(The original Mac had 128 kilobytes of RAM, not megabytes. I misspoke in the video. Sorry about that.)
Anyways, I’m a big fan of this watch stand. You can grab one on Amazon for just $15.
Category: Apple
On TV.app⇢
Karan Varindani, on the new TV.app on the Apple TV:
I think that sums up how I feel about Apple’s latest TV offering: It removes so much minor irritation and is leaps and bounds better to navigate than any other individual app out there, but it doesn’t have nearly enough support from networks and other content providers right now, and it’ll ultimately fail without them.
Agreed.
MacBook Coins⇢
Earlier this week, an Imgur user named Greatease uploaded some photos that explain the key difference between an Apple SuperDrive and a run-of-the-mill optical drive. Namely that his or her SuperDrive had a US penny wedged underneath the plastic cover.
As an isolated incident, finding money crammed into a rapidly-spinning computer part is of course strange. Did it fall in? Is it serving some crucial operational purpose? Thing is, Greatease is far from the only person to discover loose change in their optical drive.
The OWC DEC⇢
Other World Computing has announced a new accessory for the 2016 MacBook Pro, as explained by Matt Gonzalez at MacRumors:
The DEC attaches to the bottom of the MacBook Pro by replacing the screws that hold on the bottom plate. This method won’t void your warranty, but it will allow for the dock to be securely attached at all times.
[…]
When considering the functionality of the dock, the size and weight compromises may be worth it. The DEC connects to the MacBook Pro over Thunderbolt 3 and will bring USB Type-A ports, Gigabit Ethernet, an SD Card Slot, and up to 4TB of storage. Additional features are also being considered, such as an expanded battery pack.
On HomeKit vs. Alexa
Jacob Kastrenakes at The Verge:
Apple never shows up to CES, but the last couple years, it’s still managed to have a quiet presence through HomeKit. That’s true this year, too, but it’s been really quiet, failing to drum up anywhere near the excitement of something like Amazon’s Alexa.
[…]
CES is where that tends to change, as companies building HomeKit gadgets turn up to show off their newest products. This year, there are more than a dozen companies presenting HomeKit devices — but, for better or worse, they’re all pretty boring.
elago W3 Apple Watch Stand LOOKS LIKE A BABY MACINTOSH⇢
The Tagalong OS
I’ve been thinking more about the Mac’s place in the world, and there’s more to worry about than “just” the hardware.
An Obligatory Look Back
Let’s talk about macOS’ release cycle. Here’s when every major version was released, and how long until it was replaced:
| Release | Date | Time on Market |
|---|---|---|
| Public Beta | September 2000 | 6 months |
| 10.0 Cheetah | March 2001 | 6 months |
| 10.1 Puma | September 2001 | 11 months |
| 10.2 Jaguar | August 2002 | 14 months |
| 10.3 Panther | October 2003 | 18 months |
| 10.4 Tiger | April 2005 | 30 months |
| 10.5 Leopard | October 2007 | 22 months |
| 10.6 Snow Leopard | August 2009 | 23 months |
| 10.7 Lion | July 2011 | 12 months |
| 10.8 Mountain Lion | July 2012 | 15 months |
| 10.9 Mavericks | October 2013 | 12 months |
| 10.10 Yosemite | October 2014 | 11 months |
| 10.11 El Capitan | September 2015 | 12 months |
| 10.12 Sierra | September 2016 | — |
An AirPods Story⇢
I happened to wake up at around 11:30, and at that point figured I may as well stay up to see the ball drop. I quietly grabbed my phone, started my Slingbox and tuned it to ABC. When the time came for the ball to drop, I wanted Erin and I to share the moment, but that would be hard without disturbing the sleeping toddler between us.
Luckily, I had a solution.
An Apple Watch Story⇢
Last New Year’s Day I decided to start eating healthy, exercising daily, and filling the Activity Rings on my Apple Watch as a way to get in shape. I broke my New Year’s resolution by January 4, but I started again on April 1 and ultimately lost over 50 pounds in 2016.
Apple Watch didn’t lose the weight for me — it took a lot of dedication and really changing my lifestyle — but the fitness tracking features and Apple’s Activity app helped quantify my effort without me doing too little or going overboard.
iPhone City⇢
The scale of Apple and Foxconn’s operations in China is staggering.
Trajectory⇢
Riccardo Mori, writing about iOS’ future if macOS were to go away:
When I walk down this hypothetical path, what I see in iOS’s trajectory, more than sheer innovation, is a reinvention of the wheel. iOS was born as a simpler, streamlined version of Mac OS X; its multi-touch interface was ingenious and groundbreaking when applied to a smartphone and (similarly, but less strikingly) to a tablet; to then evolve — through a series of iterations and feature creep — into… Mac OS X?
My Entire Wish List for Apple for 2017 That I Hope Will Come True but Ehhhhh
- Updated desktop Macs.