Apple has asked some of its suppliers to cut production of iPhone 18 Pro components due to lower-than-expected demand, according to Nikkei Asia ($).


Citing its own sources, the report claims that Apple has been more cautious about shipments since early September because of the rising cost of memory chips, leading to higher prices. Component orders for October were said to have been cut by at least 15 percent compared with what was originally requested.

The iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max start at $1,199 and $1,299 respectively, which is $100 more than the models they replace. Apple has publicly blamed AI-driven memory chip costs for the recent price increases across its lineup, which has seen prices of MacBooks and iPads tick up, as well as for iPhone 16 and 17 models and other products.

Nikkei also said that softer demand between late August and October could be related to Apple changing its iPhone launch schedule. Rather than announcing its latest flagship iPhone series in one go, as it typically does, Apple is expected instead to release the regular iPhone 18 in the spring of 2027, alongside the lower-cost iPhone 18e and the ultra-thin iPhone Air 2, as part of a split launch strategy.

The iPhone 18 Pro models feature 12GB of RAM, which is the same working memory as last year's iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max. One rumor has it that Apple originally planned to equip the iPhone 18 Pro lineup with 16GB of RAM, but it may have ultimately decided against it due to the higher cost.
This article, "Apple Reportedly Cuts iPhone 18 Pro Orders After Price Hike Dampens Demand" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple has reached an agreement to recruit employees from Huxe and license the AI audio startup's technology, according to a new European Commission filing.


The filing says Apple will have the right to make employment offers to certain Huxe employees and receive a non-exclusive license to the company's intellectual property, so this isn't an outright acquisition of the company.

Huxe was founded by former Google NotebookLM team members Raiza Martin, Jason Spielman, and Stephen Hughes. NotebookLM – since renamed Gemini Notebook – is Google's AI research tool, which is best known for its ability to turn documents and other source material into podcast-style audio discussions.

Huxe brought a similar approach to personalized listening, given that its app generated audio briefings based on users' emails, calendars, and interests, as well as podcasts about topics they wanted to explore. Listeners could interrupt the AI hosts to ask questions or request a different explanation.

The startup announced in May that it was winding down, and said its team was moving on and that development would stop. Its audio service ended on May 28. Apple notified the Commission of the arrangement on June 9.

The filing does not say which employees Apple could recruit, nor does it confirm whether anyone has actually been hired.
This article, "Apple Signs Hiring and Licensing Deal With AI Podcast Startup Huxe" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple's iPhone Air 2 will be approximately 0.4mm thinner than the current model despite having a higher-capacity battery, claims the account "yeux1122" on the Korean Naver blog. Apple lists the original iPhone Air at 5.6mm thick, so a 0.4mm reduction would put its successor at approximately 5.2mm, around 7% thinner. Interestingly, that would match the thickness of the new iPhone Duo when unfolded.

A previous rumor claimed the iPhone Air 2 will feature a 3,500mAh battery. That's up from the 3,149mAh battery in the current iPhone Air, indicating around an 11% increase in raw capacity. The next-generation device is expected to launch early next year alongside the iPhone 18e and the regular iPhone 18.
This article, "iPhone Air 2 Could Be as Thin as an Unfolded iPhone Duo" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Ahead of the expected imminent launch of the new iPad mini 8, word out of Asia suggests that the device will feature a 60Hz OLED display rather than a ProMotion 120Hz display.


The information comes courtesy of a hit-and-miss tipster running the account "yeux1122" on the Korean Naver blog. "There have been mentions of 120Hz in some overseas reports, but the domestic production quantity has already been confirmed to be LTPS at 60Hz," the tipster wrote. "That's it."

It's not the first time we've heard that OLED iPad mini won't share the same ProMotion display as the iPad Pro models. In July, the same leaker claimed they had been told by a source in Apple's supply chain that the unreleased iPad mini is equipped with a low-temperature polycrystalline silicon (LTPS) backplane hybrid OLED panel clocked at 60Hz.

Apple's ‌iPad Pro‌ models feature two-stack low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO) OLED panels‌, which makes the display capable of dynamically adjusting its refresh rate between 10Hz and 120Hz (aka ProMotion). In contrast, LTPS OLED panels are usually paired with fixed refresh rates – such as 60Hz, 90Hz, or 120Hz – and are typically dimmer than LTPO panels.

If the leak is true, it's likely to disappoint iPad mini fans. Previous reports have not been clear on whether the iPad mini 8 will feature a higher refresh rate than the 60Hz LCD display used in the existing iPad mini 7. Given that the base iPhone 17 uses a 120Hz ProMotion panel, some would have believed it was reasonable to expect the same on the first OLED iPad mini. That said, the iPhone 17e goes to show that Apple is still in the 60Hz OLED business, so it might not consider the iPad mini to be a big enough market to justify the more advanced panel technology.

There are at least some other new features of the new iPad mini 8 that we can expect. It should come with a faster A20 Pro chip, FaceTime camera relocated from portrait to landscape orientation, a redesigned speaker system, and a water-resistant design.

The new iPad mini is expected at some point in October, but Apple has not yet announced a launch date. Apple will unveil some new home products on Tuesday, October 13, according to a report from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. However, MacRumors' sources indicate that Apple plans to hold a separate event in the final week of October, so the iPad mini 8 could arrive then.

Update: Apple will debut the new iPad mini on or around Tuesday, October 27, reports Bloomberg.
This article, "New iPad Mini Rumored to Have 60Hz OLED Display Ahead of Launch" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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