Follow the headline link, scroll through the list.

Also worth knowing about is the Unicode Emoji list, which has been updated with the latest and greatest.

If you have AirPods Pro, enable spatial audio (here’s a tweet to show you how) and follow the headline link to watch the trailer.

I’ve also heard Ted Lasso mentioned as a great spatial audio tester, but this Dolby Atmos trailer is denser, really shows off the experience.

Preshit Deorukhkar pulled together this detailed iOS 14 Widget explainer. It’s full of pictures, too, so you really get a sense of how all this works.

Great read.

Tim Hardwick, MacRumors:

When enabled, Optimized Battery Charging learns from your personal device habits and waits to finish charging all the way up until you need your ‌Apple Watch.

For example, if you regularly charge up your watch at night while you’re asleep, the device may opt to limit its charging to the 80 percent mark, and then wait for an hour or so before you wake up to charge the remaining 20 percent.

Read the post to find this setting. Worth knowing about.

I’m actually pretty happy with Safari and privacy, but I’m going to give DuckDuckGo a try as my default browser.

To do this yourself:

• Download the DuckDuckGo app (it’s free) from the App Store
• Go to Settings > DuckDuckGo (you’ll likely need to scroll a bit)
• Tap Default Browser App and tap DuckDuckGo

Here’s a link to DuckDuckGo’s iOS 14 blog post.

UPDATE: I’ve been told that the linked site is infested with malware, so I’ve taken down the link. I replaced it with a link to Apple’s “compare all models” page. Follow the headline link, click “Compare all models” link. Not quite as easy to glean, but better than just deleting the post, which was my first instinct. [H/T @longleaps]

OK, technically, the Series 0 is not on here, but that’s a quibble.

This is a great chart, showing what watch models support what features.

For example, Family Setup only works on Series 4 or later, and only on cellular models.

Find your model, make your way down the chart to see what you’re missing. Time for an upgrade?

Butch Walker’s production and songwriting resumé is not only impressive, it’s extensive. A quick snapshot of the Georgia native’s work over the last 15 years include producing and co-writing with Taylor Swift (on perhaps her most rocking record, 2012’s Red), in addition to Pink, Gavin DeGraw, Harry Connick, Jr., Fall Out Boy, Weezer, The Struts, and Train.

But Walker is an equally prolific artist in his own right, with nearly a dozen albums since 2002’s deft Left of Self-Centered, all of which display Walker’s fierce guitar playing, power-pop writing gifts, and broad production palette. More recently, he has been busy on new albums by Jewel, The Wallflowers, and Green Day’s latest LP, Father of All…, which sees Walker escorting Billie Joe and the boys through some of the garage-y, glam-approved territory. Here Walker details how Apollo, UAD, and OX Amp Top Box helped deliver one of Green Day’s most ambitious records yet.

I use Universal Audio gear every time I plug in a mic to do a podcast or plug in a guitar to record a song. It’s fascinating to see how the pros are using the same gear I am to record their music.

Apple:

Apple today announced Apple One, the easiest way to get all of Apple’s subscription services in one simple plan, including Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, Apple Fitness+, and iCloud. With a single subscription, customers in over 100 countries and regions can enjoy their favorite Apple services across their favorite devices, including iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Apple TV, and Mac.

This announcement almost got lost in the noise of all the other announcements. Been looking forward to learning more about the Apple One bundles.

Here are the pricing details:

• Individual includes Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, and 50GB of iCloud storage for $14.95 per month.
• Family includes Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, and 200GB of iCloud storage for $19.95 per month, and can be shared among up to six family members.
• Premier, where available, includes Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, Apple Fitness+, and 2TB of iCloud storage for $29.95 per month, and can be shared among up to six family members.

The Premier is a no-brainer for me. I already spend $15/month for Apple Music, $10/month for iCloud storage. So $5/month adds in Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, and Apple Fitness+. That’s an incredible deal. I’m in!

Coming this Fall. And don’t forget: 3% cash back if you pay with Apple Card.

From Thord Hedengren’s iPad newsletter:

The new iPad Air is in a weird place though, or rather, it muddies the iPad lineup a bit. It can use the Magic Keyboard originally made for the 11” iPad Pro, but the Air’s screen is 10.9”, so the bezels must be a tiny bit bigger on the Air compared to the 11” iPad Pro. It also uses the second generation Apple Pencil, the magnetic one.

So far, not much different. But:

The iPad Air doesn’t have the full camera array, just the one 12 megapixel wide lens. The front facing camera isn’t the TrueDepth like on the Pro either, so while they’re both 7 megapixels, it can’t do Portrait mode or be used for Animojis or Memojis, nor does it work with Face ID. Instead, the iPad Air has Touch ID built into the top button. Furthermore, the Air has two speakers placed for landscape mode, whereas Pro models has four speakers. The Air screen doesn’t have ProMotion and is somewhat less bright (500 nits compared to the Pro’s 600 nits). It’s also a wee bit thicker, but weighs a little less. And, to wrap all the differences up, the Air comes with up to 256 GB storage, starting at the puny 64 GB, which will disqualify an otherwise truly capable machine for many users.

As I was watching yesterday’s event, I was wondering about the differences between the iPad Pro and the new iPad Air. Good to know the specifics.

Note that the new iPad Air has an A14 Bionic, while the iPad Pro is built on the A12Z Bionic.

If you are considering buying a new iPad, here’s the iPad Pro spec page, and here’s the iPad Air spec page.

Read the whole thing. Very touching. But this bit stood out to me:

Dad wrote me a letter on my 50th birthday. It is one of my most prized possessions. In it, he encouraged me to stay curious. He said some very touching things about how much he loved being a father to my sisters and me. “Over time,” he wrote, “I have cautioned you and others about the overuse of the adjective ‘incredible’ to apply to facts that were short of meeting its high standard. This is a word with huge meaning to be used only in extraordinary settings. What I want to say, here, is simply that the experience of being your father has been… incredible.”

I can only imagine.

Apple:

Apple today introduced an all-new iPad Air — the most powerful, versatile, and colorful iPad Air ever. Now available in five gorgeous finishes, iPad Air features an all-screen design with a larger 10.9-inch Liquid Retina display, camera and audio upgrades, a new integrated Touch ID sensor in the top button, and the powerful A14 Bionic for a massive boost in performance, making this by far the most powerful and capable iPad Air ever made. The new iPad Air will be available starting next month.

First off, this one’s a screamer, performance-wise. The fastest chip Apple has put into any device. Presumably, this same chip will power the iPhone 12 and, maybe, the new Arm-based Mac. This is no small thing.

And that Touch ID sensor seems a huge move. Just imagine if Apple added that sensor to the iPhone 12. Best of both worlds, especially when you are wearing a mask. That’s pure speculation on my part, not even likely, but I think it’d be a great solution.

Apple:

Apple today introduced the eighth-generation iPad, featuring the powerful A12 Bionic chip that brings the Neural Engine to the entry iPad for the first time. Starting at just $329, the upgrade packs even more value into the most popular and affordable iPad, featuring a stunning 10.2-inch Retina display, advanced cameras, and great all-day battery life.

And:

The eighth-generation iPad with the A12 Bionic chip delivers a huge leap in performance, with 40 percent faster CPU performance and twice the graphics capability. This makes the new iPad up to two times faster than the top-selling Windows laptop, up to three times faster than the top-selling Android tablet and up to six times faster than the top-selling Chromebook. For the first time on iPad, A12 Bionic introduces the Neural Engine for next-level machine learning capabilities, including people occlusion and motion tracking in augmented reality (AR) apps, enhanced photo editing, Siri performance, and more.

Available to order now, availability beginning Friday.

Apple:

Apple today announced Apple Watch Series 6, introducing a revolutionary Blood Oxygen feature that offers users even more insight into their overall wellness. Apple Watch Series 6 delivers many notable hardware improvements, including a faster S6 System in Package (SiP) and next-generation always-on altimeter, along with its most colorful lineup yet, featuring a beautiful palette of new case finishes and bands. watchOS 7 brings Family Setup, sleep tracking, automatic handwashing detection, new workout types, and the ability to curate and share watch faces, encouraging customers to be more active, stay connected, and better manage their health in new ways.

There was a ton packed into this part of the keynote. All the hardware mentioned above, plus Family Setup and Apple Fitness+.

Along with the hardware additions to Apple Watch, Apple has made some significant additions to the ecosystem, bringing in kids (think Apple Watch SE combined with Family Setup) and expanding their fitness base with Apple Fitness+.

As I mentioned in this tweet, I think Apple has just taken on Peloton, offering a range of moderated fitness classes, but instead of tying them to a bike or treadmill (Peloton’s model), they’ve tied the classes to the Apple Watch and Apple’s other hardware.

I think this rollout is significant. And the Apple bundle pricing seems very attractive. I am bullish here.

Apple:

Apple today announced Apple Watch SE, packing the essential features of Apple Watch into a modern design customers love — all at a more affordable price. The largest and most advanced Retina display allows customers to easily see more details and the information that matters most, right on their wrist. Apple Watch SE features the same accelerometer, gyroscope, and always-on altimeter as Apple Watch Series 6, and with the latest motion sensors and microphone, it offers robust health and safety capabilities including fall detection, Emergency SOS, international emergency calling, and the Noise app.

With the introduction of Family Setup, this is a perfect watch for kids.

Apple Watch SE (GPS) starts at $279 and Apple Watch SE (GPS + Cellular) starts at $329.

It’ll be available to order later today, with availability this Friday.

Apple:

Apple today announced Family Setup in watchOS 7, bringing the communication, health, fitness, and safety features of Apple Watch to kids and older family members of the household who do not have an iPhone. For the first time, Apple Watch can be set up through a parent’s iPhone, so kids can connect with family and friends through phone calls and Messages, stay motivated with personalized Activity goals, and express their creativity through custom Memoji.

This definitely addresses a hole in Apple’s offerings. I suspect this will help nudge parents to buy an Apple Watch for their kids.

Apple:

The government of Singapore and Apple today announced their partnership on the health initiative LumiHealth, a personalized program to encourage healthy activity and behaviors using Apple Watch. The first-of-its-kind program was designed by Singapore’s Health Promotion Board in conjunction with Apple as part of the country’s Smart Nation initiative, a national effort to leverage technology to deliver benefits to its citizens and businesses.

And:

The LumiHealth app, designed with user privacy and security at its core, is available in the App Store for pre-order now, and the two-year program will be offered from late October 2020.

John Voorhees, MacStories:

AirPods Pro firmware version 3A283 is currently rolling out to users with two new features: spatial audio and automatic device switching.

And:

Check the firmware version of your AirPods by connecting them to an iPhone or iPad and going to the Bluetooth section of the Settings app. Tap on the blue info button next to the entry for your AirPods, and scroll down to the Version number near the bottom of the view.

Or dive deep into Settings > General > About > [your AirPods Pro name]

Apple’s description of spatial audio:

Spatial audio with dynamic head tracking brings the movie theater experience right to your AirPods Pro.11 applying directional audio filters and subtly adjusting the frequencies each ear receives, spatial audio can place sounds virtually anywhere in space, creating an immersive surround sound experience. Using the gyroscope and accelerometer in your AirPods Pro and your iPhone, spatial audio tracks the motion of your head as well as your device, compares the motion data, and then remaps the sound field so that it stays anchored to your device even as your head moves.

Follow the headline post for John’s description of the spatial audio experience.

Also part of the update, for both 2nd gen AirPods and AirPods Pro is automatic device switching.

From Apple:

AirPods automatically switch between your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, and Apple Watch paired to the same iCloud account, making it even easier to use your AirPods with your Apple devices.

This is the magic part for me. I’ve not tested this yet, but I’m hoping this applies to the Apple TV as well.

I often have my AirPods Pro connected to my iPhone, then turn on my Apple TV. I’d love if my AirPods switched over to the Apple TV without my having to do the long-press on the play button dance to connect them. I’d also love it if, when I shut my Apple TV, the connection returned to my iPhone.

Washington Post:

Mario as a character first debuted with the name Jumpman in “Donkey Kong” in 1981. But Nintendo wanted a new hit game just like 먹튀, and Miyamoto had ideas for an “athletic” focused game starring a “large character.” The first prototype of the first game didn’t include Mario, and didn’t even have a principle protagonist. It wasn’t until later that Mario was retrofitted as the lead character and named after the landlord of the company’s then-new Seattle warehouse location.

And:

It’s well known that even Miyamoto didn’t expect Mario’s popularity, but it wasn’t lost to him and his team that they were working on something new and exciting for the world. The first game’s prototype hero was a “rectangular sprite that was 16×42 pixels and basically only able to move and jump,” Tezuka said. But even played in that diminished state, the team was excited for the game’s promise.

And:

The Post interviewed, by email, four of the principle figures in Mario’s proud and enduring history: Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of Mario, Zelda and Nintendo representative director; Tezuka, assistant director for the first game and producer for several others; Yoshiaki Koizumi, director of “Super Mario Sunshine” and “Super Mario Galaxy”; and Kenta Motokura, character design for “Sunshine” and director of “Super Mario 3-D World” and “Super Mario Odyssey.”

Delicious read. Amazing how strong the Mario brand has remained, and grown, after all this time. Is there another video game character with as much worldwide recognition as Mario? I can think of a few that might be close (Pac-Man, Sonic, Link), but I’d pick Mario as the most recognizable of the bunch.

If you are at all intrigued by Microsoft’s new, folding, Surface Duo, this is a terrific read. Panos Panay, Microsoft’s chief product officer, talks through the path that took him past the failed Surface Mini concept to what ultimately shipped.

I’d absolutely love it if Apple regularly shared its thinking on product design and evolution.

Michael Steeber:

Apple Burlingame in Burlingame, California is the first location to pilot what Apple calls “Express,” a simplified version of the Apple Store experience that resembles a bank teller window. Apple has partitioned off the entryway to the store with a temporary wall, wood counters, and plexiglass shields to serve customers at. Two sets of shelving display popular accessories available to purchase.

And:

Customers with existing online orders can simply walk up to the counter and collect their purchase. Genius Bar appointments are served at a second counter. Only one customer per counter is allowed in the store’s entry, and walk-in shopping is not available at this time.

I do like the concept, especially once we get past COVID times. Similar to a restaurant that features a walk-up window (with its own line) for to-go orders.

Global Times:

US semiconductor maker Nvidia said it will acquire UK-based computer chip designer Arm Holdings from SoftBank Group in a transaction worth $40 billion, a deal that could put the Chinese semiconductor industry at the risk of US control, Chinese analysts said.

The acquisition is likely to encounter roadblocks from China’s regulators, they added.

And:

“As part of Nvidia, Arm will continue to operate its open-licensing model while maintaining the global customer neutrality that has been foundational to its success,” the US firm said in a statement.

However, the “neutrality” is in serious doubt as Arm will become part of a US firm, which means the Trump administration could contain China’s growing chipset industry from the design side, following its crackdown on Huawei, Ma Jihua, a veteran telecom industry analyst, told the Global Times on Monday.

“The acquisition will affect the development path of China’s chipset industry as most of its products are based on Arm architecture,” said Ma.

Interesting.

For a brief, fleeting few hours last night, I had the glorious ability to edit my tweets.

Turned out it was a bug. Kinda fun, though.

Follow the headline link for Ben Lovejoy’s walkthrough on how this emerged, a video of the bug in action, and TwitterComm’s splash of cold water at the end.

This is the press release from US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announcing their latest seizure in the war against counterfeit goods.

Take a look at the image. It says “OnePlus Buds” on the packaging. Knockoffs, maybe, but genuine knockoffs, not counterfeits.

I like the OnePlus USA response to the whole seizure:

Hey, give those back! 🙃

— OnePlus USA (@OnePlus_USA) September 14, 2020