The best iPhone 6S deal for Christmas: save £150 with code XMAS150

Update: this deal will run up until midnight on 31st December

If you're looking for a great deal on an iPhone 6S before Christmas, this is a bit of a cracker. Mobiles.co.uk and O2 are currently offering a fantastic deal on the best-of-the-best iPhone 6S 128GB.

The deal allows you to save £150 on the up front cost of the phone and then get yourself on a good value contract with O2.

It looks to be by far the cheapest and best-value way of getting hold of the iPhone 6S 128GB and even beats most (if not all) of the deals out there on the 64GB model.

Here's the deal: using the voucher code XMAS150 you can save £150 on the superior 128GB version of the iPhone 6S, leaving you paying £150 up front instead of £300. It comes with a brand new O2 contract which offers great value - unlimited calls and unlimited texts with and 3GB data for £31 per month. That's a really good deal.

It's available in Space Grey, Silver, Rose Gold and Gold, so that's all the colours checked off and it will be available until midnight on December 31 - but note you'll need to order by December 22 to guarantee delivery before Christmas!

The best iPhone 6S deal in the UK

We've had a look around to make sure this deal is really worth recommending and we think it is. The only way to get an iPhone 6S for cheaper than this is to go for the vastly inferior 16GB version.

We did find this other deal which offers the same £31 O2 contract with 3GB data - but that'll cost you an extra £25 up front and it's for the iPhone 6S 64GB not the 128GB version.

The phone-only price of this handset on Amazon is currently around £664, which means you're paying an extra £230 for the O2 plan - less than £10 per month.

The XMAS150 deal in full:

iPhone 6S 128GB | £300 £150 up front | Unlimited calls + texts | O2 4G | 3GB | £31pm | £894 total
Use the code XMAS150 at the checkout to save £150 on the best-of-the-best iPhone 6S 128GB handset and pay just £150 up front instead of £300. Then you'll be on a 4G contract with O2 which offers unlimited calls and texts and 3GB data for £31 per month. Total cost of this deal over two years is £894.

• Get this deal in Space Grey
• Get this deal in Silver
• Get this deal in Rose Gold
• Get this deal in Gold
• Voucher code: XMAS150

​Apple iPhone 5s price slashed to almost half, priced at Rs 21,945 for 16GB

Apple iPhone 6s and 6s Plus holds the title of the being the latest and the most advanced smartphones from the Cupertino giant but the two years old- iPhone 5s is still a favorite among the Apple fans in India. The smartphone that according to retailers accounts for almost 50 per cent of total iPhone sales in the country was launched towards the end of 2013 at Rs 53,500 for the 16GB variant. But today the smartphone is available at Rs 21,945 on Flipkart for the 16GB variant and the 32GB variant costs Rs 30,399. This puts the smartphone in the fight with the popular OnePlus 2, the recently launched Nexus 5X, which is selling at Rs 23,979 on Amazon.in and the camera focused Lenovo's Vibe Shot.

In term of specifications, the smartphone may not match the today's standards on papers, but in real life usage, it can still give a run for money to a number of Android flagship devices. The smartphone features a 4-inch Retina display with a 640x1136 pixel resolution. It is powered by the Apple A7 chip, which has a dual-core 1.3GHz processor and is coupled with 1GB RAM. The smartphone has an 8MP iSight rear camera that can record 1080p videos at 30fps and can also shoot slow motion videos. There is a 1.2MP front facing camera that can be used to record videos in 720p. You also get an effective fingerprint scanner on the front. The smartphone runs on the latest iOS 9 and is backed by a 1560mAh battery unit.

With the new pricing, Apple now has a strong contender in the mid-range segment that can easily take on a number of Android counterparts. Keep the smartphone in consideration if you are looking for a handset priced in sub- Rs 25,000.

Tesla's new iPhone 6 cases are made from unused seat leather

As a brand, Tesla Motors has made its name in resource-consciousness. Now, it is extending that philosophy past its electric cars to your smartphone accessories.

Tesla's officially-licensed iPhone 6 and 6 Plus phone cases are not just made from the same leather that lines the interior of its luxury vehicles, but use the exact same material left over from manufacturing its car seats in an effort to reduce waste.

Starting at $45 (approx. £30/AU$63), Tesla's recycled seat upholstery cases will let iPhone users be able to keep a piece of their vehicle with them at all times. For $50 (approx. £33/AU$70), an upgraded version with RFID-blocking card slots is also available, for those wanting to skip buying a wallet altogether to reduce their leather footprint.

While not all made with recycled car parts, other Tesla-branded accessories are available on the company's online store, including a "sustainably sourced" alpaca wool scarf for those long drives with the windows rolled down.

Apple is still working on making your next iPhone waterproof

Apple's iPhones are not yet officially waterproof, even though one or two intrepid users have been busy testing how they hold up to a dunking. Now a new patent has emergedsuggesting it's a feature that Apple has an eye on including in the future.The patent came to light this week but was filed back in July 2014. It focuses on a rubber port cover that loses and regains its shape - so it would allow a headphone jack to be plugged in but then seal the gap again once the headphones were removed, for example.Ports are one of the weak links when it comes to making a phone that's waterproof - how do you stop water getting into the handset when Lightning cables and other peripherals need to be inserted?Patently obvious?Thanks to a detailed teardown we know that the iPhone 6S was almost waterproof, and we've seen waterproofing patents from Apple before - the last one involved a hydrophobic coating that would protect the inner circuitry even if water did get in.All of those hints could mean we'll see a fully waterproof iPhone 7, though don't bet your house on it for the time being. It's worth noting too that the patent has yet to be granted to Apple.Ideas floated in industry patents don't always end up seeing the light of day but they can be very useful in predicting which way a manufacturer is thinking - and it seems Apple is thinking long and hard about how to add waterproofing to its flagship phones.

iOS 9.2 update: Here's what's new for your iPhone and iPad

Apple's iOS 9.2 update launched today, and it's such a minor software update you may not have noticed its changes. It's still worth upgrading, however.

Standout iOS 9.2 features fine tune Apple Music, give Siri a new language to understand and add support for a USB SD Card reader, according to 9to5Mac.

Most importantly, There are also a bunch of bug improvements, including a fix for alarms that would randomly turn off and potentially ruin your morning wake up call.

Today's firmware update applies to all three lines of iOS devices, including the iPhone, iPad and the often-forgotten iPad touch.

Here's the iOS 9.2 list of changes

Apple Music improvements

• You can now create a new playlist when adding a song to a playlist

• Your most recently changed playlist is now listed at the top when adding songs to playlists

• Download albums or playlists from your iCloud Music Library by tapping the iCloud download button

• See which songs have been downloaded with the new download indicator next to each song in My Music and Playlists

• See works, composers, and performers while browsing Classical music in the Apple Music catalog

Apple News

• A new Top Stories section in News so you can stay up to date with the most important news of the day (available in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia)

Mail Drop

• Mail Drop in Mail for sending large attachments

iBooks

• iBooks now supports 3D Touch to peek and pop pages from the table of contents, your notes and bookmarks, or from search results inside a book

• iBooks now supports listening to an audiobook while you browse your library, read other books, or explore the iBooks Store

USB Camera Adapter

• iPhone support for the USB Camera Adapter to import photos and videos

iOS 9.2 bug fixes

• Improved stability of Safari

• Improved stability of Podcasts

• Fixing an issue that caused mail attachments to be inaccessible for some users with POP email accounts

• Resolving an issue for some users that caused attachments to overlap text in mail

• Fixing an issue where Live Photos could have turned off after restoring from a previous iCloud backup

• Addressing an issue that could cause search in Contacts to display no results

• Resolving an issue that could have prevented Calendar from displaying all seven days in week view

• Fixing an issue where Camera screen on iPad could be black when attempting to capture video

• Addressing an issue that could cause instability in the Activity app when viewing the day of Daylight Savings Time transition

• Fixing an issue that could prevent data from appearing in Health

• Fixing an issue that could prevent Wallet updates and Lock screen alerts from displaying

• Addressing an issue where updating iOS could prevent an alarm from going off

• Fixing an issue where some users were unable to login to Find my iPhone

• Fixing an issue that prevented some manual iCloud Backups from completing

• Addressing an issue where using the iPad keyboard could unintentionally trigger text selection mode

• Improved keyboard responsiveness when using Quick Reply

• Improved punctuation input on the 10-key Chinese (Pinyin & Stroke) keyboards with new expanded view of punctuation symbols and better predictions

• Fixing an issue on Cyrillic keyboards where caps lock would be enabled when typing in URL or email fields

• Accessibility improvements

• Fixing issues with VoiceOver when using Camera face detection

• Adding support for VoiceOver to wake up the screen

• Adding support for VoiceOver to invoke app switcher with 3D Touch gesture

• Fixing an issue with Guided Access when trying to end phone calls

• Improved functionality for Switch Control users when using 3D Touch

• Fixing an issue with speech rate of Speak Screen

Siri

• Siri support for Arabic (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates)

That's everything from Apple's official iOS 9.2 release notes. We'll update this article if we discover any more off-the-record improvements as we test out this latest update.

Apple finally brings out Smart Battery Case to boost iPhone 6S power

Low battery is the bane of every smartphone user, especially those with iPhones, and Apple has just released its first battery case for the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6 to tackle the problem.
It's called the Smart Battery Case and looks similar to the company's range of normal cases but withthere's a bulge at the back where the extra battery sits.
The outside has a silicone material that's soft to the touch and it slips over your phone with ease.
An extra life
Battery-wise we don't have any official size in terms of mAh from Apple, but the company does say it will give you up to an extra 25 hours talk time and an extra 18 hours LTE.
There's a choice of charcoal or white, but there doesn't seem to be an option for the iPhone 6S Plus phablet. You charge the case up with a Lightning connector as well, much like you would for your normal phone.
If you want to buy one, you can get it now on the Apple Store for US$99.99, £79.99 or AU$165 but you'll have to wait 1-3 days for shipping or pick it up in a store.

Can the iPad Pro save Apple's slumping tablets?

Can the iPad Pro save Apple's slumping tablets?

Apple's latest financial results are pretty much what everybody expected: while Google goes around trying to organise all the world's information, Apple is busily hoovering up all the world's money.

Apple is now sitting on $207.5 billion in cash, fuelled partly by Chinese growth - that region accounts for 24% of Apple revenues - and largely dependent on the iPhone, which shifted 48 million units.

Next quarter will make that number look like small potatoes, as this quarter ended just days after the launch of the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus. Macs are doing great numbers too, with a record-breaking 5.7 million Macs sold during the quarter.

It's not all good news, though. Apple isn't discussing Watch sales, which suggests they're still relatively small: the "Other Products" category, of which the Apple Watch is part, grew by $1.15 billion compared to the previous year; that in turn was up $400m over the year before.

But other Products isn't just the Watch. It also includes the Apple TV, Beats, iPods and accessories. Apple may be happy with Watch sales so far, but it isn't happy enough to tell us what the numbers are.

The most interesting numbers are the iPad ones, though. Shipments were 9.9 million during the quarter, a drop of 19.5% over the previous year.

It's still a big business - more than $4 billion per quarter - but that's the first time iPad shipments have dropped below 10 million since 2011. It's also the first time that iPad sales generated less money than Mac sales.

Is the iPad in trouble, and if so is the iPad Pro the answer?

The short answers are "maybe", and "probably not."

iPad Pro won't fix iPad woe

The iPad numbers will improve - it's a more seasonal product than other Apple kit, so for example iPad Minis are big sellers as gifts in a way that, say, Mac Pros aren't - but seasonal variations aside, the trend is still downwards. What's going on?

iPad sales are dropping for a whole host of reasons. It no longer has the market to itself in a world of Samsung Tabs and Kindle Fires. It's being squeezed by ever more capable smartphones and phablets at one end and by ever more portable laptops at the other.

It's a device we replace much less often than we do smartphones, partly because each new generation isn't hugely different from the one it replaces. And it isn't generally subsidised by phone companies to make it seem cheaper than it actually is.

Will the iPad Pro change that? Probably not: it's an expensive product aimed at a niche market, and if people can't be convinced to drop £399 on a new iPad Air 2 then the bigger iPad's heftier price tag will be an even tougher sell.

Pros will love it and it should do interesting numbers in enterprises, but for most consumer iPad users it's overkill.

Normal iPad sales may not continue to plummet, but they're unlikely to start soaring either.

And Apple's totally fine with that.

The big iPad picture

There are two interesting trends to look at. The first is the proportion of first time buyers - that is, people who've never bought a tablet before. Apple says that in the west, 40% of iPad buyers are new to tablets. In China the numbers are even bigger: 70%.

That ties in nicely with the second trend, which is what Tim Cook calls "cannibalisation of the iPad". According to Cook, that cannibalisation is being done by the iPhone and the Mac, not by rival devices. People are coming on board with the iPad, but once on board they're buying iPhones or MacBooks.

This is being spun as terrible news for Apple, but of course it isn't. Apple would much rather sell you a iPhone 6S Plus 64GB or a MacBook than a iPad Air 2 or an Pad mini 2 - both of which cost a chunk less.

And if you don't buy anything at all, there's always iTunes media, Apple Music, iCloud storage plans and endless Lightning cable replacements to flog you. As long as you're sticking within Apple's warm embrace, Apple is quite delighted.

Apple would only be unhappy if iPads weren't selling because people were switching to Windows or Android, and there's no evidence that that's happening in any significant way.

Maybe the problem is that people have got the iPad all wrong. It's not the same kind of product as an iPhone; it's closer to a PC or laptop in terms of its size, its price and its abilities.

It's filled and will continue to fill a niche, but for many people the smartphone has become so good that they don't need anything else.

Whether it's Facebook user numbers - mobile-only users are 44% now, a figure that's doubled in two years - or US smartphone ownership - up from 35% in 2011 to 64% now, with 19% of owners using their phone as their primary internet device - the trends are all pointing in the same direction: smartphones are winning.

It's not that tablets are bad. It's that smartphone just keeps getting better.

Apple's iPhone 7 could use Intel chips

Apple's iPhone 7 could use Intel chips

You likely won't see Intel's infamous "Intel Inside" sticker plastered on the back of the iPhone 7, but that doesn't mean that future Apple smartphones won't contain Intel technology.

Citing people close to the matter, VentureBeat reported that Intel has as many as 1,000 engineers working on a modem that could be used in a future iPhone. The Intel 7360 LTE modem, which supports 4G LTE and 3G CDMA networks, could arrive as early as the iPhone 7, according to the publication.

Intel CEO Brian Krzanich said that the 7360 modem will start shipping to manufacturers by the end of this year and will show up in products ready for consumers in 2016, which could result in Apple getting its iPhone 7 modems from both Qualcomm and Intel. Currently, all of the iPhone modems are sourced from Qualcomm.
An all-for-one future

Although Apple won't be using Intel's mobile-based Atom processor on an iPhone any time in the near future, the goal would be to integrate the modem directly onto Apple's A-series processor in a system-on-a-chip (SoC) design. Integrating the modem, processor and graphics together onto a single silicon chip could lead to better battery life, improved performance and faster speeds for iPhone owners.

For Apple, this could also lead to thinner iPhone designs. Integrating components also means that less space is required for each individual component, so Apple could shed thickness or pack in a bigger battery on its next iPhone model.

Intel's role in the equation would be manufacturing these chips. Apple would design the rumored A-series processor, license Intel's intellectual property to integrate the modem directly into the processor design and then send the design to Intel's fabrication labs to be manufactured.
The Intel advantage

The A9 chips inside Apple's flagship iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus smartphones are manufactured by TSMC and Samsung. Even though the A9 chip is a 14nm processor, Apple's partners create the interface with a 20nm design, which isn't as efficient or advanced as Intel's 14nm design.

In addition to a 14nm design, Intel has begun work for an even smaller 10nm design, which could be ready in as little as two years. This puts Intel's timeline ready for production for an A-series processor for the iPhone 8, with the iPhone 7S likely succeeding next year's iPhone 7.
Intel's history with Apple

Infineon, the wireless company that Intel acquired, had supplied 3G modems for Apple's iPhone until 2011. Apple has since switched to Qualcomm as its modem supplier.

Since the acquisition, Apple has hired a number of top Infineon executives, including Intel CTO Bernd Adler. VentureBeat cites conflicting sources as to the reason for Apple's hire. Some speculate that Apple hired Infineon engineers to help collaborate with Intel, while others suggest that Apple wants to design its modem in-house, similar to how it currently designs the A-series processors.

In addition to mobile, Intel's processors are also found on Apple's OS X products. Apple transitioned from a PowerPC architecture to Intel's x86 processor in 2006. Now, Intel processors span all of Apple's desktops and laptops, including the Mac Pro, Mac Mini, iMac,MacBook, MacBook Air and MacBook Pro lines.

iOS 9 Wallet: Using the shortcut, loyalty cards and more

Goodbye Passbook, hello Discover and others

Alongside the fresh new San Francisco font and the News app that replaces Newsstand, the biggest change to the iOS 9 home screen may be the arrival of Wallet, the rebranded name for the former built-in Passbook. However, the update isn't simply cosmetic: There are a few new features and improvements coming along for the ride, although some of them haven't been enabled quite yet. Let's take a quick look at what's new. (And for even more iOS 9 tips, click here.)

Welcome Discover

If you've been hanging onto a Discover-branded credit card in a physical wallet lamenting the fact that Apple Pay doesn't support this preferred payment method, your long, national nightmare comes to an end with the update to iOS 9.

But it gets even better: Not only can you now add Discover credit cards alongside Visa, MasterCard, and American Express, but cardholders will also be eligible to receive a 10 percent Cashback Bonus through the end of 2015 on up to $10,000 worth of in-store purchases. (Discover It Miles, Miles, and Escape cardholders earn an extra 10 miles per dollar on the same amount of purchases.)

Discover cards can be added to Wallet on iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, and iPhone 6s Plus devices as well as Apple Watch, and requires nothing more than a quick verification by text message, email, or phone call.

Store Credit Cards, Too

The iOS 9 Wallet app will also mark the arrival of retailer-specific credit cards to the Apple Pay fold, with Best Buy, BJ's Wholesale Club, JCPenney, and Kohl's already lined up to support the feature. Apple has yet to announce when store charge customers can add such cards, though - we tried while writing this article using our Best Buy card, but it came back ineligible.

Once available, adding a supported store-branded credit card is exactly the same as Visa, MasterCard, Amex, or Discover: Tap the plus sign in the upper right corner of the Wallet, then follow the on-screen instructions to snap a picture of your card and verify with the three-digit code on back (four on front for Amex); cards can be added to Apple Watch using the built-in app.

Easier Access

Although Apple Pay has always worked without unlocking your iPhone, accessing the cards stored in Passbook often required drilling down into the app itself or being near a supported retail location that would automatically offer to display a loyalty card via push notification.

iOS 9 makes things a bit easier on us all with a new shortcut: Just double-click on the Home button while your iPhone is locked, and up pops the Wallet app with your default payment card ready for action, and all of your other credit cards, store credit cards, and loyalty cards just a tap away.

Get Rewarded

Although the previous Passbook app was often convenient for adding certain types of rewards cards, it wasn't always clear who actually supported them. iOS 9 promises to expand the available options by receiving and redeeming rewards automatically whenever you use Apple Pay.

Already announced is support for Dunkin' Donuts DD Perks, Walgreens Balance Rewards and MyPanera, and Apple's official screenshots also tease My Coke Rewards, Kohl's Yes2You, Wegmans Food Markets, and Starbuck's, which previously offered a Passbook for gift card payments and racking up points.

As of this writing, however, this feature of Wallet has yet to be implemented.

More Retailers

Though not a new feature per se, there will be plenty of new retailers ready to accept Apple Pay on your iPhone or Apple Watch this year. Announced during the iOS 9 unveil back in June, Best Buy lit up support for the mobile payment service in its retail stores last week after accepting Apple Pay for in-app payments earlier this year.

Other retailers with upcoming support for Apple Pay include B&H Photo, Baskin Robbins, BevMo!, Big Lots!, JCPenney, Jonny Rockets, Kohl's, LEGO, Dunkin' Donuts, El Pollo Loco, Express, Forever 21, Levi's, Peet's Coffee, Trader Joe's, and White Castle.

Last but not least, scores of small retailers will soon be able to jump into the Apple Pay action, thanks to Square integration courtesy of new reader hardware. You can bet there will be plenty of additional retailers jumping on board Wallet and Apple Pay in the very near future as well.

iOS 9 Multitasking

iOS 9 Multitasking: Be more productive on iPad

With iOS 9, Apple has introduced a new feature called Multitasking that takes the iPad to the next level. By running two apps side by side, you can be more productive (or have more fun) than ever before. While this feature is only fully compatible with the iPad Air 2, iPad mini 4 and iPad Pro (and in limited ways on some older iPads), it's an incredibly powerful feature that might be worth the upgrade. (Note that Multitasking does not work on any model ofiPhone.)

Multitasking comes in three forms: you can have two apps running fully side by side in Split View mode; you can peek at an app and use it in limited ways with Slide Over; and you can run a video in a window all its own in a mode called Picture in Picture.

Using Slide Over

Split-screen multitasking is a feature introduced in iOS 9 that really takes advantage of the latest iPads' capabilities. However, you don't need the newest gear to use Slide Over - it also works with iPad Air and iPad mini 2 and 3. This handy feature lets you run a second app on your iPad without exiting the app you're currently using. To use Slide Over:

1. Open Safari, Mail, Messages or any other app that supports Multitasking. This includes most apps bundled with iOS, as well as apps downloaded from the iTunes App Store, including Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), 1Password and Join.me.

2. Slide your finger from the right edge of the screen towards the center. This will "pause" the main app you have open and initiate Slide Over view, allowing you to select from a column of supported apps. Tap one to start using it.

3. While you are in this mode, you can switch apps by swiping from the top of the screen on the Slide Over window (just like you were opening Notification Center). If you want to exit Slide Over mode, either press the Home button or tap the drag bar and pull it back to the right side of the screen and let go.

Using Split View

After initiating Slide Over, if the two apps you're using support multitasking, then you'll see a drag handle on the Slide Over window. Dragging this handle to the left will let you enter Split View mode for true side-by-side multitasking.

When using apps in Split View mode, iOS 9 will remember the sizes of the windows that you're using, so if, for example, you use the Home button to exit to the Home screen, then open another app, then return to one of the two apps that were split in multitasking mode, the windows will open at the sizes they were previously. As with Slide Over, if you want to exit out of Split View mode, simply grab the drag handle and slide it off to the right side of the screen until the secondary app disappears from view.

Picture in Picture

Picture in Picture (commonly called PIP) refers to the feature in iOS 9 that lets you overlay a small video window on top of all other apps and the Home screen, allowing you to keep the video playing while navigating iOS and going in and out of apps.

Apps built for iOS 9 can have this feature built in, and all system apps have this feature (including Safari, Podcasts, and more). Activating PIP can usually be accomplished in one of two ways. The first is to simply play the video in a compatible app, then press the Home button - if the developers have set the app up to do so, then the video will minimize to a PIP window on the Home screen.

The second way is by manually activating PIP from the video player window. This is how it's done within Safari and other apps that use the standard player controls available in iOS. If you encounter a player with a PIP button, you can tap this button to shrink the player down into one of the four corners of the screen, allowing you to keep navigating inside of the app or leave the app by pressing the Home button, all while the video remains playable.

You can resize this mini player by using a pinch gesture, play or pause the video by tapping it once then tapping the play/pause button, stop the video by tapping the "X" button, or restore the app the video belongs to (and exit PIP mode) by tapping the maximize button.

In addition, the PIP window can be moved to any of the four corners of the screen by simply dragging and releasing it. You can also make the PIP window minimize itself further by pushing it further towards the edge of the screen. The audio continues to play, but only a small portion of the video will remain on the screen.