The new M2iPad Pro supports a new feature with the second-generation Apple Pencil that allows users to hover their Apple Pencil over their display to expand content, apps, widgets, and more.
Explaining the feature on the iPad Pro's features page, Apple says:
A new dimension of Apple Pencil. Apple Pencil hover shows you exactly where your Apple Pencil will touch down on your display. So you can write, sketch, and illustrate with even greater precision. Watch apps and widgets expand on the Home Screen as you move over them. Preview your mark before you make it. See how your watercolors mix before you paint. Apple Pencil hover makes everything you do with Apple Pencil even more effortless
The new M2 iPad Pro paired with the second-generation Apple Pencil can detect electromagnetic signals transmitted by the tip of the pencil from up to 12mm away from the display. "M2 instantly interprets those signals and determines the position of Apple Pencil in three dimensions," according to Apple. The new M2 iPad Pro is otherwise a minor upgrade, featuring just the new M2 Apple silicon chip and improved Wi-Fi.
Sunday February 1, 2026 10:08 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Last year, Apple launched CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles. Nearly nine months later, CarPlay Ultra is still limited to Aston Martin's latest luxury vehicles, but that should change fairly soon.
In May 2025, Apple said many other vehicle brands planned to offer CarPlay Ultra, including Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis.
In his Powe...
Thursday January 29, 2026 10:07 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today confirmed to Reuters that it has acquired Q.ai, an Israeli startup that is working on artificial intelligence technology for audio.
Apple paid close to $2 billion for Q.ai, according to sources cited by the Financial Times. That would make this Apple's second-biggest acquisition ever, after it paid $3 billion for the popular headphone and audio brand Beats in 2014.
Q.ai has...
Sunday February 1, 2026 12:31 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
The calendar has turned to February, and a new report indicates that Apple's next product launch is "imminent," in the form of new MacBook Pro models.
"All signs point to an imminent launch of next-generation MacBook Pros that retain the current form factor but deliver faster chips," Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said on Sunday. "I'm told the new models — code-named J714 and J716 — are slated...
Saturday January 31, 2026 10:51 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple recently updated its online store with a new ordering process for Macs, including the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac mini, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro.
There used to be a handful of standard configurations available for each Mac, but now you must configure a Mac entirely from scratch on a feature-by-feature basis. In other words, ordering a new Mac now works much like ordering an...
Sunday February 1, 2026 5:42 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple is planning to launch new MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips alongside macOS 26.3, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
"Apple's faster MacBook Pros are planned for the macOS 26.3 release cycle," wrote Gurman, in his Power On newsletter today.
"I'm told the new models — code-named J714 and J716 — are slated for the macOS 26.3 software cycle, which runs from...
Surprising how many things the first Microsoft Surface got right. Hovering pen, kickstand, detachable keyboard with trackpad, camera on top when in landscape. At the time the iPad required a keyboard dock in portrait orientation and had no pencil support.
