Apple TV’s first German-language original series, the dark comedy “Where’s Wanda?,” has demonstrated that authentically local stories can succeed globally, its cast and creative team tell Reuters’ Miranda Murray as the second season continues rolling out.

The series, produced by UFA Fiction, follows the Klatt family in the fictional suburban town of Sundersheim. In season one, which premiered in October 2024, parents Carlotta (Heike Makatsch) and Dedo (Axel Stein) grow desperate after their 17-year-old daughter Wanda (Lea Drinda) vanishes. Frustrated by police progress, they enlist their tech-savvy son Ole (Leo Simon) to obtain surveillance gear and, posing as electrical workers, bug their neighborhood and beyond. They uncover that their neighbors are not what they appear to be.

The show earned strong international reviews, including a rare perfect critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes for its first season, and was renewed.

Season two, which began globally on Apple TV on October 21 with weekly episodes through December 9, raises the stakes: just as the family tries to reclaim normal life, Wanda is found standing over a dead body and becomes the prime suspect. The Klatts must prove her innocence while probing deeper into the town’s criminal underbelly. New cast members include Sam Riley and Alexandra Maria Lara; returning actors include Nikeata Thompson, Palina Rojinski, Devid Striesow, and others.

Makatsch, an International Emmy nominee best known internationally for Love Actually, Stein, a German Comedy Award winner, and the broader ensemble have pointed to the series’ blend of genuine family desperation, absurd humor, and distinctly German small-town texture as key to its cross-border appeal. Executive producer Nataly Kudiabor has echoed this view, noting that authenticity—not dilution of local specifics—helps stories travel: universal questions such as “How far would you go to save your child?” resonate when rooted in a specific place and tone.

Created and written by Oliver Lansley (based on a story by Zoltan Spirandelli) and directed by Tobi Baumann and Christian Ditter, the series was developed as an international collaboration while remaining firmly German-language. Its success has been cited as evidence that high-quality German television can compete on global streaming platforms without abandoning its cultural specificity.

Apple TV continues to release new episodes of season two weekly.
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MacDailyNews Note: Apple TV is available on the Apple TV app in over 100 countries and regions, on over 1 billion screens, including iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K, Apple Vision Pro, Mac, popular smart TVs from Samsung, LG, Sony, VIZIO, TCL and others, Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices, Chromecast with Google TV, PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles, and at tv.apple.com, for $14.99 per month with a seven-day free trial for new subscribers. For a limited time, customers who purchase and activate a new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K or Mac can enjoy three months of Apple TV for free.

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In Nasdaq trading today, shares of Apple Inc. (AAPL) rose $4.49 to hit a new all-time closing high of $343.99. Apple’s all-time intraday high was set on October 13, 2026 at $348.15.

Apple’s 52-week low stands at $243.42 .

Today’s trading volume for AAPL shares was 35,131,228 versus Apple’s average trading volume of 44,069,551 shares.

Apple’s PE Ratio currently stands at 39.45.

Apple currently has a market value of $5.020 trillion, making it the world’s second-most valuable company.

The top five U.S. publicly-traded companies, based on market value:

1. NVIDIA (NVDA) – $5.360T
2. Apple (AAPL) – $5.020T
3. Alphabet (GOOGL) – $4.094T
4. Microsoft (MSFT) – $3.957T
5. Amazon (AMZN) – $2.830T

Selected companies’ current market values:

• Taiwan Semi (TSM): $2.210 T
• SpaceX (SPCX): $2.100 T
• Meta Platforms (META): $1.769 T
• Tesla (TSLA): $1.526 T
• Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A): $1.140 T
• Advanced Micro Devices (AMD): $904.595 B
• Walmart (WMT): $896.677 B
• Intel (INTC): $491.396 B
• Cisco (CSCO): $419.886 B
• Dell (DELL): $308.929 B
• IBM (IBM): $289.824 B
• Netflix (NFLX): $271.030 B
• Disney (DIS): $193.095 B
• SoftBank (SFTBF): $178.038 B
• Sony (SONY): $146.866 B
• Spotify (SPOT): $106.842 B
• Adobe (ADBE): $99.269 B
• Nokia (NOK): $52.151 B
• Hewlett-Packard (HPQ): $27.888 B
• SiriusXM (SIRI): $9.055 B
• BlackBerry (BB): $5.524 B
• Sonos (SONO): $2.055 B
• Liquidmetal (LQMT): $0.074 B

• RealNetworks (RNWK) was delisted from U.S. exchanges on December 21, 2022 and is no longer publicly traded.

Apple all-time high (AAPL) via NASDAQ here.

MacDailyNews Take: To the moon, Alice. To the moon!

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On Saturday, October 17, 2026, Apple retail stores in Bordeaux and Lille were broken into and looted as large nationwide demonstrations against the high cost of living and declining public services turned violent in multiple French cities.⁠

The protests drew an estimated 550,000 participants according to the Interior Ministry (with organizers and the CGT union claiming closer to 800,000). Many marches remained peaceful, but fringe groups engaged in clashes with police, arson, vandalism of public buildings, and widespread retail looting.⁠

The movement had grown from September student protests over understaffed, overcrowded, and dilapidated high schools, broadening into broader grievances about inequality, fuel prices, public services, and government policy.

Bordeaux: Sainte-Catherine Store Targeted on Main Shopping Street

In Bordeaux, the Apple Store Sainte-Catherine (at 2-4 Rue Sainte-Catherine, the city’s primary shopping thoroughfare) was among 50 to 100 businesses attacked in the city center. Masked groups forced entry and emptied merchandise as disorder spread.⁠

Other targets included Louis Vuitton, Decathlon (which was looted and later set on fire, with flames reaching the building façade), Intersport, Nocibé, Snipes, Galeries Lafayette, and various Carrefour locations. Luxury goods and everyday retail alike were hit. The official residence of Gironde Prefect Sophie Brocas was also sacked, prompting deployment of the RAID tactical unit.⁠

Local authorities reported roughly 110 arrests (about 40% minors) and 63 police officers injured in the city. The same Bordeaux Apple Store had been looted in December 2018 during the Yellow Vest protests. Videos circulated on social media showing people entering and leaving the store with products; while widely shared, many were not independently authenticated by authorities at the time.⁠

Lille: Rue Faidherbe Store Forced and Emptied

In Lille, the Apple Store on rue Faidherbe was forced open in the afternoon — doors and windows broken, reportedly with hammers — and looted. AFP journalists on the scene reported seeing a man exit the store carrying a stolen computer while shouting with joy. Lille Mayor Arnaud Deslandes confirmed the Apple Store and other nearby businesses had been ransacked.⁠

The city’s town hall was also briefly invaded, with broken windows, overturned furniture, and scattered documents. Violent clashes between several hundred protesters and riot police involved fireworks, paving stones, and bottles against tear gas, charges, and stun grenades. Scientific police were later observed outside the Apple Store. Other local businesses, including a Carrefour, suffered damage.⁠

Broader Context and Aftermath

The looting of the two Apple Stores formed part of wider attacks on retail and public property. Luxury stores (including Hermès in Marseille and Louis Vuitton locations) were hit in multiple cities, alongside department stores, sports retailers, and smaller shops. Public buildings were targeted as well — Limoges city hall was set ablaze, Lyon’s tourist office was burned, and town halls in Marseille and Lille were breached. Nationwide, officials reported roughly 1,200 to more than 1,800 arrests, with significant numbers of injured police officers. President Emmanuel Macron condemned the violence, stating there was “no room for violence in our Republic” and pledging that those responsible would be prosecuted and punished.⁠

Exact figures on the value of goods stolen from the Apple Stores or the extent of damage remain unavailable; Apple issued no immediate public statement. The Bordeaux store reopened with reduced hours shortly afterward, while the Lille location stayed closed for several days (reopening announced for October 21). Social media videos showed individuals carrying Apple products such as computers and displays through the streets, though authorities have not released a full inventory of what was taken.⁠

MacDailyNews Take: The events underscore the recurring pattern in recent French unrest, where large, often legitimate expressions of economic and social discontent have been accompanied by opportunistic or ideologically driven looting and property destruction that hit businesses and public infrastructure alike.

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Apple said on Wednesday it will have limited numbers of its folding iPhone Duo phone available for walk-in customers when the device launches Friday, after initial online orders sold out in minutes and pushed delivery times for some customers to January, according to Reuters‘ Stephen Nellis.

The iPhone Duo is a more complex product than standard slab iPhones, with a tight-fitting hinge that analysts believe may take time for Apple to learn to manufacture in high volumes.

“On Friday morning, our teams look forward to welcoming customers at Apple Stores to experience iPhone Duo and the incredible iPhone line-up for themselves,” Apple said in a statement. “Apple Stores will have limited iPhone Duo available for walk-in customers, and we’re working hard to get this revolutionary new product into customers’ hands as quickly as possible.”

The availability of walk-in units will vary by country, Apple said.

Online order pickup and limited walk-in purchases will be available in the United States, Australia, Canada, Mexico, and much of the UK and Europe.

But other regions will only have iPhone Duo units available for customers who already bought them online. Those include mainland China, France, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and the UAE, Apple said.

On the China-governed island of Macau, the iPhone Duo will be available for walk-in customers only, with limited inventory, Apple said.
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MacDailyNews Take: Want an iPhone Duo on launch day? You know the drill: line up, queue up, and do it very early!

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Apple’s first foldable iPhone, the iPhone Duo, will add Apple Pencil support with the iOS 27.2 update expected next week, according to confirmation on X from Creative Strategies analyst Max Weinbach.

When Apple introduced the Duo in September, it stated that Apple Pencil support would arrive “later this year.” Given the device’s October 23 launch and Apple’s usual pattern of larger software updates later in the year, many observers anticipated the feature might not land until December. Weinbach reported that support is already active in the iOS 27.2 Release Candidate, which became available earlier this week. He confirmed the functionality works on his own iPhone Duo after installing the RC build.

iOS 27.2 is expected to reach the public around Monday, October 26. The Duo itself ships this Friday, October 23, running iOS 27.1. Early buyers who receive units this week and update promptly should gain Pencil access within a few days; those already running the Release Candidate have the feature available now.

Support is limited to the Apple Pencil (USB-C). The Apple Pencil Pro and prior models are not compatible. The USB-C Pencil pairs and charges through a port concealed under a sliding cap rather than via magnetic attachment, a practical match for the Duo’s design, which lacks a flat magnetic charging surface. Users can draw, annotate, and scroll in supported apps on both the 7.6-inch inner folding display and the 5.4-inch outer cover screen.

The USB-C Pencil includes tilt sensitivity useful for basic sketching and note-taking. It does not offer pressure sensitivity, haptic feedback, barrel roll, squeeze gestures, or Find My tracking. This is the first iPhone with native Apple Pencil compatibility, giving the Duo’s larger inner canvas additional utility for markup, notes, and precise input once the update arrives.

Apple has not issued a formal confirmation beyond its original “later this year” statement, but the presence of working support in the Release Candidate indicates the capability is ready for the public release.
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MacDailyNews Take: Soon-to-be iPhone Duo users, get your Apple Pencils poised!

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Apple has expanded its Self Service Repair program to cover the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, and its newest desktop Macs, giving eligible customers the option to buy genuine replacement parts, tools, and access official repair manuals for do-it-yourself fixes.

The update, which took effect around October 20, 2026, adds the recently released flagship iPhones along with Mac Studio models equipped with M5 Max or M5 Ultra chips and Mac mini models with M6 or M5 Pro chips. Parts and tools are available through Apple’s Self Service Repair Store in the United States, Canada, and Europe.

For the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, customers can now order components including the back glass, battery, rear camera, display, front camera, enclosure, logic board, speakers (top and bottom), main microphone, SIM tray, and Taptic Engine. Associated tools and supplies—such as adhesive cutters, suction cups, nylon probes, torque drivers, and screws—are listed alongside each repair and can also be purchased separately. A seven-day rental of a specialized toolkit is offered for $49.

Pricing for some key parts matches prior generations despite hardware updates. The rear camera module, which features a new variable-aperture system, is listed at $249; returning the original unit yields a $59.76 credit, bringing the net cost to $189.24. A replacement display is priced at $329, and back glass at $159, with smaller credits available for returned cores in some cases. Additional small parts such as screws or cowlings may add modest extra cost.

On the Mac side, the M5 Max/Ultra Mac Studio receives a broader selection that includes Thunderbolt and USB-C ports, fans, speakers, SSD modules, logic boards, and power supplies. The Mac mini lineup has a more limited catalog covering items such as fans, speakers, logic boards, batteries, and power supplies. Official step-by-step repair manuals for all the newly supported devices are available online at no charge.

Apple launched the Self Service Repair program in 2022 in response to growing right-to-repair interest. It is aimed at customers and independent technicians with the technical skill and experience to perform certain repairs themselves rather than visiting an Apple Store or authorized provider. The company notes that the store is operated by a third-party provider authorized to sell genuine Apple parts and tools.

While the expansion gives more owners of the latest hardware a path to official components, practical savings can be limited once tool rental, shipping, incidental parts, and the time required for careful disassembly and reassembly are factored in. Many users are still likely to rely on professional service for complex repairs. The move nonetheless continues Apple’s gradual, device-by-device broadening of self-repair options for its current lineup.
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MacDailyNews Note: Self Service Repair is intended for individuals with the knowledge and experience to repair electronic devices. If you are experienced with the complexities of repairing electronic devices, Self Service Repair provides you with access to genuine Apple parts, tools, and repair manuals to perform your own out-of-warranty repair. More info here.

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Marques Brownlee (MKBHD) dropped his full review of Apple’s first foldable, the iPhone Duo, titled “iPhone Duo Review: First Generation Fun!” on October 21, 2026. In the roughly 29-minute video, he frames the device exactly as the title suggests: an engaging, polished first-generation product that delivers genuine delight in hardware and form factor while carrying the usual early-adopter compromises in software, weight, and cameras.

The iPhone Duo is a book-style foldable with a 5.4-inch outer display and a 7.6-inch inner 120 Hz OLED screen featuring Apple’s nano-texture finish. That matte coating helps hide the crease and reduce reflections, making the large inner panel pleasant for reading, vertical holding, or media. MKBHD highlights the hinge’s variable resistance (sturdy at partial opens), smooth opening/closing animations that intuitively teach new users the form factor, IP68 rating, titanium rails, and overall fit-and-finish that feels refined. Battery life is strong: a combined ~4,900 mAh setup delivers all-day use (often ending with 30%+ remaining on mixed closed/open sessions) and efficiency on par with the iPhone 17 Pro, powered by the 2nm A20 Pro chip. Multitasking stands out too—side-by-side apps, paired apps that launch together, a halfway-open state useful for split keyboard or propped media, automatic standby/tent mode, and seamless continuity when opening or closing mid-task.

He calls the hardware “really fun” and notes that the polish around the edges goes a long way. Features like using the rear cameras with the outer screen in “spouse mode” or “kid mode,” plus the matte inner display feeling ideal for iPad Mini-style vertical use, reinforce the “pocketable iPad Mini” pitch. Cameras are solid for a foldable (dual 48 MP rear setup comparable to other foldables for stills and 4K 30 fps video) but lack a dedicated zoom, ProRes/log, and suffer noisier low-light performance closer to the iPhone 17e than Pro models. The under-display inner selfie is acknowledged as a deliberate trade-off for an uninterrupted screen and is not strong.

The downsides are classic first-gen. The phone is noticeably thicker and heavier than competitors. Button and camera-control placement create a right-handed bias that feels awkward for lefties. There is no Face ID — space constraints mean a power-button fingerprint reader with an intentional slight delay for checking notifications, which MKBHD calls one of the bigger misses relative to other iPhones. Apps are the largest practical frustration at launch: many are unoptimized (misplaced buttons, black bars, elements that look small or stretched on the big screen). Examples include Spotify, Google Maps, and Discord; some smaller apps may never fully adapt. Minor bugs around freezes and half-open continuity appear as well. Cases leave the hinge/rail areas less protected (he recommends a dbrand grip case).

MKBHD’s overall verdict is measured and positive for the right buyer: the iPhone Duo is a fun, polished first-generation foldable best suited to people who want a pocketable larger-screen experience for multitasking, entertainment, and productivity rather than pro filmmaking or pure casual use. At $1,999 (256 GB starting price), it is an expensive early-adopter device — “$2,000 to get an iPad Mini that can fit in your pocket… They made it. They did it.” He expects future iterations to improve based on feedback and notes that more apps should optimize over the coming months. If the price is not a barrier and the form factor excites you, he recommends it after adjusting to the lack of Face ID and the current app situation.

The review aligns with the broader early consensus from other outlets (strong hardware and design execution, battery and multitasking strengths, app optimization as the clear short-term weakness, and a heavy but durable build). MKBHD’s framing of “first generation fun” captures the appeal without overselling it: the device is already more refined in feel and polish than many early Android foldables, yet it still requires patience from users who expect every app and interaction to feel finished on day one.

MacDailyNews Take: For anyone deciding whether the Duo is “for me,” the video’s timestamps are: hardware around 3:21, apps at 14:18, strengths at 20:02, conclusion at 25:11.

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In her week-long hands-on with Apple’s first foldable iPhone, Joanna Stern puts the $2,000 iPhone Duo through extreme testing—including building a custom robot to fold it more than 32,000 times. The result is a frank look at a beautiful, surprisingly durable piece of hardware that adds genuine flexibility (and fun) to the iPhone, while also revealing the bugs, first-generation compromises, and software rough edges that still need work.

Joanna Stern for New Things:
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Apple’s first folding phone is a beautiful, surprisingly durable piece of hardware. It brings a degree of flexibility to the iPhone that we’ve never seen before. Its matte folding screen is impressive, especially outdoors. It makes taking photos genuinely fun and turns a phone into a tablet, an alarm clock, a tiny laptop and other configurations depending on how you position it.

It’s also buggy, occasionally maddening and full of first-generation compromises…

For the past seven days and nights, I’ve been testing the crap out of the Duo. Yes, nights. With the help of a hardware designer and prototyper, we built a folding phone robot that worked all night to test the hinge.

The Duo is one of the most exciting — and frustrating — iPhones I’ve tested in years. It’s a glimpse of where the iPhone might go next for everyone…

For four nights, I put the Duo to bed in Hingey, a little folding machine that brilliant hardware designer and prototyping wizard Aron Cohen built using a servo motor and 3D-printed parts. At 17 folds per minute, it racked up 8,160 folds while I slept for eight hours. After four nights? 32,640 folds.

There was no noticeable deterioration. At Cohen’s workshop we even measured the force required to open the hinge before and after using a calibrated push-pull gauge. Surprisingly, the hinge was actually a little stiffer after all that folding. In everyday use, it felt pretty much the same as on Day 1. Insanely impressive.

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MacDailyNews Take: There’s tons more in Stern’s full iPhone Duo review – highly recommended – here.

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[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Fred Mertz” for the heads up.]

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Perplexity has updated its Computer feature so that it can run entirely on a Mac, keeping AI models, task planning, reasoning, and file processing on the device. The fully local mode is available now to Pro, Max, and Enterprise subscribers through the Perplexity app for Mac on supported Apple silicon machines.

In the local setup, both the model and the agent that directs the work stay on the Mac. Tasks involving local files and native apps — such as Notes, Messages, Mail, Keynote, and Numbers — can complete without personal data leaving the machine. Code and tool execution take place in isolated sandbox environments. Perplexity recommends 36 GB of unified memory or more for the best experience and points to the newest Mac mini configurations as strong options for continuous use.

Users choose between two local models: Qwen 3.6 or PPLX Pro, a version of Qwen that Perplexity has further trained. After downloading the latest Mac app, subscribers follow in-app steps to install one of the models and then select the fully local option when starting a task. Local runs do not consume Computer credits.

For machines with less memory, or for work that needs up-to-date information, browser access, or cloud-connected tools, Perplexity continues to offer Hybrid Compute. This mode pairs frontier models in the cloud for research and reasoning with a local model that handles private files. A privacy layer can flag or mask personal information and require approval before anything reaches the cloud. Hybrid Compute functions on Macs with as little as 24 GB of memory. Users can still authorize limited cloud access or call on more than 15 frontier models for harder problems while deciding when to spend credits.

MacDailyNews Take: The change gives Mac owners greater control over sensitive data as more capable AI workflows become practical to run on-device. Anyone with a qualifying subscription and a supported Apple Silicon Mac can download the Perplexity Mac app, set up a local model, and begin using the fully local mode immediately.

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Apple has confirmed that its first foldable smartphone, the iPhone Duo, will not be available for walk-in purchases at its retail stores in Japan and South Korea when it launches on Friday, October 23rd.

Notices posted on Apple’s localized websites for the two countries state that, for a limited time, the iPhone Duo (along with the iPhone 18 Pro Max) will be limited to customers who already have a pickup reservation. In Japan, the banner notes that customers cannot buy the newest iPhone Duo or iPhone 18 Pro Max at a nearby Apple Store without a reservation. South Korea’s notice directs people to buy online for free delivery or store pickup and states that both models cannot currently be purchased in person at Apple Stores.

The restrictions appear driven by a combination of tight supply and Apple’s longstanding efforts to limit scalping in key Asian markets. Pre-orders for the iPhone Duo opened on October 16th, and demand was described by Apple as “nothing short of extraordinary.” Shipping estimates for many new online orders quickly slipped into late January 2027 within the first half-hour of availability. Apple has said it is working hard to fulfill orders as quickly as possible but has not released specific sales figures.

The iPhone Duo is Apple’s first foldable iPhone. When closed, it is roughly passport-sized with a 5.4-inch outer Super Retina XDR display; when open, it reveals a 7.6-inch inner display that Apple says is 50% larger than the iPhone 18 Pro Max. The device is 5.2 mm thick when unfolded (Apple’s thinnest iPhone yet), uses a titanium frame, is IP68-rated, and runs on the A20 Pro chip. It is eSIM-only worldwide and starts at $1,999 for 256 GB in the U.S., with higher storage options available. Colors are Star White and Night Sky.

It remains unclear whether the no-walk-in policy will extend beyond Japan and South Korea. Some Apple Store staff in other markets have reportedly been advised to discourage customers without pre-orders from expecting launch-day stock, and Apple’s online store is directing people interested in in-store pickup to check back on Saturday, October 24th. Devices are expected to be on display at Apple Stores worldwide starting on launch day, but actual inventory available for spontaneous purchases appears limited.

MacDailyNews Note: Customers who already pre-ordered should monitor their delivery or pickup status. Those who have not yet ordered face significant wait times through Apple’s online store and are unlikely to find units available simply by lining up at a retail location on October 23rd in the affected countries. Apple has not publicly commented further on the duration of the restrictions or whether similar measures will apply elsewhere.

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As Apple enters a transformative new era, new CEO John Ternus sat down for an exclusive interview with TIME at Apple Park in Cupertino, California. Ternus, a 25-year Apple veteran and mechanical engineer by trade, stepped into the role in September to oversee some of the most dramatic shifts in the company’s recent history — including its long-awaited entry into foldable devices and a distinct approach to artificial intelligence.

The iPhone Duo: Apple’s First Foldable

At the center of Apple’s hardware lineup is the newly introduced iPhone Duo, Apple’s first-ever foldable phone and the most significant design evolution for the iPhone since its debut in 2007.

• Design & Form Factor: When closed, the Duo is roughly the size of a passport; when opened, it expands into a compact tablet. Built using a durable custom polymer and an advanced display engine, it enables a seamless transition between the outer and inner screens.

• Thoughtful Touches: Ternus highlighted that Apple’s design ethos balances deep functionality with moments of whimsy. A notable feature is “Kids Queue,” which leverages the dual-screen setup by displaying interactive characters like Snoopy on the outer screen to capture a child’s attention while taking a photo.

A Product-First Approach to AI

While competitors have raced aggressively toward frontier superintelligence, Apple is carving out a more intentional, user-focused path. Rather than pushing technology for its own sake, Ternus emphasized that Apple’s goal is to integrate AI seamlessly into everyday experiences.

• Privacy at the Core: Powered by Apple Intelligence and integrating Google’s Gemini technology, the new Siri AI taps into personal context to boost creativity and productivity.

• Uncompromised Security: Ternus reassured users that personal data remains entirely private: “Apple can’t even see it, we don’t want to see it, and we can’t see it.”

Supporting Parents and Looking Ahead

Addressing modern parenting challenges, Ternus discussed Apple’s collaboration with the American Academy of Pediatrics to roll out intuitive new screen-time and child safety tools designed to help parents easily manage what children see, access, and experience online.

As Ternus steers the company forward, he remains dedicated to the core philosophy that put Apple on the map: a relentless collaboration between engineering and design, putting the user first in every decision made.
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MacDailyNews Take: Ah, a product guy, per se!

Here’s the video:

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Apple is preparing to roll out HomePod Software 27.2, which extends the new Sound Glow visual feature beyond the recently announced HomePod mini 2 to several existing speakers. The update, currently available as a release candidate for developers and public beta testers, is expected to reach the general public next week.

Sound Glow transforms the illuminated top surface of compatible HomePods into a dynamic light display that pulses in time with audio playback. Colors are extracted from album artwork, creating a unique palette for each track. The effect works with songs, podcasts, Apple’s ambient soundscapes, and other audio. On the HomePod mini 2, Apple has described it as turning the top into a visual canvas that reacts in real time to bass and treble, with bespoke animations for soundscapes such as rain. Early observations indicate that typically two or three dominant colors appear, with light elements that shift and bounce across the surface. The brightness is relatively modest, but in a darkened room the glow can cast subtle color onto nearby walls.

The feature will be available on the second-generation HomePod, the original HomePod mini, and the HomePod mini 2. It is not supported on the original full-size HomePod, a limitation linked to differences in the LED array on that earlier model. Owners of the first-generation HomePod will continue to receive software updates, however; the device has already enjoyed roughly eight years of support.

After installing version 27.2, users can activate Sound Glow in the Home app by long-pressing the speaker and enabling the new toggle in its settings. When HomePods are paired with an Apple TV, the feature can also be toggled from the Apple TV Control Center.

HomePod Software 27.2 includes additional improvements. It adds a Lock Controls option that disables most touch interactions on the top surface, preventing accidental play/pause, volume changes, track skips, or Siri activation from phantom touches or curious hands while still allowing certain functions such as intercom, timers, alarms, and FaceTime responses. The update also enables select HomePods — specifically the second-generation model and HomePod mini 2 — to serve as the default audio output for compatible Macs (those with Wi-Fi 6E or later), offering a more seamless and lower-latency alternative to standard AirPlay. In addition, it lays groundwork for using compatible HomePods in multi-speaker surround or whole-room audio setups with the new fourth-generation Apple TV 4K.

The Sound Glow capability was first highlighted alongside the HomePod mini 2, which Apple introduced earlier this month and which is scheduled to begin shipping on October 30th. By bringing the lighting effect to older hardware via a free software update, Apple is expanding the visual experience to a broader installed base ahead of the public release of version 27.2.
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MacDailyNews Take: Our veritable fleet of original HomePods, still working perfectly and sounding great, will somehow survive this omission.

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Apple Original Films has unveiled the trailer for the critically acclaimed feature “Being Heumann,” the powerful new drama from writer, director and producer Siân Heder, which follows disability rights activist Judy Heumann, who leads more than a hundred young people in a radical act of defiance as they take over the San Francisco Federal building in a fight for equal rights. The trailer debuts just ahead of the Gala presentation of “Being Heumann” at the BFI London Film Festival, and following the film’s opening night premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. “Being Heumann” will debut in select theaters on Friday, November 6, 2026 and premiere globally on Apple TV Friday, November 13, 2026.

They wouldn’t take Judy Heumann’s phone calls, so she took their building. In 1977, a young disabled woman (Ruth Madeley) and a scrappy coalition of outsiders decide they’ve had enough. What begins as one impulsive act becomes the longest occupation of a federal building in American history, as hundreds spontaneously seize government offices and refuse to leave until the bureaucrat in their way (Mark Ruffalo) takes action. Bringing rebellion in all its forms to the hallowed halls, a movement’s accidental leaders struggle to find their path forward where none has ever been paved for them. Directed by Academy Award winner Heder (“CODA”) and based on true events, “Being Heumann” is the revolutionary, irreverent and deeply human story of the least likely people trying to pull off the impossible and change the lives of millions.

“Being Heumann” is written, directed and produced by Heder, and co-written with Rebekah Taussig. The film is also produced by David Permut for Permut Presentations, John Beach, Kevin Cleary and Kevin Walsh for the Walsh Company. The film is executive produced by Jim LeBrecht, Diana Pokorny, Ann Molin and Kristen Joiner, co-author of Judy Heumann’s bestselling memoir, “Being Heumann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist.” Dylan O’Brien, Madeline Delp, Roberta Colindrez, Jon Beavers, Antwan Tolliver, Ray Fisher, Andrew Pilkington, Michael Patrick Thornton, Russell Harvard, Daniel Durant, Charlie Rush-Reese, Rio Finnegan, D’Arcee Charington Neal, Will Brill, Rob Delaney, Matthew August Jeffers, Siena Rafter and Rein Barcel also star in the film.

Apple TV offers premium, compelling drama and comedy series, feature films, groundbreaking documentaries, and kids and family entertainment, and is available to watch across all of a user’s favorite screens. After its launch on November 1, 2019, Apple TV became the first all-original streaming service to launch around the world, and has premiered more original hits and received more award recognitions faster than any other streaming service in its debut. To date, Apple Original films, documentaries and series have been honored with 919 wins and 3832 award nominations and counting including multi-Emmy Award-winning and history-making comedies “The Studio” and “Ted Lasso,” global cultural phenomenon “Severance,” Apple’s most-viewed drama “Pluribus,” Academy Award Best Picture winner “CODA” and Academy Award winner “F1,” the highest-grossing sports feature of all time.
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MacDailyNews Note: Apple TV is available on the Apple TV app in over 100 countries and regions, on over 1 billion screens, including iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K, Apple Vision Pro, Mac, popular smart TVs from Samsung, LG, Sony, VIZIO, TCL and others, Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices, Chromecast with Google TV, PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles, and at tv.apple.com, for $14.99 per month with a seven-day free trial for new subscribers. For a limited time, customers who purchase and activate a new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K or Mac can enjoy three months of Apple TV for free.

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The Apple Watch Ultra 4, which launched in September 2026 at a starting price of $799, is drawing positive reviews focused on meaningful practical upgrades rather than a full redesign. Reviewers testing the titanium-cased 49 mm model highlight its longer battery life, improved continuous heart-rate monitoring, and suitability for multi-day activity and outdoor use.

Tom’s Guide tested the Ultra 4 during a 22-mile run and concluded it is “without question, the best Apple Watch Ultra yet.” The publication specifically credited the new Health Sensing System, which measures heart rate every five seconds throughout the day (a step up from prior models that limited continuous monitoring mostly to workouts). Side-by-side comparisons against a chest strap and an Oura Ring showed the Ultra 4 tracking “pretty much spot on.” Battery performance also stood out: the reviewer reported easily achieving two full days of use that included several hours of workouts, while noting faster charging that can deliver up to 18 hours of battery life from a 15-minute top-up.

Runners World offered a similarly upbeat assessment after weeks of testing, describing the Ultra 4 as “a vast improvement over the Ultra 3.” The outlet praised quicker GPS acquisition, strong heart-rate accuracy during steady efforts (typically within a few beats of a reference monitor), improved ECG performance, and battery life that can stretch to three days under heavy GPS use. Reviewers also noted the usefulness of hypertension notifications and cycle insights for athletes. The verdict positioned it as one of the strongest options for many runners who want reliable tracking without daily charging anxiety, along with the advantages of Apple’s app ecosystem and phone integration.

Other coverage reinforces these points. Expert Reviews and Gizmodo highlighted the jump to up to 50 hours of normal use (and up to 84 hours in Low Power Mode) plus the new Readiness score as practical gains for active users. CNET reported real-world results exceeding Apple’s estimates in some tests, while Wired and others called the multiday endurance and faster charging clear advantages for hikers, campers, and endurance athletes. The rugged titanium build, bright 3,000-nit display, Action button, and existing satellite features continue to receive favorable mentions as part of the overall package.

While some reviewers note that the exterior design is largely unchanged from the Ultra 3 and that certain software features arrived later, the consistent positive themes across testing center on battery improvements, more frequent and accurate health sensing, and better performance during extended activity. For buyers upgrading from older Ultra or Series models — or those seeking a capable adventure-oriented Apple Watch — the Ultra 4 is frequently described as the most complete version yet.
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MacDailyNews Take: Apple Watch Ultra 4 is the flagship Apple Watch for many reasons! Amazon is currently offering Apple Watch Ultra 4 models for $774 for a limited time.

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A lesser-known independent research shop, Loop Capital Markets, has downgraded Apple (AAPL) stock from Buy to Hold and cut its price target to $330 from $370, arguing the shares are fully valued near current levels and require a fresh catalyst to advance.

Analyst Ananda Baruah wrote that the firm still likes Apple’s longer-term market-share gains and services narrative. However, new data on iPhone shipments has shifted its view. After Apple reportedly reduced projected unit shipments for the September and December quarters by 10%, Loop had expected much of the shortfall to be recovered in 2027 on the assumption the cuts were primarily supply-related. “This no longer appears to be the case,” the note said, pointing instead toward softer demand. The firm also flagged potential gross-margin pressure from rising memory costs and said the stock “requires a fundamental catalyst reset” after recent appreciation.

Apple shares have traded near $343, up roughly 26% year-to-date and at multi-year valuation highs, so the new $330 target implies only modest downside of about 4%. Loop Capital is a Chicago-based independent firm of roughly 250–300 employees, focused more on public finance and mid-market work than on the large-scale equity research platforms of the major Wall Street banks. Its call sits outside the mainstream consensus, where a clear majority of covering analysts continue to rate Apple a “Buy” or equivalent, with average price targets still above current levels.

MacDailyNews Take: This move by boutique Loop Capital Markets has not shifted the broader Street’s largely constructive stance on Apple’s services growth and installed-base economics. No major investment or research firm has issued a comparable rating cut on these specific shipment concerns.

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Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority has launched a consultation that would compel Apple to loosen control of the iPhone’s near-field communication (NFC) technology used for contactless payments, digital keys, tickets and similar services. The proposals, announced on 20 October 2026, call for substantially lower access fees and require Apple to open the platform through both of the main international standards—its existing secure-element approach and host-card emulation—rather than the single secure pathway it currently offers in the UK. Consultation runs until 17 November before any final decision.

The CMA frames the move as a boost for Britain’s fintech sector, which it says generates roughly £214 billion (US$286 billion) in turnover and supports more than 360,000 jobs. Chief executive Sarah Cardell argues that high fees, strict terms and technical restrictions make it too hard for challengers to innovate, and that wider access would deliver more choice, lower costs and new products ranging from account-to-account payments to digital IDs and workplace keys. Contactless already accounts for 39 percent of UK payments, up from 3 percent a decade ago, and more than 60 percent of adults use digital wallets, with Apple Wallet the most popular. The regulator notes that alternative wallet-style products have appeared in the EU after earlier forced openings, while none have launched under current UK terms.

Apple states that it already enables developers in the UK and elsewhere to offer contactless transactions — payments, transit passes, car keys, event tickets — directly inside their own apps through its NFC and secure-element platform. That platform, it says, keeps sensitive credentials protected by the highest security standards, allows competition between wallets, and prevents the company itself from seeing or storing users’ card details. An Apple spokesperson put the position plainly: “We do not believe the CMA should require Apple to adopt an approach with lower privacy and security protections. We will continue to engage constructively to reach an outcome that is in the best interest of our users.”

The distinction matters. A secure element is a dedicated, tamper-resistant hardware chip that isolates cryptographic operations and credentials from the main operating system. Host-card emulation, by contrast, routes those functions through software on the host processor, typically relying on tokenization, short-lived credentials and backend checks. Industry analyses consistently treat the hardware secure element as offering stronger physical attack resistance and a smaller attack surface; HCE is regarded as more scalable and cheaper to deploy but inherently more exposed if the device or its software is compromised. Apple’s design deliberately keeps long-lived secrets off the main processor and outside Apple’s own servers. The CMA asserts that neither standard raises “inherent” security concerns and that both would enable services already available in Europe. That claim sits uneasily with the architectural difference and with Apple’s repeated insistence that further forced concessions would lower the protections users currently enjoy.

Consumer outcomes under the present system are hard to dismiss. Apple Wallet’s popularity reflects preference for a seamless, biometric-authenticated experience that has helped drive contactless adoption rather than evidence of a market failure requiring heavy-handed intervention. Apple has already opened controlled access on commercial terms that preserve its security model. Demanding both cheaper fees (via pricing principles the CMA expects will produce “substantially lower” charges) and an additional, less isolated technical pathway effectively asks the company that invested in the hardware, software integration and certification regime to subsidize rivals while accepting a broader attack surface. Such regulatory design risks trading the reliability that has made contactless routine for a proliferation of options whose security depends more heavily on each developer’s implementation and on continuous network connectivity.

MacDailyNews Take: Britain’s fintech sector can and should compete. Nothing prevents banks, payment firms and app developers from offering distinctive services, open-banking flows, or non-payment credentials under existing rules. What the CMA proposals prioritize is easier and cheaper entry for competitors over preserving the integrity of the platform most UK adults already trust for everyday payments. Apple’s position is simple: users’ privacy and security should not be subordinated to UK regulators’ whims. Forcing a dilution of standards that have scaled contactless use to nearly two-fifths of all transactions is more likely to introduce friction and risk security and privacy than to unlock meaningful gains for consumers.

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Apple today announced new and expanded partnerships with American companies that are supplying critical materials and components for iPhone Duo and iPhone 18 Pro.

Through its American Manufacturing Program (AMP), Apple is partnering with Perryman Company, a Pennsylvania-based titanium producer, to supply titanium for Apple products, including iPhone Duo. Apple is also expanding its partnership with Qnity Electronics, headquartered in Delaware, to produce technology for the new variable aperture in the iPhone 18 Pro camera system — the most advanced Apple has ever made.

Apple works with suppliers in all 50 states and supports more than 450,000 American jobs. Last year, the company deepened that commitment by launching AMP, aimed at bringing even more advanced manufacturing and critical component production to the United States as part of Apple’s $600 billion, four-year commitment to U.S. manufacturing and innovation.

“We’re thrilled to expand our work with companies producing advanced materials and components for our newest iPhone lineup right here in America,” said Sabih Khan, Apple’s chief operating officer, in a statement. “American ingenuity is vital to all our products, from the titanium crafted for iPhone Duo to breakthrough camera innovations in iPhone 18 Pro. We’re proud to work with Perryman and Qnity Electronics to continue expanding our American Manufacturing Program and support U.S. jobs.”

The grade 5 titanium enclosure on iPhone Duo is exceptionally strong, providing amazing durability to the first foldable iPhone. Apple will commit up to $100 million over the next three years with Perryman, a family-owned business and a global leader in manufacturing specialty titanium products. At its site in Houston, Pennsylvania, Perryman melts, forges, and rolls titanium with a minimum of 80 percent recycled content for iPhone Duo.

Apple is also expanding its partnership with Qnity Electronics to build key camera technology for iPhone 18 Pro in the U.S. Qnity, which joined the American Manufacturing Program in March, will produce advanced films essential to the new variable aperture camera system on iPhone 18 Pro. Variable aperture is at the heart of the new 48MP Fusion Main camera, which enables incredible light and depth control. It’s powered by on-device intelligence that automatically lets in more light for darker settings and helps get sharper detail in brighter ones.

Nearly 100 components in iPhone Duo and iPhone 18 Pro — from wireless chips to the silicon that powers key functions across the devices — are produced by American companies and drawn from suppliers in more than a dozen states. That footprint continues to grow, empowering partners across the country to bring new capabilities online:

• Broadcom is expanding and modernizing its Fort Collins, Colorado, facility under a $1.5 billion capital investment announced in July, producing advanced radio frequency components for a wide range of Apple products. The multiyear agreement will produce more than 15 billion U.S.-made chips.

• Corning, an Apple partner since the original iPhone in 2007, produces specialty glass for Apple in Harrodsburg, Kentucky, including Ceramic Shield. By the end of 2026, all of the cover glass for iPhone — including iPhone Duo — and Apple Watch sold worldwide will be produced at this facility.

• Coherent continues building on its multiyear agreement with Apple, supplying new vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser technology from its Sherman, Texas, facility. This technology enables Face ID and other key features across iPhone and iPad, including the redesigned, even more useful Dynamic Island on iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.

• TSMC’s Arizona fab continues to scale its production of advanced chips used across a range of Apple products, including iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch — producing more than 100 million chips for Apple in 2026. Construction on the north campus is progressing as Apple’s partnership with TSMC in Arizona grows.

• Amkor Technology broke ground on its first high-volume packaging and test facility in Peoria, Arizona, in September 2025, and began shell construction earlier this year. Phases 1 and 2 of the project are expected to support a workforce of more than 3,500 local hires. Apple will be one of the facility’s first customers, marking another step toward expanding the scope of U.S. advanced manufacturing.

As part of Apple’s ambitious goal to be carbon neutral across its entire footprint by 2030, all direct suppliers are required to power their Apple manufacturing with renewable energy by the end of this decade. These partnerships, which also include the increased use of recycled materials, reflect that broader environmental commitment.

Apple’s commitment to American manufacturing extends to the workers and businesses building the sector’s future. In August, Apple opened its Advanced Manufacturing Center (AMC) in Houston, Texas — the company’s second U.S. manufacturing learning site. Inside the 20,000-square-foot center, Apple engineers train small- and medium-sized businesses on the same processes used to make Apple products, from advanced manufacturing principles for final assembly to design considerations for printed circuit board assembly. The AMC sits within the same Houston facility that builds Apple’s advanced AI servers and will begin manufacturing Mac mini this year.
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MacDailyNews Note: More info about Apple’s American Manufacturing Program here.

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Apple has begun advancing estimated delivery windows for a number of iPhone Duo pre-orders in markets including the United States and Japan, giving some buyers earlier arrival estimates than the December or later dates they originally received.

The shifts come just days after pre-orders for Apple’s first foldable iPhone opened on October 16 and demand was described by the company as “nothing short of extraordinary.” Within roughly 30 minutes of pre-orders starting, shipping estimates for new orders on Apple’s online store were pushed out to January 25, 2027, across configurations. The device is scheduled to launch in stores and for the earliest deliveries on Friday, October 23.

Customer Reports of Earlier Dates

In the U.S., YouTuber Matt Gonzalez reported that his Star White 512GB iPhone Duo pre-order, which had shown a December estimate, was updated to a delivery window of November 20–30. Other U.S. customers on forums have described similar moves, including estimates shifting from December 1–8 to November 16–23.

In Japan, reports have been even more dramatic in some cases. One customer said an original December 3–10 estimate was updated to October 24—one day after the official launch. Other Japanese buyers have also reported dates moving closer to launch day or into late October from prior November or December windows. Some carrier orders (such as through T-Mobile in the U.S.) have likewise shown earlier ship dates in social media posts.

These changes are not universal. New orders placed now continue to show late-January estimates in many places, and not every existing pre-order has been updated. Some early reports of launch-day (October 23) deliveries have drawn skepticism, with at least one customer saying they were told by Apple that an aggressive date change appeared to be a system error and would be corrected.

Apple has a long track record of conservative initial shipping estimates that later improve as production ramps – a pattern of “underpromising and overdelivering.” The early, extreme slip to January for the Duo reflected both strong interest in the new form factor and limited initial supply. The device starts at $1,999 for the 256GB model (with higher storage options up to 2TB), features a 7.6-inch inner folding Super Retina XDR display and a 5.4-inch outer display, the A20 Pro chip, dual 48MP cameras, and Touch ID in the side button. It ships with iOS 27.1.

Apple has not issued a formal statement specifically about the improved estimates for existing orders, though its earlier comments emphasized working to get the product into customers’ hands as quickly as possible while continuing to accept online orders. Buyers are advised to check their order status in the Apple Store app or on apple.com, as individual results vary by configuration, region, and when the order was placed.

The iPhone Duo’s launch remains set for October 23rd in more than 70 countries and regions, with additional markets following on October 30. How widely the earlier delivery windows continue to spread—and whether production can sustain them—will become clearer in the coming days.

MacDailyNews Take: Pre-order today and you might get your iPhone Duo sooner than you expect!

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Streaming boxes have spent years feeling like necessary, but forgettable appliances. You plug one in, deal with the remote that disappears into the couch, and mostly just open Netflix. Apple’s latest Apple TV 4K, announced this month and arriving November 13th, changes that equation in a few practical ways that add up to something better than the sum of its parts.⁠

At $299 it isn’t cheap, especially compared with the much lower launch prices of earlier models. But if you’re shopping for a new box, upgrading something older, or already living in Apple’s home ecosystem, the upgrades justify the price more than other streaming hardware.

The biggest everyday improvement is that the box itself can finally hear you. Three far-field microphones let you say “Siri” or “Hey Siri” without pressing anything on the remote. Apple’s echo cancellation is solid enough that it works even while something is playing. Combined with the new full-screen Siri AI experience, this turns “what should we watch” into a conversation instead of a scrolling chore. You can ask for recent Emmy winners, follow up about where a show was filmed, or request something a family member recommended, and the interface actually shows poster art and sensible next steps rather than a wall of text. Siri AI is coming to recent older Apple TVs too, but the built-in mics are exclusive to the new hardware.⁠

The remote is no longer the weak link either. The updated Siri Remote has Find My support with Precision Finding, and it can play a sound so you can locate it when it vanishes between cushions. It’s a small thing until you’ve spent ten minutes hunting for the remote at the start of a movie. You can buy the new remote separately for older boxes, but it ships in the box with the new Apple TV 4K.

Under the hood, the A19 chip (the same one in the iPhone 17) delivers up to 50 percent faster CPU performance and roughly double the GPU speed of the previous model’s A15. In practice that means snappier menus, smoother animations, and more headroom for apps and games. There’s also a dedicated AV1 decoder, which lets supported services stream higher-quality video with less bandwidth. Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 are standard, and Gigabit Ethernet is included on the single 128GB configuration. None of this is flashy, but it makes the box feel both current and future-proof instead of like it’s aging in real time.⁠

If you already have or plan to get HomePods, the new model unlocks a genuine four-speaker surround setup using matching pairs of HomePod mini 2 or second-generation HomePod speakers. Apple handles the room calibration automatically. It’s not a full dedicated home theater system, but for people who want better sound without running speaker wire or buying a receiver, it’s the most seamless option Apple has offered – and the sound is very, very good.

The rest of the usual Apple TV strengths are still there: a clean interface, solid app selection, excellent integration with Fitness+, Arcade, FaceTime, and iCloud photos, plus Thread support so it “just works” as a Home hub, too. Privacy features remain strong, with on-device processing and Private Cloud Compute where needed.

It still maxes out at 4K60 and doesn’t suddenly add every home-theater feature enthusiasts wanted (audio passthrough and higher frame rates remain absent). For pure streaming, an older Apple TV 4K that already works fine will continue to work fine. But for anyone buying now, or for people who want hands-free control, a remote they can find, better networking, and the option of proper multi-speaker sound inside Apple’s ecosystem, Apple’s new 2026 model is the one that finally feels complete.

Pre-orders are open now, with availability starting November 13th. If your current setup is starting to feel like a collection of compromises, this is the box that removes most of them.
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MacDailyNews Take: Even better, Amazon is currently offering a slight discount on preorders of the new Apple TV 4K for $289.99 or $24.17/month for 12 months.

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Apple marketing chief Greg Joswiak on Monday shared a short teaser video and the message “Can’t wait to pro and tell next week,” confirming the company’s next product experience for Wednesday, October 28th, in Los Angeles.

The animated clip shows the Apple logo forming from flowing, multi-colored light trails against a black background — a stylized nod to the event’s “Pro and tell” tagline. Joswiak’s post, which quickly drew thousands of likes and shares, follows the recent distribution of media invites for an in-person gathering starting at 10 a.m. PT.

Can’t wait to pro and tell next week. https://t.co/3wUkxwq35i

— Greg Joswiak (@gregjoz) October 19, 2026

This marks Apple’s second hardware-focused experience of the month. On October 13th in New York, the company introduced the HomeView smart display, HomePod mini 2, and an updated Apple TV 4K under the “Welcome home” banner. The October 28 gathering in Los Angeles is expected to follow a similar hands-on format for select media and creators rather than a traditional livestreamed keynote, with product announcements and videos likely timed to the event.

Expected Lineup Centers on Mac and iPad Upgrades

While Apple has not confirmed specific products, reporting from Bloomberg News’ Mark Gurman and coverage across tech outlets points to a Mac- and iPad-focused slate:

• Redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with OLED touchscreens (Apple’s first on a Mac), a Dynamic Island cutout replacing the notch, and a significantly lighter design. These are widely expected to use M5 Pro and M5 Max chips rather than a new M6 Pro/Max generation.

• An entry-level 14-inch MacBook Pro and a refreshed iMac powered by the M6 chip, largely retaining current designs.

• A new iPad mini with an OLED display, a relocated landscape-oriented FaceTime camera, and an updated speaker system.

Gurman has indicated the devices could be introduced around October 28th, with availability potentially following in early November (reports have referenced a possible November 6th window tied to retail preparations). Earlier speculation about a “MacBook Ultra” name appears to have been walked back, with the touchscreen models expected to remain in the MacBook Pro lineup.

A Notable Shift for the Mac

The prospect of a touchscreen MacBook Pro represents a significant departure for Apple, which has long argued against touch input on traditional laptops in favor of trackpad and keyboard precision. An OLED panel would also mark a display upgrade from the mini-LED technology in recent high-end Pros, promising better contrast, blacks, and brightness alongside the new interaction model and software support (reports have referenced testing with macOS versions that include finger input handling).

Joswiak’s playful wording and the fluid logo animation have fueled speculation that the teaser alludes to the tactile or visual qualities of the expected OLED touchscreen machines. Apple’s fall product cadence has been busy, following recent iPhone and related launches, and the “Pro and tell” experience appears positioned as a focused showcase for professional and creative users.

Official details will arrive next week. Until then, the combination of confirmed event timing and consistent high-level reporting has set clear expectations for Apple’s next major hardware step.

MacDailyNews Take: Bring ’em all on!

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Apple has published an EU energy label for the iPhone Duo that reveals the foldable device’s total battery capacity is 4,883 mAh, according to MacRumors’ Joe Rossignol.

The figure matches a prior leak that described the iPhone Duo as using two battery cells—one rated at 2,962 mAh and another at 1,921 mAh—that together total 4,883 mAh. Because the iPhone Duo is an eSIM-only device with no physical SIM tray variant, the same capacity applies worldwide.

For context, the eSIM-only iPhone 18 Pro has a 4,288 mAh battery, while the eSIM-only iPhone 18 Pro Max has a larger 5,567 mAh battery, as previously measured by iFixit. The iPhone Duo’s dual-cell design therefore sits between those two models in raw capacity.
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MacDailyNews Note: For iPhone Duo, Apple promises “up to
31 hours video playback when using the inner display” and “up to 44 hours video playback when using the outer display.”

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Jason Sudeikis remains open to “Ted Lasso” continuing beyond its recently concluded fourth season, telling a podcast host he would like to return and that he assumes Apple would support it — if the right pieces come together.

Season 4 of the Apple TV series, which followed Ted Lasso’s return to AFC Richmond to coach the club’s women’s team, the Lady Greyhounds, wrapped earlier this month. The season proved popular as the top-viewed show on the platform (though it did not match the heights of Season 3), yet Apple has offered no official word on a fifth or sixth season.

Sudeikis, the show’s co-creator and star, addressed the possibility during an appearance on the podcast Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso. The conversation revisited how the series came back after Season 3, which Sudeikis had once viewed as a potential endpoint. Apple and much of the cast had pushed for more, but he held off until new creative ideas took shape. Reporting ahead of Season 4 indicated he had envisioned a fresh three-season arc centered on the women’s team, mirroring the structure of the original men’s-team run.

On the podcast, Fragoso asked directly about the path forward:

Sam Fragoso: So what does this all mean for you moving forward? You want to keep going back to the well? Do you have season five and six mapped out? Is that the plan?

Jason Sudeikis: I mean, that was the endeavor of going back into it, just sort of like, oh, I think there’s more in there…We’ll see. It takes a village.

Fragoso: Do you want to do it?

Sudeikis: I would like to, yeah. I think it would be fun.

Fragoso noted that Sudeikis seemed “mighty coy” about whether more seasons would happen. Sudeikis clarified that any reticence was unintentional and rooted in the lack of concrete next steps:

Fragoso: Do you just not know?

Sudeikis: Yeah, I just don’t know. We haven’t started a writers room or anything like that.

Fragoso: But Apple would do it if, presumably, you want to keep going.

Sudeikis: I would assume so.

Elsewhere in the conversation, Fragoso pointed out that Sudeikis had entered the Season 4 process creatively drained — with an “empty cup” — and asked whether a similar process could yield two more seasons. Sudeikis joked, “Um, we’re going to need a bigger cup.” He also reflected on the post-Season 3 period, saying the voices of the existing characters stayed with him before “other new voices started to show up,” which helped inspire the women’s-team storyline.

The absence of a writers’ room so soon after the Season 4 finale suggests any continuation remains in the early discussion or negotiation stage rather than active development. Season 4’s finale left several threads that could support further episodes (Caution: Spoilers!) — Ted stepping back to an assistant-manager role with Alice Chilton promoted to head coach of the Lady Greyhounds, Roy Kent departing for a new opportunity at Chelsea, and various personal storylines for Rebecca, Keeley, and others — without ending on a definitive series closer.

Whether those elements lead to Seasons 5 and 6 will depend on more than Sudeikis’s interest. As he put it, bringing the show back “takes a village.” For now, fans are left with his clearest recent statement of intent: he would like to continue, he thinks it would be fun, and he believes Apple would be on board—but nothing has started yet.

MacDailyNews Take: Clearly, beyond all the rest of the dangling storylines, there’s an opportunity for Rebecca to hire Nate the Great (Nick Mohammed) to replace Roy Kent as Richmond’s manager.

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Apple has attributed the rapid sell-out of its first foldable smartphone, the iPhone Duo, to “nothing short of extraordinary” pre-order demand, according to Financial Times’ Michael Acton. Within hours of pre-orders opening on Friday, delivery estimates for the device slipped from an initial October 23 availability window into late January 2027 across configurations in the US and UK.

The iPhone Duo, unveiled last month by new chief executive John Ternus, represents the most significant redesign of Apple’s flagship phone since the original iPhone nearly two decades ago. When closed it offers a compact 5.4-inch outer display; unfolded, it reveals a 7.6-inch inner Super Retina XDR screen with a nano-texture finish intended to reduce glare and minimize the visible crease. It is powered by the same A20 Pro chip as the iPhone 18 Pro models, features dual batteries, and starts at $1,999 for the 256GB version — making it Apple’s most expensive iPhone to date, with higher storage options reaching roughly $3,200.

In a statement to the Financial Times, Apple said: “The pre-order demand for iPhone Duo, our first foldable iPhone, has been nothing short of extraordinary. We are working hard to get this revolutionary new product into customers’ hands as quickly as possible.” The company continues to accept online orders, though US carriers have also reported delays. Reports indicate Apple retail staff were advised to discourage customers without reservations from seeking the device in stores on launch day, as unreserved stock was expected to be scarce.

The multi-month delay is unusual for Apple, which is known for tightly managed supply chains. Even during Covid-era disruptions in 2022, some iPhone 14 deliveries slipped by little more than a month. Industry observers link the constraints to the complex manufacturing requirements of the foldable hinge and dual-display design, alongside broader component pressures in the consumer electronics sector. Analysts at Bloomberg Intelligence had previously estimated potential sales of around 14 million units in the fiscal year, generating roughly $28 billion in revenue, though the exact volume of initial production remains unclear.
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MacDailyNews Take: Unlike the Duo, the simultaneously launched iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max remain available for immediate purchase, suggesting the shortage is specific to the new form factor. The strong early response comes as Apple heads into its critical holiday quarter, with the company valued at roughly $5 trillion and benefiting from solid demand for its latest Pro models in markets including China and India.

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Elon Musk announced on X early Monday that he plans to give one of his personal SpaceX shares to every kid in America next year, calling it “the first of many.”

Next year, I will give one of my SpaceX shares to every kid in America.

This will be the first of many.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 19, 2026

The post quickly drew massive attention, amassing hundreds of thousands of likes and over 10 million views within hours. It arrived just hours after AI company Anthropic said it would commit at least 5% of its shares to a new Public Benefit Fund. Musk replied that he preferred distributing shares “directly to the public” and then followed through with his own pledge.

There are roughly 72 million people under 18 in the United States, according to recent Census Bureau estimates. At SpaceX’s Friday closing price of about $146, the total value of the promised shares would come to approximately $10.5 billion, if 18 is indeed the cutoff age. It could be lower. No specifics have yet been released.

Musk holds a controlling stake in the company — reports based on SEC filings put his holdings at around 6.4 billion shares when including shares held through trusts, restricted stock, and options.

SpaceX completed its IPO in June 2026 in what was the largest public offering in history. The company currently trades under the ticker SPCX with a market capitalization in the vicinity of $2 trillion.

Musk provided no further details beyond his brief post.

The move follows an earlier contribution by SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell and her husband, who earlier this year pledged shares to the Trump Accounts of more than 2 million American children, with a focus on lower-income families.

MacDailyNews Take: Thank you, Mr. Musk!

For perspective, this single gift from Musk – the “first of many” – is slightly larger than the entire fortune Steve Jobs had amassed at the time of his death and several times larger than Apple CEO Tim Cook’s entire net worth.

Of significant note: Michael and Susan Dell pledged $6.25 billion in late 2025 to put $250 into investment accounts (“Trump Accounts”) for about 25 million American children.

Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Dell!

More about Trump Accounts:

In 2026, the Trump administration launched Trump Accounts (also known as 530A accounts), a new tax-advantaged investment program designed to give American children an early start in building long-term wealth through the stock market. With a federal $1,000 seed contribution for eligible kids born between 2025 and 2028 and optional parent contributions up to $5,000 per year, these custodial accounts have quickly become a hot topic for families.

A common question parents are asking: Do Trump Accounts invest in Apple (AAPL) — either by buying shares directly or through ETFs?

Here’s the clear answer.

No Direct Investment in Individual Apple Stock

Trump Accounts follow strict rules: Funds cannot be invested in individual stocks like Apple, nor in sector-specific or industry-focused funds. All investments must be in low-cost mutual funds or ETFs that track broad U.S. equity market indexes (such as the S&P 500), with very low expense ratios (generally capped around 0.10% or lower).

This design keeps things simple, diversified, and low-cost — the goal is long-term compounding in the broad U.S. stock market, not stock-picking.

Yes — Significant Indirect Exposure via ETFs

At launch on July 4, 2026, all contributions to Trump Accounts are automatically invested in the default fund: the State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETF (SPYM).

This ultra-low-cost ETF (0.02% expense ratio) tracks the S&P 500 Index. Apple is one of the largest holdings in the S&P 500 and in SPYM.

As of late June/early July 2026:

• Apple (AAPL) represents approximately 6.5%–6.7% of SPYM (typically the #2 holding after Nvidia).

That means for every $1,000 in a Trump Account invested in the default SPYM fund, roughly $65–$67 is effectively tied to Apple’s performance.

In the coming months, parents will likely gain the ability to choose from additional low-cost broad-market options, including:

• iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV)

• Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (VTI)

• Others tracking the S&P 1500 or total U.S. market

All of these broad U.S. equity indexes also include Apple as a major component (usually in the top 5–10 holdings).

What This Means for Your Child’s Trump Account

• Diversified exposure to America’s biggest companies, including tech companies like Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Amazon.

• No ability to overweight or underweight Apple specifically.

• Transparency: The official Trump Accounts app lets parents see exactly which underlying stocks (including Apple) their child’s money is invested in and how they’re performing.

Why This Matters

Trump Accounts give millions of kids their first real stake in the U.S. economy through passive, low-cost index investing. Apple’s inclusion via S&P 500 ETFs means children automatically benefit from one of the world’s most successful companies without any active management or individual stock risk.

It’s a classic “own the market” approach — simple, cost-effective, and historically powerful over decades.

So, in a nutshell, Trump Accounts do not buy Apple stock directly, but they do provide meaningful indirect exposure to AAPL through the default S&P 500 ETF (SPYM) and other eligible broad-market funds.

For parents enrolling kids in this program, it’s a straightforward way to give the next generation skin in the game with iconic American companies like Apple — all while staying within the program’s low-cost, diversified rules.

If you’re setting up a Trump Account, download the official app and keep an eye on the underlying holdings as the investment menu expands. Your child’s future portfolio will have a slice of Apple and the broader market built right in.

MacDailyNews Note: To set up a Trump Account for a child, you must submit IRS Form 4547 (Trump Account Election) to establish the account through the U.S. government, followed by activating it via the official app.

Step-by-Step Guide to Opening an Account

1. Verify Eligibility: The account beneficiary must be a U.S. citizen under the age of 18 with a valid Social Security number.

2. Submit IRS Form 4547: This form officially elects to open the account. You can submit it in one of three ways:

• Online Portal: Fill it out securely via your IRS Individual Account or through the official portal at TrumpAccounts.gov.

• Tax Return: File the form electronically alongside your federal income tax return.

• By Mail: Download, print, and mail a paper copy of Form 4547 directly to the IRS.

3. Await the Activation Email: After processing your form, the U.S. Treasury will send a confirmation and activation email.

4. Download the Official App: Search for the official Trump Accounts app on the Apple App Store or Google Play. Log in using the same email address provided on your Form 4547 to complete identity verification and activate the account.

Crucial Account Rules & Funding

• The $1,000 Government Seed: Children born between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2028, automatically qualify for a one-time $1,000 deposit from the federal government. Older children can still have accounts opened for them but do not qualify for this seed money.

• Contribution Limits: Parents, family, and employers can contribute after-tax dollars up to a collective maximum of $5,000 per year until the child turns 18.

• Investment Rules: During the minor’s growth period, funds are managed initially by the Treasury’s partners (such as Bank of New York Mellon and Robinhood). Funds are strictly restricted to low-cost mutual funds or ETFs that track major broad U.S. indexes like the S&P 500, with management fees capped at 0.10%.

• Withdrawal Restrictions: Money is locked under parent/guardian custody and cannot be withdrawn until the child turns 18. At age 18, it converts into a traditional IRA owned fully by the child.

Security Guardrail against Scams

The U.S. Department of the Treasury warns families to stay alert:

• Official activation emails will only come from no-reply@TrumpAccounts.Treasury.gov.

• The government will never call or text you regarding your Trump Account setup. Do not reply to any phone calls or SMS messages requesting personal details.

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Apple’s recently introduced HomeView smart display offers a clear preview of a more advanced future version equipped with a motorized robotic arm, according to Bloomberg News’ Mark Gurman in his Power On newsletter. The higher-end model, internally code-named J595, is planned for release in 2027 or 2028. It retains the overall look of the current device but expands the screen to roughly 9 inches from the existing 7-inch display and adds a robotic arm that can swivel the screen a full 360 degrees.

Using voice recognition, the machine is designed to identify who is speaking and automatically turn toward that person, addressing a common complaint about the fixed current HomeView that requires users to manually reposition it in multi-person settings. This version is positioned as a premium addition to the lineup rather than a direct replacement for the $299 model, which is set for broader availability on November 13 after units reportedly sat in warehouses for months.

Separately, Apple is preparing a retail store reset for November 6, a move that points to the potential on-sale date for new Macs and possibly an updated iPad mini, Gurman reports. Store resets of this kind typically involve new signage and demo products and often align with product launches roughly a week after an introduction. The timing fits into a busy fall schedule that also includes the iPhone Duo on October 23, the HomePod mini 2 on October 30, and the HomeView plus a new Apple TV 4K on November 13. Earlier details from Gurman have pointed to OLED touchscreen MacBook Pro models and an OLED iPad mini among the expected updates.

The newsletter also addresses the chaotic start of iPhone Duo preorders, which Gurman described as a major mistake and an absolute disaster. Despite knowing of severe supply constraints stemming from manufacturing challenges, Apple opened preorders widely across more than 70 countries rather than limiting the initial launch to the U.S. and China as originally planned. Shipping estimates quickly slipped from the October 23 availability date to late January for most configurations, disappointing early adopters. Gurman notes that the company appeared to prioritize getting the foldable device onto the market early in its fiscal first quarter over fully meeting demand, and that the resulting shortage could ultimately help drive sales of the iPhone 18 Pro lineup.
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MacDailyNews Take: A halo product is a high-end, premium, or scarce flagship item that boosts brand perception, generates buzz, and lifts sales of more accessible or lower-cost products in the same lineup. The expensive/scarce item creates aspirational appeal and draws attention; when many people can’t (or won’t) buy it, demand often cascades down to the next-best, more available option.

So, the high-priced, supply-constrained Duo functions as the halo product whose hype and pronounced shortage to help drive iPhone 18 Pro sales. This is a common strategy in consumer electronics, luxury goods, and product-line pricing.

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The post Apple eyes robotic-arm HomeView for 2027–2028 as Nov. 6 store reset signals new Macs and iPad mini appeared first on MacDailyNews.

In Nasdaq trading today, shares of Apple Inc. (AAPL) rose $1.46 to $343.46 to hit a new all-time closing high. Apple’s all-time intraday high was set on October 13, 2026 at $348.15.

Apple’s 52-week low stands at $243.42 .

Today’s trading volume for AAPL shares was 58,983,186 versus Apple’s average trading volume of 44,504,567 shares.

Apple’s PE Ratio currently stands at 39.39.

Apple currently has a market value of $5.013 trillion, making it the world’s second-most valuable company.

The top five U.S. publicly-traded companies, based on market value:

1. NVIDIA (NVDA) – $5.171T
2. Apple (AAPL) – $5.013T
3. Alphabet (GOOGL) – $4.165T
4. Microsoft (MSFT) – $3.928T
5. Amazon (AMZN) – $2.697T

Selected companies’ current market values:

• Taiwan Semi (TSM): $2.140T

• SpaceX (SPCX): $1.924T

• Meta Platforms (META): $1.807T

• Tesla (TSLA): $1.401T

• Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A): $1.139T

• Walmart (WMT): $945.499B

• Advanced Micro Devices (AMD): $863.171B

• Intel (INTC): $474.957B

• Cisco (CSCO): $423.394B

• Netflix (NFLX): $293.683B

• Dell (DELL): $287.203B

• IBM (IBM): $218.707B

• Disney (DIS): $190.937B

• SoftBank (SFTBF): $170.971B

• Sony (SONY): $144.793B

• Spotify (SPOT): $107.344B

• Adobe (ADBE): $95.432B

• Nokia (NOK): $51.172B

• Hewlett-Packard (HPQ): $27.157B

• SiriusXM (SIRI): $9.091B

• BlackBerry (BB): $5.107B

• Sonos (SONO): $2.093B

• Liquidmetal (LQMT): $0.071B

• RealNetworks (RNWK) was delisted from U.S. exchanges on December 21, 2022 and is no longer publicly traded.

Apple all-time high (AAPL) via NASDAQ here.

MacDailyNews Take: Onward and upward, Cupertino soldiers!

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Apple appears to have tipped its hand on an unreleased iPad mini through an overlooked listing on its French regulatory website. A Smart Folio accessory for the iPad mini carrying the model number A3632 has surfaced in the company’s environmental and regulatory disclosures, a number that matches no current or previous case for the compact tablet.

The listing, first reported by MacRumors and dated around early September, sits alongside accessories for the iPhone 18 Pro that Apple added the same month. The current iPad mini (A17 Pro) and its predecessor share the same Smart Folio design; Apple has not introduced a new model number for that accessory since the 2021 redesign. The appearance of A3632 therefore points to physical changes on the device it is meant to protect, which would render existing cases incompatible.

Environmental data in the filing adds further detail. Compared with the existing Smart Folio, the new accessory lists at least 6,610 milligrams of rare earth elements versus 3,947 milligrams previously, and a lower minimum of recycled materials (at least 3 percent versus 9 percent). The jump in rare earth content is consistent with changes to the magnets used to attach the cover, a common indicator that dimensions, thickness, button placement, speaker openings, or camera positioning have shifted.

The listing itself contains no technical specifications for the tablet. Still, it aligns with months of reporting on an eighth-generation iPad mini. Multiple leaks and supply chain reports have described an OLED display (likely a single-layer LTPS panel rather than the dual-layer ProMotion panels used on iPad Pro models), Apple’s A20 Pro chip from the iPhone 18 Pro lineup, a front camera relocated to the landscape edge for better video-call framing, a redesigned speaker system, thinner bezels, Wi-Fi 7 support, increased RAM, and improved water resistance. Bloomberg News’ Mark Gurman has indicated an announcement date of October 28th, potentially alongside OLED MacBook Pro models.

Apple has not commented on the listing or confirmed any product. Regulatory filings of this type are typically prepared well in advance of launch and occasionally surface before official announcements, as happened with earlier Apple products. The A3632 Smart Folio remains the clearest public signal yet that the next iPad mini is in active preparation and that its exterior will differ enough from the current model to require entirely new accessories.
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MacDailyNews Take: Ooh, this is going to be a powerful little tablet!

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The post Apple’s French site accidentally reveals iPad mini 8 appeared first on MacDailyNews.

Apple has begun inviting select journalists and media to an all-day product launch experience in Los Angeles on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, according to Bloomberg News’ Mark Gurman. In a post on X, Gurman wrote: “Apple is now inviting some media to an all-day product launch experience on Oct. 28 in Los Angeles. This is for the touch-screen MacBooks, iPad mini, M6 Macs.”⁠

This is not expected to be a traditional Apple Event with a live-streamed keynote. Instead, reports indicate a hands-on media and creator experience, potentially following online video presentations or press releases on or around October 27. Earlier Gurman reporting described activity spanning the evening of the 27th and the full day of the 28th for influencers and media, geared toward creative professionals. Apple has not made an official public announcement.⁠

Expected Lineup

The centerpiece is Apple’s first MacBook with a touchscreen. Redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models are expected to feature:

• OLED displays (deeper blacks and better contrast than current mini-LED)
• Native touch input on macOS
• A Dynamic Island-style cutout in place of the notch
• A significantly lighter design
• M5 Pro and M5 Max chips

These high-end models are expected to stay in the MacBook Pro family rather than adopting a “MacBook Ultra” name. Apple is reportedly skipping M6 Pro/Max variants for this generation, using the existing M5 Pro/Max silicon in the redesigned Pros while introducing the newer M6 elsewhere.⁠

Also expected:

• A more conventional “chip-and-ship” 14-inch MacBook Pro updated with the M6 chip (same design as current models)

• A 24-inch iMac refreshed with the M6 chip (possible new color options, no major redesign or OLED expected)

• An OLED iPad mini with a landscape-oriented front camera (better for video calls), redesigned speaker system, and other refinements (reports have mentioned an A20 Pro chip and improved durability)

The M6 already debuted earlier in 2026 in the Mac mini (announced in August), where it brought performance and AI gains on a 2nm process. This late-October wave would expand it to additional Macs.⁠

Busy Autumn for Apple

The invites come after a packed month of Apple announcements, including the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, the company’s first foldable (iPhone Duo), HomeView smart home display, HomePod mini 2, and an updated Apple TV 4K. Software groundwork is also visible: macOS Golden Gate (macOS 27) and its 27.2 betas have added expanded touch support via Sidecar, pull-to-refresh gestures, and touch-friendly elements in apps like Safari, Photos, and Notes—widely interpreted as preparation for touchscreen Mac hardware.⁠

Apple has long resisted adding touch to the Mac, so the touchscreen MacBook Pro represents one of the biggest shifts in the notebook lineup in years. Exact pricing, availability, full specifications, and whether announcements land precisely on the 27th or 28th remain unconfirmed by Apple. Media hands-on time on the 28th would allow journalists to evaluate the hardware shortly after any online unveilings.
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MacDailyNews Take: A big month setting the table for Christmas shopping season!

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The post Apple invites media to October 28 Los Angeles launch experience for first touchscreen MacBook Pro, OLED iPad mini, and M6 Macs appeared first on MacDailyNews.

Apple’s first foldable smartphone, the iPhone Duo, sold out within minutes of pre-orders opening on October 16, 2026. Shipping estimates on Apple’s U.S. online store quickly moved to January 25, 2027 (or later), far beyond the planned October 23 availability window.⁠

The shortage has created a fast-moving secondary market on eBay, where confirmed pre-orders (not yet-delivered devices) are listing and selling at large premiums. Multiple reports document dozens of sales, with peak prices hitting $4,999.99.⁠

Notable sold prices

• A 2TB Night Sky model (Apple retail $3,199) sold for $4,999.99 — an approximately $1,800 premium. At least one such listing also added roughly $200 in shipping.⁠

• A 1TB Night Sky “confirmed pre-order” (Apple retail $2,599) sold for $4,400 — again roughly an $1,800 markup.⁠

• At least four units sold for $4,999, with many other completed sales starting at $3,000 and higher.⁠

Lower-storage configurations have also traded well above retail. Reports show 256GB models (retail $1,999) selling in the roughly $2,699–$3,800 range and 512GB models (retail $2,199) reaching nearly $4,000 in some cases. Earlier pre-launch or early-presale activity already produced multi-thousand-dollar transactions.⁠

Current listing ranges

Active eBay listings (primarily “confirmed pre-order” or expected late-October/early-November delivery slots) commonly ask $2,800–$3,750, with some higher. Buy-it-now prices in this band appear for both base and mid-tier storage in Star White and Night Sky. Physical devices are not yet in buyers’ hands, so nearly all activity involves pre-order transfers.⁠

Apple’s official U.S. pricing is $1,999 (256GB), $2,199 (512GB), $2,599 (1TB), and $3,199 (2TB). The Duo features a 7.6-inch inner foldable display and a 5.4-inch outer screen in a titanium body.⁠

Other marketplaces show far less activity. Sites such as Swappa have little or no meaningful sold pricing data yet, as the phone has not launched. eBay is currently the dominant venue for these early resales.

Premiums reflect tight initial supply, strong demand for Apple’s first foldable, and the desire for the earliest units. Sellers face eBay fees, taxes, and shipping costs that raise the practical break-even point well above retail (often into the mid-to-high $2,000s even for the base model). Buyers face typical pre-order-transfer risks, including potential scams.

As more stock arrives closer to and after the official launch window, secondary-market prices are likely to moderate. For now, early access is commanding substantial markups on eBay.
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MacDailyNews Take: Hey, let’s be careful out there.

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The post iPhone Duo pre-orders command up to $5,000 on eBay as Apple shipping slips into 2027 appeared first on MacDailyNews.

Barron’s notes that Apple’s first foldable iPhone ($1,999 starting price) saw rapid early demand after preorders opened on October 16, 2026, with shipping estimates quickly slipping into early 2027 amid constrained supply. The piece frames the sellout as a bullish signal for Apple shares, underscoring consumer enthusiasm for the new form factor under CEO John Ternus.

Angela Palumbo for Barron’s:
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Customers were able to preorder the iPhone Duo on Friday, although those eager to get their hands on the Duo won’t get delivery until the end of January. That time frame, spelled out on Apple’s website, signals that demand for the new smartphone is strong.

The Duo was announced last month alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max. Preorders of those phones started on Sept. 12, and they officially became available on Sept. 18. Some analysts have reported that wait times — how long a customer has to wait for a product — for the iPhone 18 Pro lineup have been slowing. That means that customers are getting the new iPhones quicker than some shareholders may like to see, since higher demand tends to lead to longer wait times.

There has been hope that demand for the iPhone 18 Pro wasn’t booming because consumers were just waiting to purchase the Duo. That would be a positive for Apple, as the iPhone Duo starts at $1,999 compared with the Pro at $1,199. Friday’s initial preorder response seems to indicate that may have been the case.

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MacDailyNews Take: iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max preorder wait times vs. prior years are meaningless without knowing how many units Apple had of each in their initial supplies. Nobody outside of Apple knows those data points. The same goes for iPhone Duo. Did Apple have 1 million units, 5 million units, or 10 million units or more ready to go when preorders opened today? That’s the question. We won’t know even a bit of the answer until Apple’s next earnings conference call.

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The post Apple’s iPhone Duo sold out. Preorders now ship January 29, 2027 appeared first on MacDailyNews.

Apple’s first folding smartphone, the iPhone Duo, sold out instantly when preorders opened Friday, with delivery estimates quickly slipping into January 2027 for every configuration. Bloomberg News‘ Mark Gurman reported that shipping timelines moved into early next year within minutes of the preorder window opening, underscoring both intense demand and tight initial supply for the $1,999 device.

The iPhone Duo, available in multiple colors and storage options ranging from 256 gigabytes to 2 terabytes, is scheduled for release on October 23rd. However, the rapid sell-through means many customers who reserved preferred colors and storage sizes still face multi-month waits, making it difficult to secure the foldable phone on or shortly after launch day. All variants were affected by the delays.

The preorder frenzy highlights the strong consumer interest in Apple’s entry into the foldable category, even at a premium price point. Social media users noted the sudden shift in availability, with some describing the experience of watching delivery dates move out in real time after attempting to complete orders.

Apple has not publicly commented on the supply situation or production volumes for the iPhone Duo. The constrained availability at launch is consistent with the challenges of introducing a complex new form factor, as demand outpaced the company’s initial allocation of units.
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MacDailyNews Take: If you were pre-ordering iPhone Duo, hope you had good luck! Preorders placed now result in shipping on Friday, January 29, 2027.

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In the weeks after taking the reins at Apple, John Ternus has been thrust into the spotlight as the face of the company’s next chapter. Featured on the cover of TIME’s Best Inventions of 2026 issue, the longtime hardware executive is profiled alongside the iPhone Duo — the foldable smartphone that represents Apple’s most significant design departure for its flagship product since the original iPhone in 2007.

Ternus, who became CEO on September 1, 2026, succeeded Tim Cook after a 15-year tenure noted for iteration of products developed and conceived under Steve Jobs, operational excellence, supply-chain mastery, and subscription services growth. Where Cook rose through operations, Ternus is a product guy; an engineering veteran. He joined Apple in 2001 as a product design engineer after working at a virtual reality company, having studied mechanical engineering at the University of Pennsylvania. Over more than two decades, he rose to senior vice president of Hardware Engineering in 2021, overseeing development across the Mac, iPad, iPhone, AirPods, and other lines. Colleagues describe him as pragmatic, meticulous, and collaborative—someone who embodies Apple’s design-first culture.

The TIME profile centers on the iPhone Duo as both a product milestone and a window into Ternus’s approach. Apple’s interest in foldables dates back years; in 2011, under CEO Jobs, Ternus and five other engineers filed a patent exploring batteries and circuit boards for such devices. “It felt clear that we were going to eventually get to a place where OLED displays were going to be flexible,” Ternus said. He has been blunt about the competition that arrived first: “The other examples in the world felt kind of cheap and crappy.” He added that competing surfaces “don’t feel good to the touch. They’re kind of wavy, wrinkly, and the nano texture just wipes that all out. It’s beautifully flat. It feels amazing to touch, and it’s incredibly durable.”

Ternus encouraged teams to hold out rather than settle. Apple’s vice president of product design, Richard Dinh, recalled asking whether they should proceed with materials similar to rivals’ despite their flaws. Ternus told him he would know when it was right, giving the team confidence to push further. On the Duo’s overall design, Ternus explained, “I think for us, it’s always about when do we feel like we have a product idea that meets our bar for quality and durability but also design? What I think is particularly amazing about the Duo is that it’s such a good example of hardware and software coming together to make something really special.” He described a defining moment in development: “It was like, ‘yes, that’s it.’ ‘This is what I want. And then once we have that, then it’s like okay, how do we go make it happen and make it real?’”

He also detailed the software and form-factor choices: “I think it’s something new and unique, right? But I think we didn’t want to just do what we’d seen other people do, which is sort of take two phone shapes and stick them together and then you get this weird square thing. We came at it from we want to build a large screen experience that feels right to us. And obviously we’ve been doing that for a long time with iPad. And so we knew kind of the shape, you know, we came up with this new aspect ratio.” On the relocated controls, he said, “It turns out to be an incredibly intuitive control system, because it’s there under your right thumb when it’s closed. You open it up, it’s there under your right thumb again. So I think that’s one of the biggest things with iOS is you’re going to have two screens. How do you make sure that it feels continuous?” On the $1,999 starting price, Ternus noted, “We’re always focused on building cool things that people love, but also are a really good value.”

Ternus’s early leadership style contrasts with his predessor’s. Reports indicate he has immersed himself in Apple’s industrial design and human interface teams, working hands-on in the studio multiple times a week. At the September event unveiling the Duo (just days after he became CEO), Ternus admitted, “I was on such a moment of adrenaline and caffeine and excitement for the day.” He has emphasized focus: “You can’t do everything… we kind of try to constrain ourselves to the stuff that matters most—and then put all of our effort into those things.”

On artificial intelligence — the area where Apple has faced the most scrutiny of late — Ternus defends a pragmatic path. The company has integrated Google’s Gemini technology into the revamped Siri and Apple Intelligence features. “There’s not really a goal that we have to make every single thing in a product,” he said. “We make the things where we can really bring differentiation.” Apple’s edge, he argues, lies in on-device processing, Private Cloud Compute privacy protections, and deep access to a user’s personal data. “Everything in your life is on your phone. With Siri AI, you can leverage all that information to do things, learn things, and figure out things in a way that nobody else can do.” He also pushes back against visions of AI eliminating the need for devices: “People want physical things. They want to talk, to see images of loved ones, to take pictures. So I don’t see a scenario where all of a sudden, our devices disappear and we don’t have a need for an iPhone.”

Ternus inherits significant challenges, including component shortages. “The constraints in memory are absolutely a crisis… all options should be on the table,” he said. Early signs point to a CEO who leans into Apple’s traditional strengths — design excellence, hardware – decisions more directly, his era is beginning with a clear emphasis on engineering the products that have long defined the company.
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MacDailyNews Take: Again, it’s so nice to finally have a product guy back at the helm of our favorite company again!

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Apple has released version 4.5 of its free Apple Sports app for iPhone, enhancing Live Activities so fans can see key game statistics during breaks in the action and adding support for five more soccer leagues.

The Live Activity updates, which appear on the iPhone Lock Screen and Dynamic Island (and on Apple Watch), now surface key stats during pauses across leagues. Apple says the change helps users “stay even closer to the game at a glance.” Live Activities already deliver real-time scores and play-by-play for followed teams or scheduled games without opening the app.

The new soccer competitions are Brazilian Serie B, English League One, English League Two, Norwegian Eliteserien, and the UEFA Nations League. These join a rapidly growing roster that already includes major leagues such as the Premier League, LaLiga, Bundesliga, Serie A, MLS, and many others, plus earlier 2026 additions like the Australian A-League Men, Egyptian Premier League, Israeli Premier League, South African Premiership, and various European and Asian domestic leagues.

Apple Sports launched in early 2024 as a fast, simple scores-and-stats app with personalized team and league following, widgets, and deep Live Activity integration. Throughout 2026 it has expanded aggressively — especially around the FIFA World Cup — adding formations views, tennis tournament brackets, more national availability (now in more than 170 countries and regions), and dozens of soccer competitions. The app remains iPhone-only and requires a recent iOS version.

The update is available now as a free download on the App Store. Availability of specific leagues and features can vary by region.

MacDailyNews Take: Apple Sports just keeps getting better and better – for free!

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Apple and Meta announced a collaboration on Thursday that will let developers run Meta’s large Muse Spark Open model locally on high-end Mac computers, an unusual alliance between the two longtime rivals.

The partnership centers on Muse Spark Open, an 816-billion-parameter open-weight model that uses a mixture-of-experts architecture, CNBC reports. Developers can download the model’s weights and run it on pairs of two to four Mac Studio machines equipped with Apple’s M5 Ultra chips and high amounts of unified memory. The setup is designed for coding, video analysis, and other agentic tasks, with Apple optimizing performance through its MLX framework for distributed inference across machines.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote on X that “Muse Spark Open — weights releasing today — runs great on new Mac Studios thanks to work with @johnternus and Apple.” Apple CEO John Ternus replied, “Congrats to the team! Amazing to run a model of Muse Spark Open’s caliber and scale this efficiently, right from your desk. Mac Studio keeps pushing the boundaries of on-device AI!”

@finkd Congrats to the team! Amazing to run a model of Muse Spark Open’s caliber and scale this efficiently, right from your desk. Mac Studio keeps pushing the boundaries of on-device AI!

— John Ternus (@johnternus) October 15, 2026

Meta’s AI chief Alexandr Wang said the companies had been working together for months, with former Apple executive Daniel Gross, now at Meta, playing a key role in the collaboration. “We worked with Apple to bring leading Agent capabilities to your desktop for the first time on the Apple M5 Ultra Mac Studios,” Wang said. He added that while the model is not Meta’s most capable, it is expected to attract developers who want to experiment at smaller scale before expanding.

The companies have a history of friction. They had not publicly partnered since around 2017, and tensions included Apple’s 2021 privacy changes that hurt Meta’s advertising business as well as public criticism from former Apple CEO Tim Cook and Zuckerberg. The current effort coincides with Ternus’s leadership at Apple. Representatives from both companies declined to say whether the work signals a broader ongoing relationship.

Running the model locally is intended to offer advantages in security, cost, and reduced reliance on cloud data centers. A Mac Studio with M5 Ultra and at least 256 GB of memory starts at $10,799, and multi-machine configurations raise the expense further. Meta has also purchased hundreds of Macs earlier this year for its own AI experimentation.

The announcement fits into Apple’s wider AI approach, which includes partnerships with OpenAI and Google for features in Apple Intelligence and Siri, while Meta continues advancing both proprietary and open-weight models under Wang.

It also highlights growing interest in powerful on-device AI as an alternative to cloud-only systems.
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MacDailyNews Take: As Lord Palmerston said, “There are no permanent enemies, and no permanent friends, only permanent interests.”

More info about Muse Spark Open: research.meta.ai/blog/muse-spark-open

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OpenAI has agreed not to use trade secrets that Apple claims were taken by former employees who left the iPhone maker for the AI company, a voluntary concession made during a high-stakes federal court hearing, according to Bloomberg News‘ Annelise Levy, Mark Gurman, and Georgia Fearn.

The agreement, reached Wednesday in San Jose, California, comes as U.S. District Judge Edward Davila indicated he was “highly likely” to side with Apple and issue a preliminary injunction barring OpenAI from using the allegedly misappropriated information. Davila will have the authority to enforce the accord, which also requires OpenAI to collect forensic images of devices belonging to 14 employees that may hold Apple’s confidential data.

The development marks a significant early moment in Apple’s July lawsuit accusing OpenAI, its hardware chief Tang Yew Tan, and former iPhone engineer Chang Liu of a coordinated effort to extract proprietary details on product design, manufacturing processes, component technologies, testing methods, and Apple’s supply chain. Apple alleges the information was intended to accelerate OpenAI’s push into consumer hardware, including devices Bloomberg has reported will include a doughnut-shaped smart speaker priced above $300.

Apple’s attorney John M. Desmarais told the court that the company would focus inspections on a limited group of defectors rather than a broad sweep of OpenAI’s workforce. “They don’t have 400 bad apples, your Honor, they have a few bad apples and know who they are,” he said, responding to Davila’s characterization of a wider forensic review of all relevant devices and repositories as a “huge ask.”

For OpenAI, the voluntary step avoids an outright court-ordered loss in its first major substantive clash with Apple over the matter. The ChatGPT maker has denied the allegations, arguing in filings that it has “no need or desire for Apple’s trade secrets” as it develops “a new family of devices designed for the AI era.” The companies had maintained a partnership integrating ChatGPT into Apple software even as hundreds of Apple employees moved to OpenAI, a shift that has complicated the startup’s path toward a targeted $1.4 trillion valuation and potential public listing.

Hours before the hearing, OpenAI filed its own allegations, claiming a former employee who joined from Apple, worked there for about six months, and later returned sent more than 100 highly confidential files — including images of unreleased hardware, engineering and manufacturing data, and supplier details — to personal accounts, and presented product plans to senior Apple executives. OpenAI has asked for time to investigate and potentially pursue counterclaims. Apple has said it maintains policies to prevent the use of prior employers’ confidential information and has found no supporting evidence for OpenAI’s claims.

The case is Apple v. Liu, 5:26-cv-07078, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The agreement gives Apple much of the interim protection it sought while the litigation continues, though the full scope of any eventual injunction and the merits of the trade-secret claims remain unresolved.
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MacDailyNews Take: Make that “a few bad ex-Apples.”

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Apple has committed $25 million to President Donald Trump’s planned White House ballroom project, matching the contribution from Nvidia as one of the largest gifts disclosed so far, according to a Washington Post report on Thursday.

The Post’s reporting, based on internal fundraising records, shows Apple and Nvidia each at the top of the donor list at $25 million. The Adelson family, longtime major Republican supporters, and billionaire Charles Ergen, co-founder and chairman of Dish Network, each committed the same amount. The documents indicate roughly $333 million in private donations for the project overall.

The White House has declined to release detailed donor information. Spokesman Davis Ingle described the contributors as representing “a wide array of great American companies.” Trump has previously said he and wealthy donors would cover the estimated $400 million cost of the ballroom itself. He later sought additional congressional funding for an underground bunker and security features to harden the facility.

Trump has described the overall project as including a six-story subterranean complex beneath the ballroom, with a military hospital, research facilities, bomb shelters, and other emergency and military installations. He has also said the roof would serve as a drone base or port with capacity for large numbers of drones, designed both to be drone-proof and to support defensive operations protecting Washington. Features he has outlined include hardened steel construction, missile-resistant elements, and blast-proof glass. The president has also described the ballroom itself as essentially a “shed” covering the more complex military and emergency facilities below. The White House has provided limited further details on these aspects, as many of them are classified.
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MacDailyNews Note: Apple’s $25 million gift places the Cupertino-based company among the most prominent contributors to the privately funded ballroom portion of the project.

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Apple TV has announced a season two renewal for its critically acclaimed, darkly comedic thriller “Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed.” From creator and showrunner David J. Rosen and starring Emmy Award winner Tatiana Maslany and Jake Johnson, the Rotten Tomatoes’ Certified Fresh-rated series has been hailed as “an utterly delicious thriller,” and “sharply written, consistently funny and packed with enough twists to keep viewers guessing,” with “a brilliant central performance from Tatiana Maslany.”

“We are delighted to continue the story of ‘Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed’ and deeply grateful to Apple and our incredible cast and crew,” said David J. Rosen, creator and showrunner. “This is all pretty amazing for a show whose title came from a spam email.”

“Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed” follows newly divorced mom Paula (Maslany) as she falls down a dangerous rabbit hole of blackmail, murder and youth soccer. Convinced she witnessed a crime — while simultaneously struggling through a custody battle and an identity crisis — Paula begins her own investigation, one that could unravel a greater conspiracy while also holding the keys to rebuilding her family and sense of self.

In addition to Maslany and Johnson, the ensemble cast is led by Murray Bartlett, Dolly De Leon, Brandon Flynn, Jessy Hodges, Jon Michael Hill, Charlie Hall, Kiarra Hamagami Goldberg, and Nola Wallace.

Hailing from Apple Studios and Counterpart Studios, the series is written and executive produced by creator and showrunner Rosen, and directed and executive produced by David Gordon Green. The series is also developed and executive produced by Simon Kinberg and Audrey Chon, as well as Bard Dorros for Anonymous Content.

Catch up on the complete first season of “Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed,” now streaming globally on Apple TV.

Apple TV offers premium, compelling drama and comedy series, feature films, groundbreaking documentaries, and kids and family entertainment, and is available to watch across all of a user’s favorite screens. After its launch on November 1, 2019, Apple TV became the first all-original streaming service to launch around the world, and has premiered more original hits and received more award recognitions faster than any other streaming service in its debut. To date, Apple Original films, documentaries and series have been honored with 919 wins and 3,841 award nominations and counting, including multi-Emmy Award-winning and history-making comedies “Widow’s Bay,” “The Studio” and “Ted Lasso,” global cultural phenomenon “Severance,” Apple’s most-viewed drama “Pluribus,” Academy Award Best Picture winner “CODA” and Academy Award winner “F1,” the highest-grossing sports feature of all time.

MacDailyNews Note: Apple TV is available on the Apple TV app in over 100 countries and regions, on over 1 billion screens, including iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K, Apple Vision Pro, Mac, popular smart TVs from Samsung, LG, Sony, VIZIO, TCL and others, Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices, Chromecast with Google TV, PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles, and at tv.apple.com, for $14.99 per month with a seven-day free trial for new subscribers. For a limited time, customers who purchase and activate a new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K or Mac can enjoy three months of Apple TV for free.

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[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Fred Mertz” for the heads up.]

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