A report from earlier this week said Apple is abandoning the iPhone’s Lightning port in favor of USB-C, and now we’re hearing that’s not the case. Instead, Apple will stick with the Lightning conector and add support for USB Type-C power delivery for faster charging.
Search: smart home
5 iMazing Tricks Make Syncing Your iOS Device Fun
When you get right down to it, iTunes is pretty bloated for the limited usefulness is provides. Jeff Butts has been exploring iMazing, a potential replacement for synchronizing iOS devices with the desktop, and has some tips and tricks that show how powerful this iTunes alternative can be.
Get Ready for Apple's $1,000 10th Anniversary iPhone
In a world where people are still having a hard time accepting that smartphones cost money, Apple is prepping a special 10th anniversary iPhone model, and it’s going to cost more than US$1,000. The special model will reportedly be called the iPhone 8, and despite the hefty price tag people will likely buy it.
Speeding Up a Sluggish Mac and Cool Stuff Found – Mac Geek Gab 641
Cool Stuff Found today contains lots of things you suggested after listening to recent shows, including tools to help your Mac sleep, help you manage your keyboard shortcuts and macros, privately sync your notes, auto-file your Mail, and free backup storage! Then its on to sharing your tips and answering your questions. Want to learn how to factory reset your AirPods, enable band-steering on your router, or have Siri search Google instead of Bing? Let’s go!
TrackR Delivers New pixel, wallet 2.0, atlas Products, and Alexa Integration
LAS VEGAS — At CES Unveiled 2017, TrackR demonstrated several new products in their line of personal item management devices. In other words, they help you find not only your stuff, but stuff that other people have misplaced. Mia Costa, Vice President of Marketing, gave John F. Braun an overview.
Sony Does About-Face - Introduces OLED 4K/UHD TV With Dolby Vision
LAS VEGAS — For a long time, Sony has had an excellent reputation for building great TVs. However, until yesterday, only LG was selling those magnificent OLED 4K/UHD TVs. Now, Sony has joined the fray with its own branded OLED 4K/UHD sets, and they’re amazing. And not only HDR but Dolby Vision to boot. The word is… wow.
Happy New Year from Your Two Favorite Geeks – Mac Geek Gab 638
Need to use Mini DisplayPort monitor with your USB-C Mac? Need to make screen recordings? Need a Dropbox replacement? Your two favorite geeks have you covered with these questions and others. Cool Stuff Found segment includes a way to control your reboot sounds, your clipboard, and your unwanted robocalls. Plus, another AirPods alternative. Download and enjoy!
iFixit: AirPods Aren't Repairable, Case May Have Caused Delay
Apple’s AirPods have been available for only a day, and with very limited availability, but iFixit managed to get ahold of a pair and subject them to their usual new product dissection. What they found inside were components that can’t be repaired, and a charging case that may be behind the extended delay in getting to store shelves.
Apple's TV App Reveals its Plight with Television Industry
From time to time, we’ve seem articles that explain Apple’s plight with its TV business. But John has found a splendidly complete diagnosis at The Verge for this week’s focus. It examines the deepest motivations of Apple, it’s clash with the entertainment industry, its successes and failures, and how that has, in turn, affected Apple TV software design and customer perceptions.
Turn Your iPhone into an Amazon Echo with Astra
Amazon’s Echo and Echo Dot are pretty cool, but what if you don’t have one yet—or aren’t home to use yours? That’s where Astra comes in. It’s an iPhone app that links to your Amazon account so you talk talk to Alexa just as if you’re right in front of your own Echo. The app lets you do pretty much everything your Echo or Echo Dot can handle, except for music playback or reading audio books. You can also remotely control your Echo-aware smarthome devices with your voice, which is worth the app’s US$0.99 price tag all by itself. You can get Astra at Apple’s App Store.
Filing Mail, Router Follow-up, and Geeky Gift Guides! – Mac Geek Gab 635
Filing Mail, RAM suggestions, DOCSIS 3.1 and accessing your data from The Dark Side are just some of the topics of questions answered by John and Dave this week. Then it’s on to a follow-up from the router show with a sandwich of geeky holiday gift suggestions from your two favorite geeks!
2017 iPhone Rumor Roundup
iPhone 7 is still wet behind the ears, but Rumors are already flying over 2017 iPhone. It will be the iPhone’s tenth anniversary, and expectations are high for Apple’s next model. It’s still early in the rumor cycle, but here are some of the highest-profile rumors and supposed leaks so far, as well as what they might really mean.
Bluetooth 5: It's All About the Internet of Things
Get ready for Bluetooth 5 because the Bluetooth Special Interest Group officially ratified the specification for the wireless protocol this week. Bluetooth 5 promises twice the speed and four times the range compared to the current Bluetooth standard, and will start showing up in devices soon.
Apple Shares AI Research, Listener Comments - TMO Daily Observations 2016-12-09
Apple is changing course and letting its engineers publish their research into artificial intelligence. John Martellaro and Bryan Chaffin join Jeff Gamet to share their thoughts on why Apple would do that, plus they respond to a listener comment questioning why Jeff is critical of HomeKit.
Apple's Computing Future Could Be the Reverse ToasterFridge
Jean-Louis Gassée has an excellent piece on the future of desktop and mobile operating systems. It includes some lore—including that time Apple tried to buy a a code dump of BeOS from Palm—and some interesting speculation on the future. Both are well worth your time, and it got me thinking about an old interview of Steve Jobs from the mid-1990s. Think: the Reverse ToasterFridge.
Wi-Fi Mesh Systems Compared: eero, Orbi, AmpliFi
The future of home Wi-Fi is mesh networking, a new approach to consumer wireless networks that includes smart management and multiple radios designed to handle the load of today’s gadgets. If you’ve been fighting with range extenders and other solutions to broaden your Wi-Fi coverage and keep your streams alive, you can now stop all that silliness and blanket your home with Wi-Fi. The future is here, and that future is mesh networking.
Tim Cook: Giving Up Privacy with Siri and AI is a False Choice
The best analyst questions during Apple’s Q4 2016 Financial Results came from Simona Jankowski with Goldman Sachs. She asked Tim Cook about his perspective on home vs. mobile artificial intelligence agents and then the issue of privacy. Tim Cook took a solid stand on both questions that reveal the future direction of Apple.
Apple Fixes Two-Factor Authentication Setup Bug
HomeKit in iOS 10 requires Two-Factor authentication if you plan to remotely control or monitor your smarthome devices. That isn’t a big deal, unless you’re one of the unlucky few who were blocked from switchting to Apple’s more secure password authentication system. The good news is that Apple finally fixed the issue, so HomeKit can be more that your in-home personal assistant again.
iPhone 7 Blamed for Car Fire
An iPhone 7 is being blamed for causing a car fire, and it’s already being compared to Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 burning phone disaster. While it’s possible Apple is about to face a wave of burning iPhones, it’s possible this was an isolated incident, or that the iPhone wasn’t the cause of the fire.
Apple Has Plans for Better AI, Cashless Society
Apple CEO Tim Cook wants to weave artificial intelligence deeply into our lives, and he’s ready for a cashless society. The iPhone and Mac maker’s planned research center in Japan will play a role in those plans, and the country could be at the forefront of plans to push Apple Pay as the standard for a no-cash world.
Samsung's Note 7 Banned from all US Flights as Hazardous Material
Don’t worry about powering down your Samsung Galaxy Note 7 before getting on your flight because the Department of Transportation and Federal Aviation Administration just banned the smartphone from all flights. As of Friday afternoon, the fire-prone Note 7 is classified as “forbidden hazardous material,” and come Saturday can’t be transported in your carry-on or checked luggage.
Supreme Court Wrestles with Apple, Samsung Patent Arguments
The U.S. Supreme Court heard testimony on from Apple, Samsung, and the Department of Justice on Tuesday on how damages should be calculated in design-related patent infringement cases. The hearing is the latest round in the mobile device patent infringement fight the two companies started in 2011, and underscores how confusing it can be to set damages values.
TMO Background Mode: Interview with Writer and Raconteur Bob 'Dr. Mac' LeVitus
Bob “Dr. Mac” LeVitus is a writer, book author and raconteur. He writes for the Houston Chronicle and The Mac Observer, and he specializes in the “Dummies” books about Apple products like the Mac, the iPad and iPhone. But Bob wasn’t always a writer. Early on, he wanted to work in a recording studio and it just so happened, in high school, he had a good friend, Jermaine Jackson. That resulted in Bob touring with the Jackson 5. Later, he became a roadie with Shaun Cassidy. (Bob tells a secret.) Bob’s also worked in advertising, a story in itself, and also as the official evangelist for Power Computing in the 1990s. Speaking of Apple, he said “We were their worst nightmare.” Does Bob know how to tell stories? Oh, yes.
MGG 625: The Spotlight Clone Wars
Faster chargers, ODB2 dongles, Mac vs. Windows File Paths, MacBook Pro specs, Dropbox, macOS Sierra and the Spotlight Clone Wars are all topics discussed in today’s Mac Geek Gab. In fact, they’re not just topics, they’re your questions answered! Plus, Dave and John go on a good photoanalysisd rant for good measure!