Apple News 3d Briefing
×Last updated: March 14, 2026, 11:40 AM ET
Apple's 50th Anniversary Celebrations
Apple kicked off its 50th anniversary with a surprise Alicia Keys concert macrumors.com in New York City after mysteriously shutting down macrumors.com its Grand Central Terminal store. CEO Tim Cook shared a commemorative "50 Years of Thinking Different" letter macrumors.com, while the company announced macrumors.com global celebrations including gatherings at Apple Stores worldwide. The Computer History Museum will host a panel tonight featuring veteran Apple executives and author David Pogue, whose new book "Apple: The First 50 Years" launched this week after Apple declined to interview CEO Tim Cook for the project.
Product Launches and Availability
Apple's big week of announcements saw all new products officially become available, with reviewers and users alike now getting their hands on macrumors.com devices like the groundbreaking MacBook Neo. The $599 laptop has proven to be one of Apple's most exciting and disruptive products in years, with Parallels confirming macrumors.com it can run Windows in virtual machines. A teardown by Tech Re-Nu revealed what may be the most modular and repair-friendly Mac laptop yet, featuring modular ports, a glue-less battery, and zero tape. Meanwhile, Apple lowered App Store developer fees macrumors.com in China from 30% to 25% starting March 15.
Foldable iPhone Developments
Samsung Display is appleinsider.com expected to begin producing screens for Apple's long-rumored foldable iPhone, with manufacturing ramping up in the second quarter. The device will feature 12GB of RAM supplied by Samsung and is rumored to come in three storage options. However, a new leak suggests Apple might name it the iPhone Ultra instead of iPhone Fold, potentially launching alongside other Ultra products.
Security Updates
Apple released iOS 16.7.15, iPad OS 9to5mac.com 16.7.15, iOS 15.8.7, and iPad OS 15.8.7 to address the Coruna exploit affecting older devices. The company confirmed these updates target the vulnerability disclosed last week by Google and iVerify, virtually eliminating remaining addressable iPhones being targeted by the exploit being traded on the black market.
Software Updates
iOS 26.4 is launching soon with three new ways 9to5mac.com to customize your iPhone, while mac OS Tahoe 26.4 brings four new features to Macs. Apple's Passwords app received a new feature that can save users headaches, and the company updated its Self Service Repair Store with manuals for the iPhone 17e, new Mac Books, and iPads.
Streaming and Entertainment
Apple TV premiered its rare true crime original series "Twisted Yoga" and launched the prestige thriller "Imperfect Women," with reviews now in for both. The service also claimed its first F1 viewership victory over ESPN for the 2026 season opener. Friday Night Baseball returns on March 27 for the 2026 MLB season, and Apple TV has five weeks of big premieres ahead, including popular series like "Shrinking." macrumors.com
Market Performance
Apple tied Samsung as the top macrumors.com smartphone maker in 2025, with both companies producing nearly identical numbers of devices globally. Meanwhile, a Counterpoint Research report showed the average iPad selling price rose roughly 10% even as the broader tablet market saw shipments decline.
Accessories and Ecosystem
A new app allows 9to5mac.com any Mac to unlock special iMac and MacBook Neo accent color options, while Spotify is testing a feature called Tas that gives listeners more direct input over music recommendations. DIRECTV updated its iPhone and iPad app with Sports Central, bringing the live sports hub feature to iOS devices.
Corporate Developments
Apple confirmed today's iOS and iPad 9to5mac.com OS updates for older devices address the Coruna exploit. The company also said it will cut App Store developer fees in China from March 15, reducing standard in-app purchase commissions from 30% to 25%.
Industry News
Former Windows chief Terry Myerson applauded appleinsider.com the MacBook Neo, saying it's so good it will replace his MacBook Air, while lamenting Microsoft's struggles with ARM processors. India is considering new manufacturing incentives to shift iPhone production out of China and potentially stall any move to relocate it to the US.
OLED MacBook Pro and Future Products
Apple's M6 MacBook Pro is 9to5mac.com rumored to launch later this year with a total design overhaul, while Ming-Chi Kuo says the MacBook Pro will receive a "major upgrade" with an OLED display by early next year. However, an OLED MacBook Air remains years away.
AI and Technology
Anthropic's Claude macrumors.com chatbot was updated with support for inline visual content that helps provide clearer answers, though the service experienced login issues and slow performance. Perplexity introduced a Personal Computer that combines its agentic AI platform with a Mac mini's local app capabilities.
Display Technology
The Apple Studio Display XDR seemingly appleinsider.com works on Intel Macs after all, with a caveat, while new Apple Studio Displays double internal storage to 128GB. Samsung's monitor sale includes a free copy of Resident Evil Requiem, plus TV and Galaxy deals.
Other Developments
Apple published repair manuals for the 9to5mac.com iPhone 17e, new Mac Books, and iPads following today's product launches. The company also launched a new Instagram account, expanding beyond its Shot on iPhone campaign. Meanwhile, Adobe agreed to pay a $150 million fine over confusing cancellation fees after years of customer complaints.
Gaming and Performance
Andrew Tsai tested 10 9to5mac.com games on the MacBook Neo, from AAA Mac-native titles to Windows games through translation layers and emulated Switch games, to determine whether the device can actually handle gaming well. The MacBook Neo proves that mac OS can run on an iPhone processor and shows Apple now has all elements to make a device that lets an iPhone or iPad be your Mac.
Market and Retail
Apple saw an unusual surge in Mac trade-ins macrumors.com amid the MacBook Neo launch, according to a reliable source speaking to Mac Rumors. Today's 9to5Toys Lunch Break is headlined by MacBook launch week deals, including up to $320 off MacBook Air and $200 off M5 Pro models.
Competitors and Industry
Samsung introduced its newest 9to5mac.com line of Galaxy products last month, including S26 smartphones and other devices. Alt Store PAL update brings social web features and Liquid Glass design, embracing the Fediverse to compete with the App Store on discovery.
Special Events and Appearances
Former Apple co-founder Ronald Wayne macrumors.com will appear at an event tonight following the release of David Pogue's book. The book's launch week includes a giveaway offering readers a chance to win an iPhone 17 Pro and 25W Qi charger.
Software Ecosystem
mac OS includes device-specific accent color options for iMac and MacBook 9to5mac.com Neo, with an app now allowing any Mac to unlock these special color options. Bartender for Mac has been updated following months of bug fixes related to changes Apple made to the menu bar's underlying structure in mac OS Tahoe.