Top Stories: WWDC Schedule, iOS 18 Rumors, and Beats Solo Buds Release Date

[MacRumors]

WWDC month is here! Rumors about what we may see at Apple's annual developer conference have been building for months, and now we're just days away from the keynote event where Apple will unveil what it has in store for iOS 18, macOS 15, and more.

Apple's Beats brand also has some new products that should be launching shortly, while Apple has finally made refurbished iPhone 14 models available at a discount for those looking to save some cash, so read on below for all the details!

Apple Shares WWDC 2024 Schedule, Including Keynote Time

Apple's five-day developers conference WWDC is just over a week away, and the schedule for biggest sessions of the event is now available.

Apple's keynote will kick things off on June 10 at 10 a.m. Pacific Time, with iOS 18 and other major software updates expected to be announced.

Apple Now Selling Refurbished iPhone 14 Models

Apple this week began selling refurbished iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max models in the U.S. and some other countries for the first time since the devices were released in September 2022. The models quickly sold out, but inventory should be replenished over time.

Apple's refurbished iPhones come with a new battery, outer shell, and box, along with a charging cable.

These 10 New AI Features Are Reportedly Coming in iOS 18

iOS 18 is widely rumored to add a wide range of new AI features to the iPhone, and a new report has provided more details about what to expect.

The new features will allegedly include AI-powered photo retouching, voice memo transcription, suggested replies to emails and messages, auto-generated custom emojis based on the content of a user's messages, improved Safari web search, and much more.

On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, Dan and Hartley discuss a wide array of rumors about iOS 18 across Apple's built-in apps and beyond.

What to Expect From CarPlay on iOS 18

iOS 18 will include some new features for Apple's in-vehicle software system CarPlay.

In a press release earlier this month, Apple highlighted three new accessibility features coming to CarPlay as part of the update, including Sound Recognition, Voice Control, and Color Filters. In addition, Apple's website says the first vehicles with next-generation CarPlay will arrive in 2024, so that rollout could coincide with iOS 18.

Beats Solo Buds Available to Order June 18, Launch June 20

Beats Solo Buds were first announced in April, and now Apple has shared availability details.

Apple says the Solo Buds will be available to order on June 18, and launch on June 20. Priced at $79.99, the wireless earbuds feature up to 18 hours of battery life, a USB-C carrying case, and Find My support on iOS and Android. However, they lack active noise cancellation, and the carrying case does not have a built-in battery.

New Beats Pill Speaker Listed on Apple's Regulatory Website

After appearing alongside famous athletes, in iOS 17.5 code, and in the FCC database, a new Beats Pill speaker has now been listed on Apple's regulatory compliance website for Europe.

Apple discontinued the previous Beats Pill+ speaker in 2022. The new version is likely to feature a USB-C charging port, support for a newer Bluetooth version, a built-in lanyard option, longer battery life, and more.

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Article Link: Top Stories: WWDC Schedule, iOS 18 Rumors, and Beats Solo Buds Release Date

 

[topmounter]

Can't wait to see how they top the Apple Vision Pro h/w announcement from WWDC last year... new watch bands? iPad Socks? Can't wait!

 

[Realityck]

New hardware would be nice at WWDC. Yeah with all the commotion with last years Vision Pro at WWDC 2023, now Apple needs something else for 2024 that is a head turner. Sorry new iPhone and iOS features is so every year, needs to be something else from that. 🤨

 

[iBreatheApple]

Pretty sure these were already on sale at target this week? I remember being surprised at seeing beats ear buds at 79.99…

 

[Star Brood]

New hardware would be nice at WWDC. Yeah with all the commotion with last years Vision Pro at WWDC 2023, now Apple needs something else for 2024 that is a head turner. Sorry new iPhone and iOS features is so every year, needs to be something else from that. 🤨

I would say a non-sucky Siri would already be a major, MAJOR selling point. The original Siri was very novel (and much better than the current Siri) and the potential with LLM tech is through the roof, if done well.

 

[purplerainpurplerain]

New hardware would be nice at WWDC. Yeah with all the commotion with last years Vision Pro at WWDC 2023, now Apple needs something else for 2024 that is a head turner. Sorry new iPhone and iOS features is so every year, needs to be something else from that. 🤨

Mac Pro M4 Ultra preview would be cool but I think that will come October.

 

[purplerainpurplerain]

I would say a non-sucky Siri would already be a major, MAJOR selling point. The original Siri was very novel (and much better than the current Siri) and the potential with LLM tech is through the roof, if done well.

They all get boring fast once the novelty wears off. LLMs are very difficult to keep on the rails and user frustration is very high using voice only interaction. You need smaller specialist models with application hooks to keep them predictable and stable.

 

[tomchr9]

I hope for some form of AI photo upscaling, since this has been a well-established AI feature for some time.

Apple Beats = High margin junk

 

[Lioness~]

I hope for nothing really right now - I am 95% good with my Apple devices right now.
The only thing that will happen anywhere soon, is that I will trade in my iPad mini 5 to a new iPad Air later this year. I have mini 6 too, and it's fine. But I next iPad will not be a mini for me.

Bonus: if they release a small phone, I would trade in my mini. But that won't happen.
On the Mac area, I'm good too.
But be inventive Apple!
Surprise me with something entirely new I didn't know I needed 🥳

 

[iBreatheApple]

They all get boring fast once the novelty wears off. LLMs are very difficult to keep on the rails and user frustration is very high using voice only interaction. You need smaller specialist models with application hooks to keep them predictable and stable.

I disagree. That’s like saying your vacuum cleaner gets boring. It’s a tool that can be quite useful when it does its job correctly. And vacuum is probably a poor example, but hopefully it gets the idea across. I don’t need SirAI to entertain me, but I need to to be exponential more useful and practical around the house in my day to day like Alexa is. I have both HomePod and Alexa, so I’m constantly giving Siri a try. But between it wanting me to pull out my phone for the results, or simply not understanding commands it once did, there is room in every aspect for improvement. Hell I can’t even get Siri to do basic subtraction sometimes if it’s seven numbers long or she tries to call the number rather than perform the equation.

 

[drrich2]

Microsoft and Qualcomm recently had game-changer class Windows-on-ARM announcements, with A.I. also big.

The Apple A.I. stuff may be moderately interesting, but if WWDC otherwise basically amounts to 'Look, the next iOS will have some cool stuff, CarPlay a few more accessibility features,' and USB-C charging for the next Beats 'Pill' speaker,' that's gonna look pretty lame.

The iPad Pro. tablets have M4 now. Might wanna get some new M4 computers out the door, Apple...

 

[phuklok1]

please add a simple and useful feature to ios 18 - let older devices have the stop charging at 80% option. i hate using my phone for gps or watching a movie with it magsafe charging and having the device heat up unnecessarily killing it's battery for no reason since it is charging! there is no hardware limiting this since very early iphones, it's just unlocking the feature in software.