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News
What Dan Riccio might be up to
Bloomberg is reporting that Dan Riccio, who recently stepped down from his role as senior vice president of Hardware Engineering, is going to be overseeing the teams working on Apple’s rumored VR and AR headsets
The piece claims the projects now have “well over” a thousand engineers working on them and they are still led day to day by Apple VP Mike Rockwell
The first headset is expected to be a high-end VR-focused device with some AR capabilities.
The projects have reportedly struggled a bit and it’s believed Riccio’s presence could help get things back on track
The piece also mentions that Apple teams working on in-house displays and camera technology are being moved under the direction of Senior Vice President of Hardware Technologies, Johny Srouji
Apple has been reportedly working on Micro-LED technology in hopes of developing their own displays for future products
For the displays in the rumored Apple headset Nikkei says Apple is working with partner Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC)
They claim at a “secret facility” in Taiwan the pair are developing “ultra-advanced” micro OLED displays
Micro OLED displays are said to be thinner, smaller, and more power efficient because they are built directly on to chip wafers rather than a glass substrate.
The tiny displays are less than one inch in size and are said to be in the trial production stage.
At this point we don’t expect to see production until at least 2023 which could line up perfect for Apple’s VR/AR projects.
Apple TV+ expands family friendly titles
Apple has ordered another series from Sinking Ship Entertainment who produces Apple's Daytime Emmy Award series "Ghostwriter."
This time they're working with the Jane Goodall Institute to create a mixed live-action and CGI series called "Jane."
Episodes will feature a 10-year-old girl, Jane Garcia, who uses her imagination and help from teammates to protect an endangered animal.
Apple has found a replacement for Keira Knightly in their upcoming Apple TV+ series "Essex Serpent"
Claire Danes is said to be taking the role after Knightly stepped away from the project due to concerns about resuming filming during the pandemic.
"Essex Serpent" is based on the Sarah Perry period novel of the same name.
Filming has not they started on the series and there is currently no announced release date.
According to Deadline Apple has signed a deal for a sci-fi courtroom drama film called Dolly that will star Florence Pugh
Pugh, has starred in the films "Midsommar" and "Little Women”
The story is about a robotic companion doll who kills her owner. The twist is that the robot claims she innocent and asks for a lawyer.
The film is still under development and is being written by Vanessa Taylor and Drew Pearce.
Taylor is know for "Hillbilly Elegy" and "The Shape of Water and Drew Pearce has worked on "Iron Man," "Mission: Impossible," and "Fast and Furious."
They also don’t currently have a director attached, so this one may be a way off.
Former Netflix CEO Marc Randolph told Yahoo Finance that he thinks Apple needs to step it up if they plan to compete in the streaming market
Basically eluding to the fact that Apple doesn’t have that much content
“It's really a war of who's prepared to make the content,”
He also commented on Apple “giving away” free-subscriptions.
Apple has the highest churn rate out of all services.
Apple still continues to pick up some amazing projects and they have new seasons starting and more coming
Foundation might even be their biggest hit and will be coming in the Fall of 2021
We’re hearing now that the show, based on the Isaac Asimov novels could be 80 episodes
More amazing upcoming projects we heard about these past weeks
According to the Hollywood reporter Apple signed a multi-year deal with Skydance animation
It will include the development of both original TV series and films
Two films in development are Luck and Spellbound
Both were originally set to release in 2022
Spellbound is about a young girl who must break a spell to united her divided kingdom
Luck is about the unluckiest girl in the world stumbles upon the world of good and bad luck
Jane Fonda will voice a dragon called Klute in the film
Both films are produced by former head of Pixar John Lasseter who also serves as Skydance’s head of animation.
There is also a two season orders for a show called “The Search for WondLa” based on a book series of the same name by Tony DiTerlizzi
Apple gave first looks and release dates for some upcoming series
“Physical” a dark comedy set in San Diego in the 80’s starring Rose Byrne will be out this summer
Also out this summer will be a Steven King thriller called “Lisey’s Story” which stars Julianne Moore and Clive Owen
And then a musical comedy series called “Schigadoon!” with Cecily Strong and Keegan-Michael Key which is a parody of iconic musical
Apple’s “The Mosquito Coast” based on the Paul Theroux book by the same name will premiere on April 30th
The series will star Justin Theroux (the author’s nephew), Melissa George, Logan Polish, and Gabriel Bateman
The second season of Mythic Quest will be out on May 7th
And Season 2 of Ted Lasso will be coming this summer along with the second seasons of Central Park, Home Before Dark, The Morning Show, and Truth Be Told.
The second season fo See is coming in the Fall.
AppleTV app is now available on GoogleTV (Chromecast)
What’s unfolding for iPhone
YouTuber Jon Prosser continues to deliver information from his Apple birdies about work on “foldable” iPhones
All the designs are in early prototyping stages, but not it looks as if one design might be striking a bigger chord with Apple’s design team
They have done designs with both “book” fold and “clamshell” fold designs and, according to Prosser, the clamshell design seems to be the winner. At least for now.
DigiTimes has reported that Apple is working with LG Display on the foldable OLED panels
But we also have previously heard of Samsung providing panels too.
There are also signs that Apple may intend for their foldable to be more consumer focused than pro focused.
Jon says that Apple is looking at a design that would have fun colors and would not be so “serious and polished” as their Pro designs.
Another rumor is that a foldable iPhone might also finally bring Apple Pencil support
Don’t expect anything soon. Apple seems to just be working through ideas at this point.
New research from Counterpoint Research indicates that the iPhone 12 mini only accounted for 5 percent of iPhone sales in 2020
Basically the number seem to indicate people just want larger phones
A JP Morgan analyst speculated that Apple may stop production of the iPhone 12 mini in the second quarter and continue to just sell through the stock already on hand.
Apple is working on a MagSafe battery attachment for the iPhone 12
At least on version is rumored to have a white rubber case
There have been software and development issues that could delay or kill the product
Already hearing about iPhone 13 models for 2021
Expected to be a “S” year in terms of features, but unclear what Apple will do on naming
Designs are likely not going to change, so expect mostly spec bumps and minor camera improvements
matte back will be “refined” so that’s texturized and “more grippy” to hold
Portrait Mode for video and astrophotography
For now, Apple is expected to keep with the same models and sizes (including a mini)
Biggest change could be the removal of the lightning port, but that is not a certainty
Maybe the return of TouchID with an under display sensor
Could be exclusive to the Pro line.
Another big rumor is an “Always on” display, like Apple Watch
What it offered would possibly be limited. A “toned down” Lock Screen.
I assume it would also use the ambient light sensors and only be “always on” when it’s not in a pocket or face down on a table?
Apple is looking for G6 wireless systems engineers
Just looking to ready their cellular development teams as G6 will likely not arrive until 2030
Apple self driving vehicle stats
Apple’s self driving test vehicles in California logged more than twice the milage in 2020 than they did in 2019
New new disengagement and mileage reports from the DMV show that Apple’s test cars traveled a total of 18,805 miles with 130 disengagements. That’s a a disengagement every 144.6 miles.
Apple may still have a ways to go though.
Their rate was 6.91 disengagements per 1,000 miles. Waymo and Cruise by comparison reported only 1 disengagement per 12,000 miles
There also have not been any collisions, while there was one in 2019.
Bloomberg put together a list of possible Apple car partners
Ever since the supposed fallout with Hyundai / Kia rumors about who Apple will join with on the project are rampant
Foxconn is a possibility as they are working on solid state batteries and showed off an electric vehicle chassis and software platform last year.
The Ontario, Canada based Magna has also been on the short list for years. They work with higher end partners like BMW and Landrover and speculation has been that an Apple car might target the “premium” end of the market.
A less likely partner could be Nissan
Honestly it also seems like Hyundai / Kia could even still be in the mix.
Apple could announce AirTags, maybe
We’ve heard it all before and if I’m remembering right from the same sources
Jon Prosser one again claiming on his YouTube channel that Apple will announce AirTags next month
Also new iPad Pro models, which would more likely be the headliner
Say, no talk of any further delays this time.
I mean, if you just keep saying it you’ll eventually be right, right?
Any iPad changes are likely to be evolutionary. New processors and possibly min-LED backlighting on the 12.9-inch model.
First M1 malware arrives
It really should not be a surprise to anyone
Security research Patrick Wardle found an M1 native version of Pierrot adware
The variant discovered is called “GoSearch22” and disguises itself as a Safari extension
Then security firm Red Canary found a second piece of malware they’re calling “Silver Sparrow”
This one takes advantage of the macOS Installer JavaScript API to execute suspicious commands.
It doesn’t appear to do anything yet
Just like other apps, we can expect adware, spyware, and malware to go “native”
First alleged look at AirPods 3
Images posted by 52audio claim to show the next generation os Apple’s AirPods
worth noting the same site has shared “faked” AirPods 3rd gen images in the past
The design and charging case look very similar to AirPods Pro, but without the silicone ear tips.
Shorter stems and the flat force sensor control surfaces
Are not expected to have the active noise cancellation technology, but should support spatial audio
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Feedback, commentary, opinions
iMac as a second display
I asked for possible solutions since newer iMacs lost this capability
It’s a hardware “dongle” that you connect to the main Mac and then can work wirelessly or over USB
Mac to Mac can be done via Ethernet or Thunderbolt (USB-C)
Still technically runs over the “network” connection.
To mesh or not to mesh
Play feedback from David
There are a number of great router options out there for WiFi 6
Mac OS Mail keyboard navigation
Andrew wrote in to note that the ability to “jump to the top” of the inbox by double clicking at the top of the list was not a feature of Mail in macOS Big Sur
This is a feature of many apps with list views in iOS. Tapping the top of the screen, on the time, will scroll you to the top of the page or top of a list.
In Mac OS Mail there are a number of handy keyboard shortcuts for navigating mail.
In the list Command+Option+Up arrow will jump to top. Command+Option+Down arrow jump to bottom
Can also use fn+left arrow (home) fn+right arrow (end)
Command+1-5 will jump to different “Favorites”
For example Command+1 is typically the Inboxes
You can “Tab” to jump between the Panels. From mailbox list > mail list > message pane > search
Use arrow keys to navigate up and down
Steve asked about sorting subfolders in Mac OS Mojave
“Back in previous versions of MacOS, I had a folder with lots of subfolders and to sort the subfolders I would click to close the folder and when you clicked to open it again the subfolder would be sorted. In newer versions of MacOS, this doesn’t work.”
As far as I know Mail folders (mailboxes) are sorted manually and will stay in the order you put them in.
Just click and drag them to put them in order.
I don’t know of a way to automatically sort them.
New mailboxes seem to be added in alphabetical order
Links in email signatures
Kino wrote in to note a possible change in adding links to images in email signatures in Mac OS Mail in Big Sur
Says, “The possibility to create a hyperlink from an image in Apple Mail “signature” seems to have vanished”
Not sure when the option disappeared
Personally I think Apple has made it too hard to make anything but a basic text formatted signature
Mail > Preferences > Signatures
You can select text and apply styling from the format menu
You can also select text and choose `Edit > Add Link…`
You can also drag in an image to use, but can’t seem to select that image to apply a link to it.
The only way I have found to create HTML signatures is a really complex process that seems to change (and get harder) with each release of Mac OS
They are for Catalina, but seem to also work for Big Sur
Basically you need to write your signature in HTML, using only inline styles, and hosted image links
Then you create a new “Placeholder” signature in Mail and quite the Mail app
Locate that from a secret location in the Finder
~/Library/Mail/V8/MailData/Signatures for local
~/Library/Mobile\ Documents/com\~apple\~mail/Data/V4/Signatures/ for iCloud Drive
An odd “new” instruction is it would seem that you may need to “lock” the signature file in the Finder to avoid having the Mail app overwrite your changes made outside Mail (annoying)
I had asked in a previous episode for opinions on Apple’s upcoming AR / VR projects
I got this interesting response from Bill
Play Bill’s comment
Apple actually does a great job in [a support article](https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204665) outlining what materials in the watch could cause sensitivity issues for people
Nickel
the stainless steel band release buttons of Apple Watch Series 4 and later and Apple Watch SE, the stainless steel portions of some Apple Watch bands, the metallic portions of the Hermès bands, and the magnets in the watch and bands, each contain some nickel
Acrylates
The Apple Watch case, the Woven Nylon, the Milanese Loop, the Modern Buckle, and the Leather Loop contain trace amounts of acrylates and methacrylate from adhesives.
Acrylates and methacrylate are found in many consumer products that come in contact with the skin, such as adhesive bandages.
Bands
Stainless steel (clasps) and leather
Sports bands are Fluoroelastomer
Braided Solo Loop: Polyester yarn with stainless steel
Sport Loop: Woven nylon
Solo Loop: Silicone
Apple Watch Nike Sport Loop: Woven nylon with reflective threads (aluminum-coated glass beads on PET yarn)
I would imagine some workarounds might be
Cases that would cover all but the back glass crystal
Wraps, but depending on the material it might still be an issue for some?
Band made from natural materials, that you might not have an allergy sensitivity to.
Any of the bands that don’t really breathe can also just be an issue with moisture and dirt getting under them
Don’t wear them too tight, though they need to be snug
Wash and more importantly keep dry.
Take off to let the skin breathe
Save Live Photos from Messages
Scott wrote in to ask about saving Live Photos from Messages on his Mac
You can recieve and view Live Photos, but exporting them in anyway (that I can figure out) seems to just result in the “static” image
Tried share and sending to Photos
Dragging a dropping into Photos
Open with Photos
I could save it from my iOS device to Photos and then when it sync’d from iCloud Photos it was a Live Photo
Interestingly AirDropping it from Messages on iOS the Mac resulted in just a “static” photo.
So I ask… how do you do it? What’s the trick as my Google-foo has failed me.
Siri you’re too loud (or soft)
Did you know on the HomePod you can set Siri’s voice volume independently from the speaker volume?
“Hey Siri, change your volume to [percent]” or “Hey Siri, speak at [percent]”
I also like to say “Hey Siri, speak louder/softer”
Hey Siri, What is the Siri volume
Obviously for the main volume the command “Hey Siri, set the volume to [percent]”
