Lionsgate has released an action-packed trailer for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping—a sequel to 2023’s Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and a prequel leading into the events of the first film, The Hunger Games (2012). In addition, Laika Studios released a trailer for its highly anticipated stop-motion animated feature, Wildwood.
(Some spoilers for The Hunger Games below.)
The main protagonist is a young Haymitch Abernathy, future District 12 mentor to Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta (Josh Hutcherson). Woody Harrelson’s older Haymitch is a fan favorite who later becomes a jaded, drunken (yet secretly hopeful) cynic. Per the official synopsis:
© Lionsgate
Widow’s Bay has turned its first season into one of the most decorated comedy debuts in Emmy history, collecting 14 awards at the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards and giving Apple TV its biggest awards performance for a single series this year.
The comedy-horror series won Outstanding Comedy Series alongside major acting, writing, directing, casting, cinematography, music, production design, and sound honors. Its 14 victories also set a record for the most Emmy wins by a comedy series in a single season, surpassing the benchmark established by The Studio a year earlier.
The sweep came after Widow’s Bay entered the awards cycle with 19 nominations. Apple finished the 2026 Emmys with 29 awards overall, with Widow’s Bay accounting for nearly half of the total.
Matthew Rhys won Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for his performance as Mayor Tom Loftis, the well-intentioned but frequently overwhelmed leader of a remote New England island community.
Kate O’Flynn won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, while Stephen Root took Outstanding Supporting Actor. Betty Gilpin had already secured Outstanding Guest Actress during the Creative Arts Emmys.
Creator Katie Dippold won Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for the premiere episode, while Hiro Murai received Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series. The Television Academy also recognized Murai as the first Asian director to win the comedy directing category.
Those awards gave the show victories across nearly every major creative discipline involved in building the series. Widow’s Bay also received Emmys for production design, casting, cinematography, original dramatic score, music supervision, sound editing, and sound mixing.
The breadth of the wins is notable because the show was not carried solely by one high-profile performance or writing prize. Acting, directing, writing, visual design, music, and technical execution all received separate recognition.
Apple says Widow’s Bay also earned more performance awards than any other series at the 2026 Emmys.
Created by Dippold, Widow’s Bay follows Tom Loftis as he tries to transform an isolated island town into a viable tourist destination despite warnings from residents that the community is cursed.
The premise initially plays on civic frustration and small-town politics. The island has unreliable connectivity, a skeptical population, and a mayor determined to prove that local superstition is holding economic development back. As visitors begin to arrive, the supernatural stories that Loftis has dismissed start becoming harder to explain away.
That structure allows the series to operate as both a character comedy and a genuine horror story rather than treating supernatural events simply as setups for jokes.
Dippold, whose earlier work includes The Heat and Ghostbusters, serves as creator, showrunner, writer, and executive producer. Murai, known for visually distinctive television work including Atlanta, directs and executive produces.
The executive-producing team also includes Carver Karaszewski, Claudia Shin, and Rhys.
Apple and Television Academy records list Apple Studios and Chum Films among the production companies behind the series. The directing roster extends beyond Murai to Ti West, Sam Donovan, and Andrew DeYoung.
The main cast includes Rhys, O’Flynn, Root, Kingston Rumi Southwick, Kevin Carroll, and Dale Dickey.
Widow’s Bay premiered globally on Apple TV on April 29, 2026. The first two episodes were released together before the remaining episodes arrived weekly.
Its Emmy performance places the series alongside a growing run of Apple comedies that have performed strongly with Television Academy voters.
Ted Lasso previously won Outstanding Comedy Series, followed by The Studio in 2025. Widow’s Bay gives Apple consecutive wins in the category and its fourth Outstanding Comedy Series victory across the past six Emmy ceremonies.
Apple also became the most awarded network at the 2026 Emmys with 29 wins. Pluribus contributed six, including awards for Rhea Seehorn and creator Vince Gilligan, while Margo’s Got Money Troubles and Palm Royale each received three.
Slow Horses won for directing, and Mr. Scorsese received Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series.
For Widow’s Bay itself, the 14-win total is especially significant because this is the show’s freshman season. The Television Academy confirmed six of those awards during the main September 14 telecast, while eight had already been announced during the Creative Arts ceremonies.
The combination took Widow’s Bay beyond The Studio’s previous record for a debut comedy and established a new single-season high for the category.
Rhys had an especially unusual night beyond his Widow’s Bay victory.
In addition to winning Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, he received another lead-actor Emmy for Netflix’s The Beast in Me in the limited or anthology series or movie category, making him the first performer to win two lead acting awards in different categories during the same Emmy year.
His Widow’s Bay performance is deliberately restrained compared with the increasingly strange circumstances surrounding Loftis. Rather than treating the island’s supernatural events as an invitation to broaden the comedy, Rhys largely plays the mayor as someone trying to maintain a rational civic response while the situation deteriorates.
That tonal approach runs through the rest of the production. Root and O’Flynn’s supporting performances received individual recognition, while Murai’s directing and Dippold’s writing awards reinforced how closely the series depends on maintaining tension without losing its comic rhythm.
All 10 episodes of the first season are currently available to stream on Apple TV. With the Emmy campaign complete, the show now carries a benchmark that future comedy debuts will be measured against: 14 awards from 19 nominations, capped by Outstanding Comedy Series and wins across nearly every part of the production.
The post Widow’s Bay makes Emmy history with 14 wins in its first season appeared first on AppleMagazine.
Apple unveiled iOS 27 at WWDC on June 8, 2026. It immediately entered a beta-testing phase, and was widely released on September 14.
There are three main sets of features in this update: Siri AI, which is an entirely new Siri architecture with a dedicated Siri app, new features for parental safety, and a big emphasis on system improvements like faster performance and a lot of quality-of-life features users have been asking for.
iOS 27 supports every iPhone back to the iPhone 11 and iPhone SE (2nd generation), although some Apple Intelligence and Siri features will require newer hardware.
This hub covers everything Apple has confirmed for iOS 27, including new features, compatible iPhones, beta updates, Apple Intelligence improvements and what’s changing with Siri. We also cover notable discoveries from the beta and the latest updates following the launch.
Apple made iOS 27 widely available on September 14 at around 10am Pacific Time.
The iOS 27.2 beta was released on September 16. It includes or may introduce the following:
At the time of the launch of iOS 27 not all of Apple’s promised features were available. Missing features include:
Apple
By far the biggest upgrade in iOS 27 is Siri AI – an entirely new architecture for Siri. Apple says it is more personal, conversational, and capable than the current assistant, with support for natural follow-up questions, personal context, onscreen awareness and up-to-date information from the web.
Read about what happened when we made Siri AI Answer all our Messages.
Siri AI represents a significant improvement over the old Siri, particularly when handling conversational questions, current information, and personal context. It also has a dedicated app where you can see and continue previous conversations, upload images or documents, and more.
Even in our early tests during the beta, Siri AI proved to be much more helpful and useful.
It’s definitely one of the biggest reasons to upgrade to iOS 27, potentially changing Siri from a basic voice-command system into a more general way of interacting with the iPhone.
Apple’s approach to AI safety also appears more restrained than some rival chatbots, with Siri designed to avoid excessive flattery, pretending to be human, or responding inappropriately to potentially harmful requests.
However, Siri AI is launching as a “beta” feature and still requires a bit of polish. It’s also only available in English at first, with a handful of other languages/regions coming in October with iOS 27.1.
Regional Siri AI availability
Siri AI will not initially be available on iPhone or iPad in the EU. It will also remain unavailable in China while Apple works through regulatory issues. The first release only supports the English language, and initially has Expressive Voices for English (UK) and English (US). Several other languages are coming with the iOS 27.1 update in October.
Siri AI requires an iPhone 15 Pro or later, and the “new expressive voices” feature requires an iPhone 17 Pro or the new iPhone 18 Pro.
As well as Siri AI, the enhanced Apple Intelligence will power new features in Apple’s core apps throughout iOS 27. Safari can organize tabs into topics, monitor webpages for changes and even build extensions from natural-language descriptions. Photos gains a new Spatial Reframing edit tools including an upgraded Clean Up feature. Messages, Mail, and Calendar can now understand context, suggest actions and create events from simple descriptions.
iOS 27 brings a mix of major Apple Intelligence upgrades and smaller quality-of-life improvements across Safari, Photos, Messages, AirPods, Passwords, Wallet, and other core iPhone apps. Apple is also making iOS more adaptable to different screen sizes and orientations, which are changes necessary for the iPhone Duo.
Safari can automatically group open tabs into topics, making related pages easier to find. A new Notify Me feature will monitor webpages and alert you to changes such as price drops or products coming back into stock.
There’s also a new Describe an Extension feature which lets users create custom Safari extensions simply by explaining what they want the extension to do.
Apple
Photos gains significantly more powerful AI editing tools.
Reframe can alter the composition and perspective of an existing photo, while Extend generates new image content beyond the original frame when straightening a horizon or changing the aspect ratio.
Apple
Clean Up has also been improved, with Fast and High Quality modes for removing unwanted objects or details. High Quality mode can produce considerably more natural results, although more ambitious edits can still introduce distortions or invented details.
Photos also adds new categories and the ability to save a frame from a video as a full-resolution photo. The resulting HEIF or JPG retains the video’s original resolution, date, and location metadata rather than simply creating a screenshot.
iOS 27 features a new more customizable camera interface that lets you pin the controls you use most often. For the iPhone 18 Pro, there are also “pro controls” like white balance, shutter speed, and manual focus along with Apple Reference Image, an authentication system designed to prove that a photo or video was genuinely captured on an iPhone and has not subsequently been manipulated.
The new Siri mode in the Camera app is a more convenient and logical way to access the Visual Intelligence features that used to require either a long-press of the camera button or a Control Center button.
Foundry
Messages gets several useful improvements.
You can decide what the microphone button beside the text field does. Under Settings > Apps > Messages > Show in Text Field, it can be set to Record Audio, Start Dictation, or None. Disabling it does not remove either feature: dictation remains available from the keyboard and audio messages remain in the + menu.
Voice-message playback controls are easier to access, while Apple Intelligence can suggest actions based on a conversation, such as creating a reminder, making a note, or finding relevant photos.
Messages in iOS 27 will gains smarter suggested replies that can better reflect the user’s writing style. (This was removed from the iOS 27 beta and wasn’t available at the launch of iOS 27).
Foundry
A new dedicated Drawing app replaces the old hidden handwriting interface. Accessible from the + menu, it uses the familiar pens, colours and drawing controls found in Notes and Markup, with finished drawings sent as images.
Mail gains more context-aware smart replies, including responses that can better match the user’s usual writing style.
Apple Intelligence can also surface information from Mail elsewhere in iOS. For example, the Phone app could retrieve a flight confirmation number from an email when you call an airline.
A new Call Context feature can surface information that may be useful when on a call. Apple says the information is selected according to who you are calling rather than by listening to the conversation. For example, calling an airline could cause iOS to surface the relevant flight confirmation from Mail.
Birthday reminders can also appear when calling contacts whose birthdays are stored on the iPhone.
FaceTime gains Dual Capture, allowing the front and rear cameras to be used at the same time during a call.
Passwords in iOS 27 will fix things for you.
Apple
The Passwords app continues to warn about weak, reused and compromised credentials, but iOS 27 will go a step further by offering to fix some of them automatically.
Using Apple Intelligence, Passwords can visit supported websites, change a vulnerable password and save the replacement credentials. See: Apple got rid of my biggest password headache.
The usefulness of the feature will depend on how widely websites are supported and how well it handles obstacles such as two-factor authentication and unusual account-management interfaces.
Apple removed this ability to detect compromised passwords and replace them from the beta shortly before the release of iOS 27. It’s expected to arrive with a later update.
Shortcuts gains Describe a Shortcut, allowing users to create automations simply by explaining what they want to happen.
Apple Intelligence interprets the request and assemble the appropriate actions across supported apps, potentially making Shortcuts significantly easier to use for people unfamiliar with building automations manually.
Calendar can create or modify events from natural-language instructions.
Apple says the app can recognize contacts, locations, dates and other event details as users type, reducing the amount of information that needs to be entered manually.
Siri can also create complete Calendar entries for information that is on your screen in that moment, or by taking a picture with the Siri mode in the Camera app.
Image Playground is considerably more powerful and realistic.
Apple says it can create photorealistic images and lets users modify generated pictures simply by describing the changes they want. Individual objects can also be selected, resized, or repositioned.
AI-generated images will include a SynthID watermark identifying them as synthetic content. This particular feature wasn’t available at launch, but Apple has confirmed it is coming later.
Wallet can create custom passes from QR codes.
Users can add their own fields and information to the pass, and passes automatically sync to Apple Watch.
Weather gets a clearer, more detailed forecast interface, with rearranged information tiles and new 10-day views showing precipitation probability/amount and wind speed throughout each day.
Apple Intelligence comes to the Home app for compatible HomeKit Secure Video cameras. It can group related camera notifications, describe recorded video and highlight clips that appear particularly noteworthy.
Apple Maps improves Flyover using higher-quality aerial imagery and Visual Intelligence models.
Apple says this produces sharper architectural detail and more realistic rendering of elements such as individual trees.
Video podcasts become easier to use, with improved controls for switching between watching a podcast and simply listening to it.
Workout summaries have been redesigned to make them easier to share.
Users can also hide completed Fitness+ workouts.
CarPlay gains an audio scrubber, giving drivers and passengers more direct control when moving through audio tracks and other content.
iOS 27 introduces several new AirPods features.
A new Custom EQ lets users independently adjust bass, mids and treble using a simple three-band equalizer under Settings > AirPods > Audio and Routing > Equalizer > Custom.
Compatible AirPods also gain improved Precision Finding through Find My, making individual earbuds easier to locate.
Some features require both iOS 27 and compatible AirPods firmware.
It’s not only individual apps that are seeing changes.
Apple is making iOS significantly more flexible when dealing with different screen orientations and sizes.
More Apple apps now work properly in landscape, including Health, Home, Music, Weather, and Watch. Dynamic Island and Live Activities can also adapt to landscape orientation. The Home Screen supports extra-large widgets.
These changes could simply improve iPhone usability, but they’re also well suited to Apple’s folding iPhone Duo.
iPhone Mirroring in macOS 27 has similarly become freely resizable, with Apple apps dynamically rearranging their interfaces as the window changes shape.
Apple
Apple says Liquid Glass has been refined for better readability, more uniform refraction and improved contrast. A new slider lets users adjust the look from ultraclear to fully tinted, while updated icons, toolbars, sidebars and window shapes add polish.
iOS 27 finally separates several sound-volume controls.
Instead of one combined Ringtone and Alerts slider, users can independently adjust:
The change is optional. Under Settings > Sounds & Haptics, turning off Match Ringtone Volume reveals separate controls.
Media and call volume continue to work independently as before.
iOS 27 introduces a new quick-paste control above the keyboard.
It lets you paste recently copied text, images or screenshots without having to long-press inside a text field, making everyday copy-and-paste considerably faster.
Apple has also made the Liquid Glass keyboard design more consistent across apps.
iOS 27 introduces the ability to temporarily pause Find My location sharing without notifying the person with whom the location is normally shared.
Apple is also expanding the iPhone’s recovery interface, giving users more options for diagnosing problems and recovering an iPhone without immediately connecting it to another device.
Alongside the headline AI features, Apple says iOS 27 includes a wide range of under-the-hood improvements designed to make iPhones faster, smoother and more efficient.
Apps can launch up to 30% faster, newly taken photos can appear in the Photos library up to 70% faster, and AirDrop transfers can be up to 80% quicker. External drive transfers should also improve, while updates to network performance and the system-wide search index are designed to make connectivity and finding information faster.
The company has also reworked core technologies including CPU scheduling, display performance and processing efficiency. These changes should benefit older iPhones in particular, with Apple promising smoother performance and more efficient battery use on devices as old as the iPhone 11 and second-generation iPhone SE.
Our testing of the iOS 27 beta supports those claims. On an iPhone 11 Pro Max, Camera launch time fell from 0.98 seconds in iOS 26 to 0.65 seconds in iOS 27, while Maps improved from 3.01 seconds to 1.36 seconds.
Everyday use also feels smoother, with more fluid animations, unlocking, Control Center and app transitions. The phone ran cooler during testing too, which could point to improved system efficiency and potentially better battery performance.
More broadly, iOS 27 appears focused on refinement rather than simply adding new features. Apple says it has addressed dozens of common user frustrations, while changes such as more adjustable Liquid Glass effects are intended to improve readability and general usability.
That focus should make iOS 27 particularly worthwhile for owners of older iPhones, even on models that do not support Siri AI. Those devices still gain performance improvements alongside features such as clipboard tools for the keyboard, independent alarm and timer volume controls, custom Wallet passes, Photos changes, larger widgets, and Liquid Glass refinements.
Apple
There are lots of improvements to parental controls, including new time allowances for entertainment, games, and social media, and new schedule tools for different times of day or days of the week.
This includes new features like an expansion of the existing “ask to buy” feature for apps to websites. Before a child can view a new website, they’ll have to ask for permission.
Ask to Browse: Ask to Browse will expand the current Ask to Buy feature to the web. Children will need to request permission before visiting new websites, and parents can review requests in Messages before approving.
Communication Safety: Communication Safety continues to help protect children from viewing or sharing nudity in Messages, FaceTime and other apps. Apple says it will also intervene before children see gore or violent content in shared images and videos.
Time Allowances and schedules: Parents can set Time Allowances across categories such as Entertainment, Games and Social Media. Recommendations are based on a child’s age combined with guidance from clinical and child development experts. Schedules let parents choose which apps are available at different times or on different days.
Redesigned Screen Time: Screen Time gets a redesigned interface with an at-a-glance view of average device usage and most-used apps. Apple says parents can quickly limit or extend access in the moment.
Child accounts and family safety: Apple says child accounts remain central to age-appropriate protections. Parents can manage app access, web access, communication permissions and Screen Time settings.
Apple says it is working with the American Academy of Pediatrics to adapt its Family Media Plan.
Accessibility features are smarter and more intuitive in iOS 27:
Roman Loyola/IDG
According to Apple, iOS 27 supports iPhones back to the iPhone 11 and second-generation iPhone SE, although some Apple Intelligence and Siri AI features require newer hardware.
Support for iOS 27 does not mean every device gets every feature. Apple Intelligence and Siri AI require an iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 16 or later, while the most advanced on-device AI models require an iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone Air, or iPhone 18 Pro. On iPad, Apple Intelligence requires an M1-class model or the A17 Pro iPad mini, while the newest on-device models require an M4 iPad with at least 12GB of RAM.
There had been speculation that the iPhone 11 series and iPhone SE 2 would miss out on iOS 27 after leaker Instant Digital claimed on Weibo that the 2019 iPhone 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max, along with the 2020 iPhone SE 2, would no longer be supported. That prediction proved incorrect, giving those models at least one more year of software support.
However, the iPhone 11 generation is nearing the end of its support life. As we explain in our guide to how long Apple supports iPhones, the iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max have already been added to Apple’s Vintage iPhone list.
The iOS 27 compatibility list is:
The main dividing line for Apple Intelligence remains the iPhone 15 Pro generation: the standard iPhone 15 and all older models can run iOS 27, but they do not support Apple Intelligence.
iOS 27 was released on September 14, 2026.
The iPhone 11 and iPhone SE 2 and newer get iOS 27. However, Siri AI and other Apple Intelligence features require iPhone 15 Pro or newer, and the new more expressive Siri voices feature requires iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, or newer.
The only iPhones that can run Siri AI are the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max and any newer generation. If you have a standard iPhone 15 then you won’t get Siri AI and Apple Intelligence.
Just a couple days after the wide release of iOS 27, Apple has released the first beta of iOS 27.2. That’s not a typo: it’s iOS 27.2, not 27.1. We never saw a 27.1 release, but Apple is beginning beta tests for the 27.2 branch.
This likely has something to do with the iPhone Duo, which is going on sale in October. We know the iPhone Duo will come with iOS 27.1, but we don’t yet know if any other devices will ever get a 27.1 update, or when all the devices will get on the same version together.
As beta testers report new capabilities in this version, we’ll report them here.
New Health app: The 27.2 beta includes the new Health app, with a totally new redesign and AI-powered health insights.
Siri AI languages: Apple said that Siri AI, which launched supporting only U.S. English, will expand to French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, and Spanish in October.
Messages suggestions: A feature of the iOS 27 beta that was cut for the full release, the feature that suggests replies in Messages may return in 27.2.
Automatically fix passwords: Another feature cut just before the final iOS 27 release is the ability to automatically fix compromised passwords. That might return in 27.2 as well.
If you want to test the iOS 27 beta releases but are not a registered developer, follow these steps:
It may take a few moments after registering for the beta option to appear in Software Update.
You’ll need to be registered as an Apple developer, but a free developer account will do. You can get one via Xcode or the Apple Developer app in iOS. Here’s how to do it via the Apple Developer app:
Find out everything you need to know about iOS 27 in our iOS 27 superguide.
Apple (Hacker News, MacRumors):
Our solution hinges on splitting the Apple Reference Image process into two phases: creating a secure digital negative, and developing that negative into a reference image. Each phase receives our strongest protections.
[…]
Apple Reference Image provides both a lower bound and an upper bound on capture time from Apple’s cryptographic timestamp service, and we guarantee the photo was taken between the two bounds. On a regular heartbeat, the device requests a cryptographic timestamp token, and retains the most recent one it has received. Globally this happens on average every 15 minutes, though the interval depends on local network conditions. This provides a proven lower bound timestamp for the photographic capture. After capture, the device requests a second timestamp to use as an upper bound, and both timestamps are embedded and signed with the sensor data.
[…]
When the user chooses to create a reference image, the device uploads the digital negative to PCC, which runs the processing steps needed to render the image — including demosaicing, tone mapping, and compression — in a highly secure, private, and verifiable environment. Experts can verify that PCC doesn’t alter a digital negative during development: they can examine the software that does the work.
[…]
Finally, as no security system is perfect, we created a revocation system that can revoke individual photos, as well as all photos from a specific sensor.
[…]
We built Apple Reference Image to avoid using an explicit, public credential for photographers, and to avoid even implicit public association between different photos taken by the same sensor. The final reference image is instead signed by Apple’s signing service, after validation by PCC.
Previously:
GM made the decision to drop Apple CarPlay and Android Auto phone casting from its newer EVs, and it’s one we’ve been pretty critical of. Although the automaker told us it made that decision in order to offer a better, more unified experience to its customers, that may well have changed: here, customers still have the choice to just cast their phone to the center screen.
And it has done a better job of integrating CarPlay and Android Auto into the experience, putting the casting apps in a large window or tile that takes up most but not all of the infotainment screen. To the left is another card that allows you to access other native apps, like towing or music (although you can still have CarPlay as the source for that native music app, should you start feeling a little Inceptionish). Porsche took a similar approach to working with, rather than against, users who enjoy CarPlay, and this looks like a welcome step from GM.
GM’s spokesperson wouldn’t be drawn on whether this means we’re going to see a corporate retreat from the previous stance on EVs, but I will note that the press release it sent Ars does say that the system was built “as a single scalable foundation across electric, gas and diesel-powered vehicles, it transforms time spent behind the wheel into an effortless, personalized journey,”—emphasis mine.
Matthew Haughey (via John Gruber):
The car industry accidentally did something I’ve always wanted to see, which was to release basically the same car under two brands and models, with one major consumer-facing difference. It’s kind of remarkable how good of a experimental design this is, since the performance and driving characteristics of both cars are identical, but drivers in one model get a major phone integration the others do not.
[…]
For the years these cars were sold together, the Honda outsold the Blazer by 43%, 73%, and 166% in each time period. Today in 2026, people are buying a Honda Prologue over one and a half times more often than the Chevy Blazer EV the Prologue is based on.
My favorite CarPlay feature is when it’s reading a text message to me and I go to tap the “Done” button and it suddenly turns into a “Call” button underneath my finger and I have to wait for all of the animations to finish before I can actually end the call and then I wonder (a) did the person notice that I called them for a few seconds and (b) do I need to explain that now and (c) are they going to call me back now and (d) HOW DID THIS INTERFACE EVER SHIP oh my god
Previously:
Here’s the 17 family data as a percentage of overall usage for Widgetsmith.
Generally they followed the usual adoption pattern, and overall did very well ending at around 20% of total usage.
With the exception of the Air really struggling to find market share. For comparison the 16 Plus ended its first year at around 1.4% (vs the Air’s 0.3%).
This works out to about 6% of my iPhone users using the iPhone Air, or about 20x more proportionally than David's more mainstream app. Honestly, the numbers are pretty striking here, with David showing a pretty even split between the iPhone 17, 17 Pro, and 17 Pro Max, slightly decreasing in that order. Meanwhile, almost half of my users are on the Pro Max, another quarter are on the Pro, and the 17 is neck and neck with the Air. Clearly, my customers lean more enthusiast and are higher end buyers on average.
The apparent unpopularity of the iPhone Air is not what caught my eye. Instead, it is the percentage of iPhone 17e users: 0.5% of Widgetsmith users, and something like 1–2% of the total iPhone 17 generation in Birchler’s.
The iPhone 17e hasn’t been on sale for as long, though.
In the entire year since the iPhone Air was announced, I’ve never seen Apple advertise it. No billboards, no commercials. It raises a chicken/egg question: did no one buy it because Apple didn’t market it, or did Apple not market it because no one wanted it?
[…]
But the shame of these low iPhone Air sales reminds me, very much, of the late great iPhone 12 and 13 Mini — also a truly great design, also terribly disappointing sales numbers.
Previously:
A 1.000 anos-luz da Terra, o telescópio James Webb encontrou algo que parece desafiar a própria fronteira entre estrela e planeta: anãs castanhas com apenas duas vezes a massa de Júpiter. E há uma investigadora portuguesa entre os responsáveis pela descoberta.
The post Estrelas que não conseguiram nascer ou planetas com origem diferente? James Webb procura a resposta appeared first on Tek Notícias.
With the launch of iOS 27 this week, Apple Intelligence has reached maturity, with a real chatbot assistant in Siri AI, powerful photo editing tools, and legitimately good image generation.
And it’s mostly free. Unlike ChatGPT, Claude, and other AI tools, which charge monthly fees for anyone who uses the service more than occasionally. For example, the free Claude plan has “session-based usage limits” that can kick in when you’re using it too much. Those limits don’t exist with Siri AI or any of the Apple Intelligence tools.
Apple does charge for HomeKit Secure Video features. Apple has always tied HomeKit Secure Video to iCloud accounts for recording and viewing footage, but the Apple Intelligence features are costlier. Here’s what Apple charges now:
HomeKit Secure Video recording
However, that 2TB plan, which costs $9.99 a month, is the least you can spend to get Apple’s new AI Home app features, including video descriptions for recorded clips and natural-language search. And that only supports a single camera:
HomeKit Secure Video recording with AI
A setup with five cameras that costs you $2.99 a month will now cost $59.99 a month if you want to include AI summaries. That’s a steep increase just to get AI summaries, but it speaks to the overall expense of AI. Storing and analyzing 4K videos all day long isn’t cheap. And Apple cautions that “camera counts and other iCloud+ plan features may change over time,” so costs could go up.
And it sounds like Apple is going to charge for other services soon. On the Apple Intelligence usage limits support page, Apple warns that limits are coming to other features, including Siri AI and Photos:
In the future, Apple will implement usage limits on these and other Apple Intelligence and Siri AI features to ensure a high-quality, reliable experience for everyone. If you reach a limit in a particular feature, that feature will become available again after a time out period. Limits may vary by feature, request complexity, system demand, system policies, and other factors. Increased access to such features will be available for a fee.
It’s not clear when Apple will begin charging for AI features and conversations or how much it will cost, but enjoy your free Apple Intelligence while it lasts.
Apple’s Siri voice assistant was famously bad for a long time, but the company turned a corner with the launch of Siri AI, an upgraded assistant powered by the latest generation of Apple Intelligence with better accuracy and more features. Siri AI was announced at WWDC in June 2026 and arrived with iOS 27 on September 14. But it isn’t immediately available to everyone: access depends on your iPhone model, software version, language, Apple Account region, and a temporary waiting list.
So how do you actually get it? Siri AI doesn’t simply appear on your iPhone; you’ll need to clear a few hurdles before you can turn it on. In this brief tutorial, we explain what might be holding things up and show you how to get Siri AI on your iPhone.
First, update your iPhone to iOS 27 if you haven’t already. Open the Settings app and go to General > Software Update, then wait while your iPhone checks for available updates. If you see multiple options, select the latest iOS 27 version and follow the onscreen instructions to download and install it.
Your iPhone will restart when the update is complete.
Siri AI and the latest Apple Intelligence features require lots of space. Depending on your iPhone, Apple says you may need up to 14GB of available storage.
To check, go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage. If you’re running short, you’ll need to free up some space before Siri AI can finish downloading. See: How to save space on an iPhone.
Has Apple made Siri AI available in your country yet?
If your Apple Account is registered in the European Union, you’re mostly out of luck. Apple has delayed the launch of Siri AI for iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch in the EU, claiming that it needs more time to comply with the Digital Markets Act. The EU disputes Apple’s interpretation of the law. There is some hope that the situation may change. In the meantime, EU users can access Siri AI on a compatible Mac or Apple Vision Pro.
Users in mainland China also miss out on Siri AI while, in Tim Cook’s words, “Apple works through regulatory requirements.”
Siri AI currently supports English only. Wherever you are, you’ll need to have your device language and Siri language both set to English.
Once Siri AI has been activated, it will continue working even if you travel to a region where it isn’t available. Eligibility depends on your Apple Account region and device, rather than simply your location.
The next step is to make sure your iPhone is compatible with Siri AI, which makes substantial demands on the processor and therefore won’t run on older and slower hardware.
Siri AI supports the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max, every iPhone 16 model and later, and iPhone Air.
Here’s a list of currently available iPhones that can run Siri AI. Any phones that Apple launches in the future will also be compatible.
If you’re unsure which iPhone model you’ve got, open the Settings app and go to General > About then look for Model Name in the top box.
Is your iPhone on the list? Great! There are just a couple more steps to take. (Plus potentially a bit of a wait.)
Siri AI is also available on the following Apple devices:
For more detail, read our article listing all Siri AI-compatible devices.
You can join a waiting list to get Siri AI.
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Open the Settings app and tap Siri. If Siri is currently turned off, enable it before continuing. At the top of the screen, tap Try Siri AI (Beta), then follow the onscreen instructions to choose a voice, complete voice enrollment, and review the privacy settings.
Once setup is complete, you’ll be added to Apple’s waiting list and the status will change to Joined Waiting List.
Now you wait. Some iPhone owners have gained access within minutes, while others have waited for hours or days. Wait times vary, but Siri AI will download automatically when access is granted. You’ll receive a notification when it’s ready to use.
Then you can start exploring the first truly capable version of Siri in years and all sorts of cool new features. Have fun.
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