October, 2021 | CompuScoop.com

 Apple News expands to local news offerings

Apple Inc October 27, 2021 0

Apple News will now offer its local news experience in three additional cities in the US: Charlotte, Miami, and Washington, D.C. Each experience is curated by Apple News editors and features coverage of topics that are important to local communities, from restaurant openings and real estate trends to big policy decisions. Local news offerings in Apple News provide readers with access to top publications, including Axios Charlotte, the Charlotte Observer, Eater Miami, the Miami Herald, DCist, Washingtonian, the Washington Post, and more.

“At Apple News, we know that access to trusted local news is critical for communities, and an important resource for a national audience as well,” said Lauren Kern, editor-in-chief of Apple News. “We are committed to working with local publishers across the country to support their journalism and offer our users local coverage in the cities and regions they care about.”

Apple News first introduced curated local news experiences for the Bay Area, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco in 2020, and earlier this year, added offerings for Sacramento, San Antonio, and San Diego. Apple News plans to expand its local news feature to additional cities and regions over time to highlight the work of local publishers to the millions of readers across the country who use Apple News each day. Every Thursday, Apple News editors curate a “Read Local” collection of the best stories that week from local publications, available to all News users right in the Today feed of the News app.

 Apple Fitness+ users can now work out or meditate together from different locations with the power of SharePlay

Dan Uff October 26, 2021 0

Fitness+ will also expand to 15 new countries on November 3

Fitness+ displayed on iPhone 13 Pro with an Apple Watch Series 7 showing a Cycling session.

Apple Fitness+, the first fitness service built entirely around Apple Watch and designed to be welcoming to all, is introducing a new way to work out or meditate together with people in other locations with SharePlay, starting today. SharePlay makes it possible for iPhone, iPad, and Mac¹ users to have shared experiences with friends and family while on a FaceTime call.

Beginning November 3, 2021, Fitness+ will also be available in 15 new countries, bringing the total number of countries the service is available in to 21. In both new and existing markets, Fitness+ will be available in English, with subtitles in Brazilian Portuguese, English, French, German, Italian, Russian, and Spanish.

Additionally, beginning November 1, 2021, as part of their plan benefits, approximately 3 million fully insured UnitedHealthcare members in nearly every state in the US can enroll with Apple Fitness+ for a year-long subscription, at no additional cost.

“We created Fitness+ so everyone would have a place they feel inspired and motivated, no matter where they are on their fitness journey. We are so excited to be available to millions more people as we bring Fitness+ to 15 new countries next week, and can’t wait for them to meet our welcoming trainer team,” said Jay Blahnik, Apple’s vice president of Fitness Technologies. “We also think our users are going to love working out or meditating together with SharePlay. It’s a really fun way to connect with friends and family, even trade some words of encouragement or friendly smack talk, while also making progress toward closing their rings.”

A Pilates workout displayed on a smart TV, iPhone 13 Pro, iPad Pro, and on Apple Watch Series 7.

Work Out or Meditate Together with SharePlay

Today, Fitness+ is introducing a new way to work out or meditate together with family and friends using SharePlay, to help people stay motivated and accountable on their fitness journey. Fitness+ subscribers can use SharePlay to start a group workout or meditation with up to 32 of their friends and family while using FaceTime on an iPhone or iPad, and the selected Fitness+ session will stream completely in sync for every participant. Once on a FaceTime call, users will navigate to the Fitness app, select a workout or meditation, see their friends and family onscreen, and get started. SharePlay also works with Apple TV so users can follow the workout on a big screen while staying connected with friends on FaceTime using their iPhone or iPad. When working out in a group through SharePlay, users will see their metrics and progress toward closing their Activity rings, while also seeing and hearing friends. During a workout, when someone moves ahead on the Burn Bar or closes their Activity rings, everyone working out will be notified so they can celebrate together.

Country Expansion

Fitness+ is currently available in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the UK, and the US. Beginning November 3, 2021, Fitness+ will be available in 15 new countries with the addition of Austria, Brazil, Colombia, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico, Portugal, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Arab Emirates. Fitness+ will be available in English, with subtitles in Brazilian Portuguese, English, French, German, Italian, Russian, and Spanish, so more people can experience the workouts led by a diverse and inclusive team of trainers whose approach is tailored to every body at every fitness level.

Brazilian Portuguese subtitles in a Fitness+ workout displayed on iPhone 13 Pro.

ss+ is available as a standalone subscription, or as a part of the Apple One Premier plan, which, where available, also gives customers access to Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, and iCloud+ with 2TB of storage.

Fitness+ is the first fitness experience built around Apple Watch, bringing studio-style workouts and guided meditations to iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV. Workouts and guided meditations are led by a diverse and inclusive team of trainers whose approach is welcoming to all. Fitness+ intelligently and seamlessly incorporates key workout metrics users love from Apple Watch for a personalized and immersive experience that users can complete wherever and whenever it is convenient for them. Workouts are fueled by music from today’s top artists and designed to keep users motivated from start to finish whether their workout is five or 45 minutes long. Workouts include High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), Strength, Yoga, Dance, Core, Cycling, Pilates, Meditation, Treadmill (for running and walking), Rowing, and Mindful Cooldown.

Fitness+ Meditation displayed on iPad Pro.

With Fitness+, users can also get moving outside with Time to Walk — an inspiring audio experience on Apple Watch designed to encourage people to get active by walking more often. All that is needed is an Apple Watch and AirPods or Bluetooth headphones. Fitness+ also has programs designed to help users reach their goals during a specific season of life — like Workouts for Pregnancy, Workouts for Older Adults, Workouts for Beginners, and Meditations for Beginners. There is something for everyone to stay motivated, no matter where they are in their fitness journey.

As Fitness+ expands to new countries, the service is also building on its offerings, providing more options for maintaining and improving overall well-being. Fitness+ recently introduced a new program — Get Ready for Snow Season — featuring and designed with two-time Olympic gold medalist and five-time world champion skier Ted Ligety, along with Fitness+ trainer Anja Garcia. To prepare users to get back to their favorite winter sports, the program will help build strength, balance, and endurance so everyone can have more fun on the slopes, all the way to the last run.

To prepare users to get back to their favorite winter sports, the Get Ready for Snow Season program on Fitness+ features and was designed with two-time Olympic gold medalist and five-time world champion skier Ted Ligety, along with Fitness+ trainer Anja Garcia.

Time to Walk

Today, Fitness+ is also introducing a new episode of Time to Walk, with writer, educator, and actor, Marilee Talkington, who has appeared on the Apple TV+ series “See.” Talkington advocates for herself as someone who is legally blind, as well as other performers who have disabilities. On this walk, she talks about defying expectations and how she helps empower others to do the same. Time to Walk is an inspiring audio experience on Apple Watch designed to encourage people to get active by walking more often, featuring some of the world’s most interesting and influential people who share stories, photos, and music with Fitness+ subscribers. The series, now in its second season, has featured guests such as Dolly Parton, Anthony Joshua, Naomi Campbell, Bebe Rexha, and more.

UnitedHealthcare

In September, UnitedHealthcare announced that it has expanded its work with Apple to provide millions of members with access — at no additional cost — to Apple Fitness+. This is the first such offer for Fitness+ by a health insurance provider. Starting November 1, fully insured UnitedHealthcare members in nearly every state will be eligible to enroll with Fitness+ for a year-long subscription.

Starting next year, employers with self-funded health plans will be able to purchase an Apple Fitness Bundle, which provides a 12-month subscription to Apple Fitness+ as well as a $25 Apple digital gift card. More information about the Apple Fitness+ offer is available at uhc.com/apple-fitness-plus.

Pricing and Availability

Fitness+ is currently available in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the UK, and the US. It will be available in Austria, Brazil, Colombia, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico, Portugal, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Switzerland, and the UAE beginning November 3, 2021.

About Apple Fitness+

Apple Fitness+ is an award-winning fitness and wellness service powered by Apple Watch and designed to be welcoming to all wherever they are in their journey to live a healthier day. Subscribers have access to the largest library of workout content in 4K with over 1,300 studio-style workouts, guided meditations, and curated programs, all led by a diverse and inclusive team of trainers. Fitness+ helps users train their body and mind with a one-of-a-kind personalized and engaging experience that can be done anytime, anywhere, intelligently incorporates workout metrics from Apple Watch right on the screen, and motivates users from start to finish with music from today’s top artists. With Fitness+, users can also get moving outside with Time to Walk — the inspiring audio experience on Apple Watch for Fitness+ — designed to encourage users to get active by walking more often. Each episode features some of the world’s most interesting and influential people, who share stories, photos, and music with Fitness+ subscribers. Apple Fitness+ is available to customers in the US, UK, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, and Australia on iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Apple TV, and will be available in 15 more countries beginning November 3, 2021. More information is available at apple.com/apple-fitness-plus.

Apple releases iOS 14.8.1 and iPadOS 14.8.1

Dan Uff October 26, 2021 1

Apple today released iOS and iPadOS 14.8.1, minor updates to the iOS and iPadOS 14 operating systems. iOS and iPadOS 14.8.1 come more than a month after the release of iOS and iPadOS 14.8, another security fix update.

Apple has released the below updates:

iOS 14.8.1
iPadOS 14.8.1

These are minor updates which contains security updates and minor fixes.

To update your device, do the following:

Go to Settings.
Then General.
Finally Software update.

Apple’s App Tracking Transparency privacy push hurts Big Tech rivals’ ad businesses

CompuScoop Staff October 26, 2021 0

Facebook on Monday blamed changes to Apple’s “Identifier for Advertisers” (IDFA) user tracking feature for missing Wall Street expectations on revenue.

Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg said that the company would’ve experienced quarter-over-quarter revenue growth, if not for Apple’s changes.

Snapchat’s stock fell nearly 25% in after-hours trading last week after it conceded that its ad business “was disrupted” by Apple’s update.

A report from The Financial Times last week found that Apple’s in-house ads business is “now responsible for 58% of all iPhone app downloads that result from clicking on an advert” compared to 17% a year prior, citing data from mobile analytics company Branch.

Via: Axios.com