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How to safely switch between mic configurations on iOS?
I have an iPadOS M-processor application with two different running configurations. In config1, the shared AVAudioSession is configured for .videoChat mode using the built-in microphone. The input/output nodes of the AVAudioEngine are configured with voice processing enabled. The built-in mic is formatted for 1 channel at 48KHz. In config2, the shared AVAudioSession is configured for .measurement mode using an external USB microphone. The input/output nodes of the AVAudioEngine are configured with voice processing disabled. The external mic is formatted for 2 channels at 44.1KHz I've written a configuration manager designed to safely switch between these two configurations. It works by stopping AVAudioEngine and detaching all but the input and output nodes, updating the shared audio session for the desired mic and sample-rates, and setting the appropriate state for voice processing to either true or false as required by the configuration. Finally the new audio graph is constructed by attaching appropriate nodes, connecting them, and re-starting AVAudioEngine I'm experiencing what I believe is a race-condition between switching voice processing on or off and then trying to re-build and start the new audio graph. Even though notifications, which are dumped to the console indicate that my requested input and sample-rate settings are in place, I crash when trying to start the audio engine because the sample-rate is wrong. Investigating further it looks like the switch from remote I/O to voice-processing I/O or vice-versa has not yet actually completed. I introduced a 100ms second delay and that seems to help but is obviously not a reliable way to build software that must work consistently. How can I make sure that what are apparently asynchronous configuration changes to the shared audio session and the input/output nodes have completed before I go on? I tried using route change notifications from the shared AVAudioSession but these lie. They say my preferred mic input and sample-rate setting is in place but when I dump the AVAudioEngine graph to the debugger console, I still see the wrong sample rate assigned to the input/output nodes. Also these are the wrong AU nodes. That is, VPIO is still in place when RIO should be, or vice-versa. How can I make the switch reliable without arbitrary time delays? Is my configuration manager approach appropriate (question for Apple engineers)?
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Oct ’25
TV A1625 Using 3× More CPU After tvOS 26 Update
Hi everyone, After updating my Apple TV HD (model A1625) to tvOS 26, I’ve noticed a significant spike in CPU usage—up to 3× higher than before the update. Go from around 40% to 120% Model: Apple TV HD (A1625) tvOS Version: 26 (stable release) and beta version of 26.1, App downgrade stream due to lack of cpu power If anyone else is experiencing this, please share your findings or workarounds. Would love to hear from Apple engineers or other developers if this is a known regression or if there’s a recommended fix. Thanks!
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150
Oct ’25
AVPlayerView with .inline controlsStyle macOS 26
My audio app shows a control bar at the bottom of the window. The controls show nicely, but there is a black "slab" appearing behind the inline controls, the same size as the playerView. Setting the player view background color does nothing: playerView.wantsLayer = true playerView.layer?.backgroundColor = NSColor.clear.cgColor How can I clear the background? If I use .floating controlsStyle, I don't get the background "slab".
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136
Oct ’25
Clean up render files saved to PHContentEditingOutput.renderedContentURL
I discovered when editing photos with the PhotoKit API, PHContentEditingOutput's renderedContentURL is a file in the app container's tmp directory with a filename that seems to follow the format render.<uuid>.JPG, and that file does not get deleted if the edit does not complete successfully (the user cancels the edit request, an error occurs, the app crashes, etc). I understand the system is supposed to automatically delete tmp files every once in a while, but some users are noticing my app's Documents & Data inflates, so I'm considering deleting these render files each time the app is launched. But I don't want to delete everything in the tmp directory as there could possibly be other data in there. What's the best way to remove those temporary files? Does the filename always start with render. no matter the device language? I thought I'd delete files in NSTemporaryDirectory() with that prefix but then I discovered in Mac Catalyst the location is not the tmp directory directly, they're in tmp/TemporaryItems/<bundleid>. Thanks!
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Oct ’25
Background GPU access in iOS 26 for iPhones
We build mobile apps for creators to edit their videos. Post editing the video, the creator has to export the video so that it can be uploaded to Youtube. The export is a time consuming and GPU intensive process. The creator can exit the app due to various reasons like receiving the call, putting the app in background etc. This causes the export to fail :( Keeping this limitation in mind there was an announcement from Apple that with the IOS 26 launch would start to support background GPU access. Here is the official documentation: https://developer.apple.com/documentation/BundleResources/Entitlements/com.apple.developer.background-tasks.continued-processing.gpu When we tried using this feature, we were not able to get it to work on IOS 26. We stumbled upon this ticket(https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/797538?answerId=854825022#854825022) in the Apple Developer forum, in which possibly an Apple engineer claims it is supported ONLY for iPadOS 26. This is a very big bummer for us. 96% of the users are on iPhone(compared to iPad), and if we refer to the official documentation above, it claims that this feature should work on IOS 26. This feature is extremely important for having the best user experience and reducing user frustration and will be useful for other video editing apps. Looking forward to a resolution.
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Oct ’25
AirPods with H2 and studio-quality recording - how to replicate Camera video capture
Using an iPhone Pro 12 running iOS 26.0.1, with AirPods Pro 3. Camera app does capture video with what seems to be "Studio Quality Recording". Am trying to replicate that SQR with my own Camera like app, and while I can pull audio in from the APP3 mic, and my video capture app is recording a 48,000Hz high-bitrate video, the audio still sounds non-SQR. I'm seeing bluetoothA2DP , bluetoothLE , bluetoothHFP as portType, and not sure if SQR depends on one of those? Is there sample code demonstrating a SQR capture? Nevermind video and camera, just audio even? Also, I don't understand what SQR is doing between the APP3 and the iPhone. What codec is that? What bitrate is that? If I capture video using Capture and inspect the audio stream I see mono 74.14 kbit/s MPEG-4 AAC, 48000 Hz. But I assume that's been recompressed and not really giving me any insight into the APP3 H2 transmission?
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Oct ’25
Low-Latency HLS stream playback issue on iOS 26
We have a Low-Latency HLS stream, and on iOS 26, even though the bandwidth is sufficient, it still selects a low-bandwidth resolution (e.g., RESOLUTION=640x360) for playback instead of using a higher-bandwidth resolution (e.g., RESOLUTION=1920x1080) when using AVPlayerViewController with AVPlayer. This works fine on iOS version 18 and previous versions. What could be the solution to this issue?
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96
Oct ’25
Broadcast UploadExtension Stop data transmission
Currently, I am using the Broadcast UploadExtension function to obtain samplebuffer data through APP Group and IPC (based on the local Unix Domain Socket) The screen recording data transmission method of the domain socket is transmitted to the APP. However, when the APP goes back to the background to view videos in the album or other audio and video, the data transmission stops and the APP cannot obtain the screen recording data. I would like to ask how to solve this problem. I suspect that the system has suspended the extended screen recording
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106
Oct ’25
iTunes Search API no longer returning explicit results?
My app has been using the iTunes Search API (itunes.apple.com/search) for a few years now, but at some point over the last week or so (late Sept. 2025) it is no longer returning track results with explicit content, regardless of whether I provide "explicit=Yes" (which is the default anyway, according to the API documentation - https://performance-partners.apple.com/search-api). Has anyone else experienced this with this API and have you figured out a workaround? FYI, I do also use the more robust Apple Music API in another part of my app, which isn't going through this issue, so I know it's technically an alternative. I just need to stick with iTunes Search API in this particular case. Thanks.
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Oct ’25
Failure on attempt to import track as spatial audio
I'm working on a project to support spatial audio editing, using this sample project as a reference: https://developer.apple.com/documentation/Cinematic/editing-spatial-audio-with-an-audio-mix This sample works well on an unedited capture, but does not work for a capture that has already been edited. The failure is occurring at "let audioInfo = try await CNAssetSpatialAudioInfo(asset: myAsset)", which is throwing "no eligible audio tracks in asset". I also find that for already edited captures, if i use CNAssetSpatialAudioInfo.assetContainsSpatialAudio, it returns false. What i mean by "already edited" is that if I take a spatial capture with my iPhone 16, and then edit that capture in the Photos app using the Cinematic effect, and then save the edited output (e.g. edited_capture.mov), I can't import that edited_capture.mov into my project as a spatial audio asset. Is this intentional behavior or a bug? If it's intentional, can you describe why?
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130
Sep ’25
Recording Constant Frame Rate at 4K 60 fps mode
Hi, We have created an app which allows recording 4K 60 fps videos in the app. We have noted that some time the recording switched to 20 fps (the value 20 is constant) even though the resolution settings is at 4K 60fps. We are using AVCaptureDevice to invoke the camera. has anyone experienced this problem before ? What is unique to 20 fps? Why does it resort to 20 fps from 60 fps and why not to other numbers ?
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Sep ’25
[iOS 26 bug] AVInputPickerInteraction selection immediately reverts on iOS 26
Hello everyone, I'm implementing the new AVInputPickerInteraction API on iOS 26 to allow users to select their microphone from a custom settings menu before recording. The implementation seems correct, but I'm encountering a strange issue where the input selection immediately reverts to the previous device. The Situation: The picker is presented correctly via a manual call to .present(). I can see all available inputs (e.g., "iPhone Microphone" and "AirPods"). The current input is "iPhone Microphone". I tap on "AirPods". The UI updates to show "AirPods" as selected for a fraction of a second, then immediately jumps back to "iPhone Microphone". The same thing happens in reverse. It seems like the system is automatically reverting the audio route change requested by the picker. My Implementation: My setup follows the standard pattern discussed in the WWDC sessions. Setup Code: This setup is performed once before the user can trigger the picker. @available(iOS 26.0, *) var inputPickerInteraction: AVInputPickerInteraction? // Note: The AVAudioSession is configured to .playAndRecord // and set to active elsewhere in the code before this setup is called. if #available(iOS 26.0, *) { // Setup the picker let picker = AVInputPickerInteraction() self.inputPickerInteraction = picker self.view.addInteraction(picker) // Added to establish context } Presentation Code: When a user selects "Change Input" from my custom settings menu, I call .present() on the main thread. // In a delegate method from a custom menu if #available(iOS 26.0, *) { DispatchQueue.main.async { self.inputPickerInteraction?.present(animated: true) } } What I've already checked: The AVAudioSession is active and its category is .playAndRecord. The inputPickerInteraction object is not nil. The .present() method is being called on the main thread. The picker is added to a view using view.addInteraction() in the setup phase. I've reviewed my code to ensure there is no other logic that could be manually resetting the AVAudioSession's preferred input. Has anyone else experienced this behavior? I suspect this might be a bug in the new API, but I want to make sure I'm not missing a crucial step in managing the AVAudioSession state. Any insights or potential workarounds would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
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Sep ’25
Question about PT Framework channel tone behaviour
I've been wondering if there is a way to modify or even disable tones for indicating channel states. The behaviour regarding tones seems like a black box with little documentation. During migration to Apple's PT Framework we've noticed that there are few scenarios where a tone is played which doesn't match certain certifications. For example; moving from a channel to another produces a tone which would fail a test case. I understand the reasoning fully, as it marks that the channel is ready to transmit or receive, but this doesn't mirror the behaviour of TETRA which would be wanted in this case. I'm also wondering if there would be any way to directly communicate feedback regarding PT Framework?
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Sep ’25
Windows Apple Music: how to enumerate the local library or export it? Is Library.musicdb documented / API available?
Environment Windows 11 [edition/build]: [e.g., 23H2, 22631.x] Apple Music for Windows version: [e.g., 1.x.x from Microsoft Store] Library folder: C:\Users<user>\Music\Apple Music\Apple Music Library.musiclibrary Summary I need a supported way to programmatically enumerate the local Apple Music library on Windows (track file paths, playlists, etc.) for reconciliation with the on-disk Media folder. On macOS this used to be straightforward via scripting/export; on Windows I can’t find an equivalent. What I’m seeing in the library bundle Library.musicdb → not SQLite. First 4 bytes: 68 66 6D 61 ("hfma"). Library Preferences.musicdb → also starts with "hfma". artwork.sqlite → SQLite but appears to be artwork cache only (no track file paths). Extras.itdb → has SQLite format 3 header but (from a quick scan) not seeing track locations. Genius.itdb → not a SQLite database on this machine. What I’ve tried Attempted to open Library.musicdb with SQLite providers → error: “file is not a database.” Binary/string scans (ASCII, UTF-16LE/BE, null-stripped) of Library.musicdb → did not reveal file paths or obvious plist/XML/JSON blobs. The Windows Apple Music UI doesn’t appear to expose “Export Library / Export Playlist” like legacy iTunes did, and I can’t find a public API for local library enumeration on Windows. What I’m trying to accomplish Read local track entries (absolute or relative paths), detect broken links, and reconcile against the Media folder. A read-only solution is fine; I do not need to modify the library. Questions for Apple Is the Library.musicdb file format documented anywhere, or is there a supported SDK/API to enumerate the local library on Windows? Is there a supported export mechanism (CLI, UI, or API) on Windows Apple Music to dump the local library and/or playlists (XML/CSV/JSON)? Is there a Windows-specific equivalent to the old iTunes COM automation or any MusicKit surface that can return local library items (not streaming catalog) and their file locations? If none of the above exist today, is there a recommended workaround from Apple for library reconciliation on Windows (e.g., documented support for importing M3U/M3U8 to rebuild the local library from disk)? Are there any plans/timeline for adding Windows feature parity with iTunes/Music on macOS for exporting or scripting the local library? Why this matters For large personal libraries, users occasionally end up with orphaned files on disk or broken links in the app. Without an export or API, it’s difficult to audit and fix at scale on Windows. Reference details (in case it helps triage) Library.musicdb header bytes: 68-66-6D-61-A0-00-00-00-10-26-34-00-15-00-01-00 (ASCII shows hfma…). artwork.sqlite is readable but doesn’t contain track file paths (appears limited to artwork). I can supply a minimal repro tool and logs if that’s helpful. Feature request (if no current API) Add an official Export Library/Playlists action on Windows Apple Music, or Provide a read-only Windows API (or schema doc) that surfaces track file locations and playlist membership from the local library. Thanks in advance for any guidance or pointers to docs I might have missed.
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154
Sep ’25
ShazamKit for Android and 16 KB native library alignment
Hello, I'm working on a Flutter app targeting both Android and iOS, where I implemented ShazamKit. In order to achieve that, I first tried with the flutter_shazam_kit package, but since it's not maintained anymore, I forked it here, and tried to update it to meet the Google Play Store requirements, as you can see here: https://github.com/mregnauld/flutter_shazam_kit/tree/fix-16k Unfortunately, after trying everything, my app still doesn't meet the (not so) new 16 KB native library alignment. Also, I'm 100% sure it comes from that because the error message disappears if I remove that package from my app. So after investigating, it seems that the problem comes from the ShazamKit for Android (that you can find here: https://developer.apple.com/download/all/?q=Android%20ShazamKit), and especially the .so files in the .aar file. Is there anything I can do to fix that, or should I wait before the ShazamKit team fix that? I'm totally stuck with that so any help is highly appreciated. Thanks.
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490
Sep ’25
ICDeviceBrowser authorization requests always return ICAuthorizationStatusNotDetermined on iOS 26.1 beta
Area ImageCaptureCore / ICDeviceBrowser Description On iOS 26.1 beta, calling requestControlAuthorization() requestContentsAuthorization() always returns .notDetermined and never transitions to .authorized or .denied. This prevents apps from properly accessing device control or contents authorization. The issue occurs regardless of device state or prior requests. Steps to Reproduce 1. Create and start an ICDeviceBrowser instance. 2. Call requestControlAuthorization() or requestContentsAuthorization(). 3. Inspect the returned ICAuthorizationStatus. Expected Result • The system should prompt the user if necessary. • A final status of either .authorized or .denied should be returned. Actual Result • The completion handler always reports .notDetermined. • No user prompt appears and the status does not change. Version / Build • iOS 26.1 beta • Xcode Hardware • [iPhone 15 Pro, iPad Pro (M2)] Impact This regression blocks development and testing of features relying on ImageCaptureCore. Applications depending on device browsing and content access cannot proceed, which significantly affects workflows involving external device integration. Notes This appears to be a regression compared to earlier iOS releases.
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148
Sep ’25
PHFetchOptions.includeHiddenAssets does not correctly return asset by id
When attempting to access a PHAsset that is in the hidden folder of iOS26, the PHFetchResult always returns no items, even when the user has granted full access to photos and even when includeHiddenAssets is true. This is the code suggested by ChatGPT; it always fails: public func fetchAsset(withLocalIdentifier identifier: String) -> PSSPHAssetImplementing? { // First try the direct fetch by identifier (fast path) let directResult = PHAsset.fetchAssets(withLocalIdentifiers: [identifier], options: nil) if let asset = directResult.firstObject { return build(from: asset) } // Fallback: fetch all assets including hidden, then filter manually let options = PHFetchOptions() options.includeHiddenAssets = true let allAssets = PHAsset.fetchAssets(with: options) for index in 0..<allAssets.count { let asset = allAssets.object(at: index) if asset.localIdentifier == identifier { return build(from: asset) } } return nil } Is it no longer possible to retrieve a hidden photo in iOS 26?
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267
Sep ’25