From now through December 31, save 20% on all 9to5Mac Daily Plus, 9to5Mac Happy Hour Plus, and 9to5Mac Pro annual subscriptions with promo code HOLIDAY! Visit 9to5mac.com/join to sign up.

Benjamin and Chance reflect on Apple’s 2024 products, focused on all the product announcements from the past twelve months. From the lows of AirPods Max to the highs of M4 iPad Pro, and the mixed reception to Apple Vision Pro. We break it all down in our last episode of the year.

And in Happy Hour Plus, we talk about what we are most excited for in 2025 as rumors swirl for the iPhone 17 lineup and Apple’s deeper foray into the smart home. Subscribe at 9to5mac.com/join.

As part of iOS 18, Apple unveiled the biggest-ever redesign to the Photos app. With a single-pane interface, the new Photos app highlights collections and curation while being fully customizable to your liking.

The rollout of the Photos app, however, proved to be polarizing. While I’ve been a fan of it since it first debuted, Apple has made several tweaks in subsequent iOS 18 updates to address some of the most common complaints. It has also added several notable new features.

As expected, Apple is starting to wind down sales of the Lightning-equipped iPhone SE and iPhone 14 lineups from the European Union. This comes as the EU’s common charger mandate is set to go into effect on December 28, requiring smartphones to feature USB-C for charging.

Are you still racing to finish your holiday shopping? Don’t worry, me too. Here are some last-minute ideas for the Apple and tech fans in your life – all of which should arrive in time for Christmas gift-giving next week.

With iOS 18.2, Apple supercharged AirTags with a new feature called “Share Item Location.” This feature lets you share the location of a lost AirTag or Find My network accessory with a trusted third party.

As part of the launch of Share Item Location, Apple is teaming up with airlines worldwide. Here are all the airlines that support this new feature

From now through December 31, save 20% on all 9to5Mac Daily Plus, 9to5Mac Happy Hour Plus, and 9to5Mac Pro annual subscriptions with promo code HOLIDAY! Visit 9to5mac.com/join to sign up.

Benjamin and Chance react to the recent controversy around AI notification summaries, and how Apple could improve the situation. Also, Benjamin is frustrated with the lack of Apple Music Radio improvements, and the pair discuss the latest rumors about the company’s foldable plans.

And in Happy Hour Plus, we debate what is Apple’s 9to5Mac product of the year for 2024. Subscribe at 9to5mac.com/join.

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In a blog post today, Apple engineers have shared new details on a collaboration with NVIDIA to implement faster text generation performance with large language models.

Apple published and open sourced its Recurrent Drafter (ReDrafter) technique earlier this year. It represents a new method for generating text with LLMs that is significantly faster and “achieves state of the art performance.” It combines two techniques: beam search (to explore multiple possibilities) and dynamic tree attention (to efficiently handle choices).

Apple is no longer planning to create a “hardware subscription service” to make it as easy as possible to get a new iPhone every year. Bloomberg reports that the goal was “to make owning an iPhone like subscribing to an app,” but the project was “recently wound down.”

Apple has officially started beta testing iOS 18.3. The update comes with minor changes for iPhone users. Here’s everything you need to know.

Apple is ready to help start 2025 on the right foot. A new Apple Watch Activity Challenge has been set for January, encouraging you to “Ring in the New Year” by closing all three rings for seven days in a row.

If you’re still finalizing your holiday shopping, it’s hard to beat some of the current deals on Beats products. From the all-new Beats Pill to the incredibly cost-effective Beats Solo Buds, the Beats product lineup is stronger than ever this year.

I’ve reviewed all the new Beats products released in the past few years, and here are my favorites. Plus, they are still available for delivery in time for Christmas.

As we approach the end of the year, Instagram is rolling out a new year-in-review feature. This year, you’ll be able to create a collage for your Instagram Story showing off your favorite moments of the year.

Less than a week after the release of iOS 18.2 to the public, Apple has once again kicked off the beta cycle. iOS 18.3 is now available to developer beta testers. Here’s everything you need to know.

Apple CEO Tim Cook is set to visit Mar-a-Lago on Friday night to dine with President-elect Donald Trump, according to a report from The New York Times. Cook joins a string of other tech leaders who have visited Trump’s Florida club over the last several weeks.

Lead image from 2019 Mac Pro factory tour in Austin, TX with Cook and Trump.

The BBC isn’t pleased with Apple Intelligence’s notification summary feature. The corporation says that the notification summary feature “generated a false headline” about Lugi Mangione, who was arrested this week as the suspected killer of the United HealthGroup CEO.

The notification summary in question suggested that Mangione had shot himself: “Luigi Mangione shoots himself; Syrian mother hopes Assad pays the price; South Korea police raid Yoon Suk Yeol’s office.”

As TikTok’s ban in the United States swiftly approaches, lawmakers on Friday reminded Apple that they are on the hook for enforcement.

From now through December 31, save 20% on all 9to5Mac Daily Plus, 9to5Mac Happy Hour Plus, and 9to5Mac Pro annual subscriptions with promo code HOLIDAY! Visit 9to5mac.com/join to sign up.

Benjamin and Chance discuss why Apple is so keen on ditching Qualcomm and using its own modems in the iPhone, why the natural progression for the Apple Watch Ultra is satellite connectivity and get excited over rumors that the upcoming OLED MacBook Pro will replace the notch with a hole-punch cutout screen design. Also, Apple is rumored to be partnering with Sony to bring VR controller support to Vision Pro.

And in Happy Hour Plus, iOS 18.2 has a lot of cool non-AI features to highlight as Apple’s latest operating system updates finally roll out to the public. Subscribe at 9to5mac.com/join.

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Apple today announced the winners of the 2024 App Store Awards, recognizing apps and games that “helped users ignite their creativity, achieve new milestones, and cherish everyday moments with family and friends.”

I had the chance to spend time with three of this year’s winners and ask them about how they created their Apple award-winning apps.

After unveiling the finalists last month, Apple today officially took the wraps off the 2024 App Store Awards winners.

This year, the company crowned Kino from Lux Optics as the iPhone App of the Year, Adobe Lightroom as the Mac App of the Year, and Moises as the iPad App of The Year.

Head below for the full rundown of all the winners…