On Friday, March 14, Apple plans to release a new Apple Immersive Video featuring Metallica, with Apple retail stores offering a preview for customers who do not have a Vision Pro headset.


The Metallica concert experience was filmed in Mexico City during the second-year finale of the band's M72 World Tour. It includes full performances of three songs, including "Whiplash," "One," and "Enter Sandman."

The concert was captured using Apple Immersive Video, and it provides a high-resolution 180-degree video along with Spatial Audio. Apple built a custom stage layout with 14 Apple Immersive Video cameras using a mix os stabilized cameras, cable-suspended cameras, and remote-controlled camera dolly systems that moved around the stage.

Apple says that the experience provides "unprecedented access" to Metallica members James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett, and Robert Trujillo, with views as close as the Snake Pit.

"Game changing is putting it lightly," said Lars Ulrich of Metallica. "Seeing our concert like that, along with the energy of the Mexico City fans -- it's very immersive, and it's super fun. We've always been interested in pushing the boundaries, and Metallica on Apple Vision Pro is exactly that."

The video launches on Friday, and Apple Vision Pro demos at retail stores will provide a preview. Metallica's new EP, M72 World Tour: Mexico City is also launching on Apple Music on Friday.
This article, "Metallica Immersive Concert Experience Coming to Apple Vision Pro" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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When Apple released the second macOS 15.4 beta earlier this month, the company apparently made a change that means System Settings no longer shows how much local storage space Apple Intelligence features are taking up on a Mac.


In macOS Sequoia 15.3.1, users with a Mac powered by Apple silicon can easily discover how much space any installed Apple Intelligence features are taking up on their drive by going to System Settings ➝ General ➝ Storage, and then clicking the circled "i" button next to macOS.

That hasn't been the case since the beta 2 release of Apple's upcoming macOS Sequoia 15.4 update. As spotted by MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris, when users click the "i" button, no further details are now given to explain the amount of storage that macOS is taking up locally.

However, it turns out that if the user has System Integrity Protection (SIP) disabled, System Settings reliably displays the information again. For those unfamiliar, SIP protects the entire system by preventing the execution of unauthorized code, and can only be disabled by entering Recovery Mode. The ability to disable SIP is useful for developers testing apps, but it is generally not recommended for most users.

According to iOS developer @b3lla_dev, Apple has made the Apple Intelligence assets unable to view unless SIP is disabled. This is apparently having a knock-on effect that makes the System Settings app unable to retrieve the file size of said assets.

Apple Intelligence utilizes something called the MobileAsset framework to manage and deliver its machine learning models and related assets to Apple devices. This framework dynamically downloads and updates the necessary components, ensuring that devices have access to the latest capabilities without requiring comprehensive system updates. According to Apple's support page, the assets for Apple Intelligence require up to 7GB of storage space on iPhones, iPads, and Macs.

When storage is tight, 7GB is a significant amount that is bound to influence users when it comes to deciding whether to enable Apple Intelligence or not. It's not clear if this was a factor in Apple's decision to effectively hide the storage space that its suite of AI features eats up locally, but users will come to their own conclusions.

Perris has submitted a feedback report to Apple to notify them about the change, which persists in the latest beta 3, so we'll have to wait and see what action Apple takes, if any. Apple plans to release macOS Sequoia 15.4 in early April.
This article, "macOS 15.4 Beta 'Hides' Amount of Storage Used by Apple Intelligence" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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New MacBook Air and Mac Studio users who are expecting one of the machines later this week will need to install a day one software update to upgrade to the latest version of macOS Sequoia.


The M4 ‌MacBook Air‌ and M4 Max and M3 Ultra ‌Mac Studio‌ models will come with older versions of macOS installed. The ‌MacBook Air‌ models appear to ship with ‌macOS Sequoia‌ 15.2, while the ‌Mac Studio‌ models have ‌macOS Sequoia‌ 15.3 installed.

Apple released macOS Sequoia 15.3.1 back on February 10, but the ‌Mac Studio‌ and ‌MacBook Air‌ were clearly prepared for launch before that update came out. macOS 15.3.1 is not available for the new machines just yet, but Apple is likely to release a new 24D2072 variant for the upcoming Macs ahead of their launch date.

Pre-orders for the M4 ‌MacBook Air‌, M4 Max ‌Mac Studio‌, and M3 Ultra ‌Mac Studio‌ began last week, and the first shipments are set to arrive to customers on Wednesday, March 12.
This article, "New MacBook Air and Mac Studio Will Have Day One Software Update" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Following the launch of the Vision Pro headset last year, Lowe's hardware stores began offering an in-store Apple Vision Pro experience to try out its 3D "Style Studio" app and experience for kitchen renovation design.


Lowe's made the Vision Pro experience available to customers at select stores in North Carolina, California, and New Jersey, but now it is expanding to five Lowe's locations in Austin, Texas and the surrounding area. Lowe's said that its pilot test was successful, which is why the Vision Pro will roll out to new locations.

Lowe's Style Studio lets customers view a 3D kitchen environment that can be customized with hundreds of real-world materials, fixtures, and appliances. The app is available in the Vision Pro App Store, but customers who do not have a Vision Pro can use it at Lowe's stores.

Since the initial test run, Lowe's has added new options including trending colors and popular kitchen designs. There's also a new teleport feature that lets users view their kitchen from different viewpoints within the room, without moving.

A Lowe's employee will guide customers through the kitchen creation process during a one-on-one 45-minute appointment, where there are 80 billion design combinations available. Completed kitchen setups can be saved, emailed, texted, or AirDropped as a PDF, with the content in the kitchen able to be purchased through Lowe's.

Sessions are free, and customers in the Austin area can book a consultation online using the Lowe's website. Vision Pro headsets will be available at Texas stores for approximately three months, with appointments to start on March 15.
This article, "Lowe's Expanding Vision Pro 'Style Studio' Experience to Additional Stores" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Apple today provided developers with the third betas of upcoming visionOS 2.4, tvOS 18.4, and watchOS 11.4 updates for testing purposes. The software is available a week after Apple seeded the second betas.


The betas are available to registered developers, and can be downloaded from the Settings app on each device.

Of the three new software betas, the visionOS 2.4 update is the most notable because it brings Apple Intelligence to the Vision Pro for the first time. ‌Apple Intelligence‌ features available in visionOS include Writing Tools, Genmoji, Memory Movie, Image Playground, Priority Notifications, and ChatGPT integration.

The update will include a dedicated Spatial Gallery app, which will offer a curated selection of spatial videos, photos, and panoramas from artists, filmmakers, and photographers. Apple is also bringing a Vision Pro app to the iPhone for Vision Pro management, and it will let users find and download apps, add content to a watch list, and more.

With visionOS 2.4 and iOS 18.4, an ‌iPhone‌ can be used to set up Guest Mode on the Vision Pro, making it much easier to let people try out the headset. When a guest puts on the Vision Pro, a prompt appears on the ‌iPhone‌, and the Vision Pro owner is able to choose what apps the guest can use and can see what the guest is doing via AirPlay.

Apple plans to release visionOS 2.4, tvOS 18.4, and watchOS 11.4 in early April.
This article, "Apple Seeds Third Betas of visionOS 2.4, tvOS 18.4, and watchOS 11.4" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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