mpantone

A lot of these upgrades are tipped off by code mentions in beta versions of the operating system. Not sure why anyone is expecting any products with the Ultra SoC next week.

Perhaps the Max is possible given that the MacBook Pro is typically offered in the vanilla, Pro, and Max variants. Or maybe just an announcement for the Max with actual availability at a later date.

dewme said:

This is a scenario where I have to ask myself: Why Apple is even in this business in the first place?

There are obviously financial and efficiency benefits for Apple to be involved in adjacencies that help promote and push the products they make, like iPhones and Macs, out the door and into consumer’s hands. My concern is that Apple (or any other new age conglomerate) is putting their hard-earned reputation and brand value at risk by jumping into areas that are outside of their core expertise and sphere of influence.

Apple may be revisiting the same question internally. After five years Apple Card remains solely a US-only offering. And if another issuing bank takes over Apple Card will that financial institution agree to all of Apple's demands? One thing for sure Jamie Dimon at JPMorganChase won't.

If Apple Card gets taken over by another bank, most likely the cardmembers will see fewer benefits and flexibilities that they have enjoyed. One thing that is definitely going away is the absence of fees.

Apple partnered with a financial institution knowing that US consumer banking laws are much more strict than those governing consumer technology and invite much heavier regulatory scrutiny. This fine is a clear indicator that Apple cannot hide behind a bank and say "it's their fault." Apple is partially responsible for these banking processes because they handle the Apple Pay side of things.

My guess is this fine will invite further regulatory scrutiny. Any other countries that are interested in Apple Card will also remember this. If Apple Card debuted in another country, they will have to deal with that country's agencies.

We have already seen how different regulations are complicating Apple's efforts. Apple Intelligence is not coming to the EU next week.

My guess is there is a 50-50 chance that Apple Card's features will get watered down over time to the point where it ends up just being an Apple-branded card that offers a slightly higher discount on Apple purchases with everything else being similar to comparable cards from other banks. Sure, if you want to save another ten bucks when you buy a $999 iPhone or Mac, pull out your Apple Card (2029 version) otherwise you might just want to use some other bank's card.

boxcatcher said:

Has anyone seen the app used to request / validate these?

Like what is a grocery store clerk supposed to use when someone goes to buy wine?

Disclaimer: I can only speak based on my personal experience with the CA DMV Wallet app. It is extremely unlikely that anyone will be able to provide an in-depth comparison between the implementations by various states.

The CA DMV Wallet app that a civilian uses to upload and register for a digital ID is also a mCDL reader. You scan the QR code presented by someone else's CA DMV Wallet app. There are various checks (Minor Check, Over 18, Over 21; Over 25; a Senior one). For sure a network connection will be required so the app can consult the California DMV's database for digital ID validity.

Is it highly improbable that a supermarket chain would assign smartphones to cashiers. For sure there is some sort of API for these digital IDs. That would need to be incorporated in the store's POS system. The NFC contactless POS terminal (like a Verifone touchpad) would need software support. Theoretically you'd touch your phone to the POS terminal's NFC scanner which would then query the DMV's digital ID database to verify age and the grocery store's POS software would flash some sort of approval message to the cashier.

The last paragraph of the AppleInsider article specifically mentions that a digital ID does not remove the necessity to carry around a physical card. Just because you have a digital driver's license doesn't automatically open doors for you. The other party must accept digital IDs and have the correct systems set up. 

In any case, if the system goes down, you can still use a physical driver's license to verify age/identity. Waving around a digital DMV QR code without the proper reader is useless, since a screenshot can be faked. Quite a few naive fools have discovered that having a photo of your ID on your smartphone isn't a legitimate form of identification, whether it be at a nightclub, buying booze or cigarettes, during the pandemic, etc.

This is the same as using your phone as a digital wallet. It is entirely the merchant's call whether or not to accept smartphone payment systems. Sometimes the NFC contactless POS terminal has faulty hardware. And yet, Apple Pay has gone down more than once. You still need some other form of payment whether it be a physical credit card or cash. Anyone who thinks they can leave their physical credit cards and physical driver's license at home is a clueless nitwit.

The main reason for having digital IDs and digital credit cards is not for consumer convenience. It is for anti-fraud purposes. It protects the consumer (not having your credit card information skimmed surreptitiously) as well as the business (not processing transaction from stolen or faked cards).

As to California implementation, here in late October 2024 I consider this to be early beta stage. The system is extremely unreliable. I was able to apply for a digital ID which was eventually issued a week later. The CA DMV App requires you to refresh the digital ID every ten days. Well, I tried today and it failed. I also tried to log into the CA DMV App on a secondary iPhone. That also failed, the phone attempts to register the device token, but it never finishes the process, it just goes forever.

There's an option to contact the CA DMV customer support desk but if you've ever dealt with the California DMV, that's unappealing at best. My plan is just to abandon the digital driver's license and try again in a year or two. It's certainly not ready for primetime and I've never been offered any opportunity to use it.

My guess is that digital IDs might be better handled in a country that issues national identification cards, maybe one of the European countries or one of the southeast Asian countries (Japan, South Korea come to mind). I have not seen anything like this yet during my last trips in the past three months so my guess is that a reliable digital ID system is still several years away. With individual US states issuing their own driver's license, each implementation will be slightly different. For sure some will be better than others, some states' servers will be more secure, more reliable, faster, etc.

The US passport agency in conjunction with the US DHS (Department of Homeland Security) and CBP (Customs & Border Protection) might be the first US government agency that rolls out better support. They are now heavily using biometric face scans for identification purposes. Two-factor authentication combining biometric and digital identification would be an increase in security. Again, it's not about convenience. You still need to carry your passport for international travel.

If Iowa DOT's computer systems go down, at least airport security can still look at a government issued card or passport and wave you through. If you only have a phone, guess what? You are not getting on that airplane. You get to go back home, grab your physical ID and return to the airport. It's only a matter of time before the media reports of some fool(s) who learned the hard way.

As I predicted there will be no event. That deadline came and went over a week ago (Tuesday October 15).

It's interesting to see that Apple has chosen to have in-person events in Los Angeles instead of an event at the corporate campus and that they are focusing on a carefully selected handful of creators



as reported by 9to5Mac

https://9to5mac.com/2024/10/24/apple-october-event-confirmed-details/

It is extremely unlikely that we will see any products next week utilizing the M4 Max or M4 Ultra SoCs. It is crystal clear that Apple Engineering (both hardware and software) doesn't have the bandwidth to launch all four variants at the same time or in quick succession.

Furthermore there are usually some hints when a new CPU is incoming: Geekbench results with mysterious device IDs, references in beta versions of the operating system, etc. There are no such teasers for the Max and Ultra variants of the M4 silicon at this point.

Other tech media sites (Bloomberg is one) have speculated that the M4 MacBook Air is coming in Q1 2025 with the Mac Studio to follow later. A good bet would be for the Mac Studio with M4 Max SoC to be announced at WWDC 2025 in June.

Another thing not to expect would be any drastic price cuts. It's not like TSMC's latest and greatest node is some sort of bargain offering. Tech media has repeatedly reported wafer price increases. Apple will be pass this along to customers, it's not like they are going to take a major hit to gross margins.

I also doubt the unveiling of a new Apple TV next week. I'm not sure what new silicon would bring to the table. Maybe a couple of minor features but certainly nothing major like a resolution increase. 8K video for consumer devices still isn't here yet even though NHK Japan has been doing terrestrial broadcasts for several years. An Apple TV that does 8K video probably won't come until the FCC migrates to 8K terrestrial broadcasts for US television stations.