Justin O’Beirne:
Would Apple continue working on its new map during the pandemic?
We seemingly got our answer when Apple started testing a new map expansion last month and then released it a few weeks later.
And:
But Apple hasn’t just been expanding—it’s also been updating the areas it has already mapped, such as here in Chicago.
Follow the link to Justin’s excellent site, scroll through to see what’s new. The Maps team has been busy!
Samuel Axon, Ars Technica, does a good job laying out both sides of this long-simmering argument. Why Apple should, why they likely won’t ever again release a 4″ iPhone.
Jim and I discussed this on last week’s Dalrymple Report. The new iPhone SE tells the tale, I think.
I think it boils down to this: I believe people who would prefer a smaller iPhone are still buying an iPhone. They are not moving to another platform. From a sales perspective, there’s no incentive for Apple to make a smaller phone. This ship has sailed.
[VIDEO] Apple TV+:
Discover the groundbreaking ideas and inspiring stories behind the world’s most imaginative dwellings. In this globe-spanning docuseries, meet the visionaries who are challenging conventional concepts of “home” and rethinking how we live.
Beautifully filmed, stories well told. I’ve been watching, think this stacks up well against other architectural shows. Trailer embedded in main Loop post.
[VIDEO] This is a pretty fascinating, behind the scenes look at how some iPhone displays (LCD, but not OLED) are made. When you think LCD, think older iPhones, as well as the iPhone XR and the brand new iPhone SE. Video embedded in main Loop post.
The current version of the public release of macOS Catalina is 10.15.4.
In the beta of macOS Catalina 10.15.5 is an update of the Energy Saver System Preferences pane. Follow the link for details.
From Apple’s post:
macOS Catalina 10.15.5 introduces battery health management, a feature designed to improve the lifespan of your Mac notebook’s battery.
And:
All rechargeable batteries are consumable components that become less effective as they get older—and their age isn’t determined only by time. A battery’s lifespan depends on its chemical age, which is affected by factors such as its temperature history and charging pattern. As your notebook’s battery ages chemically, its charging capacity gets smaller.
And:
The battery health management feature in macOS 10.15.5 is designed to improve your battery’s lifespan by reducing the rate at which it chemically ages. The feature does this by monitoring your battery’s temperature history and its charging patterns.
Based on the measurements that it collects, battery health management may reduce your battery’s maximum charge when in this mode. This happens as needed to ensure that your battery charges to a level that’s optimized for your usage—reducing wear on the battery, and slowing its chemical aging.
Bottom line, you’ll get this new battery intelligence when you update to macOS Catalina 10.15.5. Automatically.
If you’ve held off updating to Catalina, this is a strong reason to make the leap, once 10.15.5 becomes public.
A good resource if you’re trying to get your head around the size and look of the new SE.
This is not about Gruber’s review of the SE, this is from a post titled, “The Quadrennial iPhone SE Schedule”.
A few highlights:
The fact that our collective concern about the time we spend on our phones has grown alongside the physical size of our phones is not a coincidence. The 4-inch 2016 iPhone SE felt like a statement in that regard, whether intended by Apple or not.
An excellent point. Though I still wish for a 4″ form factor, for folks with small hands, no pockets. But we do spend ever more time, do an increasing amount with our phones. Much of that work depends on, and is made possible by, a more complex processor, one that depends on a bigger body for heat dissipation and a larger battery. Not to mention more components.
I think the 4″ form-factor has sailed, part of the past.
Gruber talks about the SE name. From this Fortune article by Jason Cipriani:
Shortly after Apple announced the iPhone SE, I had the chance to ask Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide marketing, the meaning of “SE” in the phone’s name, which deviates slightly from its previous “S” format. SE is an abbreviation for “Special Edition,” Schiller said, a name that, to him, recalled the Macintosh SE, a computer the company released in the late 1980s.
Back to Gruber:
Now we have a second iPhone SE — the first time Apple has reused an old name for a new iPhone. What makes “special edition” apt for the two iPhones bearing the SE name is the way they differ, strategically, from regular edition iPhones.
You could argue that the iPhone X could have been called the iPhone SE, but I do get the naming logic there. That was a fork in the road model, not a one-off special edition.
There’s so much more to Gruber’s post. Take the time to make your way through the whole thing. It’s a terrific read.
I found this useful: AnandTech built a side-by-side chart comparing the specs of the iPhone SE vs all the iPhones 11.
One spec, Battery Life, shown as ?? in the AnandTech chart, is listed on China Telecom’s web site as 1,821 mAh, the same as the iPhone 8.
Also, iPhone SE RAM is said to be 3GB, compared to the 2GB of the iPhone 8. Via the same source.
[VIDEO] Lots of solid takes here (video embedded in main Loop post). Worth watching.
And reminder, this is Rene’s new channel, so hit subscribe, even if you already subscribed to Vector.
The tagline is:
iPhone SE vs. your iPhone. Go.
Pick your iPhone model on the left, scroll to see various comparisons between the new SE and what you have now. Apple’s been doing this side-by-side forever, but this page is specific to the SE.
Good link to share for folks considering the new phone.
My take? This is a great deal, especially for folks running older gear, or folks looking to dip their toes into the Apple ecosystem. I think Apple will sell a ton of these.
Joining the Apple tax stratosphere club, a set of wheels for your Mac Pro, $699.
Been thinking about this pricing. The best I can come up with was this: These are custom wheels, with custom-made attachments. Apple will not sell a ton of these (limited number of Mac Pros, and a limited subset of those folks will want wheels) and so they had to amortize the cost to develop these wheels among those limited sales.
Wondering if somewhere in the hallowed halls, this high price is seen as embellishing the brand, raising the prestige.
Whatever the logic, I see $699 for a set of wheels for my computer (with no wheel locks) as extraordinary.
Post from Sebastiaan de With, founder of Halide, a best-selling (and for good reason) iPhone camera app.
If you are not particularly interested in the camera aspects of the new iPad Pro, skip down about halfway to the section titled, “The Depth Sensor”. That’s where, for me, this post really gets interesting.
Some great explaining, and some really clarifying animated GIFs. This is now my go-to post for passing along to folks who ask about Apple, AR, and LIDAR.
Great read.
Joe Rossignol, MacRumors:
Apple offers two sets of small, medium, or large ear tips for $7.99 each in the United States, with pricing varying in other countries.
Here’s a link to the purchase page. Pick from small, medium, or large. Box of two sets, $7.99.
Motherboard:
Giulio Zompetti, a 27-year-old from Northern Italy, told Motherboard that he purchased half a dozen early prototypes of Apple Watch recently, and is planning to fix them and sell them for thousands of dollars. Zompetti declined to say where exactly he purchased the devices from, but said they come from e-waste facilities. The prototypes he obtained are all broken, but key components are still intact, making it possible to repair them, he said.
Lots of pictures in the linked article.
MacKungFu:
If you open an app you normally use with AirPods, your iPhone or iPad will automatically connect to your AirPods if they’re in your ears – essentially, “stealing” them from whatever they’re currently connected to (for example, your Mac). No need to manually select and connect to them!
This process requires a bit of Shortcuts work. But the steps are very well laid out. A fun project, if you’ve got some time on your hands.
Try as I might, I have not been able to unlock my iPhone with a mask on. Makes sense. With a mask on, my nose is gone, my beard is gone. My own family couldn’t recognize me.
If you have this same experience, give this training process a try, see if it works for you.
Mark Gurman:
Apple Inc. and Google addressed questions about their upcoming Covid-19 smartphone contact-tracing solution on Monday, providing details about a partnership that has raised concerns among some privacy and cybersecurity experts.
One specific concern that was making waves was that of a bad actor seeding false positives. For example, imagine someone putting a device out there that made contact with your iPhone, then reporting it had tested positive, marking you as having had contact with someone who was infected. Much room for malevolent mischief here.
The companies said the tool will require users to verify positive diagnoses before putting that information into the system. Test results will be checked by public health agencies that are building mobile apps that will work with the contact-tracing technology, Apple and Google added. They also defended the privacy of the system, reiterating that users’ names and locations would not be shared or stored.
So far, so good. If the tests are accurate, this should be a good solution.
Enter CNN, with this article, titled Prominent scientists have bad news for the White House about coronavirus antibody tests:
First, the US Food and Drug Administration relaxed its rules, and now companies can sell antibody tests without submitting validation data that shows they actually work.
The American Public Health Lab Association says that has resulted in “crappy” tests flooding the market.
And:
There has been concern that some of the tests might confuse the coronavirus causing the current pandemic with one of several coronaviruses that cause the common cold.
“Lots of tests confuse the two,” Relman said.
Whether these third party tests are used as part of the verification process for Apple/Google contact tracing or not, need this fixed ASAP.
Filipe Espósito, 9to5Mac:
Unlike all other versions of the HomePod Software, 13.4 is derived from tvOS, and no longer the original iOS that iPhone and iPad runs. As we said, this doesn’t affect how you use your HomePod since they all run with the same base system, but it makes us think about what Apple is working on for the future of HomePod.
And:
iOS is designed to work on devices that rely on an internal battery, which means that the way iOS manages power consumption is different from how tvOS does it. Apple TV is always plugged in, and so is the HomePod.
And:
Both Apple TV and HomePod also operate as a home hub for HomeKit, since they’re devices that are always connected at home.
As is, my HomePod and Apple TV do not connect at all. If I ask HomePod Siri to turn on my Apple TV, I jump into a rabbit hole of HomePod trying to run a shortcut, but ultimately failing.
I’m wondering if this path will allow HomePod Siri to act as a hands-free Apple TV remote, with all the power of my iPhone’s Remote app.
And, perhaps, HomePod Siri would know all the shows, Apple TV+, Netflix, Prime Video, etc., give me the power to ask questions, such as, “When is the next episode of The Morning Show” going to drop?” As is, I get, “I can’t get info about TV shows on HomePod. Sorry about that.”
I would welcome these sorts of changes.
If you know someone considering a tablet purchase, this is a good resource to slide their way.
It makes a reasonably easy-to-understand case for the iPad as best-in-class. But it also talks through the differences between all the current models.
[VIDEO] This is a data race, a video (embedded in main Loop post) that shows change in data over time, usually over many years. In this case, we’re looking at market share of operating systems from 2009 (when iOS was a baby) through today.
The big players to keep an eye on are Windows, Android, iOS, and macOS. Obviously, there’s a lot of overlap between all of these, since many (most?) people use more than one, some people use all of them.
Here’s the data source used for the video.
Bloomberg:
Apple Inc. responded to Democratic Senators who sent a letter to Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook with questions related to the privacy of the iPhone maker’s Covid-19 screening tools.
From the letter Apple sent in response:
Consistent with Apple’s strong dedication to user privacy, the COVID-19 app and website were built to protect the privacy and security of users’ data. As you note, use of the tools do not require a sign-in or association with a user’s Apple ID, and users’ individual responses are not sent to Apple or any government organization. Access to important information and guidance regarding individual health or the health of a loved one should not require individuals to compromise their privacy rights. Rather, it is in times like these, that our commitment to protecting those rights is most important. Our COVID-19 app and website were designed with that in mind. We appreciate the opportunity to provide the Senators with more information about the COVID-19 app and website.
The letter goes into a fair amount of detail, solid answers to solid questions. Worth taking the time to read.
I found question 2, and the response, to be especially interesting:
Are the Apple screening site and app governed under the terms of the HIPAA? If not, please explain why.
In a nutshell, the response:
Neither the site nor app are covered by HIPAA. Notwithstanding, we have applied strong privacy and security protections to the app and the website, including designing both tools to meet some of the technical safeguard requirements of HIPAA, such as access controls and transmission security.
And for Google folks, The Verge has a well written post that includes some detail on Google’s approach.
As a reminder, here’s a link to a comic about COVID-19 contact tracing that helped me wrap my head around the basic concepts.
BBC News:
The BBC has learned that NHSX – the health service’s digital innovation unit – will test a pre-release version of the software with families at a secure location in the North of England next week.
And:
People who have self-diagnosed as having coronavirus will be able to declare their status in the app.
The software will then send the equivalent of a yellow alert to any other users who they have recently been close to for an extended period of time.
If a medical test confirms that the original user is indeed infected, then a stronger warning – effectively a red alert – will be sent instead, signalling that the other users should go into quarantine.
There’s been a lot of pushback on the idea of embedding contact tracing in your smartphone. At least some of this pushback seems based on faulty assumptions.
While this is not the actual Apple/Google API, this comic about COVID-19 contact tracing does a great job of laying out the mechanics. I think this is worth reading before you make any assumptions about contact tracing and privacy.
[VIDEO] Obviously, not a scientific review, but still worth watching (video embedded in main Loop post). I have spent a lot of time on Zoom this past week. Way more than I cared to, but that’s another story.
One lesson I learned: Lighting makes a huge difference. Do a search in YouTube for “Zoom lighting” and you’ll see a bunch of videos that lay out the basics.
Make the most of what you got.
Jason Cipriani, CNET:
Being able to control your tablet without touching the display brings the iPad closer to working as a laptop, and in turn, makes it easier to get more work done.
And:
However, not all trackpads or mice are created equal. There’s a big difference in overall experience when using Apple’s first Magic Trackpad or its newer Magic Trackpad 2, which we’ll cover more in-depth below.
Really nice collection of animations, very useful.
Benjamin Mayo, 9to5Mac:
Apple has launched a portal for hospitals, healthcare providers and businesses to register as a COVID-19 testing location. Apple will review the application and when approved, the location will start appearing on Apple Maps.
The testing locations will appear with a red medical glyph icon, and a special banner in the Apple Maps card.
This will become very important as we start easing lockdown restrictions. I can imagine situations where an all-clear is required before you are allowed into densely populated areas. This is an incredibly complex problem to solve.
Will we reach a point where our iPhone broadcasts our COVID-19 status to allow us back into work, or into, say, a sporting event? Privacy concerns abound. Surreal times.
Android Police:
Even if you don’t like Apple, or you think iOS is derpy and restrictive — which is, in my opinion, unarguably true — iPads really do offer the best big-screen tablet environment.
The first half of that sentence is what I expect from Android Police. But what I didn’t expect is the linked post’s rave about the iPad.
Consider how I got here. The linked post’s headline is Do yourself a favor and buy an iPad during lockdown. And they’re not wrong.
Bradley Chambers, 9to5Mac:
I closed out the mobile version of the Kindle website, and I reinstalled Apple Books. As I opened it, it felt like a breath of fresh air. The overall design is just stunning. I hadn’t spent a lot of time with the new interface that Apple released with iOS 12, but I was quickly blown away.
When I read this piece by Bradley Chambers, I. realized that I had been locked into the Kindle app on my iPad for a long, long time. So I fired up Books and dug in. Bradley is right. Apple Books really is a breath of fresh air.
Two things stand out in particular to me. First, the process of sliding the scrollbar to jump to a different location is so much better in Books. As you slide, a popup appears that shows both chapter number/title and page number. Much better than Kindle’s clunky navigation process.
Add to that, the process of searching for and purchasing new books. To be fair, Apple’s 30% fee makes it obvious why Amazon makes you exit the Kindle app and buy your books on the web. Definitely not their fault. But still. Buying new books in the Apple Books app is a pleasure.
MediaPlayNews:
Apple TV Channels, which like Amazon Channels, offers access to third party over-the-top video platforms, is offering extended free access to content during the coronavirus pandemic.
Apple is extending to 30 days free trials to ViacomCBS’ Showtime OTT and MGM-owned Epix (through May 2 with no subscription required), AMC Networks’ Acorn TV and Lifetime Movie Channel, among others.
Lots of great, binge-worthy content here. If you’ve not yet seen it, check out the excellent Pennyworth (on EPIX), a sort of Batman pre-history, but focused on Alfred.
And on Showtime, there’s Billions, Dexter, and Ray Donavon. My tastes do run a bit dark, don’t they?
[VIDEO] Watch the video in the tweet below. Apple is working hard to help, ramping up a manufacturing chain to produce face shields for health workers, and getting those face shields into the hands of those who need them.
And sharing the details is Tim Cook, a calm, rational voice at the center of the storm. Well done Tim. Well done Apple.
https://twitter.com/tim_cook/status/1246916489589837824
Have you watched Amazing Stories? If not, this will give you a taste. To me, this genre is interesting, sort of a palette cleanser between other shows. Like Little America, you can watch one, or binge the whole thing, stop any time you like.
I see this as the short story collection, a break from the commitment to a full length novel.