For latest news of the Apple-sphere, look back here. Recent Articles, information, my Apple thoughts and more…..

(Some articles and information may link to other websites not associated with MacWizardry)

September returns as a busy month - with the “annual release” of the rumoured iPhone 14 and updates due for iOS and watchOS. So keep an eye out this month for some interesting news. And then later we’ll also see (apparently) iPadOS 16 and next month possibly macOS 13 “Ventura”. Read on for more information on each, and things to be aware of with upgrades as per normal. As the year’s flown by again,…..it won’t be long until we start looking towards our Christmas list of new Apple items!

Apple release iOS 16 and watchOS 9

Today (Tuesday 13th) saw Apple release iOS16 for the iPhone and watchOS 9 for the Apple Watch.

With a list of new features and updates there’s certainly a lot in-store with this upgrade. Following are a few good links with more information on each upgrade, whats included, which models it will run on (as not all features work on all model phones) and some links to some guides.

As with any upgrade, always ensure you do a backup of your device before you install it. 

And sometimes it’s worth waiting a week or so, just so any little bugs are ironed out - as generally the next update will follow shortly after (eg iOS 16.0.1) once the main update is out to the public. So just holding off a week or two can ensure you’re not finding weird things happening!

Apple’s page for iOS 16 information available here.

MacRumors have a good run down here - and some guides available here.

Apple’s page for watchOS 9 information available here.

MacRumors have some good information also available here.

Not sure how to backup your device? You can read about how to do it here.

Apple “Far Out” event - September 8th (WA time)

Apple were back to their regular September release for the iPhone. We saw the upgraded Apple Watch Series 8, Apple Watch SE, and a new Apple Watch Ultra. The AirPods Pro upgrade to 2nd Generation. And the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.

Some more details about here upgrade below

• Apple Watch Series 8 in the usual 41mm and 45mm, new temperature sensor, Crash Detection feature. All day 18 hour battery life, Low power mode for up to 36 hours. Available in Midnight, Starlight, Silver and product[RED]. New bands. Starting from AUD$629. More info here.

Available to order today and shipping from September 16th.

• Apple Watch SE (2nd Generation)- larger display, same processor as Series 8. New case and colours in Silver, Midnight and Starlight. Starting from AUD$399. More info here.

Available to order today and shipping from September 16th.

• NEW Apple Watch Ultra- larger 49mm display, rugged case made of titanium. new action button. Bigger battery for up to 36 hours battery life. L1+L5 GPS for better positioning.Designed for extra sports/extreme conditions. AUD$1299. More info here.

Available to order today and shipping from September 23rd.

• AirPods Pro (2nd Generation). H2 chip for increased audio quality, with personalised Spatial Audio. Active Noise Cancellation improvements.Better adaptive transparency mode. New Touch controls. Longer battery life up to 6 hours listening time and increased up to 30 hours additional time with the charging case. Find My Case with new speaker on the case. Additional features. AUD$399. More info here.

Can order September 9th and shipping from September 23rd.

iPhone 14 in the following models

• iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus. 6.1" and 6.7" displays. Both models have Super Retina XDR OLEDDisplay. Available in Midnight, Starlight, Blue, Purple and Product[RED]. Better battery life. Ceramic Shield display. A15 Bionic chip. Increased camera, improved action mode with stabilised video.Improved eSIM. New Crash protection. New emergency SOS Via Satellite feature. (though only starting in the US and Canada). Starting from AUD$1399 for the iPhone 14 and from AUD$1579 for the iPhone 14 Plus. 

More info here.

Preorder September 9th and shipping from September 16th for the iPhone 14 and October 7th for the iPhone 14 Plus.

• iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max. 6.1" and 6.7" displays. Available in Space Black, Silver, Gold and Deep Purple. Better battery life. Surgical grade stainless steel and Ceramic Shield display. A16 Bionic chip. Increased 48MP camera with Apple ProRAW, improved action mode with stabilised video.Always on display and new "notch" called Dynamic Island - changes to show different features/notifications/items you’re using.New Crash protection. New emergency SOS Via Satellite feature. (though only starting in the US and Canada). Starting from AUD$1749 for the iPhone 14 Pro and from AUD$1899 for the iPhone 14 Pro Max. 

More info here.

Preorder September 9th and shipping from September 16th.

And an interesting fact - last year over 3 trillion photos were taken with iPhones!

If you're looking to upgrade, please feel free to contact me as I may be able to help you and can also trade in a previous model as well.

If you want to watch the full streamed event, Apple also have this available as well.

To view this you can access it here.

Safari Security Flaw - Update your devices now

Apple this week (20th August) released some security updates to patch a security flaw in Safari that can affect the browser on the iPhone, iPad and some later versions of macOS. So if you’re running these devices it’s a good idea to install the update on all of them.

The versions that were released were -

iOS 15.6.1

iPadOS 15.6.1

macOS Monterey 12.5.1

Safari 15.6.1 for macOS Big Sur and macOS Catalina

To update your iPhone or iPad go to Settings - General - Software Update.

To update on your Mac go to Apple menu - System Preferences - Software Update.

More info about this can be found here.

New Privacy features coming in iOS16

With iOS16 due to release next month in September (though iPadOS16 is apparently delayed until October), there are some new Privacy features coming in this next revision upgrade.

To prepare for some of these features such as Safety Check, Emergency Reset, Locked Albums, Manage Sharing, the new “Passkeys” feature and more - you can read up about them early - so when it’s released you’re already prepared for it.

More information about the changes and features can be found here.

Have you considered if your computer stops working or could be down for quite a while?

If your computer crashes or is down for a long period time, or even if it’s going to be away for service work for a while, have you considered the down time this could cause to yourself, your work and/or business?

There is a way that an external drive can be set up beforehand where in these sort of circumstances you can still be up and running relatively easy - even if your computer has to go away for days to be repaired.

It’s a relatively cheap and easy process. 

If you would like to find out more about how this can be set up for yourself or your business please feel free to drop me an email or call to discuss.

Be aware of “Fake webpages” advising you need to update.

So there is a bit of a rise on the number of webpages or fake links that will try to trick you into calling a number or clicking a link to “update” some piece of software.

I’ve written a page with a bit more info on it here