Category: Apple
macOS Sierra Review
Over the past several years, Mac OS X macOS releases have gotten smaller and less exciting.
OS X Yosemite brought a new design to the Mac, but past that, most users can’t tell the difference between it and El Capitan, let alone what was new in Mountain Lion or Mavericks.
As I’ve written before, I think the lack of excitement in big macOS releases is mostly okay. The Mac is a stable platform that is still growing, but at a much slower rate than Apple’s front-and-center operating system, iOS.
New Apple Music Ad Features James Corden Brainstorming⇢
I haven’t laughed during an Apple ad in a long time, but this one changed that.
My iPhone 7 Plus is Emitting Noise From Logic Board (Updated)
As my iPhone 7 Plus was restoring from iCloud, I thought I noticed some sound. After picking the device up from my desk, it was clear the sounds are coming from back of the phone, possibly from the CPU. It seems to get worse if the iPhone is under load. It’s loud enough to be heard even if the iPhone is just sitting on the table. I don’t have to put it up to my ear to hear it.
iPhone 7 Plus Teardown⇢
I link to these iFixIt teardowns every year. I just can’t help myself.
The Mac Pro Hasn’t Been Revised in 1,000 Days
Apple’s Mac Pro crossed a milestone today: it’s been 1,000 days since its last revision.
One. Thousand. Days.
Here’s how that number stands up over time, according to MacRumors: 
Current rumors point to a revision to the desktop coming in the spring with Skylake-E, which means this number is only going to get higher. Apple skipped a generation of Intel chips, and I think it’s easy to say at this point that was a mistake. The lack of a GPU upgrade in that time is even more baffling.
The MacStories iOS 10 Review⇢
Even without a clean slate, and with a release cycle that may begin to split across platforms, iOS 10 packs deep changes and hundreds of subtle refinements. The final product is a major leap forward from iOS 9 – at least for iPhone users.
At the same time, iOS 10 is more than a collection of new features. It’s the epitome of Apple’s approach to web services and AI, messaging as a platform, virtual assistants, and the connected home. And as a cornucopia of big themes rather than trivial app updates, iOS 10 shows another side of Apple’s strategy:
Mac OS 9 Today⇢
But as hard as it may be to believe in light of yet another macOS update, there are some who still use Apple’s long-abandoned system. OS 9 diehards may hold on due to one important task they just can’t replicate on a newer computer, or perhaps they simply prefer it as a daily driver. It only takes a quick trip to the world of subreddits and Facebook groups to verify these users exist.
The 128 GB iPod Video
I have an iPod classic that I keep loaded with music, but there’s something about the 5th generation “video” iPod that really speaks to me. I have both a white and a black one in my collection, so I thought it’d be fun to upgrade one of them.
In addition to a new battery, I replaced the 30 GB hard drive with a 128 GB SD card via a third-party part called the Tarkan iFlash.
On ‘Courage’⇢
I’d still argue it was the wrong word.
Inside the Headphone Jack Decision⇢
A tentpole feature of the new iPhones are improved camera systems that are larger than the cameras in the devices that preceded them. The iPhone 7 now has the optical image stabilization feature previously reserved for its larger Plus siblings. And the iPhone 7 Plus has two complete camera systems side by side — one with a fixed wide-angle lens, the other with a 2x zoom telephoto lens. At the top of both devices is something called the “driver ledge” — a small printed circuit board that drives the iPhone’s display and its backlight. Historically, Apple placed it there to accommodate improvements in battery capacity, where it was out of the way. But according to Riccio, the driver ledge interfered with the iPhone 7 line’s new larger camera systems, so Apple moved the ledge lower in both devices. But there, it interfered with other components, particularly the audio jack.
iPhone 7
For the first time, Apple has used the same design on its flagship phone three years running. The first feature Phil Schiller mentioned is the new Darth Vader-inspired Jet Black finish, which is an unusual opening line. My guess is Apple just wanted to blast right over this fact then move on.
While I don’t think the iPhone 6 design is the best looking — or easiest to hold — I don’t think it’s the end of the world that Apple didn’t revisit the design in a radical way this year.