Apple's products and services reach over a billion people and it's now the most valuable
company in the world, worth nearly three TRILLION dollars.
With a T.
So the days of Apple as a scrappy underdog taking on the big corporations are long gone.
Now, when Apple does something, it can shift entire markets.
And Apple did a LOT of somethings in 2021.
It was a big year for new products, especially for the Mac.
Here's a quick review of all the biggest stuff Apple got up to in 2021.
The year started off pretty slow… those first few months were just a few minor
OS updates and a handful of second-season premieres for Apple TV+ shows.
It wasn't until April that things started to heat up.
At the start of April, Apple dropped about 30 new games into Apple
Arcade.
But more importantly, it changed the rules to allow apps that are
sold on the App Store to be a part of the service.
Those apps have a PLUS at the end, like Tiny Wings+,
and a different icon to made the Apple Arcade version distinct.
This didn't fix every issue with Apple Arcade, but it's gone a long way to making it a valuable
service.
Then came the Spring Loaded event, in which Apple finally introduced its long-rumored
AirTags item trackers.
Apple also added family sharing to Apple Card, and gave us a new Apple TV 4K update.
The streaming box itself wasn't much of an upgrade,
but the new remote is WAY better than the awful Siri Remote that came before it.
We also got updated iPad Pros with the M1 processor.
Given that the M1 is what we would would have expected in an A14X processor,
this wasn't a surprise.
But the new mini-led displays added great HDR,
and we love the new ultra-wide 12 megapixel front camera and Center Stage tracking feature.
The real star of the event was the new 24-inch iMac.
It's totally redesigned with bright colors, a really thin display, and slim bezels,
it's got the M1 processor and a wireless keyboard with Touch ID.
It's just the kind of overhaul the low-end iMac needs,
and it makes us look forward to even more upgrades in a larger model,
rumored to launch in 2022.
Every year in June, Apple holds its Worldwide Developers Conference.
This year, the only things announced at the event were the new operating systems:
iOS, iPadOS, and tvOS 15, macOS Monterey, and watchOS 8.
There's too much in these updates to go into in this video,
but the highlights are an all new Safari, offline Siri support,
lots of new sharing features, live text and translation, and new notification summary
and focus modes to get your notifications under control.
On the iPad we finally got home screen widgets and the App Library like we should have had
last year when they came to iPhone.
The most exciting new Mac feature is Universal Control,
which lets you seamlessly move your curser and keyboard between nearby macs and iPads,
and can even drag-and-drop content between them.
But it's not out yet, it's probably going to come in an OS update early in 2022.
Later in the year, a controversial new feature of these operating systems was announced.
Your iPhone would scan images on upload to iCloud for child sexual abuse material.
Apple designed the system in such a way that it would protect your privacy and couldn't
be easily abused, but privacy advocates expressed a lot of concern
about scanning images on your own devices and the ways that could potentially be exploited.
In response, Apple delayed the release of that feature for now while it works on some
changes that will hopefully please the privacy advocates.
Apple's always involved in some sort of legal battle,
and the biggest one in recent memory concluded this year.
In the spring, the Epic Games vs. Apple trial ended,
and the ruling was handed down in September.
It was basically a big victory for Apple, as Epic got almost none of its demands and
Apple was only forced to allow apps to include links to account management and payment processing
outside of the app store.
No third-party app stores, sideloading, other payment processing in the
App Store, or anything like that.
Even that narrow concession has been put on hold,
as Apple applied for a stay and was granted it on appeal.
So Apple still faces several antitrust and monopoly legal challenges internationally,
but this big case fizzled out without making Apple have to do anything at all.
Just after that big ruling in September came Apple's "California Streaming" event,
where it introduced the new iPhone 13 line, Apple Watch Series 7,
and two new iPads.
Again, too much to go over for this small video,
but the iPhone 13 has a faster processor, better camera,
and the Pro models have a 120Hz ProMotion display.
Best of all, every iPhone 13 model gets much better battery life than last year's model.
These are easily the longest-lasting iPhones ever made.
The iPad mini is a great upgrade, too.
It's like a shrunken-down iPad Air, with Touch ID in the side button and a larger
display with slimmer bezels, and a USB-C port.
It's exactly what we wanted from a new iPad mini.
The new basic iPad is less exciting.
There's a new processor and it has that great new 12 megapixel front camera and Center Stage,
but that's it.
The entry-level iPad is overdue for a bigger update.
The Apple Watch Series 7 is likewise a disappointing upgrade.
It's got a larger display with smaller bezels, but that's really about all.
There are no major new features and it even has the exact same processor as the Series
6.
But that's not the end for Apple!
No, in October we got another event called "Unleashed,"
and it made Mac fans really happy about this whole Apple Silicon transition.
The new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro are almost everything we've wanted Apple to deliver
for the last few years.
More ports, including the return of Magsafe charging, HDMI, and SD card slot.
Plus a brilliant high dynamic range display with ProMotion.
And new M1 Pro and M1 Max processors that are even faster than the M1,
especially in the graphics department.
This is a huge leap forward for the MacBook Pro and a great sign of things to come for
the Mac.
In addition to the MacBook Pros, Apple revealed its new third-generation AirPods.
With a new shape that is almost the same as the AirPods Pro,
only without the silicone tips.
They have longer battery life than the old AirPods, and almost all the same features
as the AirPods Pro, except for active noise cancelling.
But the BEST Apple product of the year has got to be...
The APPLE POLISHING CLOTH.
That's right, only $19 for this 6-inch square microfiber cloth,
in stylish grey color with embossed Apple logo!
I'm kidding of course, it's an outrageous product that is grossly
overpriced.
So naturally, it sold out immediately and is currently backordered for a month or more.
Sometimes Apple enthusiasts just can't help themselves.
And now that this dumb thing generated so much buzz,
we're probably going to see a $20 "Samsung Cloth" next year.
But Polishing Cloth aside, Apple had a really great year full of mostly
very pleasing releases.
They really delivered with the Mac especially, so we can't wait to see how this two-year
Apple Silicon transition concludes next year.
We still expect a larger and more powerful iMac, a redesigned MacBook Air, an all new
Mac mini, and a new Mac Pro.
2022 should also bring a new design for the iPhone 14, the Apple Watch Series 8,
and of course all new operating systems and service improvements.
Rumor has it we might even finally see Apple's AR or VR headset,
which would be the first major new product category since the Apple Watch.
Of course we'll have news, reviews, and tips for all these products and more on Macworld.com.