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Apple has announced its App Store Best Of 2020 award winners.
There are 15 winners including games, tools for teaching kids, and more.
Each winner received a physical App Store award.

Congratulations to all of them.

Apple today announced no fewer than 15 App Store Best Of 2020 winners with apps covering genres including Apple Arcade games, tools for helping kids learn remotely, apps to keep us moving, and more.

All 15 winners also received a physical award based on the App Store logo – and it just so happens to look like a cross between a Mac mini and an Apple TV, too. In typical Apple fashion, those awards are made from 100& recycled aluminum and have the name of the winner engraved on the side.

There’s no denying that 2020 has been a year like no other and we’ve all been leaning on some apps more than others as we try to navigate the pandemic. Apple Fellow Phil Schiller says all 15 apps are examples of innovation – innovation that is helping dea…

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Apple has shared the top ten downloaded games and apps of 2020.
Apps relating to the pandemic were understandably popular.

Turns out a ton of people downloaded Zoom.

Apple today shared the apps and games that were downloaded from the App Store the most during 2020, with games and general apps split up into different lists. As was probably to be expected, apps that are related to the COVID-19 pandemic in some way were the big winners during the year.

Video calling app Zoom found itself at the top of the free apps across both iPhone and iPad, for example. With the pandemic limiting travel and offices closed, people took to Zoom as a way of keeping in touch with people and running business meetings. The top paid app on iPhone was TouchRetouch, while Procreate picked up the win on iPad.

Top Free iPhone Apps

ZOOM Cloud Meetings
TikTok
Disney+
YouTube
Instagram
Facebook
Snapchat
Messenger
Gmail
Cash App

Top Paid iPhone App…

The iPhone 12 Pro Max smoked every other iPhone 12 model in sales during launch weeks.

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The iPhone 12 Pro Max was the most popular iPhone 12 model in the launch weeks.
iPhone 12 mini came out the least popular.

Reported by Flurry Analytics, the iPhone 12 Pro Max has easily outperformed the rest of Apple’s iPhone 12 lineup in sales during their combined launch weeks. Despite being released a month after the first iPhone 12 models, the iPhone 12 Pro Max reached a 1% install base when compared to the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro’s combined 0.8%.

This year’s iPhone 12 series captured a combined 1.9% install base during their combined launch weeks, a big jump over each of the last two years. Last year, the iPhone 11 series launch captured 1.2% install base, and two years ago the iPhone XS and XR series captured 1.6%. Impressively, the premium-priced iPhone 12 Pro Max captured nearly 1% of the iPhone install base in its first week, outperforming any other model…

FaceTime just got better in a time when we need it most.

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The iPhone 8 and later now supports FaceTime 1080p video calls over Wi-Fi.
iPhone 12 models get the higher resolution on 5G as well.

Reported by MacMagazine (via 9to5Mac), iPhone 8 models and later now support 1080p FaceTime HD video calls over Wi-Fi. iPhone 12 models not only support the higher resolution over Wi-Fi but 5G as well. The upgrade apparently came as part of the release of iOS 14.2 despite Apple not mentioning the upgrade in its release notes.

The difference was verified when the outlet looked at iPhone specification history on Apple’s website and noticed that the feature was missing for iPhone models like the iPhone XR until November 9.

After some digging, MacMagazine noticed Apple quietly updated the specs pages for devices like iPhone XR shortly after iOS 14.2 debuted in November … We discovered this because the iPhone XR spec page, for example, did not list video calls via Face…

Salesforce will give Slack the backing it needs to play with the big boys.

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Salesforce has announced its aquisition of Slack for $27.7 billion.
The two companies will integrate their services together to better address the demand for remote working and communication.
The deal is expected to close in 2022 pending approval.

Workplace communication has been a major focus of the year, with companies left and right taking advantage of the fact that many employers cannot yet return to the office. Many have been pushing their business tools and productivity apps, while others have been focused on ways to expand their business to better accommodate for the new status quo. The latest expansion comes in the form of Salesforce, as it has announced its acquisition of Slack for a staggering $27.7 billion.

To give a little perspective, Slack went public last year for $19 billion before seeing its shares fall. But the offer from Salesforce, which provides a suite of sales…

Apple has also renamed the Vintage and Obsolete Products page.

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The first 5K iMacs are now on Apple’s Vintage Products List.
Customers will still be able to receive service and repairs for those models as long as parts are available.

Reported by MacRumors, the iMac with Retina 5K display has been around long enough to make its way to the Vintage and Obsolete Products list. iMac with Retina 5K display models from Late 2014 and Mid 2015 have now been added to the Apple Vintage Product list.

In addition to the 5K iMacs from 2014 and 2015, MacRumors notes that Apple has also added some other iMacs from as far back as 2013:

iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2013)
iMac (27-inch, Late 2013)
iMac (21.5-inch, Mid 2014)
iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2014)
iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Mid 2015)

Apple has extended the amount of time that customers can receive repairs and support for products on the vintage list, so those with the above iMacs should feel confident that they will …

Apple has also been donating to the fund for every (PRODUCT)RED purchase.

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Apple will donate $1 to the Global Fund COVID-19 Response for every purchase made at Apple for the next week.

Apple has sent an email to those subscribed to the Apple Pay newsletter announcing that the company will be donating $1 to the Global Fund for every purchase made using Apple Pay at an Apple retail store, through the Apple Store app, or through Apple’s website. The donation period will exist between now and Monday, December 7 and the funds will be used to help fight COVID-19 with (RED).

Now through December 7, to help combat COVID-19 and AIDS with (RED), Apple is donating $1 to the Global Fund for every purchase made with Apple Pay on apple.com, in the Apple Store app, or at an Apple Store.

Apple has been a major partner to (RED) and its fight against AIDS for years. The organization has committed to redirecting donations to the Global Fund’s COVID-19 Response until June…

Deploy your M1 Macs and those running macOS Big Sur.

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Apple has updated the Apple Configurator 2 app with support for macOS Big Sur and Apple silicon.

Apple has updated its Apple Configurator 2 app for the Mac, adding support for macOS Big Sur and its own Apple silicon processors.

In addition to adding the support macOS Big Sur and Apple silicon, Version 2.13.3 introduces some other enhancements and bug fixes as well:

Support for macOS Big Sur
Support for restoring macOS on Mac computers with Apple silicon
Automatically install MobileDevice updates required to restore iOS
Web Clip: configure Ignore Manifest Scope and Target Application Bundle Identifier
Bug fixes and performance improvements

The Apple Configurator app helps IT administrators deploy and stay in control of fleets of Apple devices for both schools and businesses.

Apple Configurator 2 makes it easy to deploy iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, and Apple TV devices in your school or business. Use …

The MagSafe Duo Charger, which lets you charge both your iPhone 12 and Apple Watch at the same time, is now available to order from Apple’s website.

For those who want to place an order, Apple is currently showing delivery dates as soon as December 3 for the fastest option which does incur a shipping charge. If you are okay waiting a day longer, free shipping is showing a delivery date as soon as December 4.

The MagSafe Duo Charger is the last of Apple’s own MagSafe accessories to become available after the company announced all of the products at its iPhone 12 event. The charger will charge the iPhone, Apple Watch, AirPods Pro with the Wireless Charging Case, and any other device that is compatible with Qi charging.

The charger is also made to fold up so it is perfect for those who want one charger to sit beside your bed whether you are at home or traveling.

The MagSafe Duo Charger conveniently charges your compatible iPhone, Apple Watch, Wireless Charging Case for AirPods, a…