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Visa and American Express Vying to Win Apple Card Deal in 'Fierce' Fight

2025-04-02 04:50:09

Visa wants to pay Apple approximately $100 million to be the new payment network for the Apple Card, reports The Wall Street Journal. As of right now, the ‌Apple Card‌ is on the Mastercard payment network, but that is set to change because Apple is ending its partnership with Goldman Sachs.


Both American Express and Visa are vying to replace Mastercard as Apple's card services provider, while Mastercard is aiming to retain its position. Apple apparently plans to choose a new ‌Apple Card‌ network before it selects a partner to replace Goldman Sachs as the ‌Apple Card‌'s issuing bank, and competition is intense. Visa is offering Apple a $100 million upfront payment, while American Express is "in the mix" and Mastercard is "fiercely trying" to retain its role.

Apple and Goldman Sachs have been working to dissolve their partnership since 2023, with Goldman Sachs planning to exit the consumer banking market. JPMorgan Chase and Synchrony Financial are in talks with Apple to take over for Goldman Sachs, but American Express has also been aiming to become the issuer and network of the ‌Apple Card‌. Apple needs both an issuing bank for the ‌Apple Card‌ and a payment network that facilitates transactions.

Goldman Sachs and Apple have worked together on the ‌Apple Card‌ since its 2019 launch, and have also teamed up for the high-yield Apple Savings account. Apple has not been happy with Goldman Sachs because of customer service issues caused by long wait times for disputed ‌Apple Card‌ transactions and savings account withdrawals.

The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau even launched an investigation into Goldman Sachs due to the customer complaints, which led to tension, so both companies are eager to end their relationship.

The ‌Apple Card‌ has over 12 million users in the United States, with approximately $20 billion in balances.

This article, "Visa and American Express Vying to Win Apple Card Deal in 'Fierce' Fight" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple Releases watchOS 11.4 With Sleep Alarm Update

2025-04-02 01:34:15

Apple today released watchOS 11.4, the fourth major update to the operating system that runs on the Apple Watch. watchOS 11.4 is compatible with the Apple Watch Series 6 and later, all Apple Watch Ultra models, and the Apple Watch SE 2.


watchOS 11.4 can be downloaded on a connected iPhone by opening up the Apple Watch app and going to General > Software Update. To install the new software, the Apple Watch needs to have at least 50 percent battery and it needs to be placed on a charger.

With watchOS 11.4, Apple has added an option for a Sleep Wake Up alarm to break through Silent Mode, so you can have your Apple Watch make a sound in addition to haptic tapping when a morning alarm goes off. There's also support for Matter-compatible robot vacuum cleaners in the Home app.

This update includes new features, improvements, and bug fixes, including:
- Matter-compatible robot vacuum cleaners can be added to the Home app as well as used in scenes, automations, or simply say "Siri, clean the living room."
- An option to allow Sleep Wake Up alarm to break through Silent Mode
- An issue where face selection may become unresponsive when switching faces
For information on the security content of Apple software updates, please visit this website: https://support.apple.com/100100

More of the features available in watchOS 11 can be found in our watchOS 11 roundup.
This article, "Apple Releases watchOS 11.4 With Sleep Alarm Update" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Amazon Takes Up to $60 Off New M4 MacBook Air, Available From $949

2025-04-02 01:24:49

Amazon today has all-time low prices on the new M4 MacBook Air, with up to $60 off the 13-inch and 15-inch versions of the computer. Right now these discounts are only available on Amazon, and most of them have estimated delivery windows of early April.

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This time around, there is one 13-inch configuration on sale and one 15-inch configuration on sale, reaching up to $60 off the original price. You can get the 256GB 13-inch M4 MacBook Air for $949.00, down from $999.00, and the 256GB 15-inch M4 MacBook Air for $1,139.00, down from $1,199.00. Both of these deals are available in two colors on Amazon.

We aren't currently tracking any notable deals on the 512GB models of the M4 MacBook Air. If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week.

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This article, "Amazon Takes Up to $60 Off New M4 MacBook Air, Available From $949" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Mac Studio Buyer's Guide: All Models Compared

2025-04-01 23:15:00

Apple has now refreshed the Mac Studio twice since its introduction in 2022, so should you upgrade your unit and is an older model still worth buying?


The new ‌Mac Studio‌'s main upgrade is its chip, moving from the M2 Max and ‌M2‌ Ultra to the M4 Max and M3 Ultra. Compared to its predecessor, the new ‌Mac Studio‌ is up to 75% faster with 2x faster graphics. It also now features up to 512GB of memory of 16GB of storage, as well as Thunderbolt 5 connectivity.

See the breakdown below for each new feature, change, and improvement that was added with the latest ‌Mac Studio‌ compared to its predecessors:

‌Mac Studio‌ (2022)	‌Mac Studio‌ (2023)	‌Mac Studio‌ (2025)
Apple M1 Max or M1 Ultra chip	Apple ‌M2‌ Max or ‌M2‌ Ultra chip	Apple M4 Max or M3 Ultra chip
M1 Max: 10-core CPU (8 performance cores, 2 efficiency cores) M1 Ultra: 20-core CPU (16 performance cores, 4 efficiency cores)	M2 Max: 12-core CPU (8 performance cores, 4 efficiency cores) M2 Ultra: 24-core CPU (16 performance cores, 8 efficiency cores)	M4 Max: Up to 16-core CPU (12 performance cores, 4 efficiency cores) M3 Ultra: Up to 32-core CPU (24 performance cores, 8 efficiency cores)
M1 Max: Up to 32-core GPU M1 Ultra: Up to 64-core GPU	M2 Max: Up to 38-core GPU M2 Ultra: Up to 76-core GPU	M4 Max: Up to 40-core GPU M3 Ultra: Up to 80-core GPU
		Hardware-accelerated ray tracing
		AV1 decode
M1 Max: 16-core Neural Engine (11 TOPS) M1 Ultra: 32-core Neural Engine (22 TOPS)	M2 Max: 16-core Neural Engine (15.8 TOPS) M2 Ultra: 32-core Neural Engine (31.6 TOPS)	M4 Max: 16-core Neural Engine (38 TOPS) M3 Ultra: 32-core Neural Engine (76 TOPS)
M1 Max: Video decode engine M1 Ultra: Two video decode engines	M2 Max: Video decode engine M2 Ultra: Two video decode engines	M4 Max: Video decode engine M3 Ultra: Two video decode engines
M1 Max: Two video encode engines M1 Ultra: Four video encode engines	M2 Max: Two video encode engines M2 Ultra: Four video encode engines	M4 Max: Two video encode engines M3 Ultra: Four video encode engines
M1 Max: Two ProRes encode and decode engines M1 Ultra: Four ProRes encode and decode engines	M2 Max: Two ProRes encode and decode engines M2 Ultra: Four ProRes encode and decode engines	M4 Max: Two ProRes encode and decode engines M3 Ultra: Four ProRes encode and decode engines
M1 Max: 32GB or 64GB memory M1 Ultra: 64GB or 128GB memory	M2 Max: 32GB, 64GB, or 96GB memory M2 Ultra: 64GB, 128GB, or 192GB memory	M4 Max: 36GB, 48GB, 64GB, 128GB memory M3 Ultra: 96GB, 256GB, or 512GB memory
M1 Max: 400GB/s memory bandwidth M1 Ultra: 800GB/s memory bandwidth	M2 Max: 400GB/s memory bandwidth M2 Ultra: 800GB/s memory bandwidth	M4 Max: Up to 546GB/s memory bandwidth M3 Ultra: 819GB/s memory bandwidth
512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, or 8TB SSD storage	M2 Max: 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, or 8TB SSD storage M2 Ultra: 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, or 8TB SSD storage	M4 Max: 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, or 8TB SSD storage M3 Ultra: 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, 8TB, or 16TB SSD storage
M1 Max: Four Thunderbolt 4 ports and two USB-C ports M1 Ultra: Six Thunderbolt 4 ports	M2 Max: Four Thunderbolt 4 ports and two USB-C ports M2 Ultra: Six Thunderbolt 4 ports	M4 Max: Four Thunderbolt 5 ports and two USB-C ports M3 Ultra: Six Thunderbolt 5 ports
HDMI 2.0 port	HDMI 2.1 port	HDMI 2.1 port
Support for up to four Pro Display XDRs and one 4K display	Support for up to eight 4K displays, six 6K displays, or three 8K displays	Support for up to eight 4K displays, eight 6K displays or four 8K displays
3.5mm headphone jack	3.5mm headphone jack with advanced support for high-impedance headphones	3.5mm headphone jack with advanced support for high-impedance headphones
802.11ax Wi‑Fi 6	802.11ax Wi‑Fi 6E	802.11ax Wi‑Fi 6E
Bluetooth 5.0	Bluetooth 5.3	Bluetooth 5.3
Released March 2022	Released June 2023	Released March 2025

Only those 2022 ‌Mac Studio‌ users who consistently push their machines to the limit with tasks like 3D rendering, video editing in high resolutions, machine learning workflows, or large-scale software development should consider upgrading to the 2025 model. The 2025 ‌Mac Studio‌ introduces a considerable leap in performance, particularly with the M4 Max and M3 Ultra chips, offering substantially better GPU performance, more powerful GPUs with hardware-accelerated ray tracing, a significantly faster Neural Engine, and support for up to 512GB of memory and Thunderbolt 5. These improvements dramatically improve workflows that demand extreme parallel processing, faster memory access, or broader external display setups. If your current 2022 ‌Mac Studio‌ ever feels like a bottleneck, or if you are preparing to work with increasingly complex projects over the next few years, the upgrade is likely to be worth it. However, for users whose workloads remain well within the capabilities of the ‌M1 Max‌ or ‌M1 Ultra‌, especially those focused on less GPU-intensive tasks, the gains may not justify the cost at this time.

Upgrading from the 2023 ‌Mac Studio‌ to the 2025 model is likely to be worth it for far fewer users, simply because the performance gains, while significant on paper, will make less of a real-world difference for most professionals already using the ‌M2‌ Max or ‌M2‌ Ultra chip because the 2023 model is still exceptionally capable. However, there are a few edge cases where the upgrade may be justified—particularly for users working with local large language models or intensive AI workloads, where the vastly improved Neural Engine in the M4 Max or M3 Ultra can offer major benefits. Similarly, users who rely on extremely high memory capacity or bandwidth, or those building systems around Thunderbolt 5 and AV1 decode support, might see tangible improvements that justify the cost. Still, for the vast majority of users, especially those in video production, app development, or general pro workflows, the 2023 ‌Mac Studio‌ remains more than sufficient for the foreseeable future, making the 2025 upgrade more of a luxury than a necessity.

The 2022 and 2023 ‌Mac Studio‌ models are still very much worth buying, especially if found refurbished or second-hand at a good price. Both models offer excellent performance that remains highly competitive even in 2025, with the ‌M1 Ultra‌ and ‌M2‌ Ultra still delivering substantial CPU and GPU power, high memory bandwidth, and dedicated media engines that easily handle demanding tasks like video editing, music production, 3D rendering, and software development. While they lack newer features like Thunderbolt 5, hardware-accelerated ray tracing, or the enhanced Neural Engine performance found in the 2025 models, those are largely beneficial only to users with very specific, future-facing workloads. For most professionals and power users, especially those upgrading from Intel Macs or base M1 systems, the 2022 and 2023 models remain an outstanding value—and often represent the best balance between performance and cost when purchased refurbished or pre-owned.
This article, "Mac Studio Buyer's Guide: All Models Compared" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Delta Emulator Gains Online Multiplayer for Nintendo DS Games

2025-04-01 19:47:29

The popular iOS game emulator Delta has received a major update that adds online multiplayer functionality for Nintendo DS games. Version 1.7 of the app now allows players to compete against each other in classic DS titles like Mario Kart DS, Bomberman, and Animal Crossing.


Nintendo officially shut down the original DS online services back in 2014, so Delta relies on alternative Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection servers maintained by the community. The way it works is very straightforward – simply select your preferred server within the emulator settings. No complex DNS or network configuration is required. A list of supported games can be found on Wikipedia.

Beyond online multiplayer, version 1.7 also introduces several other notable improvements. Nintendo 64 emulation has been enhanced, with new options to upscale resolution and use custom texture packs for improved visuals. A quick screenshot feature has also been added, alongside various bug fixes and performance optimizations.

Delta is regarded as one of the most polished game emulators available on iOS, supporting multiple Nintendo platforms including NES, SNES, N64, Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, and Nintendo DS. The app offers robust controller support, save states, cheats, game backups, and cloud syncing.

For players looking to try these new features, Delta 1.7 is currently available through AltStore PAL for users in the European Union, with a global App Store release expected soon. The emulator remains free to download.
This article, "Delta Emulator Gains Online Multiplayer for Nintendo DS Games" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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How to Turn Off Apple Mail Categories

2025-04-01 18:56:12

In iOS 18.2, Apple introduced a major change to iPhone's Mail app with a new Categories feature, which has now been rolled out to iPad and Mac with iPadOS 18.4 and macOS Sequoia 15.4. Categories automatically sorts your emails into four distinct sections: Primary, Transactions, Updates, and Promotions. However, while this organizational system aims to help manage email overload, not everyone will prefer the new layout.


Mail Categories attempts to intelligently organize your incoming emails into different sections. Important emails are shown in a "Primary" category, with orders, newsletters, social notifications, and deals organized into three other sections.

The "Transactions" section includes receipts, orders, and deliveries, and aims to make it easy to find orders that you've placed and shipping information for those orders. Meanwhile, the "Updates" section includes newsletters, alerts for things like doctor's appointments and correspondence, and other subscription emails. Lastly, Apple's "Promotions" category includes special offers and deal emails.

Note that even if an email would normally fall into Transactions, Updates, or Promotions, it will also appear in your Primary inbox if it contains time-critical information. On devices that support Apple Intelligence, the system goes a step further by highlighting priority emails that require action or have deadlines.

Mail Categories: Why You Might Want to Revert

The new Categories view, while helpful for some, might not suit your email management style. Perhaps you prefer seeing all emails in chronological order, or have your own organization system. Or maybe you just want fast access to all your emails without switching between categories. On iPhone and iPad, you can swipe left across the categories to switch to an "All Mail" view (the same option can be found on Mac to the right of the category buttons) but what if you want to remove the categories completely?

How to Return to List View in Apple Mail

Categories is the default view after updating to the new software. Fortunately, Apple makes it simple to switch back to the traditional list view. Here's how it's done:

1. Open the Mail app on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac.


2. On iPhone/iPad, tap the More button (three dots) in the upper right corner of your inbox. On Mac, you can find the More button at the top of the inbox view.
   
   
3. On iPhone/iPad, select List View from the pop-up menu. On Mac, click Show Mail Categories to uncheck it.

Once you switch to List View, your inbox will return to showing all emails in chronological order, just as it did before. The change takes effect immediately. While categorization is not perfect, it's likely something that Apple will improve over time. You can always switch back to Categories view using the same menu if you want to try it again later.

Note: If you're using an iPhone/iPad that supports Apple Intelligence, you'll see an additional option in the More menu for priority messages. This option won't appear on devices without Apple Intelligence support. The More menu also has an "About Categories" section where you can see how your messages have been categorized over the course of the last week, but there is no option to tell the Mail app if you believe an email has been put into the wrong category.
This article, "How to Turn Off Apple Mail Categories" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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