It’s CES week and thousands of companies are in Las Vegas showing off their newest and best tech-related products. CES is wrapping up today and tomorrow, but there’s still plenty to see.

Over the course of the last couple of days, we’ve scoured the show floor for the most unique and interesting products, some that are Apple related and some that are neat, but more general tech.

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Brydge Pro+

Brydge, known for its range of keyboards designed for iPads, debuted a new keyboard designed for the iPad Pro. This new offering, priced starting at $200, includes a multi-touch trackpad that uses AssistiveTouch functionality to do things like activate the dock, bring up App Exposé, and more.

Brydge also showed off a standalone iOS trackpad that might see a release later in the year, and a vertical docking station for the new 16-inch MacBook Pro.

Aukey Omnia Chargers

Aukey is launching a new series of GaN chargers for USB-C devices, offered with various port options (USB-A and USB-C) and different wattages for your iOS and Mac devices. Aukey isn’t launching these until the second quarter of 2020, and pricing info isn’t available yet.

Hyperjuice 100W GaN Power Adapter

Speaking of power adapters, Hyper was on hand to show off its new HyperJuice 100W GaN charger option, which comes with two USB-C ports and two USB-A ports to charge all of your devices at one time. The credit card-sized charger can even charge up two MacBook Pros at one time.

Kohler HomeKit Setra Faucet

There are a ton of smart home products at CES, including the HomeKit-enabled Kohler Setra faucet. The touchless faucet can be turned on and off using ‌HomeKit‌ commands, and it can dispense a specific amount of water. It also monitors water usage and lets consumers track their water consumption.

Moen ‌HomeKit‌ Shower

If you’ve ever wanted to be able to interact with Siri while showering, Moen has a product for you. The U by Moen Smart Shower lets you choose one of 12 custom presets through ‌Siri‌ voice commands or through the Moen app.

Razer iPhone Game Controller

Razer surprised us at CES this year with a Razer-branded Kishi mobile gaming controller designed for the ‌iPhone‌. The controller fits over the ‌iPhone‌, connecting to the Lightning port, and adds clickable analog controls and thumbsticks on both sides of the ‌iPhone‌.

Razer was also showing off its Arctech ‌iPhone‌ cases for Apple’s latest iPhones, which are great if you like the Razer aesthetic.

Dell Concept UFO and Ori

Dell was showing off a little Nintendo Switch-like gaming console, which is just a prototype at this point in time. The Concept UFO (designed with Alienware) runs Windows 10 and it can be used both in handheld mode or docked to a TV. Since this is just a concept, Dell isn’t planning to release it, but it’s a project that came from Dell’s exploration of different form factors.

Dell also had a second concept product, the Ori, at CES. The Ori (short for Origami) is similar in design to Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 Fold, able to fold in half for usage as a laptop style device or fold out to be used as a tablet. The Ori is also something that’s not really slated for an official release.

OnePlus Concept Phone

The OnePlus Concept One is a conceptual phone that has a disappearing camera feature. The glass on the back of the phone can turn opaque to hide the rear-facing cameras, which is a neat trick. This feature isn’t ready to ship, and it doesn’t do much but hide the cameras and add a neutral density filter to the lenses.

Samsung Indoor Garden Fridge

Samsung showed off an indoor gardening fridge which is in no way Apple related but is super nifty for those who like fresh herbs but don’t have the space for a garden. The garden fridge will let people grow herbs and produce indoors all year round with cool, controlled temperatures, built-in lights, and a built-in watering system.

Samsung Ballie Robot

Samsung’s Ballie Robot received a lot of attention at CES, mostly because it’s not entirely clear just what it’s going be useful for. Ballie is, well, a robotic ball that rolls around your house and can respond to voice commands. It’s supposed to do things like serve as an alarm, record video, play with pets, or manage smart home devices, but mostly it just rolls around.

Sony Vision-S Concept Car

Sony showed off the Vision-S, an electric concept car packed with Sony technology. Sony doesn’t plan to sell the Vision-S, even in a limited edition capacity, but it was neat to see a car packed with a series of rectangular displays for doing everything from watching media to viewing car data.

There’s also high-end Sony sound equipment and a Sony LIDAR setup that powers side view cameras that replace the traditional mirrors. Sony is hoping that its concept car gives consumers and car manufacturers ideas about the kind of technology that can be added to vehicles.

JBL Bar 9.1

JBL debuted a unique soundbar at CES this year. The JBL Bar 9.1 offers wireless surround sound with a soundbar base and two detachable battery powered rear speakers that can be removed and placed anywhere.

It’s also equipped with AirPlay 2, Dolby Atmos, and Dolby Vision support, but it will be priced at $1,000 when it launches later this year.

Farewell, CES 2020!

This is the last of our ‌CES 2020‌ coverage, but we’ll be following up with reviews and articles on some of the products we saw when they’re released later in the year.

Make sure to check out our CES Unveiled video, our CES Pepcom video, and our CES hub, which has all of our CES 2020 content in one spot.

This article, “Best of the CES Show Floor: Samsung’s Ballie, HomeKit Shower Heads, Brydge Keyboards, Concept Phones, and More” first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Masimo, a medical technology company that designs pulse oximetry devices, has filed a lawsuit against Apple accusing the Cupertino company of stealing trade secrets and improperly using Masimo inventions related to health monitoring in the Apple Watch.

According to Bloomberg, Masimo claims that Apple stole secret information by pretending to have a working relationship with Masimo, and then hiring Masimo employees. Masimo also believes the ‌Apple Watch‌ is infringing on 10 Masimo patents.

Masimo, and its spinoff company Cercacor, claim that Masimo’s technology for non-invasive health monitoring helped Apple overcome performance issues with the ‌Apple Watch‌. Apple allegedly relied on Masimo tech when developing the light-based heart rate sensor used in the ‌Apple Watch‌, among other technologies.

According to Masimo, Apple first contacted the company in 2013 and asked to meet for a potential collaboration, with Apple asking to “understand more” about Masimo’s products to potentially integrate Masimo technology into future Apple devices. After what Masimo considered productive meetings, Apple began hiring away important employees.

Ahead of when the ‌Apple Watch‌ was released, Apple hired Michael O’Reilly, who had served as the Chief Medical Officer and EVP of Medical Affairs at Masimo. He has been working on Health Special Projects at Apple, and had a hand in the development of the ‌Apple Watch‌.

O’Reilly wasn’t the only hire from Masimo, as Apple also took on other former Masimo employees along with employees from other health-related companies during the time the ‌Apple Watch‌ was being designed. Marcelo Lamego, who served as CTO of Cercacor, for example, joined Apple not long after O’Reilly.

Masimo says Apple received confidential information from its hires, and launched a targeted effort to obtain “information and expertise.”

Masimo and Cercacor are aiming to block further use of their patented inventions and are asking for unspecified damages. The two companies also want to add their engineers to four patents that were granted to Lamego after leaving the Cercacor.

This article, “Masimo Sues Apple for Stealing Trade Secrets for Health Monitoring Functions in Apple Watch” first appeared on MacRumors.com

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13 years ago today, then Apple CEO Steve Jobs took the stage at Macworld in San Francisco and surprised the world with the very first iPhone.

Jobs introduced the iPhone as if it were three separate products: an iPod with touch controls, a revolutionary mobile phone, and a breakthrough internet communications device. Today, the iPhone is still all of those things, but also so much more.

Apple has sold well over a billion iPhones since 2007, and as of last January, the company’s active installed base had hit 1.4 billion devices. Though iPhone sales were down last year, the iPhone continues to be Apple’s single most successful product.

Apple has steadily improved the iPhone over the years, refining the design over and over again, updating the camera, and adding new biometric features, and all of these changes have made the iPhone even more indispensable in our daily lives. Improvements over the years:

• 2008: App Store and 3G network support
• 2009: Personal Hotspot and video recording capabilities
• 2010: New form factor and Retina display
• 2011: Siri and iCloud
• 2012: 4-inch display, Lightning connector, and LTE
• 2013: Touch ID fingerprint sensor
• 2014: 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch displays
• 2015: 3D Touch, Live Photos, and 4K video recording
• 2016: Waterproofing, dual-lens camera for iPhone 7 Plus, no headphone jack
• 2017: No Home button, 5.8-inch OLED full screen display, wireless charging, fast charging, Face ID
• 2018: 5.8 and 6.5-inch OLED screen sizes, three iPhone lineup
• 2019: Night mode, triple-lens cameras

Rumors suggest the iPhone is going to see a major overhaul in 2020, with Apple set to debut 5G connectivity, a revamped iPhone 4-style frame design, 5.4, 6.1, and 6.7-inch iPhone sizes, and a time-of-flight laser-based camera system for better depth calculations and AR capabilities.

This article, “Today Marks the 13th Anniversary of When Steve Jobs Unveiled the Original iPhone” first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Trend Micro today announced that its annual Pwn2Own hacking competition will be held March 18-20 in Vancouver, Canada.

Pwn2Own, part of the CanSecWest conference, tasks security researchers with uncovering vulnerabilities in operating systems, web browsers, and more, ranging from macOS and Windows to Safari and Chrome.

This year, two prizes will be available for Safari on macOS, including $60,000 for a sandbox escape and $70,000 for a kernel-level escalation of privileges.

There is also up to a $500,000 prize for Tesla Model 3 vulnerabilities.

Last year at Pwn2Own, at least two zero-day security vulnerabilities were discovered in Safari on macOS. All exploits achieved during the contest are reported to the necessary companies like Apple so that they can be patched.

This article, “Pwn2Own Hacking Competition Returns in March, Up to $130,000 in Prizes Available for Safari Vulnerabilities” first appeared on MacRumors.com

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If you recently got a new iPhone over the holidays, you might still be looking for a protective case for your new smartphone. Luckily, Amazon this week has a series of solid discounts on Apple’s first-party case line for the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

This includes silicone cases, leather cases, and Apple’s Smart Battery Case accessory, which is seeing a very slight discount for the Pink Sand version of the iPhone 11 Pro Max model. Older Smart Battery Cases have deeper discounts, and we’ve listed those for the iPhone XS and iPhone XR down below as well.

The best sale can be found on the silicone cases for the iPhone 11 Pro Max, in both White and Black. These colors are just $23.99, down from $39.00, which matches the previous Amazon low price seen on each accessory. You can browse the full sale below:

iPhone 11

Silicone ($39.00)

• White – $29.99

iPhone 11 Pro

Leather ($49.00)

• Saddle Brown – $39.00
• Black – $39.98
• Midnight Blue – $44.95
• (Product) Red – $44.95
• Forest Green – $45.99

Silicone ($39.00)

• Black – $29.00
• White – $29.00

iPhone 11 Pro Max

Leather ($49.00)

• Black – $34.95
• Saddle Brown – $39.00
• Meyer Lemon – $42.95

Silicone ($39.00)

• Black – $23.99
• White – $23.99
• Alaskan Blue – $33.99

Smart Battery Case ($129.00)

• Pink Sand – $122.42

iPhone XS and iPhone XR Smart Battery Cases ($129.00)

• XS, White – $98.00
• XR, Black – $99.99

Be sure to visit our full Deals Roundup to shop for even more Apple-related products and accessories.

This article, “Deals: Accessorize Your New iPhone 11 With Sales on Apple’s Official Cases (Starting at $23.99)” first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Some travelers on the New York City subway who have enabled Apple’s Express Transit feature on their iPhones are reportedly being hit with unintentional MTA charges when they walk near the tap-and-go fare readers.

Image credit: PRNewsfoto/OMNY

Express Transit is an Apple Pay feature that allows users to pay fares with a swipe of their iPhone or Apple Watch at the turnstile without having to unlock their device first with Face ID, Touch ID, or a passcode.

But according to the New York Post, the OMNY tap-and-go fare readers that the MTA installed have been taking charges from some commuters when they used contactless cards and their iPhones were pocketed or in a purse.

Megan Bagg, 29, of SoHo, told The Post she has been charged twice — despite having her phone in her bag.

“It was ridiculous. My phone was in my purse near my hip,” she said.

Bagg said she at first blamed the charge on her contactless credit card — and even called the bank to complain — until the second charge occurred when it wasn’t on her person.

“I’ve been keeping my purse far from the thing when I go through the turnstile,” she said.

Another subway user told The Post that he had had a similar experience swiping in with his MetroCard at Grand Central Terminal when his iPhone was in his pocket, and only noticed the doubled-up charge when later reviewing their bank statement.

MTA confirmed to the paper that “about 30 customers” had complained about unintended charges when the Express Transit feature of their iPhones is activated. The authority said it is working with Apple on a solution to address “the issue of unintended taps.”

Apple says it has not had the issue in other cities where the Express Transit feature is available, so the problem seems to be down to the hypersensitivity of the NYC subway’s tap-and-go readers. If you’re a NYC subway user and you’re concerned about being hit by bogus charges on your ‌iPhone‌ when paying with a card, you can turn off Express Transit until the issue with the terminals is fixed.

This article, “Apple Pay Express Transit Users in NYC Reportedly Being Charged Just for Going Near Tap-and-Pay Readers” first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Amazon and Walmart today are discounting Apple’s 2019 32GB iPod touch to $179.00, down from $199.00. This $20 discount is the lowest price we’ve tracked for the new 32GB iPod touch, and as of writing Amazon and Walmart are the only major Apple resellers online to offer a discount on this model.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Every color is available on sale except Pink. The new iPod touch has a 4-inch Retina display with the A10 Fusion chip, FaceTime, and support for playing games from the App Store and listening to Apple Music or music downloaded from iTunes.

If you’re looking for a higher storage capacity, the 256GB model also has a slight discount on Amazon. You can get this model for $379.99, down from $399.99 in select colors, another $20 discount on Apple’s original price.

Our full Deals Roundup has more information on the latest Apple-related sales and bargains.

This article, “Deals: Save $20 on the New 32GB iPod Touch, Available for $179” first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple CEO Tim Cook is set to receive an award from the Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar this month, reports Bloomberg.

Cook is scheduled to meet with the Irish Taoiseach in Dublin on January 20 to receive the award, “in recognition of the iPhone maker’s 40 years of investment in Ireland,” according to IDA Ireland, the country’s investment agency.

Apple’s business relationship with Ireland has faced significant opprobrium in recent years. In 2016, the European Commission found that the company received illegal state aid from Ireland.

Apple and Ireland both appealed the ruling, but the European Commission opened litigation against Ireland in October 2017 for its failure to procure Apple’s back taxes.

Apple has already finished paying the $13 billion in back taxes it owes. If the order is eventually overturned, the money will be returned to Apple.

In 2018, Apple abandoned plans to build a $1 billion data center in Ireland after facing significant pushback from local residents concerned about its potential effects on local animals and its close proximity to a shut-down nuclear power plant.

Apple’s European headquarters are located in Cork, and last year it expanded the campus with a new building that provides space for an additional 1,400 employees.

Apple’s European Job Creation page reveals that it now supports 1.7 million jobs across Europe, including around 1.5 million jobs attributable to the App Store ecosystem, some 17,000 of which are based in Ireland.

Apple’s website notes that it “has been based in Cork for over 35 years and now directly employs 6,000 people throughout Ireland supporting all aspects of the business.” The company also says its Irish team has “doubled in size over the last five years and includes over 80 different nationalities.”

This article, “Tim Cook to Receive Award From Irish Prime Minister Celebrating 40 Years of Apple Investment” first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple saw a significant jump in smartphone shipments in China last month thanks in part to the popularity of the iPhone 11, according to Bloomberg.

The iPhone maker’s shipments in China grew 18.7% year on year in December to roughly 3.18 million units, according to Bloomberg calculations based on government data on overall and Android device shipments. The increase marked an acceleration from the prior months, which were buoyed by the ‌iPhone 11‌’s release in September. The numbers come from the China Academy of Information and Communication Technology, a government think tank.

Apple’s ‌iPhone 11‌ and iPhone 11 Pro brought significant improvements in battery life and camera quality over previous models, and have been well received by consumers and critics in China.

Apple’s business last year in the country was strengthened in other ways, too. The company benefited from a sales tax cut that allowed it to decrease the price of its products, while investors took comfort in what Apple CEO Tim Cook called a “much better tone” in the China-U.S. trade relationship.

Looking ahead, the double-digit growth in shipments bodes well for Apple in the buildup to the Chinese New Year, which falls in late January this year.

However, the company still has some work to do if it is to put a significant dent in the market share of local vendors led by Huawei, which gained a dominant position domestically last year, despite its struggles abroad.

This article, “iPhone 11 Popularity Earns Apple Double-Digit Growth in China” first appeared on MacRumors.com

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During the January 2019 CES event, TiVo demoed a TiVo app to the Apple TV, but a year later, the project is “in limbo” and an Apple TV app is no longer being actively developed.

In an interview with TechHive at CES 2020, TiVo vice president of consumer products and services Ted Malone said that while ‌Apple TV‌ app plans haven’t been canceled, it’s not TiVo’s focus at this time.

“My bet is we’ll get Android, and because of that we’ll get the Fire TV, because it’s the same app, just different qualifications,” Malone said. “I think Roku and Apple are in limbo.”

TiVo had initially planned to release new apps for Roku, ‌Apple TV‌, Fire TV, and Android TV at some point in 2019, allowing TiVo users to access TiVo DVRs on other TVs throughout the home without the need to purchase TiVo Mini boxes, but limited resources, technical challenges, and strategy changes have delayed those plans.

According to Malone, TiVo has to transcode video before sending it to other devices, which results in quality and performance issues that TiVo has not been able to resolve. The company has also been working on the TiVo Stream 4K and the TiVo+ streaming service, and an ‌Apple TV‌ app is not a priority.

Malone said that TiVo needs to “double down” on the streaming market and not get distracted by a “bunch of things people want, but aren’t really going to move the needle.”

This article, “TiVo’s Planned Apple TV App ‘In Limbo’” first appeared on MacRumors.com

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