Customers receiving an iPhone 18 Pro, ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, an Apple Watch Series 12, or an Apple Watch Ultra 4 tomorrow will need to install a software update right away.


The ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max ship with iOS 27 variants with a 24A427 or 24A8428 version number. The launch version of ‌iOS 27‌ is version 24A437, so if you're getting an ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌, expect a software update during the setup process.

The Apple Watch Series 12 and the ‌Apple Watch Ultra 4‌ have watchOS 27 with a version number of 24R359, but the launch version of ‌watchOS 27‌ is 24R364.

We're also expecting the AirPods 5 to have a day one firmware update, though that will happen over the air. Apple recently released 9A350 AirPods firmware to add support for ‌iOS 27‌ features.

All of the new products are set to launch on Friday, September 18.
This article, "New iPhone 18 Pro Models Will Have Day One Update" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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The iPhone 18 Pro and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max are launching tomorrow, but we were able to get one early to share some initial impressions.


Both the 18 Pro and Pro Max are heavier than the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max models they replace, and it's most noticeable when you pick up the Pro Max. It was a heavy phone to begin with, and now there's more weight (249 grams vs. 233 grams).

If you hated last year's two-tone design with the contrast between the aluminum frame and the glass back, there's good news. Apple is now matching the glass to the frame for a more uniform look.

Our review unit is Apple's new glacier color, which is a light blue that's slightly different from the other light blue shades Apple has used in the past. Unlike some of those blues, the glacier color actually looks blue and not silver. Apple is also offering the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ models in burgundy, silver, and black. We have a burgundy model on the way and will share that in the future.

There's a fancy new 2nm A20 Pro chip inside the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and Pro Max, but depending on what you're upgrading from, you might not notice much in the way of performance. iPhones have used wildly fast chips for the last several years, and you're not stressing the processor when browsing the web and scrolling social media sites. What you might notice is the new vapor chamber cooling system. It takes up three times more surface area, so the iPhone stays cooler when you are doing something that takes a little more processing power like playing a game. Battery life has improved, but that's not something we've had time to test yet. Apple says you'll get up to 36 hours of video playback with the 18 Pro and 45 hours with the 18 Pro Max.

If you're in the U.S. and buying an ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌, it will have Apple's new C2 modem, but if you get the 18 Pro Max, it's going to have a Qualcomm modem. Both models use the C2 outside of the U.S. The C2 modem has mmWave 5G for the first time, plus it's more efficient than Qualcomm modems, so it will be interesting to see some speed tests comparing the two.

Apple slimmed down the Dynamic Island by putting the infrared camera under the display, and that's the most noticeable change on the front of the device. It takes up less space, and Apple also updated it so it can show three Live Activities at once or two in more detail.

There's a new variable aperture Main camera that also has a new sensor, plus Apple tweaked its computational imaging pipeline. With a variable aperture lens, there's more control over lighting and depth of field. If it's super bright outside, the iPhone can automatically adjust the aperture to let in less light. If it's dark, a wider aperture will let in more light. There are four aperture settings in total, and it works behind the scenes so you can just snap photos as usual. You'll probably notice it most in low lighting.

If you want to control the aperture yourself, you can do so with new Pro Controls that also give you the option to adjust shutter speed and white balance. There's a histogram too so you can check exposure levels.

We'll have a full video on the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ camera system coming next week.

Pricing on the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ starts at $1,199, while the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max is priced starting at $1,299. Both new iPhones launch on September 18.
This article, "iPhone 18 Pro Unboxing: New Colors, Better Photos, and Smaller Dynamic Island" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple surprised us with the first beta of iOS 27.2 today instead of releasing an iOS 27.1 beta. Apple likely went straight to iOS 27.2 to keep iPhone Duo code under wraps for now, since we already know the ‌iPhone Duo‌ will ship with iOS 27.1 when it comes out in October.


This beta includes Apple's revamped Health app, new languages for Siri AI, and a handful of other useful tweaks.

Revamped Health App

The iOS 27.2 beta includes the redesigned Health app Apple showed off at its September iPhone event. The new app is organized into three main tabs: Insights, Longevity, and Browse.


Insights includes your most recent and relevant health info, such as vitals, sleep score, heart rate, and Activity Rings. Longevity shows your health data over time, offering up a Health Age calculated from activity level, VO2 max, sleep time, and other metrics.


The Health Age feature uses in-app assessments that take advantage of the iPhone's camera. You can measure flexibility, strength, balance, and VO2 max. The revamped Health app is only available in U.S. English.

The Health app also has a new icon.

Call Context

Apple added anniversary alerts to the Apple Intelligence Call Context feature. If you make a phone call to someone and you have an anniversary for them set in the Contacts app, you'll see a reminder in the Phone app.

CarPlay

There are themes for CarPlay Ultra that include options for wallpaper, gauge style, and color. Code suggests ambient lighting in supported vehicles will also match the color of the selected theme.

Siri AI Languages

‌Siri‌ AI is available in French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, and Spanish in the iOS 27.2 beta.

Apple TV App

Apple extended Apple TV app profiles to the iPhone and iPad in iOS 27.2. ‌Apple TV‌ app users can create profiles in the account settings section, and then swap between those profiles. Profiles only require a name, profile rating, and information about whether the user is a child.


Creating an account for a child limits content to a PG rating by default, but there is a customize option for more granular control. Users can select age ratings for TV shows and movies that are appropriate for the child based on their age. Profiles are useful for parents that want to hand over an iPhone or ‌iPad‌ to a child to watch TV content while also restricting content that's not age-appropriate.

There's also a new option to turn on sign language interpretation when available. It can be toggled on in the TV app settings.

ASL FaceTime API

Back in May, Apple said it would add a new API to FaceTime allowing developers who make sign language interpretation apps to add a human interpreter to an ongoing video call.

That feature appears to be live in iOS 27.2.

Clock

Apple tweaked how alarms appear in the Clock app. The a.m. and p.m. readouts are now smaller than the time.

Music

In the Music app, some of the red accents have been removed. The Play and Shuffle buttons in Library are black instead of red, as are all of the icons next to the Library sections.

Siri

App Access in the ‌Siri‌ section of the Settings app is now named "Excluded Apps." Tapping on "Add Apps" brings up a list so multiple apps can be excluded at once. Apps previously had to be excluded one by one.


Adding an app to the Exclude list prevents it from showing up in ‌Siri‌, Search, and suggestions.

Podcasts

Apple renamed Up Next to New Episodes, with a Continue Playing option directly below it.

App Tracking Transparency

According to Apple's release notes for the update, App Tracking Transparency supports an alternative expanded prompt for EU users along with re-prompting on an annual basis. The alternative prompt is required for users in France, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Romania.
This article, "Everything New in iOS 27.2 Beta 1" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple executive chairman Tim Cook is expected to attend a White House state dinner for Chinese President Xi Jinping, reports Bloomberg.


Cook stepped down as Apple CEO and transitioned to executive chairman on September 1, with John Ternus taking over. Part of Cook's new role includes engaging with policymakers around the world.

U.S. President Donald Trump invited Cook, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, among others. The dinner will be held next week during Xi's visit to Washington.

Cook has attended multiple state dinners with Xi. Earlier this year, Xi held a state dinner for Trump in Beijing where Cook was present, and in 2015, Cook was seated next to Xi at a state dinner then-President Barack Obama hosted.
This article, "Tim Cook to Attend White House State Dinner for Xi Jinping" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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With the iOS 27.2 beta, Apple is testing the new Health app that it previewed at its September iPhone event. The app has been entirely overhauled, with new Insights and Longevity tabs that give you more information on your health and fitness metrics.


The Insights tab shows your most recent health data, such as Activity Rings, heart rate, sleep score, and vitals. It'll eventually show personalized guidance, but that feature hasn't been added yet.

Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 owners will see a readiness score calculated from recent activity, vitals, and sleep score to help them decide whether to take a recovery day or push harder.

The Longevity tab looks at your health data over time to calculate your Health Age based on activity level, VO2 max, sleep time, and other metrics. It also uses fitness assessments you can do right on your iPhone to check flexibility, balance, and VO2 max.

Apple plans to offer a $119 laboratory panel from Quest Diagnostics, which will also contribute to the Health Age score. For now, you can upload your recent lab results.

Getting the most out of the Health app requires an Apple Watch or another fitness device that integrates with it.

While the Health app is being tested in the iOS 27.2 beta, it won't be part of the iOS 27.2 release. It will instead launch later this year.
This article, "Hands-On With the Redesigned Health App in the iOS 27.2 Beta" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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