The iPhone 18 Pro, ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, and foldable "iPhone Ultra" could be in short supply this year, leading to long wait times and an initial sellout during preorders.


Semiconductor analyst Tim Culpan says Apple is having trouble getting enough DRAM to finish production of the new iPhone models, and chip supplier TSMC has $1 billion worth of unpackaged processors waiting on memory chips.

Apple's new A20 Pro chips are built on TSMC's 2nm process and use Wafer-Level Multi-Chip Module packaging to integrate the processor and DRAM at the wafer level. Unfortunately, that means TSMC needs to have the DRAM on hand for assembly, and it can't be added at a later step. Apple is not able to stockpile finished dies and then add DRAM when it becomes available.

Apple and its assemblers think they can meet initial demand, but retail inventory could sell quickly, leading to prolonged delivery estimates. The chip backlog will delay main logic board assembly and final device assembly, which could impact production at Foxconn and other assemblers.

DRAM has been in short supply for months and has led to long wait times for the Mac Studio, Mac mini, and MacBook Air. Companies that make memory are prioritizing chips for AI data centers because those chips are more profitable, leaving little capacity available for manufacturing chips for consumer devices.

We've had ongoing rumors about manufacturing issues with the ‌iPhone Ultra‌ due to the complexity of the design, and supplies of the new foldable could be the most limited of the three iPhone models. Some reports suggest the foldable iPhone could be introduced in September and then launch later, in October or November, but others say it will be available at the same time as the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and Pro Max.

The ‌iPhone Ultra‌ is going to cost as much as $2,500, but the novel form factor and Apple's new Apple Upgrade pricing option could lead to more people being willing to shell out for the device. Apple is also expected to raise prices for the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, and analysts believe the devices could be up to $300 more expensive because Apple is paying more for RAM.

Last year, the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ Max sold out during the preorder period, and shipping times extended into October. Along with potential production delays impacting supply, there will be no lower-cost iPhone 18 for people to choose this year, putting more pressure on ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ supplies. Apple is not planning to launch the standard ‌iPhone 18‌ until early 2027.

If you're looking to get one of the new iPhone models in September, it's a good idea to preorder right when the devices become available for purchase to have the best chance of getting one on launch day.
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T-Mobile retired its 2G GSM network on Monday, August 3, which means all three major carriers in the United States have now ended 2G service.


T-Mobile kept its 2G network active because it still had some legacy customers who were using it. Some customers visiting the United States and using international roaming carrier agreements for connectivity also needed 2G for voice calling, but T-Mobile worked with carriers globally to prepare for the end of its 2G network.

Customers who were still on T-Mobile's 2G network were warned well ahead of time about the shutdown and given time to transition. Smartphones, alarm panels, payment terminals, and other IoT accessories that used 2G will no longer function.

AT&T ended support for 2G almost a decade ago in 2017, and Verizon stopped supporting 2G in 2020. Now that no carriers in the U.S. support 2G, legacy devices like the original iPhone will not be able to connect to any cellular network. The iPhone technically lost cellular support in 2017 when AT&T sunset its 2G network, and now the last workaround is gone.

All three carriers also ended support for 3G back in 2022, and have also abandoned early LTE iPhones without VoLTE support.
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Google today added new agentic capabilities to the Gemini-powered "Ask Maps" assistant in the Google Maps app.


Ask Maps can complete multi-step tasks, such as ordering a meal for you on your way home. Google says you can simply say something like "order spicy pad kee mao with seafood for me to pick up on my way home," and Maps will find open restaurants along your route, let you pick one, and add the dish you asked for to your cart so you can review it and check out.

Food ordering is rolling out today with partners like Square and Toast, with Uber Eats integration coming soon.

Ask Maps can also look up information about hotels and events when you're traveling, comparing prices in real time and checking availability for a hotel, then offering up ideas on things to do nearby.

Google says its live updates are coming to transit. A transit widget in Ask Maps offers up-to-the-minute information about delays for bus, train, subway, and ferry rides.

A new Personal Intelligence option in Ask Maps allows the feature to connect to Gmail to factor in upcoming plans without needing specific instruction. Connecting to Gmail is opt-in and off by default. Ask Maps can also remember prior conversations for context if history settings are turned on.

There's a conversational edits option for suggesting new details for the Ask Maps feature. You can tell Maps about an insider tip and Ask Maps will offer the information to others in the community.

Ask Maps is also expanding to Australia, Brazil, Canada, Indonesia, Japan, and Mexico, along with over 150 countries and territories in English.

The live transit widget, personalized responses, and conversation memory are rolling out everywhere Ask Maps is available. Food ordering, discovering hotels and events, and conversational contributions are rolling out in the U.S., with more countries set to be added later.

Ask Maps is available on the web and in the Google Maps app for iOS.
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Madden NFL 27 Arcade Edition is available on Apple Arcade starting today. It's a full Madden NFL game that does not include ads or in-app purchases, and it is available exclusively on Apple devices.


Users can lead and coach teams through every stage of the NFL season, controlling games, making strategic decisions, and aiming for the championship.

Apple says the game has controls designed for mobile devices, authentic football gameplay, and guided tutorials. It includes Franchise and Quick Play modes, with updates for current NFL teams and dynamic player ratings built on real-world performances.


Retro Bowl College+, Everyday Puzzles: Mini Games+, and Water Sort Puzzle: Get Color+ are also new on Apple Arcade this week. ‌Apple Arcade‌ is Apple's gaming service, priced at $6.99 per month in the U.S. ‌Apple Arcade‌ titles can be played on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, and Vision Pro.

Separately, Big Walk, a new game from the makers of Untitled Goose Game, launched for the Mac. Big Walk is a cooperative multiplayer adventure game that supports 2 to 12 players. Players are tasked with working together to complete challenges and puzzles. Big Walk is priced at $14.99 and is available from the Mac App Store.
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BMW has enraged customers by sending ads for Spider-Man: Brand New Day directly to in-car infotainment systems. An ad appears as a notification when starting the car, and when tapped, it plays a full-screen 19-second animation with music and a light show.


The ad started going out on July 27, and it is set to continue through August 10. Cars built after July 2020 with BMW Operating System 7 or newer are displaying the Spider-Man promo in more than 70 markets.

BMW owners on Reddit are understandably unhappy with the unsolicited ad showing up in their vehicles. One user said it's "classless and tacky" for a car that costs over $100,000, and another said it was "disgusting." Others asked for an opt-out button, and predicted more ads would be shown in the future.

Some users compared it to the U2 album "Songs of Innocence" that Apple pushed out to all iTunes users back in 2014. Apple did not allow users to decline or delete the album, leading to widespread backlash. Apple ultimately did add a tool for deleting the album.

BMW sent out a press release highlighting the ad campaign in late July, claiming it was an "exclusive Spider-Man animation" that was a "special surprise" for BMW owners.

To celebrate the partnership with Spider-ManTM: Brand New Day, BMW has a special surprise for its drivers. [...] Starting the car brings up a special banner in the Control Display. Clicking on it then activates the Spider-ManTM animation, comprising a full-screen festive animation in the Control Display with aptly chosen backing music and an accompanying light show courtesy of the ambient lighting system.

The notification for the Spider-Man ad is going out to compatible vehicles automatically, but owners can avoid the ad by not tapping to play it after receiving the notification. It's also been added to the Festive app on the in-car system.

In response to complaints, BMW told The Autopian the Spider-Man animation is not an ad and is "part of a broader brand partnership with the film." BMW vehicles also appear in the Spider-Man movie.

BMW has pushed similar animated videos for holidays in the past, but car owners found the Spider-Man video to be too close to a commercial. As Daring Fireball points out, BMW said in late 2023 that it would not sell advertising on its in-car displays.

BMW was one of the first companies to adopt Apple's CarPlay system, and it has long been an Apple partner. The BMW notification is part of the default in-car operating system, and it does not appear as part of ‌CarPlay‌.
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OpenAI's upcoming AI device is a hockey-puck-sized, doughnut-shaped smart speaker with no display, reports Bloomberg. The product is meant to be easy to carry around with one hand, and it will have "moving parts that help give it personality," along with a price tag around $300 to $400.


Bloomberg describes it as an AI-centric device that will stand out from current smart speakers. There are speaker grilles and microphones for voice-based chats with ChatGPT, and the AI model used will have human-like responses and will learn more about the user over time.

Moving components will help show when the speaker is responding, and lights will show that it is listening. A camera system and sensors will feed the product information about the user's environment. It is battery-powered so it can be moved from room to room, and it will reportedly use a premium metal material. In its theft of trade secrets lawsuit against OpenAI, Apple claimed the company misled an Apple supplier into developing a metal finishing technique similar to what Apple uses.

Former Apple design chief Jony Ive is designing the device for OpenAI. OpenAI acquired Ive's io device startup last year, adding multiple former Apple design team members to its hardware teams.

Bloomberg says the portable speaker "is not something Apple has come close to launching," which supports OpenAI's claim that it has no interest in Apple's trade secrets. OpenAI said today that it is "building something entirely new and different from anything at Apple." Apple maintains OpenAI has developed its hardware using information sourced from Apple.

Apple is working on a home hub that's supposed to come out as soon as this year, but it has a display and square form factor. Apple also has the HomePod mini speaker, but it is corded and not easily moved. Apple is also developing a tabletop robot that may share more similarities with OpenAI's device. It's said to have a display and a motorized arm for movement, but the robot isn't going to launch until 2027 at the earliest.

OpenAI has not stopped development on its new hardware product, and hopes to introduce it later this year ahead of a 2027 launch.
This article, "OpenAI's ChatGPT Speaker Will Be Hockey Puck-Sized and Cost Over $300" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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