This digest compiles the latest from Apple Insider.
Today’s Apple Insider Roundup
iPhone 18 Pro Max battery life to increase again — but not by much
A new iPhone 18 Pro Max leak claims that will see the smallest year-over-year battery capacity increase in years, although the final use figures depends more on the power efficiency of the A20 processor.
Recent rumors have claimed that the expected iPhone Fold will have the largest-capacity battery the iPhone has ever had. But dubious leaks specifying a capacity figure claim it will be a 5,000mAh battery, and now the iPhone 18 Pro Max will reportedly beat it.
That’s according to leaker Digital Chat Station on Chinese social media site Weibo. He or she states that there will again be two models of the highest-end iPhone, with different battery capacities:
Rumor Score: 🤔 Possible
How to factory reset AirTag 2
Whether you’re handing off an AirTag or trying to resolve pairing issues, knowing how to properly reset Apple’s item tracker ensures you can set it up on a new iPhone easily.
Every AirTag can be associated with only a single Apple Account. If you want to gift your AirTag to another person, you’ll need to reset it. While this does take a little effort, the whole process can be done in about a minute.
Before you get started, we highly recommend that all small children and pets are out of the area while you reset an AirTag. AirTags, for all their usefulness, are choking hazards and can cause internal damage if they pass through the digestive tract.
Apple Vision Pro anniversary, Gemini confusion, and iPhone Flip on the AppleInsider Podcast
How the Apple Vision Pro has and has not moved forward in two years, plus what’s going on with Gemini and Siri, and what comes after the iPhone Fold, on the AppleInsider Podcast.
It’s a week of looking back, forward, but as it turns out, not suspiciously. For despite reports of Apple and Google making contradictory statements about the tie-up between Siri and Gemini, the truth turns out to be plain and simple — and look fine.
But as we wait for the actual results of that deal, there is also the fact that it’s now two entire years since the Apple Vision Pro came out. One of your hosts remains a supporter, but perhaps less of a fan, and wonders what Apple’s plan for the device can be.
Apple Health+ scaled back internally, new focus on incremental improvement
The Apple Intelligence-powered Health+ service is reportedly being scaled back now that Eddy Cue is in charge, and will focus on getting features to users sooner with smaller releases.
Apple has never announced Health+ or plans for the initiative, but leaks surrounding the project suggested some kind of AI chat interface was going to be offered. Users would be able to discuss their health data and be directed to professional videos explaining certain topics.
According to a report from Bloomberg, Services chief Eddy Cue is now in charge of Apple Health after Jeff Williams retired, and he’s restructured the plans around its future. Instead of trying to release one big feature set under the umbrella of “Apple Health+” and a new subscription, Apple is allegedly planning on breaking up the planned features into smaller, incremental releases.
One song can ruin your entire Apple Music algorithm & there needs to be a fix
Users shouldn’t be afraid of exploring music or letting their kids choose a song, but since Apple Music lacks manual algorithm controls, one wrong song can upend your recommendations for weeks.
Apple Music is debatably the best option for music streaming, especially for those committed to the Apple ecosystem. However, as great as the app and human curation aspects can be, there is a fatal flaw that requires users to either actively fight it or give up entirely.
It seems like it should be obvious to Apple’s development team, but year after year, we have gone without the ability to fine-tune our algorithm. If you dare to listen to a single Christmas song, video game soundtrack, or sleep-focused playlist without first turning off the algorithm altogether, your recommendations will be ruined for an indefinite amount of time.
Inside Live Translation on FaceTime on iOS 26
After a few years of rumors about the feature, Apple added live translated captions to FaceTime in iOS 26, allowing one-on-one calls to display real-time subtitles spanning languages. Here’s where to find live translation in FaceTime, and how it came to be.
Live translation in FaceTime is a big new feature, but many users don’t even know it’s there. That’s because Apple doesn’t make it clear or easy to find as a translation option.
Plus, the translation feature isn’t found under Apple Intelligence settings or FaceTime menus where you might expect it. Instead, it’s tucked away inside Live Captions, an accessibility feature that’s been around for years.
Consequently even people who use the accessibility features may not have had reason to spot this new addition. But it’s worth knowing about, because it is a boon in so many different situations, and while there are still limitations, Apple has implemented it well.
Grab a MacBook Air from just $389 heading into Super Bowl weekend
Steep discounts on Apple’s MacBook Air have driven prices down to as low as $389.99 heading into the weekend.
Walmart seller VIPOutlet has blowout inventory of Apple’s M1 MacBook Air 13-inch for $389 while supplies last. This seller has a 4-star rating with 23,495 total reviews at press time. While the system has 8GB of memory and 256GB of storage, the budget-friendly price makes it a viable system for casual use like web browsing and streaming content.
End of today’s Apple Insider roundup.
