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Italy fines Apple $11.4M over iPhone battery slowdown controversy
Apple Highlights iPhone XR Reviews
'Red Dead Redemption 2' Review Embargo Lifts Tomorrow, Here's When Our Review Goes Live

Italy fines Apple $11.4M over iPhone battery slowdown controversy

Posted: 24 Oct 2018 05:23 AM PDT

Italy's antitrust regulator has fined Apple 10 million euros ($11.4 million) and Samsung 5 million euros ($5.7 million), following an investigation into smartphones being slowed down by operating system updates and allegations of planned obsolescence by the manufacturers.

The Autorit Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM) issued the fines to both companies following complaints that software updates slowed down smartphones. Italian consumer groups advised the updates made the smartphones run slower, reducing their functionality, and alleging the updates were made to encourage customers to upgrade to newer models.

Reuters reports the antitrust body said some firmware updates from the two firms "had caused serious dysfunctions and reduced performance significantly, thereby accelerating the process of replacing them." Both companies are also claimed to have failed to provide customers with adequate information about the impact of software updates "or any means of restoring the original functionality of the products."

While both Samsung and Apple were fined 5 million euro following the investigation, Apple was hit by an additional 5 million euro fine for failing to advise to customers how to properly maintain or replace their iPhone batteries.

Apple has previously apologized for making the decision to throttle iPhones with worn batteries, with the intention of preventing performance issues. Introduced with the iPhone 6, iPhone 6s and iPhone SE in 2016, Apple cited lithium-ion batteries becoming "less capable of supplying peak current demands" in cold conditions and having "a low battery charge" as they age, which can cause iPhones to unexpectedly shut down.

In response to consumer complaints, Apple reduced the cost of the out-of-warranty battery replacements from $79 to $29, then later issued an iOS software update with Battery Health options. </span>

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Apple Highlights iPhone XR Reviews

Posted: 23 Oct 2018 04:30 PM PDT

Reviews for the iPhone XR went live this morning ahead of Friday's launch, and in a press release in the Apple Newsroom, Apple has highlighted reviews from several members of the media who were able to spend some time with the new iPhones.

Apple shared key passages from sites that include Digital Trends, Daring Fireball, Tom's Guide, Mashable, Engadget, The Verge, TechCrunch, CNN, Best Products, Techradar, and more.

Mashable, for example, called the iPhone XR the "Goldilocks of iPhones" with its large screen size, affordable price tag, "fantastic" cameras, and future-proof power in the form of the A12 Bionic chip.

Daring Fireball said that the iPhone XR is the best Apple's ever made "dollar for dollar," while TechCrunch compared the device to "a piece of nicely crafted jewelry" with a "depth and sparkle" unmatched by other iPhones.

CNN praised the impressive Portrait Mode shots the camera is able to capture, The Verge lauded the work Apple did to make the rounded corners of the LCD match the corners of the device, and Digital Trends called the iPhone XR "the iPhone to buy."

Apple focused on sharing positive elements of the iPhone XR reviews, but for the most part, reviews were positive due to the iPhone XR 's affordable price tag and high-end components.

The biggest difference between the XR and the XS is the LCD display over the OLED display, and reviewers thought the iPhone XR 's display was one of the best LCD displays and while not as good as the OLED, it's not noticeable as long as you're not holding the two devices next to one another.

Apple's full list of review selections can be seen in the article shared via the Apple Newsroom, while additional reviews can be found in our own review roundup.

The first iPhone XR pre-orders will arrive starting on Friday, October 26, the launch date for Apple's newest flagship device.

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'Red Dead Redemption 2' Review Embargo Lifts Tomorrow, Here's When Our Review Goes Live

Posted: 24 Oct 2018 07:06 AM PDT

Red Dead Redemption 2Credit: Rockstar Games

So, here's something I can tell you now. For the past 8 days I've been parked in my office, slamming through Red Dead Redemption 2. It's been a long, long road, as Dan Houser hinted at in an interview with Vulture last week. But while that's true, it's only half the story. There's more to talk about here, as you might have expcted. There is a ton to talk about, because Rockstar isn't exactly known for making small games. And I'm going to tell you all about it in my review.

The Red Dead Redemption 2 review embargo lifts tomorrow, Thursday, October 25, at 7:01 a.m. Eastern Time. When that happens you can expect a review from here at Forbes as well as most other major outlets, I'm assuming though I don't technically know, I suppose. The game will come out on the next day, October 26.

When reviews go live, they'll have some tough internal competition from Rockstar Games. The developer's last game, GTA 5, stands at a 97 on Metacritic and has earned billions of dollars. The original Red Dead Redemption has a metacritic score of 95, and GTA 4 stands at a 98. We have to go back 13 years to find something with a score below 95, and that's GTA: San Andreas, with a score of 93. You get the idea. Rockstar is one of those consistently lauded developers in the industry that tends to wrack up game of the year awards with literally every single release.

Will Red Dead Redemption 2 continue the trend, nailing some perfect scores to the wall on its way to becoming yet another critically acclaimed masterpiece from Rockstar Games? I can, of course, only speak for myself when things go live tomorrow morning, but I have to say that I'm deeply curious to see what my critical colleagues have to say. This is a gigantic game, and there's a lot to work with here. People might read all sorts of things into this broad canvas.

So tune in tomorrow morning to see what people think. I wonder how much any of this affects sales: Red Dead Redemption 2 will sell massively well regardless of the review scores it receives, and you can always expect a baseline level from something from a developer this big that's been working on a game for this long. Still, I imagine it must be a big moment for all the people working at Rockstar. This is when they lift the veil, and I can't wait to tell you what's underneath.

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