Apple’s new MacBook Pro’s “Touch Bar display runs a modified version of watchOS, which itself is a modified version of iOS,” Chris Smith reports for BGR. “That means Touch Bar runs independently of macOS, and that certainly makes sense.”
“Because it integrates the Touch ID fingerprint sensor that’s also used for Apple Pay purchases, the Touch Bar needs a secure enclave to protect your payment information,” Smith reports. “That’s done with the help of Apple’s T1 processor, which is an ARM processor, and probably a variation of the S1 found inside the Apple Watch.”
“Interestingly, the front-facing camera is also connected to the T1 chip, for security reasons,” Smith reports. “These discoveries come from developer Steven Troughton-Smith, who already explored the code that makes Touch Bar tick.”
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MacDailyNews Take: The times they are a-changin’.
Think code convergence (more so than today) with UI modifications per device. A unified underlying codebase for Intel, Apple A-series, and, in Apple’s labs, likely other chips, too (just in case). This would allow for a single App Store for Mac, iPhone, and iPad users that features a mix of apps: Some that are touch-only, some that are Mac-only, and some that are universal (can run on both traditional notebooks and desktops as well as on multi-touch computers like iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and – pretty please, Apple – Apple TV). Don’t be surprised to see Apple A-series-powered Macs, either. — MacDailyNews Take, January 9, 2014
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