Apple Loop: Massive iPhone 15 Pro Leak, Mac Pro Hints, Linux Cracks Open MacBook

Forbes Innovation Consumer Tech Apple Loop: Massive iPhone 15 Pro Leak, Mac Pro Hints, Linux Cracks Open MacBook Ewan Spence Senior Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Storyteller exploring digital worlds, mobile, music and podcasting Following Feb 24, 2023, 05:03pm EST | Press play to listen to this article! Got it! Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Taking a look back at another week of news and headlines from Cupertino, this week’s Apple Loop includes the leaked designs of the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro, a larger MacBook Air, what sells the iPhone, hints of the new Mac Pro, Apple’s second AR headset, and Linux heads to the Mac. Apple Loop is here to remind you of a few of the very many discussions that have happened around Apple over the last seven days ( and you can read my weekly digest of Android news here on Forbes ).

iPhone 15 Pro Design leaks Detailed CAD plans for Apple’s iPhone 15 Pro have leaked. While they don’t tell us much about the specifications, they lay out the design of the upcoming handset with incredible detail. Tim Cook and his team are finally getting ready to shake up the look of the iPhone: “.

. . the models show that the iPhone 15 Pro will indeed switch from Lightning to USB-C, be significantly more rounded than its predecessor with thinner bezels, and feature a rear camera bump that will cause jaws to drop.

” ( Forbes ). TOKYO, JAPAN – 2022/10/20: iPhone 14 lineup (14 Plus, 14 pro and 14 Pro Max) on display inside Apple . .

. [+] store in Marunouchi, Tokyo. (Photo by Stanislav Kogiku/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images) SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images MORE FOR YOU Meet The Unknown Immigrant Billionaire Betting Her Fortune To Take On Musk In Space Android Circuit: Galaxy S23 Reviewed, Huge Pixel Fold Leaks, Angry Birds Goes Missing.

Trae Young Runs The Atlanta Hawks. For Verification, $43 Million Is Greater Than $5 Million (Nate McMillan’s Salary) An Island For The iPhone 15 CAD plans for the iPhone 15 were also leaked, and the changes to the smaller iPhone are going to be just as radical. Not only is Apple moving away from the notch to the “dynamic island” pill-shaped cut out, but this will be the first increase in screen size for the base model in four years: “What renders cannot show, however, is whether standard iPhone 15 models will finally get fast refresh rate ‘ProMotion’ displays.

Most midrange Android rivals now offer this, but it has been a key differentiator between Pro and non-Pro models for Apple, so it seems unlikely. ” (Forbes). A Larger MacBook Air Is Coming Apple’s recent update to the MacBook Pro offered the latest processor with the larger 14-inch and 16-models.

A popular option but an expensive one, especially if you don’t need the extra power. Thankfully Apple has plans for a larger MacBook Air: “Right now, if you want a larger screened MacBook, you have no choice but to jump up to the 14-inch or 16-inch MacBook Pro models, with the old-style jumps in specs and performance. “The 15-inch MacBook Air looks like a simple ‘swap’ of the display.

No doubt there will be a price increase for the larger display, but there won’t be any increased cost because Apple pops in some faster widgets to bump up the dollars on the sticker. ” ( Forbes ). When You Have To Buy An iPhone What sells the iPhone? The obvious answers are its features, specifications, and utility.

But there’s also a strong argument that peer pressure is a major driver, at least in America: “According to the report, younger consumers are concerned about being socially ostracised for not having an iPhone – a phenomenon that is driving young people to buy other Apple products and services, leading to growing market share across multiple product categories. Those born after 1996, also known as Gen Z, compose 34 percent of all iPhone owners in the U. S.

, compared to just 10 percent for Samsung. ” ( FT , via Apple Insider ). Hints Of The Mac Pro’s Modular Arrangement Apple’s ARM-based Mac Pro has yet to arrive.

It’s the last piece on the Apple Silicon portfolio to complete the transition away from Intel’s x86 architecture. Tucked away inside the latest developer beta code from Apple is a clue towards a modular approach to the ma Pro and replacing or upgrading various elements: “9to5mac has found a new “ComputeModule” device class in Apple’s iOS 16. 4 developer disk image in the Xcode 16.

4 beta release last week, and it could be the missing piece to Apple’s modular Mac Pro plans… or it could be a processor box for the Apple Reality Pro headset, or perhaps even a Raspberry Pi-like device. Let’s take a closer look. ” ( 9to5Mac ).

Apple’s Second AR Headset Apple is already making decisions about its second-generation augmented reality headset. The first generation, with an assumed launch at WWDC, has China’s Luxshare as a development. The follow-up will move to a more familiar partner, Foxconn, and will look to bring the price down, presumably to a more consumer-friendly level: “Foxconn is also helping with the AR project, four people told Nikkei Asia.

The longtime iPhone assembler will work on parallel development of a cheaper second-generation AR device, four sources said. Foxconn’s focus will be on automating mass production and improving production performance to help Apple lower overall costs, according to two people familiar with the plans. ” ( Nikkei Asia ).

And Finally. . .

The latest update to the Linux Kernel, taking it to version 6. 2, offers something of interest to those who love tinkering with their Mac hardware. The Apple Silicon chipsets are now supported, which means Linux installs will be along in the near future: “Linux has been happily running on Intel based harder, including the older Mac platform, for many a year.

ARM-based hardware has been in rather short supply (outside of smartphones, tablets, and some experimental platforms). The introduction of Apple Silicon offered a hardware base, but Apple’s restrictions around another OS using the GPU meant the masses had to wait until a solution was found. Obviously, a solution has been found.

” ( Next With Tech ). Apple Loop brings you seven days worth of highlights every weekend here on Forbes. Don’t forget to follow me so you don’t miss any coverage in the future.

Last week’s Apple Loop can be read here , or this week’s edition of Loop’s sister column, Android Circuit, is also available on Forbes . Check out my website . Ewan Spence Editorial Standards Print Reprints & Permissions.