They’re both part of Apple’s Switch to iPhone series, offering short metaphorical illustrations for why you should ditch other platforms for iPhone.
Bryan Chaffin
Bryan Chaffin is the cofounder of The Mac Observer and currently serves as Afternoon Editor. He has contributed to MacAddict and MacFormat magazines, and co-authored the last two updates of iPad and iPad Pro for Dummies with Bob “Dr. Mac” LeVitus and Ed Baig. You can find out more about Bryan at his personal site, GeekTells, or find his Twitter link below.
Articles by Bryan Chaffin
iMazing 2 Universal License for Mac and Windows: $24.99
We have an absolutely stellar deal on iMazing 2, a product we’ve written about. iMazing let’s you browse and manage your backups, extract and print your text messages, and drag and drop songs to your iPhone. Our deal is $24.99 for a universal license good on unlimited iOS devices and up to 2 Macs or PCs.
PSA: Apple Announces 13-inch MacBook Pro (non Touch Bar) Battery Replacement Program
The company said a component failure may lead to battery expansion, and that affected devices can get their battery replaced.
Tim Cook Reminds Us Apple Is Making Earth Day Donations for Recycled Devices
Apple CEO Tim Cook tweeted a reminder that his company is making Earth Day donations for every device handed in to the company’s recycle program. Apple announced earlier this week that it would donate to conservation efforts for devices turned in for recycling through April 30th. Earth Day 2018 is Sunday, April 22nd (i.e. this weekend).
In honor of Earth Day, we’re donating to @ConservationOrg for every device we receive from customers this month through our new program, Apple GiveBack 🌏 https://t.co/NmKimtkGpP
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) April 20, 2018
FRETX Smart Guitar Learning Device: $69.99
Check out FRETX, one of those devices I’d write up as Cool Stuff Found if I didn’t get to offer you a deal on it. This device slips onto the neck of your guitar and then lights up to show you where to put your fingers. It’s controlled by a smartphone app, and it’s $69.99 through us. The video below gives a good overview of how it works.
Cybersecurity Tech Accord: 34 Tech Companies Just Promised a Bunch of Nothing
The Accord has gotten some positive headlines, but Bryan Chaffin doesn’t think the announcement stands up to logical scrutiny.
Cybersecurity Tech Accord, Cyberwar Is Now, Social Network Inertia - ACM 458
In this episode, Bryan Chaffin and Jeff Gamet dissect the Cybersecurity Tech Accord, a pledge by 34 tech companies to do something vague and unlikely. The timing for the announcement is somewhat interesting because we are in the middle of an undeclared shadow cyberwar. They cap the show analyzing what it might take for any new social network to supplant Facebook.
Nix Pro Color Sensor: $249
We have a deal on the Nix Pro Color Sensor, a device that senses color and sends the data to your iPhone, iPad, or android device. The Nix Pro blocks out ambient light, can match to more than 38,000 paint colors, give you CMYK, HEX, sRGB, CIELAB, LCH, and LRV codes, and more. It’s $249 through us, 28% off retail.
Watch Intelligence Squared Net Neutrality Debate: Tom Wheeler, Mitchell Baker vs. Michael Katz, Nick Gillespie
Check out this Intelligence Squared debate on Net Neutrality. I love the Intelligence Squared show, which I listen to on KQED in the Bay Area. This episode hasn’t aired yet, but the video format is up on YouTube now. It features former FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler and Mozilla Chairwoman Mitchell Baker arguing for the motion “Preserve Net Neutrality.” Arguing against the motion is Michael Katz, former Chief Economist of the FCC and Nick Gillespie, editor of Reason magazine. Here’s the interesting thing, but warning, because it contains spoilers. Those arguing against the motion—i.e. arguing to end Net Neutrality—won the debate. What that means is they shifted more opinions in the audience, who voted before and after the debate. But, those arguing to preserve Net Neutrality carried majority support before and after the debate. If you’ve been wanting to hear reasoned arguments on this topic, this is something you’ll want to watch or listen to. Mind you, those arguing against the motion are just plain wrong, but it’s a great discussion.
Safari Technology Preview 54 Has Changes to Clipboard API, Beacon API, More
This look-ahead version of Safari includes eight big fixes, improvements, and new features.
HyperGear Wireless Gift Set with Headphones, Earbuds, and Bluetooth Speaker: $44.99
We hava deal the HyperGear Wireless Gift Set, a collection that includes a pair of over-the-ear headphones, a pair of earbuds, and a Bluetooth speaker. The headphones and earbuds are wireless, too. It’s $44.99 through us.
PSA: The Russians Are Hacking Everything, Laying the Groundwork for Future Attacks
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre, the FBI, and the White House jointly announced that Russian hackers are laying the groundwork for future cyber attacks and spying on Western governments.
Apple Reportedly Plans to Roll Magazine Subscription Service Based on Texture
The move was frankly expected in that Texture was a magazine subscription service when Apple acquired it, but Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman shed light on Apple’s specifics.
SplashID Pro 1-Year Subscription: $9.99
We have a deal on a one year subscription to SplashID Pro, a password management service. You can choose to sync your passwords, or not to sync you r passwords, and it’s accessible macOS, iOS, Android, Windows, BlackBerry, and even Windows Phone. One year is $9.99 through us.
Russia's Telegram Ban Could Be First Salvo against Apple's iMessage and Other Encrypted Platforms
On Monday, state regulators began blocking access to Telegram, and Bryan Chaffin is wondering what that might mean for Apple and its iMessage platform, and to other encrypted communications platforms.
12,000mAh LED Power Bank with Built-in LED Flashlight: $19.99
We have a deal on a 12,000mAh LED Power Bank that also features a built-in LED flashlight. It has two USB ports for charging, including one 2.1A port. It’s $19.99 through us.
The Mysterious Case of the Gold iPhone X Photos Published by the FCC
These photos are part of an FCC filing for an “Apple Inc. Smartphone -E3161A,” and clearly show a gold-colored device where no such device currently exists.
Quick Apple Video Tip on Managing Multiple Emails on iPad
Check out this video tip from Apple on working with multiple emails at a time on iPad. This is a new feature to me, and I bet for a lot of other people, too. The short version is that you can use the handle at the top of an email you’re writing to drag it down to the bottom of your screen, where it stays docked. That allows you to peruse your inbox. If you have just one docked email, tapping it brings it back up. If you have more than one, it gives you a Safari tab-like view to pick the one you want. It’s a nifty feature. Oh, and it works in portrait and landscape mode.
Just in Time for Spring Cleaning - Live Home 3D Pro for Mac: $24.99
Live Home 3D Pro for Mac allows you to design residential buildings from the ground up, which might come in particularly handy if you’re working on your Spring Cleaning projects. The software will let you design sheds, living rooms, homes, or even a skyscraper, according to the company that makes it. We have a deal on it for $24.99. Check the listing for all the features.
Apple Includes 13 New WebKit Features in Safari 11.1
The company detailed the WebKit changes in the release in a detailed post to the WebKit blog, included below.
IK Multimedia Ships iRig Stomp I/O
IK Multimedia announced Thursday that iRig Stomp I/O is now available. Announced during NAMM in January, this device is a essentially a pedal board for use with IK Multimedia’s AmpliTube. It features four switches, an expression pedal, a built-in preamp, phantom power for microphones, a built-in USB audio interface, a combo input jack for line, instrument or mic input, and balanced stereo output. It will work with both iPhone and iPad, but it’s big enough for an iPad, giving you more screen to see when the device sits on the floor at your feet. It’s MFi-certified, priced at US$/€299.99, and shipping.
PDFelement 6 for Mac: $29.99
We have a deal on PDFelement 6 for the Mac, a PDF editor and document creator. It offers OCR, merged documents, has annotations and more. Check out the deal listing for details.
Apple Music Tops 40 Million Subscribers, Gets a Vice President
Apple Music now has more than 40 million subscribers, up from the 36 million milestone made public earlier this year.
Mac Keyboards, Trusting Facebook, and Being Profitable and Green - ACM 457
In this episode, Bryan and Jeff discuss Mac keyboards, and what they like about clicky, long-throw keyboards, including the Azio Classic Retro BT keyboard Bryan just reviewed. They also go through a thought experiment on whether Facebook could ever earn our trust on privacy by radically reshaping their policies. They cap the show with a look at how Apple manages to be profitable and green, both.