Tag: iPhone

Sunday Morning Reading

It’s Sunday morning. So here’s some Sunday Morning Reading to share. There’s no theme. Just a collection of topics and writers that caught my eye and tugged a bit on the heartstrings.

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Chris Welch on The Verge lets us know that Samsung and NYC’s Metropolitan Museum of Art are collaborating and expanding the collection of art that is available to view in your home on Samsung’s Frame TVs. I didn’t know this was a thing. I’m sure some art lovers are glad it is. Would be nice to see this picked up by other museums and Smart TV makers. Check out Samsung Is Bringing Artwork From The Met Museum To Its Frame TVs.

On the politics beat, Susan Glaser pens The Rage of The Toddler Caucus On Capitol Hill. If they title doesn’t tell you what it’s about, you’re not paying attention.

When and why does time matter? Check out Philip Ogley’s The Clock Watcher. Make the time.

What happens if turbulence in the brain’s waves can carve indentations and pathways over time in the same way that water does in stone? Check out Newly Discovered Spirals of Brain Activity May Help Explain Cognition by Shelly Fan.

David Todd McCarty penned an excellent and very personal piece this week about his family coping with drug addiction and its aftermath entitled Bear With Me, I Want To Tell You Something. Beautiful stuff. Tough. Coconuts and plungers.

These are tough times to wade through. Ana Marie Cox says We Are Not Just Polarized. We Are Traumatized. I think she’s correct. And remember, cynicism is a trauma response.

A devilishly good piece by Natasha MH, In Bed With the Devil.

Mark Jacob in Courier Newsroom let’s us in on The Republican Trick To Spin Straw Into Gold. There are no surprises. But we all need to recognize it when it’s happening.

Changing the channel, M.G. Siegler takes a look at the end of the Cable TV bundle in Cable Bites the Dust, and predicts that we’re going to be bundling again as we continue down the path into streaming entertainment consolidation.

And as we head into a week when new iPhones are arriving around the world, finally equipped for USB-C charging, Jay Peters on The Verge writes an almost mournful obituary for the Lightning Connector in Lightning was Great Actually.

If you’re interested in just what the heck Sunday Morning Reading is all about you can read more about the origins of Sunday Morning Reading here.

The iPad Mystery That Isn’t Really a Mystery

Apple is about to unleash its annual storm of iPhone news next week when it unveils the 2023 edition of the computer that changed everything. There will be a flood of impressions initially, good and less than good, and we’ll be wading through high water right into the holiday season.

So why is it raining thoughts about iPads?

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Probably because it doesn’t look there will be much in the way of iPad news at this event. And from what we know of iPadOS the big news seems to be correcting the goofy mistakes made last year with Stage Manager. I also think that since this year’s iPhones and Apple Watches are rumored to be more interative than innovative, and much of the pent up energy is focused ahead to next year’s release of Apple’s Vision Pro, AND the predominant iPad rumor is that the 2024 iPad will feature big design changes, there’s room to kvetch a bit.

Don’t get me wrong about the iPhone. I don’t think iterative is a bad thing. The iPhone is mature platform. In and of itself that’s a great thing. But that doesn’t set the tech pundit heartbeats a-fluttering as much as the potential for bigger innovations.

Nature abhors a vacuum and so does the Internet. So why not talk about everyone’s favorite Apple mystery: iPad.

Why a mystery? No one seems to know exactly how to define this device. Including Apple.

Before moving on let me say this. I’m an iPad fan. I’ve owned most of them, currently the latest versions of the 11-inch iPad Pro and iPad mini. I use them both daily (along with Macs) for both work and play. I’m typing this currently on the iPad Pro while visiting family. There hasn’t been one too far from my reach since the first version. It’s my favorite work device and my favorite stall surfing device.

Here’s a quick summary of what some are saying:

Jason Snell of Six Colors kicked off this current wave by saying he’s Giving up the iPad-Only Travel Dream. He’d like to see the iPad capable of more functionality with Apple opening the platform up for developers and users to more easily extend it to their heart’s content.

John Gruber picked up and extended that argument on Daring Fireball.

Wes Davis on The Verge hammers the iPad sits in an awkward place argument.

Harry McCracken calls it a beautiful disappointment.

Jason McFadden asks the question Why do some want the iPad to be more than just a good tablet?

Denny Henke of Beardy Guy Musings thinks we’re perpertually moving goal posts in the discussion between touch-first casual users and power users who pound keyboards for a living.

I’m sure I missed a few.

None of them are wrong.

Much of the mystery isn’t really mysterious. It’s that there seems to be no Goldilocks answer. The pro-users want more and the extremes in that camp won’t be content until the Mac and the iPad are one and the same. In the middle, the iPad Air line offers most users much of what the Pro offers but holds back a bit. The iPad without a modifer offers even less, but compensates with a price point that makes it popular for those who just want to stream entertainment, do some browsing, FaceTime, or shut their kids up by letting them stream CoComelon.

And the iPad mini is caught somewhere in the middle. In my view the iPad mini is the most hindered by Apple’s attempts at segregating the lineup beyond size. Goldilocks might have called it “just right.” It’s the device I pick up the most.

Unless you measure success merely by sales charts, there’s nothing wrong with there being some confusing segmentation. On the other, what we currently know (and use) in all computing categories is constantly changing around and underneath our finger tips. Apple Silcon changed everything, including, I think, Apple’s plans. All you had to do was watch the “What’s a computer” commercials in the last decade to see where things seemed to be headed.

And if you think that spatial computing, the concept behind Apple’s Vision Pro, wasn’t in the works when those commericals were approved and aired, you’re mistaken. Whatever spatial computing is going to be it is going to profoundly change things.

It’s hard for the pundits when Apple’s cues aren’t easily decipherable. In my view it’s less, but still so for consumers. I’ve yet to read a review of any product in any category that calls it perfect without calling for more. Goodness knows how confusing things will be in the future if spatial computing’s future offers a lineup of products resembling anything  close to current speculation, from contact lenses to powerhouse gaming headsets.

So I say enjoy the ride while the riding’s good. There’s no Goldilocks iPad for all. There’s no Goldilocks computing platform for all. There probably shouldn’t be and I hope that always remains the case. Niches can be nice. And besides, we’d all be bored and begging for more anyway if the game just stopped. Just look at the lack of excitement about this year’s iPhones and Apple Watches.

Apple WWDC Thoughts

Beginning June 5 Apple kicks off its annual World Wide Developers Conference, (WWDC). Apple will introduce new versions of its operating systems for current devices, but all of the excitement is focused on Apple’s AR/VR headset and the operating system that will run the thing. Mixed reality, augmented reality, virtual reality… who knows. I’m sure whatever it will be will somewhat unreal. I’ll certainly be interested to see how Apple tries to make it real, but it’s from a very backseat perspective. I just don’t see myself as being in the market for this kind of device/experience.

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Let’s face it, the next period of time is going to be focused very much on the headset and what it offers. Even though whatever Apple announces is probably going to be a years long effort towards what the product will eventually become. How that interacts with the existing ecosystem will be much more interesting for me.

To be honest, I’m not expecting much from iOS or macOS or any of their siblings. And I’m not sure anyone should. For better or worse these operating systems are quite mature. Sure there will be some new things, but for my money I’d prefer to see Apple keep tidying things up. Refining and striving for consistency are higher priorities for me than whiz bang new features.

I don’t have many big “wishes” for what I’d like to see. But I do have a few minor ones that would make my time in the orchard a bit easier.

Notifications are still problematic. Especially on the Mac. For goodness sake give us a button that allows us to bulk dismiss notifications like we can on iOS.

Last year saw some syncing up of features in Apple Mail between iOS and Mac. Keep it up. Also, make Rules work better and more consistently.

It’s time for a Clipboard Manager in the operating systems.

Bring Automations to Shortcuts on macOS.

Get rid of the consistent inconsistency with iCloud.

Fix Siri. Just do it.

The App Stores make much money for Apple and developers. It’s supposed to be a showplace. Clean it up. It should also run more efficiently than it does.

I’m hoping there will be some clarity and cleaning up of Stage Manager given that it feels very much like a building block for the AR/VR vision.

That’s it. That’s my wish list. Whatever reality we end up in after Monday I hope some of the above gets addressed.