December 2020

Apple recently introduced a new Small Business Program that reduces the App Store’s commission rate to 15% for developers earning up to $1 million per calendar year in net revenue from the sale of apps and in-app purchases. For developers exceeding the $1 million threshold, Apple’s standard 30% commission rate still applies.
Earlier this week, Apple began emailing eligible developers about their acceptance into the program, noting that the reduced 15% commission rate would go into effect by January 1, 2021. And as it turns out, Apple isn’t waiting long to flip the switch, as some developers are already starting to see the 15% rate applied to their earnings.

A few of the developers already seeing the reduced rate include David Hodge, maker of the third-party Tesla vehicle app Nikola for the iPhone, and Jacob Gorban, a developer of the photo editing app ImageFramer for the Mac.
Apple announced the Small Business Program last month amid increasing scrutiny over its App Store practices, including an antitrust lawsuit from Fortnite maker Epic Games, which is ineligible for the reduced commission since it exceeds the $1 million earnings threshold. Apple said the program will benefit the “vast majority” of App Store developers.
Apple’s website has a Small Business Program page where developers can initiate the enrollment process and learn more details.

There’s a new version of watchOS, the operating system used by the Apple Watch, out today. WatchOS 7.2 includes support for Fitness+, Apple’s new subscription-based fitness service, as well as new cardio fitness notifications.
“Including support for Fitness+” might actually be putting the cart before the horse—Apple Fitness+ requires an Apple Watch to function. The service bundles trainer-led workout videos and regimens with Apple Music, for $9.99 per month, and you can’t sign up for it without an Apple Watch. The watch syncs with whatever device you’re watching the class on, overlaying metrics and progress measured by the watch on top of the video.

Estimation of lower levels of VO2 max is new to watchOS 7.2, and it uses an optical heart sensor, GPS, and accelerometer. Although only an estimate, Apple says this feature is significant because direct measurement requires clinical testing with specialized equipment, which isn’t readily available for most people. Apple goes on to reference an American Heart Association report which states that lower cardio fitness—as the new watchOS feature estimates through multiple sensor readings—is “associated with a high risk of cardiovascular disease, all-cause mortality, and mortality rates attributable to various cancers.”

Samsung’s next Android flagship, the Galaxy S21 Ultra, has landed in the FCC database (first spotted by Android Authority). The listing confirms a few of the rumors that have been floating around.

First, the FCC confirms the Galaxy S21 has S-Pen support. Rumors have been swirling that the Galaxy Note line would be killed to focus on Samsung’s ballooning foldables lineup, and farming out the Note’s one unique feature would certainly fit that narrative. There is still some dispute about whether the Note is actually dead. Reuters cites an anonymous source claiming the Note is dead, while Yonhap, South Korea’s biggest news agency, cites an anonymous source claiming the Note is alive.

What’s not in dispute is that the Note is no longer the only Samsung phone with stylus support. As a tester of all things wireless, the FCC says the S21 Ultra has “two different inductive coupling modes of S-PEN motion detection (Hover and Click).” The Ultra sounds like it will work just like the Note, but remember, there’s nowhere to store the S-Pen on a Galaxy S21. We know what the phone looks like, and it does not have a giant chasm for pen storage like the Note did. Like an Apple Pencil or Surface Pen, you’ll probably have to buy the pen separately and figure out where to store it.

The first time I picked up the PlayStation 5 DualSense controller, I thought: it’s like a little living thing in my hands. I was playing Astro’s Playroom, a free PS5 game designed to highlight the new controller’s features. But, I also wondered: How many other PS5 games are going to take advantage of its wild, subtle features?

Gaming hardware that reaches out and surprises is pretty rare. Usually, it’s Nintendo’s domain: the detaching, docking, transforming Switch, or the Wii’s free-wheeling controllers. The Oculus Quest and PlayStation VR are pretty astonishing. Add to that list the PlayStation 5’s magical new version of its controller, now called DualSense instead of the older DualShock designation.
The PlayStation 5 is a graphically overloaded console with lots of potential, but its standout feature is clearly the upgraded DualSense. Launching Astro’s Playroom, the game preinstalled on the PS5, you get a showcase of what it can do. Its triggers stop and start to make it seem like you’re gripping ledges or pulling back bowstrings. Walking across ice, the controller tinkles and taps just perfectly to make it seem like I can feel the crunchy surface. The DualSense’s vibrational haptics really do create moments where I can almost touch the game.

The PlayStation 5 should get its own updated VR headset in the next couple of years. But in the meantime, the DualSense offers a little promise of what Sony’s immersive gaming steps could head to next.

OnePlus has teamed up with new game Cyberpunk 2077 to create a version of the OnePlus 8T that looks like it’s been pulled straight from the game’s dystopian sci-fi setting. The special-edition handset will be available in limited numbers and will only be on sale in mainland China, so we were super excited to get hold of a model to unwrap and photograph ourselves.
Physically, the phone is pretty much unchanged from the regular OnePlus 8T. It’s a phone we gave a superb score to in our full review thanks to its great performance, fast charging and 120Hz display. All of those features are on the Cyberpunk edition, but they’re all wrapped up in this awesome body.
The rear of the phone combines a glossy glass back that appears to have been sand-blasted to give a frosted effect that looks a bit like like carbon fiber.
You’ll find the Cyberpunk logo etched in blazing neon yellow at the bottom of the phone, as well as yellow streaks around the bottom edge of the phone. It certainly stands out.
The 6.55-inch display is unchanged, so the phone doesn’t feel any different to hold than the regular 8T. However, with such an awesome design you’re unlikely to want to hide this one away inside a case — take extra care if you’re carrying it outside!
As part of the special-edition package, the phone comes with these pin badges. I haven’t played Cyberpunk yet, nor am I familiar with the lore of the game, so “Valentinos” and “The Mox” don’t mean a lot to me. I believe that Night City is the main locale in which the game is set.
The phone runs a China-specific version of OnePlus’ software, which has been given a Cyberpunk overhaul, with cool new icons and backgrounds.