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News bites – the stories you may have missed

Plenty of Apple, iPhone, and iPad news gets released every single day – but we know you’re busy, so we’ve got your back. Here, we’ve picked out some of the most important stories from the past week or so and summarized them for easy digestion. You’re welcome.

Let’s take a quickfire look at some of the most interesting recent headlines of late. As ever, click through to read the full stories if you want to know more!

HomePod mini could be incoming

This week’s biggest news saw Apple finally confirming the iPhone 12 launch for October 13. But that might not be all that’s unveiled at the forthcoming “hi, speed” event. While sources have tipped a new HomePod release, Twitter tipster l0vetodream holds that we’ll be getting a HomePod mini instead. Apple’s smart speaker debut was high in quality but a little pricey for a market weaned on cheap and cheerful Amazon Echos, so a more modest device might be just the ticket.

Huge iPhone 12 leak reveals lineup details

A massive social media leak just a few days ahead of Apple’s big event claims to know a lot of details about the upcoming iPhone 12. The only way to know for sure is to wait until Tuesday, but if you’re curious for a sneak peek from a pretty reliable leaker, here’s your chance. The leak reveals everything from pricing and availability to colors and storage options.

AirPods Studio also coming but possibly delayed

Another hotly tipped hardware announcement for Apple’s event is the so-called AirPods Studio. This will apparently see Apple moving into high-end over-ear headphones territory. However, reliable Apple tipster Jon Prosser suggests that these fancy cans might not be quite ready for an October 13 unveiling, raising the possibility of a delayed rollout (something Apple isn’t generally fond of) or the unveiling being deferred to a November event.

Apple disputes US antitrust findings

The U.S. House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee completed its investigation into the country’s leading tech titans this week, and likened the monopolistic practices of Apple and co. to “the era of oil barons and railroad tycoons”. Apple wasn’t having any of this, and issued a strongly worded response that begins: “We have always said that scrutiny is reasonable and appropriate but we vehemently disagree with the conclusions reached in this staff report with respect to Apple. Our company does not have a dominant market share in any category where we do business.”

Amazon Prime Day

October 13, 2020 could well go down in history as the day the internet melted. Not only is Apple announcing the iPhone 12 family (among other things) on this date, but Amazon has also revealed it as the start date for its Prime Day sales event. It’s all gravy for Apple fans, of course, as Amazon Prime Day is famously one of the few times in the year where you can find sweeping savings on Apple gear. Last year’s event saw major savings on older iPad Pro models, and much more besides.

iPhone 13 could have smaller notch

Never mind the fact that we’re mere days away from the iPhone 12 launch – the internet is already casting its greedy eye towards 2021 and the announcement of the iPhone 13. According to Twitter tipster (yes, another one) Ice universe, the iPhone 13 won’t be the notchless iPhone we’ve all been secretly dreaming of. However, the notch element – which houses all those advanced Face ID sensors – will apparently be “shorter”. They then provide a handy lo-fi sketch to illustrate that the notch will stick out less than before.