Apple Cancels Its Plans To Launch The Most Powerful M4 ‘Extreme’ Chip, Which Would Have Featured Up To A 64-Core CPU And A 160-Core GPU

​

​

Dec 12, 2024 at 07:04 AM EST

“Apple has plans to introduce an 'Extreme' M series chip, which was expected to be announced next year, but based on recent reports, the company has canceled its M4 Extreme chip. Apple was allegedly working on a high-performance chip for the Mac, which would have consisted of four chips attached together for enhanced performance and reallocating engineering resources for an AI server chip.

Apple cancels its M4 Extreme chip, but it could revisit the idea once again

The Information reports that Apple has canceled its plans to launch its own AI server chip, reportedly called the M4 'Extreme' chip. While there is no certainty if it is indeed the 'Extreme' chip, the specifications described suggest otherwise. This is not the first time that we have heard details on the M4 Extreme chip, as the company was previously reported to be working on an even more powerful iteration of its M series of chips. However, soon after, the company scrapped the idea of an 'Extreme' chip, and based on the current report, it appears that Apple revisited the plans again.

With the latest information at hand, we can presume that the company has canceled its plans to ditch the M4 Extreme chip altogether. It was previously reported that the 'Extreme' lineup of chips would be oriented towards the Mac Pro tower, which would have been the company's fastest and most capable chip ever made. If the news has any heft to it, Apple still needs a solution for its Mac Pro tower, as the device has been running the 'Ultra' series of chips for now, which is the same chip that you can find in the Mac Studio.

The M4 Ultra chip, on the flip side, is reported to be introduced in the second half of next year for the Mac Studio as well as the Mac Pro. If the company launched the M4 Extreme chip, it would have featured enormous performance gains over the current iterations of the chip. Based on the specifications, the M4 Extreme chip would have quadrupled M4 Max chips stitched together with up to 64 CPU cores and up to 160 cores of GPU, making it a behemoth of a chip compared to Apple's existing chips as well as the competition.

Apple appears to have shown interest in the 'Extreme' chip for a while, and there is a possibility that the company will revisit the idea once again, but since the final word rests with Apple, we would have to admit that the M4 Extreme chip has been canceled, at least for now. We will share additional details on Apple's plans for its custom chips as soon as further information is available.“

"Sony is ripping people off again"

iOS 18.2 makes AirPods more powerful than ever, here’s why

​

​

Ryan Christoffel

“AirPods Pro 2 recently received huge new features in Hearing Aid, Hearing Test, and Hearing Protection. But for many users, Apple’s latest iOS update may be even more transformative thanks to a key Apple Intelligence upgrade. Here’s how iOS 18.2 makes AirPods more powerful than ever.

ChatGPT via Siri is a game changer

Apple Intelligence launched in iOS 18.1, but some of its most highly anticipated new features just arrived in iOS 18.2.

One such feature is ChatGPT integration with Siri.

I’ve been using the new AI feature in beta for months, and I think it has major potential for users—especially when using AirPods.

When Apple first demoed ChatGPT integration, it seemed like you could only tap into OpenAI’s smarts for certain requests. As Apple put it, Siri would be better at personal knowledge that relates to you, while ChatGPT could help out with ‘world knowledge’ questions.

But one of the many tidbits we learned when the first iOS 18.2 beta shipped is that ChatGPT can be your go-to assistant for any Siri request.

iOS 18.2 lets you say ‘Ask ChatGPT’ at the start of your Siri request to have it immediately sent to ChatGPT.

Which can make your AirPods experience a whole lot like the movie Her, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Scarlett Johansson.

How iOS 18.2’s AirPods experience works with ChatGPT

When your AirPods are connected to a compatible iPhone or iPad running iOS 18.2 or iPadOS 18.2, you can invoke Siri the same way as always.

On modern iPhones, this means just saying the single word, ‘Siri.’

Then, you can say, ‘ask ChatGPT…’

That flow is streamlined enough. But where it gets really nice is with follow-up requests.

After ChatGPT responds to your query, Siri keeps listening a little while for any follow-up requests. There’s no need to say, ‘Siri, ask ChatGPT’ again.

Instead, you can just offer a follow-up question, or a second unrelated request, and Siri will know that you want to continue engaging with ChatGPT.

If you have a ChatGPT Plus account, you can even interact with ChatGPT’s advanced voice mode for a more true-to-life conversation.

Again, all of this works seamlessly, and it very much feels like you’re entering the Her era for AirPods.

AirPods with ChatGPT feels like the future

None of the ChatGPT interactions through Siri and Apple Intelligence require AirPods. You can do it all on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac—in many cases even with another pair of headphones.

But doing all of this with AirPods feels like the future. And provides yet another reason to keep AirPods in your ears as often as possible.”

You Can Download iOS 18.2 Today, With ChatGPT, Genmoji, Visual Intelligence for iPhone - CNET

You Can Download iOS 18.2 Today, With ChatGPT, Genmoji, Visual Intelligence for iPhone

Apple Intelligence has been a work in progress so far. It just got a whole lot better.

Dec. 11, 2024 8:29 a.m. PT

Apple Intelligence on iOS 18.2 is a big step forward for Apple.

Nelson Aguilar/CNET

Apple has heavily promoted Apple Intelligence since the company announced its in-house artificial intelligence system back in June, but it's hardly been a useful feature on the iPhone... until now.

On Wednesday, Apple began rolling out iOS 18.2, which brings some of the most anticipated AI features to iOS 18, including ChatGPT integration for Siri and Writing Tools, the ability to create your own emoji with Genmoji, and the Image Playground app to create images from text prompts.

If you're an iPhone 16 owner, you get Visual Intelligence, the visual search tool that allows you to pull up information on anything you point your camera at, like text, food, locations and more. Think Google Lens, but for Apple.

As long as you own a compatible Apple Intelligence device, you can download iOS 18.2 today and get all the latest AI features. Here's everything you need to know.

To learn more, check out what's new in iOS 18.2 and how to get your iPhone ready before downloading iOS 18.2.

Which iPhone models support Apple Intelligence?

Every iPhone model after the iPhone XS and iPhone 11 can run iOS 18, only some of the most recent models support Apple Intelligence. This is every iPhone that supports Apple Intelligence: 

• iPhone 15 Pro
• iPhone 15 Pro Max
• iPhone 16
• iPhone 16 Plus
• iPhone 16 Pro
• iPhone 16 Pro Max

As mentioned above, only iPhone 16 users will get Visual Intelligence, the AI-powered visual search feature.

Apple Intelligence also works on iPad and Mac models with the M1 chip and later.

Only the iPhone 16 running iOS 18.2 has Visual Intelligence.

Numi Prasarn/CNET

Now, do these six things before installing iOS 18.2

You don't necessarily need to do all of these things to download iOS 18.2 on your iPhone, but it will definitely make the download experience go so much easier:

• Backup your iPhone. You never know what can go wrong when updating, so it's good to have a backup. On your iPhone, go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup and tap on Back Up Now.
• Update to iOS 18.1.1. This will make the updating run smoother than going from iOS 18 to iOS 18.2.
• Charge your iPhone or connect it to power. You don't want your battery dying when you download a new software update, so make sure to keep it charged to at least over 20% or just plug it into power while you update.
• Connect your iPhone to a decent Wi-Fi network. You can download iOS 18.2 using mobile data, but it will be slow and could fail if your service is bad.
• Check to see if your iPhone has enough storage. Every iOS software update needs enough storage to successfully download and install. If you're running out of storage, go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage and delete large files and apps. You can also download iOS 18.2 using your computer, which doesn't require you to free up storage on your phone.
• If you haven't already, join the Apple Intelligence waitlist. Go to Settings > Apple Intelligence & Siri and tap Join the Apple Intelligence Waitlist. It should take a few hours for you to get approved. You also have to waitlist to use ‌Genmoji‌ and ‌Image Playground‌.

To check out Apple's new AI, you must have an eligible device and run the current iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1 or MacOS 15.1. (On the iPhone side, that's basically the current iPhone 16 models plus last year's iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max.) You'll also need to join the waitlist in the Settings app, but Apple Support says it usually only takes a few hours to gain access. Once approved, you'll receive a notification saying it's ready to activate on your device.

You should also check out these easy tricks for optimizing your iPhone storage.

Make sure your iPhone is charged before updating to iOS 18.2.

Jeff Carlson/CNET

How to download iOS 18.2 on your iPhone

Now that you're all set, it's time to download iOS 18.2 If you're coming from iOS 18 or iOS 18.1, updating should be incredibly easy. All you need to do is go to Settings > General > Software Update and hit Update Now. Enter your passcode, agree to terms and conditions to request the update, and wait for iOS 18 to download and install. Once your phone restarts and boots back up, you should be running iOS 18.2.

The download for iOS 18.2 is a little over 7GB.

Screenshots by Nelson Aguilar/CNET

When does iOS 18.2 come out?

It's out! Apple started rolling out the iOS 18.2 update today, Dec. 11. More Apple Intelligence features will be available in the months ahead, the company said.

While you're here, check out what you should expect from the iPhone in 2025.

You Can Download iOS 18.2 Today, With ChatGPT, Genmoji, Visual Intelligence for iPhone - CNET

Enable This New Cell Phone Security Option Now!

WTH?!? FBI Shocks America, iPhone And Android Users—Stop Sending Texts |...