Apple has decided to cancel “The Last Frontier” after one season. Here are the details.

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As Sam Altman teaser on X, you can prompt ChatGPT with a single emoji, and get a personalized Christmas-themed video made by Sora in return. Here’s how to do it.

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‘Born to be Wild’ is narrated by Hugh Bonneville (Notting Hill, Paddington), and adds to Apple TV’s ever-increasing catalogue of natural world content. Watch the trailer below.

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Apple researchers have developed an AI model that dramatically improves extremely dark photos by integrating a diffusion-based image model directly into the camera’s image processing pipeline, allowing it to recover detail from raw sensor data that would normally be lost. Here’s how they did it.

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Beats’ new campaign, “Dare to Dream,” recreates Travis Scott’s childhood bedroom and the moment he manifested his path to becoming a global superstar. Watch it below.

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Apple's Beats brand is launching a new celebrity ad campaign today featuring rapper Travis Scott and entitled "DARE TO DREAM." The campaign is inspired by a 2011 tweet from Scott when he was just starting his career, in which he claimed, "One day Travis Scott will be somebody."


The campaign short film is a "testament to how belief in oneself can manifest into reality" and features a re-creation of his actual childhood bedroom and an appearance by his real mother, Wanda Webster.

The film depicts a young Scott working on music projects using his iMac and the original Beats Studio headphones, with the scene transforming from his bedroom to a dream of sold-out shows on his just-completed "Circus Maximus" tour spanning multiple legs over the past two years.


The dream is short-lived, however, with his mother calling him back to reality and sending him off to school. Inspired by the dream, Scott composes his prophetic tweet, and on his way out of the house he discovers a pair of Powerbeats Fit in his pocket, a symbol linking past and present.

While the partnership with Scott is currently focused on the campaign film, Beats Chief Marketing Officer Chris Thorne hints that we can expect to see more in the future.

“This campaign captures something deeply personal — the belief that greatness starts with a single idea and the courage to chase it,” said Chris Thorne, Beats CMO. “It’s the same belief that connects Beats and Travis — and this is only the beginning of what we’ll build together.”

Whether this means we'll see any product partnerships between Beats and Scott down the road remains to be seen.
This article, "Beats Launches Travis Scott Partnership Featuring New 'DARE TO DREAM' Ad Campaign" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple today released a new update for Safari Technology Preview, the experimental browser that was first introduced in March 2016. Apple designed ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ to allow users to test features that are planned for future release versions of the Safari browser.


‌Safari Technology Preview‌ 234 includes fixes and updates for Animations, CSS, HTML, JavaScript, MathML, Media, SVG, Web API, Web Authentication, Web Inspector, and WebRTC.

The current ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ release is compatible with machines running macOS Sequoia and macOS Tahoe, the newest version of macOS.

The ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ update is available through the Software Update mechanism in System Preferences or System Settings to anyone who has downloaded the browser from Apple’s website. Complete release notes for the update are available on the Safari Technology Preview website.

Apple’s aim with ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ is to gather feedback from developers and users on its browser development process. ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ can run side-by-side with the existing Safari browser and while it is designed for developers, it does not require a developer account to download and use.
This article, "Apple Releases Safari Technology Preview 234 With Bug Fixes and Performance Improvements" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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If you’re running iOS 26.2 and had been thinking about downgrading, you missed your chance. Here are the details.

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If you rely heavily on ChatGPT’s Voice feature on the Mac app, be warned: the feature is going away early next year. Here are the details.

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All 16 videos and supporting material from the Spring 2025 version of Stanford’s CS193p (Developing Applications for iOS using SwiftUI) course are now online, for free.

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Listen to a recap of the top stories of the day from 9to5Mac. 9to5Mac Daily is available on iTunes and Apple’s Podcasts app, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

Sponsored by Backblaze: Give yourself the gift of peace of mind. Till the end of the month, 9to5Mac listeners get 30% off with code 9to5Xmas. 

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The smart home world is continually moving toward Matter, and Aqara is one of the companies driving this transition forward at a steady pace with its new products this year. Their latest hub, the Aqara Hub M200, replaces their older hubs and features a cleaner design, along with support for Matter. For HomeKit users, this means another step toward a future where more Aqara accessories can integrate seamlessly with the Home app, while still leveraging the benefits of Zigbee behind the scenes.

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Since the beginning of December, Apple has been pushing iPhone users who opted to stay on iOS 18 to install iOS 26 instead. Apple started by making the iOS 18 upgrades less visible, and has now transitioned to making new iOS 18 updates unavailable on any device capable of running ‌iOS 26‌.


If you have an ‌iPhone‌ 11 or later, Apple is no longer offering new versions of iOS 18, even though there was a security update that came out alongside iOS 26.2. Apple stopped showing new iOS 18 updates when iOS 26.2 launched, forcing iOS 18 users to upgrade to iOS 26.2 if they want to keep their devices secure.

For now, there's a way to stay on iOS 18 and continue to get security updates. On a device running iOS 18, you can turn on iOS 18 public beta updates to force new versions of iOS 18 to show up. This may not remain an option for long, but it works at the current time.

Apple's move to push users to ‌iOS 26‌ is timed with a long list of security updates introduced in iOS 26.2 and iOS 18.7.3, including a WebKit vulnerability known to be actively exploited. Both updates addressed the problem, so there is no technical need for the iOS 26.2 requirement.

Jason Snell wrote an article yesterday on Apple's decision not to offer iOS 18 users further iOS 18 upgrades and speculated that it might be a bug or an error, but the reality is that Apple does this every year.

The iOS 14 to iOS 15 transition in 2021 was the first time that Apple allowed users to remain on an older version of iOS. At the time, Apple said that iOS offered "a choice between two software update versions." Users would be able to update to iOS 15 at release, or opt to continue on iOS 14 and "still get important security updates."

As promised, Apple did allow users to stay on iOS 14 and avoid the iOS 15 update, but only temporarily. Apple started pushing people to iOS 15 in January 2022 by making the iOS 15 software update option more prominent and no longer offering iOS 14 security updates for devices capable of running iOS 15.

In fact, iOS 14 updates stopped being available when Apple launched iOS 15.2, which might sound familiar because it is the exact same path that it followed with the iOS 18 to ‌iOS 26‌ transition. Apple did the same thing with the iOS 16 to iOS 17 transition, and the iOS 17 to iOS 18 transition.

For a clear answer why iOS 18 security updates are no longer available on devices capable of running ‌iOS 26‌, we can look to what Apple had to say in 2022 after people complained about being forced to upgrade to iOS 15. According to Apple, the option for users to stay on iOS 14 and avoid iOS 15 was always meant to be temporary. Apple provided a grace period for people to remain on iOS 14 while iOS 15 bugs were worked out, but Apple ultimately wanted users on the latest version of iOS.

In a support document published in 2021, Apple clarified that users would be able to stay on the old version of iOS "for a period of time," but not forever.

If you're using iOS or iPadOS 14.5 or later, you might now see the option to choose between two software update versions. This option allows you to choose between updating to the latest version of iOS or iPadOS 15 as soon as it's released, or continuing on iOS or iPadOS 14 while still getting important security updates for a period of time.

Apple has continued with the same update policy since iOS 15, but the company's move to wean users off of iOS 18 is more visible this year due to the design changes introduced with ‌iOS 26‌. Liquid Glass is a major user interface overhaul that's polarizing, and some users are unsurprisingly reluctant to update for that reason.

Update: Apple is no longer allowing the iOS 18 public beta to be used to skirt the iOS 18 to ‌iOS 26‌ transition. Opting in to the iOS 18 beta no longer triggers the iOS 18.7.3 update.
This article, "Don't Want to Upgrade to iOS 26? Here's How to Stay on iOS 18 [Update: Now Unavailable]" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Crafting a smart home ecosystem can be tricky. There are a lot of product categories, and it can be hard to know which ones to prioritize. Here are some of my go-to smart home recommendations for outfitting a smart home — and they all make great gifts this holiday season.

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It feels like every year, Apple quietly adds dozens of small features and improvements to the Messages app, but most of them fly under the radar. These aren’t flashy or eye-grabbing features, but they are the type of features that really help the quality of life and experience of the Messages app. If you are like most people, then you have probably been using the Messages app the same way for years, meaning you are barely scratching the surface of what the app can do. Here are some of the best Messages features that you need to know.

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For this week's giveaway, we've teamed up with Astropad to offer MacRumors readers a chance to win an iPhone 17 and one of Astropad's Fresh Coat anti-reflective screen protectors to go along with it.


Fresh Coat is a new kind of screen protector that Astropad designed with an optical-grade anti-reflective coating to reduce glare and provide a more pleasant iPhone viewing experience. The technology that Astropad is using cuts reflections by 75 percent, while improving contrast and keeping colors vibrant. Unlike other anti-reflective screen protectors, there's no haze or distortion.


Priced at $30, Fresh Coat is made from a scratch-proof tempered glass that also provides protection for the ‌iPhone‌'s display in addition to cutting down on glare and reflections. It's slim and won't add any bulk to the ‌iPhone‌ even though it has a five-layer design. From the top down, there's an anti-reflective coating, an oleophobic and hydrophobic coating, a layer of tempered glass, a dust barrier, and an impact-resistant "airbag" bonding.


If you have an ‌iPhone 17‌, it comes with a new anti-reflective coating added by Apple. What you might not know, though, is that you can't use just any screen protector with the ‌iPhone 17‌. If you put a regular screen protector without an anti-reflective coating on, it entirely nullifies the anti-reflective properties of that added coating.


Since Fresh Coat has its own anti-reflective coating, it actually improves upon Apple's included anti-reflective layer, reducing glare even further. With Fresh Coat, the ‌iPhone‌'s screen is easy to see in any lighting conditions, there's less eye strain, and if you use Dark Mode, it looks even darker.


If you don't have an ‌iPhone 17‌, Fresh Coat can provide an ‌iPhone‌ 17-style display upgrade, mirroring Apple's own reflection-reducing display coating. Fresh Coat is available for all ‌iPhone 17‌ models, the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max, and the ‌iPhone‌ 15 Pro and Pro Max.


Astropad even designed an installation process that's impossible to mess up, so you get perfect alignment on your ‌iPhone‌ without hassle.

We have an ‌iPhone 17‌ in white and a Fresh Coat screen protector for one lucky MacRumors reader. To enter to win, use the widget below and enter an email address. Email addresses will be used solely for contact purposes to reach the winner(s) and send the prize(s). You can earn additional entries by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, subscribing to our YouTube channel, following us on Twitter, following us on Instagram, following us on Threads, or visiting the MacRumors Facebook page.

Due to the complexities of international laws regarding giveaways, only U.S. residents who are 18 years or older, UK residents who are 18 years or older, and Canadian residents who have reached the age of majority in their province or territory are eligible to enter. All federal, state, provincial, and/or local taxes, fees, and surcharges are the sole responsibility of the prize winner. To offer feedback or get more information on the giveaway restrictions, please refer to our Site Feedback section, as that is where discussion of the rules will be redirected.The contest will run from today (December 19) at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time through 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time on December 26. The winner will be chosen randomly on or shortly after December 26 and will be contacted by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond and provide a shipping address before a new winner is chosen.
This article, "MacRumors Giveaway: Win an iPhone 17 and Fresh Coat Screen Protector From Astropad" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple has stopped signing iOS 26.1, meaning that iPhone users can no longer downgrade to that software version via Finder on macOS or the Apple Devices app on Windows. iOS 26.2 is now the minimum version that is still signed by Apple, and the first beta of iOS 26.3 is also available to developers and public beta testers.


iOS 26.2 was released last week. The update adds a Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics in Apple Music, and much more.
This article, "You Can No Longer Downgrade to iOS 26.1" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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While it was somewhat overshadowed by the release of iOS 26.2, Apple also released macOS 26.2 last week. This update introduces one of the most clever video calling features I’ve seen in years: Edge Light.

Here’s how it works.

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On this year's final episode of The MacRumors Show, we take a look back at all of Apple's major announcements and new products from 2025.


In February, Apple introduced the iPhone 16e, positioned as a replacement for the iPhone SE as a lower-cost model, starting at $599. It offers the A18 chip and a 48-megapixel camera in an ‌iPhone‌ 13-style design, but with matte back glass, a USB-C port, and no MagSafe. The device debuted Apple's custom C1 5G modem, replacing components from Qualcomm for the first time.

In March, Apple refreshed several iPads and Macs. The standard iPad was updated with the A16 chip, and noticeably still lacks Apple Intelligence support. The 11- and 13-inch iPad Air was refreshed with the M3 chip, and Apple released a redesigned Magic Keyboard for it. Apple also updated the MacBook Air with the M4 chip and introduced a new Mac Studio with M4 Max and M3 Ultra chip options.

At WWDC in June, Apple previewed its major software updates for the year. The biggest announcement was the introduction of Liquid Glass, an all-new design language for all of Apple's software platforms.

iOS 26 redesigned apps such as Phone and Photos, and added Live Translation with AirPods, a host of new features for Messages, and a new Games app. iPadOS 26 introduced a new, Mac-like multitasking system with windows, while macOS 26 Tahoe revamped Spotlight with a clipboard history feature and quick commands.

In September, Apple released its annual ‌iPhone‌ lineup update. The iPhone 17 features a larger display with ProMotion for refresh rates up to 120Hz and a 48-megapixel Fusion ultra-wide camera.

The iPhone 17 Pro and ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ Max tout a completely new aluminum unibody frame with a large, full-width camera plateau and vapor chamber cooling. The telephoto camera received a major upgrade to 48-megapixels, with options for 4x and 8x optical zoom.

The iPhone Air arrived as a totally new ‌iPhone‌ option, replacing the "Plus" model in the lineup. Sitting between the ‌iPhone 17‌ and the ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌, the ‌iPhone Air‌ has a radically thin design with a polished titanium frame, and uses Apple's custom C1X and N1 connectivity chips. The device only has one rear camera, a single speaker, and supports eSIM only.

All of the new iPhones feature an A19 or A19 Pro chip, Ceramic Shield 2, a 18-megapixel Center Stage front-facing camera with a square sensor, and new color options. Apple also released updated charging and accessory products, including a new ‌MagSafe‌ battery designed specifically for the ‌iPhone Air‌, TechWoven cases, and crossbody straps.

Apple refreshed its wearable and audio lineups in the same month. Apple Watch SE was updated with the S10 chip and an always-on display. The aluminum Apple Watch Series 11 gained stronger front glass and a slightly bigger battery, while the Apple Watch Ultra 3 gains satellite connectivity for the first time. Cellular models of the new Apple Watches feature 5G connectivity.

Apple also released the third generation of AirPods Pro, with improved active noise cancellation, a more refined design with ear tips that include foam, and heart-rate sensing.

In October, Apple updated the iPad Pro, 14-inch MacBook Pro, and Vision Pro with the M5 chip. The new Vision Pro also gained a new dual knit headband, promising improved comfort, along with better battery life, higher-refresh rate displays, more rendered pixels.

The MacRumors Show has its own YouTube channel, so make sure you're subscribed to keep up with new episodes and clips in 2026.



You can also listen to ‌The MacRumors Show‌ on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, or your preferred podcasts app. You can also copy our RSS feed directly into your podcast player.



If you haven't already listened to the previous episode of The MacRumors Show, catch up to hear our discussion about Apple's plans to refresh the Studio Display and Pro Display XDR.
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Subscribe to ‌The MacRumors Show‌ for new episodes every week, where we discuss some of the topical news breaking here on MacRumors, often joined by interesting guests such as Kayci Lacob, Kevin Nether, John Gruber, Mark Gurman, Jon Prosser, Luke Miani, Matthew Cassinelli, Brian Tong, Quinn Nelson, Jared Nelson, Eli Hodapp, Mike Bell, Sara Dietschy, iJustine, Jon Rettinger, Andru Edwards, Arnold Kim, Ben Sullins, Marcus Kane, Christopher Lawley, Frank McShan, David Lewis, Tyler Stalman, Sam Kohl, Federico Viticci, Thomas Frank, Jonathan Morrison, Ross Young, Ian Zelbo, and Rene Ritchie.

‌The MacRumors Show‌ is on X @MacRumorsShow, so be sure to give us a follow to keep up with the podcast. You can also head over to The MacRumors Show forum thread to engage with us directly. Remember to rate and review the podcast, and let us know what subjects and guests you would like to see in the future.
This article, "The MacRumors Show: 2025 Year-in-Review" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Alongside the ongoing Amazon all-time low on AirPods Pro 3 at $199, today’s 9to5Toys Lunch Break has a series of new price drops to scope out. Apple’s iPad 11 has returned to the $274 Black Friday price alongside a shot at Apple Pencil Pro at $78 shipped. We also have the most affordable 24GB M5 MacBook Pro you can buy at $250 off joined by Apple Watch Ultra 2 at $250 off (just about every config) and another chance at the rare Magic Mouse (USB-C) holiday price. Scope it all out down below.

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Australia has granted approval for Apple to enable its Apple Watch hypertension notification feature in the country, Information Age reports.


The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), Australia's medical device regulator, has approved Apple's hypertension notification feature for use on Apple Watch, formally listing the software as a medical device on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods earlier this month.

Apple announced hypertension detection in September. The feature is designed to identify patterns associated with elevated blood pressure rather than directly measuring blood pressure itself. It uses data collected by the optical heart sensor on the back of supported Apple Watch models to analyze how blood vessels respond to heartbeats over rolling 30 day periods. If the system detects consistent indicators associated with possible hypertension, the user receives a notification advising follow-up using conventional blood pressure measurement methods.

The system is intended for adults aged 22 and older who are not pregnant and who have not previously been diagnosed with hypertension. It requires an Apple Watch Series 9 or later or an Apple Watch Ultra 2 or later running watchOS 26, paired with an iPhone 11 or later running the latest version of iOS.

Apple can now legally activate the feature for Australian users, although the company has not yet confirmed when it will become available. In previous cases involving regulated health features, Apple has enabled functionality either through a subsequent software update or by remotely activating the feature once regulatory clearance has been obtained. Hypertension notifications have already rolled out in more than 150 countries.
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It's the last week before Christmas, which means that the holiday shopping season is quickly wrapping up. With this in mind, we're recapping all of the best last-minute deals you can find online this week, but be warned that guaranteed delivery by December 25th is going to be increasingly difficult to find over the next few days.

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.

AirPods Pro 3

• What's the deal? Take $50 off AirPods Pro 3


• Where can I get it? Amazon


• Where can I find the original deal? Right here

Apple's AirPods Pro 3 hit a record low price of $199.00 this week on Amazon, down from $249.00, and they're still available today. This deal beats the Black Friday price we saw last month by about $20.

Samsung

• What's the deal? Save sitewide on Samsung TVs, monitors, and more


• Where can I get it? Samsung


• Where can I find the original deal? Right here

Samsung expanded its ongoing holiday event this week, introducing great deals on monitors, storage accessories, TVs, Galaxy smartphones, and home appliances. Many of these deals are the exact same all-time low prices we tracked during Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

TVs

• 55-inch QLED QEF1 Smart TV - $379.99, down from $599.99


• 55-inch QLED Q7F Smart TV - $399.99, down from $529.99


• 55-inch QLED Q8F Smart TV - $599.99, down from $749.99


• 55-inch OLED S95F Smart TV - $1,899.99, down from $2,299.99
  
• 75-inch The Frame Pro - $1,999.99, down from $3,199.99


• 85-inch Neo QLED QN90F Smart TV - $2,299.99, down from $4,499.99

Monitors

• 43-inch Odyssey Neo G7 Smart Gaming Monitor - $549.99, down from $999.99


• 27-inch Odyssey OLED G6 Gaming Monitor - $599.99, down from $899.99


• 49-inch Odyssey G9 Gaming Monitor - $777.99, down from $1,299.99


• 49-inch Odyssey OLED G9 Monitor - $899.99, down from $1,799.99


• 55-inch Odyssey Ark 2nd Gen - $1,299.99, down from $2,699.99


• 57-inch Odyssey Neo G9 Curved Gaming Monitor - $1,499.99, down from $2,299.99

MacBook Air

• What's the deal? Take $250 off M4 MacBook Air


• Where can I get it? Amazon


• Where can I find the original deal? Right here

You can get the 13-inch M4 MacBook Air (256GB) for $749.00 this week on Amazon, down from $999.00, with Christmas delivery for select colors. This price matches the Amazon all-time low price on the M4 MacBook Air, and there are similar lows on other models with higher storage.

Sonos

• What's the deal? Get up to 25% off home audio devices


• Where can I get it? Sonos


• Where can I find the original deal? Right here

Sonos this week introduced a last-minute holiday sale, offering up to 25 percent off the company's most popular devices. This includes the Sonos Ace headphones, Arc Ultra soundbar, Move 2 speaker, and more, with many prices matching the deals we saw over Black Friday.

Apple Watch

• What's the deal? Take up to $100 off Apple Watch SE 3 and Series 11


• Where can I get it? Amazon


• Where can I find the original deal? Right here

Amazon has a few record low prices on multiple Apple Watch models this week, including the Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch SE 3. These have been some of the most consistent deals to stick around after Black Friday, and they're available in multiple color options and sizes.

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.

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This article, "Best Apple Deals of the Week: AirPods Pro 3 for $199, Plus Sitewide Sales at Samsung and Sonos" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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While Apple is currently lobbying against being given a legal responsibility for age verification when it comes to downloading apps, I think the company’s customers would very much benefit from it taking on this role.

Given the company’s track record in finding privacy-respecting approaches to personal data, I would like to see it go even further than the proposals we’ve seen to date …

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Apple released iOS 26.2 last week with important security fixes. At the same time, it also shipped iOS 18.7.3 for users who haven’t upgraded yet — at least in theory.

In practice, Jason Snell at Six Colors reports that some iPhone owners aren’t being offered the iOS 18 security update at all, and are instead being pushed straight to iOS 26.

Update: Here is a support document on Apple’s website with more details about its software update rollouts.

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