512 Pixels

Apple:

iOS 8 will be available as a free software update starting Wednesday, September 17 for iPhone 4s, iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5s, iPod touch 5th generation, iPad 2, iPad with Retina display, iPad Air, iPad mini and iPad mini with Retina display. New iCloud pricing includes 5GB free, 20GB $0.99/month, 200GB $3.99/month, 500GB $9.99/month and 1TB $19.99/month. Continuity features and iCloud Drive will be available on Macs running OS X Yosemite. In October, SMS Continuity will be available as a free update to iOS 8 and iCloud Photo Library will be available as a beta. Starting in October, with iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, Apple Pay will be available in the US as a free update to iOS 8. Features are subject to change. Some features may not be available in all regions or all languages.

Sure seems like a big iOS 8 update will come along side Yosemite next month.

Today, the clickwheel is a thing of the past. Goodbye, old friend.

Instead of running RSS sponsorships this month, I’m raising $10,000 in support of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital as part of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Click here to learn more and donate.

When your child is diagnosed with cancer — or any other catastrophic disease — life implodes. Things that used to matter don’t anymore, and the things that remain are stretched, often to a breaking point.

My family is extremely lucky to be from Memphis, the home of St. Jude. Even in the busiest days of Josiah’s chemotherapy, we were able to grab some sleep at home. We went the same grocery store as we already had.

Most importantly, Merri and I were able to be with Josiah together. The majority of families we’ve met over the last five years at St. Jude are split, as they are traveling to Memphis to receive treatment, undergo scans and more. Most families make countless trips through Memphis International Airport

St. Jude not only pays for this endless stream of plane tickets, but houses families in three hospital-managed facilities for those staying in town, whether it’s overnight or for months at a time.

On the surface, this isn’t related to healthcare. But it’s absolutely critical to a patient’s well-being that their family life is as normal as possible during what can be a years-long ordeal.

St. Jude does far more than provide a bed for family members. On-campus meals (in what has to be the best hospital cafeteria on Earth) are free, travel between housing and the hospital is free and local drivers are treated to valet parking, making it safer and easier to get patients into the building. There are social workers and chaplains on-site, and there’s some giant, themed party just about every other week.

All of these things take stress away from families. As a parent, it means I can focus as much of my attention on my son, and not worry about logistics. While this may seem small compared to the overwhelming fact that the hospital is already covering all the medical bills, it makes a world of difference. St. Jude does everything it can to soften the rough edges many find in the healthcare industry.

If home is where the heart is, ours are at 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN.

Brendan Wilhide, over on The Sweet Setup:

There are plenty of budgeting apps available to Mac users, and it can be difficult to find the right app for you. We spent six months testing and using the top contenders for features and usability, and we think iBank is the app which will best serve people’s budgeting and finance management needs.

Wait, what year is this?

David Sparks, after reminding us that the current iPad Air and iPad mini with Retina display are internally identical:

If the rumor sites are to be believed, this won’t be the case with the two different sized iPhones we are expected to see next week. Not only will screen size be different but we may also have differences in camera quality. I would speculate that differences in display quality, battery life, and storage could also easily be in play. Assuming that the bigger phone does get some of the better components, what do the people who want a smaller screen with the better components do? They have to make tough choices. I suspect much digital ink will be sacrificed in relation to this question in the coming weeks.

I think it makes sense that a larger iPhone could have a better battery due to its larger chasis, but it’s important to remember that all current iPads sport the same battery life.

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As far as the other components, I really hope that Apple put the iPhone on the same track as the iPad: that the only difference between the two models is size. I don’t want a 5.5-inch phone, but I don’t want to feel like a second-class citizen because of my size preference.

David Pierce at The Verge:

This watch just happens to do more than tell time.

Until, that is, it doesn’t do anything at all. That happens about 12 hours after I take the watch off its charger, a cool black wireless dock that the 360 slots into sideways. Motorola says the 360’s battery lasts a day, but I haven’t seen it last that long yet. I don’t expect a smartwatch to last weeks or years, but it ought to be able to last a day and a night no matter how much I use it. My watch now dies before my phone does, and that’s unacceptable. I’ve already spent too much time wearing a dead Moto 360, and good-looking a bracelet as it is, that’s not what I’m spending $249 for.

If Apple has something up its sleeve for next week, I hope this issue has been addressed.

This week on Connected, Myke and I were joined by Macworld’s Jason Snell to talk about Apple’s upcoming event.

This episode was sponsored by:

• Igloo: An intranet you’ll actually like, free for up to 10 people.
• Iconic: A Photographic Tribute to Apple Innovation
• Squarespace (use code WORLD for 10% off)

Our refrigerator is probably just like yours — covered in photos of family and friends, along with a calendar and some coupons to use at the grocery store.

There’s a section on ours, however, with photos of kids who have died of cancer.

For a little over five years, our oldest son has been fighting a brain tumor, and in that time, we’ve had far too many “little friends” and their families pass through our lives.

The real kicker is that these kids received the best care on the planet. The very best that science can do still isn’t enough; cancer remains the leading killer of children.

Just look at these survival numbers. St. Jude is leading the way in ridding the world of some terrible diseases. St. Jude makes their research and breakthroughs public, so kids well beyond the 7,800 seen each year here in Memphis can benefit.

The most unbelievable part is right in the organization’s mission statement:

The mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is to advance cures, and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment. Consistent with the vision of our founder Danny Thomas, no child is denied treatment based on race, religion or a family’s ability to pay.

I know first-hand what this means. In five years, my family hasn’t paid a single dime for our son’s care and on-going rehabilitation. As soul-crushing as having a child with cancer is, I can’t imagine having to worry about life-altering debt or filing for bankruptcy as well.

There are a million good causes out there, but let’s make September about those kids on my refrigerator.

I’ve set up a St. Jude fundraising page that I will be linking to instead of RSS sponsors for the month of September. My goal is to raise $1,000$2,500$4,000$6,000 $10,000 for the kids of St. Jude this month It takes $2 million a day to run the hospital and research center, so this is a drop in the bucket. Let’s make it our drop.

Over on Re/code:

So that new wearable device Apple is introducing on September 9? It’s going to be a while before anyone is actually wearing it. Sources in position to know tell me it won’t arrive at market for a few months. “It’s not shipping anytime soon,” said one. So when does Apple plan to ship its eagerly anticipated wearable? That’s not clear, but my understanding is that we’re unlikely to see it at retail until after the holiday season — think early 2015.

A delayed release makes sense on a bunch of levels, including giving developers time to prepare apps for the platform.

If this new device is months away from shipping, it would also help explain the suspicious lack of leaked details, especially from parts suppliers in Asia.

Juli Clover:

Apple today issued invitations for its upcoming iPhone 6 event on September 9, which is also said to include its much-anticipated wearable device. According to the invitations, Apple is planning to host the event at the Flint Center for the Performing Arts at De Anza College in Cupertino, the same location where Steve Jobs introduced the original Mac 30 years ago.

For the occasion, it appears that Apple has been building a massive structure on the campus, which has been kept under tight wraps with a white barricade.

Well, this should be exciting. From what I’ve seen on video, the Flint Center is pretty big; I can’t imagine what Apple needs more square footage for during or after an event that would be boring.

This week on Connected, Federico, Myke and I follow up on the history of the iPod, then discusses software and hardware that are helping them get in better shape.

Sponsored by:

• Blogo: Blogging made easy
• OmniGraffle from The Omni Group
• Igloo: An intranet you’ll actually like, free for up to 10 people.