They also have again tweaked the butterfly keyboard design with new tweaks to reduce issues some users have experienced with stuck or unresponsive keys.
The new updates are spec bumps, specifically to using the latest 8th and 9th generation Core processors from Intel
The 15-inch model has new i7 and i9 6-core and 8-core options with the 13-inch gets new i5 and i7 processor options.
The displays, ports, and storage options, as well as the base pricing appear to have remained the same.
For the keyboard, Apple said they changed the material in the butterfly mechanism and that should substantially reduce problems that some users have seen.
They also expanded its Keyboard Service Program to cover the 2018 "3rd generation" MacBook Pro and MacBook Air keyboards and says they have shortened repair times, which were taking up to a week.
They will also be reportedly replacing 3rd gen membrane keyboards with the new keyboards (though they don't replace 1st and 2nd gen ones with new designs).
The keyboards are covered for up to four years after the original purchase
Apple also quietly announced a new "Backlight Service Program" for the flex cable issues experienced on "very small percentage" of 2016 13-inch MacBook Pros
These are 2016 13-inch machines sold between October 2016 and February 2018
Apple cellular modems are far off
The Information detailed a lot of info about Apple and their struggles with Intel as a cellular modem provider.
Apple turned to Intel when they had a falling out with Qualcomm over licensing fees
But the switch to Intel was rocky and Intel struggled to deliver and missed deadline all starting all the way back in 2017.
They mess that was Intel's cellular modem business ultimately forced Apple to have to settle with Qualcomm and Intel shut it's modem business days after that.
We've know Apple has been building it's own team and until this report it seemed like Apple might have their own design and chips ready for device by 2021 or 2022.
This report says that in interviews Apple has been telling prospective engineers that they expect to have their own designs ready by 2025.
Apple iPhone base see minimal growth
Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) has new data on iPhone growth for the fist quarter of 2019
It shows the installed base of US iPhone owner growing 2 percent over the last quarter from 189 million to 193 million.
That's about a 12 percent increase year over year.
Still it's growing at about half the rate it was last year.
Lady Gaga at Apple Park
As we mentioned last week Apple held a party to commemorate the formal opening of their new campus Apple Park.
We mentioned the custom Apple Stage, with an original Apple rainbow colors design being erected in the center of the campus.
This week Lady Gaga performed for 15,000 Apple employees celebrating the campus opening and also as a tribute to Steve Job.
During the concert Lady Gaga asked Apple to create a "Be Kind" emoji, held a moment of silence for Steve, dedicated a performance of the song "Million Reasons" to Jobs.
She also thanked Zane Lowe for his support on Apple Music
LG Monitors are back.
Last week we discussed the LG UltraFine 4K and 5K displays disappearing from Apple's retail and online stores
One of the theories was that Apple had been clearing out for the pending future launch of their own Pro 6K display.
Well, now thanks to Tidbits, looks like they were maybe just updating the version of the LG display
Some Apple Retail stores are now carrying a new $700 USD 23.7-inch UltraFine LG Display
At a resolution of 3840x2160, it's actually less than the 21.5-inch UltraFine 4K display it replaced, at 4096x2304, but still inline with Ultra HD resolution 4K displays on the market.
Just like the previous model it also has two Thunderbolt 3 ports and three regular USB-C ports
Apple Pay in Hungary and Luxembourg
Apple continues to expand Apple Pay into more countries
They launched in Hungary and Luxembourg this past week with support for credit and debit cards from MasterCard, Visa and regional banks.
Apple Pay in Hungry supports MasterCard and OTP Bank and in Luxembourg you can use MasterCard credit and debit cards, Visa, and Visa's V Pay with cards from BGL BNP Paribas
ING has already teased support for a future Apple Pay launch in the Netherlands, so that launch is likely next.
Project Titan is alive
A financial analyst Roth Capital Partners claims Apple is building "multiple very large drive rooms in California" to continue to work on battery technology to support their continued car efforts.
He specifically says that. "Project Titan is absolutely not dead."
He also said that back in 2013 Apple made a serious bid to buy Tesla. It's unclear how far those efforts went, but apparently Apple was looking to pony up some serious cash.
We do know Apple has used some Lexus SUV models in CA as a testbed for their autonomous vehicle systems.
There have also been rumors of a Palo Alto to Infinite Loop (PAIL) autonomous shuttle system for Apple employees.
Sponsor: Experian
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So the question is, why is it so hard to raise your score?
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I have pretty good credit now, but it took me years to get it that way. Most of the ways to improve your score take month or years.
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Most people who boost increase their scores by more than 10 points.
It's amazing it's taken so long for someone to do this.
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Sponsor: Linode
Linode
Linode allows you to instantly deploy and manage an SSD server in the Linode Cloud. Get a server running in seconds with your choice of Linux distro, resources, and choice of 10 node locations.
They are giving all new Maccast customers a $20 credit.
I've been wanting to set up a Minecraft server and Linode offers One-click installs including gaming installs
They have Minecraft, Ark, Terraria, and more.
Also one-click installs for things like Wordpress, Drupal, GitLab, OpenVPN and more.
Plus a whole bunch of distros. If it runs on Linux, it runs on Linode.
Most Linux distributions available out of the box, but you can upload custom images or create your own
Basically you can build whatever server you want.
Featuring native SSD storage, a 40 Gbit network, with industry leading processors
Pick from any of our 10 worldwide data centers
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Additional datacenter opening in Mumbai India by end of 2019
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Can get what you need from a $5/month Nanodes plan to high power Dedicated CPU plans
Their dashboard makes it easy to manage your Linodes and upgrading your plan is easy.
Can add-on backups, large storage volumes, and load balancing
And if you need support they have 24x7 live customer support and a large documentation library which provides a great resource when you get stuck.
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Feedback, commentary, opinions
Managing Mac Storage
Phil wrote in with a common question, "What the heck happened to all my storage"?
He has a 2013 13" Retina Macbook Pro with a 250GB SSD and about 40GB free.
Running Omni Disksweeper just ended up making things more confusing because it only accounted for 136GB of stuff.
He had already disabled Time Machine local snapshots and removed them.
Still there is a lot of great info built right into your Mac
Apple Menu > About My Mac.
Click on the Storage tab and wait for it to build up your graph.
Hover over the sections to get a rough idea of what kinds of files are taking up your space.
Click the "Manage…" button.
Now you can go category by category and get more details.
Has columns to sort by size and "Last Accessed"
In the "Documents" tab you can also see, "Large Files", Downloads, and a File Browser.
There is a "Delete…" button, but I'd be careful with this. Consider using the "Show in Finder" button first and make sure you know what and where you're deleting items from.
Also, Backup, backup, backup.
Often a BIG storage hog can be iOS Files (old iOS backups)
Also, Mail (old attachments) and Messages, if you get a lot of media.
