: The Frontier Badge is evolving into a Frontier Partner specialization. This specialization differentiates partners, including services partners and channel partners, who demonstrate capabilities to build or deliver agents across Microsoft’s Frontier product stack. It creates a clear way for customers and Microsoft field sales teams to identify partners with validated readiness for agentic AI scenarios.
• Updated Frontier Distributor designation: Microsoft is evolving the Frontier Distributor designation to reflect distributor capabilities that matter for scaling agentic AI across the channel. For partners, this will make it easier to identify distributors that can deliver repeatable skilling, enablement to build and manage agents and Marketplace-backed motions to transact and grow agent sales.
• Benefits for software companies building AI apps and agents via App Accelerate: App Accelerate supports software companies building AI apps and agents on the Microsoft agent stack, with benefits designed to bring agentic solutions to market with strong foundations for trust.

Investments in skilling

This year we are investing in partner skilling that connects certification readiness to project-ready execution, with role-based experiences like Project Ready Workshops that translate skills into repeatable delivery practices. These learning experiences are delivered through our Partner Skilling Hub.

We are also introducing the Frontier Engineer Badge, a new learning path delivered through Titan Academy that prepares Solution Engineers and Solution Architects within the partners’ organization to design, build and operate production-ready agentic AI solutions across the Frontier Transformation stack, including Microsoft Copilot, Copilot Studio, Azure AI Foundry, GitHub Copilot, Microsoft Fabric and Agent 365.

The journey is hands-on by design and follows a three-part model: earn required certifications to establish a shared technical baseline, demonstrate delivery capability through Project Ready (building and integrating agents with governance, security and compliance) and build advanced readiness for operating at scale through governance, velocity and industry solution patterns. The outcome is clear: delivery-ready engineers who can move customers from prototypes to trusted, governed deployments.

Capturing the Marketplace opportunity

Marketplaces matter more in 2026 as customers consolidate procurement and expect faster time to value, especially as AI moves from pilots to production. With over 5,000 AI solutions available, Microsoft Marketplace increases discoverability for partner-built AI solutions, including agents, and supports a more repeatable buy-and-deploy motion through familiar procurement. It also makes it easy for partners to package multiparty software and services offers, so customers can purchase what they need to implement, govern and scale AI in production.

Omdia projects Microsoft Marketplace as a nearly $300 billion partner services opportunity by 2030. In the same study, partners selling through Marketplace reported go-to-market benefits, including faster sales cycles and larger deals, with 75% of study participants reporting faster closes and 69% reporting larger deals through Microsoft Marketplace.(5)

To accelerate demand generation and make it easy to activate these motions, we recently introduced Partner Marketing Center Pro, an AI-powered experience for end-to-end campaign creation. It brings campaign discovery, customization and co-branding, intelligent localization and translation, automated publishing and built-in reporting into one workflow, with an AI assistant that provides coaching throughout the process.

Partner Marketing Center Pro is a benefit of the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program available to partners who have purchased at least one partner benefits package, who have attained a Solutions Partner designation or who are currently enrolled in ISV Success.

Ways to engage now

Here are a few practical next steps partners can take to maximize their Microsoft investment:

Start by joining the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program.

• Plan to attend our annual sales kickoff for partners, virtually on Wednesday, July 22, 2026, to learn more about FY27 priorities and execution motions.
• Explore partner benefits packages and select the option that aligns to their growth plan.
• Pursue a Solutions Partner designation or specialization that matches their solution plays and customer demand.
• Visit the Partner Skilling Hub to find role-based learning resources.
• Launch an FY26 campaign focused on SMB, security, Copilot adoption or marketplace growth using Partner Marketing Center Pro.

Making Frontier Transformation real

Frontier Transformation is about building AI-powered operating capability grounded in intelligence and trust, and delivered consistently across industries, geographies and market segments. Partners make that real for customers by turning strategy into production-ready solutions, with governance, security and adoption built in from day one.

Microsoft is committed to partner success. We will continue investing in the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program, with the incentives, the skilling and the go-to-market capabilities that enable partners to build repeatable offers, increase discoverability and deliver trusted AI outcomes for customers at scale.

Nicole Dezen leads the Microsoft partner ecosystem and the Global Channel Partner Sales organization in Small, Medium Enterprises and Channel (SME&C). As Chief Partner Officer, she has grown the Microsoft partner ecosystem to become the largest in the industry, enabling more than 500,000 partners to deliver AI transformation to millions of customers in each segment around the world.

 

Footnotes

¹ Microsoft FY25 Third Quarter Earnings Conference Call, Microsoft, April 2025.
² IDC Info Snapshot, sponsored by Microsoft, 1.3 Billion AI Agents by 2028, #US53361825, May 2025.
³ Based on Microsoft first party telemetry measuring agents built with Microsoft Copilot Studio or Microsoft Agent Builder that were in use during the last 28 days of November 2025.
⁴ Omdia, Unlocking Growth Potential: Partner Perspectives on Microsoft CSP, December 2025. Results are not an endorsement of Microsoft. Any reliance on these results is at the third party’s own risk.
⁵ Microsoft estimate based on IDC data (SMB TAM: $777B by FY26; $1T+ by 2030), as published on the Microsoft Partner Blog, “The Microsoft Marketplace opportunity for channel ecosystem,” November 20, 2025.
⁶ Omdia, Partner Ecosystem Multiplier – The Microsoft Marketplace Opportunity, commissioned research sponsored by Microsoft, December 2025. Results are not an endorsement of Microsoft. Any reliance on these results is at the third party’s own risk.

Throughout this document, $ refers to USD.

 

 

 

 

The post Accelerating Frontier Transformation with Microsoft partners appeared first on The Official Microsoft Blog.

Sony refreshed its earbuds earlier this year, introducing the $330 WF-1000XM6 earbuds to compete with the $249 AirPods Pro 3 that came out last September. We compared Sony's new earbuds with Apple's latest model to see which is better.


Sony's XM6 earbuds are smaller than the ‌AirPods Pro 3‌ because there's no stem, but the in-ear fit is different. The ‌AirPods Pro 3‌ have foam-infused silicone tips that are comfortable to wear for multiple hours at a time. Sony is using a polyurethane and silicone foam hybrid that feels secure in the ears, but you'll feel them more when using them for longer periods. The XM6 aren't as likely to fall out of your ears when moving around, so they're better for workouts. Earbud fit is going to vary from person to person, so some people might find the XM6 more comfortable. Both the ‌AirPods Pro 3‌ and the XM6 come with tips in multiple sizes to fit ears in different shapes.

Though Sony's earbuds have a tighter fit that's ideal for fitness-related use, the ‌AirPods Pro 3‌ have heart rate tracking and better waterproofing for sweat resistance. The XM6 have an IPX4 water resistance rating, compared to the IP57 dust and water resistance rating of the ‌AirPods Pro 3‌.

The ‌AirPods Pro 3‌ and the XM6 are both high-end flagship earbud options, and they produce excellent sound. Like fit, your opinion on sound quality will come down to individual preference.

Sony offers LDAC high-resolution codec support for improved sound quality on an Android device, along with an app that supports EQ adjustments with custom presets, adjustable bass, treble sliders, and more. Apple does not offer built-in EQ, but AirPods come with well-balanced tuning that sounds great to many people. If you want to tinker with sound adjustments, Sony's earbuds are the way to go, but if you want good sound with no tuning requirements, the ‌AirPods Pro 3‌ are the better pick.

As with sound, both models have some of the best Active Noise Cancellation you can get from earbuds. The XM6 seem to do just a bit better at canceling out low-frequency sound like engines on an airplane and higher-frequency sound like office chatter, but it's close. How the ANC works for each person will come down to the ear seal with the tip and personal preference.

Apple's ‌AirPods Pro 3‌ have the edge when it comes to Transparency because the sound passing through the microphones is more natural. Sony's version of transparency is fine, but it sounds more robotic. The difference is especially noticeable with voices. The XM6 seem to have better noise isolation on calls when outdoors, but indoors, the AirPods sound clearer.

The ‌AirPods Pro 3‌ can be used as an over-the-counter hearing aid alternative, but the XM6 can't, plus there's spatial audio support, real-time Live Translation, and heart rate tracking for workouts. Sony's earbuds have better gesture control, 360 Reality Audio, and more software customization.

The XM6 offer eight hours of playback with ANC on, which is the same battery life as the ‌AirPods Pro 3‌. For the AirPods, spatial audio with head tracking and heart rate sensing drop that total down slightly, but battery life is almost identical overall. The ‌AirPods Pro 3‌ case has enough battery for 24 hours of listening time, as does the XM6 case.

If you're in the Apple ecosystem, you're going to have a better experience with the ‌AirPods Pro 3‌ with iCloud-based features like one-tap pairing, automatic device switching anywhere you're signed in with your Apple ID, and support for Apple features like Live Translation. Sony can't implement the same close integration with Apple devices, which makes it harder to recommend Sony earbuds for Apple users.

The XM6 earbuds pair through the iPhone's Bluetooth menu or the Sony Sound Connect app. It's not a one-tap process, and while Sony can now support connecting to two devices at once, it's still not as good as Apple's process.

If you have Apple devices, the ‌AirPods Pro 3‌ are probably the better choice, and they're $81 cheaper too. The XM6 are the best pick for Android users or those who really want to tinker with sound.
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Satechi is adding to its lineup of charging solutions for Apple devices with the new ChargeView 140W Desktop Charger that’s available starting today. The ChargeView is a gallium-nitride charger that has adaptive charging intelligence and a digital display that shows real-time power usage.


The ChargeView is meant to be used on top of a desk, so it has space black aluminum build to match Apple’s Macs and a clean, modern design. It is meant to be used upright to minimize the amount of space that it takes up on a desk. The ChargeView includes four USB-C ports, with 140W total output. 140W is enough to charge a 16-inch MacBook Pro at full speed, but power is split when using more than one port. The included display shows how power is distributed.

Fast charging for the iPhone, iPad, and Macs is supported, and Satechi says the ChargeView supports USB PD 3.2 with AVS for advanced power optimization. Satechi’s power optimization makes sure devices get optimal output with protection against overheating, overcurrent, and overvoltage.

The ChargeView 140W Desktop Charger is priced at $100 and it can be purchased from the Satechi website or from Amazon.com.
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Amazon this week is taking up to $52 off Wi-Fi models of Apple's 11th generation iPad. Prices start at $299.00 for the 128GB Wi-Fi iPad, down from $349.00, which is a solid second-best price on this model.

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.

Additionally, Amazon has the 256GB Wi-Fi iPad for $399.99 ($49 off) and the 512GB Wi-Fi iPad for $597.00 ($52 off). Free delivery estimates are placed around the end of April for most of these iPad models, but Prime members should be able to get same-day delivery in many locations.





If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week.

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Yelp is introducing an expanded version of its Yelp Assistant, an agentic chatbot that is able to answer questions, suggest places to visit, and complete tasks like booking a restaurant reservation.


Answers rely on hundreds of millions of Yelp reviews sourced from real people, which Yelp says allows the assistant to address "complex and highly specific requests." Yelp Assistant was previously available for hiring service professionals and getting answers to questions about businesses, but now it is available across all Yelp categories.

Users are able to ask specific questions when looking for a location, such as "birthday dinner spots with vegan options and heated outdoor seating," or "top-rated gyms with group classes and childcare."

With the AI Assistant, users can start out by asking questions to find a suitable location, and then make reservations, book appointments, place delivery orders, or get quotes in the same conversation. Yelp is adding new integrated services including Vagaro, Zocdoc, and Calendly.


There is a new AI-powered personalization model for the Yelp home feed on the iPhone and iPad, and it is able to surface more relevant content and improved recommendations.

Yelp is also updating its AI Menu Vision feature with support for photo overlays so users can see what popular dishes, drinks, and desserts look like.

The Yelp Assistant is rolling out today and it is accessible through a new Assistant tab in the Yelp app.
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Anker is hosting a new suite of deals for Earth Day on both Amazon and Anker.com, highlighted by the new Prime 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Station for $119.99, down from $149.99. This accessory just launched last month, and Amazon's sale today is a solid second-best price.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

The Prime 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Station features Qi2.2 support, which lets a compatible MagSafe ‌iPhone‌ charge at up to 25W. It's the same speed as Apple's ‌MagSafe‌ charger, and it is 10W faster than the standard Qi2 ‌MagSafe‌ chargers. You can also simultaneously charge an Apple Watch and AirPods with the device.



There are plenty of other Anker discounts happening on Amazon this week, including Anker's popular 3-in-1 MagSafe-Compatible Charging Cube for $89.98, down from $129.99. Below you'll find a list of the best Anker discounts on Amazon this week, also including wall chargers, portable chargers, and more.

Anker's website has most of the same deals, with discounts that increase with the more you buy. You'll get 5 percent off when you spend $89 or more, 10 percent off when you spend $139 or more, and 20 percent off when you spend $199 or more.



Although it's not on sale, Anker recently launched a new desktop charging accessory with the Anker Nano Desk Clamp Power Strip for $69.99. The new device attaches to your desk and has 10 total ports including six AC outlets, two USB-C ports, and two USB-A ports. It supports 70W USB-C fast charging and comes in white and black color options.

Wall Chargers

• Nano USB-C Wall Charger - $27.99, down from $39.99


• 140W 4-Port GaN USB-C Charger - $64.99, down from $99.99

Wireless Chargers

• 3-in-1 MagSafe-Compatible UFO Charger - $75.99, down from $89.99


• 3-in-1 MagSafe-Compatible Foldable Charging Station - $79.99, down from $109.99


• 3-in-1 MagSafe-Compatible Charging Cube - $89.98, down from $129.99


• 3-in-1 Prime Wireless Charging Station - $119.99, down from $149.99


• Prime MagSafe-Compatible 3-in-1 Charging Station - $149.99, down from $229.99

Portable Chargers

• SOLIX C300 Power Station with Lantern - $169.99, down from $249.00


• Prime Power Bank 26,250 mAh - $199.99, down from $229.99


• SOLIX C1000 Gen 2 Portable Power Station - $428.99, down from $799.00


• SOLIX C2000 Gen 2 Portable Power Station - $799.99, down from $1,499.00

If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week.

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This article, "Anker Earth Day Sale Features Up to 40% Off Popular Chargers and More" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple on Monday announced that Tim Cook will be stepping down as CEO, and some top leaders around the world have publicly commented on the news.


Effective September 1, Apple's hardware engineering chief John Ternus will become the company's next CEO, while Cook will become executive chairman of Apple's board of directors. In his new role, Apple said Cook will assist with "certain aspects" of the company, including "engaging with policymakers around the world."

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella:

Wishing you all the best in this next chapter, Tim Cook. You've always led with clarity and purpose, and your impact on Apple and across our industry will be felt for years to come.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai:

Congrats on an incredible run Tim Cook, always respected your deep commitment to Apple's mission and best wishes in your new role!

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman:

Tim Cook is a legend.

I am very thankful for everything he has done and I am very thankful for Apple.

U.S. President Donald Trump:

I have always been a big fan of Tim Cook, and likewise, Steve Jobs, but if Steve was not taken from the Planet Earth so young, and ran the company instead of Tim, the company would have done well, but nowhere near as well as it has under Tim.

More from Trump:

I was very impressed with myself to have the head of Apple calling to "kiss my ass."

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey:

Here in Alabama, we will always be proud of Tim Cook! He is an Alabamian through and through — born in Mobile and a graduate of Auburn University. I wish Tim Cook continued success and am grateful for all he has done and will continue to do for our state.

Berkshire Hathaway chairman Warren Buffett:

Apple would not be the Apple of today without Tim Cook.

More from Buffett:

Covering the world and getting along with countries with all kinds of histories and doing right by the customer, people who worked for him, certainly the shareholders, which we were lucky enough to be one of… he's one of a kind.

Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon:

Congratulations to Tim Cook on his nearly 15 years of leadership at Apple, and to John Ternus on becoming CEO.

Apple's former iPod chief Tony Fadell:

Congratulations Tim Cook on one of the most consequential leadership runs in tech.

This year marks 50 years of Apple, and Tim has led Apple through a defining stretch of that history.

Oculus VR founder Palmer Luckey:

RIP Tim Apple

We will update this story with any additional quotes throughout the day.
This article, "Top Leaders React to Apple Announcing Tim Cook Will Step Down as CEO" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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WhatsApp has started testing a paid subscription tier called WhatsApp Plus, which adds a set of personalization options on top of the standard messaging experience, according to WABetaInfo.


The paid plan Meta is testing appears to be geared towards hardcore users who spend a lot of time in the app: subscribers get access to premium sticker packs with fullscreen overlay animations (visible to recipients without the plan), optional accent colors that replace the app's default green across the UI, and alternate app icons ranging from minimal designs to textured effects like glitter, nebula, and fuzzy purple.

The plan also raises the pinned-chat limit from 3 to 20, adds 10 exclusive ringtones, and allows bulk application of custom themes and notification settings across chat lists.

While we don't know how much the plan will cost when it goes live, the test interface currently shows €2.49 per month in Europe and $29 in Mexico. Based on the beta, users may eventually see a free one-month trial.

Otherwise, WhatsApp's main functionality remains unchanged. Messaging, voice and video calls, status updates, and end-to-end encryption are still free, suggesting the paid tier sits alongside existing features rather than restricting anything that was previously unpaid.

Overall, it's a test that was anticipated – Meta has been laying the groundwork for subscription revenue across its apps for some time. The company is already testing "Instagram Plus," a new paid subscription service in select markets for roughly $1–$2/month. That plan offers premium features focused on Stories, such as anonymous viewing, 48-hour story duration, and analytics on re-watches.

The optional WhatsApp plan is currently available to a limited number of Android beta users, with a wider rollout planned over the coming weeks. iOS support is expected at a later stage, and the subscription is not expected to apply to WhatsApp Business.
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Apple on Monday announced that CEO Tim Cook is stepping down as the company's chief executive officer, with hardware engineering chief John Ternus set to take the helm. In a new Bloomberg report, reporter Mark Gurman suggests one of the reasons Ternus has been chosen as successor is for his decision-making style, which is said to be closer to co-founder Steve Jobs than Cook, who has a more deliberative approach.


From the report:

"Ternus will make decisions" when it comes to product development, said one person who has worked closely with both executives. "If you go to Tim with 'A' or 'B,' he won't pick. He'll ask a series of questions instead if he has concerns."

Ternus, on the other hand, will choose, said the person, who asked not to be identified in order to speak candidly. "It could be right or wrong, but at least it's a decision."

That shift could mark the end of an era in which major product decisions were made collectively by a small group of top executives. Ternus is expected to take a more centralized approach where he will be a singular decision-maker.

Earlier this month, Ternus reportedly reorganized the hardware engineering division around a new AI platform designed to speed up product development and improve device quality. Ternus is said to be keen to deploy AI quickly throughout Apple to improve its operations, suggesting he is willing to make clear calls and shake things up where necessary. Ternus has also told employees he will remain closely involved in hardware engineering development, indicating a sharper focus on products.

He is also reportedly ready to push back when it matters – Ternus apparently opposed development of the Vision Pro, which has flopped, as well as the company's autonomous car project that cost around $10 billion, but was ultimately scrapped.

Cook will hand over the reins to Ternus on September 1, in time for him to oversee the launch of the iPhone 18 Pro models as well as the company's first foldable iPhone later the same month. Cook will continue to advise Apple in a new role as executive chairman.
This article, "Report: Ternus to Bring Jobs-Era Decisiveness Back to Apple" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple is unlikely to add a 200-megapixel telephoto camera to the iPhone before 2028, despite having already tested such a sensor in prototypes, according to leaker Digital Chat Station.


In a post today shared on China's Weibo social platform, the leaker said Apple has evaluated a 200-megapixel sensor for a periscope-type camera, but adoption remains at least a couple of years away.

The leaker did not give a reason for the time frame, but they have previously referred to Apple's continuing focus on improving optical flexibility and low-light performance, rather than a jump in raw resolution. This year's iPhone 18 Pro is expected to feature a 48-megapixel main camera with a variable aperture, alongside a 48-megapixel telephoto camera featuring a longer focal length and a larger aperture.

Digital Chat Station's latest post reflects a shift in position. In March, they said a 200-megapixel sensor could potentially ship in an iPhone as soon as next year, but the supply chain evidence no longer appears to support this claim.

Back in January, Morgan Stanley reported that Apple is working to bring a 200-megapixel camera to the iPhone as soon as 2028, so the two independent sources are now more closely aligned on the matter.

Samsung introduced a 200-megapixel rear camera on its Galaxy S23 Ultra in 2023, and the follow-up models also have one. With a 200-megapixel camera, an iPhone would be able to shoot photos with greater detail. The increased megapixel count would also result in higher-resolution photos, which can be cropped further and printed at larger sizes without a loss of image quality.

Digital Chat Station has a large following on Chinese social media platform Weibo, and the account has previously shared accurate information about Apple's future products.
This article, "200MP Telephoto iPhone Lens Unlikely to Arrive Before 2028" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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