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!
Apple top of the smartphone charts in China
Apple topped the smartphone charts in China for the first time since 2015 in Q4 of 2021. The iPhone 13 family helped the brand to a healthy 23% of the market for final three months of last year, according to Counterpoint Research. The last time the iPhone was top of the pile in the country was the iPhone 6 era. In terms of reasons for Apple’s success, the ongoing struggles of Chinese company Huawei have left a vacuum that Apple (and several other rivals) have been able to fill. It also helps that the iPhone 13 range was priced lower in China this time around.
iPhone getting contactless payments
According to a report in Bloomberg, Apple is set to make it possible to accept contactless payments directly onto your iPhone via its built-in NFC chip. Apple seems to be implementing the know-how gained through its 2020 purchase of Mobeewave. This will be great news for small businesses, but terrible news for plug-in tap-to-pay systems such as Square and Europe’s iZettle. What’s more, the payment system is said to be mere months away from a rollout, and could arrive with iOS 15.4, potentially around the launch of a new iPhone SE.
iPhone 14 could offer an eSIM option
Apple has been pushing for the eSIM standard to take over from those ancient physical SIM cards for years now, and we could see a major breakthrough with the iPhone 14 range later this year. Following various rumours, GlobalData analyst Emma Mohr-McClune has elaborated on Apple’s likely plans. It seems Apple may “launch an eSIM-only variant of its upcoming new model” while “retaining the dual eSIM-plus-physical SIM slot model for the mass market”. It’ll be up to carriers to implement this optional model – or not, as the case may be.
This fall could be Apple’s biggest yet
Apple commentator Mark Gurman believes that the autumn of 2022 could very well see the “the widest array” of devices launched in Apple’s history. He’s expecting four iPhone 14 models (of course), a revamped entry-level MacBook Pro, a new large-screened iMac, a brand new Mac Pro, a rejigged MacBook Air, a new AirPods Pro, three new Apple Watches (including a rugged one), an entry-level iPad, and two new iPad Pros. And… breathe.