Tag Archives: MacBook Pro

Apple, iPad, iPhone, iPhone 13 Pro, M1 Max, Mac, MacBook Pro, macOS 12 Monterey, OS Software

Apple’s Pro Lineup is Expanding: Just like the Minds of Creators

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Not a problem but an opportunity to get ahead of the trend

In episode 3 of season 21 of ‘Law and Order’, aired last week, an attempt at a joke was made. It was only half-a-chuckle worth of humor and mildly outdated. The upshot was that anyone under 30 is a wannabe social media influencer and anyone over 30 hates social media and influencers.

This is true only in the sense that there is a perception that the new and ubiquitous side-hustle is to selfie-video yourself into a million followers on TikTok mindset is exploding, which it is.

And that it’s happening concurrent with the post-pandemic rejection of traditional employment. The logic being that to start a YouTube channel (TikTok etc) and get a life as a creator that is worth more ( albeit with well known downsides) than a 9 to 5.

Once again there’s a disconnect between Apple with its finger on the pulse of society and high tech appetites, and the ‘media’, ever stuck in an imaginary war between ‘consumers’ and ‘pros’.

So what is “Pro” in a world where everyone wants to produce pro content?

A, now funny, bunch articles published on the eve of Apple’s recent hardware reveal event on March 8th, detailed exactly why there would definitely not be a release of an upgraded ‘mac-mini style’ workstation. The general idea was that the consumer market is bigger and more important and, therefore, Apple would be smart ad postpone the ‘less important’ pro products.

Of course, that turned out to be wrong and the highlight of the event was the release of what’s now called the Mac Studio, including the double stacked mac-mini-styled knock off of the insanely expensive Mac Pro and the partner Studio Display. Many of those articles have been deleted, likely due to the embarrassment of being 100% dead opposite of what transpired.

Next Mitchell Clark , in The Verge, writes that Apple has a “Pro Problem” and is somehow lost in its branding. Apparently, according to the post, Apple is too quick on the trigger to brand something Pro and will have no choice but to start a new, presumably, semi-pro line up using the the new ‘Studio’ moniker.

While this has, in a sense, um, already happened, it is a sign of something entirely different and much more meaningful that is being either willfully ignored or lost in the forest for the trees.

To be fair, the article is, ultimately taking a positive spin on this, positing that changing all “pro” products to the tag “studio” would be smart and that the term “pro” is too restrictive.

What this side-steps is the reality of what the entire Pro-plus-Studio product category is all about. The idea that anyone that uses Apple desktop or MacBook Pro gear for digital content creation would also own an iPhone and possible an iPad is now a given.

What’s new is the huge strides that Apple is making on a daily basis in the ability for all Apple products to add value to all other Apple products. This is a complex transition that literally began at the inception of each product line and will reach a peak of interoperability in around March of 2024 (prediction).

And the Pro lineup, whatever it will be called at that time is, and will continue to be, at the forefront of that transition and insanely great transformation.

Always cheering makes for a dull story

As an aside, it is a well known media technique to couch an Apple ‘puff piece’ in the guise of a takedown. It makes sense, if you endlessly gush on the genius of Apple’s strategy and products, you come across like a fan-boy-ass-kisser and worse, like a shill trying to make bank on Apple just by applauding anything that comes down the pike.

The truth is that this anti-but-really-pro thing works.

The premise of this article, that Apple knows exactly what it’s doing and that there is a monumental shift taking place in society where the meaning of ‘Pro’ is not getting muddied by Apple, but rather, expanding and morphing into something new and huge, is less sexy than just saying, Apple’s lost and they muffed it, dude.

With or without Apple, the meaning of ‘Pro’ is changing, by the minute

The imaginary line that exists between a Pro user and a consumer is blurring. And, according to the verge article, it’s Apple’s fault by designating its high end Phones as Pro and Pro Max, while at the same time also ‘real’ pro gear like the Mac Pro and the Pro Display XDR.

What is really happening is that there is a rapidly growing demographic that needs the kind of computational prowess that was once insanely expensive, but at a semi-pro price.

If you are an influencer or a wannabe (supposedly this is ‘everyone under 30’, right?) and you are getting by on skimpy iPhone apps but want to get into software like Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro and so on, but need the power to produce in a hurry, what are your options?

Until the new Mac Studio Lineup those options were very pricy. Very. But now imagine a world where you could have an iPhone 13 Pro or Pro Max, a Mac Studio set up and, if you get a few sponsors or subscribers, a MacBook Pro with M1 Max for the road.

By all accounts you now have a full production ensemble with the power (more powerful than Mac Pro is already the headline) to do what would have had a price of tens of thousands of dollars, closer to 20k, just a year ago.

Now it’s only slightly more than what the non-pro cost in 2021.

The tail wags the dog or does it?

The real, and obviously more complex reality, is that Apple is both leading and following the real demographics in the Pro revolution that is already afoot.

The shift from influencers using glamorous instagram photos of lavish lifestyles (fake or not) to get status has changed into video driven authenticity and art leading the way and this trend is already impacting everything.

Facebook has a TikTok account now. Instagram has shifted to video first and is trying to escape photos altogether, the ‘creativity’ element in being a content creator is off the charts and getting more competitive by the second. NFTs are still not dead and being added as a thing to mainstream apps and platforms.

So, no, Apple does not have a “Pro Problem” they are trying to tailor the solution to the market. And the solution is more pro users than ever (what used to be called ‘pro-sumer’ in a now archaic and ridiculous sounding phrase) are getting more powerful tools and at a lower than ever cost.

Sorry not to be able to do a faux Apple take-down on this time. Does Apple make mistakes? Hell yes. Just this time it is the biggest non-mistake ever, and it wold be incredulous or worse to say otherwise. Glory to the Mac Studio and ‘Pro” users everywhere.

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Apple, Entertainment, M1 Max, MacBook Pro

Apple Unleashes the Beasts with M1 Pro and M1 Max Powered Laptops

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Photo / Video Still / Apple

If you can grub up the cash you will want these insanely great machines

Better sell some Crypto, perhaps all your Shiba and Dogecoin, cause the beasts are loose, beefy and pricy.

In the scheduled “unleashed” event today, broadcast virtually from Cupertino, Tim, Craig and the gang managed to surprise, not with the fully expected hardware items unveiled, but with the specs and otherworldly power of what they so aptly dubbed the Beasts.

The event was billed as being about music and creativity, and yes there were new AirPods and HomePod Minis, but without any doubt it was the incredible mac upgrades, in the form of 14” and 16” MacBook Pros that stole the show.

The format was no different than previous recent virtual events, but the details that exposed the extent and depth of the technological leap forward blew the format off it’s own hinges.

Although every spec was touted, from the screen upgrades, to endless new ports, to upgraded battery life, still the focus and excitement returned, again and again, to the Beasts: the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips and the system architecture built for them.

The animal analogy is no flight of zoological fantasy, with, at the high end, the M1 Max having 6x the speed and power of the current M1 – which already blew away reviewers and users with it’s own shocking ability to best what came before.

photo credit / apple

The party is on, but without a doubt, it is also exclusive

There are only two “downside” caveats, both kind of interrelated reverse compliments: There was no Mac Mini announcement, which is extremely sad for the great unwashed (like me!) and the prices are almost more beastly than the machines themselves.

A fully Maxxed out 16” MacBook Pro comes in at a hefty $6099, though that is with 8TB of SSD storage and 64GB of unified memory). Even a more modest configuration, dropping the SSD storage down to 4TB, while retaining the exalted 64GB unified, the toll is still $4299.

These are no everyday machines, but truly in the realm of Pro, in both specs and financial exclusivity.

And, hey, Apple has been here before, so an M1 Max based Mac Mini is likely to be delayed, if for no other reason, than to make sure that as many Pro users drop in for the whole mobile package – rather than building a budget system with money saved on 3rd party monitors and other practical cost cutting tricks.

All in all there’s an excitement in Today’s unleashing that slams into the core of any creative professional’s very being. Beastly power is tantalizingly within reach, all for a mere four to six thousand dollars… Or 1/10th of a BitCoin.

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Apple, Apple Services, iPhone, Mac, News, OS Software, Tech

Apple announces ‘Unleashed’ event: unveiling of MacBook Pros, Mini and Airpod Pro 3s are likely

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Above: Photo / Apple

Eagerly awaited M1x chip expected to star and be unleashed in new Macs

For the second time in October Apple is hosting a virtual event to reveal new products and software. On October 18, 2021 at 10 the show will start, streamed as usual, from Apple Park. 

Virtual events have become the norm since the pandemic restricted the possibility for live audiences. A bright side for this is that the production values for the virtual event have improved drastically in the last year and that makes for great streaming and online consumption after the fact in various forms of edited clips and screen shots.

Coming hot on the heels of the big iPhone 13 extravaganza earlier this month, this is turning out to be a big year for long awaited new products, and the M1x will potentially be the crowning achievement of the year. 

Already a hit in the initial release the M series was received with a near ecstatic reaction with many in a state of awe when the upgraded capabilities were tested and measured in the wild.

As is widely known, the Intel i-7 chip was the workhorse for many years, with added cores and clock speeds helping somewhat, but with the M1 there was finally something that could usher in a new era of processors, particularly when used with optimized software from Apple and others.

With the M1x (with being the projected moniker with the actual designation to be confirmed on the 18th) there could be an even larger leap into faster, more efficient processor performance. 

Gear lined up according to rumors and best intel on the street 

Highly anticipated are MacBook Pros, with various larger screens and possible other hardware upgrades in addition to the new M1x, a mac mini with updated specs would be huge and many have pointed to an AirPod 3rd generation with unknown improvements.

As is often the case, if there are additional announcements they are likely to be big surprises and very interesting, the consensus is so all pervasive that is there is any deviation (like the absence of any of the above) it is going to be a shock. 

The tweet from Apple Mktng SVP Greg Joswiak has a fun video that sets the tone for the virtual presentation and is likely to be followed with great content live streamed on Oct. 18th, with the option to tune in later for replays. 

Even without surprises this will be a very important event with immense repercussions for all mac users. We will be covering the action live with additional details so please stay tuned.

https://video.twimg.com/ext_tw_video/1447956448961392642/pu/vid/640x640/LqTEYtgCvSlcxu9F.mp4?tag=12

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Hot-Lynx, Tech

Rumor has it: Multiple Apple Events in the works for September

Above: Photo / Apple

According to MacRumors who spoke with DigiTimes, Apple has plans to have a series of events in the month of September. This would clearly deviate from how the company approached the launches of its newest products last year.

In an unusual twist at the time, the launches were spread out into three separate product events that landed during the fall months of September, October and November.

Due to the ongoing pandemic, last year’s event was live-streamed versus in-person, which may have allowed Apple to better adapt its product rollouts in digital form.

There are many new products rumored to be released that include the iPhone 13, Apple Watch Series 7, next generation AirPods, a new baseline iPad, an updated iPad mini, as well as the much anticipated 14 and 16 inch MacBook Pro laptops.

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Apple, Apps, Cutting Edge, D.I.Y., iOS 15, macOS 12 Monterey, OS Software

iPadOS 15 Preview: Get Ready for AI and Machine Learning that will Blow You Away

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Boring? Are you kidding me? Time to look under the hood…

Somewhere in the land of media herding there was a familiar refrain. iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 are “boring”. Apparently the idea behind this is that there is no single feature that changes the entire experience of the iPhone or iPad – no “killer app” or killer upgrade.

The “boring” crowd have focused on things like “you can banish your ex from memories in iOS 15”. I saw a slew of articles with a variation on that title.

The biggest problem with the attitude, which must have been initiated by someone that has not really been hands on with any of the new iOS software (which is still in non-public beta only) is that it’s not true. (A public beta is expected in July but it is not recommended unless you are a developer testing on “non-critical” devices).)

Why? Because there are so many killer upgrades that it’s overwhelming, basically due to the avalanche of amazing new features and improvements. This article will attempt to give an illustration of that by focusing on only one feature inside one built-in app: Memories inside of the Photos app.

First a short digression. We have been testing on several devices including a MacBook Pro 15” from 2017, an original 1st generation iPad Pro (2015) and an iPhone XS Max from 2018. None of these machines have the new Apple Silicon chips and for that reason they are only able to produce the upgraded features that don’t require it.

That makes the improvements that are possible without buying any new hardware even more amazing. Stunningly, of the three devices we upgraded the MacBook Pro was the most stable right out of the gate. Any beta software will have bugs, glitches and sometimes crash but that does not prevent one from testing out features that are new.

The iPad pro, in a non-technical observation almost appears as if the screen resolution has been increased, obviously not possible but, as you will read below, could be part of a stunning emphasis on increased beauty, sensuality and luxurious feel in the new suite of OSs.

Memory movies on iPad OS15 are an amazing example of how AI and machine learning are evolving

For those not familiar with “Memories” they are auto-generated film clips that can be found in the “For You” tab in your photos app on iPhone and iPad. While you are sleeping this feature scans everything in your photos library and uses artificial intelligence, machine learning and neural networks to choose and edit the clips, as the name says, for you.

One not confirmed but almost certain technical backdrop to this is that the learning is improving even between updates to the OS. Not only that but all Apple devices on earth are “cooperating” to help each other learn. That’s a powerful force that spreads across over 1.65 billion devices.

This feature was added in iOS 12 but started to function in iOS 14 on a much higher level. If you had tested and used the feature over the last few years as we have you’d have noticed that the ability of the AI to “see” and select photos and videos to include was limited and, at times, comical. Not any more.

Much of the data that clues the software in as to what photos belong together is from the embedded meta data. The date, time and location information helps to tell the AI that you took a group of images or videos on a day in a particular location.

The difference in iPad OS15 (iPhone too, of course) is that the more difficult to accomplish tasks, such as recognizing the subjective quality of one photo verses another (humans often take several photos of the same scene to try to capture the best out of a bunch). Or, more importantly, who and what are the subject of a photo.

All of this began to get interesting in iPad OS 14 and many groups of photos and videos were already being chosen, edited and enhanced by the software to a level that was fairly impressive.

AI and aesthetics collide and the result is a Joy to witness

Something that is starting to become a thread and a definitive direction that Apple is taking, particularly with the iPad Pro series, is, true to the name, a Pro level of visual production and manipulation throughout the OS.

Center Stage, for example and many other video and photo related upgrades were some of the big features in the newest generation of iPad Pro. Those are great, but require a new iPad along with the OS upgrade.

When it comes to the memory movie clips what we found is that even on the oldest iPad Pro from 2015 the evolution of the software due to the constant learning by the AI is already taking a huge step forward doing all the things that it was already doing only much better.

Apple’s upgrade took that and give it an additional kick up a notch with somewhat that the company is known for: good taste.

What has changed specifically?

In iPad and iPhone OS 14 there were a few things that felt awkward in the way movies were created. The biggest shortfall was in the softwares ability to deal with various aspect ratios.

These days when we shoot photos and videos with an iPhone it is tempting and, at times, wonderful to use the vertical orientation. Other times, for landscapes and other scenes we might prefer a traditional film aspect or even use the panorama feature to get an ultra-wide screen “cinema-scope” style.

Until now this was dealt with very poorly by the software. Mostly the photos would constantly zoom in (the so called “Ken Burns” effect) and if shown without zooming in a vertical portrait shot would have ugly side bars (like a vertical letterbox effect).

The zooming and most of the effects in general destroyed the resolution and therefore the quality of many photos by enlarging them and adding the effects.

Additionally the effects that were added, while cute and fun, were not much more than a way to add fun and not what would likely be used by a human editor. All of this and more made for a kind of novelty feel to the whole process that was nice to have, but many never even bothered to look at the movies that software created for them.

That’s about to be over.

A whole new array of options for the AI to use while trying to entertain

In iPad OS 15, as can be seen on the photos and videos in this article, the ways that the software solves the aspect ratio issue as described above is genius and, dare I say it, beautiful.

In a collaboration between the AI and the software itself it now has a new bag of tricks to use and, boy, does it work. One feature that is fantastic is the letterbox generator for any wide screen photos in any aspect ratio.

How this works is that it takes the iPad aspect ratio and then uses the photo in it original at 100% full resolution and then adds a letterbox. But this is not the usual plain black bars we are all familiar with – the software and AI are able to see and analyze the photo and create a custom gradient letterbox that can be any shade or color.

Photos in clip above courtesy of The 2021 International Portrait Photographer of the Year
Copyright © 2021. www.internationalportraitphotographer.com

The effect is often astoundingly tasteful and often makes the original photo look even better. We tested it on award winning photos (video above) and the result is, basically art. Also on our own “nice” photos, chosen 100% by the AI and software, look amazing also.

Actually, all the photos and videos in the clips generated from the library look much better than I had remembered. That turns out to be because the software and AI now do automated color grading on all the photos and videos in all the generated memories !

Color grading also known as color correction, especially for video, has traditionally required an expensive expert and high end software (and hardware) to enhance and color match various photos and clips, that have often been taken at different times and places, where lighting conditions vary and sometimes were shot with different camera.

AI and machine learning software on iPad OS15 (and iOS 15) now has a virtual colorist actively adjusting your shots and enhancing and color matching them while you sleep. That is basically insane. That’s probably why it appeared that the photos and even the iPad itself had been upgraded.

Ok, I could go on and on about that one feature, but let’s move to some more features. There are also new effects that are added that vary with each memory (there are a lot more clips being generated, including various versions of the same idea to choose from).

In the experiments so far the effects are clearly better and more subtle than in iOS 14. Again in many cases I found myself saying the word “beautiful” when I tried find an adjective to describe the results.

For shots that have a vertical bias there’s a vertical geometric split screen effect, often with a thin black border, and it has a kind of 60’s on steroids feel with the bars sliding in and out and resizing into place.

Another effect not seen in iOS 14 is a kind of circular rotation – great for landscapes – it’s not a common effect probably because it is computationally complex, but for the AI, it’s a snap. Sometimes this effect has a kind of blur-dissolve added which makes it fun and, again, still tasteful.

It appears that the effects are not only better and there’s a larger bag of them, but they appear to evolve and adapt to the content, that is to say that the speed and depth of each changes with the music combined with the photo and video content.

Oh, and the music. OMG. Each clip has 6 songs pre-selected and the entire clip adapts, in real time (!), when you change the song, showing you various styles and looks that match. Apparently Apple Music is also connected if you have a subscription.

As a mater of fact, it is hard to be certain, as we have not had more than a few hours to test this, but nearly everything appears to be “live” and constantly evolving in real time. In order to “freeze” a version of a memory you have to “favorite” it (with the typical heart symbol) and then “add to memories” in order to edit (change the names or choose more images – or remove anything if it is not to your liking).

There is so much more not yet mentioned here: this article could probably be a book

The AI is also getting creative with names and “concepts” for the clips. For example, if you had lunch (or took photos) over the years in the same city (for me it was Knoxville, TN) it might look at the coincidence that you tended to take photos around midday in that town and then create a memory clip called “Lunch in Knoxville over the Years”. Or for example the clip at the head of this article: “Golden Hour Over The Years”.

This is an early and primitive foretaste of the literary ambitions of AI. In the new Photos App in iOS 15 it is beginning to “think” about when, where and why humans take photos and videos and then conceiving a story that fits the behavior it is witnessing.

Other titles go beyond the basic “Amsterdam in 2016” and start to use the understanding and visual ability to “see” what is in the photo to create a clip like : “Playing in the Snow at Christmas”. Snow? Does it know it’s cold? Maybe just that it’s white and happens in the northern hemisphere in December. This is just the very beginning of something that will evolve, hourly, from now on. I can’t wait.

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Apple, Breaking News, iPad, iPhone, Mac, macOS 12 Monterey, OS Software, WWDC2021

The Hit of WWDC2021 is the combo of AirPlay to Mac and Universal Control

Video
credit: Apple

Allow me to explain, it’s better than it sounds…

Among the avalanche of new features and upgrades to iOS, iPadOS and most of all macOS 12 Monterey, there were two that were like a dream come true for anyone who has used AirPlay with AppleTv or “SideCar”, which originally came to the mac with macOS Catalina, and wished for one bold step further.

In an office environment, like our newsroom, being able to beam an iPad or mac on to a large conference style TV is great, but springing for the $ it takes to get a high resolution computer monitor large enough for group viewing is not such a great treat.

A fantastic compromise, one that many have wished for but never seen is the new option cogently called “AirPlay to Mac” which, just as the name implies, allows you to bean your phone or iPad (or I presume one mac to another) for paired or group viewing. (there were times when I, for one, forgot that this feature did not yet exist and tried to connect a mac screen using airPlay, to no avail).

AirPlay brings the Mac to life in all-new ways.

Even with tiny bugs that might arise at first when trying to get multiple macs to act as screens for a single source, once this is mature it should revolutionize meeting of small groups of colleagues all armed with trusty macs but wanting to do a group think and discussion session. (At a digital publisher meeting, like at Lynxotic, we might be looking at analytics data for the past week and all want to see the same data across all screens, for example.

Oh, and did I forget to mention that sound, just as in “regular” AirPlay, is included in the bargain. So even if it’s audio only that you want to share (like force feeding colleagues your favorite song) that is going to sound great on built in iMac speakers etc.

This seems instantly like something that is so obvious and intuitive that it could be one of those things, like AirPlay itself, that once entrenched and bug free, would be hard to live without.

Apple’s marketing copy:

“With AirPlay to Mac, users can play, present, and share just about anything — from the latest movies and games to vacation photos and presentations — from their iPhone or iPad right to their Mac’s stunning Retina display. The Mac’s high-fidelity sound system can also be used as an AirPlay speaker, so users can play music or podcasts on their Mac, or use their Mac as a secondary speaker for multi-room audio.”

Universal control, which sounds somehow ominous is, hopefully, just a simple way to more easily migrate live from device to device (of the same owner)

Though the mechanics of this feature were not explained in detail at the Keynote for WWDC2021, this is another feature that seems mind-bendingly obvious as a boon for any Apple device power user, it also seems strange that it did’t exist all along.

As shown with one example in the video below, it involves having a single mouse or trackpad control multiple devices. Or the same set up for a keyboard, or both. While there are some unanswered questions – such as would the keyboard designated as being the one to “universally control” another device automatically turn off the control on the remote devices native keyboard?

Perhaps this is a naive question since it appears that it is presumed that any device being universally controlled is owned and being used by a single human.

In one way this seems to have the best use when using, say, an iPad pro for a drawing task and then moving across to the mac to process the drawing in photoshop, illustrator etc. Honestly, sometimes it’s interesting to see each device as connected to a “chair mode” – iPad for a chaise lounge, iMac or MacMini for an office chair, iPhone or iPad mini for freedom from any chair, and switching from the more human-centric modes (chaise lounge) to get down to serious business on the biggest baddest screen and most powerful CPU seems like a utopian dream, with this feature activated and working without a glitch.

The ways this could be integrated into a workflow, and the permutations of how this could be useful, seem infinite, assuming it operates anywhere near as seamlessly as in the demonstration by Craig Federighi in the video. Being able to drag and drop, as he did, across three (3!) separate devices at will is pretty incredible, if not only for its simplicity and elegance.

https://www.apple.com/newsroom/videos/universal-control/Apple-Universal-Control-cc-us-_1280x720h.mp4

As per Apple: “Universal Control lets users work more seamlessly across their Mac and iPad. Working across Apple devices is now better than ever with new Continuity features:

Universal Control lets users work with a single mouse and keyboard and move between Mac and iPad for a seamless experience, with no setup required. Users can even drag and drop content back and forth between devices — great for sketching a drawing with Apple Pencil on iPad and placing it into a Keynote slide on the Mac.

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Apple, Apple Services, iPad, iPhone, Mac, OS Software, Tech

Spring Loaded Apple Event Confirmed for April 20th

Above: Apple Spring Loaded Event Poster Credit: Apple

“Loaded” is a loaded concept and let’s hope it rings true

After weeks of fits and starts, and even a bizarre siri advance confirmation leak, it’s finally official: Apple will be hosting a product reveal event on Tuesday, April 20 at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time at the Steve Jobs Theater on the Apple Park campus in Cupertino, California.

Naturally, as with all event scheduled this year so far this will be digital only and streamed live from various platforms including the Apple events page.

The event is expected to reveal new 2021 product updates and more, and the rumor mill has been busy so there’s a lot of potential for both news that’s been hinted at, as well as surprises. 

Highest on the list of anticipated possible reveals are; iPad Pro models, a new low-cost iPad and a new iPad mini. 

Less expected but also very much in the realm of possibility are refreshed iMacs, the endlessly rumored AirTags and more updated news on chip development as will as advance information ahead of WWDC2021 and the fall big show where typically new iPhones appear. 

Apple will be streaming live on its website and with the ‌Apple TV‌ app starting  at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time on Tuesday, April 20.

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Apple, Breaking News, Mac, Tech

Updated iMac with Ultra Large Screen in the works at Apple: Credible Source

Above: fantasy take Lynxotic Credit: Apple

Possible Pro Display XDR-like Screen Real estate up to 32”

Well known and previously credible Apple leak-meister l0vetodream added credence to the wildly rumored concept that a high-end newly designed iMac will feature a “really big” screen, larger than the current max for iMac of 27 inches (5k).

With the iMac Pro already out of production and only the “standard” 21.5 inch and 27 inch models remaining an update, definitely this year, is an obvious prediction.

However, since the iMac Pro itself never had an option for a larger higher resolution screen, and in the mean time the $5 to $6 thousand 32 inch 6k Pro Display XDR setting the standard for ultra large high quality screen design it is also not unlikely that some of the technology of that product could trickle down into a high end iMac without adding the cost of such a colossus.

Above: 6k Pro Display XDR Credit: Apple

Further, there’s a slightly less credible but interesting rumor out regarding a new iPhone design based on the “cheese grater” style of the new Mac Pro and Pro Display. Though a bit mind-blowing to imagine, a matching set of gear with cheese grater styling for my iPhone 13 Pro, and a new high end iMac is a bizarre pleasant (but perhaps a bit macho) daydream.

Image Credit: YouTube / PocketNow

It’s not likely that this new machine would surface as soon as WWDC 2021 but, it is not entirely off the table either (nothing is out of the question with Apple’s secrecy history)

Since the iMac outward design has not had a total makeover since 2012 (!) the possibility (probability?) of a new, higher end, iMac with new styling (perhaps with bezels and edge styling like the iPad pro of late), faster, upgraded performance (M2?) and a bigger and better screen than the current 27 inch model would be just fine, thank you.

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Apple, Cutting Edge, Mac, Observation, Tech

Apple 32-core M1X chips for Mac Pro are just the tip of the tip of a very important iceberg…

Photo / Apple

An eco-system about to emerge at a level beyond what any other company can match

The ultimate superiority of the “whole widget” concept at Apple: making not only the computer or device, the system software, add on software, and now, with the M1 chip, even the most important components that power the “widget” is something we’ve been writing about for years. 

With the release of the first macs powered by M1 chips, it was surprising, even to adherents inside our building, just how dramatic that superiority is turning out to be, and how quickly it has been confirmed in real-world tests. 

The focus has, rightly, so far been on benchmarks and tests using various software in typical real world situations. The consensus on the results has been in general; “astounding” or “amazing” or “shockingly good”, nearly unanimously. 

Why this has far more to do with the overarching “whole-widget” ecosystem than the traditional stand-alone cpu / gpu / architecture, however, seems, at least partially, lost in the brouhaha.

The layers of “synergistic” (not a word used by Apple) interaction and integration between the cpu, gpu, machine learning, code within the system, and, initially, the apple applications that are either free or standard paid software such as Final Cut ProX or Logic Pro X are where the real magic happens. Other developers such as Adobe, are going to have M1 optimized versions out soon, as well. 

While the long vaunted Moore’s law at a virtual standstill for nearly a decade, the timing couldn’t be better for Apple’s revolutionary “revenge of the turtle” strategy – where a long term end-game they have been working on the probably at least a decade comes to fruition – big time.

Looking ahead, even more exciting possibilities are beginning to emerge

All this leads to today’s headline, courtesy of Bloomberg. I can summarize but let’s quote directly the introductory paragraphs:

“Apple Inc. is planning a series of new Mac processors for introduction as early as 2021 that are aimed at outperforming Intel Corp.’s fastest.

If they live up to expectations, they will significantly outpace the performance of the latest machines running Intel chips, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be named because the plans aren’t yet public.

For higher-end desktop computers, planned for later in 2021 and a new half-sized Mac Pro planned to launch by 2022, Apple is testing a chip design with as many as 32 high-performance cores.

With today’s Intel systems, Apple’s highest-end laptops offer a maximum of eight cores, a high-end iMac Pro is available with as many as 18 and the priciest Mac Pro desktop features as much as a 28-core system.” 

-Bloomberg

Buckle up, Sunshine, the worm has turned and soon there’ll be no looking back

The bottom line here is: If you think the M1 MacBook air is faster, take a seat cause “you ain’t seen nuthin’ yet”. But this emphasis on the chip itself and various stats, such as, the number of cores, etc. belies just how backward the entire industry is, and how ground breaking the total concept is that Apple has planned to roll-out over, roughly, the next two years. 

In short, just as the entire world was changed forever once the iPhone took hold between 2007-2012, something similar will happen between now and 2024, but on a much larger scale. 

The most radical reality of this, that is in many ways so hard to comprehend, let alone explain, is that this is a “virtuous battle” that is being fought on so many different fronts simultaneously, that the actual outcome, should the potential be realized in full by 2022, goes far beyond what can be imagined today with regard to what a “computer” or “mobile device” is.

In short, just as the entire world was changed forever once the iPhone took hold between 2007-2012, something similar will happen between now and 2024, but on a much larger scale. 

The unification of the various system softwares, between iPhones, iPads, Macs, as well as peripheral devices such as Apple Watch, Apple TV and even the HomePod mini, will be combined with increasingly powerful “A” and “M” chips and that combination will be even more improved by integrated machine learning upgrades and applications that are specifically coded to maximize the benefits of the entire inter-dependent system, meaning the systems within each device and the larger ecosystem of devices, machines and software.

This is not Apples to Oranges, this is Horses to “beam me up Scotty” in magnitude. Don’t believe it? Check back in 2022 and we’ll talk…

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Apple, Breaking News, Business, Tech

Apple leak: Hardware Reveal Event Likely on December 8th

Photo Collage / Lynxotic

Hints and Leaks are becoming commonplace – this time it’s the features that wow

Rumor Reports have surfaced that Apple is planning a hardware reveal event for December 8th, 2020, likely at the usual 11am PT time slot. The leak was said to some from an internal memo, and Service providers have been told to expect changes on Tuesday. MacRumors reports that this type of prior warning to suppliers has coincided historically with new products being launched.

What product(s) might be launched?

 It’s not likely that a major product will be launched (so no new MacBook or iPhone, for example), but some possibilities that have been mentioned are an AppleTV update or the ever elusive AirTags.

AirTags have been in development for months now. However, Apple has kept most details on the elusive product under wraps. We expected to hear some specifics on the AirTags at the company’s September and October press events, but although those occasions offered lots of other exciting launches, they remained silent on the Tags.

Read More: Apple iPhone 12 Pro Models are Coming Immediately and There’s More

Only now have two new Apple patents come out for AirTags, featuring illustrations and suggestions about how the devices might work and where they could be useful— The answers might be more expansive than we thought.

In essence, AirTags are exactly what we expected them to be: Apple products akin to a Tiles, which can be placed on any object and thus track it. Intuitively, their primary function is to help users find lost items such as keys, wallets, or phones by sending out a locational signal to Apple devices. Reportedly, these signals will be more precise than any GPS, directing people to within feet of the Tag.

The new patents, however, suggest that the AirTags’ tracking abilities could be useful beyond just recovering everyday items. They could, for example, be attached to emergency equipment like fire extinguishers or defibrillators, helping people find such crucial tools in unfamiliar environments. They could also be used to track people via Apple Watches or the wristbands featured in the patent illustrations. While tracking human beings raises major ethical questions, it could also save lives in the events of kidnappings or missing people.

Read More: Apple debuts ‘Apple One’ – offers mega Bundling service that will compete against the technological hegemony

Beyond such grave alternatives, the patents also suggest more leisurely uses for the AirTags. By attaching them to one’s body, they could serve as advanced gears in augmented reality gaming platforms, or play a role in the new Apple Fitness+ app by monitoring posture and other health matters.

Tags could also be placed in public areas to send signals directly to other Apple devices with useful information such as maps and guides. The patent offers the example of a business placing a Tag at its entrance, ensuring that everyone who enters receives a map of the building.

When Apple delays (as with the MagSafe surprise just announced) good things happen…

As of right now, rumor has it that the AirTags will launch in March 2021, but given their perpetual delays so far and the precarious state of the world during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is hard to say for sure when these devices will really become available. Nevertheless, the latest patents suggest that AirTags are going to be much more than mere Tile replicas. With that in mind, perhaps they will also be more worth the wait.

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Apple, Cutting Edge, Mac, OS Software, Tech

MacOS Big Sur: Apple’s Ultimate Ecosystem Triumph is almost here

Photo / Apple

Apple software upgrades are now so deep and extensive that it will take months to absorb the potential benefits

Mac OS upgrades, which have been free going back more than 20 years, have been bordering on spectacular recently, but also do carry some dangers. Early adopters have been known to experience buggy not-100%-ready-for-primetime features that do, however, generally get fixed fairly quickly once live bugs are identified. 

The upside is that there is, just as in the iOS systems, a literal cornucopia of free built in apps and features most of which benefit from the periodic upgrades.

As a matter of fact, many, many of the improvements are not detailed or listed in any manual and not used in the marketing materials for the free software upgrades. As the saying goes, they just “work”.

Read more: How Apple Created the Tech Universe

Probably the biggest of these invisible improvements, one that spans multiple apps and functions is the now, fully established, system known as iCloud. Born as “Mobile-me” and a nightmare until about 3 years ago, this system for syncing across all Apple devices, apps and software has become a powerhouse that has no comparable rival.

An evolving system nearly two decades in the making

The idea, sometimes maligned as overkill, is simple in theory. An Apple aficionado might own a desktop mac such as an iMac, Mac Mini or Mac Pro. For travel; a MacBook Air, Pro, etc, an iPhone (of course), an iPad and, whew, maybe wear an Apple Watch. There might be an Apple TV unit in the house and perhaps a HomePod mini (and so on!).

All of these can benefit from iCloud. Many functions, particularly with the Apple Watch, for example, are mandatory and help to link various functionality between devices. 

But where this software enhancement has really begun to shine is when using built in apps that have a version on both the mac family and also within iOS and iPadOS, such as Notes, Photos and, of course, Safari.

Read more: Apple Search Plans & Potential are Casting a Massive Shadow on Google Anti-Trust Case

Although these have been around since Yosemite and have had the benefit of iCloud Sync since at least that time, with Catalina they really started to function at a very high level. With Big Sur the potential is off-the-charts. 

One caveat that is still a work in progress is the need for identical, or nearly identical, functionality across all devices (mac, iPhone and iPad at least). For the photos app this is nearly the case but for Safari and Notes there is still a way to go before all functions match on every device and OS. 

Of course, this is the very lofty goal, already underway with the new M1 chips and the gradual goal of total interchangeability between macOS and iOS / iPad Os.

Many actions are still more functional on a mac than on iPhone or iPad: but that’s changing

Much attention is paid to the idea of using and featuring iOS apps on a mac, but for practical applications it is the ability of the software on iOS devices to have all the functionality of the macOS versions that is even more important and desirable. 

A great example, and a glaring one, is Safari. Differences between browsing on a mobile platform (with iPad being a sort of in-between experience) and on a desktop or laptop can be frustrating and difficult.

For surfing news or browsing static content the differences are not significant, but if you start trying to do banking, or eCommerce or other more complex tasks you can hit a brick wall. 

Read more: The Exaggerated Confusion around 5G and iPhone 12 is the beginning of a new era for internet access

Much of this is on the server side where the websites themselves either block or are not compatible with all versions of Safari in every OS version. 

However, particularly on iPad, there should be an eventual ability for Safari on iPad to emulate laptop / desktop browser specs for those purposes. And, with macOS Big Sur that is already nearly a reality. 

Similarly when using the Notes app, which we do at Lynxotic extensively for story development and shared processing, the functionality is nearly seamless between macOS Big Sur and iPad or iPhone. 

As a matter of fact, the differences are so minimal that, when switching between devices, finding a “missing” function, such as the ability on an iPhone to format the text into Title, Heading, Body and so forth, as you would do in WordPress or other text editing system, it is a shocking experience. 

Beyond detailed individual features it’s the overall end-result that’s astounding

The overall experience from mac to mac – when using full iCloud Sync, is that you can move from machine to machine and a have 100% seamless transition. Although some files can be specially segregated by machine, if you choose, making them only available locally on that machine, this is up to the user.

You can have an expanded iCloud storage limit added to your account (2TB is currently $9.99) and have access to all files on all machines and devices. 

Although still not 100% functional in all situations, even the files app and iCloud storage system on the iPhone can access and store all files and allow you to save or access many important documents on the go. 

Starting with macOS Catalina, and now even more with Big Sur, the invisible and seamless “clone” experience when moving from desktop to laptop has been very functional and hugely beneficial, and now the iPhone and iPad are rapidly realizing a similar potential. 

Shared Albums in photos, Shared Notes, Safari’s vast and ever improving ability to safely  store 1000s of passwords and other site specific data, obviously the huge privacy upgrades, and soon, the identical user experience for all these apps across all devices, this amounts to a must-have success in software that easily matches the acclaim that the new hardware built-in with the new M1 chips have rightfully received. 

The future is coming, faster than you think, and that’s a good thing (in this case)

Another big, I mean huge, factor that is coming into play with Big Sur and the various OSs, is the emergence of machine learning and “over-the-air” updates, including some that are unannounced and take place within individual apps without requiring user interaction.

The photos app is a huge example of this but the phenomenon is also spreading into other built in software. 

Read more:iOS14 quick & easy with Wiley Simms – how to create Perfect Shapes in Markup Mode

This means that improvements in functionality and sometimes even added features are taking place faster and can be major, even between the official updates themselves. 

In the end the “whole widget” approach will provide benefits so astounding that a user of Apple products will be in a “universe of capability” that has no comparable alternative and certainly no rival. 

The improvements across all apps and functions are so vast that it would take thousands of pages to catalog even a fraction of them – basically it is better to do what we have always done with Apple system software; wade through while learning by doing and rejoice each time the “singularity”, that is now a stated goal, becomes a little bit closer. 

With macOS Big Sur, your mac via iCloud and your other Apple devices are now already a vastly more powerful network of tools working together than they ever could be separately. 

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Apple, Books, OS Software

Apple Safari Version 14.0 OUT NOW with fully functional Privacy Tracker for macOS Catalina & Big Sur

Video

The writing is on the wall – but it’s about to collapse: privacy wars 2021

While Apple apparently agreed to delay the surveillance-blocking privacy tools for iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 until 2021, not so apparently for Safari and Big Sur. The tracker is amazing. The system is fully automated at launch of the browser and immediately blocking tons of nasty data thieves from the jump.

I surfed about 10 minutes and it blocked 69 trackers. It has a button to allow you to check each web site and see what it is doing with your data and also a continuously updated full report screen where you can see who they all are. Surprise ! They are mainly Facebook, Google, Amazon and companies that are affiliated with or in competition against these big three.

Safari Privacy Screen from the Privacy Report Pop-up window

Although income for News Orgs like Lynxotic might be negatively affected initially the adjustment is history in the making and there will be no going back. The old way was wrong. Your data belongs to you. Period. You shouldn’t have to mess around with external ad-blocking software and plug-ins.

Why there was never any privacy protection built into the internet before now, one day will be seen as a mystery

The future is that you will be automatically protected (within the Apple ecosystem, at least), and, in you choose to be tracked and surveilled so that Mark Z. can get richer, you can opt in. (Wanted by nobody, ever).

We have been warning about this for months – here are a few articles with some more in depth information about the situation:

Read more: Cracks in The Wall: Apple, Google, Amazon and Facebook

Apple’s billion users would need to allow their data and browsing habits to be monetized by those massive ad built eco-system killers. A lot has also been discussed about how this new regime change by Apple could negatively affect publishers, like Lynxotic, but this is a case of seeing the big, long term benefits, such as an internet where the users and netizens, and not Zuckerberg, are finally in charge. This goal is lofty and honorable and long overdue. Therefore, any adjustments needed to be made by publishers business models is well worth it.

Read more: Apple is Coming 4U

That’s not all, in iOS 14 and iPad OS14 searches will default for “best for user” rather than automatically being diverted to google or any other “search engine”. If you are searching for a news article or information about an apple product, for example, the search will offer you results, within the global search on your device rather than in a browser, and this will direct you to your Apple News App or to Safari, landing directly on a web site, as appropriate. https://www.youtube.com/embed/2e2iZa3G9_0?feature=oembed

Above: Changes to search in the new iOS14, iPadOS14 and macOS 11 Big Sur

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Tech

2019 Was a Huge Year for Apple: Here are some Milestones that will Lead to the “Apple Decade” in the 2020s

Apple’s Greatest Innovations Lie Ahead in the New Decade: 2019 Laid The Foundation

As is so often the case with Apple, the perennial over-achiever, nothing seemed to be quite enough to truly wow the public in 2019. That is not to say that monumental things were not happening at an astounding clip; they were. Early in the year, skeptics pounced on “weak” iPhone sales and then used one-dimensional linear extrapolation to predict Apple’s slow demise, as they have done many times in the past.

Once again, it was Apple that responded with a barrage of ideas and products that not only turned the year around but point to a new decade that has the potential to outshine even the 2010’s, which brought Apple to heights no one could have previously imagined.

As for 2019, the iPhone 11 Pro series “only” brought smartphone based photography to a whole new level, beyond the level, in some cases, that pro gear can provide. Obviously there is the convenience of a powerful photographic tool that resides in your pocket, but with Night Mode and Deep Fusion, alongside the improvements via 3 dedicated cameras (each with it’s own lens) and iOS 13’s editing and photo management features, for a broad swath of users the 11 pro series is a game changer, perhaps even life changing for some.

The Mac Pro upgrade, fittingly, with 2019 being the year that “pro” emerged and took over for Apple, was nothing short of monumental. There is a slow, currently unformed, realization that computational power and beauty of function will be essential in the next decade, possible even for the survival of the planet, if not at least the enjoyment of our world while we still live and breathe. Our upcoming series on the link between Sustainable energy and enhanced human networked communication, along with AI and machine learning, and how the rapid and profound development of these are the only hope for meeting the challenges that are looming, will begin in early 2020 and Apple has added the perfect exclamation point with its incredible addition at the top of the Mac product family. Expense is no object with everything, literally, in on the line, so, as time goes on, the prices will be seen to be justified.

MacBook pro upgrades, AirPods Pro, iPad and iPad OS, MacBook Air, the list goes on and on and that is only the hardware. Software and services are the real breakthrough story. There is literally so much that was launched this year that it would take a dozen articles to scratch the surface.

If nothing else, at least we can scratch that surface here and then, add links below to our in-depth coverage. Apple TV was huge, with “The Morning Show” getting a nomination for Best TV Series, Best Supporting Actor (Billy Crudup) while both Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon got a nod for Best Actress. As with most Apple projects Apple TV+ is a long term, serious commitment to production with, reportedly, a budget over $6 Billion. Apple Music expanded its offerings, and don’t forget the Apple Card which, added to Apple Pay, expands the foray in to Fintech.

The Next Decade will be about the Increased Benefits of the Total Apple Ecosystem

As we detailed in a thread running throughout our 2019 coverage, ultimately, it is the entire Apple ecosystem, Hardware, Software, Hardware Components, Supply Chain, Services and the innovative ways all the desperate elements are so skillfully integrated that sets Apple apart, now and even more so in the future.

And, further, all of Apple’s brilliance and success can be traced back to something that will be a huge story in 2020 and beyond. After the decade of WeWork and other scams, the shame of surveillance business models from Google and Facebook and the convoluted Pseudo-Ponzi-Scheme Monopsony that is Amazon, the 2020’s will be the decade that companies built on a higher purpose, such as Apple’s devotion to creating better tools on behalf of the entire human race, as envisioned by Steve Jobs and carried out to this day, will rise and the others decline and collapse from the weight their own corrupt conception. Only Tesla is among the largest companies that also have altruism at the heart of their business model.

Without further ado, our picks for the most significant and forward looking products and ideas from Apple in 2019:

iPhone 11 Pro Max/ Leading the Way to the Future of Media and Photographic Innovation:

The War is Over: The Good Guys Won – WWDC Day Explodes with Software and Hardware For The Ages:

Above: Photo Link to Article

8-core MacBook Pro and iPod Touch with A10 chip Released to Coincide With iOS and macOS Upgrade Announcements at WWDC

Above: Photo Link to Article

New AirPods Pro: plus Memes and a Deep Dive into the Innovative Auditory Technology:

Above: Photo Link to Article

MacBook Air and Pro Upgrades Harken Back to Steve Jobs Heroically Simplifying Apple Line Up in 1997

Above: Photo Link to Article

iPhone 11 Pro Max: Night Mode for all and Elon Musk’s Cyborgs come to life

Above: Photo Link to Article

Photo and Video examples shot with the iPhone 11 Pro Max: Manhattan Beach, CA

Above: Photo Link to Article

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Cutting Edge, Tech

Apple, 5G and Musk: iPhone 12 and 5G Revolution, Tesla Takes Berlin and Butterfly is Finally Toast

Video
https://www.apple.com//105/media/us/macbook-pro-16/2019/fa0563a0-8534-4e01-a62a-081b87805fea/films/product/macbookpro-16-product-tpl-cc-us-2019_1280x720h.mp4
Apple Produced Video for 16-Inch MacBook Pro

Just in case you missed it, here’s our latest coverage on the newest cutting edge technology from Apple and Tesla:

Apple releases new 16-inch MacBook Pro, 80% Faster and, Finally, a new Keyboard
T-Mobile to Launch 5G Network Nationwide in December: iPhone 12 could start 5G Revolution
Musk Announces Tesla’s 4th Gigafactory Location: Model 3 wins Midsize Car of the Year in Germany
Photo / 16-inch MacBook Pro /Apple

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Breaking News, Tech

Apple releases new 16-inch MacBook Pro, 80% Faster and, Finally, a new Keyboard

Video
https://www.apple.com//105/media/us/macbook-pro-16/2019/fa0563a0-8534-4e01-a62a-081b87805fea/films/product/macbookpro-16-product-tpl-cc-us-2019_1280x720h.mp4

2nd Bombshell ? Mac Pro and Pro Display XDR also Released Today

World’s best Professional Notebook? Probably not even close

Right up front let’s state the obvious: sometimes bigger is better. This might be one of those times. 16 inches for a screen can help enormously to allow pro users to untether themselves from those huge multi-screen arrays with massive desktop functionality when traveling or just when that locked in feeling creeps up and creativity needs new scenery.

This idea is not to replace your upcoming new massive Mac Pro / Pro Display XDR combo (interestingly slated as of today for December availability) but to give you at least the feeling that you do not need to curtail the most power hungry activities while away from your main rig. And, if the specs herein are any indication, it will clearly enable you to do just that in all but the most demand situations. And with a max internal storage capacity of 8TB (yes, you are reading that right), for many, it could indeed replace an entire desktop workstation.

Here it is: The New Magic Keyboard

Billed as a “new scissor mechanism” but more importantly with a “rubber dome” that all of us hope will do away with the “dead” feeling of the now infamous “butterfly” keyboard. Headline is “comfortable and quiet”, but I think many would be satisfied if it is at least as nice as the “old” pre-butterfly model that was a durable dream to use. They put back the escape key (good job!) and, as this is the most expensive and fully decked out MacBook Pro ever, with the Touch Bar features and upgraded (fixed) keyboard we should be ready to rock.

More Power Demands a more Advanced Thermal Design

As processors get more and more powerful (here we have the 8‑core Intel Core i9) heat always becomes a potential issue and problem. As can be seen in the animated image above there has been a lot of effort put into dealing with this in an effective, elegant way. The improvements to the cooling capacity will allow the MacBook Pro 16″ to handle up to 12 more watts, while intensive workloads are present, compared with the previous MacBook Pro iteration.

100Wh Battery for 11 hours Browsing and an AMD Radeon Pro 5000M series GPU

For the largest screen and fastest processor, naturally, a bigger better battery is needed. The monster in question is a 100Wh (largest yet in a MacBook) and is said to add an extra hour of life, in spite of all the muscle under the hood.

With video and other intensive graphic workflows becoming more and more important (and software allowing more complex actions and higher video resolutions) a fast, powerful GPU is extremely crucial. It will be fantastic to see how far we can push the AMD Radeon Pro 5000M series graphics card which apple says is the first 7nm mobile discrete GPUs for pro users. External GPUs have been all the rage, perhaps the new 16 inch MacBook pro can dispense with the need via this AMD upgrade?

An 80% improvement in performance is claimed in comparison to the previous fastest-ever 8-core 15-inch MacBook Pro when equipped with the highest graphics options:

  • Video editors using DaVinci Resolve will see up to 1.8 times faster effects rendering when color grading.
  • Gamers will enjoy smoother gameplay with up to 1.6 times faster performance in games like Fortnite.
  • In Unity, developers will experience 1.4 times faster fly-through performance during game development.

And, yes, as you would expect, there are More Powerful Processors and Faster Memory

Again, the new MacBook Pro 16 inch (not coincidentally, released on the day that the Mac Pro and Pro Display XDR December release is also on the agenda) is all about computationally intensive tasks such as code rendering, graphics processing, up to 8k (!) video and so forth. In keeping with this goal, processors are beefed up 6- and 8-core 9th-generation with Turbo Boost speeds up to 5.0 GHz. Apple claims speeds up to 2.1 times faster performance than the quad-core 15-inch MacBook Pro. It’s possible to load this beast with up to 64GB and, also factoring in the result of the improved thermal design mentioned above, this could allow us all to blast through heretofore impossible tasks, if not with ease, at least with some fluency. According to Apple, when compared to the fastest quad-core 15-inch MacBook Pro:

  • Music producers can play back massive multi-track projects with up to 2.1 times more Amp Designer plug-ins in Logic Pro X.
  • Scientists and researchers will benefit from 2.1 times faster simulation of dynamical systems in MATLAB.
  • Developers using Xcode can compile code up to 1.8 times faster. 
  • Photographers can apply complex edits to photographs 1.7 times faster in Photoshop. 

Processor:

Configurable to 2.4GHz 8‑core Intel Core i9, Turbo Boost up to 5.0GHz, with 16MB shared L3 cache

Retina display

16″ Display:

16‑inch (diagonal) LED‑backlit display with IPS technology; 3072‑by‑1920 native resolution at 226 pixels per inch with support for millions of colors

Supported scaled resolutions:

  • 1920 by 1200
  • 1680 by 1050
  • 1280 by 800
  • 1024 by 640

500 nits brightness

Wide color (P3)

True Tone technology

Refresh rates: 47.95Hz, 48.00Hz, 50.00Hz, 59.94Hz, 60.00Hz

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Business, Entertainment, Lifestyle, Tech

MacBook Air and Pro Upgrades Harken Back to Steve Jobs Heroically Simplifying Apple Line Up in 1997

Video
https://video-lynxotic.akamaized.net/MacBookPro-Air.mov

On September 17, 1997, Steve Jobs took over at Apple as Interim CEO and immediately set about to right the ship by removing both products and people that had sent the company nearly to the brink of oblivion. 

It’s easily forgotten that, at the time, the product offerings included literally dozens of desktop computers, servers and laptops as well as printers, digital cameras and, of course, the “MessagePad 2000” which, although ahead of it’s time, was surely better off dead. 

He created the “4-square grid” to simplify and focus the computer product line up. Two categories for consumer machines and two for pro machines.

Fast forward to July, 2019, and once again Apple is choosing to re-focus the line up. With the MacBook line now gone, only the MackBook Air and MacBook Pro laptop product categories remain. 

The MacBook Air models designed before 2018 have been removed from the Apple Store as has the 12-inch MacBook.

The remaining machines have improved specifications and, in the case of the new entry level MacBook Air, a $100 price cut to go along with the improved stats. The entry level portable has a new price of $1099 ($999 for students and teachers).

https://www.apple.com//105/media/us/macbook-air/2018/9f419882_aefd_4083_902e_efcaee17a0b8/films/product/mba-product-tpl-cc-us-2018_1280x720h.mp4
MAcbook air Video promo, provided by apple

The new entry level Air sports a 13.3 in. Retina True Tone Display, sort-of new keyboard design (which appears to be an attempt to reassure that this is better than the infamous original “butterfly” style, which was widely complained about), 1.6 GHz dual core 8th Gen processor and 2 Thunderbolt 3 ports. It also comes with Touch ID.

The lowest cost for a MackBook Pro model, which now features the Touch Bar and will set you back an additional $200 more than the Air at $1299. It has the same display specs, other than additional brightness, but with higher powered quad-core processor and the Touch Bar.

Storage options have also been upgraded and re-priced across the entire Mac product line. 

The simplifications of the full Mac lineup, now comprising 2 laptop categories, then the consumer and pro iMac all-in-one  desktops, and finally, the Mac mini at the low end, contrasted with the mighty Mac Pro, coming in September, at the high end, are all revealed . The overall refresh for 2019 feels solid and complete and, as one biased observer put it, it borders on being wildly satisfying. 

A good sign, from on high? Perhaps…

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Cutting Edge, Entertainment, Lifestyle, Tech

8-core MacBook Pro and iPod Touch with A10 chip Released to Coincide With iOS and macOS Upgrade Announcements at WWDC

Video

AHEAD OF WWDC, APPLE QUIETLY RELEASES TWO UPGRADED MACHINES

https://lynxotic.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Apple-WWDC.mov

Hiding behind the search for earth-shattering hardware improvements, the whole apple ecosystem, using a combination of incremental speed and power increases, coupled with major system software improvements, is the real emerging story to watch from this year’s WWDC

Before Mojave, the macOS version that began, in earnest, the process of integration with iOS apps and features, a simultaneous upgrade to iOS 13 and macOS 10.15 Catalina would have perhaps yielded a yawn.

With a new MacBook Pro featuring an 8-core, 9th generation chip, and a new iPod Touch with the Apple A10 processor and With a new Mac Pro likely to be announced this week, there appears to be a pattern emerging.

Read More: 2019 Was a Huge Year for Apple: Here are some Milestones that will Lead to the “Apple Decade” in the 2020s

With iMacs upgraded in March and the Mac mini already last October, it seems the entire Apple inventory will be refreshed by the end of 2019.

The one missing piece to the puzzle could be software. And, as if on cue, WWDC this week is expected to drop news on a variety of projects, but perhaps the best will be the two system software upgrades for iOS and macOS.

‘ONE MORE THING’ SYNDROME?

Doesn’t it seem, at times, as if the magic of hardware advances and even inventions of previously non-existent technology were expected to be a “given”? Suddenly, the absence of astoundingly new devices, created from thin air, is treated almost as a failure. 

Anyone who attended CES 2019 would have noticed that we are in an era of gradual, incremental change. Many decry the lack of “innovation” yet seem to miss where the real action is and, even more, where it likely will be. 

“The Future Might Be Sexier Than You Think”

– D.L.

Read More: Big Tech headed for a Storm of Changes once the Novel Coronavirus Fades from Center Stage

Based on the various updates alluded to above, Apple has set the stage for a year of incremental hardware improvements. 

The Mac Pro is expected to be a complete re-design, iPhones are always a mixed bag or upgraded with some new features. But what all of these share, is the dependence on, and ability to benefit from, improvements in system software and apps, both free from apple and at various cost from third parties. 

THERE’S A REASON SYSTEM IS IN ECOSYSTEM

Quietly, almost imperceptibly, macOS has been improving in leaps and bounds. Mojave was the first version of macOS where many long evolving technologies began to ripen. One need only look at the iCloud saga to see an example. Born as “Mobile Me” almost 20 years ago (!!) only with the Mojave / iOS 12 partnership did it really begin to show its potential.

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photos by Apple

Naturally, the more machines and devices connected to the same iCloud account the more useful it is. But, in a small business setting, with a few computers, iPhones, and iPads, it really begins to shine and becomes more useful with each (free) upgrade.

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photos by Apple

A few items from the list of functioning features already present in the Mojave / iOS 12 iCloud system:

  • Synchronized Desktop and iCloud folders, accessible also on iOS
  • Synchronized and shared notes with virtually any content
  • Synchronized photos and videos across all devices
  • Synchronized passwords and usernames when using Safari on any device
  • AirDrop also between devices and machines in or out of the account
  • Hand-off between nearby machines and devices
  • Various app Sync and hand off features: Apple News, Books, GarageBand, Pages, Numbers, Keynote, Find Friends, and more

IS THAT ALL?

It’s not so much the length of the list but the way the depth of the functionality of each part of the software expands over time. Every function or app listed above was, admittedly, barely ready for prime-time when first released.

But, with each update, including the “minor” ones, the functionality increases and often new features are added. Sometimes one has to dig for them and other times they ‘just work’, only better.

The one caveat is that relatively ‘fast’ internet access on all devices at all times is mandatory. With overall improvements in connectivity coming with 5g, not to mention all the satellite systems being built, the triumvirate of hardware muscle, software sophistication and hi-speed networking will be the “one more thing” of the era to come.

Will it be sexy like the first photo-pinch on the first iPhone ? Perhaps not. But with layering software systems, S.a.a.S. for businesses and AI infusing more and more ‘everyday tasks’ (tasks that once required expansive hardware, software and a computer science degree) with a ‘wow’ factor as yet to be measured, the future might be sexier than you think.

HOW’S THAT FUTURE LOOKING AGAIN?

Apple is leading the way with serious simultaneous improvements in 2 of the 3 pillars of the golden triangle: more muscular hardware such as the new MacBook Pro and iPod Touch, shown here, and a new galaxy of capabilities that will grow out of iOS13 and macOS 10.15 Catalina, both announced and showcased this week at WWDC.

Find books on Big Tech, Sustainable Energy, Economics and many other topics at our sister site: Cherrybooks on Bookshop.org

Enjoy Lynxotic at Apple News on your iPhone, iPad or Mac and subscribe to our newsletter.

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