As we previously reported , astronauts aboard NASA's Orion spacecraft used the iPhone 17 Pro Max to take selfies of themselves with the Earth in the background during the Artemis II mission around the far side of the Moon last week. Now that the crew members have safely returned to Earth, Apple's CEO Tim Cook and marketing chief Greg Joswiak have both turned to social media to congratulate them on their successful mission and highlight the iPhone's involvement. "You captured the wonders of space and our planet beautifully, taking iPhone photography to new heights, and we're grateful you shared it with the world," wrote Cook. "Your work continues to inspire us all to think different. Welcome home!" Congratulations to Artemis II on a successful mission! You captured the wonders of space and our planet beautifully, taking iPhone photography to new heights, and we’re grateful you shared it with the world. Your work continues to inspire us all to think different. Welcome home! — Tim Cook (@tim_cook) April 11, 2026 "Honored that NASA astronauts brought iPhone to space with them," said Joswiak. "One small step for iPhone. One giant leap for space selfies." In February, NASA announced that the iPhone had been fully qualified for extended use in orbit , with reports indicating that each of the four crew members aboard the Orion were equipped with an iPhone 17 Pro Max for personal photos and videos. The photos show Artemis II's Commander Reid Wiseman and Mission Specialist Christina Koch looking back at Earth through one of the Orion's main cabin windows. Flickr data indicates that these photos were shot with the iPhone 17 Pro Max's front-facing camera on April 2, which was the second day of the mission. Shot on iPhone 17 Pro Max (Wiseman) Shot on iPhone 17 Pro Max (Koch) Most other photos from the mission shared so far were captured with other cameras, such as the Nikon D5, Nikon Z 9, and GoPro HERO4 Black. Shot on Nikon D5 Shot on Nikon D5 Artemis II was NASA's first crewed mission to the Moon since 1972. The crew reached the far side of the Moon on Monday, breaking the all-time record for the farthest distance traveled from Earth by humans. However, the Orion does not have landing capabilities, so it was a flyby mission only. The spacecraft returned to Earth on Friday. Related Roundup: iPhone 17 Pro Tags: Greg Joswiak , NASA , Photos , Shot on iPhone , Tim Cook Buyer's Guide: iPhone 17 Pro (Neutral) Related Forum: iPhone This article, " Apple Highlights Photos Shot on iPhone During NASA's Mission to Moon " first appeared on MacRumors.com Discuss this article in our forums
Rumors continue to fly about Apple's next flagship iPhone updates coming later this year, while it appears that the popularity of Apple's new MacBook Neo might actually be putting the company into a bit of a dilemma. This week also saw the release of iOS and macOS 26.4.1, plus several popular apps launched new versions for CarPlay, so read on below for all the details on these stories and more! Top Stories iPhone 18 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are not expected to launch for another five months, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices, so be sure to check out our updated recap outlining everything we've heard. It was initially reported that the iPhone 18 Pro models would have fully under-screen Face ID, with only a front camera visible in the top-left corner of the screen. However, the latest rumors indicate that only one Face ID component will be moved under the screen on the devices, which will result in merely a smaller Dynamic Island. Apple is Reportedly Facing a 'Massive Dilemma' With the MacBook Neo The all-new MacBook Neo has been such a hit that Apple is facing a "massive dilemma," according to Taiwan-based tech columnist and former Bloomberg reporter Tim Culpan. The A18 Pro chip in the MacBook Neo has a 5-core GPU and is a "binned" version of the A18 Pro with 6-core GPU used in the iPhone 16 Pro. Chips discovered to have a faulty GPU core in the manufacturing process would normally be discarded, but with binning Apple is able to use some of these chips in other devices like the MacBook Neo. But with the MacBook Neo proving so popular, Apple is quickly running out of A18 Pro chips with the 5-core GPU. In order to meet demand, Apple may be faced with having to intentionally disable a core on fully functional A18 Pro chips to maintain specs on the machine, impacting profit margins. The company is likely already stockpiling binned A19 Pro chips from this year's Pro iPhone models to use in an updated MacBook Neo due next year . The iPhone Air already uses binned A19 Pro chips with a 5-core GPU, but it has not been selling well and thus there may still be significant numbers of those chips available for next year's MacBook Neo. New Apple TV Waiting for Siri: Here's What's Coming When It Launches We're long overdue for an Apple TV update, and there have been rumors about an imminent refresh since late last year. It's now sounding like we're not going to get a new version for several months because of Siri delays. If you're holding out for a new model, we've put together a recap of what to expect when it eventually comes out so you can decide whether to continue to wait, or buy now. Apple CarPlay Just Got Three Popular iPhone Apps Apple's CarPlay system for accessing iPhone apps on a vehicle's dashboard screen received three popular apps last week : ChatGPT, Google Meet, and Audiomack. CarPlay Ultra in an Aston Martin In addition, WhatsApp released a revamped CarPlay app that improves upon the basic Siri-based functionality that was previously available, offering full access to recent chats and call history, favorite contacts, and more. iOS 26.4.1 Includes These Two Changes for iPhones After we spotted signs of it in our site analytics earlier this week, Apple released iOS and iPadOS 26.4.1 on Wednesday. The update includes a fix for an iOS 26.4 bug affecting iCloud syncing , and it also turns on Stolen Device Protection by default for additional users. Apple followed that up with a macOS 26.4.1 update on Thursday that includes a fix for a Wi-Fi issue on the new M5 MacBook Air and M5 Pro and M5 Max MacBook Pro models. Leaker: Foldable iPhone Won't Be Called iPhone Fold, But 'iPhone Ultra' The Apple rumor mill has been calling Apple's upcoming foldable iPhone the iPhone Fold, but one prominent leaker claims it will arrive under an "iPhone Ultra" name . This week also saw our first look at high-quality dummy units of the iPhone Fold or Ultra amid mixed rumors on when the device might actually become available. The latest word from Bloomberg 's Mark Gurman is that it should launch alongside or shortly after the iPhone 18 Pro models , although supplies may be tight at first as Apple works out production issues. Expect pricing to come in at around $2,000 or even higher depending on storage capacity. MacRumors Newsletter Each week, we publish an email newsletter like this highlighting the top Apple stories, making it a great way to get a bite-sized recap of the week hitting all of the major topics we've covered and tying together related stories for a big-picture view. So if you want to have top stories like the above recap delivered to your email inbox each week, subscribe to our newsletter ! Tag: Top Stories This article, " Top Stories: iPhone Rumors, Apple's MacBook Neo Dilemma, and More " first appeared on MacRumors.com Discuss this article in our forums
It's been a wild week for folding iPhone rumors, with battles about what it will be called, release timing, when orders will ship, and more. On Friday, one prolific leaker jumped in and claims the device will ship in October at the latest. Apple's foldable iPhone is now closer to release than ever This comes following numerous back-and-forth reports that foldable iPhone buyers would have to wait until as late as December for their new devices. Writing in a post on the Weibo social network, leaker Instant Digital says that the most likely outcome is that Apple will be able to debut the foldable iPhone in September. However, if Apple does choose to split the releases, the leaker doesn't anticipate a long wait. They say the iPhone Fold will ship a month after the iPhone 18 Pro. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums
