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Apple has revealed four versions of its new iPhone 12, running from the tiny Mini to the very large and premium Pro Max.Pricing will remain the same for the new handsets as it was for the old ones. The iPhone 12 Mini will start at $699 while the iPhone 12 Pro will start at $999, with an upgrade to the larger version of each costing $100.But the relative simplicity and consistency with the pricing is offset by a staggered release schedule that will mean some of the phones will not arrive until November.It is the unusual sized versions of the phones that will be delayed, Apple said during the event, with the standard versions of each coming relatively soon.Both the larger iPhone 12 and the smaller iPhone 12 Pro will open for pre-order on Friday, 16 October. They will then go on sale on Friday, 23 October.Read moreAnyone wanting the smaller iPhone 12 Mini and the bigger iPhone 12 Pro Max will have to wait. Those models will open for pre-orders on Friday, 6 November, and then go on sale on Friday, 13 November.Those phones together represent the smallest iPhone display of recent years and the biggest iPhone ever, though it is not clear whether the unusual size or design has led to the delay in availability.Apple had already been forced to delay the unveiling of the new iPhones by a month, apparently because of coronavirus lockdowns. The company would normally be expected to hold its unveiling event in mid-September, but announced over summer that problems had led that event to be delayed “by a few weeks”.The delays in the release of the new phone are also likely to be a result of the global pandemic. Reports have suggested that Apple had trouble both transporting engineers to manufacturing plants to oversee the creation of the new iPhones as well as shipping the phones themselves.It is not the first time that Apple has undertaken a staggered release for new iPhones. When Apple revealed the iPhone 8 and iPhone X – the last time it undertake a major redesign of its handsets – the more innovative and expensive model was delayed for around six weeks.

Apple has launched the HomePod Mini, a smaller and cheaper version of its Siri-powered speaker.It follows the HomePod, which was first announced in 2017. When that speaker was introduced, it focused on sound and was more expensive than competitors like the Amazon Echo or Google Home – but as a result did not seem to sell as well.Now HomePod Mini puts some of that same technology into a more compact and rounded design, which Apple insisted still has the same high-quality audio hardware.The HomePod Mini costs just $99 – compared with $299 for the full-sized one. It will open for pre-orders on November 6, and will ship on 17 November.Apple noted that the release of the speaker and its associated smart home features came as people were spending more time in their house than ever before. It also stressed its privacy features, such as the fact that Siri recordings are not associated with an individual user.Read moreThe speaker also comes alongside the release of new iPhone features, which allow people to it near their HomePod and receive a notification that will allow them to quickly handoff anything they are listening to.The built-in Siri capabilities also mean that the HomePod Mini can pull information from the phone, too, allowing it to read out messages, for instance.Multiple HomePod Minis can be placed around the house, and will work together continuously, Apple said.Numerous users can also use the HomePod Mini, which will recognise its users’ various voices and read out the relevant information, Apple said.

Facebook says it will finally ban anti-vax ads.But it will still allow ads that push against governments policies that promote vaccines, it said.The decision comes amid increasing concern about the movement’s dangers for public health, as well as worries that Facebook is helping promote such posts.Facebook noted that there almost certainly will not be any approved or publicly available Covid-19 vaccine for some time, but that the coronavirus outbreak meant that other public health measures – including the flu shot – are even more important than normal.In that context, it said it would ban ads everywhere “that discourage people from getting a vaccine”. It will also launch a “new flu vaccine information campaign on Facebook” and work with “global health partners on campaigns to increase immunisation rates”.Read moreFacebook noted that it had already banned vaccine hoaxes that are identified by health organisations such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).But it will now ban any ad that “explicitly discourages someone from getting a vaccine”. That policy will go into effect over the next few days, it said.

Facebook has announced an update to its Messenger app, giving it a new logo, more chat themes, and custom reactions.The update focuses on aesthetics; the Messenger app now has a purple-red gradient logo rather than the previous blue and white one, and Facebook is also bringing ‘love’ and ‘tie-dye’ themes to the platform.Custom reactions, including a fire emoji, pizza, a party horn, the ‘100’ sign, and a unicorn are also being rolled out.The social media giant’s latest look “reflects a shift to the future of messaging, a more dynamic, fun, and integrated way to stay connected to the people you’re close to”, the company wrote in a blog post.It also comes as Facebook is integrating its Messenger and Instagram services.Read moreUsers on one platform will now be able to message users on the other; people can control where they receive messages and calls – in their chats, through message requests, or disable the feature entirely. Instagram messages will receive multiple features already available to Messenger users, including a ‘vanish mode’ where messages will disappear after sending, similar to Snapchat, personalising messages with colours, and quick-forwarding.The integration will be rolled out to “most users in North America soon”, the company says.Facebook is also making its other services more tightly-linked, such as its main social media app and its Oculus virtual reality products.Existing users will be offered the option to merge their current Oculus account with their Facebook one. Full functionality of the Oculus headset will be inherently tied to a Facebook account from 2023.