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iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

We are still waiting for the iOS 26.3 Release Candidate to come out, so the first iOS 26.4 beta is likely still at least a week or two away. Following beta testing, iOS 26.4 will likely be released to the general public in March or April.


Below, we have recapped known or rumored iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 features so far.

iOS 26.3


iPhone to Android Transfer Tool



iOS 26.3 makes it easier for iPhone users to switch to an Android device. A new tool allows you to place your iPhone next to an Android device to wirelessly transfer photos, messages, notes, apps, and more. You can also transfer your phone number.

In the iOS 26.3 beta, the new tool can be found in the Settings app, under General β†’ Transfer or Reset β€ŒiPhoneβ€Œ β†’ Transfer to Android. It is available worldwide.

Notification Forwarding in EU



In the EU, iOS 26.3 introduces both a Notification Forwarding feature and AirPods-like proximity pairing for third-party accessories like earbuds and smartwatches.

Apple was required to make these changes to comply with the EU's Digital Markets Act.

End-to-End Encrypted RCS Preparations



As of the second iOS 26.3 beta, Apple appears to be laying the groundwork for carriers to be able to support end-to-end encryption for RCS messages.

More



Starting with iOS 26.3, there is a dedicated section for Weather wallpapers, with three preset options available to choose from. To access them, tap and hold on the Lock Screen and tap on the plus sign in the bottom-right corner of the screen.

iOS 26.3 introduces a new "Limit Precise Location" setting that reduces the location data available to mobile networks to increase user privacy.

iOS 26.1 introduced a Background Security Improvement feature that is designed to provide security updates for Safari, WebKit, and some other system items between iOS software updates. Apple has been testing the feature with updates such as "iOS 26.3 (a)" and "iOS 26.3 (b)," but they do not actually contain any security fixes.

iOS 26.4


Personalized Siri



Last month, Apple and Google announced that Google Gemini will help power a more personalized version of Siri coming this year.

The more personalized version of Siri is expected to be introduced with iOS 26.4, following a lengthy delay. The new capabilities will include better understanding of a user's personal context, on-screen awareness, and deeper per-app controls, but some of this functionality might not be available until iOS 27 later this year.

For example, all the way back at WWDC 2024, Apple showed an iPhone user asking Siri about their mother's flight and lunch reservation plans based on info retrieved from the Mail and Messages apps.

Looking ahead, Apple is reportedly planning to launch a full-out Siri chatbot on iOS 27, allowing users to have ChatGPT-like conversations with Siri.

New Emoji



Last year, the Unicode Consortium previewed some of the new emoji that are expected to be added to the iPhone with iOS 26.4.

Here are nine of the new emoji:
  • Trombone

  • Treasure Chest

  • Distorted Face

  • Hairy Creature (aka Bigfoot or Sasquatch)

  • Fight Cloud

  • Apple Core

  • Orca

  • Ballet Dancers

  • Landslide
Apple most recently added new emoji to the iPhone with iOS 18.4, an update that came out in March last year. iOS 17.4, iOS 16.4, and iOS 15.4 also introduced new emoji over the years, so the timing has become predictable by this point.

More


Macworld's Filipe EspΓ³sito leaked some other potential iOS 26.4 features:
  • If you have credit card information stored in Apple's Passwords app, you will be able to AutoFill those details in third-party apps.

  • You will be able to create folders in the Freeform app.

  • Apple is apparently working on a new sports tier for the Apple TV app, but the report did not offer any further details about this.

  • There are signs of "a new validation system that will check the integrity of the device before logging into Apple ID and iCloud."

  • A new "Precise Outdoor Location" feature for AirPods in the Find My app.
iOS 26.4 should have many other new features, so stay tuned.
Related Roundups: iOS 26, iPadOS 26
Related Forum: iOS 26

This article, "iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone" first appeared on MacRumors.com

Valentine's Day Deals: Get Low Prices on AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and More

We're just over one week away from Valentine's Day, which falls on Saturday, February 14 this year. Similar to years past, many third-party Apple resellers and accessory companies have opened up notable discounts on Apple products and accessories to coincide with the holiday.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Additionally, there are a few solid discounts on Apple products like AirPods, Apple Watch, and iPad. In this article you'll find deals from third-party retailers collected first, including special Valentine's Day themed sales from AT&T, ZAGG, Casely, and more.

Valentine's Accessory Sales


  • Best Buy - Save up to 50% on select TVs

  • Nomad - Save 49% in Nomad's overstock sale

  • OtterBox - Save 30% on cases, 50% on charging accessories, and more

  • Anker - Save up to 40% on essential accessories

  • Sonos - Save up to 20% off soundbars, speakers, and subwoofers

  • AT&T - iPhone 17 Pro at no cost with eligible trade-in

  • Samsung - Save on Samsung monitors and TVs

  • ZAGG - Save up to 75% during clearance event

  • Casely - Save 10% sitewide with code LOVE10

  • Casetify - Buy 2 get 20% off with code LOVE2026


AirPods




Amazon this week has major discounts on a few AirPods models, including some of the best prices of the year so far on AirPods 4. You can get the base AirPods 4 for $99.99 on Amazon, down from $129.00.



Amazon also has the AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation for $119.99, down from $179.00. We did track both of these these at a lower prices during the 2025 holiday season, but these deals never returned and today's is the best we've seen so far in 2026.


AirTag




Amazon has the first generation AirTag 4-Pack for $69.98 this week, down from $99.00. This is a second-best price on the accessory, and just a few dollars away from the record low price.



Apple Watch




Amazon this week has the 42mm GPS Apple Watch Series 11 on sale for $299.00, down from $399.00, and the 46mm GPS model for $329.00, down from $429.00. This is only the second time so far in 2026 that we've tracked $100 markdowns on the Series 11, and nearly every aluminum model is on sale right now.




If you're shopping for cellular models, you can find record low prices on multiple models this week on Amazon. The 42mm cellular Apple Watch Series 11 has hit $399.00, down from $499.00, and the 46mm cellular model has hit $429.00, down from $529.00.




iPad




There are numerous iPads on sale in early February, and we're starting with a $49 discount on the 11-inch iPad at Amazon. You can get the 128GB Wi-Fi iPad for $299.99, down from $349.00, which is the best price we've tracked in 2026 so far and an overall second-best price.





Amazon this week is also providing record low prices on multiple models of the iPad mini 7, starting at $399.99 for the 128GB Wi-Fi tablet, down from $499.00. Best Buy is also matching many of these iPad deals, and in some cases it has better delivery estimates.





Amazon recently introduced discounts across the M5 iPad Pro lineup, including both 11-inch and 13-inch models. Prices start at $899.99 for the 256GB Wi-Fi 11-inch iPad Pro, down from $999.00.




If you're on the hunt for more discounts, be sure to visit our Apple Deals roundup where we recap the best Apple-related bargains of the past week.




Deals Newsletter


Interested in hearing more about the best deals you can find in 2026? Sign up for our Deals Newsletter and we'll keep you updated so you don't miss the biggest deals of the season!




Related Roundup: Apple Deals

This article, "Valentine's Day Deals: Get Low Prices on AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and More" first appeared on MacRumors.com

'Humans of Apple TV'

A new ad is out today for the Apple TV streaming service, and it focuses on the humans involved in making the shows and films, ranging from actors to production crews to makeup artists. The video shows a gallery of photos from the sets of various Apple TV shows, including The Studio, Severance, Pluribus, Ted Lasso, and others.


"The humans of Apple TV," says Apple, succinctly.

In a world where AI is increasingly prevalent, it would appear that Apple wants to remind everyone that its original content is still deeply human.
This article, "'Humans of Apple TV'" first appeared on MacRumors.com

Apple Seemingly Avoiding Latest Chip Tech for New iPhones and Macs

Apple is expected to use TSMC's base 2-nanometer N2 process rather than the newer N2P variant for its upcoming A20 and M6 chips, according to the China Times.


Apple is rumored to launch the A20 chip with new iPhone models in the fall, and the M6 family of Apple silicon chips in redesigned MacBook Pro models featuring OLED displays later this year. The latest report claims that the company will not move to TSMC's most advanced 2-nanometer manufacturing variant for these chip generations.

TSMC's 2-nanometer family marks the company's transition from FinFET transistors to gate-all-around technology, which is intended to improve power efficiency and performance scaling as chip densities increase. TSMC previously said that its base N2 process will enter mass production in 2026, followed by enhanced variants including N2P and A16 in the second half of the year.

N2P is positioned as a higher-performance version of N2, while A16 is designed for high-power and high-complexity chips, particularly for AI applications and data centers. The performance difference between N2 and N2P is expected to be modest. N2P offers roughly a 5% performance gain at the same power level, but comes at a higher manufacturing cost, which helps explain why Apple is expected to remain on N2 for its A- and M-series chips this year.

Competitors including Qualcomm and MediaTek are expected to adopt N2P for their flagship mobile chips in order to reach higher peak clock speeds. TSMC apparently expects the 2-nanometer generation to have a long lifecycle and potentially scale beyond its 3-nanometer family. Companies including AMD, Google, and Amazon are expected to adopt 2-nanometer processes for future CPUs, GPUs, and AI chips.

Supply availability is also thought to be a factor. Demand for 2-nanometer manufacturing has apparently exceeded expectations, with much of the initial N2 capacity already reserved by leading customers such as Apple. This early capacity allocation reduces the need for Apple to move to N2P simply to secure production volume for future A-series and M-series chips.

Crucially, since N2P only begins mass production in the second half of the year, it likely does not leave enough time for Apple to introduce chips made with the newer technology to its devices. N2 chips are already in production.
This article, "Apple Seemingly Avoiding Latest Chip Tech for New iPhones and Macs" first appeared on MacRumors.com

Apple's Studio Display 2 Reportedly on Track to Launch This Year With These New Features

Apple plans to release a new version of the Studio Display "in the first half of 2026," according to the latest word from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.


In his Power On newsletter on Sunday, Gurman noted that inventory of the current Studio Display is running low on Apple's online store and at its retail stores, although this has generally been the case for a while now. Extended shipping estimates on Apple's online store can sometimes hint at an upcoming product refresh.

Last month, an unreleased Apple monitor with the model number A3350 surfaced in a Chinese regulatory database, and it is likely the Studio Display 2.

Unfortunately, the database entry did not reveal any new details about the Studio Display 2, beyond indicating that it will still have an LCD display instead of an OLED display. However, mini-LED backlighting remains a possibility.

There have been many reports about a new Studio Display being in the works, with rumored features including mini-LED backlighting, ProMotion support for up to a 120Hz refresh rate, HDR support, and an A19 chip or A19 Pro chip.

The current Studio Display was filed in the same Chinese database around three months before it launched, so perhaps the next Studio Display will be released around March or April, but Apple has until the end of June if we go by Gurman's timeframe. It would make sense for Apple to unveil a new Studio Display alongside the next Mac Studio with M5 Max and M5 Ultra chips, or perhaps a new Mac mini, but it is not strictly necessary.

If the next Studio Display receives mini-LED backlighting and HDR support, its maximum brightness and contrast ratio would be higher than the current model. And a newer A19 or A19 Pro chip β€”Β up from the A13 Bionic currently β€”Β should contribute to performance improvements, camera-related enhancements, and more.

The current Studio Display features a 27-inch 5K screen, a 60Hz refresh rate, up to 600 nits brightness, a built-in camera and speakers, one Thunderbolt 3 port, and three USB-C ports. In the U.S., pricing starts at $1,599.
Related Forum: Mac Accessories

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Report: OLED MacBook Pro to Launch This Year

Apple's first MacBook Pro models with OLED displays will launch in the fourth quarter of 2026, according to Korea's The Elec.


Samsung Display will reportedly begin mass production of eighth-generation OLED displays for the device in May. Samsung is planing to ship two million of these displays to Apple by the end of the year. The panel will be sent to Foxconn from the third quarter of 2026 for assembly into the final machines.

Some components for the device are said to still be in development, since Apple has been changing the design of some parts to reduce manufacturing costs. China's BOE is also hoping to supply Apple with OLED displays for the β€ŒMacBook Proβ€Œ, but only unit with Samsung displays will be available this'd s year.

The fourth quarter of 2026 runs from October to December. The OLED β€ŒMacBook Proβ€Œ is expected to feature 14- and 16-inch display size options, M6-series chips, and the first complete redesign of the device since 2021.
Related Roundup: MacBook Pro
Buyer's Guide: MacBook Pro (Caution)
Related Forum: MacBook Pro

This article, "Report: OLED MacBook Pro to Launch This Year" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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