iPhone SE (1st gen) is not compatible with the HomePod.
To the three people in the world who have a 1st gen iPhone SE and are trying to connect it to their HomePod mini, just wanted to let you know that you’re resilience is admirable, but you’re out of luck. 📓
Right now my wife uses my “old” iPhone 15 Pro Max as her white noise device connected to the HomePod mini, but I need that iPhone to be ready to be my new main device when WWDC comes along in June. The 16 Pro Max will be designated as my testing device.
The only other iPhone I have that I can use is my 1st gen iPhone SE on its latest software version of 15.8.3.
It wouldn’t connect to the HomePod, or any of my HomeKit devices. Turns out you need iOS or iPad OS 16.3 or later.
To the three people in the world who have a 1st gen iPhone SE and are trying to connect it to their HomePod mini, just wanted to let you know that you’re resilience is admirable, but you’re out of luck.
Apple still sells the iPhone 13 mini as a refurbished device.
Mark Gurman had a livestream today where he had bad news for iPhone mini lovers.
From MacRumors:
Gurman said that Apple currently has no plans to reintroduce a smaller iPhone model.
You didn’t need Mark Gurman to tell you this, but this shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. If a device doesn’t sell to Apple’s standards, it won’t keep it on the market. On the flip side, Apple’s refurbished store does have the iPhone 13 mini in stock every once in a while, and it was on their site a few days ago (sold out right now).
If you really want one because you missed out earlier, or because your current 12 mini or 13 mini is on its last legs, keep refreshing the site and you might score one.
Just as a reminder, Apple’s refurbished devices are a great deal in my opinion. They do come at a higher price tag than other 3rd party resellers, but you essentially get a brand new iPhone with a full warranty.
From Apple’s website:
All refurbished iPhone models come with a new battery, a new outer shell, a one-year limited warranty, and free delivery and returns.
This also includes:
• Full functional testing, genuine Apple part replacements (if needed), and a thorough cleaning
• The original operating system or a more recent version
• All accessories and cables repackaged in a brand‑new box
Mark Gurman had a livestream today where he had bad news for iPhone mini lovers.
From MacRumors:
Gurman said that Apple currently has no plans to reintroduce a smaller iPhone model.
You didn’t need Mark Gurman to tell you this, but this shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. If a device doesn’t sell to Apple’s standards, it won’t keep it on the market. On the flip side, Apple’s refurbished store does have the iPhone 13 mini in stock every once in a while, and it was on their site a few days ago (sold out right now).
If you really want one because you missed out earlier, or because your current 12 mini or 13 mini is on its last legs, keep refreshing the site and you might score one.
Just as a reminder, Apple’s refurbished devices are a great deal in my opinion. They do come at a higher price tag than other 3rd party resellers, but you essentially get a brand new iPhone with a full warranty.
From Apple’s website:
All refurbished iPhone models come with a new battery, a new outer shell, a one-year limited warranty, and free delivery and returns.
This also includes:
• Full functional testing, genuine Apple part replacements (if needed), and a thorough cleaning
• The original operating system or a more recent version
• All accessories and cables repackaged in a brand‑new box
I hope WWDC brings these two fixes in watchOS 12.
There’s been a viral clip going around X ever since the Siri fiasco took off.
A clip emphasizing simplicity.
A clip emphasizing stability.
It was about the new features in Snow Leopard back in 2009, and how Apple proudly announced zero new features.
Although there were new features, what Apple was trying to emphasize was software stability and how important it was to them to make sure, “it just works.”
The famous “it just works,” implying how seamless and unbelievable it is, and not the jerry rigged “it juuust (barely) works.”
Apple had a more recent instance similar to this with iOS9 in 2015, where Craig Federighi discussed how the focus was on “elevating the foundations” of iOS, such as extending battery life, improving performance, and enhancing security to protect customer data.
watchOS needs its Snow Leopard / iOS 9 moment. Have a few updates to wow the people and please Wall Street, but really hunker down and fix some key issues.
Two issues to be exact.
The first issue is the ability to swipe between your watch faces. This was a staple and stable feature starting with watchOS 3 before watchOS 10 had its huge overhaul with SmartStack. You would effortlessly swipe between watch faces and all your information was just there, present and up to date. In watchOS 10, that feature went away for a while, and I was not happy about it:
A barbaric touch and hold, followed by scrolling right or left in the edit screen. Even the original Apple Watch had a faster way to change watch faces with its Force Touch ability giving you almost instant access to the watch face edit screen.
Even Apple knew they had to bring this feature back since it made switching watch faces much faster, and they did bring it back as a hidden option with watchOS 10.2 under Settings > Clock > Swipe to Switch Watch Face.
It came back, but it came back the way Michael Jordan came back as a Washington Wizard instead of a Chicago Bull.
No longer the default option, the swipe came back as a 2nd string option due to its glitchy performance. On my 7 and a half year old Series 3 Apple Watch, with its latest software version (Watch OS 8), in the year 2025, you can swipe between watch faces and everything is in memory and seamless. Extremely smooth, with the hour, minute, and seconds hands perfectly in sync between swipes. It just works!
Somehow the architecture of watchOS 10 fundamentally changed some of the inner workings of the Apple Watch, and after almost 2 years now, it’s as if the watch face has to “load” each and every time you swipe watch faces. It feels and looks buggy, especially when you go from an analog watch face to a digital watch face that is full of data. It juuust (barely) works.
The Tips app on your iPhone even demos how to change your watch face, referring to the touch and hold method vs the swipe method.
I’m sure there are Apple Watch engineers who cringe every time they swipe from one watch face to another, knowing that this problem still exists and needs to be fixed. I understand why it’s not a high priority, but it’ll be two years in June when they announce watchOS 12.
Two years is long enough.
The second (more critical) issue that needs to be overhauled are the watch faces. I’ve said this multiple times already, but they need to be updated to support the Series 10’s always on display with seconds hand. To advertise this feature and then to only have it on 3 watch faces at launch is just embarrassing. The Unity Rhythm watch face was released recently with watchOS 11.3, but that is still 4 out of over 40 watch faces. In the Steve Jobs era, this would not have been acceptable. Heck, even Jony Ive would have put the hammer down on this one.
To complicate things further, there are plenty of complications such as the digital time and digital seconds complications that would make this feature pop even more on the watch. Your always on display would look more realistic, with ticking “components” constantly updating every second without sacrificing battery life. That “magical” touch would sell more watches, because we are visual creatures, and to see the Apple Watch acting like an actual watch that ticks and doesn’t stop moving will blur the line between digital and traditional watch faces.
Watch enthusiasts will appreciate it even more, and won’t scoff (as much) at us digital watch wearers. They will still scoff at us when they notice its quartz-like movement, but appreciate the technological step forward and will purchase one, probably a more expensive model to boot.
The real question is, was this a Wall Street move to keep this feature gimped the way Apple has? Perhaps it would have taken sales away from the higher profit margin of the Ultra 2? The Series 10 in 46mm technically does have a bigger display, and to make it more lively with its 1 sec refresh rate for $370 less does make it a much more compelling purchase from a visual standpoint.
As sleezy as it might be to keep the feature purposefully limited to drive Ultra 2 sales (I don’t think this was the plan), it would be reassuring to know they have the capability to make every watch face compatible with the 1 second refresh rate. I really do hope the Ultra 3 and Series 11 have full support for this feature, while updating the Series 10 to match.
Ideally, and this is truly my hope, Apple didn’t have time to fix the issues with the previous watch faces, and they are working diligently to update all watch faces for watchOS 12.
The updated watch faces could even be the main upgrade for watchOS 12 and it could actually revitalize interest in the Apple Watch. The timing would be perfect to coincide with the purported iOS 19 redesign.
There’s been a viral clip going around X ever since the Siri fiasco took off.
A clip emphasizing simplicity.
A clip emphasizing stability.
It was about the new features in Snow Leopard back in 2009, and how Apple proudly announced zero new features.
Although there were new features, what Apple was trying to emphasize was software stability and how important it was to them to make sure, “it just works.”
The famous “it just works,” implying how seamless and unbelievable it is, and not the jerry rigged “it juuust (barely) works.”
Apple had a more recent instance similar to this with iOS9 in 2015, where Craig Federighi discussed how the focus was on “elevating the foundations” of iOS, such as extending battery life, improving performance, and enhancing security to protect customer data.
watchOS needs its Snow Leopard / iOS 9 moment. Have a few updates to wow the people and please Wall Street, but really hunker down and fix some key issues.
Two issues to be exact.
The first issue is the ability to swipe between your watch faces. This was a staple and stable feature starting with watchOS 3 before watchOS 10 had its huge overhaul with SmartStack. You would effortlessly swipe between watch faces and all your information was just there, present and up to date. In watchOS 10, that feature went away for a while, and I was not happy about it:
A barbaric touch and hold, followed by scrolling right or left in the edit screen. Even the original Apple Watch had a faster way to change watch faces with its Force Touch ability giving you almost instant access to the watch face edit screen.
Even Apple knew they had to bring this feature back since it made switching watch faces much faster, and they did bring it back as a hidden option with watchOS 10.2 under Settings > Clock > Swipe to Switch Watch Face.
It came back, but it came back the way Michael Jordan came back as a Washington Wizard instead of a Chicago Bull.
No longer the default option, the swipe came back as a 2nd string option due to its glitchy performance. On my 7 and a half year old Series 3 Apple Watch, with its latest software version (Watch OS 8), in the year 2025, you can swipe between watch faces and everything is in memory and seamless. Extremely smooth, with the hour, minute, and seconds hands perfectly in sync between swipes. It just works!
Somehow the architecture of watchOS 10 fundamentally changed some of the inner workings of the Apple Watch, and after almost 2 years now, it’s as if the watch face has to “load” each and every time you swipe watch faces. It feels and looks buggy, especially when you go from an analog watch face to a digital watch face that is full of data. It juuust (barely) works.
The Tips app on your iPhone even demos how to change your watch face, referring to the touch and hold method vs the swipe method.
I’m sure there are Apple Watch engineers who cringe every time they swipe from one watch face to another, knowing that this problem still exists and needs to be fixed. I understand why it’s not a high priority, but it’ll be two years in June when they announce watchOS 12.
Two years is long enough.
The second (more critical) issue that needs to be overhauled are the watch faces. I’ve said this multiple times already, but they need to be updated to support the Series 10’s always on display with seconds hand. To advertise this feature and then to only have it on 3 watch faces at launch is just embarrassing. The Unity Rhythm watch face was released recently with watchOS 11.3, but that is still 4 out of over 40 watch faces. In the Steve Jobs era, this would not have been acceptable. Heck, even Jony Ive would have put the hammer down on this one.
To complicate things further, there are plenty of complications such as the digital time and digital seconds complications that would make this feature pop even more on the watch. Your always on display would look more realistic, with ticking “components” constantly updating every second without sacrificing battery life. That “magical” touch would sell more watches, because we are visual creatures, and to see the Apple Watch acting like an actual watch that ticks and doesn’t stop moving will blur the line between digital and traditional watch faces.
Watch enthusiasts will appreciate it even more, and won’t scoff (as much) at us digital watch wearers. They will still scoff at us when they notice its quartz-like movement, but appreciate the technological step forward and will purchase one, probably a more expensive model to boot.
The real question is, was this a Wall Street move to keep this feature gimped the way Apple has? Perhaps it would have taken sales away from the higher profit margin of the Ultra 2? The Series 10 in 46mm technically does have a bigger display, and to make it more lively with its 1 sec refresh rate for $370 less does make it a much more compelling purchase from a visual standpoint.
As sleezy as it might be to keep the feature purposefully limited to drive Ultra 2 sales (I don’t think this was the plan), it would be reassuring to know they have the capability to make every watch face compatible with the 1 second refresh rate. I really do hope the Ultra 3 and Series 11 have full support for this feature, while updating the Series 10 to match.
Ideally, and this is truly my hope, Apple didn’t have time to fix the issues with the previous watch faces, and they are working diligently to update all watch faces for watchOS 12.
The updated watch faces could even be the main upgrade for watchOS 12 and it could actually revitalize interest in the Apple Watch. The timing would be perfect to coincide with the purported iOS 19 redesign.
Apple announces WWDC 2025
Apple Newsroom:
Apple today announced it will host its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) online from June 9 to 13, 2025. Developers and students will also have the opportunity to celebrate in person during a special event at Apple Park on June 9.
Available for free to all developers, WWDC25 will spotlight the latest advancements in Apple software. As part of Apple’s ongoing commitment to supporting developers, the conference will provide them with unique access to Apple experts, as well as insight into new tools, frameworks, and features.
I’m looking forward to this alleged iOS 19 redesign, but what I really want is watchOS 12 to be extremely polished. There are still some rough edges that need to be buffed out.
Apple Newsroom:
Apple today announced it will host its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) online from June 9 to 13, 2025. Developers and students will also have the opportunity to celebrate in person during a special event at Apple Park on June 9.
Available for free to all developers, WWDC25 will spotlight the latest advancements in Apple software. As part of Apple’s ongoing commitment to supporting developers, the conference will provide them with unique access to Apple experts, as well as insight into new tools, frameworks, and features.
I’m looking forward to this alleged iOS 19 redesign, but what I really want is watchOS 12 to be extremely polished. There are still some rough edges that need to be buffed out.
AirPods Max with USB-C finally get lossless audio and wired playback.
Apple Newsroom:
Next month, a new software update will bring lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio to AirPods Max, delivering the ultimate listening experience and even greater performance for music production. With the included USB-C cable, users can enjoy the highest-quality audio across music, movies, and games, while music creators can experience significant enhancements to songwriting, beat making, production, and mixing.
Another key point Apple mentions in a footnote is their new USB-C to headphone jack cable which brings wired playback back to the AirPods Max. The lightning version of the AirPods Max had this advantage, and now the USB-C version gets the wired treatment:
USB-C to 3.5 mm audio cable will be available today for $39 (U.S.) from apple.com/store, in the Apple Store app, and through Apple Authorized Resellers. It can be used to connect AirPods Max to 3.5 mm audio sources, like the audio-out port on an airplane. Users can also connect their iOS or iPadOS device to 3.5 mm audio ports, like audio-in ports on car stereos or other speakers.
Apple Newsroom:
Next month, a new software update will bring lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio to AirPods Max, delivering the ultimate listening experience and even greater performance for music production. With the included USB-C cable, users can enjoy the highest-quality audio across music, movies, and games, while music creators can experience significant enhancements to songwriting, beat making, production, and mixing.
Another key point Apple mentions in a footnote is their new USB-C to headphone jack cable which brings wired playback back to the AirPods Max. The lightning version of the AirPods Max had this advantage, and now the USB-C version gets the wired treatment:
USB-C to 3.5 mm audio cable will be available today for $39 (U.S.) from apple.com/store, in the Apple Store app, and through Apple Authorized Resellers. It can be used to connect AirPods Max to 3.5 mm audio sources, like the audio-out port on an airplane. Users can also connect their iOS or iPadOS device to 3.5 mm audio ports, like audio-in ports on car stereos or other speakers.
How to check the battery life of all your family’s Apple devices.
Find My is a great tool not only for finding out the location of your loved ones, devices, and items, but also a great way to make sure everyone in your family has topped off their iPhone before they head out of the house.
Indispensable for family road trips or in any case where people are going to split up. 📓
Find My is a great tool not only for finding out the location of your loved ones, devices, and items, but also a great way to make sure everyone in your family has topped off their iPhone before they head out of the house.
Indispensable for family road trips or in any case where people are going to split up.
Your iPhone by default tells you the exact battery life of your AirPods and Apple Watch, but with Find My, you can see the battery life of all your family’s iPhones, iPads, MacBooks, and Apple Watches. It is an approximation because you get a battery bar without a percentage, but it is pretty accurate if you’re a pro at estimating the battery bar health.
In order to check battery percentages, you would have to add them via Family Sharing.
Go to Settings > Tap on your name > Family > Add family member (logo on top right).
Once you add family members, make sure Location Sharing is turned ON. Now all family members can see everyone’s device location and battery percentage.
To see the battery percentages, go to Find My > Devices > and pick any device (that’s not AirPods) to see its battery life.
A few things to know when trying to visualize battery percentages:
The other devices have to be turned ON and have to be unlocked initially to gather the battery status. After that you can monitor battery life until the device dies or is turned OFF, which requires the process to be repeated.
It doesn’t tell you the battery life of other people’s AirPods probably because it does not have Wi-Fi or maybe because it doesn’t have an advanced processor like the other devices.
You also get charging status, so if a device is charging, you will know.
This will work on even your old Intel MacBooks (works with my 2013 MacBook Pro!).
I cross-referenced the battery indicator with the actual percentages on the devices. Very accurate.
GM’s Apple CarPlay issues get worse.
There was one GM dealership in the whole United States that was allowed to install a “phone-mirroring system” to allow Android Auto and Apple CarPlay back inside GM’s EVs, but now that has been defunct.
Nico Demattia from TheDrive:
For some frustrated owners of GM‘s new electric cars, White Automotive seemed like a lifesaver. After GM decided to drop Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support in its Ultium-platform EVs, and soon its entire lineup, White stepped up with an aftermarket setup that dealers could install to restore both phone-mirroring systems to those models for new buyers. But that effort has already met its predictable end, as GM recently pushed the only Chevy dealer in the country that was installing them to stop—thereby also forcing White Automotive to discontinue the kit.
A source within GM confirmed to The Drive that the automaker had investigated how the integration was being done and found that it could have adverse impacts on “critical” vehicle functions and stop working altogether with future software updates. Meanwhile, the dealer in question—LaFontaine Chevrolet in Plymouth, Michigan—told us that GM instructed them to stop offering and installing White’s kit. And without that distribution channel, or any chance of getting another dealer on board, White Automotive—who declined to comment directly for this story—had to shut down the project.
Considering this aftermarket system gave users full control of the entire dash including the gauge cluster, it is a high-risk and safety concern if something were to go wrong.
The kit supported both wired and wireless projection for Apple and Google’s smartphones and integrated them across the cars’ infotainment screens, digital gauge clusters, and heads-up displays. It was a comprehensive implementation; drivers could even summon Siri or Google Assistant just as they would if those features were integrated from the factory.
Quite frankly, I’m surprised GM even allowed this one dealership to perform these installations. If they have a hard stance against CarPlay and Android Auto, just stick to it and don’t give people false hope that there is a solution. Now these poor customers are out probably several grand with hardware that is obsolete overnight:
If you check the listing on the company’s page now, its title merely reads, “This product has been discontinued,” and the associated image is blank. Below, a statement addressed to “valued customers,” reads:
“We have made the difficult decision to discontinue this product. Rather than removing it from our website entirely, we wanted to leave this notice so customers are aware of its discontinuation. This was not a decision we made lightly, but due to a variety of factors, continuing to offer this product is no longer viable in the long term.”
Where is the EU when you need them?
There was one GM dealership in the whole United States that was allowed to install a “phone-mirroring system” to allow Android Auto and Apple CarPlay back inside GM’s EVs, but now that has been defunct.
Nico Demattia from TheDrive:
For some frustrated owners of GM‘s new electric cars, White Automotive seemed like a lifesaver. After GM decided to drop Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support in its Ultium-platform EVs, and soon its entire lineup, White stepped up with an aftermarket setup that dealers could install to restore both phone-mirroring systems to those models for new buyers. But that effort has already met its predictable end, as GM recently pushed the only Chevy dealer in the country that was installing them to stop—thereby also forcing White Automotive to discontinue the kit.
A source within GM confirmed to The Drive that the automaker had investigated how the integration was being done and found that it could have adverse impacts on “critical” vehicle functions and stop working altogether with future software updates. Meanwhile, the dealer in question—LaFontaine Chevrolet in Plymouth, Michigan—told us that GM instructed them to stop offering and installing White’s kit. And without that distribution channel, or any chance of getting another dealer on board, White Automotive—who declined to comment directly for this story—had to shut down the project.
Considering this aftermarket system gave users full control of the entire dash including the gauge cluster, it is a high-risk and safety concern if something were to go wrong.
The kit supported both wired and wireless projection for Apple and Google’s smartphones and integrated them across the cars’ infotainment screens, digital gauge clusters, and heads-up displays. It was a comprehensive implementation; drivers could even summon Siri or Google Assistant just as they would if those features were integrated from the factory.
Quite frankly, I’m surprised GM even allowed this one dealership to perform these installations. If they have a hard stance against CarPlay and Android Auto, just stick to it and don’t give people false hope that there is a solution. Now these poor customers are out probably several grand with hardware that is obsolete overnight:
If you check the listing on the company’s page now, its title merely reads, “This product has been discontinued,” and the associated image is blank. Below, a statement addressed to “valued customers,” reads:
“We have made the difficult decision to discontinue this product. Rather than removing it from our website entirely, we wanted to leave this notice so customers are aware of its discontinuation. This was not a decision we made lightly, but due to a variety of factors, continuing to offer this product is no longer viable in the long term.”
Where is the EU when you need them?
AppleCare+ with Theft and Loss is now the only option for US iPhone buyers, at a higher price.
I always buy AppleCare+ for my iPhones, because I don’t like to use a case. As the famous saying goes:
AppleCare+ is my case.
Not sure who coined that phrase, but it’s true for many people.
I never bought the option for Theft and Loss because I didn’t feel the need for it, but now you have no choice. For reference, AppleCare+ for an iPhone 16 Pro used to be $200 for 2 years, and $250 with Theft and Loss. Now with Theft and Loss included, it costs $140 annually until cancelled, and $270 for 2 years. You also get the monthly option at $14/month.
That is $70 more for me and many others who opt for the 2 year plan. Yikes.
On a side note, look for another increase in Apple Services revenue in Fiscal Q2 2025.
I always buy AppleCare+ for my iPhones, because I don’t like to use a case. As the famous saying goes:
AppleCare+ is my case.
Not sure who coined that phrase, but it’s true for many people.
I never bought the option for Theft and Loss because I didn’t feel the need for it, but now you have no choice. For reference, AppleCare+ for an iPhone 16 Pro used to be $200 for 2 years, and $250 with Theft and Loss. Now with Theft and Loss included, it costs $140 annually until cancelled, and $270 for 2 years. You also get the monthly option at $14/month.
That is $70 more for me and many others who opt for the 2 year plan. Yikes.
On a side note, look for another increase in Apple Services revenue in Fiscal Q2 2025.
The most beautiful and (ab)used iPhone 13 mini.
Matt D’Avella posted a video a while back that I meant to post earlier, but it really is the most beautiful, (ab)used iPhone 13 mini. I was the proud owner of an iPhone 12 mini, and it was one of my favorite iPhone experiences. The clip in the beginning definitely has Evans Hankey’s iPhone vibes, and a quote from Jony Ive is just as fitting to Matt’s iPhone who treats his like a tool:
That’s Evans Hankey’s iPhone, who manages the design studio. Isn’t it cool? She destroys her objects. But I thought there was something so charming about that. I thought it was lovely to put that in. We design tools to be used. And she definitely uses them!
Matt D’Avella posted a video a while back that I meant to post earlier, but it really is the most beautiful, (ab)used iPhone 13 mini. I was the proud owner of an iPhone 12 mini, and it was one of my favorite iPhone experiences. The clip in the beginning definitely has Evans Hankey’s iPhone vibes, and a quote from Jony Ive is just as fitting to Matt’s iPhone who treats his like a tool:
That’s Evans Hankey’s iPhone, who manages the design studio. Isn’t it cool? She destroys her objects. But I thought there was something so charming about that. I thought it was lovely to put that in. We design tools to be used. And she definitely uses them!
Let me remind you again to record your unboxing videos.
Juli Clover from MacRumors:
The U.S. Department of Justice recently cracked down on an international crime ring that targeted expensive electronics like the iPhone, with the workings of the complex crime system detailed in a report from The Wall Street Journal.
Thirteen members of an international network worked to steal FedEx shipments of iPhones from people's porches, using automated scripts to scrape data from FedEx tracking systems and also bribing corrupt employees from AT&T. The employees took payments to share confidential customer information from a company order tracking system, snapping images of customer names, addresses, and tracking numbers.
Some members of the criminal network obtained and sold delivery information, while others, called runners, purchased that info and physically stole the iPhone packages from doorsteps just minutes after they were delivered.
I didn’t have a porch pirate steal my Apple Watch Ultra 2 that I had shipped from Best Buy, but it was already stolen when it was returned to Best Buy. I bought one in “Open Box Excellent” condition and when I unboxed it, there was no watch inside, even though it still had the pull tabs on it as if it was sealed. You can read about my full experience, but just know that even if your package does manage to make it to your hands, do yourself a huge favor and record your unboxing experiences so you can prove your innocence. Thankfully the Apple Watch band comes in a separate box from the watch, and I was able to record the band unboxing which proved I wasn’t the culprit.
In another instance just a few days later, I ordered a brand new iPhone SE from Apple directly and it came through FedEx. The packaging was suspect. If you order directly from Apple, you know that the shipping box is catered towards the product you’re receiving, and even the shipping box has pull tabs on it similar to the product packaging itself. You never need a knife or have to muscle your way into the box.
Never.
This package had regular clear tape on it, and the piece of tape with the pull tab was tucked underneath the flap, making it useless and showed either signs of tampering, or someone who didn’t apply the tape correctly and decided to put regular tape on it.
I wasn’t taking any chances and decided to record the unboxing experience. This time I wasn’t missing anything, but the question still remains: was someone trying to steal the iPhone and decided it was too risky and just sealed it back up with regular tape, or did someone just improperly put on the pull-tab tape and decide to fix it with some tape? Either way, take a look at what I’m talking about but please record your unboxings.
Juli Clover from MacRumors:
The U.S. Department of Justice recently cracked down on an international crime ring that targeted expensive electronics like the iPhone, with the workings of the complex crime system detailed in a report from The Wall Street Journal.
Thirteen members of an international network worked to steal FedEx shipments of iPhones from people's porches, using automated scripts to scrape data from FedEx tracking systems and also bribing corrupt employees from AT&T. The employees took payments to share confidential customer information from a company order tracking system, snapping images of customer names, addresses, and tracking numbers.
Some members of the criminal network obtained and sold delivery information, while others, called runners, purchased that info and physically stole the iPhone packages from doorsteps just minutes after they were delivered.
I didn’t have a porch pirate steal my Apple Watch Ultra 2 that I had shipped from Best Buy, but it was already stolen when it was returned to Best Buy. I bought one in “Open Box Excellent” condition and when I unboxed it, there was no watch inside, even though it still had the pull tabs on it as if it was sealed. You can read about my full experience, but just know that even if your package does manage to make it to your hands, do yourself a huge favor and record your unboxing experiences so you can prove your innocence. Thankfully the Apple Watch band comes in a separate box from the watch, and I was able to record the band unboxing which proved I wasn’t the culprit.
In another instance just a few days later, I ordered a brand new iPhone SE from Apple directly and it came through FedEx. The packaging was suspect. If you order directly from Apple, you know that the shipping box is catered towards the product you’re receiving, and even the shipping box has pull tabs on it similar to the product packaging itself. You never need a knife or have to muscle your way into the box.
Never.
This package had regular clear tape on it, and the piece of tape with the pull tab was tucked underneath the flap, making it useless and showed either signs of tampering, or someone who didn’t apply the tape correctly and decided to put regular tape on it.
I wasn’t taking any chances and decided to record the unboxing experience. This time I wasn’t missing anything, but the question still remains: was someone trying to steal the iPhone and decided it was too risky and just sealed it back up with regular tape, or did someone just improperly put on the pull-tab tape and decide to fix it with some tape? Either way, take a look at what I’m talking about but please record your unboxings.
The European Union is the parasitic worm that wants to destroy Apple.
Benjamin Mayo from 9to5Mac:
Apple said “Today’s decisions wrap us in red tape, slowing down Apple’s ability to innovate for users in Europe and forcing us to give away our new features for free to companies who don’t have to play by the same rules. It’s bad for our products and for our European users. We will continue to work with the European Commission to help them understand our concerns on behalf of our users”.
In regards to customer privacy, Apple is especially concerned with the requirements surrounding opening up access to the iOS notification system. The company indicated these measures would allow companies to suck up all user notifications in an unencrypted form to their servers, sidestepping all privacy protections Apple typically enforces.
The company is also upset at the “red tape” imposed on its business going forward. It said the decision allows officials and third-parties to get in the way of Apple releasing new products and features to customers. As well as frustrating the development process, it is essentially being forced to give away all of its innovations to others for free.
Opening up Apple’s ecosystem to third parties for free doesn’t increase competition, it stifles it. Here are the interoperability requirements Apple has to divest resources towards:
iOS notifications: this feature allows connected devices, such as smart watches, to show and react to iOS notifications.
Background execution: iOS apps need to execute certain actions with respect to connected physical devices ‘in the background’, i.e. without the user looking directly at the app. For example, the iPhone can fetch the latest weather information and synchronise it to a smartwatch, without the need for active user interaction.
Automatic audio switching: this feature allows users to switch between two devices, for example between a smartphone and a computer, when listening to audio with supported headphones.
High-bandwidth peer-to-peer Wi-Fi connections:this feature provides allows to establish and use a high-bandwidth Wi-Fi connection between an iOS device and connected physical devices. This high-speed connection can be used to share large files between two devices, or to cast on an iPhone what can be seen on virtual reality glasses.
Close-range wireless file transfers: this feature allows to access the same iOS-controlled features as Apple’s services in third-party file sharing apps, creating, for example, alternatives to AirDrop.
Media casting: this allows developers to develop an alternative media casting solution to Apple’s AirPlay by granting them access to required software features in a non-discriminatory way to AirPlay.
NFC Controller in Reader/Writer mode: this allows apps on an iPhone to communicate with connected devices, such as rings or bracelets, to provide them with information such as a user’s payment card details. The end user can then use the ring or bracelet in a shop to perform payment transactions like with a payment card - without the presence of the iPhone. Moreover, physical smart cards can easily be read for instance to activate or secure mobile banking.
Proximity-triggered pairing: allows connected physical devices to pair with an iOS device through a simplified procedure. For example, when the user brings a new headset near the iPhone it should be able to pair immediately through a simple and streamlined procedure, independently of whether the headset is an Apple product or a third-party brand.
Automatic Wi-Fi connection: allows to access information about local Wi-Fi networks saved on the iPhone allows connected physical devices to seamlessly join these networks.
And of course, here are the requirements for said features:
All features on Apple will have to enable interoperability for any type of connected device, free of charge, via complete, accurate and well-documented frameworks and APIs.
The interoperability solutions for third parties will have to be equally effective to those available to Apple and must not require more cumbersome system settings or additional user friction.
All features on Apple will have to make available to third parties any new functionalities of the listed features once they become available to Apple.
Apple will have to provide third parties with the technical assistance and report how it implemented the measures.
As if Apple doesn’t have enough engineering issues to resolve, now they have been slapped with this battle to deal with. Apple’s response shows their frustration, but they need to be a bit more angry.
I guess that’s hard to do unless you’re Steve Jobs since Apple was his company.
Nobody can really respond with Thermonuclear war like Steve could, but that is the type of response needed.
Steve was convinced that Android was a copy of Apple’s operating system, and now the EU is telling Apple to do all the legwork to make Apple more compatible with 3rd party devices, and to provide all that information free of charge?
Sounds like Thermonuclear war to me.
Benjamin Mayo from 9to5Mac:
Apple said “Today’s decisions wrap us in red tape, slowing down Apple’s ability to innovate for users in Europe and forcing us to give away our new features for free to companies who don’t have to play by the same rules. It’s bad for our products and for our European users. We will continue to work with the European Commission to help them understand our concerns on behalf of our users”.
In regards to customer privacy, Apple is especially concerned with the requirements surrounding opening up access to the iOS notification system. The company indicated these measures would allow companies to suck up all user notifications in an unencrypted form to their servers, sidestepping all privacy protections Apple typically enforces.
The company is also upset at the “red tape” imposed on its business going forward. It said the decision allows officials and third-parties to get in the way of Apple releasing new products and features to customers. As well as frustrating the development process, it is essentially being forced to give away all of its innovations to others for free.
Opening up Apple’s ecosystem to third parties for free doesn’t increase competition, it stifles it. Here are the interoperability requirements Apple has to divest resources towards:
iOS notifications: this feature allows connected devices, such as smart watches, to show and react to iOS notifications.
Background execution: iOS apps need to execute certain actions with respect to connected physical devices ‘in the background’, i.e. without the user looking directly at the app. For example, the iPhone can fetch the latest weather information and synchronise it to a smartwatch, without the need for active user interaction.
Automatic audio switching: this feature allows users to switch between two devices, for example between a smartphone and a computer, when listening to audio with supported headphones.
High-bandwidth peer-to-peer Wi-Fi connections:this feature provides allows to establish and use a high-bandwidth Wi-Fi connection between an iOS device and connected physical devices. This high-speed connection can be used to share large files between two devices, or to cast on an iPhone what can be seen on virtual reality glasses.
Close-range wireless file transfers: this feature allows to access the same iOS-controlled features as Apple’s services in third-party file sharing apps, creating, for example, alternatives to AirDrop.
Media casting: this allows developers to develop an alternative media casting solution to Apple’s AirPlay by granting them access to required software features in a non-discriminatory way to AirPlay.
NFC Controller in Reader/Writer mode: this allows apps on an iPhone to communicate with connected devices, such as rings or bracelets, to provide them with information such as a user’s payment card details. The end user can then use the ring or bracelet in a shop to perform payment transactions like with a payment card - without the presence of the iPhone. Moreover, physical smart cards can easily be read for instance to activate or secure mobile banking.
Proximity-triggered pairing: allows connected physical devices to pair with an iOS device through a simplified procedure. For example, when the user brings a new headset near the iPhone it should be able to pair immediately through a simple and streamlined procedure, independently of whether the headset is an Apple product or a third-party brand.
Automatic Wi-Fi connection: allows to access information about local Wi-Fi networks saved on the iPhone allows connected physical devices to seamlessly join these networks.
And of course, here are the requirements for said features:
All features on Apple will have to enable interoperability for any type of connected device, free of charge, via complete, accurate and well-documented frameworks and APIs.
The interoperability solutions for third parties will have to be equally effective to those available to Apple and must not require more cumbersome system settings or additional user friction.
All features on Apple will have to make available to third parties any new functionalities of the listed features once they become available to Apple.
Apple will have to provide third parties with the technical assistance and report how it implemented the measures.
As if Apple doesn’t have enough engineering issues to resolve, now they have been slapped with this battle to deal with. Apple’s response shows their frustration, but they need to be a bit more angry.
I guess that’s hard to do unless you’re Steve Jobs since Apple was his company.
Nobody can really respond with Thermonuclear war like Steve could, but that is the type of response needed.
Steve was convinced that Android was a copy of Apple’s operating system, and now the EU is telling Apple to do all the legwork to make Apple more compatible with 3rd party devices, and to provide all that information free of charge?
Sounds like Thermonuclear war to me.
Pebble gladly tells you who its watch is not for.
Eric Migicovsky at the end of his blogpost introducing two new PebbleOS watches:
You shouldn’t get one if…
You need a perfectly polished smartwatch. This project is a labour of love rather than a startup trying to sell millions of watches. There may be some rough edges (literally). Things will get delayed. Some features will not be ready at launch. Things could break. Things could not last as long as you’d like. The only thing we can guarantee is that it will be awesome and a lot of fun! Every time you look down at your watch, you will smile 🙂
You’re looking for a fitness or sports watch. That’s not what we’re making. From what we hear, Garmin watches are great for runners/cyclists/triathletes!
You’re comparing this to an Apple Watch. There is NO way for a 3rd party smartwatch to compete with Apple Watch. Apple restricts 3rd parties in major ways - read my blog post for more information. For example, 3rd party watches on iOS cannot send replies to notifications.
These watches are not made for everyone. We want to be upfront with you about what to expect.
I appreciate his honesty here, especially when he says you can’t compare this to an Apple Watch. He makes Apple seem like the bad guy in this, but the truth is, can you fault Apple, with its hard stance on privacy, for not supporting the Pebble Watch, when one of its five key features is being hackable?
John Gruber said it best when he described Pebble like the Playdate:
If their goal is to be to smartwatches what Playdate is to handheld gaming, that’s definitely achievable, and if they succeed, will by definition be a lot of fun.
The whole tech world needs more projects that aren’t trying to become billion- (let alone trillion‑) dollar ideas, but are happily shooting for success as million-dollar ideas (or less!).
Eric Migicovsky at the end of his blogpost introducing two new PebbleOS watches:
You shouldn’t get one if…
You need a perfectly polished smartwatch. This project is a labour of love rather than a startup trying to sell millions of watches. There may be some rough edges (literally). Things will get delayed. Some features will not be ready at launch. Things could break. Things could not last as long as you’d like. The only thing we can guarantee is that it will be awesome and a lot of fun! Every time you look down at your watch, you will smile 🙂
You’re looking for a fitness or sports watch. That’s not what we’re making. From what we hear, Garmin watches are great for runners/cyclists/triathletes!
You’re comparing this to an Apple Watch. There is NO way for a 3rd party smartwatch to compete with Apple Watch. Apple restricts 3rd parties in major ways - read my blog post for more information. For example, 3rd party watches on iOS cannot send replies to notifications.
These watches are not made for everyone. We want to be upfront with you about what to expect.
I appreciate his honesty here, especially when he says you can’t compare this to an Apple Watch. He makes Apple seem like the bad guy in this, but the truth is, can you fault Apple, with its hard stance on privacy, for not supporting the Pebble Watch, when one of its five key features is being hackable?
John Gruber said it best when he described Pebble like the Playdate:
If their goal is to be to smartwatches what Playdate is to handheld gaming, that’s definitely achievable, and if they succeed, will by definition be a lot of fun.
The whole tech world needs more projects that aren’t trying to become billion- (let alone trillion‑) dollar ideas, but are happily shooting for success as million-dollar ideas (or less!).
You could get phished with Apple’s Passwords app, unless you update to iOS 18.2.
Arin Waichulis from 9to5Mac:
Security researchers at Mysk first discovered the flaw after noticing that their iPhone’s App Privacy Report showed Passwords had contacted a staggering 130 different websites over insecure HTTP traffic. This prompted the duo to investigate further, finding that not only was the app fetching account logos and icons over HTTP—it also defaulted to opening password reset pages using the unencrypted protocol. “This left the user vulnerable: an attacker with privileged network access could intercept the HTTP request and redirect the user to a phishing website,” Mysk told 9to5Mac.
“We were surprised that Apple didn’t enforce HTTPS by default for such a sensitive app,” Mysk states.
Most modern websites nowadays allow unencrypted HTTP connections but automatically redirect them to HTTPS using a 301 redirect. It’s important to note that while the Passwords app before iOS 18.2 would make a request over HTTP, it would redirected to the secure HTTPS version. Under normal circumstances, this would be totally fine, as the password changes occur on an encrypted page, ensuring that credentials are not sent in plaintext.
However, it becomes a problem when the attacker is connected to the same network as the user (i.e. Starbucks, airport, or hotel Wi-Fi) and intercepts the initial HTTP request before it redirects. From here they could manipulate the traffic in a few ways.
Mysk’s video is short but direct and to the point to help visualize how phishing works.
Perfect time for Apple to report this security bug, when all news outlets are focused on Apple Intelligence and Siri’s failures. Also a perfect time to remind your loved ones not to trust public Wi-Fi networks.
Arin Waichulis from 9to5Mac:
Security researchers at Mysk first discovered the flaw after noticing that their iPhone’s App Privacy Report showed Passwords had contacted a staggering 130 different websites over insecure HTTP traffic. This prompted the duo to investigate further, finding that not only was the app fetching account logos and icons over HTTP—it also defaulted to opening password reset pages using the unencrypted protocol. “This left the user vulnerable: an attacker with privileged network access could intercept the HTTP request and redirect the user to a phishing website,” Mysk told 9to5Mac.
“We were surprised that Apple didn’t enforce HTTPS by default for such a sensitive app,” Mysk states.
Most modern websites nowadays allow unencrypted HTTP connections but automatically redirect them to HTTPS using a 301 redirect. It’s important to note that while the Passwords app before iOS 18.2 would make a request over HTTP, it would redirected to the secure HTTPS version. Under normal circumstances, this would be totally fine, as the password changes occur on an encrypted page, ensuring that credentials are not sent in plaintext.
However, it becomes a problem when the attacker is connected to the same network as the user (i.e. Starbucks, airport, or hotel Wi-Fi) and intercepts the initial HTTP request before it redirects. From here they could manipulate the traffic in a few ways.
Mysk’s video is short but direct and to the point to help visualize how phishing works.
Perfect time for Apple to report this security bug, when all news outlets are focused on Apple Intelligence and Siri’s failures. Also a perfect time to remind your loved ones not to trust public Wi-Fi networks.
My mom’s journey towards the Powerbeats Pro 2.
After I tested the Powerbeats Pro 2, I knew this would be my mom’s next upgrade. She has been using the original Powerbeats Pro for over 3 years, and they finally died.
When I saw her a few weekends ago, she had purchased AirPods 4 as a replacement, unbeknownst to me. I was surprised because of how small they were even compared to the original AirPods case. Not only was it prone to getting lost, but it also didn’t fit her ears well. She had to wear them upside down all the time just to get them to fit, something I do only when necessary.
We got those returned, and happily got her the Powerbeats Pro 2. It was an upgrade in every way since she now has a smaller case (but not too small), better battery life, and multiple ear tip options so she could get the right fit.
One of my gripes about it ended up being a positive for her. I complained about it being too sensitive and connecting too quickly even when the earbud isn’t fully in place, causing my videos to skip since the “b” button is being pressed. My mom loves this feature since she can easily get connected compared to her 1st gen ones that required her to almost shove them in place for the audio to transfer. She also loves this feature because she can lie down in bed with one earbud in place, and if she falls asleep, the earbud falls out and stops playing whatever she was watching.
To each her own.
After I tested the Powerbeats Pro 2, I knew this would be my mom’s next upgrade. She has been using the original Powerbeats Pro for over 3 years, and they finally died.
When I saw her a few weekends ago, she had purchased AirPods 4 as a replacement, unbeknownst to me. I was surprised because of how small they were even compared to the original AirPods case. Not only was it prone to getting lost, but it also didn’t fit her ears well. She had to wear them upside down all the time just to get them to fit, something I do only when necessary.
We got those returned, and happily got her the Powerbeats Pro 2. It was an upgrade in every way since she now has a smaller case (but not too small), better battery life, and multiple ear tip options so she could get the right fit.
One of my gripes about it ended up being a positive for her. I complained about it being too sensitive and connecting too quickly even when the earbud isn’t fully in place, causing my videos to skip since the “b” button is being pressed. My mom loves this feature since she can easily get connected compared to her 1st gen ones that required her to almost shove them in place for the audio to transfer. She also loves this feature because she can lie down in bed with one earbud in place, and if she falls asleep, the earbud falls out and stops playing whatever she was watching.
To each her own.
Will Apple release a Jet Black Series 11 Apple Watch?
When Apple announced the Series 10 in Jet Black, it caught me by surprise, and I knew it was going to be the color I chose.
Apple only had one Jet Black device before, and that was the iPhone 7. Why they discontinued it is anybody’s guess…📓
Jet Black Series 10 hiding in the shadows.
When Apple announced the Series 10 in Jet Black, it caught me by surprise, and I knew it was going to be the color I chose.
Apple only had one Jet Black device before, and that was the iPhone 7. Why they discontinued it is anybody’s guess, but it could have something to do with it scratching too easily, which Apple acknowledged in a footnote (taken from The Verge):
The high-gloss finish of the jet black iPhone 7 is achieved through a precision nine-step anodization and polishing process. Its surface is equally as hard as other anodized Apple products; however, its high shine may show fine micro-abrasions with use. If you are concerned about this, we suggest you use one of the many cases available to protect your iPhone.
This problem doesn’t exist with the Series 10, and it may have something to do with a newer 30-step anodization process vs the old nine-step process:
For the first time, Apple Watch comes in an eye-catching Jet Black aluminum. The case is polished until it’s extremely reflective. It then goes through a 30-step anodization process to create a deep, glossy black that’s truly striking. The result is a timeless, sophisticated look.
I’ve had my Jet Black for around 6 months now, and after giving it a thorough wipe down, I cannot see any micro abrasions at all, or any other unexplainable scratches beyond my one critical drop. My watch isn’t perfect, but it seems like Apple has improved their anodizing and polishing process within the 8 years since the iPhone 7.
Besides Jet Black, the iPhone 7 came in a regular Black variant, giving people a choice between matte and glossy black. With the Series 10, Apple doubled down on Jet Black and didn’t release another black variant. They must be confident in this new Jet Black color, and it gives me confidence that the Jet Black might stick around beyond the Series 10.
Is the Apple Watch Series 10 worth buying 6 months later?
We are at the 6-month period with the Apple Watch Series 10, and it begs the question:
Should you wait for the Series 11 or buy the Series 10 now at a discount?
Based on what’s been rumored in the pipeline, I would buy a Series 10 and save a minimum of $100 on the aluminum models, and up to $120 off on the Titanium models on Amazon. About a year ago when the Series 9 was six months old, I was able to snag a brand new Series 9 Stainless Steel 41mm for $472 (before tax) compared to the usual $699, saving $227!
The Series 10 did end up being a significant upgrade with a thinner design and a new LTPO3 display, and I wouldn’t expect these to change with the Series 11, making a discounted Series 10 a great buy.
Speaking of the display, let’s talk about what you get with the Series 10 (and probably the Series 11).
The display is 40% brighter than the Series 9 when viewed from an angle, but the difference is only noticeable on certain watch faces, which is still a plus. The display is more efficient, allowing it to be refreshed once a second instead of once a minute. According to Apple, this allows for an always-on seconds hand, allowing you to see a ticking seconds hand without raising your hand. It only works on select watch faces right now, but I expect that to be updated in watchOS 12, or else we have a big problem on our hands (pun intended).
The main rumored features for the Series 11 that might prevent you from upgrading right now would be blood pressure monitoring and glucose monitoring. Glucose monitoring is less likely, but blood pressure monitoring is more probable. It was allegedly supposed to be on the Series 10 according to Mark Gurman.
Even if blood pressure monitoring did make its way to the Series 11, it will not be like a traditional blood pressure monitor. You will not be able to get readings whenever you want, and it would be similar to the sleep apnea detection capabilities.
Apple’s sleep apnea detection feature is able to detect severe sleep apnea 89% of the time, but it can only detect moderate sleep apnea 43% of the time. My gut tells me that blood pressure monitoring will be similar and will be most beneficial for those who already suffer from high blood pressure.
Besides blood pressure detection, I don’t expect a whole lot of hardware differences. Sure, there might be a faster chip, but the chip in the Series 10 is plenty fast for what a watch needs. Even a Series 3 works well enough today.
The Series 10 did get faster charging than the Series 9, going from 0-80% in 30 minutes versus 45 minutes on the Series 9. I wouldn’t expect the Series 11 to get any faster as 30 minutes is already excellent.
The Series 11 might end up being the most iterative device refresh of the year, and it would be a good idea to get a Series 10 right now at a minimum of $100 off.
We are at the 6-month period with the Apple Watch Series 10, and it begs the question:
Should you wait for the Series 11 or buy the Series 10 now at a discount?
Based on what’s been rumored in the pipeline, I would buy a Series 10 and save a minimum of $100 on the aluminum models, and up to $120 off on the Titanium models on Amazon. About a year ago when the Series 9 was six months old, I was able to snag a brand new Series 9 Stainless Steel 41mm for $472 (before tax) compared to the usual $699, saving $227!
The Series 10 did end up being a significant upgrade with a thinner design and a new LTPO3 display, and I wouldn’t expect these to change with the Series 11, making a discounted Series 10 a great buy.
Speaking of the display, let’s talk about what you get with the Series 10 (and probably the Series 11).
The display is 40% brighter than the Series 9 when viewed from an angle, but the difference is only noticeable on certain watch faces, which is still a plus. The display is more efficient, allowing it to be refreshed once a second instead of once a minute. According to Apple, this allows for an always-on seconds hand, allowing you to see a ticking seconds hand without raising your hand. It only works on select watch faces right now, but I expect that to be updated in watchOS 12, or else we have a big problem on our hands (pun intended).
The main rumored features for the Series 11 that might prevent you from upgrading right now would be blood pressure monitoring and glucose monitoring. Glucose monitoring is less likely, but blood pressure monitoring is more probable. It was allegedly supposed to be on the Series 10 according to Mark Gurman.
Even if blood pressure monitoring did make its way to the Series 11, it will not be like a traditional blood pressure monitor. You will not be able to get readings whenever you want, and it would be similar to the sleep apnea detection capabilities.
Apple’s sleep apnea detection feature is able to detect severe sleep apnea 89% of the time, but it can only detect moderate sleep apnea 43% of the time. My gut tells me that blood pressure monitoring will be similar and will be most beneficial for those who already suffer from high blood pressure.
Besides blood pressure detection, I don’t expect a whole lot of hardware differences. Sure, there might be a faster chip, but the chip in the Series 10 is plenty fast for what a watch needs. Even a Series 3 works well enough today.
The Series 10 did get faster charging than the Series 9, going from 0-80% in 30 minutes versus 45 minutes on the Series 9. I wouldn’t expect the Series 11 to get any faster as 30 minutes is already excellent.
The Series 11 might end up being the most iterative device refresh of the year, and it would be a good idea to get a Series 10 right now at a minimum of $100 off.
Background Sounds do not work on the HomePod mini.
Background Sounds are great for white noise, but they won’t play over a HomePod mini. If you want to use Apple’s built-in white noise to help you sleep or stay asleep, you would need to use another Bluetooth speaker or hardwired speaker.
I use the Bose SoundDock XT which is connected to my iPhone via an aux cable and USB-C to headphone jack adapter, and it simultaneously plays both YouTube and Background Sounds.
Same thing happens with my Anker Bluetooth speaker, where all sound is routed to the speaker.
If I turn off the Bluetooth speaker and select the HomePod mini as the source, the YouTube audio transfers over but the Background Sound stays on the iPhone. What’s even wackier is if I have my Anker Bluetooth speaker connected, I can play the YouTube video on the HomePod mini, and the Background Noise on the Anker speaker.
I know the HomePod mini uses both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth so it should be able to play both audio sources, but it seems Apple has prevented Background Sounds from playing on the HomePod mini, and I presume the regular HomePod as well.
Background Sounds are great for white noise, but they won’t play over a HomePod mini. If you want to use Apple’s built-in white noise to help you sleep or stay asleep, you would need to use another Bluetooth speaker or hardwired speaker.
I use the Bose SoundDock XT which is connected to my iPhone via an aux cable and USB-C to headphone jack adapter, and it simultaneously plays both YouTube and Background Sounds.
Same thing happens with my Anker Bluetooth speaker, where all sound is routed to the speaker.
If I turn off the Bluetooth speaker and select the HomePod mini as the source, the YouTube audio transfers over but the Background Sound stays on the iPhone. What’s even wackier is if I have my Anker Bluetooth speaker connected, I can play the YouTube video on the HomePod mini, and the Background Noise on the Anker speaker.
I know the HomePod mini uses both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth so it should be able to play both audio sources, but it seems Apple has prevented Background Sounds from playing on the HomePod mini, and I presume the regular HomePod as well.
Apple Watch Typograph - Unique colors you didn’t know about.
Since the beginning of Apple Watch, Apple releases new colors for Apple Watch face customization during different seasons.
Out of the 130+ custom colors to choose from, there are only 4 colors that standout to give you a unique and more professional watch face experience. 📓
Since the launch of Apple Watch, Apple releases new colors for Apple Watch face customization during different seasons.
Out of the 130+ custom colors to choose from, there are only 4 colors that standout to give you a unique and more professional watch face experience.
Let’s look at the Typograph watch face.
This watch face gives you 19 black watch faces…
followed by 14 full-screen color watch faces.
If you add every custom color as an option, you get 137 bonus colors, but only four of them give you a full-screen color effect.
Take a look for yourself:
It might not be obvious at first glance, but do you see the four special colors?
These four colors are: Clover, Starlight, Red, and Abyss Blue.
These colors are located under the Fall 2021 season.
English Lavender and Dark Cherry are also in the Fall 2021 Season, but they don’t get the special treatment.
Not sure if this was meant to be, but I’m all for the full screen effect. These four colors seem to be coded in watchOS like the 14 default full-screen colors even though they’re custom colors. The Typograph watch face is particularly one that is form over function, so these four colors add a bit more style if the other shades didn’t tickle your fancy. Of course, the colors also work in the more functional “Dial II” layout.
These four colors are distinct from their closest resembling default watch faces and have their own unique look:
Evergreen (default) vs Clover.
Watermelon (default) vs Red.
Navy Blue (default) vs Abyss Blue.
Among all these default colors, the custom Starlight color falls somewhere in between Gold and Light Titanium.
The only reason why I think these 4 colors are special is because besides Midnight (which is just fancy for Space Gray, a default color since the Apple Watch’s inception), the Series 7 aluminum models came in Green, Starlight, (PRODUCT) RED, and Blue. There are many shades of red to choose from, but the red from Fall 2021 resembles (PRODUCT) RED. I think Apple wanted matching watch face colors with the debut of these new colors and the newly remodeled edge-to-edge screen on the Series 7.
Check out the same colors on other watch faces to see their unique look, with a special surprise on the Meridian Watch Face.
Apple needs to apologize.
GregsGadgets put up a nice video describing the frustrations an Apple fan faces, especially when it comes to Siri and its downward spiral, both literally and from a marketing perspective.
Hopefully people watch it till the end, where he does gives Apple a lot of credit for fighting the Privacy fight, something more and more companies these days are willing to sacrifice at the expense of growth and profits.
This whole intelligence Siri thing reminds me of Apple Maps back on iOS6.
GregsGadgets put up a nice video describing the frustrations an Apple fan faces, especially when it comes to Siri and its downward spiral, both literally and from a marketing perspective.
Hopefully people watch it till the end, where he does gives Apple a lot of credit for fighting the Privacy fight, something more and more companies these days are willing to sacrifice at the expense of growth and profits.
This whole intelligence Siri thing reminds me of Apple Maps back on iOS6.
The Powerbeats Pro 2 are the best way to instantly monitor your resting heart rate, but it’s not perfect.
It’s funny how Beats is marketing this as heart rate monitoring for workouts, when it does a better job monitoring your resting heart rate. This device is genuinely better for older folks as a health and accessibility device than it is for athletes as a fitness tracker. 📓
Although the Powerbeats Pro 2 were meant to track your heart rate during workouts, the irony is that it is more accurate and better at tracking your heart rate while at rest. The more your body is moving, the more likely the sensor is moving around in your ears and stops taking measurements, leading to frustration.
Don’t take my word for it. Many reviewers have bashed the heart rate functionality, including DC Rainmaker:
In fact, what we quickly realize is that Beats is very clearly prioritizing accurate data over inaccurate data. Which is to say, when it appears their confidence level is low, they cut-off all heart rate data entirely. Literally, transmitting nothing (no value). I could see the logic in that if it happened rarely, but in reality, it happens constantly….
The thing is, doing more tests is kinda pointless. It’s clear that any movement (even on a stationary bike) quickly leads to either dropouts or inaccurate heart rate. And outdoors running, it’s even worse. Ultimately, I don’t see any value in the heart rate sensor in this product, because it’s simply not good enough to be useful, even for casual use.
For resting heart rate, (huge emphasis on resting), I found the Powerbeats Pro 2 to be very useful. This can be beneficial for people who can’t wear an Apple Watch due to allergic reactions to fitness bands or having wrist tattoos preventing proper operation of the heart rate sensor.
An even greater group of people that can benefit from this? People with heart conditions who are probably taking medications that affect heart rate.
I’ve dispensed my fair share of prescriptions that affect heart rate, with some of those drugs being among the top 50 drugs prescribed in the United States. This is a decent sized population that includes people with other health conditions such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
Having too low of a heart rate is dangerous and can increase the risk of falls due to reduced blood flow to the brain. The Powerbeats Pro 2 allows these people (and anyone else) to easily check their heart rate on demand and have the data sent to their healthcare team for analysis.
It is surprisingly much faster to get a heart rate reading on the Powerbeats Pro 2 versus the Apple Watch. The Apple Watch requires you to open the Heart Rate app on the watch and it gives you live readings right away, but it takes time to get that data transferred in a logged format on the iPhone. I didn’t time it, but it was easily over 5 minutes. With the Powerbeats Pro 2, it starts reading and logging your heart rate within seconds. Crazy.
If you go into the Health App, you can monitor your heart rate by simply going into the Heart Rate section and seeing your latest reading. (I made a shortcut at the end of this page to make this a simple one-click process.)
Results show up within seconds when using your Powerbeats Pro 2. You can even get more detailed information such as Range, Resting Rate, and Walking Average by clicking on “Show More Heart Rate Data.”
To see every single heart rate data point logged on your iPhone, go to the Health app > Browse > Heart > Heart Rate > Scroll all the way down to “Show All Data.”
Here are some other things you need to know to make sure your resting heart rate is being logged:
You have to have both earbuds in place for the heart rate function to work.
After you start getting readings by going to the Heart section (as shown in the image above), you can go to any part of the Health app and your readings will be taken in the background. I went to browse the Medications section of the Health app, and it continued to log readings in the background.
You can get 5-6 heart rate readings per minute.
Heart rate monitoring only works on the iPhone if you are in the Health app. The moment you leave the Health app, it stops taking readings. When you go back to the Health app, your heart rate readings will resume. This is a huge downside, but at the same time, the readings do come in quickly if you just need to monitor it for a few minutes at a time. Hopefully Apple can update this in the future to allow for less frequent readings and not being tied to staying in the Health app.
You can play media through your Powerbeats Pro 2 while logging your resting heart rate. Simply start your podcast or media of choice, and go back to the heart rate section in the Health app.
If you force close the Health app, you will have to go back to the heart rate section to start logging your heart rate. Use the shortcut I created at the bottom of this article to get there in a single click.
You cannot take heart rate readings if your iPhone is locked.
Heart rate monitoring does drain the iPhone’s battery and makes it warm. The Powerbeats don’t get warm and you can’t tell anything is happening. Not a huge deal if you’re only doing it a few minutes at a time, but hopefully this is addressed in a future firmware update.
The Powerbeats do emit a green light when measuring heart rate, but others will only notice it in dark environments.
Resting heart rate accuracy is similar to the Apple Watch, which is very accurate overall.
It’s funny how Beats is marketing this as Heart Rate monitoring for workouts, when it does a better job monitoring your resting heart rate. This device is genuinely better for older folks as a health and accessibility device than it is for athletes as a fitness tracker.
If Apple could tweak the device to take recordings outside of the Health app and fix some of the battery drain issues, I would call the Powerbeats Pro 2 a sleeper hit device for resting heart rate monitoring. You still won’t be able to track your sleeping heart rate like an Apple Watch, but it is better than nothing.
To make it a bit easier, here is a quick shortcut to get to the Heart Rate section of the Health app with a single click: