Apple today seeded a new beta of watchOS 27 for the Apple Watch Ultra 3, with the update coming over two weeks after the launch of the first beta. This beta is only available for the ‌Apple Watch Ultra 3‌, which did not get the second beta update that came out earlier this week.


The beta can be downloaded through the Watch app on the iPhone with a free developer account. The Apple Watch will need to be on the charger, connected to Wi-Fi, and have a battery level of 50 percent or above for new software to be installed.

‌watchOS 27‌ will include Siri AI, the smarter, more capable version of ‌Siri‌. ‌Siri‌ can hold back-and-forth conversations, plus it has access to general world knowledge and your personal data to answer questions and find information. ‌Siri‌ AI on Apple Watch requires an iPhone that supports Apple Intelligence, including the iPhone 15 Pro and later.

There's a new Dynamic app grid that highlights ‌Siri‌ suggested apps, and more intuitive Smart Stack Suggestions. You can find your parked car, see pinned messages, get noise alerts, and view identity and transit cards.

Liquid Glass has been updated to improve legibility, and Workout Buddy works on the Apple Watch even when an iPhone isn't nearby. Workout Buddy also gains new metrics like progressive increases to distance, pace, or duration. Apple added a new all-in-one Find My app with support for Precision Finding, and there are performance optimizations that improve battery life.

More on what's new in ‌watchOS 27‌ is available in our watchOS 27 roundup.
This article, "Apple Seeds New watchOS 27 Beta for Apple Watch Ultra 3" first appeared on MacRumors.com

Discuss this article in our forums

Apple is changing its Apple silicon launch timeline to speed up the debut of chips designed for artificial intelligence workloads, reports Bloomberg.


Apple plans to release an M6 chip for entry-level Macs as soon as this year, but it has canceled plans for higher-end M6 Pro and M6 Max chips. Instead, Apple's next Pro and Max chips will be part of its M7 chip lineup, with the first M7 chips launching in 2027. An M5 Ultra chip could also come as soon as this year.

• M5 Ultra - Late 2026


• M6 - Late 2026


• M7 - First half of 2027


• M7 Pro - End of 2027


• M7 Max - End of 2027


• M7 Ultra - 2028

Apple is speeding up development on M7 chips because they have technologies supporting on-device AI and GPU-intensive software. Since the launch of the first Apple silicon chips, Apple has always had at least three variants, including the base M-series chip, a Pro version, and a Max version. The M6 will mark the first time that Apple is not coming out with a Pro or Max chip for the line.

Apple could update the entry-level MacBook Pro with an M6 chip as soon as this year. It is expected to have around 200GB/s memory bandwidth for better graphics and faster AI processing and video editing. The base M5 chip has 153GB/s memory bandwidth, and the base M7 chip could have 240GB/s bandwidth.

Bloomberg says the M6 will also include an updated memory architecture and an upgraded Neural Engine, along with performance improvements across all of the processor cores and a redesigned GPU with up to 12 cores. Prior rumors have suggested the M6 will be the first built on Apple's new 2-nanometer process.

The base M6 could also be used in the entry-level Mac mini and iMac, along with upcoming iPad Pro and iPad Air models. The higher-end ‌MacBook Pro‌ models and higher-end ‌Mac mini‌ will use the M7 Pro and M7 Max. The Mac Studio will use the M7 Max and M7 Ultra.

Bloomberg says Apple still plans to release an M5 Ultra for a refreshed version of the ‌Mac Studio‌ as soon as this year. The M5 Ultra will have approximately 36 CPU cores and 80 GPU cores. An M5 Ultra ‌Mac Studio‌ could have as much as 768GB of unified memory.

Apple is working on a high-end "MacBook Ultra" with an OLED display and a touchscreen, and rumors suggested it could come as soon as late 2026. That seems unlikely now with the M7 Pro and M7 Max chips slated for late 2027, unless Apple equips the high-end ‌MacBook Pro‌ with an M6, the M5 Max, or the M5 Ultra chip.

News of Apple's updated chip launch timeline comes just after the company raised prices across all of its Macs and iPads.
This article, "2027 Macs to Get AI-Focused M7 Chips as Apple Skips High-End M6" first appeared on MacRumors.com

Discuss this article in our forums

As a result of the lawsuit Epic Games filed against Google, Google is making major changes to its Play Store worldwide. Google today said it would soon lower fees and start accepting alternative payment options.


App developers will be able to offer payment options other than Google's in-app billing system in the UK, European Economic Area, and United States. Developers can use the billing system of their choice and link users to websites for purchases.

As for fees, Google will charge between 10% and 25% (not including billing fee), based on annual earnings. There's a base 10% service fee on the first $1 million in annual earnings. For earnings over $1 million, fees are 20% for new installs and 25% for existing installs (apps installed prior to the new rules) with the exception of auto-renewing subscriptions. Link-out fees are 20% for apps earning over $1 million annually.

There is an additional 5% fee for transactions that use the Google Play billing system, which is on top of the base service fees. Google's full fee structure is outlined on its website.

Google also has lower pricing options for apps that qualify for its Games Level Up and Apps Experience programs, with fees ranging from 10 percent to 20 percent. Those programs will be open to developers starting in September.

Fees and billing options go into effect on June 30 in the UK, United States, and European Economic Area. The updated fee structure will expand to Australia, Japan, and South Korea by the end of 2026, and the rest of the world by September 2027.

Google's antitrust lawsuit with ‌Epic Games‌ went differently than Apple's antitrust lawsuit, and Google was found to have an app store monopoly resulting in higher fees for developers. Google and ‌Epic Games‌ came to a settlement agreement, and Google said it would lower fees, support alternative app stores, and offer alternative payment options.

‌Epic Games‌ and Apple are continuing to fight in court, with Apple appealing to the Supreme Court. Apple is currently barred from charging commissions on U.S. apps with links to purchase options on the web and it has to comply with the Digital Markets Act in the European Union, but Apple does not have one worldwide policy like Google does now.

Until fee calculations happen in the ‌Epic Games‌ v. Apple case, Apple is charging $0 for links in the App Store, while Google is charging between 10 and 20 percent.

It is possible that Google's Play Store changes could impact the eventual outcome of Apple's legal dispute with ‌Epic Games‌. Apple and Google have historically charged developers similar fees, and though Apple is fighting ‌App Store‌ regulation in multiple countries, it is having to implement a disjointed set of fees and restrictions on a per-country basis to keep up with local laws.
This article, "Google Lowering Play Store Fees and Allowing Alternative Payments Worldwide" first appeared on MacRumors.com

Discuss this article in our forums

Apple updated the Home app with some useful new features that rely on Apple Intelligence. The updates improve the way HomeKit Secure Video cameras work on Apple's HomeKit platform.

Apple Intelligence Summaries

The Home app generates written summaries for motion alerts and what's detected, using AI to determine what's been recorded. It can recognize people, animals, vehicles, packages, and general motion, giving a summary of what's happening even if you're not looking at the video footage.

It is intelligent enough to give detail, so you'll see alerts like "a person walked through the room," "two people were in the room," "a dog sat on the floor," or "a cat played in the room."

‌HomeKit Secure Video‌ cameras have facial recognition, so they can also recognize people who are in your Photo Library, sending alerts and summaries with names.

Grouped Footage

Along with analyzing footage, the Home app can now group footage from separate cameras capturing the same event. If a person walks by one camera and continues on to another, the Home app knows those two events are related. During video playback, you can see relevant footage from multiple cameras with a summary of something that happened across the entire home.

Highlights

If there are noteworthy recordings available, they are shown in a separate section above the general recordings in the camera view.

Search

The Home app supports natural language search for camera footage, so if you're looking for something like when a package was delivered, you can search for it. It can recognize objects, colors, and more. Search works in the Home app and directly in Spotlight.

Notification Summaries

Notifications update in real-time and related alerts are combined instead of being shown as separate notifications. The net result is fewer Home app notifications. Summaries can be turned on in the Home app settings on a per-camera basis, plus there are options for multiple languages.

Video Previews

Long pressing on an incoming video notification plays a preview clip of the footage and includes access to nearby accessories like lights that you might want to turn on quickly.

Reduce Notifications

There is an ‌Apple Intelligence‌ section in the Home app where you can turn on video summaries and cut down on notifications. The Reduce Notifications toggle combines related activities like someone arriving and unlocking the door.

4K Recording

‌HomeKit Secure Video‌ cameras are no longer limited to 1080p recording. If supported, cameras can stream and record at up to 4K.

Energy Monitoring

Accessories able to track energy usage like smart plugs now display that information in the Home app in the Energy tab. There is no way to create automations based on the data as of now.

Remote Apple TV Updates

It's now possible to update the Apple TV remotely using the Home app, similar to how HomePod updates are installed.

Reliability

Apple says capturing and storing ‌HomeKit Secure Video‌ footage is more reliable than it was before and it is less likely to miss activity.

Connectivity for Thread home accessories has also been improved with Apple adopting Thread 1.4, and ‌HomeKit‌ accessories now pair faster. Apple also says smart home accessory updates are faster than before.

When adding a new device to the Home app, there's a simplified interface that's useful for configuring Matter accessories in particular.

Compatibility and Requirements

The ‌Apple Intelligence‌ features in the Home app require a device that supports ‌Apple Intelligence‌, which includes the iPhone 15 Pro and later. The Home features also need an Apple TV running tvOS 27 or a ‌HomePod‌ running the ‌HomePod‌ Software 27.

‌HomeKit Secure Video‌ requires an iCloud+ plan. The 50GB plan supports a single camera, the 200GB plan supports up to five cameras, and the 2TB and above plans support unlimited cameras.

4K video recording does not require ‌Apple Intelligence‌.
This article, "iOS 27 Home App: 10+ New HomeKit Features" first appeared on MacRumors.com

Discuss this article in our forums