Mac Power Users 397 – More on iOS 11 and High Sierra

The latest episode of Mac Power Users is up. I spent a lot of time in the betas this year and this show dives deep on my favorite new features and how to put them to work for you.

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Rich Mogull on the Equifax Fiasco

Things are tough enough these days, and now we need to spend a lot more time and effort dealing with identity theft. By far, the best thing I’ve read about the Equifax mess was by Rich Mogull over at TidBITS. The post doesn’t have a happy ending, but I’d call it required reading anyway.

Learn Ulysses

I know that Ulysses is the subject of some controversy lately as a result of their switch to a subscription model, but I have been using the app quite a bit in my large writing project workflows. One of the things I like about Ulysses is its relative ease of use. However, like all great apps, there are some hidden depths there. If you are using Ulysses and would like to get better at it, I recommend the Sweet Setup’s new Learn Ulysses course. Shawn Blanc and team did a great job on these instructional videos.

Bluetooth 5.0 and the New iPhones

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One thing I haven’t seen much written about is the addition of Bluetooth 5.0 to iPhone 8 and iPhone X. According to the Bluetooth standards commission, the big change with version 5.0 is increased range. (The last few updates have focused on reduced battery usage.) With Bluetooth 5.0, the range is now supposed to be up to 800 feet (240 meters).

Bluetooth 5.0 also has increased bandwidth, allowing you to have a Bluetooth connection to two devices at one time. In theory you’d be able to send your music to two different Bluetooth speakers or two sets of headphones.

To me, however, the biggest deal is the increased range. Hopefully that translates to the Apple Watch and AirPods. I’m looking forward to testing this out when I get my new iPhone X.

Austin Mann’s iPhone 8 Plus Camera Review

Austin Mann has been writing iPhone camera reviews for years and they’re great. It’s really nice seeing what a professional photographer can do with the new iPhone hardware. This year he took a trip to India and has some great examples of the new portrait features and comparisons to prior iPhone hardware. I can’t wait to see what he does when he gets his hands on an iPhone X.

Austin is a very nice fellow. He guested on Mac Power Users a few years ago and shared some great iPhone photography tips.

Apple Watch Series 3 Review and Thoughts

The Apple Watch series 3 reviews are starting to show up online. My favorites were from John Gruber and 9to5 Mac. There also appears to be some sort of bug with unauthenticated Wi-Fi networks but I expect that will get sorted out.

While Apple’s marketing is focused on the fact that the cellular Apple Watch makes telephone calls, I think the more relevant point for nerds is the always on Internet connection. Having your watch be able to use Siri, connect to the Internet, and otherwise interact with the world without having to first go through the middleman of your iPhone seems to be a significant benefit. All of this said, the cellular companies charging $120 a year for the connection seems pretty steep.

Which iPhone for Non-Geeks?

Apple’s review embargo on the iPhone 8 reviews lifted today and there are several positive reviews out concerning the new hardware. I’ve received several emails from listeners asking for advice about choosing between the iPhone 8 and iPhone X. If you’re reading these words, there is a good chance you are already in the iPhone X camp. However, what about all those people out there that don’t live and die by this stuff? I’ve yet to touch either device so you can take my advice with a grain of salt but from the outside, it seems to me that the iPhone 8 is the default recommendation when non-geeks ask which iPhone to buy.

Except for the addition of a glass back in lieu of aluminum, the iPhone 8 is largely the same design Apple’s used for the last four years. It’s tried and tested. Moreover, the iPhone 8 has the higher speed A11 processor that you will also find the iPhone X.

The iPhone 8 camera got better than the iPhone 7 and, with that new glass back, the device now supports inductive charging. Speaking of the glass back, early reviews say it’s a lot easier to hold than the prior aluminum casing. In addition to all of these improvements, the screen also got better with the true tone feature getting added.

Finally, it is going to be a lot easier to get your hands on an iPhone 8 than iPhone X. Telling a non-geek they need to be awake, online, with credit card ready at some point in the dead of night to get their phone simply verbalizes the insanity that us geeks live in every day. I think getting your hands on your own iPhone X is going to be difficult for the foreseeable future.

If the iPhone X didn’t exist, I’d be perfectly happy with an upgrade to an iPhone 8 this year. I, however, am a geek and the fact that something even newer and shinier exists would drive me nuts if I went with an iPhone 8 instead of an iPhone X.

My non-geek sister, however, could care less. She has a two-year-old phone and just wants a great iPhone. She’s never heard the term edge-to-edge and would not want to deal with the inevitable issues that will arise from the iPhone X’s new design and new user interface implementations, all of which will most likely be better in the second (or third) iteration anyway. That’s why when she asked me which phone to buy a few days ago, I told her to get an iPhone 8.

MPU 396: Apple Event and iOS 11

This week’s show includes our takeaways from the September 12 Apple event. We dive deep on the new hardware, and I give Katie a hard time about buying a new iPhone. We also start discussing the features available in iOS 11, which will ship in just a few days. I’ve spent a lot of time using this beta software and have some thoughts and ideas on what works and what doesn’t and how to get the most out of it.

Craig Federighi Talks Face ID on the TalkShow

This week Apple’s software head, Craig Federighi, joined the Talk Show podcast to explain and answer questions about Face ID. It’s a great Sunday afternoon listen.

I think my favorite part was the disclosure that if you pick up your iPhone X and swipe from the bottom to the home screen, the iPhone will start the animation while it is simultaneously verifying your face and unlocking the device. There shouldn’t be any delay, which is exactly the behavior I would expect.

Before this, I was concerned that you would have to unlock before swiping into your home screen, which would drive me nuts every time I turn the phone on.