Homescreen – 2024

December 29, 2024
7 min read

It’s hard to believe, but it’s been three years since my last homescreen post. It’s always fascinating to see how my homescreen evolves over the years. I first shared it back in 2019, then again in mid-2020, and finally at the end of 2020. Here’s hoping I can finally make this an annual tradition.

For a long time, I resisted using folders, but I’ve given in this year. I tried my best to stick with just 12 apps (including the Dock), but it’s just not feasible. While I don’t need every app in the folder, it looks better when full. Surprisingly, even with three years gone by, not much has changed.

Widgets

This time, I’ve settled on a stack of two large widgets—Fantastical and Things 3—replacing the two smaller widgets I used before. I experimented with multiple widgets of various sizes, but this setup has stuck with me the longest. It gives me a wealth of useful information at a glance. I still use the Photos widget, but it now lives on the Widget screen to the left of my main homescreen.

Stayed

Some apps are staples of my homescreen and haven’t budged: Photos, Overcast (even though the redesign was rough, the sound engine remains unparalleled), Music, MoneyWiz, and Revolut.

I briefly stopped using Ulysses when I tried replacing it with Notion, Craft, and later Obsidian. None of them worked for me. Recently, I returned to Ulysses, and as you might have noticed, my blog output has improved drastically. While the tool isn’t the only factor, it’s definitely helped.

One surprising change was my browser choice. For a while, I exclusively used Arc for personal and work browsing. However, after the team announced they are abandoning it (it will still get updates, but I wouldn’t hope for a lot), I tried several alternatives before returning to Safari. While it’s not perfect, it’s still better than most.

Removed

Only one app got completely removed from my phone — Audible. I’ve stopped listening to audiobooks altogether. My approach to reading has shifted—I now highlight extensively and take notes, which doesn’t work well with audiobooks.

Communication apps like WhatsApp, Messages, and Mail (and previously Telegram) now stay in the App Library or are accessed via notifications. They no longer need a spot on my homescreen.

Oura got promoted to the Lock Screen, but more on that below. Duolingo has a widget on the Widget screen and also sends notifications at the end of the day in case I forget.

The Hue app is another casualty. I still use the lamps, but I control them through the Home page in the new Control Center.

Some features, like my Brain Dump shortcut, were replaced by new lock screen buttons and the Action Button. Similarly, I removed the Camera app from my screens entirely after upgrading to the iPhone 16 Pro Max. I now exclusively launch the camera using the dedicated Camera Control Don’t Call It A Button Button.

Replaced

There were a couple of significant changes this year, but let’s start with the smaller one — Books got changed by Kindle, but that is changing all the time depending on which book I’m reading.

I’ve also changed my RSS reader and read-it-later service. For about a year I was using Readwise Reader for both. It was also getting all the highlights from Kindle. But the way it looked and worked was always bad, and I decided that too much automation is missing the point. So found the most functional, but good-looking app — Matter.

Another big change was my to-do app. Things 3 won for me just because it’s more simple and beautiful, and doesn’t have a subscription. But lately, I’ve been thinking about going back, since Things 3 doesn’t support natural language in the task name field. This is just bonkers. And in some little things Things 3 doesn’t click for me.

The biggest one is the notes app. After leaving Craft for Notion and later going to Obsidian and staying for a year, I was still not completely happy — it looks horrendous, whatever you do. The way it works with files (especially images sucks) and search on mobile is unusable. So again started to look at different apps — Notes, Craft, Tana among them. But surprisingly chose the one, I completely forgot about — Bear. The easiest way to describe it is Obsidian, but thoughtfully designed. It’s much simpler, but that is why I love to use it. And it allows you to change fonts, which I loved in Obsidian.

I also tried Craft after the recent 3.0 update, and it’s still not it. Too bulky, still too document focused, and occasionally a bit slow in terms of navigation and animation.

Added

There are a couple of apps I’ve always used that got promoted to the homescreen, like Citadele for banking, an app for our daughter’s kindergarten. Day One which I want to use, but somehow don’t even when it’s on homescreen, but I’m trying. Google Maps where I started to save places I loved or want to go to. So my map quickly becoming filled with all the pins.

I’ve also finally changed an app to track the TV shows I watch to Sequel. It’s beautiful and syncs with Trakt, so moving data would be easy when needed.

Masterclass is the other app I want to use more. I got it together with my Revolut subscription and like some content in it, but want to watch more.

There is a side of me that changes and two apps reflect that a lot — first, I started to listen to classical music and Apple Music Classical, which is included in the subscription, is spectacular for that. I go through the Essentials albums for multiple composers. Second is the Bible app, which I’ve never read in full and want to change it.

The last two apps shouldn’t be surprising to anyone — ChatGPT and Perplexity. First is just a default for AI. At first, I changed it with Claude, which seemed like a better model, but ChatGPT has a better product overall, nicely integrating with iOS and macOS. And also, Revolut gave subscription to the Perplexity Pro, which became my second choice.

Lockscreen

My lockscreen is simple. It’s the photo I made at the Barcelona Grand Prix. With Oura widget at the top, hence removal from the homescreen. Fantastical widget below clock for the next appointment and Pedometer and WaterMinder small widgets.

At the bottom, where Apple finally gave us the ability to change controls, I have a new Bear note button and ChatGPT button.

Buttons

There were 2 physical buttons added recently to the iPhone. First, the Action button which quickly became task entry button for me, now opening a new task window in Things 3. The Camera button for me is just a launch button and rarely take a photo button because when you press it, it shakes the phone. And I’ve turned off all the features inside the camera, since it is too finicky to use as a touchpad.

Conclusion

You might’ve noticed that my Homescreen looks dull, which is completely on purpose. It is a part of my strategy to use the phone less. At first, I didn’t like how the new tinting feature worked because it didn’t look good in any of the screenshots I’ve seen, but recently, I’ve decided to use it to my advantage.

Below you can see how my homescreen looks in 3 different modes: tinted, light mode and dark mode.

Rediscovering the Steam Deck: A Perfect Fit for My Unexpected Downtime

December 26, 2024
3 min read

I’ve owned a Steam Deck for over a year now, but until recently, it rarely saw the light of day. Aside from a couple of short flights, I struggled to find time or the right occasion to use it. The potential was always there, and I wanted to play more games, but it just never found its place in my life.

At home, my limited gaming hours were dominated by the PS5. When I traveled, it was mostly for work, with short trips and a minimalist packing list. The Steam Deck, being on the heavier side, usually didn’t make the cut.

But then, life threw me a curveball.

A couple of weeks ago, I tore my knee ligaments — completely. After surgery, I found myself with plenty of time to lie around and not much mobility. That’s when the Steam Deck finally got its moment to shine.

I dusted it off, installed all the updates, and launched GTA V — a game I’ve been meaning to replay for ages. And my verdict? It’s almost perfect.

The Steam Deck Experience

Sure, newer devices like the Legion Go might be more powerful, but they’re bigger, heavier, and run Windows, which doesn’t appeal to me for a handheld gaming device. The Steam Deck, on the other hand, is the perfect size, and SteamOS is fantastic. It just works.

While it won’t deliver stellar FPS on the latest graphically demanding games, it’s a dream for indie titles and slightly older releases.

That said, I do have the original LCD version, and while the newer OLED model has tempted me, I couldn’t justify the upgrade since I wasn’t using the Deck much at the time. Now, I find myself waiting for the next iteration instead.

And let me rave about one of the Deck’s biggest advantages: game prices. Steam sales are incredible, with discounts often reaching up to 90%. After years of paying PlayStation prices, it almost feels too good to be true.

Cons

Battery Life

One of the main downsides is battery life. It’s not a truly portable device in the sense of long, untethered play sessions. When I first got it, I played Guardians of the Galaxy, and the battery barely lasted 90 minutes. For GTA V, I didn’t measure precisely, but it estimates around five hours on a full charge. That’s enough for a couple of missions and some leisurely driving around Los Santos before I’m ready for a break—and at that point, it’s back on the charger.

No Background Downloads

Another quirk I’ve noticed is that the Steam Deck doesn’t download or update games while in sleep mode. Coming from the PS5, where updates and installations happen seamlessly in the background, this feels like a step back.

Final Thoughts

If you’ve got room in your life for a device like the Steam Deck, I’d highly recommend it. But go for the OLED version if you’re buying now—it has a slightly bigger screen, better battery life with no real downsides.

The Steam Deck has finally found its place in my life, and despite a rocky start, it’s proving to be a fantastic companion for my downtime. Here’s to hoping the next version builds on its already solid foundation!

New York Times Loves Latvia

December 24, 2024
1 min read

I always love finding mentions of Latvia in popular culture. Be that Winston who played basketball in Latvia in New Girl or the whole Community episode about Latvian culture. Today, as I was doing the NYT Crossword (yeap, big dad energy) I realized it wasn’t the first clue with Latvia in recent days. After checking, I confirmed my suspicion – 3 days in a row, Latvia is mentioned in the main Crossword as a clue.

Nice.

Gadget Of The Year – Ray Ban Meta Review

December 23, 2024
4 min read

Although they came out in 2023, the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses easily take the title of my 2024 Gadget of the Year. While everyone is trying to create the future, Meta just created an outstanding and useful gadget for today. They don’t replace your phone, they don’t create realistic 3D environments, they just work. Here and now.

I’ve ordered RayBan Meta glasses before all the AI gadget craze. My expectations were simple: stylish Ray-Ban glasses with a few extra features like camera and speakers. What I didn’t expect was just how much they’d become part of my daily routine. Unlike most new gadgets that lose their novelty after a few weeks, these stuck with me.

Camera

Before purchase, this seemed to be the main feature. Taking photos or videos without holding a device feels a bit odd at first. While you “look” through your glasses, the camera captures a slightly different perspective, making it tricky to compose shots traditionally. But that’s the beauty of it—you don’t have to. The best pictures and videos you take are the ones you though – “ah, I wish I’ve had a camera in my hand at that exact moment!”

If you have kids, you will immediately understand. Usually, by the time you start filming with your phone, kids stop doing whatever they were doing before. And if they won’t stop – they immediately change when they see you filming them. They don’t do it just because, they now do it for the camera, and it’s always worse. With glasses, it’s different. Especially if you already wear glasses. It’s natural.

Action shots? Unbeatable. I’ve tested them on roller coasters, and the results were so stunning, even Meta themselves reached out to compliment the video. Getting a shot of a seagull stealing a McDonald’s burger from the woman’s hands – priceless.

Headphones

The built-in speakers were the most unexpected highlight. They’re not audiophile-grade, but they’re far better than I expected. Perfect for podcasts, and even the music sounds decent. And they are opposite to noise-cancelling. You listen to whatever you want and still have your ears free to hear everything. You are more present. Walking around the house without headphones and just with glasses makes my wife much happier.

Privacy and Expectations

Not surprisingly, some people are taken aback by them when they realise what they are. Yes, there is a light indicating when you are taking photos or video, but everyone (and I mean everyone) will joke “yeah, right”.

I’ve stopped wearing them at the office for this reason. Even though everyone has phones capable of recording at any time, the idea of wearing a camera on your face seems to make people uncomfortable. It’s likely a stigma that will fade as the technology becomes more common, but for now, I’d rather avoid being “that guy.”

Surprisingly, only two people realised those were smart glasses right away – my stylist and mom. Plenty of people commented on the glasses (they are very different in style from what I usually wear, much more bulky, so the style change is noticeable). But no one except those two understood what these glasses really were.

Meta AI

I’ve fallen in love with them before AI became The Thing, so when Meta added the feature it was a nice extra, not a reason to exist for the gadget. Since AI isn’t officially available in Latvia yet, I had to use a VPN to try it out. It’s decent—nothing groundbreaking, but fun for party tricks and occasional quick questions. I’ll admit, I’m still getting used to the idea of talking to my glasses.

Conclusion

There’s not much to add beyond the title—these are my Gadget of the Year. And I’ve tested a fair share of new tech this year (more on that in future posts). If you’re on the fence about buying them, here’s my advice: go for it. They’re fantastic.

And the best thing — even if the battery is dead, they are still useful.

Mac mini M4 – The Essence of a Computer

November 20, 2024
3 min read

Rarely does a product come out that redefines the category, or makes you fall in love from the first sight. Maybe not surprisingly, but for me multiple such products were produced by Apple.

I’m not even talking about moving to the M1 processors. I’ve bought that MacBook Air and loved it to bits, but it was still the old design, only now it was fast as hell and the battery life was more than amazing.

For me, the first such device was the iPhone 4. It was the first Apple presentation I watched and when Steve Jobs showed it and explained I immediately fell in love with a design and Retina display. This new display changed the standard for phones and later all other screens.

Then came the iPhone X. I remember as I got it and took it out of the box, my wife, watching me, smiled and said, “we don’t experience such genuine love of technology, everything mostly is taken for granted”. I loved that phone.

More recently, it was the new iPad Pro with M4. It’s so thin and the display is just gorgeous. When I watch some high-quality content, it feels like I’m holding the movie or the TV show in my hands. Sure, there’s always room to grow (meaning to shrink, of course), but occasionally, I just hold it in my hands and look at how thin it is.

And now, during the week of Mac announcements, it was introduced. The new Mac mini. It is stunning. It just looks like a perfect computer. I know there are Raspberry Pis and Intel NUCs which are smaller or whatever. But the Mac mini looks so sleek, it feels just perfect. I wasn’t planing on buying one, but loved looking at it.

On Friday, November 8th, I went to the store to buy a USB-C Magic Trackpad, since it was day one of sales in our country. And just asked if they had the base Mac mini (I actually looked at availability on their website and knew they didn’t, but wanted to ask regardless). As it turned out, they actually had one in the back, and it was the first time in my experience and in the experience of the store employee that they’ve had a mistake on the website. She went to check and came back with the box in hand. I couldn’t say no. How anyone could?

So now, I’m the proud owner of this perfect computer. I have a couple of ideas how to use it, mostly headless, but I just can’t put it in the attic to connect to the router directly for better performance, I want to keep it on my desk. I mean, just look at this combo. Mac mini – the perfect computer.

Apple Magic Mouse Gets USB-C

October 31, 2024
1 min read

My other hunch is that the Magic Mouse’s designers actually see the inability to use it while plugged in as a feature, not a bug.

Let me start by saying I get it—Apple’s Magic Mouse is incredibly popular. People buy Apple products partly because they trust the brand, and Apple’s design has a certain allure.

I agree that it is a feature. It is meant to gather the attention of the critics, and nobody talks how actually bad this mouse is as a mouse. It’s heavy and one of the least ergonomic options out there, making it uncomfortable for prolonged use. It’s just a plainly bad mouse. But everyone is focused on the charging port. Feature.

Link

Omnivore

October 30, 2024
2 min read

We’re excited to share that Omnivore is joining forces with ElevenLabs, the leading AI audio research and technology company. Our team is joining ElevenLabs to help drive the future of accessible reading and listening with their new ElevenReader app.

Next, all Omnivore users will be able to export their information from the service through November 15 2024, after which all information will be deleted. 

Sometimes things just work out. While getting all my productivity tools in order, I’ve been exploring different read later apps in place of Readwise Reader. At one point, I actually chose the Omnivore app. It looked okay, it was fast, and free. I know everyone loved it because of the text-to-speech engine, but I don’t consume my articles like that. It still felt like a good fit for me. Until it wasn’t. I opened the app on the plane without an internet connection, and none of my saved articles were available. I was just happy that I didn’t migrate the whole list of articles. That was the end of my story with Omnivore. I picked Matter at the end and couldn’t have been happier. Especially now, after receiving this nice email. Sometimes free is not the best option; more often than not, you have to think about the sustainability of the service and company.

Mac Perfect

October 29, 2024
1 min read

Instant buy.

Just look at this computer! I’ve been a fan of laptops powered by Apple silicon, my M1 MacBook Air is still a perfectly fine computer. I now have M2 MacBook Air and M3 Pro MacBook Pro for work. Since day one that chip changed my experience with mac. It is fast, it has an amazing battery life. And now the M series chips can offer incredible performance in such a small package. I’ve been waiting for an update to the Mac mini; I want to set one up as a home server that will last at least 10 years, and I feel like this is the one. It will probably be overkill, but fun as hell.

I’ve had a lot of questions for Apple recently, but sometimes they just deliver a perfect product.

iPhone 15 Pro Max Exit Interview

September 19, 2024
4 min read

Unfortunately, last year, despite finally getting my hands on a new phone (god it was in limited supply), I neglected to write a review for the first time ever. Nevertheless, after a year of use, I want to maintain at least one tradition: conducting an exit interview for the phone I’ve relied on over the past year. It’s quite fitting to publish this the day before new models are released.

Design

As you might know, I’ve been going back and forth between the Pro and Pro Max models over the years. During my use of the 14 Pro Max, I was once again leaning towards the smaller model because it was just too heavy. Fortunately, Apple has addressed the issue. The new phone is made from titanium, which makes it lighter. Though the difference might not be striking on paper, it is a night and day difference in hand. The Pro Max is now comfortably usable.

After the presentation, I was immediately drawn to the Natural Titanium color. While there’s been considerable criticism for not offering more colors in the Pro line, I find the Natural Titanium stunning. It changes beautifully under different lighting conditions.

I initially bought a couple of cases during the first week, but they quickly found themselves unused. The phone feels and looks so exquisite that I couldn’t bring myself to cover it with a case.

USB-C

This is one big finally, albeit with a small caveat. The convenience of having a single charger for all devices cannot be overstated. However, Lightning connectors are still a part of our lives—I’m eagerly waiting for my AirPods Pro to give out so I can upgrade to a USB-C model (and what’s going on with the AirPods Max, Apple?). Additionally, the mouse and trackpad still use Lightning connectors. Nevertheless, while traveling, the reduction in the number of cables I need to carry is definitely a plus.

The caveat? I’m not particularly fond of the USB-C connection. One of the nice things about Lightning was the satisfying click it made when connecting to a device. USB-C lacks this feature. I know it might seem trivial, but that small detail made a noticeable difference.

Camera

The other big feature that pushed me towards the larger size is the 5x telephoto lens. It is almost perfect, and I love using it. This is probably my favorite lens on an iPhone ever. The shots you can get are amazing. Maybe it just suits my style (I’ve been reading different opinions), but I couldn’t ask for a better lens in terms of crop, of course. I would welcome improvements to the lens itself anytime. Previously, I barely used the ultra-wide lens and didn’t care much for the digital 2x, as the quality is just not there.

Battery

This one actually surprised me, and not in a positive way. Typically, when I get a new phone, I’m reminded how good life with a 100% battery is. However, this time, the battery life of my new phone was disappointingly similar to that of my year-old device. I can’t recall a single day when I didn’t have to recharge it at least once. It’s interesting how I would use the 15 Pro, but this year, the battery has really been a problem for me.

There Was One Other Thing…

As I was wrapping up the conclusion, it struck me that I hadn’t mentioned the Action Button. This oversight is actually quite fitting, as I often forget it exists. After giving it some thought, I decided to assign a Shortcut for adding tasks to the Inbox of Things. Now, whenever something comes to mind, I simply press the button and jot down the thought, idea, quote, or whatever it may be, to deal with later.

Conclusion

The iPhone 15 Pro Max takes one of the top spots in my iPhone ranking, right up there with the iPhone 4S and, more recently, the iPhone 12 Pro Max. It feels much better in hand due to the weight reduction. The addition of USB-C has made life a bit easier. The 5x camera is great fun. Oh, and there is a new button…

The iPhone 15 Pro Max secures a top position in my iPhone rankings, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with classics like the iPhone 4S and the more recent iPhone 12 Pro Max. The weight reduction makes it remarkably more comfortable to hold. The inclusion of USB-C has made life a bit easier, while the 5x camera is just great fun. Oh, and there is a new button… 

Tana: Great Potential

February 9, 2024
3 min read

Recently, I’ve been on a maddening quest to find a new notes app. I will share more about that later, but one in particular piqued my interest – Tana.

The idea and the promise are that you write and add supertags (yes, Tana comes with a huge amount of vocabulary specific to it) and the app just links everything and organises content for you. There are multiple options for the type of content you can add: plain text, to-do items, images, videos and much more.

In Notion and Craft the smallest unit is a block, in Tana it’s a node, which is basically a bullet. I was actually reading “The Bullet Journal Method”, and my mind immediately started thinking about parallels in both approaches. What makes it so powerful, is you can create anything with those supertags. The easiest way to describe is – think about databases in Notion, but they are created dynamically based on the nodes scattered all over the space.

I first installed Tana a couple of weeks ago, went through the tutorial, tried to make some notes, and uninstalled it, thinking it was one of the worst software products in the PKM space. But I’ve kept seeing people using it and even being fans, so I’ve decided to give it another try. This time, something clicked. I started small and for about a week, I just kept writing in the daily note. I’ve added supertags to all the nodes to add some structure. It became a bit clearer, but this steep learning curve, I think, will discourage most people from using it.

The other huge issue is the lack of mobile apps. There is Tana Capture, but it is just that — a tool for capturing notes on the go (it is good at that, but still extremely limited). Since Tana wants to be almost everything, including your to-do app, it is unimaginable to have it only on a PC.

Lastly, it is still in invite-only beta, so they still have to prove themselves to the public at large. If they don’t change the whole vocabulary and maybe streamline the number of features a bit, I think it will be difficult to break out. I’m confident they’ll have a vocal minority of super fans, but not a big audience.

You also can’t export your notes. And looking at the structure, I don’t think it would be an easy problem to solve for the developers, or you might not be able to import this data somewhere else.

For now, I’ve decided to go with some different tools as my PKM, but I’ll be closely following the progress of the company and checking the app from time to time.