It was a busy week in the Apple world, with Apple announcing the discontinuation of the Mac Pro, releasing iOS 26.4 and other updates, and officially announcing dates for this year's Worldwide Developers Conference.
This week also saw the AirPods Max 2 become available to order while we heard some fresh details about upcoming Apple hardware, so read on below for all the details!
Top Stories
Apple Confirms Mac Pro Is Dead, No Future Models Planned
It shouldn't be much of a surprise considering it hadn't been updated in three years and there have been no rumors of anything coming in the future, but it was still a bit sad to see Apple officially discontinue the Mac Pro this week. And yes, Apple's infamous $700 kit to add wheels to the Mac Pro has also been put out to pasture.
Arriving 20 years ago as an Intel-based upgrade to the PowerPC-driven Power Mac G5, the Mac Pro evolved from a traditional tower workstation to a compact cylindrical form factor and back again over the years, but while it was intended to serve the high-end professional market, it was never upgraded as frequently as other Macs and its role has largely been usurped by the Mac Studio that carries a much lower starting price.
Apple Releases iOS 26.4 and iPadOS 26.4 With New Emoji, Playlist Playground, Purchase Sharing Changes and More
Apple this week released iOS 26.4 and related operating system updates, delivering several improvements but not the revamped Siri we'd been hoping would make an appearance in these releases. That major revamp now looks like it may not come until iOS 27.
iOS 26.4 does bring a number of new features like the AI-driven Playlist Playground in Apple Music, eight new emoji characters, concert listings in Apple Music, CarPlay enhancements, and more.
Alongside iOS 26.4, other releases included macOS Tahoe 26.4 with the return of the compact tab bar option for Safari and a new battery charge limit setting, plus tvOS 26.4 with a new Genius Browse content discover feature, subtitle styling, and more.
Apple Announces WWDC 2026 Will Take Place June 8 to 12
Apple has officially announced that its annual developer conference will take place during the usual timeframe, kicking off with a keynote on Monday, June 8, and running through Friday, June 12.
WWDC will be a hybrid event again this year, with developers able to attend virtual sessions and labs free of charge. There is a lottery, however, for developers to enter for a chance to attend the Monday keynote sessions in person at Apple Park.
We're expecting to see Apple unveil significant AI advancements this year after a number of delays, and the company has confirmed that those advancements will be a major focus of WWDC.
AirPods Max 2 Now Available for Pre-Order With First Deliveries as Soon as April 1
Apple this week began accepting pre-orders for the AirPods Max 2 headphones that were introduced on March 16. In the U.S., Apple's online store intially listed a delivery timeframe of April 1 to April 3, although orders placed today may arrive a few days later than that.
Priced at $549, the AirPods Max 2 feature the same design as the original AirPods Max, but Apple updated the over-ear headphones with an H2 chip that adds new capabilities already offered by other AirPods models. Amazon is already offering small discounts on select colors.
The AirPods Max 2 aren't the only new audio product launched by Apple in the past week, as the company's Beats brand also released new special-edition Nike Powerbeats Pro 2 featuring Nike's signature neon green-yellow "Volt" color.
New Apple TV and HomePod Mini Remain 'Ready' to Launch
Apple has unveiled quite a few new products this month, but the wait continues for the next-generation Apple TV 4K and HomePod mini models.
In his Power On newsletter this week, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said new versions of the Apple TV and HomePod mini have been "ready" since last year, but he reiterated that Apple has held off on releasing them until the more personalized version of Siri and other Apple Intelligence upgrades are released later this year. In a live Q&A on Thursday, Gurman indicated that a new full-size HomePod is in the same predicament.
Apple Unveils 'Apple Business' All-in-One Platform
Apple this week announced Apple Business, a new all-in-one platform that unifies device management, productivity tools, and customer outreach features.
Rolling out on April 14, the service is designed to be a consolidated replacement for several of Apple's existing business-focused offerings, including Apple Business Essentials, Apple Business Manager, and Apple Business Connect. It provides organizations with a single interface to manage devices, employees, communications, and customer engagement across Apple's ecosystem.
The effort will also bring ads to Apple Maps, starting "this summer" in the United States and Canada.
Apple Reportedly Preparing 'Biggest Set of iPhone Revamps' Ever
Apple is working on "the biggest set of iPhone revamps in the product's history," according to the latest word from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
In an in-depth profile of Apple's hardware engineering chief John Ternus, who is widely considered to be the leading candidate to become Apple's next CEO whenever Tim Cook steps down, Gurman said Ternus is "overseeing the biggest set of iPhone revamps in the product's history, including a foldable model this year and a version with an edge-to-edge screen that could arrive as early as 2027, for the device's 20th anniversary."
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