Tim Hardwick, MacRumors:
Apple’s online store has started listing select exercise gear on its online store for the first time. Apple has kicked off its exercise equipment offering with yoga accessories, including a Manduka eKOlite Yoga Mat ($77.95), a Manduka 6 mm Performance Yoga Mat ($119.95), and a Cork Yoga Block ($19.95).
Getting ready for Monday’s launch of Fitness+.
Apple:
Apple today announced AirPods Max, innovative wireless headphones that bring the magic of AirPods to an over-ear design with high-fidelity sound. AirPods Max combine a custom acoustic design, H1 chips, and advanced software to power computational audio for a breakthrough listening experience with Adaptive EQ, Active Noise Cancellation, Transparency mode, and spatial audio. AirPods Max come in five gorgeous colors, including space gray, silver, sky blue, green, and pink, and are available to order starting today, with availability beginning Tuesday, December 15.
There is so much to unpack here.
First things first, these are some gorgeous headphones. They’ve got Active Noise Cancellation, as you’d expect, and they seem to me to fit into that high end category of headphones that are over ear, great for sound isolation, and designed to be an incredibly comfortable fit, perfect for the studio, perfect for a long airplane ride.
20 hours of battery life. Cordless, but able to plug in if the need arises (there’s a Lightning port, on device, for both audio and charging).
There are five different colors. As Rene Ritchie pointed out, the AirPods Max bands are the iPhone 12 colors, while the casings are the iPad Air colors. Brilliant observation.
Fair or not, I am assuming the audio quality of the AirPods Max will compare favorably to high end Bose, or even B&O headphones. Jury out on this last point, waiting for audiophile reviews to see where they land.
If you’ve not seen them, watch the two product videos embedded in the main Loop post. They do a nice job showing off the product elegance. Don’t miss the magnetic ear cup attachment. Presumably, if one gets lost or damaged, easy enough to replace (replacement AirPods Max ear cushions coming soon, priced at $69). And (as other headphones have done before them), don’t miss the woven “L” and “R” in each ear cup. So if one does need replacement, you’ll need to get the right flavor/color.
Note that you can engrave your AirPods Max. Right on the shoulder. Cap letters and emoji.
OK, so that brings us to price. At $549, these are high end product. There’s a lot of value here and, if the audio lives up to the billing, I’d imagine these will sell quite well. And, at that price, I’d imagine they’ll be envy inducing. And like Apple’s original wired EarPods, and AirPods, they will be easy to spot marketing for Apple’s brand.
I would love a pair for Christmas. Just saying, in case my family is reading.
[VIDEO] Marques Brownlee walks through major iPhone removals over the years, including the home button and the 3.5mm headphone jack. This leads up to a discussion of the potential removal of the lightning port.
To add depth to the discussion, Marques brings on Mark Gurman. Don’t miss the snarky comment about MacBook Pro webcams. Great video, embedded in the main Loop post.
Filipe Espósito, 9to5Mac:
Right after the Apple event in October, Samsung mocked the company for not including the power adapter in the iPhone 12 box and also removing it from the older models. Now, as some rumors have predicted, the Galaxy S21’s documentation suggests that it will also not come with a charger included in the box.
It’s uncanny how quickly this happened.
Samsung went from big ads with pics of a charging brick and the tagline, “Included with your Galaxy” to removing the brick from the box. So quickly, that I can’t help but think they knew they were removing the brick while they were designing the “we’ve still got a brick” ad campaign.
Yeesh.
Google Blog:
Starting today, Apple Music is rolling out to Google Assistant-enabled devices like Nest Audio, Nest Hub Max, Nest Mini, and more. Apple Music subscribers can search and play songs (more than 70 million!), albums and playlists—all ad-free—just by using their voice.
To play music from Apple Music, first link your Apple Music account in the Google Home app. You can also select Apple Music as your default music streaming service. Then, all you have to do is say, “Hey Google, play New Music Daily playlist,” or “Hey Google, play Rap Life playlist.”
Interesting break in the ecosystem on both sides. Google has opened the door to Apple Music being the main music service, and Apple has allowed Google to be the music hardware provider and Siri replacement.
Available now in the U.S., U.K., France, Germany and Japan.
Apple:
Apple today announced Fitness+, the first fitness experience built around Apple Watch, is launching Monday, December 14. Apple Fitness+ brings studio-style workouts to iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV, intelligently incorporating workout metrics from Apple Watch for a first-of-its-kind personalized and immersive experience users can complete wherever and whenever is convenient for them. Apple Fitness+ will launch with 10 of the most popular workout types, including High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), Strength, Yoga, Dance, Core, Cycling, Treadmill (for running and walking), Rowing, and Mindful Cooldown, led by a phenomenal team of trainers whose approach is welcoming to all. The workouts are fueled by inspiring music from today’s top artists designed to keep users motivated from start to finish.
And:
Apple Fitness+ dynamically integrates personal metrics from Apple Watch to inspire users, animating them on the screen during key moments in the workout, providing an engaging and immersive experience to help users stay motivated.
The tight Apple Watch integration is one of the key features that will distinguish Apple Fitness+ from competitors, like Peloton.
For example, when the trainer says to check heart rate, the heart rate metrics are spotlighted; during tough intervals, a countdown timer starts to help users get through to the last second; and when they close their Activity rings, a celebration happens right on the workout screen.
I’m definitely going to incorporate Fitness+ into my workout regimen, looking forward to seeing how well Apple Watch works here, what interface elements have changed.
My favorite bit:
For those who enjoy a little competition, HIIT, Treadmill, Cycling, and Rowing workouts have an optional Burn Bar that shows, in real time, how a user’s effort stacks up against anyone who has previously completed the same workout.
Apple Music also plays a strong role here:
Music is a central part of the Apple Fitness+ experience, and the trainer team weaves music throughout the design of every workout. Users can choose from nine different styles, including Latest Hits, Chill Vibes, Upbeat Anthems, Pure Dance, Throwback Hits, Everything Rock, Latin Grooves, Hip Hop/R&B, and Top Country, and see the full workout playlist before they start. They can also filter by music to find the right workout to fit their current mood. An Apple Music subscription is not required to enjoy the music in Fitness+, but for those who have one, favorite songs or an entire playlist from Fitness+ workouts can be downloaded to their Apple Music library to listen anytime.
Looking forward to taking Fitness+ for a spin. Monday.
Bloomberg:
Chip engineers at the Cupertino, California-based technology giant are working on several successors to the M1 custom chip, Apple’s first Mac main processor that debuted in November. If they live up to expectations, they will significantly outpace the performance of the latest machines running Intel chips, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be named because the plans aren’t yet public.
And:
Intel’s shares slid 1.7% in early trading in New York Monday after the news.
My gut is to be skeptical that Apple can build a chip that can take on a PC with a discrete GPU. But the M1 has definitely under promised and over delivered, crushing all my expectations.
And:
Apple engineers are also developing more ambitious graphics processors. Today’s M1 processors are offered with a custom Apple graphics engine that comes in either 7- or 8-core variations. For its future high-end laptops and mid-range desktops, Apple is testing 16-core and 32-core graphics parts.
Skeptical, but also skeptical of my skepticism. Could we see future mid-priced Macs that beat high-end gaming PCs with high-end GPU cards? With the new MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, the CPU performance (especially showing off in single core benchmarks) is astounding, the GPU performance still less than a home built PC with a moderately high end GPU.
High hopes for the Mac’s future. Looking forward to the next Mac reveal.
Rob Griffiths did as the title suggested, launched 75 apps on the M1 in an effort to see how that impacted the M1 MacBook Pro. Read the post, amazing to me how brilliantly the M1 Macs handle what people are throwing at it.
Also worth reading, Rob’s followup post, a more comprehensive review on the M1 MacBook Pro.
A bit of a spoiler:
I’ve had my M1 MacBook Pro for a few weeks now, and I can confidently say this is the best-performing Mac laptop I’ve ever owned—and not just because of its benchmark scores. It’s that the entire system has been designed to take advantage of Apple’s homebuilt powerful but low-power CPU. As I use the machine, I have to keep reminding myself that it’s the basically the lowest-end ARM chipped Mac you’ll ever be able to buy.
I’m still loving my M1 MacBook Air, can’t wait to see what Apple rolls out to bring the iMac and Mac Pro into the M1 family.
[VIDEO] This is a beta app, not yet released, but the concept is promising.
Watch the video embedded in the main Loop post to get a basic sense of the app, called Magico. I do like the idea of gestures (think this scene from Minority Report) as a way to control your Apple TV, replacing the simple (but low discoverability) remote.
Interesting.
Every time I hear the Gruber-coined term claim chowder, I think of this post:
“Is Apple serious competition?: Palm CEO Ed Colligan seems downright nonchalant about rumors that Apple may introduce a mobile phone to market in the coming year.”
And:
“We’ve learned and struggled for a few years here figuring out how to make a decent phone,” he said. “PC guys are not going to just figure this out. They’re not going to just walk in.”
Delicious.
Now follow the headline link, where Jean-Louis Gassée shares some Apple Arm claim chowder. Not quite as momentous as that original, quoted above, but an interesting read, nonetheless.
Side note: I find it interesting that “Claim Chowder” has an entry in Urban Dictionary. Also interesting: Go into Wikipedia and type claim chowder in the search field.
[VIDEO] The ad embedded in the main Loop post highlights six Apple Originals.
The ad itself is well crafted, great use of text editing to hammer home various points. Well done.
But I do wonder, why these six? Why not Long Way Up? On the Rocks? Mythic Quest: Raven’s Banquet? Home Before Dark?
As I look through the list of Apple TV+ content branded as Apple Originals, I do wonder why these six were chosen. But I also marvel at how big the Apple TV+ catalog has grown in just a bit more than a year.
Apple has quietly built a strong competitor to Netflix, et al. A competitor that will bring more and more people into the fold, make a growing contribution to Apple’s services revenue.
Tip of the cap, Apple.
Tim Standing, OWC blog [Via TidBITS]:
Each pair of Thunderbolt ports on my Intel Mac is connected to a single bus powered by a dedicated controller chip. Since the two ports in a pair are connected to one bus, they share the Thunderbolt bandwidth. The total throughput of both ports together on a single bus is limited to 2,800 MB/sec.
And:
You can confirm the number of Thunderbolt buses in your Mac by viewing the System Report window (select About This Mac in the Apple menu and then click the System Report… button). Then click on Thunderbolt in the column on the left. Here is what I see on my 2019 16 inch MacBook Pro, showing the two Thunderbolt buses. (4 ports = 2 pairs of ports = 2 Thunderbolt buses).
Yup, confirmed, worth a look.
But on the M1 Mac mini:
System Report indicates that there are two Thunderbolt buses, one for each of the Thunderbolt ports!! This means that each port has its own dedicated bus and doesn’t have to share its bandwidth with any other port. Each one will have 2,800 MB/sec all to itself.
And:
The M1 Macs are the first Macs with support for the Thunderbolt hub feature found in Thunderbolt 4. Thunderbolt 4 requires computer makers to implement a whole set of features, most of which were optional in Thunderbolt 3. These features have actually been found in almost all Macs that Apple has shipped in the past four years, so the move to Thunderbolt 4 isn’t a huge change for Mac users.
These features include 40 Gb/sec Thunderbolt ports, support for charging laptops over Thunderbolt, and protection from malicious hardware that might try and snoop computer memory over Thunderbolt. The one feature in Thunderbolt 4 new to the Mac is the support of Thunderbolt Hubs.
The article goes on with some testing and details, along with a pitch for their own OWC Thunderbolt Hub. Hub needs aside, I found the bandwidth info worth knowing.
[VIDEO] If time is limited, jump to 4:28 to skip over the introduction and convivial conversation and get to the heart of the video (embedded in main Loop post).
This video offers a great opportunity to meet and get to know Sebastiaan de With, who is highly regarded for his camera knowledge and fantastic work on the Halide camera app. I love the opener of this segment, where Rene lays out his theory on why some reviewers see no difference between the iPhone 12 Pro camera and the 12 Pro Max camera.
Good stuff.
Ben Lovejoy, 9to5Mac:
Apple Music has added a whole bunch of new playlists in the Browse section. These include the Apple Music top songs of 2020, both globally and for a wide range of countries.
Other categories are the most Shazammed songs – the ones people have heard somewhere and wanted to identify – and the most-read lyrics.
Fire up Apple Music, tap the Browse tab, scroll down to the section labeled “The Top Songs of 2020”, then tap See All. Lots of stuff to explore there.
[VIDEO] This is from back in 2004, came across this on Reddit this morning. I love that this is pitched as a “revolutionary new product”.
Can’t help but wonder if Steve did this one under protest. This feels so unlike him, to pitch such whimsy. But fun to watch. Starts at about 4:27 in. Video embedded in main Loop post.
Wall Street Journal:
United Parcel Service Inc. imposed shipping restrictions on some large retailers such as Gap Inc. and Nike Inc. this week, an early sign that the pandemic-fueled online shopping season is stretching delivery networks to their limits.
The delivery giant on Cyber Monday notified drivers across the U.S. to stop picking up packages at six retailers, including L.L. Bean Inc., Hot Topic Inc., Newegg Inc. and Macy’s Inc., according to an internal message viewed by The Wall Street Journal and confirmed by UPS workers in different regions.
And, most importantly:
“No exceptions,” the message said.
To me, this news shows a canary in the coal mine.
We are growing ever more dependent on our delivery services, dramatically more so in these pandemic times. And, clearly, these systems are showing the strain.
One question I have: Will we go back to “normal” when the pandemic ends? Or have we permanently changed our habits, ordering food and groceries rather than leaving the house, eliminating visits to malls and other shopping centers? Brick and mortar shops have clearly been damaged in 2020. Many will not return. What will emerge in their place?
[VIDEO] First things first, this exploit has been patched by Apple.
But what I found fascinating about this is the video, showing off the hacker doing their proof of concept thing. As you watch it (video embedded in the main Loop post), imagine being in a hotel room and the hacker being in the room next door. Frightening, no? But also good that Apple has your back here.
[VIDEO] I’ve been reading about this for a while now, but it’s nice seeing the process in a video (video embedded in main Loop post).
And those Geekbench scores, wow! Keep in mind, all this is done via emulation. Just imagine how fast this would be if it was native, or even done via Rosetta translation. Amazing.
Apple:
Apple today presented its App Store Best of 2020 winners, recognizing 15 apps and games that proved to be essential for making life easier, healthier, and more connected this year. Notable for their high quality, creative design, usability, and innovative technology, these apps and games are equally celebrated for their positive cultural impact, helpfulness, and importance.
And:
The independent developer of Wakeout! brought gentle exercise to home offices and classrooms with light-hearted and inclusive movements designed for everyone. Vast fantasy worlds in games like “Genshin Impact,” “Legends of Runeterra,” “Disco Elysium,” “Dandara Trials of Fear,” and Apple Arcade’s “Sneaky Sasquatch” delivered a great escape, while Disney+ offered a sense of unlimited possibility that many craved. Whether it was to facilitate distance learning through Zoom, create daily routines with Fantastical or lull us to sleep with Endel, the App Store Best of 2020 winners helped us live our best lives at home.
Gonna take a look at all of these, both in the hunt for great apps and in the pursuit of great interface/user experience.
The way I read this, this is a way to more quickly pair and connect non-Apple devices to your iPhone, giving them the same insta-connect feel you are used to with AirPods, say.
I’ve not tried this out, but seemed interesting and worth a share.
Juli Clover, MacRumors:
Before purchasing, it’s worth noting that the MagSafe Duo is not able to charge an iPhone 12 model at the full 15 watts supported by the standalone MagSafe charger. Instead, it is able to charge at a maximum of 14W when paired with the appropriate charger.
And:
The MagSafe Duo does not ship with a power adapter.
And:
When paired with the 20W USB-C power adapter from Apple, it can charge an iPhone up to 11W, and when paired with a 27W or higher USB-C power adapter, it can charge at the aforementioned 14W.
Did I mention that it’s $129? And if you noticed, the word “charger” is in the product name. But without a separately priced charging brick, it’s not much of a charger.
To be fair, it is very small, and if small is key (you travel a ton, for example), this is a nice solution. But don’t forget a charging brick.
Here’s a link, if the MagSafe Duo Charger calls to you.
As I said here, the MagSafe Duo Charger feels like the Mac Pro wheels of chargers.
[VIDEO] Not sure how COVID will impact the opening of this land within Universal Studios, but this (video embedded in main Loop post) definitely looks like my kind of jam. Once it’s safe, I will definitely find a way to get there, spend some quality time with Mario and friends. And I hear there’s a Donkey Kong land opening next door.
CNET:
We know the iPhone 12 can handle spills and splashes, but Apple may be downplaying just how water-resistant this phone really is. The iPhone 12’s IP68 rating means it can survive up to 19.6 feet (6 meters) of water for 30 minutes. This applies to all four iPhone 12 models: the iPhone 12 Mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max. But we discovered that like its predecessor, Apple’s newest iPhone can handle a great deal more than that. Both of the iPhone 11 models far exceeded the official rating, surviving a 39-foot dive in salt water in Monterey Bay, California. This year we took a brand-new iPhone 12 for a swim in the frigid fresh water of Lake Tahoe, on the other side of the Golden State, to test it out.
This is a bit of fun, testing Apple’s iPhone 12 water resistance claims, both at 19.6 feet for 30 minutes, then much deeper for a bit longer.
Mark Gurman, Bloomberg:
Apple Inc. hired Josh Elman, a former venture capitalist at Greylock Partners who led early investments in Discord and the precursor to TikTok, to work on the App Store.
Elman’s role will focus on app discovery for customers, he said in a statement Monday. He’ll step back from investing and the corporate boards that he serves on, which includes the communications app Discord and the blogging site Medium.
To get a sense of Josh Elman, take a read through this Twitter thread, where Josh announces his big news and talks through a bit of his past.
I find it amazing that Apple and Elman came together like this. Always surprised when someone so used to controlling their destiny and money flow goes to work for a big company. And that always brings to mind the billionaire (Steve Ballmer) working for another billionaire (Bill Gates).
Amazon blog:
Over the last couple of years, AWS users have told us that they want to be able to run macOS on Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2). We’ve asked a lot of questions to learn more about their needs, and today I am pleased to introduce you to the new Mac instance!
And:
Powered by Mac mini hardware and the AWS Nitro System, you can use Amazon EC2 Mac instances to build, test, package, and sign Xcode applications for the Apple platform including macOS, iOS, iPadOS, tvOS, watchOS, and Safari. The instances feature an 8th generation, 6-core Intel Core i7 (Coffee Lake) processor running at 3.2 GHz, with Turbo Boost up to 4.6 GHz. There’s 32 GiB of memory and access to other AWS services including Amazon Elastic Block Store (EBS), Amazon Elastic File System (EFS), Amazon FSx for Windows File Server, Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3), AWS Systems Manager, and so forth.
The thing that’s not clear to me is specifics on pricing. I suspect these details will emerge over time.
But if this interests you, definitely spend some time reading:
This blog post from MacStadium. Note that MacStadium has ordered 600+ M1 Mac minis, as compared to the AWS Intel Coffee Lake machines. Don’t miss the discussion of the new “Leasing for Permitted Developer Services” paragraph added to Apple’s license agreement.
Also worth reading is the back-and forth comments on Hacker News, with a response from MacStadium’s Brian Stucki.
And, finally:
Joe Rossignol, MacRumors:
Apple One includes a 30-day free trial for any services that customers did not already subscribe to individually, and that trial period ends today for those who signed up for Apple One on its first day of availability. Following the end of the trial period, however, some customers are seeing their Apple One subscription listed as expired and/or have been billed individually for services like Apple TV+ and Apple Music that should be rolled into Apple One.
All in all, there are clearly some hiccups going on as Apple One converts from a trial to a standard subscription, so hopefully Apple is able to sort out the issues soon.
My billing is all over the place. I signed up for the Apple One Premier bundle and I am still being charged for all the extras that the bundle is supposed to replace.
My sense is that Apple is going to make all this right over time, without my having to jump through any hoops. So if this is you, have patience, but keep an eye on your subscriptions page, make sure Apple has ultimately balanced your account properly.
Today is World AIDS Day. Apple is all in, with a red homepage, red Apple Store logo and window displays (some great pictures in this 9to5Mac post), a special Apple Music feature and, most importantly:
In 2006, Apple joined (RED)’s mission to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic in sub-Saharan Africa. Over the last 14 years, Apple’s partnership with (RED) has led to almost $250 million in donations for the Global Fund’s HIV/AIDS programs that offer prevention, testing, and counseling services. Since 2006, Apple-supported grants have provided over 10.8 million people with care and support services, helped with distribution of more than 167 million HIV tests, and provided 13.8 million people with ongoing access to life-saving antiretroviral (ARV) treatment.
This year, communities around the world are grappling with HIV/AIDS as they also work to respond and protect against COVID-19, particularly for vulnerable populations. COVID-19 has created challenges in accessing care, diagnostics, and supplies, often disrupting crucial HIV/AIDS programs. To alleviate these challenges and ensure continuity in life-saving HIV/AIDS services, Apple’s contributions were redirected to the Global Fund’s COVID-19 Response at the onset of the pandemic earlier this year. Thanks in part to support from Apple and Apple customers, the Global Fund’s COVID-19 Response has been able to alleviate the impact of COVID-19 on the communities most affected by HIV/AIDS and provide critical support in health systems threatened by the COVID-19 outbreak.
And:
Through December 7, Apple is donating $1 for every purchase made with Apple Pay on apple.com, in the Apple Store app, or at an Apple Store to the Global Fund’s COVID-19 Response.
Respect.
Came across the linked site this morning on Hacker News. Did some reading, liked it enough to want to share with you.
If you know the basics of chess, spend a few minutes on the site. I’d suggest starting with The Knight Fork.
This section is very easy to read, presented consecutive pages, each focused and short. The whole world of chess is broken down like this. A fascinating exploration.
[VIDEO] Linus, of Linus Tech Tips, titled his original hot take on Apple’s M1 keynote “Apple Silicon Mac Announcement – Slow Motion Dumpster Fire.”
Lots of people expressed their doubts, publicly. Too much hype, graphs without real numbers, impossible claims. You get the idea, you’ve maybe had doubts of your own.
To his credit, Linus makes no bones about his hot take, and weighs in with his actual experience and destroyed (in a good way) expectations. And it also offers a solid look at the experience of running iOS apps on your M1 Mac. Linus’s video is embedded in the main Loop post.
Related note: Linus briefly touches on the process of finding and downloading an iOS app, but I thought this post offered a little more detail and insight.
Om Malik:
It was in early 1998 when I called David Placek. His company, Lexicon Branding, had recently come up with the moniker Pentium for Intel. And nearly a decade earlier, he came up with the name PowerBook, helping to turn Macintosh Portable into a billion-dollar business in its first year.
And:
After early successes with Apple’s PowerBook, Intel’s Pentium, and P&G’s Swiffer, Placek and his team have gone on to work with a number of modern names and startups that will be familiar to most readers. Examples include Sonos and Impossible Foods.
Amazing that these names all originated from the same source. They are all great names and have stood the test of time, or seem well on their way.
This linked post is a quick read, worth your time if you ever have to name anything. The book summary from Om has value, and might lead you to hunt down the book (if you can still find a copy anywhere).