What you missed from Apple’s ‘Scary Fast’ launch event + Meta is offering ad-free subscriptions

WHAT HAPPENED IN APPLE’S ‘SCARY FAST’ EVENT?

Didn’t catch Apple’s “Scary Fast” live event last night? We got you. Long story short: You have three newer, faster MacBook Pros and an iMac to look forward to. Our M3 predictions rang true with the reveal of three new gen processing chips: The M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max. The new 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models boast the M3 Pro and M3 Max.

If you’re looking for raw processing power, the M3 Max is reportedly the best money canbuy. The new models are said to deliver up to 22 hours of battery life.

But don’t get too excited before you check the price tag — the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M3 Pro chip retails at just under USD 2k, and the 16-inch version clocks in at USD 2.5k. The 14-inch MacBook Pro with the plain ole M3 chip starts at USD 1.6k.

Fans of the iMac didn’t receive the larger screen they were hoping for, but the new M3 chip makes the new gen of the desktop twice as fast as the last iteration. You can cop the 4.5k Retina display desktop in any of its seven colors for USD 1.3k.

Meta to offer ad-free subscriptions for Facebook + Instagramusers in Europe: Meta will start offering ad-free access to Facebook and Instagram users in Europe for a subscription fee starting at EUR 9.99 per month, the company said in a statement on Monday.

The subscription service is a bid to help Meta comply with EU regulations. These requirements will impose user consent before showing personalized ads. Subscription services will be offered in the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, the company said.

Remember: The company has been facing scrutiny from the EU’s Court of Justice since July,when the court ruled against Meta in a case regarding an investigation by a German antitrust agency.

Meta was also hit by a USD 1.3 bn EU privacy fine in May and given a deadline to stop shipping users’ data to the US. Meta believes that a paragraph in a July EU court decision, which mentions charging a reasonable fee to users who decline targeted ads, supports the introduction of a subscription service.