Apple iOS 10.3 will update Find My iPhone app to help owners locate lost AirPods

By tech2 News Staff /  25 Jan 2017 , 11:26

After pulling the plug on the 3.5mm headphone jack (with plenty of criticism) the dust has finally settled and Apple is now devising ways to help owners of its AirPods find their Bluetooth earphones. Apple’s next update for its mobile operating system, tagged as iOS 10.3, will add support for AirPods in the Find My iPhone app, bringing some relief for owners who often find themselves searching for their lost Bluetooth earphones. The same was revealed in the new iOS 10.3 beta update that is currently available as a public beta for iPhone owners who would like to download, explore and report some bugs.

In its final build, iOS 10.3 will add support in the Find My iPhone app for the new AirPods. Owners of the missing AirPods will be able to use the Find My iPhone app or switch to a desktop using the iCloud website to locate their earphones.

There is however a catch. The AirPods (as pricey as they are) do not pack in a GPS module; so the location you do get will be based on the last device they we paired with before they got separated and could no longer communicate. This again would also depend on the Bluetooth range of the owner’s Apple device.

Image: Reuters

Additionally, the owners must be signed into their iCloud account on all of their connected devices for the location tracking to work. If the AirPods happen to simply run out of battery life or happen to be in the case, the location shown on the Find My iPhone app will be the last place where the earphones were used before the owner placed them in the case.

Another cool feature that will be added via the iOS 10.3 update is the ability to play a sound on just one AirPod. This itself would also make for a quicker way to find the missing earphone, provided it is in the vicinity of your home or office.

The update comes as a part of the beta version of the software that just went live a few hours ago. iOS 10.3 is not expected to be a major update, but will bring plenty of new bits that should certainly make it worth the download.

New Apple iPhone to use forged stainless steel and glass, claims leak

By tech2 News Staff /  12 Jan 2017 , 15:33

While the rumour mill is literally overflowing with news about the upcoming iPhones (there’s 3 of them) this year, we aren’t sure as to where do all of these individual bits of information fit in. Adding to the mix is another leak from Taiwan, which hints that the new iPhone will make use of a forged stainless steel chassis.

The news comes from DigiTimes who’s sources come Apple’s supply line. The publication claims that Apple has made a big decision by sharing component orders between Foxconn and Jabil in order to get their hands on forged stainless steel chassis for an upcoming iPhone. The steel chassis would come from US-based supplier, Jabil and it would be sandwiched between the two sheets of reinforced glass.

Of course the idea does sound very familiar. Apple could be looking back at its design ideas from its earlier days for inspiration. We are talking about the old iPhone 4, which used a similar materials with a soft steel chassis sandwiched between two slabs of glass.

The difference here is that instead of milling the metal, Apple plans forge the metal alloy into the required chassis which would make the end result stronger and a lot lighter than its current series 7,000 aluminium backs on the iPhone 7.

More importantly, this would also make the process cheaper for Apple, bringing down the additional cost of CNC machining needed to cut through a block of aluminium (several times over). As the publication points out, quality control is also more stable with forging when compared to milling.

The added benefit here is that iPhone could also get slimmer.

Apple’s CarPlay is now available on 200 cars

By tech2 News Staff /  09 Dec 2016 , 18:50

It’s not breaking news, but yes Apple’s CarPlay infotainment system now officially supports 200 car models. The same was made evident on the tech giant’s website where Apple has listed the long list of cars that are CarPlay compatible which now includes 50 new entries according to 9to5mac.

The earlier list included 150 vehicles, and the new list also adds a couple of new 2017 models. The new list comprises of auto brands like Audi, Honda, Maserati, Kia, Mitsubishi, Suzuki, and Volkswagen. Apart from the regular cars, we also have a few exotics like Bentley Bentayga, the Ferrari GTC4Lusso, the exotic Lamborghini Centenario and the 2017 Porsche lineup as well. Also included in that list is the 2017 Jeep Compass which is undergoing testing in India and is set for production in India as well.

According to the same source, the list also includes some older or recently announced cars that will receive support for the same via firmware updates.

For those who have not been able to use either Google’s Android Auto or Apple’s CarPlay, Sony’s $500 dash will help you link your smartphone to both for a lot less.