Great way to get a sense of the visual change coming with macOS Big Sur. Scroll through the images, keep in mind that’s Catalina on the left, Big Sur on the right (mostly).
Also keep in mind that Big Sur is a first beta. Some details may (and likely will) change.
Follow the headline link, then drink in that subtle padlock animation on the load page. Reload the page if you missed it.
Now start scrolling. Every panel has its own detailed animation. Amazing how much effort Apple put into this page. Curious what tool they used.
Visual Capitalist:
As brick-and-mortar chains teeter in the face of the pandemic, Amazon continues to gain ground.
The retail juggernaut is valued at no less than $1.4 trillion—roughly four times what it was in late 2016 when its market cap hovered around $350 billion. Last year, the Jeff Bezos-led company shipped 2 billion packages around the world.
Today’s infographic shows how Amazon’s market cap alone is bigger than the nine biggest U.S. retailers put together, highlighting the palpable presence of the once modest online bookstore.
Amazon is a remarkable success story that may destroy retail commerce through market dominance.
TechCrunch:
What started out as Hunt’s pet project to learn the basics of Microsoft’s cloud, Have I Been Pwned quickly exploded in popularity, driven in part by its simplicity to use, but largely by individuals’ curiosity.
As the service grew, Have I Been Pwned took on a more proactive security role by allowing browsers and password managers to bake in a backchannel to Have I Been Pwned to warn against using previously breached passwords in its database. It was a move that also served as a critical revenue stream to keep down the site’s running costs.
But Have I Been Pwned’s success should be attributed almost entirely to Hunt, both as its founder and its only employee, a one-man band running an unconventional startup, which, despite its size and limited resources, turns a profit.
I’ve used the site for years but always with a sense of dread.
TidBITS:
I would never have bought both the AirPods and AirPods Pro intentionally, but suddenly I could choose which I wanted at any given time. It was a natural experiment, and after over a month of regular use, I can declare a winner, at least for my ears and my use cases. Here’s my head-to-head comparison.
If you’re trying to decide between the two, Engst can help.
AppleInsider:
The next step in Apple’s goal of making the iPhone the sole thing anyone has to carry, continues with the device being able to securely replace passports, driver’s licenses, and other physical forms of identification.
Apple most recently announced a plan to rid the world of car keys, but the iPhone has already made us forget what it’s like to carry diaries, cameras, pens, and even mirrors. Now the company is focusing on getting rid of passports — plus library cards, ski passes, and ID cards in general.
I’m sure that kind of world is coming fairly soon and maybe I’m just a curmudgeon but there is no way I would do this. I’ve lost/forgotten my phone too many times to allow something as important as my passport to reside on it. Now, if it means I’d have my passport or driver’s license handy but use the iPhone for ease of use, then I can see that. But I would never let it replace (as in, leave at home) those things. Hell, I still carry around credit cards for those still all-too-frequent times when I can’t use my iPhone.
9to5Mac:
Apple has recently started sending surveys to iPhone users about how they use the USB charger that comes in the box. This comes ahead of the iPhone 12 announcement later this year and also rumors about Apple not including the USB charger and EarPods in the box for the first time.
The survey asks users what they did with the USB charger of their previous iPhone after replacing it with a new model, so Apple is targeting people who were already iPhone users and recently bought a new one.
Apple also explains that the survey refers to the USB power adapter and not to the Lightning cable.
Keep in mind, this is so far limited to some Brazilian users but it may be a portent of things to come.
Dave and I spent some time talking about the Apple Design Awards and the Mac before Dave got me talking about YouTube TV and the recent price hike. We also looked at what I’d like to have in some of these streaming apps.
Open Culture:
Who can call themselves fans of cyberpunk, or even modern science fiction, without having experienced William Gibson’s Neuromancer? That 1984 novel, which many see as the defining work of the sci-fi subgenre where, as Gibson himself put it, “high tech meets low life,” has gone through many print runs in many languages.
But you don’t need to read it to get to know its distinctive reality — its Japanese megalopolis setting of Chiba City, its characters like “console cowboy” Case and “street samurai” Molly Millions, its technologies like advanced artificial intelligence, electromagnetic pulse weapons, a virtual reality space called, yes, the Matrix. You can also hear it.
Blew my mind when I first read it and I’ve devoured everything by him since. One of my great joys was seeing him in a local pub (he lives here in Vancouver) and being able to buy him a pint.
Digg:
The Murphy Ladder’s marketing team brought their A game for this hilarious advertisement.
They’re not wrong – ladder commercials have never been this funny. Coincidentally, with all the work we’re doing around the house under lockdown, I’m in the market for a new ladder. Sadly, this can’t be delivered to us in Canada without paying the purchase price again in shipping charges.
Apple:
iOS 14 brings a fresh look to the things you do most often, making them easier than ever.
This is quite a long list.
The Sweet Setup:
HEY has disrupted nearly every element of my email workflow. HEY has allowed me to experience a new level of email productivity, and it has even created a new sense of zen-like Inbox Zero in my Imbox, without archiving, deleting, or snoozing.
HEY has actually created enough breathing room in my email life that I’ve searched out new newsletters to subscribe to. I’m no longer afraid of adding to my email inbox.
HEY is my favorite new service to launch. Ever. I’ve worked with and tested all sorts of services doing this job for The Sweet Setup, and HEY is the most revolutionary product I’ve ever tried.
After all the kerfuffle over this app, it’s good to read something about how it actually works.
Macworld:
Apple Card launched as a very futuristic, privacy-focused credit card, but with several glaring omissions. Namely, it didn’t work well with most financial management software, and there was no way to manage your card without your iPhone.
Over time, Apple has added the ability to export statements in a variety of popular formats, which will make it easier to use with financial management apps and services. And on Thursday, Apple finally launched a web portal to manage your card.
Apple Card customers can head to card.apple.com and log in with their Apple ID to view their balance and terms, download past statements in PDF format, and change their payment schedule and associated bank accounts.
Welcome news to those of you lucky enough to have an Apple Card.
Above Avalon:
For the second year in a row, Apple held a developers conference that should frighten its competitors. It speaks volumes that Apple held its strongest WWDC in years during the middle of a pandemic while two of its largest competitors, Google and Facebook, decided to skip their annual developers conferences.
Unfortunately for Apple competitors, the combination of a revised product strategy and unique definition of innovation didn’t just make for strong WWDC keynotes. Consumers are noticing and wanting what Apple is selling. Consider the following trends:
Apple hasn’t just held its own in the smartphone space but rather is continuing to take share from Android. Of all the smartphone manufacturers, Apple saw the largest sales share increase in the smartphone industry last quarter, and that was during a pandemic.
Apple is adding approximately 20 million new iPad users per year despite the iPad being 10 years old and already having an installed base exceeding 300 million users.
Apple’s oldest major product category, the Mac, is adding 10 million new users per year.
Apple Watch and AirPods are quickly approaching 100 million user bases each.
Apple users are paying for 518 million subscriptions across Apple’s platforms, which is up 126 million in just a year.
Lots to digest here but the bottom line is Apple seems to be hitting on all cylinders.
Great video by MKBHD on the rumor (grain of salt) that the next gen iPhones will ship without a charger, charging cable, and earPods in the box.
True, it’s just a rumor, and we typically avoid those on The Loop, but this isn’t simple mongering. Instead, it’s an interesting take on the pros and cons of including stuff in the box that we already likely have, the potential massive savings in packaging waste, and the question of how such a move might impact price.
Side note: I found this Reddit post to be an interesting detailed breakdown of that potential packaging impact.
Michael Flarup:
With the redesign of macOS 11 Big Sur, Apple has made many interface changes and updated the appearance of apps. Materials and dimensionality has made its way back into the interface —and every single app icon for every application and utility that Apple ships with macOS has been redesigned with depth, textures and lighting. This is a big deal. Probably bigger than what most people realise.
Scroll through the post, check out the images. You can’t help but see the emergence of realism in the design, as well as elements that bring macOS a bit closer to iOS (check out the squircles in the Big Sur icon image, about halfway down).
I do agree it’s a pendulum swing, from the full on felt, metal, and torn paper of skeuomorphism, to lossy flat design, to a gentle mix of the two. I’m enjoying the reemergence of fun.
Road Show:
BMW is raising the ante by making many car options into software services enabled whenever you want them. The disconcerting part? They can be disabled, too.
And:
In a VR presentation streamed from Germany today, BMW ran through a series of digital updates to its cars, including more details on the new BMW digital key service announced with Apple at last week’s WWDC and confirming that current model cars will be fully software upgradeable over the air, a la Tesla.
And:
The most notable part of the day’s presentation was the new plan to turn many options into software services. BMW mentioned everything from advanced safety systems like adaptive cruise and automatic high-beams to other, more discrete options like heated seats.
It’s a services world. Pay up.
MarketWatch:
Zuckerberg said the boycott is more of a PR issue than one that will hurt the social-media giant’s bottom line, according to a report Wednesday by The Information, which cited a transcript of remarks Zuckerberg gave at an employees-only virtual town hall Friday.
“We’re not gonna change our policies or approach on anything because of a threat to a small percent of our revenue, or to any percent of our revenue,” he said, according to The Information.
Here’s a link to The Information article [paywall].
More from Zuckerberg’s town hall remarks:
“You know, we don’t technically set our policies because of any pressure that people apply to us,” he said, according to The Information. “And, in fact, usually I tend to think that if someone goes out there and threatens you to do something, that actually kind of puts you in a box where in some ways it’s even harder to do what they want because now it looks like you’re capitulating, and that sets up bad long-term incentives for others to do that [to you] as well.”
Two things: First, no. If you are wrong, get called on being wrong, then turn around and do what’s right, fixing what’s wrong is a double-win. You are doing the right thing, and you get your advertisers back.
And second, this provides even more incentive for advertisers to boycott Facebook and more incentive for people to delete their Facebook account.
Side note, I’d love to know of a Facebook alternative that is privacy respecting, truth valuing, easy for folks to use, and that provides an easy way for families to keep in touch. If you know of such a beast, please do share.
Rep. David Cicilline, who has become one of the biggest critics of the enormous power tech wields, said that Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Google’s Sundar Pichai and Tim Cook of Apple will testify in front of the House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee.
— Kara Swisher (@karaswisher) July 1, 2020
This might be a big deal or it might be a nothing burger depending on the skills and knowledge set of the various congresspeople asking the questions. I don’t hold much confidence in their skills though.
Apple TV:
For those who desire everything — love, rage, intrigue, elation, and awe.
Discover current Apple Originals and get a first look at shows and movies coming to Apple TV+ later this year.
Watch the award-winning series The Morning Show and Dickinson, plus favorites like Defending Jacob, See, Beastie Boys Story, Central Park, Helpsters, Dear…, and Servant. Then get ready for the release of Greyhound, Foundation, Ted Lasso, On the Rocks, Boys State, Long Way Up, and Wolfwalkers.
Like many providers, Apple TV+ has some very good titles. But I don’t think they have found – yet – that one series that makes people sign up for the service. I’m not saying they need that. But pickings are definitely slim once you’ve gone through the starting slate of shows.
WSJ:
The reviews are in for Apple Inc.’s first-ever online-only software conference: Virtual tech conferences can work.
Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference last week became a bellwether for the potential of corporate gatherings that take place exclusively online as the coronavirus pandemic makes physical conferences impossible.
Developers said they missed the serendipitous social interactions of in-person conferences, but many praised the sharp production and easier access of this year’s event, which was streamed free for eligible participants.
This year, the keynote was prerecorded, featuring senior Apple employees presenting without a live audience from various settings around Apple Park, the company’s 2.8-million-square-foot circular headquarters. Apple said tens of millions of people watched the keynote Monday.
It may give them hope but few if any have the ability execute across the board like Apple does.
Ars Technica:
Today Ars Technica brings you inside the pilot’s seat of an F-15C Eagle fighter jet to break down every button in the cockpit. Join retired United States Air Force pilot Col. Andrea Themely as she walks you through everything at your disposal, from emergency features and communication controls to navigation features and weapons and defense. With 1100 hours of experience piloting F-15’s, Col. Themely expert eye is ready to guide you each step of the way.
This is insanely cool. We’ve all seen movies and TV shows of the inside of various aircraft cockpits so this walkthrough from a veteran F-15C Eagle fighter pilot is the best 15 minutes you’ll spend all day geeking out on awesome tech.
This looks compelling. Right to the top of my “want to see” list.
The Verge:
…the company starts to offer eight of ViacomCBS’s channels, which are available today: BET, CMT, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Network, TV Land, and VH1.
And:
For comparison, Hulu’s Live TV plan costs $54.99 (a price that includes access to Hulu’s library of content, but lacks the unlimited DVR storage that YouTube TV offers), AT&T TV starts at $55 per month (with hefty increases after 12 months), and Sling TV’s full plan costs $45 per month. While there may be some concerns that YouTube TV is edging closer to the cost of actual cable, there are some advantages to Google’s over-the-top service, including easy access from nearly any device with an internet connection, a lower barrier to entry when it comes to additional hardware, and a much better UI than nearly any cable set-top box.
The cord cutter marketplace is still in flux, and likely will be for some time. Hard to see a clear winner in these piecemeal bundles. Seems like a disruption (to cable bundles) is coming, but still way over the horizon. I think things would move way faster if internet access and content delivery were two separate and untethered businesses.
Follow the headline link for a guided walkthrough with pics, or the video below (< 5 min) to see all that’s new in watchOS 7.
Bloomberg:
On calls in mid-April, an Apple Arcade creative producer told some developers that their upcoming games didn’t have the level of “engagement” Apple is seeking, the people said. Apple is increasingly interested in titles that will keep users hooked, so subscribers stay beyond the free trial of the service, according to the people.
And:
On the calls with developers in April, the Apple Arcade representative cited a specific example of the type of game the company wants: Grindstone, an engaging puzzle-action game by Capybara Games that has many levels.
And, from Apple:
“Apple Arcade has redefined what a gaming service can be, putting unlimited play at the fingertips of subscribers and their families across all their Apple devices,” Apple said in a statement. “We are proud to have launched the first-ever mobile game subscription service that now features more than 120 games, many of which are award-winning and widely celebrated for their artistry and gameplay. The vision has always been to grow and evolve the Apple Arcade catalog, and we can’t wait for our users to try the games developers are working on now.”
This seems a sound business strategy. For Apple Arcade to work, it needs the revenue from users who pay to stay beyond their free trial. And games that pull users in are going to be the winners here, both for their studios and for Apple.
Foo Yun Chee, Reuters:
“We compete with a wide variety of companies, Google, Samsung, Huawei HWT.UL, Vivo, LG 066570.KS, Lenovo 0992.HK and many more,” Daniel Matray, head of Apple’s App Store and Apple Media Services, told a Forum Europe online event.
“In fact, Apple does not have a dominant position in any market, and we face strong competition in every category, in tablets, wearables, desktop and notebook computers, maps, music, payments, messaging, and more,” he said.
And:
Matray defended Apple’s App Store, saying the same rules apply to all developers, large and small, with 85% of apps not required to pay a 30% fee to the company which is only valid for those which use its in-app payment service.
Not sure what else one could expect Matray to say. Making the talking points to defend against the EU antitrust investigations into the App Store and Apple Pay.
Ars Technica:
The touchscreen navigation/infotainment system in every new car or truck that some colloquially refer to as “the GPS” is technology that we take for granted today. But the road to today’s navigation touchscreens is a winding one marked by a trio of evolving technologies that developed over decades. It took a while before these innovations came together to ultimately doom the humble—not to mention difficult to read and refold—road map.
The next time you don’t know how to get somewhere and have to rely on maps embedded on your car’s display, you can thank the atomic clock, the satellite constellations powering actual global positioning systems, and the humble touchscreen.
I have the world’s worst sense of direction so GPS is literally crucial to me. I first used a Magellan system in a Hertz rental car 20 years ago and, while it was buggy, got me to my destination in Ohio from Nashville, TN and back with so little fuss (except for when I ignored it because I thought I knew better) that I almost wept with joy knowing my frustration with constantly being lost was almost over.
Objective-See:
Early today, the noted Malware researcher Dinesh Devadoss tweeted about a new piece of macOS ransomware “impersonating as Google Software Update program with zero detection.”
It’s not every day that a new piece of ransomware is uncovered that targets macOS. Moreover, as RansomWhere? claims to be able to generically detect such threats, I decided to take a peek at the malware and confirm my tool could detect it (with no a priori knowledge).
This is a really interesting if techy post on how malware hunters do their thing.
AnyList:
Starting June 30th, Apple will be enforcing a new rule in the App Store requiring many apps to support Sign in with Apple. AnyList is one of the apps affected by this new rule, which means that we must either implement Sign in with Apple or make other changes to our app. After considering the merits of Sign in with Apple, we have decided not to support it. We understand that this may surprise some of our customers, so we’d like to explain in detail why we made this decision.
We agree with Apple that privacy is a fundamental human right, and understand that the “Hide My Email” option in Sign in with Apple is well-intentioned, but it feels like Apple didn’t really think through all of the implications for basic user experience, customer support, and collaboration.
Beyond customer experience, there are also many problems that Sign in with Apple creates for us as developers, which has knock-on effects for our customers.
AnyList is my go-to app for collecting and sharing recipes and grocery lists with my wife. While most of us will love the “Sign in with Apple” feature, this is an interesting look at how it would be a PITA for some developers.