Apple owns 6% of the global smart speaker market, according to Strategy Analytics. The research firm says Apple sold about 600,000 HomePods during the first quarter of 2018. Of course, that’s only an estimate because Apple doesn’t share sales HomePod figures. Considering Amazon holds 43.6% of the smart speaker market, and Google has 26.5% with far more than a single quarter’s sales, it’ll be interesting to see how many people say this proves HomePod is a failure. It’s possible HomePod is a flop, or it’ll own the market. Either way, a single quarter’s sales isn’t enough to make a definitive conclusion.
Jeff Gamet
Jeff Gamet is the Mac Observer’s Managing Editor, and co-host of the Apple Context Machine podcast. He is the author of “The Designer’s Guide to Mac OS X” from Peachpit Press, and writes for several design-related publications. Jeff has presented at events such as Macworld Expo, the RSA Conference, and the Mac Computer Expo. In all his spare time, he also hosts TMO’s Daily Observations podcast, co-hosts The iOS Show podcast, and makes guest appearances on several other shows, too. Jeff dreams in HD.
Articles by Jeff Gamet
Headed to WWDC? Get Your Tickets for the App Camp for Girls Fundraiser Concert
Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference is just a couple weeks away, and that means the James Dempsey and the Breakpoints concert to raise funds for App Camp for Girls is about to happen. The concert coincides with WWDC every year and is the biggest fund raising event for the coding camp. It’s loads of fun so get your tickets right away before they’re sold out.
Apple Releases iOS 11.4 Developer Beta 6 just Days After Beta 5
Only three days after iOS 11.4 developer beta 5 for iPhone and iPad was released Apple rolled out developer beta 6.
Getting Ready for WWDC iOS and macOS Betas, App Camp for Girls Fundraiser Concert - TMO Daily Observations 2018-05-17
Dave Hamilton and Kelly Guimont join Jeff Gamet to talk about WWDC’s upcoming iOS and macOS developer betas and how you can prepare for them, plus Kelly tells us about the James Dempsey and the Breakpoints fundraiser concert for App Camp for Girls.
Yanny or Laurel Explained
Are you hearing Yanny or Laurel in the recording that’s zipping around the internet? The short answer is “Yes.” The longer answer involves a little audio knowledge.
Designing Apple's Personal Robot, Yanny or Laurel - TMO Daily Observations 2018-05-16
Kelly Guimont and John Martellaro join Jeff Gamet to talk about what a personal robot from Apple could be, plus they explain what’s going on with the “Yanny or Laurel” meme.
Apple Wants $1 Billion from Samsung for iPhone Patent Infringement
Apple and Samsung are back in court for the next round in their years-long legal fight over copying the iPhone’s design. This new trial is to determine how much money Samsung owes Apple for patent infringement. Apple is pushing for US$1 billion in damages, and of course Samsung is balking. It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out considering Apple was originally awarded over $1 billion, but that was cut back dramatically over the years in the ongoing legal fight. Maybe now Apple can get that number pushed back up. Bloomberg has more about the new damages trial.
Here's an Easy Way to Check Website Cookies for GDPR Compliance
The EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, goes into effect on May 25th, 2018, and it can impact websites that aren’t hosted in member states. If you want to see if the cookies on your website are GDPR-complaint, Cookiebot is a great place to start. You’ll get a quick audit of site cookies in a PDF showing how compliant—or not—they are. It’s free to try, and offers a little insight into how GDPR impacts websites.
Logitech Crayon for iPad 6 Available Now
The Logitech Crayon stylus for the spring 2018 9.7-inch iPad is available now, but the only place to get it is through Apple’s education channel.
Tweetbot 3 for the Mac Launches with Dark Mode, More
Tweetbot 3 for the Mac is out, and it’s loaded with a bunch of new features. The Twitter client has improved timeline management, autoplay (or not) for videos and GIFs, drag-and-drop column organizing, quicker access to DM chats, a dark mode, and more. Tweetbot 3 is priced at US$9.99 and is available at Apple’s Mac App Store.
Ruling Invalidating Personal Audio's Podcast Patent Stands, Supreme Court Refuses to Hear Appeal
Personal Audio’s fight to use a patent to force podcasters to pay royalties is finally at an end. The U.S. Supreme Court won’t hear PA’s appeal in a ruling that invalidated its patent, which means the EFF won its legal fight. That’s great news because now PA can’t claim all podcasters have to pay royalties. It’s also an example of something going right in our painfully broken patent system. You can read more about the ruling at Ars Technica.
Apple's Leadership Without Steve Jobs' Influence - TMO Daily Observations 2018-05-15
Dave Hamilton and Bryan Chaffin join Jeff Gamet to share their thoughts on the impact Steve Jobs had on Apple’s current leadership, and what happens when Tim Cook is gone.
Twelve South Intros AirFly Bluetooth to 3.5mm for AirPods
Twelve South is aiming to make your AirPods more versatile with its new AirFly Bluetooth to 3.5 mm adapter. AirFly lets you link your AirPods to wired-only connections, like in-flight entertainment systems on planes, or treadmills at the gym. The battery lasts eight hours between charges, so you can get through more than one movie on a flight. AirFly is priced at US$39.99 and is available at the Twelve South website, Amazon, along with InMotion stores and Best Buy kiosks in airports.
Adobe is Giving Away its App Interface Design Tools with Adobe XD Starter Plan
Adobe wants to be the go-to choice for app interface design, so the company just introduced Adobe XD Starter Plan—a free version of its Adobe XD user experience design tools.
Deadpool Apologizes to David Beckham
Turns out Deadpool felt pretty bad about slamming David Beckham’s voice in the original Deadpool movie. He’s doing his best to make it up to David before Deadpool 2 comes out this weekend, which also makes for a great marketing opportunity. That, and we get to learn what Deadpool really needs to apologize for.
watchOS 4.3.1 Beta 5 Available to Developers
Along with iOS 11.4 Developer Beta 5, Apple released watchOS 4.3.1 beta 5 for Apple Watch on Monday.
Apple Releases iOS 11.4 Developer Beta 5
Apple released iOS 11.4 Developer Beta 5 on Monday. The update brings us another step closer to the official public release for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
The Microsoft and Apple Team Up Debate, Efail Explained - TMO Daily Observations 2018-05-14
Andrew Orr and John Martellaro join Jeff Gamet to talk about the possibility of Microsoft and Apple forming a business partnership, plus they explain the Efail email encryption security flaw.
How to Protect Yourself from the Efail Encrypted Email Security Flaw
If you’re using S/MIME, PGP, or GPG encryption for messages in Apple’s Mail app or other email client apps, you could be susceptible to what’s being called Efail. You can protect your messages until app updates addressing the flaw are released, and it’s easy to do.
How to Stop Twitter from Collecting and Sharing Personal Data for Advertisers
Twitter collects personal data to use for targeted advertising, and that data can be shared with other companies. If you’d rather not give so much personal information to Twitter and advertisers, here’s how to turn off those settings.
Debating the Mac mini's Fate, iMessage for Windows - TMO Daily Observations 2018-05-11
John Martellaro and Bryan Andrew Orr join Jeff Gamet to look at Apple’s Mac mini and debate whether it needs an update or to go end of life. They also discuss Microsoft’s push to bring iMessage to Windows.
This Simple Back Door Hack for Your Mac is Exactly Why FileVault Should be Enabled
There’s a stunningly simple way to create a back door into your Mac using just the tools included with macOS, but all it takes to defeat the threat is FileVault.
Google Duplex, Voice Assistants, and AI - TMO Daily Observations 2018-05-10
Kelly Guimont, John Martellaro, and Bryan Chaffin join Jeff Gamet to share their thoughts on Google Duplex and what human-like voice assistants will have on our conversations.
The Voice Assistant War: Alexa and Google Assistant Versus Siri
We’re still in the early stages of voice assistant technology so we can’t declare a winner yet, regardless of which you prefer. Based on what we’re seeing, however, Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant are putting Apple’s Siri in a serious catch up position.