We've all been there - a new symbol pops up on your car's dashboard that you don't recognise, causing panic to set in. But the days of frantically rooting around for your car's handbook could soon be a thing of the past, thanks to Apple's next iPhone update. The tech giant is updating its Visual Look Up tool in the upcoming iOS 17 update. While the tool can already recognise popular landmarks, statues, art, plants, pets and more in photos, Apple has confirmed that it will soon also recognise symbols. 'Now users can identify food, storefronts, signs, and symbols, and lift individual subjects from photos and videos,' it explained.

You may be able to unlock future Macs with your face, according to 9to5Mac. The publication has uncovered references to the company's TrueDepth camera, which makes Apple's Face ID technology possible, in macOS Big Sur. To be precise, the third beta version of Big Sur contains codes supporting "PearlCamera," the codename Apple used for TrueDepth and Face ID back when it was still working on the iPhone X. The publication says it closely examined the Face ID extension it found and determined that it was built for macOS. It wasn't just a remnant that the company forgot to purge.

A new iOS app for Unreal Engine uses your iPhone to capture your facial expressions and animate an onscreen character in real time. Live Link Face is designed to work in both professional game production settings, like a soundstage with actors in full mocap suits, and amaetur ones, such as a single artist at a desk, according to a blog post from Unreal Engine developer Epic Games. The app is available now from Apple's app store. The app uses Apple's augmented reality platform, ARKit, and the iPhone's front-facing TrueDepth camera (introduced on the iPhone X in 2017) to capture facial features and transmit the data to Unreal Engine. The app also captures head and neck movement.

Standard Cyborg is a company that makes cloud and edge tools that make 3D computer vision accessible to all. Standard Cyborg is a startup company that creates cloud and edge tools that developers require in order to quickly build, deploy and improve Computer Vision solutions. They are a team of senior engineers and designers solving the hardest problems in CV and geometry. They are mainly working in the 3D scanning space field, which is leveraging the increasing presence of 3D scanning hardware found in modern smartphones. The company goal, as they say, is to multiply the potential of the real world.

A savvy developer spotted that Apple's framework for Animoji and Memoji has been altered in an iOS 12 beta to support an iPad-size screen. Rumors of facial recognition in the iPad have been circulating for months, most recently after iOS developer Guilherme Rambo found code last month in the iOS 12 beta that suggests Face ID is coming to the iPad. Now, Steve Troughton-Smith shared a screenshot appearing to show Animoji on the larger iPad screen. The new iOS 12 beta has Apple's AvatarKit framework for Animoji and Memoji developed for iPad. No current iPad models feature facial recognition technology, so it seems likely that Apple has one in the product pipeline that's planned for release at some point'New in iOS 12: AvatarKit comes to iPad.

Apple's iOS 12 has hinted from the outset that an iPad with a notched display was in the works (the status bar conspicuously made room for it). If you were wondering whether or not that meant an iPhone X-style TrueDepth camera and Face ID, though, you can rest assured after today. Developer Steve Troughton-Smith has discovered that AvatarKit, the framework behind Animoji and Memoji, now supports the iPad. Given that you need a TrueDepth camera for these face-tracking personas to work, and the iPad Pro hasn't been updated in over a year... well, you do the math. It also doesn't take much divination to predict when a TrueDepth-equipped iPad might launch. As the tablet-friendly AvatarKit is tied to iOS 12, it won't be surprising if the new hardware launches soon after iOS 12 arrives in the fall.

When Apple first announced the iPhone X, it also announced that special Snapchat Lenses will be made available for the flagship smartphone in the future. Today, Snapchat is finally releasing the Lenses, which are capable of sticking to users' faces more accurately. The three iPhone X Snapchat Lenses are the Mardi Gras mask, a Day of the Dead Skull and the gold-plated eye cover, according to The Verge. The Lenses give off a more realistic look when taking photos or videos in Snapchat. The Lenses were first shown off by Apple's SVP of software engineering, Craig Federighi, back in September.

Apple's Clips video creation app is less than a year old, but it's already getting a big update. Thanks to lots of user feedback and the proliferation of new, more powerful iOS devices, Clips is now more polished than ever, and that's very good news for people looking to craft their next viral video masterpiece. The philosophy behind the app hasn't changed -- it's still all about making fun, short videos without much technical know-how -- but Apple worked to make the app even easier to use. Consider the app's interface: it was never particularly hard to wrap your head around, but Apple's zeal for simplicity sometimes made the original layout feel a little too basic. While you'll still use a big, bright record button to add clips to your timeline, a handful of new shortcuts beneath the viewfinder window make it easier to gussy up your work.

Apple is working an iPad for next year that will have similar features as the recently released iPhone X, according to Bloomberg. Sources told the news outlet the device will include the Face ID, Animoji and will allows users to make payments, suggesting the upcoming iPad could sport the TrueDepth camera found on the 10th anniversary iPhone. The 2018 iPad will reportedly feature, slimmer edges and a screen size similar to the 10.5-inch iPad Pro. The new tablet is also expected to come without the Touch ID, which has been on the iPad since 2014. Ditching the fingerprint scanner will allow Apple to reduce the edges on the top and bottom of the device, which means more screen for users.

Update: We've had the iPhone X on test for over a day now, and we've got a video with our early thoughts thus far in our iPhone X 24 hour diary. Early findings show a strong Face ID performance and an impressive screen - does it do enough for iPhone fans though? Apple's long-awaited iPhone X pre-orders are now live, which means the official release date is next week: Friday November 3. You may not be able to buy Apple's highly anticipated smartphone right away. Finding it in stock on launch day is going to be extremely difficult, though we are tracking iPhone X pre-orders in the US, and the best iPhone X deals in the UK. Apple claims that the iPhone X, which is pronounced'iPhone 10', is worth your money and any extra wait time due to its revolutionary new features. The iPhone X wasn't the only smartphone announced by CEO Tim Cook at Apple's recent September 12 launch event.