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iPhone 17 Pro Design Leaks, Happy Birthday iPod, Apple's AI Delay Explained

Take a look back at this week's Apple news and headlines, including iPhone 17 Pro leaks, MacBook Pro launch dates, iPad Mini review, iOS 18.1 details, Apple's AI delay, hearing health on AirPods and happy birthday for the iPod.

Apple Loop is here to remind you of some of the many discussions surrounding Apple over the last seven days. You can also read my weekly Android news roundup here on Forbes.

Dynamic design change of the iPhone 17 Pro

Apple plans to shrink the physical size of the front-facing sensor Trya, which will in turn reduce the absolute need for the dynamic island. It'll still be part of the operating system, but with less to cover up, it can be… well… more dynamic. And it depends on a new lens technology:

“While a traditional iPhone camera has curved lenses that redirect light onto the image sensor, a Metalens is a thin and flat lens engraved with microscopic patterns that can focus light more precisely.” [Jeff Pu’s]

(MacRumors).

The Macs are coming

While Apple SVP Geg Joswiak doesn't say the sentence that's worth it (“MacBook Pro is launching on Monday”), he goes straight to the bar in his latest tweet without saying: “MacBook Pro is launching on Monday.” “. I guess everyone will come back here on Monday to see what it all means.

“Make your calendars! We have an exciting week of announcements ahead of us, starting Monday morning. Stay tuned…”

(Greg Joswiak on Twitter, via The Verge).

iPad Mini review

Last week's seemingly early release of the iPad Mini via press release means we'll get our first reviews this week (ahead of Wednesday's retail release). It's a strange mix of specs, as David Pierce explains in his review:

“It's a bunch of new and not-so-new parts thrown together, with no new specs or features that really set it apart – aside from a lot of big promises about how Apple Intelligence is going to change everything, and you'll definitely get there .” I need a device that runs Apple Intelligence. As far as I know, that's the whole thing.

(The Edge).

iOS 18.1 launch confirmed

Apple has confirmed that iOS 18.1 will be released on Monday, October 28th. This first significant update to the latest version of the iPhone operating system covers two important areas. The first is to (hopefully) fix various noticeable bugs introduced in iOS 18 that are affecting many iPhone 16 and 16 Pro users. The second is the much-hyped debut of Apple Intelligence…at least the first few tidbits for those who speak US English:

“The first features of Apple's personal intelligence system are almost here. There's more to come in the next few months, but the first few features include writing tools to help you improve your writing. You can proofread your text and the iPhone can rewrite it or.” Summarize what you said. These tools are available across iPhone, including Mail, Notes, Pages, and some third-party apps.

(Forbes).

Will AI Delayed be a footnote?

Apple is making a concerted effort to promote its top leadership to the mainstream media and spread the message of “the best, not the first” when it comes to its technology. It's a statement that Apple and its community have used heavily in the past – for example, the lack of wireless charging on iPhones while Android competition dominated the market. Both Tim Cook and Craig Federighi have offered interviews to the Wall Street Journal to present their defense. Here's Cook:

“At that point it wasn’t the first or the best. Despite the slick “Hello, Apple Intelligence” ad in the store, the iPhone's most tantalizing new feature wouldn't be available for another month, with more updates coming next year. But neither the customers nor Cook seemed to mind. “I don’t think it will even be a footnote in the long run.”

(Wall Street Journal).

Health and hearing for almost everyone

One of the surprising additions to the AirPods software, unveiled in September, was the ability to use the audio devices as hearing aids and offer other health-related features. These require iOS 18.1 on the host device, which should be available to many, but not all, users in the next week:

Not all features will be available at launch; a real case of “Check Local Listings for Details”:

“The new Hearing Health features are only compatible with the second generation AirPods Pro. However, there is another requirement between the lines. According to a footnote on Apple's website, the new hearing protection feature will only be available to users based in the US. However, the hearing test and hearing aid features will be available in more than 100 countries and regions, including the US, Germany and Japan.

(9to5Mac).

And finally…

As the Beatles would say, today marks 23 years since Apple Inc. (not Apple Corp., famously) released the iPod. William Gallagher looks back on the history of the iPod and how it defined Apple's future:

“You don’t have an iPod anymore. It's possible there's one in a drawer somewhere, but in another light switch, this treasure of our time has gone from everywhere to almost nowhere except for a few stalwarts who have removed the hard drives in place.” from flash media .

“When Apple announced the end of the very last generation of the iPod, it did so with a headline that was intended to celebrate the device but felt more like a rejection of the device. “The music lives on,” was the entire headline of the May 2022 announcement, which first admitted that the iPod was dead and then spent more time talking about Apple’s AirPods.”

(Apple Insider).

Apple Loop brings you seven days of highlights every weekend here on Forbes. Don't forget to follow me so you don't miss any future coverage. You can read last week's Apple Loop here, or this week's edition of Loop's sister column Android Circuit is also available on Forbes.

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