Meta-owned Messenger has announced the launch of end-to-end (E2E) encryption across its platform, meaning chats and calls should be safe from snooping.
Users can now choose whether to have their messages, group chats and calls fully encrypted when logged into the service. One option is to use vanish mode, which can be activated by swiping up on an existing chat to activate a new option where messages automatically disappear when the chat window is closed.
There's also the Secret Conversations feature, first introduced back in 2016, which also offers fully-secured chats and can be toggled on by swiping on the lock icon when starting a new chat.
E2E encryption on Messenger
The launch is a slight surprise, given that Meta said in November 2021 that it would delay the roll out of E2E encryption by default on Messenger and Instagram until 2023 as it examined the effect such a move would have on users.
“We know that people expect their messaging apps to be secure, private and provide them a space to be expressive,” Timothy Buck, Product Manager, Messenger wrote in a company blog post.
“Building secure and fun interactive features takes time and requires our engineers to innovate and solve technical challenges, so this is part of a series of product updates as we keep improving our services. With cybercrime and hacking on the rise, it’s more important than ever to find great ways to connect with friends and family through private and secure communications.”
“We know the importance of safety and privacy when it comes to communicating with the people who matter most to you. End-to-end encryption protects you and your data from hackers, criminals and other prying eyes.”
The news comes shortly after the UK government hired a top ad agency to help it launch a campaign against Meta's plans to introduce E2E for Messenger. The Home Office apparently believes the move will allegedly help criminals, and has pointed to Meta's WhatsApp platform, which also features E2E encryption as an example of unregulated technology leading to crime.
If you use an Apple device, there’s a good chance that you use iCloud, its service of syncing your content across multiple devices, alongside streaming files and your tasks in certain apps that also use the service.
However, you may have experienced some issues where your content on one device, isn’t showing on another. This has begun to be known as the 503 error – where iCloud syncing isn’t working properly.
This would have been fine for users and developers if this had been an issue for a few days or a week, but it’s seemingly been since last summer that issues relating to iCloud have remained.
It’s now at the point where developers are venting their frustrations as to whether this issue will be resolved for their apps, and for users.
We speak to developers about their 503 experiences
A Twitter thread on January 25 by Becky Handsmeyer, developer of YarnBuddy and Scribblet, wanted to see if there was another way of reporting the issue to Apple. Soon after, other developers replied to her through a thread.
Ok, there’s clearly an issue going on with iCloud sync right now affecting a lot of users across many different apps. What’s the best way to report this? Radar? I haven’t made any changes to my app since October and users have just recently started reporting sync failures.January 24, 2022
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We reached out to Handsmeyer to explain the issue further. “My headache with this started with a 2-star review 21 days ago where a user complained of crashes and broken syncing. Since then I’ve gotten 6 more complaints of broken syncing, some through reviews but mostly via email.”
Handsmeyer continued “No amount of troubleshooting seems to help (reinstalling, making sure iCloud Drive is enabled, etc). I’ve seen multiple developers complaining about iCloud issues and 503 errors including James Thomson, Paul Haddad, and the developer of Streaks. One person said they had used a DTS session and Apple acknowledged the issue but have no timeline for a fix.”
Other developers such as GoodNotes recently published an article regarding the issue, due to users experiencing 503 issues. The article mentions “This issue is not apparent to us and we've escalated the case to Apple Technical Support team for investigation. It seems it's happening to other apps as well.”
But there’s no end in sight for a fix as yet, and users are becoming more frustrated that their content is not syncing properly.
James Thomson, the developer of PCalc, explained to us that it looks as though the issue may be related to the latest updates of iOS 15, macOS 12 Monterey, and others.
“I started seeing some iCloud syncing issues with PCalc with the OS betas during the late summer. It was taking several minutes to sync over settings, rather than the usual seconds, and people assumed the syncing wasn’t actually working.” Thomson explains. “That persisted into the releases, and eventually, I turned things off by default because it was causing problems where people were losing some of the changes they were making due to the long delays. Hopefully, it’s something Apple can fix soon, and I can turn it back on again then.”
Analysis: What’s taking so long?
Looking through the Twitter thread of other experiences from developers, you can place the issue back to when Apple’s software updates were heading toward their final release, just before the iPhone 13 series were announced at September’s event.
When major software releases are pushed out, you can assume services that are hidden to users, are also updated, so that they can work with the new features that have been announced and implemented.
But considering that this is four months since the release of iOS 15 and the other software updates, with no context for developers as to what the issue actually is, and when it will be fixed, is bringing unnecessary frustrations to Apple.
We’ve reached out to Apple for comment as to whether the 503 issue is in the process of being fixed.
After the release of macOS 12 Monterey in 2021, followed by the MacBook Pro 14-inch and 16-inch models, speculation is now mounting as to what macOS 13 will bring.
Back in 2020, Apple began transitioning away from Intel processors in favor of its own Apple Silicon chips. These chips are now redefining what Macs are capable of, particularly when it comes to gaming. While macOS Monterey focused on productivity and communication tweaks, macOS 13 could be a major update of the type not seen since macOS 11 Big Sur, reflecting this new change in direction.
With this in mind, we’ve combed through our Macs to round up five features we’d like to see later this year, no matter how major or minor these may be.
First, though, we’ll run through what we know about macOS 13 so far, including its rumored release date and which Macs the update is likely to support.
macOS 13 release date rumors
Apple’s releases have run like clockwork in recent years. There’s a good chance macOS 13 will be announced at WWDC 2022 alongside iOS 16, iPadOS 16, and the rest. Whether it’ll be a remote keynote again or a return to an in-person event remains to be confirmed by Apple.
Apple usually announces the release date of a new macOS update alongside new Macs, so this could be October again, similar to the previous two years.
macOS 13 supported devices
With Apple well on the way to leaving Intel behind, it’s a matter of time until macOS runs solely on the company’s own M1 chips and above.
macOS 13 is likely to still support Intel Macs for now, though. We expect that the upcoming update will support the following Macs as a minimum:
Mac Pro – Late 2013
iMac – Early 2015
iMac Pro – Late 2017
MacBook Air – Early 2015
MacBook Pro – Early 2015
MacBook – Early 2015
macOS 13 name rumors
We speculated that macOS 12 would be called either Mammoth or Monterey, and it proved to be the latter at WWDC 2021. Mammoth could be another solid bet for macOS 13, though.
The name refers to the Mammoth Lakes in California, following the pattern of naming releases after landmarks in the state, and it’s close to Monterey and Big Sur, which may also represent a bigger update to macOS compared to the last year.
Five features we want to see in macOS 13
While macOS 13 is still a little while away, we've put together a list of the improvements we want to see from the next-gen operating system for Apple's Macs.
1. Widgets anywhere
Widgets first appeared in iOS 14 back in 2020, and have slowly moved over to iPadOS, where you can also move them anywhere on the home screen, but in macOS they are still locked to a column.
macOS 13 should allow you to move widgets anywhere on the screen. Some forget that widgets first appeared on macOS way back in 2004 with Dashboard in Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, as a way of managing them inside one app that would cover your screen.
Having Dashboard return to macOS 13 or the ability to place widgets anywhere on your desktop would be appealing. It would help spruce up your display, and eliminate the need to go to the column to view them.
2. Weather app
The weather app saw a mammoth redesign in iOS 15 last year, mainly thanks to Apple’s acquisition of the weather app Dark Sky. While the app hasn’t moved to iPadOS just yet, the next logical step would be to macOS.
Random thing, but I really like this animation.A favourite feature of mine from iOS 15 is https://t.co/Ak5SWWCx1G – who’d have thought. pic.twitter.com/HH5UkWlBzSSeptember 30, 2021
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Having easy access to weather forecasts, plus precipitation and storm notifications could be useful to many Mac users – especially if widgets can be shown on the desktop instead of the column they’re currently locked to.
3. App Library
App Library is another iOS feature that would be useful to have in the Dock for macOS 13. While Launchpad and Finder give you handy overviews of your installed apps and let you add them to folders, they’re the only view that you have.
That can be tricky if you have hundreds of apps, especially as a full-screen view in Launchpad can get in the way of anything you’re working on.
(Image credit: Apple)
App Library on the Mac could easily sort your apps into categories, and have some folders change depending on the time of day or your location, just as it does in iOS. It would be much more useful for Mac users, as having a full-screen view on an iMac or an external display seems too much.
4. Time Machine and iCloud Backups
Time Machine is a feature that’s fallen by the wayside in recent years, regardless of how useful it’s proved in the past. It takes multiple snapshots of your macOS machine throughout the day, and if you lose a file, you can go ‘back in time’ and recover it.
Time Machine first appeared in Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard back in 2006, and while it’s still available in macOS, there’s plenty that could be improved for macOS 13.
It’s second nature to back up your iPad or iPhone through iCloud Backup, which lets you save photos, messages, lock screen wallpapers, and more to your iCloud account. You can also restore these backups to your device if you need to reset it.
However, there’s no such feature for macOS; there’s only the option of backing up to an external hard drive or directly on your Mac, which could defeat the point if your Mac refuses to boot.
Having iCloud Backups tied to Time Machine feels like an easy win for Mac users, as it’s secure but also familiar.
5. tvOS screensavers for Mac
We’d love to see Apple bring those impressive flyover screensavers from tvOS to macOS 13.
(Image credit: Aerial)
While there are third-party apps such as Aerial that can already do the job for Mac users, having a native option for macOS 13 would be great for anyone who just wants to use the screensavers in the System Preferences, without having to download an additional app.
After the release of Android 12 in 2021, followed by the subsequent releases of the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro, we’re already wondering what the next version of Android will bring.
Since its debut in 2008, Android has always brought a major feature with every headline release. But with Android 13, codenamed Tiramisu, it could be a perfect time for Google to fine-tune what’s already there in the millions of Android smartphones around the world.
We’ve combed through our Pixel, OnePlus, and other Android phones to roundup five features we’d like to see arrive in Android 13 later this year, no matter how major or minor these may be.
But first, we’ll run you through when we expect it to land and which Android phones will likely be supported.
Android 13 release date rumors
A new Android version usually appears for developers in February. This gives developers a heads up as to what should be appearing in the fall of that year, allowing them an idea of what they could implement for future versions of their apps.
A version for consumers is usually announced at Google I/O in June, followed by a public beta release, then a shipping release around October, which is when we expect Android 13 to arrive this year.
Android 13 supported phones
Android has a reputation for not making it easy to update your phone to the latest version. Part of it is due to the different manufacturers on how they have designed Android to match a brand, such as Samsung.
But with Google releasing a new Pixel phone every year, these usually come with the latest Android version. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see a Pixel 7 or a Pixel Fold appear with Android 13 in October again to start with.
Other manufacturers usually follow after a few months of testing and putting their own spin on the new Android release, but it’s usually not until the first half of the next year.
What we want to see
Android 13 is still a little while away, so we've put together a list of the improvements we want to see from the next-gen software.
1. UI Fixes
(Image credit: Google)
While Material You showcases a new look for Android, it’s not without its faults. Some buttons are confusing users when a feature is enabled. For example, if you go to ‘Internet’ in the Notification Center, you have to press this icon again to toggle Mobile Data, Wi-Fi, and Hotspot. It feels convoluted, and there's no option to make these three options a separate toggle.
Alongside this, the colors in Android 12 lack contrast – everything looks pale compared to the vibrancy that iOS shows. But according to Android Police, it looks like Google is already aware of this, as new vibrant colors have seemingly leaked for Android 13.
According to a new leak from @AndroidPolice, Google is introducing some customization options to Android’s wallpaper-based theming system called “monet.” This comes in the form of new styles called TONAL_SPOT, VIBRANT, EXPRESSIVE, and SPRITZ.https://t.co/IRjuWjRaSx pic.twitter.com/3pso679kUwJanuary 13, 2022
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Giving some saturated colors across the user interface could help the overall appearance of Android. However, the Material You design we're currently seeing is essentially version 1.0 of a new look for the operating system. iOS is still seeing refinements in its flat design since 2013, so we're going to see visual improvements in Android for years to come.
2. Scrolling Screenshots for all, not some apps
(Image credit: Google)
This feature was introduced for some apps in Android 12, where you could take a screenshot of a web page, but Android would stitch the content into one image.
However, while it’s a useful feature, it requires developers to include a ‘View-based UI’ in the app, otherwise scrolling screenshots isn’t an option for users.
Instead, Android 13 should make this available to all apps, regardless of the current requirement. Users shouldn’t need to check whether certain features in Android are also available to certain apps, and scrolling screenshots is one of them.
3. Release the backtap gesture
(Image credit: Google)
This first appeared in a beta version of Android 11 back in 2020, before it was removed when the final release appeared for the Pixel 4 series and other smartphones.
There’s a variant already available on Apple’s iOS 15, where you can customize a back-tap gesture on your iPhone, that could launch the Camera app or a shortcut for example.
It’s very useful for when you’re browsing another app, and you quickly want to switch to the camera app without going back to the home screen and finding its icon.
For Android, the backtap could be an easy win for users, especially as the software can be better customized compared to iOS. Imagine an Android 13 backtap where you can launch certain apps or media with a certain amount of taps, or the end result changes, depending on the app that you’re currently using.
4. Hand Off from iOS
(Image credit: Future)
According to Android Police, this may already be coming to Android 13, mirroring a feature where you can transfer what you’re listening to on your iPhone, to a HomePod speaker for example.
Tentatively called ‘TTT’ or Tap to Transfer, you can send the media you’re either watching or listening to, towards a device that could be in your home or workplace.
With a barrage of televisions running Android, alongside smart speakers, this could work well for sending across media in an easier way from your smartphone.
5. Please fix ‘Open by Default’ feature
(Image credit: Google)
Before Android 12, you could open a file and a message box would appear, asking you if you’d like to open this in an app just once, or from then on.
It was a simple message box but it solved a purpose. But with Android 12, an ‘Open with Default’ appears instead, ridding you of the choice of using an app once.
This change has been frustrating to users, as it requires you to go deep into the Settings app to make the filetype forget to open in a certain app. For Android 13, let’s revert it back to how it was. That’s all we ask.
The widespread dependence on collaboration and video conferencing services brought about by the pandemic has introduced significant business risk, new research suggests.
According to data collected by software firm StarLeaf, provided exclusively to TechRadar Pro, almost all (97%) businesses say that tools such as Zoom, Webex and Teams are now essential to their operations.
More than half (57%) of the 2,000 UK-based respondents claim their company would not be able to operate for more than an hour without access to their communications tools, while 27% admitted they would struggle to function for even 30 minutes.
What back-up plan?
With a large proportion of workers still confined to their home offices by the pandemic, it is obviously uncontroversial to predict a continued dependence on cloud-based collaboration software. However, what comes as a surprise is the lack of contingency planning among organizations, most of which are now utterly reliant on these kinds of services for business continuity.
Despite this “extreme dependency”, only 32% of companies have established a back-up plan that insures against service outages, which have been relatively common in recent weeks. Among this group, a quarter said their contingency plan would involve turning to consumer apps like WhatsApp, which are ill-suited to professional use cases.
StarLeaf says the consequences of downtime would be particularly acute in sectors such as customer service and sales, with staff unable to carry out their jobs without access to communications tools.
Respondents registered serious concerns about the consequences of a pause in service caused by an outage. Half of those surveyed suspect an incident of this kind would have a severe impact on the reputation of their company, with knock-on effects on the bottom line.
“The way of doing business now takes place predominantly using communications platforms. And while this has many benefits, such as the ability to work from anywhere and hire staff from across the world, this is also leaving companies vulnerable to major disruption. The sheer pace of digital transformation over the last two years is the reason for this liability oversight,” said Mark Richer, StarLeaf CEO.
“As we look ahead to 2022, businesses need to ensure they have a failover system so they can continue to operate, no matter what happens to their comms platform.”
You'll soon be able to be the star of all your work video calls thanks to a new update coming to Microsoft Teams.
The video conferencing software has revealed plans for a new tweak that will let users pin their own video feed wherever they like on their display when on a call.
Previously, users could only pin video feeds of other participants when on a call, letting you focus on a particular presenter, boss or co-worker.
Pin on Microsoft Teams
The change will also mean that users can have their own video feed at whatever size they desire – a change which could be particularly useful if you want to check your appearance or background while presenting or speaking – especially if using sign language.
Microsoft says the new feature will also mean no more overlaying of the user's video window over that of other participants, and hopefully mean users will feel like they are taking a much more active role in a call.
(Image credit: Microsoft)
The feature is set to begin rolling out to Microsoft Teams Standard users on Windows and Mac devices from January 2022. It can be activated by going to the “Me” box and clicking on the three dots, then selecting “Pin for me”, with users also able to pin or unpin their feeds when clicking on the menu next to their name in the roster.
The release is the latest in a series of upgrades to Microsoft Teams as the company looks to maintain its strong position in the video conferencing market.
This includes the ability to now mute or even turn off notifications while on a Teams call, with users able to choose to mute notifications for all meetings or on a per meeting basis.
Microsoft 365 users are also currently able to work uninterrupted with Teams notifications silenced thanks to focus mode in Viva Insights. The tool means Teams users will be able to make progress on important work with focus music from Headspace playing in the background.
After seeing the releases of iOS 15 and the subsequent iPhone 13 series, we’re in the midst of .1 updates that are slowly refining features we’ve been seeing since June, back at WWDC.
However, that doesn’t stop us from thinking of what could be in the next version of iOS that is widely expected to be called iOS 16.
Every iOS release has brought a major feature to the table, whether that’s widgets or dark mode. But iOS could still benefit from some new refinements to better manage how you use your iPhone every day.
We’ve combed through our iPhones to roundup five features we’d like to see arrive in iOS 16 next year, no matter how major or minor these may be. But first, we’ll run you through when we expect it to land and which iPhones will be supported.
iOS 16 release date rumors
Apple has followed a traditional schedule of announcing the latest iOS update in June at WWDC, followed by a release around September.
With iOS 15.2 currently in testing, Apple has been focusing on rolling out significant features across more .1 updates. In previous years, we've seen the trackpad appear on iOS 13.4, alongside ProRes in iOS 15.1 in October of this year.
It wouldn't be a stretch to expect an iOS 15.7 by the time we see iOS 16 with more significant features.
iOS 16 supported iPhones
Apple tries to support a variety of iPhone models in every new iOS release. iOS 15 supports iPhone 6S at a minimum, which was released in 2015.
It wouldn't be a stretch to expect iOS 16 to support the iPhone 7 series at a minimum, but with some features held back, mainly due to the hardware limitations of the camera, or the chip inside certain iPhone models.
Every iOS release comes with a major feature, but also a bunch of minor improvements across the board. If you still have an iPhone 8 for instance, you may reap the benefits of some of the small features in iOS 16 when it arrives. But you will most likely miss out on the big feature that Apple will showcase.
Redesigned Camera app
(Image credit: TechRadar)
The iPhone camera has seen huge improvements in recent years, with more lenses being added and features such as Night Mode and Cinematic Mode being introduced.
However, this has meant that the camera app has begun to feel bloated. Accessing forced flash or exposure settings requires a few more swipes than we’d like, alongside hidden gestures that don’t feel needed.
With the impending release of iOS 15.2, we’re also about to see a new macro button appear, which will help you to more accurately set up those close-up shots when needed. This is just for the iPhone 13 series, though.
Starting afresh with the camera app could help new users take photos in a whole new way, alongside giving existing users a fresh way of taking photos and videos.
It wouldn’t be a stretch to assume that Apple has more big plans for the cameras in future iPhone models, which will also mean new features that we’ll be switching on and off when required. Let’s see an app that’s redesigned for what came before, and lays the groundwork for what’s coming next.
QuickNote to iPhone
(Image credit: Apple)
This is a feature that appears in iPadOS 15 and macOS 12 Monterey, where you can drag your finger from the bottom-right corner, and you can quickly type in some notes, no matter where you are on your device.
There are many gestures you can do on an iPhone, so there’s no harm in adding one more. Dragging from the bottom right corner would display a note that you could quickly type in, and save for a later date.
With your thumb being your primary point of interaction with your smartphone, it's an easy win that can really help with quickly jotting something down. It will also save the strain of your thumb instead of reaching for the Control Center on the top right, and selecting the Notes icon.
Home Automation widgets
(Image credit: Apple)
Since widgets were given a makeover in iOS 14, alongside the ability to place them anywhere on the home screen, some other apps have not been forthcoming with their own widgets to help reduce some steps. One blatant example is the Home app.
You may have a selection of smart lights in your home where you use the app to help manage these. But if you want to quickly switch on a light, you may experience a delay if you ask Siri, or if the app isn’t responding, which has happened often in our experience.
Having a widget on your home screen for your smart lights could really help reduce the steps in quickly switching the bedroom lamp on, instead of having to find the Home app.
It’s a little strange that the widget hasn’t appeared as yet, but we’re hoping it arrives, not only to iOS 16, but future versions of macOS and iPadOS as well.
Air apps
(Image credit: Apple )
If you own one of the AirPods peripherals, or an AirTag, you may find it very cumbersome to try and manage each of these. AirPods settings are only accessible through Bluetooth from within the Settings app, while AirTags settings are accessible through the Find My app.
Being able to manage these through a centralized ‘AirThings’ app could relieve a lot of confusion as to what you own from Apple.
Third-party vendors such as Sony bring out certain apps that can help you manage headphones and more to better manage the features that these bring. Being able to do the same, without having to go to Bluetooth within the Settings app, could bring a lot of simplicity to managing your devices.
Better theme options
(Image credit: Apple)
Back in 2019, we saw an onslaught of themes thanks to a few new features that the Shortcuts app provided in iOS 13.
With Shortcuts, you can use the app to create launch commands for other apps, and place an icon of your choice on the home screen for it. This has resulted in many themes being made available for iPhone users.
YouTuber Marques Brownlee created a short guide to create your own icons with Shortcuts.
But iOS 16 could go further. A new category in the App Store could enable themes to be downloaded and then selected within the Settings app. You could also choose different colors and sounds for notifications and set them as a separate theme, which could also be enabled with Automations in the Shortcuts app.
Third-party developers could perhaps make their own sounds and themes available as well. While there would be restrictions on changing other app icons, it could further expand the individuality that users want from their devices.
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