Apple News 24-Hour Briefing
×Last updated: October 7, 2026, 9:37 PM ET
Prime Day Deals
Amazon's fall Prime Day sale is in its final hours, and the discounts span much of the Apple lineup. Shoppers can pick up a 15-inch MacBook Air M5 for $1,299, while AirPods Pro drop to $179 and an Apple Watch starts at $199. Accessory bargains are also widespread, with Belkin charging stations up to 53% off and Anker's Prime 3-in-1 charger at $94.74. Television buyers can find Samsung OLED sets from $997.99, and a roundup of the best fall deals covers the rest. Meanwhile, Best Buy is taking $260 off every iPhone Air model during its Techtober sale.
Apple Home and LG
Apple's smart home ambitions took a concrete step as second-party partners extend beyond LG. Leaked images show a new Home smart lock, thermostat, and more, and FCC filings reveal the designs of three upcoming accessories. Apple's own home security camera remains in development and is still expected next year, according to Gurman's reporting. Separately, Ring has announced its first smart lock, designed to avoid the battery worries that plague rivals.
Software and Operating Systems
Apple released the first release candidates for mac OS Sequoia 15.8.2 and mac OS Tahoe 26.7.2, now available to public beta testers. Work continues on iOS 27.2, which will bring new iPhone features in October, and a beta 3 build is already out. watchOS 27 adds three new apps, and call screening in iOS 27 has been praised for cutting spam calls. Users also gained a way to remove Apple Intelligence through a dedicated app, and macOS may officially support easier removal.
Wearables
The Apple Watch Series 12 review calls it the best non-Ultra model yet, with upgrades where they were needed. However, iFixit gave the Series 12 and Ultra 4 a 4/10 repairability score, and some owners have reported skin irritation.
Hardware and Chips
Apple's next laptop is reportedly getting three key changes in a fully redesigned MacBook Pro. Analysis of the M6 chip suggests larger performance gains at the 2-nanometer scale. A Sonnet Thunderbolt 5 enclosure adds PCIe expansion to Mac mini and MacBook Pro, and Nvidia driver support may arrive for Hackintosh and Intel Mac Pro owners. Apple has also dropped Intel Macs from Magic Mouse and Trackpad compatibility lists. On the display front, Apple reportedly waits on Samsung for a bezel-free iPhone OLED.
Services and Media
Spotify is rolling out its audiobooks section to more than 180 markets. Formula 1 coverage on Apple TV gains Dolby Atmos starting with the U.S. Grand Prix on October 23. Apple also released a free chapter from the Ted Lasso book The Richmond Way, and a new Richmond AFC book is now out. Apple x King's Trust Creative Labs launched with Tim Cook, Elton John, and King Charles.
Wallets and Transit
Boston's MBTA is testing a new CharlieCard with Apple Wallet support, and Manchester's Bee Card is now fully supported in Apple Wallet.
Policy and Regulation
Apple and Brussels are finding unusual common ground on child safety policy, with Tim Cook's company backing the EU push. The EU's proposed Big Tech tax hike faces opposition both abroad and within Europe, and Apple may face an annual lump-sum payment under a revised plan. Meanwhile, Apple's ad vendor crackdown under iOS 27 is catching some innocent developers.
AI and Apps
Meta's Muse agent launched on iPad after weeks as a top iPhone app, though Apple Insider advises skipping it. Grok gained smarter responses through Anthropic's Claude.
Retail and Market Share
Apple overtook Samsung in European carrier smartphone sales in Q2, according to Counterpoint Research. Amazon's About You feature is drawing privacy criticism. For a closing look at the week's picks, In My Cart lists the Prime Day items a 9to5Mac editor is buying, and TV deals offer the year's best prices from Samsung, Sony, and others.