iPhone 8 price, release date, news and rumors

The iPhone 8 release date and price are only four days from being announced, as Apple is ready to confirm all of the rumours at its new campus in Cupertino, California. We have an invite to the much-anticipated September 12 event.

Apple's 10th anniversary iPhone will debut at the company's Steve Jobs Theater venue, a fitting stage for the announcement of a completely redesigned iPhone.

Before you get too excited about the new iPhone, you should know these two things: it'll be the most expensive phone you've ever bought and the release date may not be as soon as you've been anticipating.

HOW APPLE COULD BRING AUGMENTED REALITY TO THE MASSES WITH ARKIT AND IOS 11

Some of the biggest tech companies — Apple, Google, and Microsoft to name a few – seem sure that augmented reality (AR) is going to take smartphones to the next level. So far, it’s all been talk, but that could change before the end of this year. Apple is preparing to unleash ARKit, a brand-new framework for creating this kind of content.

AR has been a priority for Apple for some time. The company has spent a great deal of time and effort hiring staff and acquiring startups to ensure that it has all the talent it needs once the technology is mature enough for the masses. Now, we’re on the verge of Apple’s AR coming-out party: the release of iOS 11.

APPLE IPHONE X (2017) RUMORS AND NEWS

3D camera for next iPhone's facial/iris recognition reportedly on track for delivery

 Update: Apple’s 3D camera supplier is apparently on track to deliver sensors for the next iPhone’s iris and facial recognition.

Apple’s next iPhone isn’t supposed to arrive until much later in 2017, but that hasn’t stopped legions of fans from fervently speculating about it. Things may be a little different this year, as it’s the 10th anniversary of the iPhone. Rumors suggest we may see up to three models — the iPhone 7S, the 7S Plus, and the iPhone X (aka, the iPhone 8). The latter is expected to be an expensive, technical showcase phone released as a celebratory model.

What can auto makers do to better incorporate mobile technology?

A couple of years ago, Google and Apple both unveiled their latest mobile operating systems. No, I don’t mean mobile as in phones, I mean mobile as in cars. Since then, there has been a steady increase in adoption by auto manufacturers who are bringing this tech to the road. Last year, only a few car manufacturers were able to bring Android Auto and/or Apple CarPlay to their vehicles. This year, the list is much longer, and so it will go until not having a connected vehicle will be the exception rather than the rule. Connected vehicles are coming, do not doubt.

Apple schedules long-rumored March event: bring on the new hardware

The first few months of the new year are no fun for Apple fans: Android and Windows enthusiasts get to check out all sorts of new gear at CES and MWC, while everybody goes gaga over Samsung’s latest flagships. But this year, maybe more than most, there’s been hope of some big Apple news in the spring: for months now, we’ve been hearing rumors about a new four-inch iPhone, and now it finally seems ready to launch. Better still, it could be joined by new iPad hardware, bringing Apple Pencil support to a more traditionally sized tablet. But when could we actually hope to see these new devices launch? Sources late last month suggested Apple was eying a March 21 date, slightly pushed back from earlier March 15 rumors. Now that’s picking up official confirmation, as Apple sends out invites for just such a March 21 event.

Apple’s first OLED iPhone might be its biggest yet, with 5.8-inch screen

Apple’s near-term smartphone future may include a return to smaller screens, but for the longer outlook some recent rumors haven’t been talking so much about size, but about screen tech: and namely, when we might see Apple move past the LCD panels it’s been using for years and give us an iPhone with an OLED display. We’ve heard industry reports suggesting that Apple could bring us an OLED iPhone as soon as next year (though others suggest a slower timetable), and now the latest adds another twist to this OLED story, claiming that the iPhone that brings us OLED screens could be Apple’s largest to date.

iPhone 7 rumored to take several thickness-reducing measures, lack waterproofing

Apple-specialized tipsters can never be content speculating about a future iPhone version at a time, so even though the SE, aka 5se or 6c isn’t official yet, there’s plenty of 7 gossip going around for several months now.

The latest report from Japan reiterates and “confirms” a number of past rumors, including the nearly guaranteed headphone jack exclusion, also adding a few new things in the mix. For instance, insiders tell us the iPhone 7 could measure just 6.1mm in depth, a whole millimeter south of the already wasp waist of the 6s.

New iOS 9.3 beta 4 arrives – but what’s happening with Apple Pencil support?

In Barcelona this week, phone makers are showing off hardware running all variety of mobile platforms: Android, Windows 10 Mobile, Cyanogen OS, Ubuntu, and more. That list is missing at least one very prominent operating system, but it won’t be long now before Apple and iOS are at the center of our attention, with rumors pointing to a mid-March hardware launch event. In preparation for its latest gear, Apple’s been hard at work on its next version of iOS, and going back the past few weeks now we’ve been tracking its progress on iOS 9.3. Today we see the release of the latest iOS 9.3 beta, while we also pick up some possibly troubling news about a change for how an important Apple accessory operates.

The San Bernardino iPhone: FBI dismisses iCloud siphoning as victims side against Apple

As the papers, folders, experts, laypeople, presidential candidates and lawyers line up to play their role in what could be the start of a legal saga that will determine how government treads upon encryption, it seems that the party who may hold the most emotional sway in this case have chosen a side.

Stephen Larson, a federal judge turned private lawyer, is now representing some of the victims of the San Bernardino shootings and has said to Reuters that they will file legal briefs on the side of the government.

The government has ordered Apple to create a version of its iOS mobile platform that will allow investigators unlimited attempts at entry into Syed Farook’s iPhone 5c without triggering a data wipe. Farook, along with his wife, killed 14 people and wounded 22 others at the Inland Regional Center in December.

Apple’s four-inch iPhone and new iPad Air tablet could go up for sale in just over a month

Sometime in the last month or two, the idea that Apple’s about to announce a new four-inch iPhone passed somewhere from the stuff of rumors to what was starting to feel a lot more like a certainty. And as reports closed in on a possible March announcement for the new hardware, this once-fanciful notion was on the verge of becoming quite real, indeed. Now we’re looking forward to not only the phone we’re hearing will launch as the iPhone 5se, but also a new iPad Air 3, and maybe even some new Apple Watch hardware. March 15 is our best guess for Apple’s announcement of all this new gear, but assuming that does go down as anticipated, when might this new hardware actually go up for sale? Today, rumors finally start tackling that question.

Save $100 on the Apple Watch with Target’s latest deal

Apple’s rumored March event is just another month away, and word is that the Apple Watch will be taking the spotlight for at least part of the announcements. Some rumors suggest we could be looking at as little as new band hardware, while other reports point to some much more substantial news, including the launch of upgraded versions of the Watch itself. Changes could include improvements to the wearable’s battery, a new SoC, or on the more extreme end, maybe even an integrated camera for FaceTime support. While we’re still not sure just what we’re getting, if you’re nto afraid of being a little behind the times when that new hardware rolls around, now’s looking like a pretty sweet opportunity to pick up last year’s Apple Watch, as Target gives shoppers a $100-off deal.

Latest iPhone 5se hardware rumors paint the picture of a much more capable handset

It finally feels like the home stretch is nearly upon us, and all the rumors we’ve been hearing about Apple’s interest in releasing a new iPhone that looks back to the smaller sizes of older handsets may finally be coming to fruition. Lately, they’ve settled in on the name iPhone 5se, while describing hardware that might look like the iPhone 5, while performing like the iPhone 6, getting that model’s A8/M8 chip pair. But while that older silicon could be sufficient for some users, apparently Apple’s not so sure it wants to bank on a new phone with yesterday’s chips, and now a new iPhone 5se rumor claims that Apple’s also been testing the phone with an A9/M9 setup – and this could be the model we’re more likely to see commercially released.

Possible Apple iPad Air 3 schematic takes cues from the iPad Pro

Last year came and went without bringing us a new standard-sized iPad option. Sure we got the new iPad Pro, as well as a refreshed iPad mini 4, but nothing new in the 9.7-inch space. But while the presumed iPad Air 3’s remained elusive, we have managed to hear a little about what we might expect from the tablet when it finally does launch, including maybe a big resolution bump, or a ton of extra RAM – even if we don’t get 3D Touch. With multiple sources pointing to an H1 2016 launch, this new iPad Air could be right around the corner – so when are we going to get some more definitive intel on the tablet? Well, we’re not yet sure how much faith we should be placing in this new find, but a recently published schematic may reveal at least a few changes Apple’s working on for the hardware.

Apple continues to tweak Night Shift mode in new iOS 9.3 beta 2

Two weeks back, Apple gave developers their first look at the upcoming 9.3 release of iOS, and maybe most notable among the new features it delivered was a mode for adjusting screen color temperature in the hopes of offering more comfortable late-night usage: Night Shift. Apple’s been continuing to refine things behind the scenes since that early release, and today we see the company see its second iOS 9.3 beta to devs, further refining the Night Shift experience while making a few other tweaks around the operating system.

With iOS 9.3 beta 2, users will notice a new Night Shift interface for the iOS Control Center, giving users quick access for either toggling on Night Shift temporarily, or setting it to remain engaged until morning.

Second-gen Apple Watch now said to enter mass production in Q2

It’s hard to say what the ideal release cycle might be for smartwatches these early days in their evolution, but apparently, Apple aims to follow its traditional 12-month upgrade window after all.

According to notoriously fickle “sources from the upstream supply chain” quoted by Digitimes, the “second-generation” Apple Watch should only enter mass production in the year’s second quarter, thus having no chance to see daylight as soon as March. Unless, of course, we’re talking a March announcement and subsequent commercial launch in April or May.

IPAD PRO REVIEW

A lot of people didn’t understand the first iPad way back when. You’d hear things like “what a dumb idea — It’s too big!” or jokes about it just being a big iPhone. Then the iPad went on to kick off an entirely new era in tablets, phones, laptops, and other gadgets. It’s gotten thinner, sexier, and smarter each year, but not even Apple’s magic has managed to save the iPad from slumping sales.
As our phones have gotten bigger, our need for smaller tablets has all but disappeared. Our real computer is in our pockets, and we don’t need to carry around a slightly bigger version of the iPhone any more. We need something different that changes the game again.

How to backup your iPhone and iPad to save your iOS data

Data loss is a fact of life - you drop your phone, it hits the ground, shatters to pieces, and chances are you lost the majority of your data on the device. Thankfully, we have services like iCloud that automatically backup your data, making it easily retrievable in the case of a shattered or damaged smartphone.

Unfortunately, it isn't the best solution for backing up data, particularly because Apple just isn't the best when it comes to cloud services. Security is a big concern with iCloud, and if you ever want to get more storage, it's quite pricey compared to competitors. The company also gives you a mere 5GB of cloud storage that it's hardly possible to backup all of the pertinent data on your iOS device, especially if you have a large photo library full of special moments you want to keep.

Top 5 best iPhone games you need to play this week

When you’re browsing the App Store, it can be challenging to find the best games for your iPhone because of the sheer amount of choice available. To help out, here’s our roundup of the games we think are worth downloading and playing this week. No matter your personal preference — whether it’s a strategy game, a kart racing game, or a puzzle game — we’ve got you covered.

Here are our top 5 best iPhone games you should play this week:

Hands On: iOS 9 Beta has already made our iPhone and iPad a lot smarter

Apple introduced iOS 9 at WWDC 2015, and now we’ve installed the first beta on our iPhone 6 Plus and an iPad Air 2, so we can see what’s new, what’s great, and what’s not. The new software contains most of the cool new features Apple announced during its keynote, but not all, so this isn’t a comprehensive review — but a glimpse of how the latest version of iOS is shaping up so far.

With this in mind, and taking into account the short time it has been available, here are our first impressions of the iOS 9 beta 1:

Looks like iOS 8, but with new apps

While the first iOS 9 beta looks visually very close to iOS 8, there are a handful of great new features that change the user experience. One of the first things you’ll notice are the new baked-in apps. Gone is the colorful Passbook app, which held your boarding passes, tickets, and Apple Pay credit cards. In its place is the Wallet app, which besides having a new icon, looks exactly like Passbook when you open it up. Soon, Apple Pay will support rewards cards, but that feature, alas, was not in the first beta.

Apple may start taking a smaller cut of App Store and iTunes sales

Apple has taken a 30 percent cut of every iTunes transaction since the digital storefront’s inception, but the company’s reportedly reconsidering its taxation scheme for the first time in a decade. According to the Financial Times, Apple’s planning to take a lesser slice of all media purchases — video rentals, audio downloads, and the like — completed through iTunes and the App Store.

According to the report, Apple’s hashing out the specifics of a more nuanced pricing structure with major content companies. Whatever terms are decided upon will apply to recurring payments for premium video plans like Netflix and news subscriptions from top publishers (The New York Times Company, Condé Nast, Time Inc., and others), but they’ll stop short of encompassing apps — Apple will continue to collect 30 percent of individual software sales.