For macOS 27 Golden Gate, coming this fall, Apple appears to be testing a new formatting bar for the Mail app's compose window that promotes Apple Intelligence's Writing Tools and Siri AI, based on findings in the latest beta.


Feature flags discovered by MacRumors forum member "mactracker" – who this week also revealed the hidden Siri "voice pad" interface in beta 4 – show the reworked bar in Mail's message composer, which now features "Write with Siri" in the most prominent position.

In the current implementation, the classic formatting controls are automatically collapsed to the right edge of the composer and vanish completely once the user selects Write with Siri and starts typing a prompt.


The redesigned bar adds the ability to display contextual Smart Reply suggestions from Siri AI without necessarily using them in your draft email. (macOS users will know that Smart Reply itself isn't new, having arrived with the first wave of Apple Intelligence features.) The new design lets you preview a suggested reply by hovering over it before inserting it, which is something the previous in-line design couldn't do.

When a suggested composition is selected, the formatting bar shows "Edit with Siri," "Proofread," and "Rewrite" options, as well as "How does this sound?" with the traditional formatting controls minimized.

The new bar isn't switched on by default and remains hidden behind an internal feature flag, so most testers won't see it. It's also still buggy, suggesting this is a work in progress – in Beta 4, for example, the redesign only shows up when replying to a message, but composing a fresh email still brings up the old formatting bar.


Whether the redesign makes the general release of macOS 27 is anyone's guess at this point, but it fits the broader pattern of integrating the new contextually aware Siri AI across the system.

macOS 27 Golden Gate is expected to officially launch in September when Apple releases new iPhone 18 Pro models, alongside its first foldable iPhone.
This article, "macOS 27 Beta Reworks Mail's Compose Window Around Siri AI" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Anthropic has updated Claude's voice mode to support its more powerful Opus and Sonnet models, expanding a feature that was previously limited to the company's fastest-but-simplest model, Haiku.


Voice mode lets users hold full spoken conversations with the chatbot rather than having to type prompts and read responses. Users can switch between Claude's models mid-conversation, and can also move between text and voice in the same chat without losing context. With the addition of Opus and Sonnet support, users will be able to hold longer and more complex conversations, including providing feedback on the communication style.

In addition, Claude's Voice mode can now also tap into connected tools like Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs, and Slack, so Claude can check a calendar or summarize an email thread out loud, for example. Users with free accounts can connect one tool, whereas paid plans support more.

According to Anthropic's support documentation, the models available in voice mode now follow the user's subscription plan, and voice conversations start on whichever model the user last selected in text chat.

Claude's voice mode language support was extended beyond English earlier this year, with French, German, Hindi, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, and Spanish available in beta. Users have to manually select a language in the app.


Voice mode works on iOS, Android, desktop, and the web, but Anthropic says it is designed to work best on phones. Voice conversations count toward standard usage limits and Anthropic's newest Fable model is not yet supported.

Meanwhile, OpenAI yesterday launched ChatGPT Voice in its desktop app, powered by a model it calls GPT-Live, which the company says can direct multiple agents running in ChatGPT Work or Codex by voice alone. The feature is rolling out on macOS and Windows to paid plans.

Correction: This story has been updated to reflect ChatGPT Voice's recent rollout.
This article, "Claude Voice Mode Gains Opus and Sonnet Model Support" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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WhatsApp is rolling out a new design for message bubbles on iOS, reports WaBetaInfo. The platform's message bubbles are rounder than before with a softer shape – similar to iMessage – while shared media files appear without the original borders, giving them a cleaner look.

The message bubble update follows several Liquid Glass-based design changes that came to WhatsApp's chat interface on iPhone and iPad last month.
This article, "WhatsApp Rolls Out Redesigned Message Bubbles for iOS" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple is pushing OLED panel suppliers to lower their prices for the iPhone 18 Pro Max, as the cost of memory chips and other components rises, reports The Elec.


According to the Korea-based report, Apple has proposed paying around $70 for OLED panels, but it might end up paying even less. Industry estimates suggest that Samsung Display and LG Display will supply the panels for around $66.50 each. That would be a roughly 20 percent drop from the prices paid for iPhone 17 Pro Max OLED panels.

The report says that the price Apple has paid for iPhone OLED panels has fallen with each new generation. However, this year's reduction is unusually steep, especially considering that the iPhone 18 OLED panel is expected to require greater manufacturing complexity – Apple will be using Samsung Display's latest M16 OLED material set, which improves luminous efficiency, lifespan, and color performance.

Smartphone makers across the board are said to be trying to offset rising memory costs by reducing procurement expenses for other components, including display panels and camera modules.

According to market research firm UBI Research, Samsung Display is expected to supply 46 million OLED panels for Apple's iPhone 18 lineup this year, comprising 2 million for the standard iPhone 18 model, 18 million for the iPhone 18 Pro, and 26 million for the iPhone 18 Pro Max. Meanwhile, LG Display is forecast to supply 41 million panels, including 1 million for the standard model, 19 million for the 18 Pro, and 21 million for the 18 Pro Max.

Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 18 Pro models in September alongside its first foldable iPhone, followed by the iPhone 18 and iPhone 18e in spring 2027. Analysts suggest the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max could start at $1,299 and $1,399, respectively. In other words, a $200 jump over their predecessors, with rising memory and storage costs largely to blame.

This article, "Apple Seeking 20% OLED Panel Price Cut for iPhone 18 Pro Max" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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