Technologies

Apple, I’m (Sky) Blue About Your iPhone 17 Air Color

Commentary: The rumored new hue of the iPhone 17 Air is more sky blah than sky blue.

I can’t help but feel blue about the latest rumor that Apple’s forthcoming iPhone 17 Air will take flight in a subtle, light-hued color called sky blue.

Sky blue isn’t a new color for Apple. It’s the featured shade of the current M4 MacBook Air, a shimmer of cerulean so subtle as to almost be missed. It’s silver left too close to an aquarium; silver that secretly likes to think it’s blue but doesn’t want everyone else to notice.

Do Apple employees get to go outside and see a real blue sky? It’s actually vivid, you can check for yourself. Perhaps the muted sky blue color reflects a Bay Area late winter/early spring frequent layer of clouds like we typically see here in Seattle.

«Who cares?» you might find yourself saying. «Everyone gets a case anyway.» I hear you and everyone else who’s told me that. But design-focused Apple is as obsessive about colors as they are about making their devices thinner. And I wonder if their heads are in the clouds about which hues adorn their pro products.

Making the case for a caseless color iPhone

I’m more invested in this conversation than most — I’m one of those freaks who doesn’t wrap my phone in a case. I find cases bulky and superfluous, and I like to be able to see Apple’s design work. Also, true story, I’ve broken my iPhone screen only twice: First when it was in a «bumper» that Apple sent free in response to the iPhone 4 you’re-holding-it-wrong Antennagate fiasco, and second when trying to take long exposure starry night photos using what I didn’t realize was a broken tripod mount. My one-week-old iPhone 13 Pro slipped sideways and landed screen-first on a pointy rock. A case wouldn’t have saved it.

My current model is an iPhone 16 Pro in black titanium — which I know seems like avoiding color entirely — but previously I’ve gone for colors like blue titanium and deep purple. I wanted to like deep purple the most but it came across as, in the words of Patrick Holland in his iPhone 14 Pro review, «a drab shade of gray or like Grimace purple,» depending on the light.

Pros can be bold, too

Maybe the issue is too many soft blues. Since the iPhone Pro age began with the iPhone 11 Pro, we’ve seen variations like blue titanium (iPhone 15 Pro), sierra blue (iPhone 13 Pro) and pacific blue (iPhone 12 Pro).

Pacific blue is the boldest of the bunch, if by bold you mean dark enough to discern from silver, but it’s also close enough to that year’s graphite color that seeing blue depends on the surrounding lighting. By comparison, the blue (just «blue») color of the iPhone 12 was unmistakably bright blue.

In fact, the non-Pro lines have embraced vibrant colors. It’s as if Apple is equating «pro» with «sophisticated,» as in «A real pro would never brandish something this garish.» I see this in the camera world all the time: If it’s not all-black, it’s not a «serious» camera.

And yet I know lots of pros who are not sophisticated — proudly so. People choose colors to express themselves, so forcing that idea of professionalism through color feels needlessly restrictive. A bright pink iPhone 16 might make you smile every time you pick it up but then frown because it doesn’t have a telephoto camera.

Color is also important because it can sway a purchase decision. «I would buy a sky blue iPhone yesterday,» my colleague Gael Cooper texted after the first rumor popped online. When each new generation of iPhones arrive, less technically different than the one before, a color you fall in love with can push you into trading in your perfectly-capable model for a new one.

And lest you think Apple should just stick with black and white for its professional phones: Do you mean black, jet black, space black, midnight black, black titanium, graphite or space gray? At least the lighter end of the spectrum has stuck to just white, white titanium and silver over the years.

Apple never got ahead by being beige

I’m sure Apple has reams of studies and customer feedback that support which colors make it to production each year. Like I said, Apple’s designers are obsessive (in a good way). And I must remind myself that a sky blue iPhone 17 Air is a rumored color on a rumored product so all the usual caveats apply.

But we’re talking about Apple here. The scrappy startup that spent more than any other company on business cards at the time because each one included the old six-color Apple logo. The company that not only shaped the first iMac like a tipped-over gumdrop, that not only made the case partially see-through but then made that cover brilliant Bondi blue.

Embrace the iPhone colors, Apple.

If that makes you nervous, don’t worry: Most people will put a case on it anyway.

Technologies

OpenAI Launches ChatGPT Atlas, Challenging Google Chrome With an AI-First Browser

The browser is available now for MacOS users, with versions for Windows, iOS and Android coming later.

OpenAI has released a generative AI-powered web browser called ChatGPT Atlas, a major step in the company’s expansion beyond its ChatGPT chatbot platform. The browser, announced Tuesday, integrates ChatGPT’s capabilities directly into the browsing experience, aiming to make web use more interactive and chatbot-like.

OpenAI sparked speculation earlier Tuesday after posting a teaser on its X account showing a series of browser tabs. During the YouTube livestream, CEO Sam Altman and others announced the browser and live-demoed a few of the new features now available for MacOS users worldwide. Support for Windows, iOS and Android operating systems is «coming soon,» the company said.

(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)

The new product launch comes amid growing competition among tech companies to embed AI assistants more deeply into everyday tools. For instance, Google has already integrated Gemini into its Chrome browser to add AI to the online browsing experience. Earlier this year, the AI search tool developer Perplexity launched Comet, an AI-powered Chromium-based web browser. Here’s everything OpenAI announced today.

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What is ChatGPT Atlas?

ChatGPT Atlas looks and functions like a traditional web browser. It includes tabs, bookmarks, extensions and incognito mode, but adds popular ChatGPT functions and features throughout. Opening a new tab lets you either enter a URL or ask ChatGPT a question. The browser includes separate tabs for different types of results, such as search links, images, videos and news.

A built-in ChatGPT sidebar can analyze whatever page you’re viewing to provide summaries, explanations or quick answers without leaving the site. ChatGPT can also offer in-line writing assistance, suggesting edits and completions inside any text field, such as an email draft.

One of the biggest new features is browser memory, which keeps track of pages and topics you’ve previously explored. Atlas can suggest related pages, help you return to past research or automate repetitive tasks. Memory is optional and can be viewed, edited or deleted at any time in settings.

Atlas also supports natural language commands, meaning you could type something like «reopen the shoes I looked at yesterday» or «clean up my tabs» and the browser should respond accordingly.

Read more: OpenAI Plans to Allow Erotica and Change Mental Health Restrictions for Adult Users

Agent mode in Atlas preview

OpenAI also previewed agent mode, which lets ChatGPT take limited actions on behalf of the user — such as booking travel, ordering groceries or gathering research. The company says the mode is faster than standard ChatGPT and comes with new safeguards to keep users in control.

Agent mode is available to Plus and Pro subscribers, and is available in beta for Business users.

«In the same way that GPT-5 and Codex are these great tools for vibe coding, we believe we can start in the long run to have an amazing tool for vibe lifing,» Will Ellsworth, the research lead for agent mode in Atlas, said during the livestream. «So delegating all kinds of tasks both in your personal and professional life to the agent in Atlas.»

How to get started with ChatGPT Atlas

To get started, you’ll first download Atlas at chatgpt.com/atlas. When you open Atlas for the first time, you’ll need to sign in to your ChatGPT account.

From there, you can import your bookmarks, saved passwords and browsing history from your current browser.

Technologies

Amazon Will Pay $2.5 Billion for Misleading Customers Into Amazon Prime Subscriptions

Amazon settles its FTC lawsuit, and agrees to pay billions for «tricking» customers into Prime subscriptions.

In September, Amazon settled its case with the Federal Trade Commission over whether it had misled customers who signed up for Amazon Prime. The $2.5 billion settlement is one of the largest consumer protection settlements in US history, and while Amazon did not admit to wrongdoing, it’s still changing things.

The FTC said $1.5 billion will go into a fund to repay eligible subscribers, with the remaining $1 billion collected as a civil penalty. The settlement requires Amazon to add a «clear and conspicuous» option to decline Prime during checkout and to simplify the cancellation process.

«Amazon and our executives have always followed the law, and this settlement allows us to move forward and focus on innovating for customers,» Mark Blafkin, Amazon senior manager, said in a statement. «We work incredibly hard to make it clear and simple for customers to both sign up or cancel their Prime membership, and to offer substantial value for our many millions of loyal Prime members around the world.»

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Why was the FTC suing Amazon?

The FTC filed suit against Amazon in 2023, accusing it of using «dark patterns» to nudge people into Prime subscriptions and then making it too hard to cancel. The FTC maintained Amazon was in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act.

«Specifically, Amazon used manipulative, coercive or deceptive user-interface designs known as ‘dark patterns’ to trick consumers into enrolling in automatically renewing Prime subscriptions,» the FTC complaint states.

Who is eligible for Amazon’s big payout?

Amazon’s legal settlement is limited to customers who enrolled in Amazon Prime between June 23, 2019, and June 23, 2025. It’s also restricted to customers who subscribed to Prime using a «challenged enrollment flow» or who enrolled in Prime through any method but were unsuccessful in canceling their memberships.

The FTC called out specific enrollment pages, including Prime Video enrollment, the Universal Prime Decision page, the Shipping Option Select page and the Single Page Checkout. To qualify for a payout, claimants must also not have used more than 10 Amazon Prime benefits in any 12-month period.

Customers who signed up via those challenged processes and did not use more than three Prime benefits within one year will be paid automatically by Amazon within 90 days. Other eligible Amazon customers will need to file a claim, and Amazon is required to send notices to those people within 30 days of making its automatic payments.

Customers who did not use a challenged sign-up process but instead were unable to cancel their memberships will also need to file claims for payment.

How much will the Amazon payments be?

Payouts to eligible Amazon claimants will be limited to a maximum of $51. That amount could be reduced depending on the number of Amazon Prime benefits you used while subscribed to the service. Those benefits include free two-day shipping, watching shows or movies on Prime Video or Whole Foods grocery discounts.

Technologies

This Rumored Feature Could Make NotebookLM Essential for Work as Well as School

NotebookLM takes another step toward being the do-it-all AI tool for work and school.

Since it launched, NotebookLM has been aimed at students. While just about anyone can use the AI tool to some benefit, it’s a great study buddy thanks to an assortment of features for the classroom. But a promising new feature may help with your next work presentation: Slides.

Powered by Gemini, NotebookLM can help you brainstorm ideas and generate audio or video overviews. That sounds like most AI tools, but NotebookLM is different. You can provide it with your own material — documents, websites, YouTube videos and more — and it’ll only use those sources to answer your questions and generate content. Adding a slide generator to such a tool would be a solid, professional power-up.

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Google already has its own slide deck creation tool, but NotebookLM could make it even easier to create them. Using your uploaded sources and the recently integrated Nano Banana image generator, the ability to create a slide deck on the fly could soon be on its way.

The tech and AI tool-focused site Testing Catalog recently spotted an unreleased and incomplete Slide tool. Not all of the features seem to be available, but it’d be easy to assume you’ll be able to create a slide deck based on your uploaded documents with just a few clicks. It’ll also likely allow you to further customize the deck by giving NotebookLM specific instructions and topics within your sources to focus on.

That’s not all, though. Another, similar feature might also be on the way. Also spotted was an option to generate an infographic — allowing you to create a visual chart or image based on your data sources. We’ll have to wait and see when either of these features goes live, but NotebookLM remains a robust tool that has little competition, and I expect it’ll only get better.