Mac Format - UK (2020-04)

8 | MACFORMAT | APRIL 2020 macformat.com @macformat

By using a hinge, Apple could prevent a crease developing

A

pple may make the jump to AMD in

2020, after references to several

of the company’s processors were

uncovered in the latest macOS beta.

The macOS 10.15.4 beta references several

AMD processors, according to Twitter user

@_rogame who tweeted a screenshot showing

the names Picasso, Raven, Renoir and Van

Gogh – all of which refer to AMD’s Accelerated

Processing Unit (APU), which combines the

CPU and GPU onto a single chip.

The AMD APUs could debut in a rumoured

high-end gaming Mac that Apple is reportedly

preparing to show off at WWDC 2020. Apple is

also expected to update the 13in MacBook Pro

this year, although that’s expected to get

Intel’s new Ice Lake chips instead.

However, relations between Intel and

Apple have been tense for some time, partly

due to Intel’s struggles with its silicon. The

discovery of fundamental security flaws

(Meltdown, Spectre and Zombieload) in Intel

chip designs certainly hasn’t helped either.

AMD has meanwhile become a popular option,

with its Ryzen CPUs widely praised for their

power, performance and efficiency.

Another possibility is that Apple may

simply build its own ARM-based processors

for Mac – there have been several rumours

to this effect in recent months.

macOS 10.15.4 hints that Apple could switch from Intel soon

Apple patent hints at bendy iPhone

Bendable phones like the Samsung

Galazy Z Flip could face competition

from future flexible iPhones.

WAITITI

SLAMS MAC

KEYBOARDS

NEW APPLE

TV LEAKED

IN BETA

> The creator, writer and

director of Hollywood

hit movie Jojo Rabbit

has dissed Apple’s

MacBook keyboards,

calling them

“horrendous”. Taika

Waititi said: “Apple

needs to fix those

keyboards, They are

impossible to write on.

It makes me want to go

back to PCs”. Waititi was

responding to questions

from journalists after

winning his first Oscar.

APPLE

NEWS

ROUNDUP

> An Apple TV update

could be on the cards

after reference was

found to a ‘new’ model

in the latest tvOS 13.

beta. The device,

codenamed ‘T1125’ is

likely to include Apple’s

A12 Bionic processor,

which will deliver better

gaming performance

when used with Apple

Arcade. The current

Apple TV 4K model is

equipped with the same

A10X Fusion chip used

in the 2017 iPad Pro.

A

pple has decided

to join Samsung in

the foldable phone

game. The company has filed

a patent application with the

US Patent and Trademark

Office for a bendable display.

Currently, any display that

bends too much can develop

a crease, as well as bumps

which can cause the display

to distort displayed content.

It’s an issue that plagues

foldable phones.

Apple’s solution is to

allow the middle section of

the display to bow outwards

slightly, before folding. This

would increase the radius of

the curve, and decrease the

stress on the display,

reducing the chance of

ridges forming. This would

be achieved by using a hinge,

which rotates the elements of

the housing around the bend,

as well as a void around the

pivot area. Both would give

the screen the space and

strength it needs to bend

without creasing. The system

is complex, but does allow

Apple to offer more robust

bendable displays.

This isn’t Apple’s first

patent for a foldable display.

In 2018, the company filed

a similar patent detailing

the use of a recess in the

materials protecting the

display layer. Apple also has

multiple patents for wrap-

around displays and even

for a phone that could clip

onto clothing. Will we see a

foldable iPhone soon? We’ll

just have to wait and see.

WANTS “TO GO

BACK TO PCs”

DEVICE TO COME

WITH A12 BIONIC

AMD coming to Mac in 2020?