Your weekly look at the world of smartphones and mobile technology, this is the Phone Buzz on Friday 12th March 2021.

This Week’s Top Story

• Production of the iPhone 12 Mini is being tweaked, with reports of Apple lowering production of the smallest iOS smartphone. As a whole the iPhone 12 family is expected to see a twenty percent drop in orders for the first half of the year. Given the continuing changing circumstances in a COVID-19 world, the potential for a ‘5G boost’ to sales has not materialised, and the steady 75 million handset sales looks to be continuing (Nikkei Asia).

Apple Headlines

• With camera technology continuing to be at the forefront of smartphone, the iPhone 13 is expected to build on the existing iPhone technology. One area where it looks like it will fall short of Android devices is in folding ‘periscope’ lenses. This week reports suggest their introduction will be delayed until 2023 (Forbes).
• One area where the iPhone 13 looks ready to catch up is with TouchID. Barclays research has highlighted the upcoming installation of a fingerprint sensor under the iPhone screen, presumably being tested for this year’s iPhone family (MacRumors).
• MacOS may have Rosetta 2 allowing x86 Intel apps to run on the ARM-based Apple Silicon, but Apple would really like developers to move over to gain the most benefit from the new hardware. Well, here comes a key mover; Adobe’s Photoshop is now running native code on the M1 Macs (The Verge).
• Many macOS developers took advantage of Apple’s Developer Transition Kit to prepare Apple Silicon apps for the M1 launch. Apple recently recalled the loaner devices, but all is not going well. Developers are reporting a number of issues with the courier collections, and many worry that they do not have proof of postage if Apple asks where the kits are in a few weeks time (Apple Insider).
• Controversial messaging app Parler was removed from the App Store following the Capitol riots in the US. Following close examination of the latest submission of the app, Apple has rejected it from the Store, writing that “There is no place for hateful, racist, discriminatory content on the App Store.” (Bloomberg).
• Apple’s Women’s Health Study team based at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health have released  preliminary results on its women and their menstrual symptoms study. The data has been gathered from 10,000 participants in the study. The study uses Apple’s Research App, which allows for the remote collection of health data through Apple devices such as the iPhone and Apple Watch (Apple Press, via 9to5Mac).
• Disney has long used contactless technology in the MagicBand to allow easy access to rides and services in its theme parks. Now the iPhone can join in, with the addition of a MagicMobile pass for the digital wallet (Disney).

Android Headlines

• Samsung’s next ‘Unpacked’ event for 2021 has been announced. It will take place on March 17th, The invite calls it ‘Galaxy Awesome Unpacked’, and the expectation is that the Galaxy A series is going to be updated. After all, A is for Awesome (CNet).
• With an increased demand from manufacturers, and the previously reported chip shortage kicking in, Qualcomm is “has found it hard to meet this higher-than-expected demand” and is expected to impact on a number of  (Reuters).
• Oppo’s Find X3 handset is pitching itself as a a contender for the Galaxy S crown On paper it has the specs, but as Samuel Gibbs points out in his review, there are some key hardware and software elements missing (The Guardian).
• If Huawei were hoping for a reconsideration of their place on the US Entities List under President Biden, then the further restrictions on companies selling 5G technology to the Chinese manufacturer is a clear sign of the opposite (Reuters).
• Meanwhile the P50 and P50 Pro handsets will be Huawei’s flagship smartphones this year, and while the lack of Google may be a negative, the company will be hoping that the strong camera offering and sharp design cues will balance that out for Western markets (Voice).
• Ahead of its launch on March 23rd, more details on the OnePlus 9 and OnePlus 9 Pro have snuck out. Not only do we have a good look at the handsets (via WinFuture), but OnePlus itself has confirmed a number of details , including the new Sony IMX sensors and Hasselblad software the company will be using (Forbes).
• Asus continues to push the envelope of smartphone gaming hardware with the launch of the Asus ROG Phone 5 – ROG standing for Republic of Gamers, its gaming brand. And when you aim for top-line gaming specs, you also get a great all-round smartphone experience, as the GSMArena team found out in their review (GSMArena).

Mobile Tech Headlines

• As Chrome OS turns ten years old (and overtaking macOS to take second place in the Desktop OS market), Google has announced a number of new features for the connected operating system. These include Phone Hub, to interact with your Android phone from the desktop; an expansion of Wi-Fi Sync, that allows automatic connection to trusted hotspots over all your Google devices; and a significant update to Desks, allowing easier access to multiple workspaces (Google Chromebook blog).
• Facebook has laid out a ten-year vision of how it expects AR to impact on the Human/Computer interface thought the likes of smart glasses, wristbands, and other wearable sensors (Tech at Facebook via CNet).

And Finally…

• …No more subscribing to your favourite podcast with Apple. Its podcast apps are switching ‘subscribe’ out for ‘follow’, to match the language seen in the likes of Spotify and YouTube (PodNews).

Ewan Spence

Ewan is the editor at Phone Buzz News. For over 30 years he has been covering the worlds of media and technology, from the early days of the first smartphone through to their essential role in today's society.