Categories
Stream

The Lisa That Started It All

Every time Apple talks about its history during a keynote, they focus on the Macintosh. Its 1984 debut was industry-shifting. However, nearly every groundbreaking idea it embodied stood on the shoulders of its lesser-known predecessor. The Apple Lisa was a much-chunkier computer released 40 years ago. It was a complete flop. Apple poured boatloads of…

Categories
Stream

A Brydge Too Far

In late-breaking news last week, I was stunned to find out that iPad accessory maker Brydge had closed up shop, ceasing operations immediately. On its own, this is a sad story because I’ve held their products in high regard. However, the out-of-nowhere aspect looks to be due to the co-CEOs hiding how bad things really…

Categories
Stream

Cupertino Savings

It’s no secret that Apple is making many inroads in the financial sector. I would guess it’s a lucrative place for them to focus now that services are fully established for the company. Apple Card allows Apple to save money in transaction fees. Now they’re able to provide another service to let people keep money…

Categories
Stream

A New Era for Sonos

Sonos has always been known for its high-quality audio products. Now they are set to release its newest flagship speaker, the Sonos Era 300. According to a recent report by Scharon Harding at Ars Technica, the Era 300 will focus on spatial audio, offering users a 3D sound experience without the need for additional speakers.…

Categories
Stream

It Took Me Two Years to Learn Siri Could Do This

I don’t mean to brag, but I consider myself an iPhone expert. 😉 Being a fan of Apple and a user of their computers from about 1986 until today, it’s rare for a useful feature to get past me. But, I can’t claim to know it all and in one of those “how did I…

Categories
Stream

The HomePod Comes Home

In what is surely one of the most out-of-left-field announcements from Apple in a long time, they have done something I have never seen them do: They resurrected a product. Specifically, the HomePod smart speaker is back and in its Version 2 form, it is very much similar to the HomePod that was discontinued in…

Categories
Stream

iPhone Karaoke

Apple Music has been in fierce competition with Spotify since the launch of Cupertino’s service. Aside from Spotify Wrapped (which Apple greatly improved their version in ’22), there are few differences in services. It really comes down to personal taste and preference rather than which is ‘better’. Because both are damn good. Apple is looking…

Categories
Stream

Alexa, Go Away

With the massive proliferation of Amazon Echo / Alexa devices, Amazon found a gaping hole by which to get their hardware into people’s houses. For years Amazon has generally released shoddy, commodity (AKA crap) they sell at a loss in order to get you to use their services more. The Echo was a hit, mostly…

Categories
Stream

Finally, Apple Competes With Spotify Wrapped

You know we’re firmly in December when you begin seeing the plethora of people sharing their year-end Spotify Wrapped. This compilation of listening stats has been awesome to see but has always made me, an Apple Music subscriber, a bit sad that I haven’t had anything similar. Apple has finally fixed this egregious error by…

Categories
Stream

A Silly Little SmartPhone

Over on “The Birdsite” there continues to be no end of apologists, seekers of Lord Manchild’s (as I’ve nicknamed Musk) attention, and defenders of Elon Musk’s every move. Twitter is Going Great chronicles so much, but this new nonsense takes the cake. Attention-Seeker Liz Wheeler jumped into the fray on Twitter basically challenging Musk to…

Categories
Stream

The Muddled iPad

Last week Apple updated its iPad line, as rumors had suggested. It wasn’t a flashy prerecorded event or a live keynote. With some press releases and an update to their store, the “new hotness” was unleashed. But unlike many new products, this lineup is… confusing. For years Apple has gone with a Small, Regular, and…

Categories
Stream

Death to the SIM

For all the hullabaloo in Apple’s announcements last week, one key item was also announced: the iPhone 14 in the US will not come with a spot for a physical SIM card. eSIM, a software-only equivalent, will be the only way to go from now on. Is this a smart move on Apple’s part? Eli…

Categories
Stream

Camera Evolution

On the eve of the iPhone 14 announcement, I thought it would be good to pause and look back on this fantastic comparison the folks at Simple Ghar mocked up. The team over there went through and compared photos from Samsung, Apple, and other smartphones going back to 2000. To compare the capabilities of camera…

Categories
Stream

Diversifying The Supply Chain

Apple, like most companies, has most, if not all manufacturing taking place in China. While this has been debated hotly in the US for decades if it’s good to do, COVID and the inability to make things have hit the tech sector hard. Apple is now doing something about it. Arnold Zafra at The Mac…

Categories
Stream

RCS Shame and Blame

Google launched a new campaign two weeks ago that looks to do two things: The first is to tout how far RCS has come since Google began pushing it a few years ago. The second is to shame Apple into supporting it on iOS. Google will fail. That isn’t simply my opinion. While it is…

Categories
Stream

Egg Freckles

One of the most infamous Apple products to hit the market in the first Non-Steve-Jobs Era was the Newton. This PDA (remember those!?!?) was Apple’s attempt to make a device that could be portable, useful, and have some amazing technology in it. The Newton was an absolute failure for Apple. Now, 30 years later, Jeremy…

Categories
Stream

Lightning Thief

For the past two decades we’ve lived cable hell. It’s the place where everything we own has a different charger cable and one where there are so many “standards” that never make things easier. It has gotten a bit better in recent years, but now the US is working to push it even further. Jenny…

Categories
Stream

BlackBerry Meant Well

There is a fascinating time between January 2007 and January 2010 in the world of smartphones. This short 3-year span was one where Apple was blazing a trail with the iPhone and other manufacturers responding in kind. One standout is the BlackBerry Storm phone. It was a revolutionary failure. Rewinding to Steve Jobs’ unveiling of…

Categories
Stream

Apple TV+ Comes Into Its Own

I’ve been saying it for many months: Apple TV+ is a bonafide hit of a streaming service. But what are the best shows on Apple TV+? Of course, we all know about Ted Lasso. Apple promotes it at every opportunity. However, Severance is the latest show to really knock it out of the park. I…

Categories
Stream

iPod Saves The Office

For fans of The Office (a show I’m just now watching for the first time), there’s a great interview with Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey. Appearing on Seth Meyer’s talkshow, the duo from our favorite paper company talks about how the show was saved by an unsuspecting device. The episode from 2005 revolves around an…

Categories
Stream

WWDC 2022

With little surprise, Apple held its annual developer conference. Everything we knew was coming was announced: iOS 16, iPadOS 16, watchOS9, and macOS 13 (Ventura). There’s a bunch to break down, including some hardware. I have thoughts. Let’s dive in. If I were to distill iOS 16 to core updates, this version brings improvements to…

Categories
Stream

Don’t Mess With The Apple

Straight from the “How Stupid Can You Be” department is reporting about Chinese company BOE. This supplier for Apple manufactures OLED screens for the iPhone 13. In a massively-dumb move, BOE decided on their own to change the specs of how the displays were made and didn’t tell Apple. Gijong Lee at The Elec has…

Categories
Stream

Apple’s Malicious Compliance with Self Repair

Apple has made some big announcements about providing the parts, tools, and manuals to repair their products. This has been due to pressure from governments and Right To Repair making progress on bills in the works. But, Apple never said they had to be nice about it. In a lengthy write-up for The Verge, Sean…

Categories
Stream

A Farewell to iPod

It’s hard to imagine Apple without the iPod. In the Steve Jobs era, the iPod was the device that took them from “doing okay” to becoming a monumental success of a company. Even if you weren’t (or aren’t) an Apple fan, you had or were surrounded by iPods in the early aughts. And now that…

Categories
Stream

Return To Office Claims Another Victim

Apple, who has historically been anti-remote work, has made a lot of headlines in the past months. Their policy has shifted in this COVID reality to one where they will move to a hybrid model. It ramps up with 2-days a week and then to 3-days a week in the office. Many are not happy…

Categories
Stream

Organized Apples

It seems the dam has broken when it comes to retail and warehouse workers for major companies. Not long after Amazon’s JFK warehouse location and Starbucks’ Buffalo store both successfully unionized, efforts are now underway elsewhere to unionize as well. Apple is the latest company to see its employees band together to work for better…

Categories
Stream

Let Me Fix It

The Right To Repair movement is gaining steam, but it’s been a longstanding problem to overcome. The idea that if you buy something, you should be able to repair it seems simple. Of course, Apple and many other companies don’t want you to do that. This CBC investigation from 2018 explains exactly why it’s vital…

Categories
Stream

That Slap

Sunday night’s Oscars were… memorable for a big reason. But I’m not here to talk about THAT. Instead, I want to mention CODA. This movie has been on the radar since it debuted on Apple TV+. And in a first, this film took the award for Best Picture when it was only on a streaming…

Categories
Stream

Going Maskless

When Apple debuted Face ID for the iPhone, it was a wonderful idea and one wherein they thought the days of Touch ID were numbered. COVID completely derailed the reliability of something that worked so well. Apple, nor anyone for that matter, could’ve predicted constant mask-wearing. Now, finally, with iOS 15.4 Apple has created a…

Categories
Stream

And We’re Calling It ‘Back To Office’

With COVID numbers falling across the country from Omicron’s spread, many companies are calling their employees back to the office. Apple has pushed back their return date many times, but this time it may stick. Earlier this month they announced April 11th will begin the transition for employees to return. Kim Lyons at The Verge…