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… 

Unpinning Expectations

November 10, 2023
7 min read

I’ve been following Humane since its inception. This company, founded by ex-Apple veterans, intrigued me, but I must admit, I harbored skepticism from the start. And with every update they released, my doubts only intensified. However, I love technology and I always want to try out new things. As a regular ChatGPT user, I feel squarely within their target demographic.

So, when I got back home from work yesterday and saw that the announcement video has been dropped, I immediately started watching (the 10 minute length helped, of course). Despite my growing skepticism, which only deepened after a second viewing, I noted several key points.

1. Form factor and weight

The device’s weight is noticeable, stretching even a thick sweater in the demo. I wonder about its effect on a regular T-shirt. There is an accessory for delicate fabric, but it would automatically compromise battery life. It seems more suited for short-term use rather than all-day wear.

2. Voice recognition

This being a 10 minute introduction video, one would hope for a packed and checked video, but in the very beginning this quote stood out for me.

“There are no wake words. So it’s not always listening or always recording. In fact it doesn’t do anything until you engage with it and your engagement comes through your voice, touch, gesture or the Laser Ink display.”

If it doesn’t listen to you, how would engaging with your voice help it do something? It seems like a poorly worded phrase, but they’ve had a lot of time to prepare.

3. Humane network, connected by T-Mobile

It seems like they’re launching as an MVNO on top of T-Mobile infrastructure, which explains the initial US-only release. But scaling up internationally seems challenging, especially considering data usage for photos and videos. How will roaming work? Will you be charged extra or it won’t work outside the US?

With this model, they’ll need to go country by country and make deals with the operators? Good luck getting it anywhere other than US and a couple of major countries.

And last and the most important issue on this topic – it has a dedicated phone number. The different one from your phone. So in the year 2024 they want you to ditch your iPhone and use only the ai pin. This doesn’t sound promising. 

4. Ultra-Wide camera

In the video you can see how the pin shakes on the jacket. The image stabilisation must be insane to take useful photos most of the time or you need to hold the device still when you take a photo.

Although, later they show that camera is just bad. I know the best camera is the one that is with you, but god this is a bad photo and you are better off with iPhone (duh).

5. Trust Light

An interesting feature, but it raises privacy concerns for those around the user. Unlike the indicator lights on MacBooks or iPhones, which alert the user, this light offers little control to bystanders.

6. Laser Ink Display

Its real-life performance remains to be seen, but in the video the laser display doesn’t look very legible. Especially on the homescreen – if I really look, I can get what is written under the time, but I can’t make out the word above and that’s while on pause, how would it work in real life, on the go? What about really bright light? 

Also gestures looked really interesting. He was moving his hand veeeery slowly. Again, there is hope that it’s to make a point, so we understand, but it doesn’t look promising or comfortable.

7. AI performance

X users already discussed some mistakes, but still. There are just a couple of questions and AI got wrong some of them. In the demo. Demo that is showing the device for the very first time. Pre-recorded demo.

First one is the eclipse question. The answer the ai pin gave is plain wrong. Not in the details, totally wrong. The mentioned eclipse won’t be visible anywhere near Australia. It will happen mostly above America, that’s why some are calling it the Great North American Eclipse.

AI lies to you and very confidently at that. Google Search really deteriorated recently, but you’ll get a good result if you ask it the same question and if there are multiple conflicting answers – you’ll see all of them on the screen. Here you just receive the wrong answer and no additional context. They also didn’t care to check the answer for the first introduction of the product. Where is the attention to details?

Apart from the cringy prompt “make it more exciting”, the message is just grammatically incorrect.

The presenter asks for the gate code he received from Andrew before, which looked cool and useful, but then added: “Before I’d have to scroll through a long text chain to the last time I went to Andrews house”. I’m sorry, I know you are excited about the product, but did you hear about the new and amazing technology called SEARCH?!

Wrong information about the eclipse probably won’t kill anyone, but the later example is a bit frightening. Allegedly it can help you with your diet, but it got it wrong, again.

The weirdest thing is that GPT-4 provides correct information if you just show the screenshot from the video (the same is true for the eclipse question):

After the eclipse and almonds example, how can I be sure it bought the correct book? “This”, it didn’t even say the name of the book to confirm. The presenter then said “great, buy it” and didn’t receive the answer. The most logical explanation – it can’t do that yet, so why show it? If it can – where did it buy it from? There were no book stores on the partnerships slide, as far as I know.

8. Web portal

One of the issues could be a bit of a nitpick. When he asked for the total protein amount he had today, the pin answered – 22 grams. But below we can see that the protein is full for the day and the amount is 56 grams. And a second slide shows that the information is taken from the presentation (there is a book, a call and a song from the examples before).

Why does it show the same information 2 times? Just to fill the screen? Or Yanirs call and note about Notes are so important?

There is a lot of potential in AI. As I said in the beginning I use ChatGPT daily and I love it. It helps a lot throughout the day. But nor we, nor ChatGPT is ready for such a device. The mission of Humane is “To build for the world not as it exists today, but as it could be tomorrow” and it could be true, but that tomorrow is still long way ahead.

I’m sure they’ll devices to the early adopters and enthusiasts, but I think it won’t make a dent. This is not it. This is not the next smartphone.

I would probably love it as a part of Apple ecosystem (or Android, if that’s your cup of tea). You have all the information there – notes, reminders, camera, photos, mail, texts, calls. Everything. And here is a new company asking you to ditch all of that and use their pin. Impossible.

Apple Watch Ultra – I’m Out

April 3, 2023
2 min read

When Apple first announced the Apple Watch Ultra, my first thought was – thankfully, it’s not for me. I’ve bought Stainless Steel Series 7 last year, thinking it would last two or even three years, so paying another €900 after just a year seemed a bit too much.

When it came out, I still went to the store to try one out, just out of curiosity. And again, thankfully, I didn’t like it. The main negative surprise was how light it was for the size. I was really expecting something much heavier.

But then I started seeing them on people’s wrists, and it didn’t look bad at all. As I’ve seen even more while on a trip to London, I started thinking of buying one. After getting on my wife’s nerves for a couple of days, she finally sent me to the Apple Store, just to shut me up.

What I’ve done is put my current watch on my right wrist and Ultra on my left, seeing them side by side made me realise how much I don’t like… both of them.

Ultra looked good, but I like watch faces that are filled with color and if you use those the bezel just stares at you, looking old. And if you look at a regular watch, it’s apparent how much better it looks.

But at the same time, the regular Series looks… old. I’ve said previously, that people are wrong saying that there is not much change between Series 4-6 and 7-8, but on the whole they are similar. The main difference is in the screen and especially compared with Series 3, the newest one looks much better, but the case design, is indeed almost the same. And it’s here for 8 years. It’s time to change.

I’ve bought my first Apple Watch in 2017, when Series 3 came out, and wore one every single day for almost 6 entire years. First 3 years, I’ve been closing all 3 rings every day, but afterward realised that although it is good for my physical health, it’s not that good for my mental health and stopped doing it. And now, I’ve put my Apple Watch for sale with an expectation not to buy another one.

iPhone 14 Pro Max – The Promised Island

December 27, 2022
6 min read

I want to start with a disclaimer – since I upgrade my phone every year, the delta of improvement is much smaller than for most people who upgrade every 2 years or even less often. Despite that, I still think the iPhone 14 Pro Max is a fabulous device worthy of an upgrade.

Coming Home – Again?

I’ve named the iPhone XS Max review – Coming Home. After that, I’ve stuck with larger iPhone models until iPhone 13 Pro. Since the difference between Max and non-Max models was only in the screen size, I decided to get a smaller phone. The main issue was – it was not possible to use Pro Max phone with one hand. After a year of use, I’ve got mostly disappointment out of that decision. The smaller size means also a smaller battery and with a heavy use, the Pro phone would last half a day for me. What I also realised during extended use – it is not only the sheer size, but the weight that prevents me from using even Pro phone one-handed. After a couple of months, I was certain that the next phone will be the bigger one again, since it’s mostly worse in numerous instances and doesn’t solve the only problem I have with a Max size.

Dynamic Island

It is almost a mantra in the tech review space – you shouldn’t buy a hardware product based on the promise of future improvements. iPhone 14 Pro is partially such a product. The main hardware feature – the Dynamic Island, that is very neatly combined with the software, is still not fully used by the app developers. And it’s considering me receiving a phone a month after it went on sale and using it for another month.

The situation is much better than on a launch day – there are a lot more apps that use Dynamic Island in some way, but they are mostly independent apps from indie developers or startups. They are also very 1.0. I didn’t see any surprising use still.

Flighty live action in Airplane Mode
Flighty live action in Airplane Mode

The ones I use daily are, of course, media apps like Apple Music and Overcast, as well as food delivery app – Wolt. Actually, the most I used the Dynamic Island was during vacations. It was nice seeing the navigation while using the phone, and Flighty live activities were wonderful, working even with Airplane Mode turned on.

I’m still waiting from someone to find an interesting and creative use, but still, it is a great feature already.

Always-On Display

My current lockscreen
My current lockscreen

There are plenty of takes regarding this. People are mostly used to the Android style always-on display, which is black with time and some icons for apps or notifications. What Apple has done is entirely different. After seeing it in a presentation and later reading first reviews, I’ve had a thought – was it done just to be different, and will I also turn it off like so many people? After some time using it, I can confidently say that it is a remarkable feature and I love using it.

On my lock screen I have time, 4 complications below it (two from Oura ring, Carrot Weather and Activity) and Fantastical complication above the time showing my next event. This allows me to more freely choose Apple Watch complications, since some of them are on the phone screen, so I can more easily use fullscreen California face. It also allows me to glance and see the mosts important information for me.

While traveling in Europe, I like using Apple Maps for navigation by foot and now more so, since the always-on display is … always on. I mean, even when you click the Power button to dim the display, the map stays there instead of the lockscreen.

I have two issues with the new display. First, it’s quite difficult to figure out the situation with sleeping. I have a Belkin charger where the iPhone is attached magnetically in standing position, so when the display dims, in the dark it illuminates the whole room and that is a problem. The only easy way I found to turn off the display was to turn on Sleep Focus, which is fine, but not easily discoverable.

The second issue, I have is constant accidental unlocking and touching in the pocket, and I strongly believe the always-on display is somehow at play here. I didn’t have this issue before, I don’t have this issue with iPhone 13 mini in another pocket, but with this phone, it accidentally unlocks itself so much, that I noticed.

Still, all the positive things outweigh the concerns, so I keep using the Always-On Display and recommend everyone to try to stick with it for some time.

Camera

I love the new cameras. The main sensor was great, so I don’t think plenty of people will notice the change to 48 MP sensor. Although, if you use RAW, you will see much greater results. The update I love the most is the new 3x lens. I was in love with a telephoto lens on the 12 Pro Max and used it all the time. But after upgrading to 13 Pro, I was very disappointed. It was just bad, constantly giving me blurry low-quality photos. I only later realised, and then read an explanation of my theory in the Halide review of the phone, that you had to wait before shooting with a telephoto lens. What happened was, if you turned on the telephoto lens and immediately shot a photo, the phone didn’t yet change the lens, so was shooting with the main one and cropping the shot, which resulted in a low-quality photo. So, you had to choose 3.5x, wait a second or two (you could even see the lens switching on screen) and then shoot. That solved most problems, but it still wasn’t as good as 12 Pro Max telephoto lens. This year, though, it is back in play. I started to enjoy the telephoto lens again, it’s such great focal length, that I use it almost daily.

Conclusion

It is a great upgrade, even after just a year. I fell in love with the telephoto lens, again. I love the always-on screen and live activities together with the Dynamic Island.

Likewise, I also love my return to the Max size – the battery lasts the whole day, much more information or video fits on the screen. It’s easier to edit photos on the bigger phone.

Oh, and this year I went with a silver color – I’m mostly done with black tech, had a gold one before and didn’t care for a purple one, since it’s mostly not a color, in most lighting it looks brown, grey, but not purple. So got a silver/white one. It looks nicely with all the cases or skins and matches my silver Apple Watch, but next time I would probably return to gold.

Post-Covid Travel

April 16, 2022
2 min read

During the COVID-19, the phrase “new normal” became somewhat of a meme, but as countries started lifting the restrictions it became clear that people are not ready for the new normal, we are longing for the way it was before.

Last week I’ve traveled from Riga to London and back. Both of the countries recently have lifted all the COVID-19 restrictions, so it felt like the recent pandemic never happened. You don’t have to wear a mask in neither of the airports and what is most important – in the plane. Mostly gone are the days of ordering something, so you could take off the mask without people judging. You could just take a book and enjoy.

I was flying two different airlines there and back. In one of them, COVID-19 was not even mentioned and all the employees were not wearing masks. In the second, they encouraged wearing a mask during the flight and all the employees were wearing one.

In London itself, it is back to normal as well. You don’t have to wear a mask indoors, and swarms of people are in all the usual places. I thought I would have anxiety. Although, I am ready to get back to the way it was, but after 2 years, you just can’t help but adjust to the new way. But I was very comfortable with all the people around me.

Some things did change. For example, in the hotel, before going into the elevator I would ask if a person who was already there doesn’t mind, and I wouldn’t judge someone if they’ve said they weren’t comfortable.

Do I think COVID-19 is over? Of course not. People still are getting ill, but in most cases it appears to be mild, without long effects and many people have some sort of protection, be it from vaccines, recovering from COVID-19 or as in my case – from both. I am glad we are getting back to normal, it feels great.

Apple in 2021: My Report Card

March 20, 2022
6 min read

For a couple of years now, Jason Snell at Six Colors asks people in tech to rate Apple in different categories. I like this idea to look back and give my opinion. I started last year and decided to keep a tradition (albeit a bit late).

Mac

Grade: B

Don’t get me wrong – M1 Max and M1 Pro are great for someone who needs it, but Apple didn’t do any hardware for me. Those 14” and 16” are too heavy, over-powered, and expensive for what I do. I still love my MacBook Air with M1, it is a great laptop, but we are still waiting for a redesign.

I like how iMac with M1 looks, those colors are great, but it’s small, so I’m still waiting for something bigger. Or for Apple display that doesn’t cost like a used car.

I think B is a good score, but compared with the year when the M1 was first introduced and the improvement the new MacBook Air was, it doesn’t compare favorably.

iPhone

Grade: B

Again, solid year for an iPhone, but I was so much in love with 12 Pro Max the year before that feelings from iPhone 13 Pro are much more neutral, comparatively. It is a great phone, better in some ways, but the telephoto lens is still a hit or miss. With 12 Pro Max, I loved shooting with it, this year, not so much. The rail is all scratched up, although the previous phone looked like a new one after a year of use.

iOS 15 didn’t bring many new features. It works, and the Live Text feature is spectacular, but that is mostly all the progress for the year. And I find myself restarting the phone pretty often, because of some small bugs.

iPad

Grade: B

The first category to improve year after year. Maybe the issue is with me, not with Apple, but I hear a lot of similar sentiment in Apple centred podcasts – I finally use the iPad for what it is, a remarkable consumption device. Before, I’ve set out to replace my laptop with an iPad Pro, and it worked. But was a bit worse in numerous things. Last year iPad mini came out and oh boy it is great. Yeah, the screen is lacking a bit, but otherwise it is a fantastic device. Small, but with the screen large enough to be comfortable, looks great, fast. And it finally allows an iPad to be the best iPad it can and not attempting to be something else.

Watch and Wearables

Wearables – Grade: C

Watch – Grade: B

I’m still waiting for the AirPods Pro update. The ones I have are already dying after just one year (the regular AirPods worked for 2 years). The battery doesn’t hold anymore, and the case glitches all the time, attempting to connect, even though it is closed. The AirPods Max are still too expensive and not comfortable to take with you.

Apple Watch on the other hand (sorry) is a different story. I don’t agree with those saying that this is a small update. I like my Series 7. I love the bigger screen and improved sensors (compared to my previous Series 5). But I have to mention that software is lacking a lot. All the watch faces are bad, each in their own way. There are not many apps. It becomes too passive device for such a price.

Apple TV

Grade: E

I don’t think anything changed much. Yes, the remote got updated, but it is still the same overpriced box, that I can’t recommend to anyone, but Apple fanboys.

Services

Grade: F

This is a bit emotional grade, but where do I start? First, it is a year 2022 and the best tier of Apple One is still not available in Latvia. That means I’m overpaying for the storage because I have to pay for Apple One Family and additional 2 TB of storage, since I have a bit more than 400 GB stored in iCloud. Apple needs to add the Premier tier everywhere or give more options for storage upgrade.

Apple News+ and Apple Fitness+ are still not available in Latvia, as in most of the world. Apple Music apps are a joke. Everyone is enraged with 1Password going Electron, but Apple Music is so much worse.

Activity app on Apple Watch is making things worse, not better. I’ve been wearing Oura ring and after comparing the two, I can’t believe I’ve listened to those prompts. Apple Watch is constantly trying to push you – more, faster, more effort. Regardless of how you feel. I’ve had COVID-19 and Apple Watch expected me to close all the rings every day. While I woke up a bit under the weather with Oura ring, and it noticed and recommended I take things easier, maybe even take some rest days. I think Apple Watch Activity can be harmful.

HomeKit

Grade: D

It’s the app that exists. I love my colorful Hue lamps, but I mostly use them through Hue app. If you want a HomeKit enabled camera, you’ll have to look around for some time.

Hardware Reliability

Grade: A

Although I mentioned problems with AirPods Pro, this is the product from before. I don’t see any major issues with the offered hardware. I don’t even remember any of the new “gates”, which says a lot.

Software Quality

Grade: B

As I said, I’m restarting my phone quite a lot, the software is okay, but can be much better. I think there is a lot to cover and Apple needs some time and resources, and it will get better.

Developer Relations

Grade: E

Whatever you think of the Apple vs Epic conflict, it appeared only because Apple is bad at “relations”. Sony and Microsoft have both even worse deals in their stores, but nobody says a thing because they manage it much better. Apple, on the other hand, thinks only developers have to pray to them. But it is a two-way street, and there is no App Store without developers. The sooner Apple will understand that the better. Otherwise, they will be dragged through all the courts all over the world and the result will be much worse than if they made the changes themselves.

Environmental and Social Issues

Grade: C

Apple still is dependent on China. I don’t think anything changed or can be changed in the nearest future. So, no change in the grade year over year.

Homescreen – 2021

January 21, 2022
6 min read

As I first did in 2019, then in the middle of 2020 and at the end of 2020, I’m sharing my Homescreen. It is fun to go and take a look at how it changes (or stays the same). During 2021 there were quite a few changes, actually. Here is a look at 2021 edition (although a bit late).

2021
2021

Widgets

If previously there was only one stack of widgets which combined both Fantastical and Carrot Weather, now I have two separate, but smaller. First, is still Fantastical, which is a Stack of plain calendar with a heat-map and events view (similar to what I’ve had before, just separated in two widgets). Second, is Photos. I’ve previously had it on the left of the homescreen, but realised, I don’t go there often, and I wanted those memories to show up, so now it is promoted to the homescreen.

Stayed

Probably the most consistent apps are Messages, WhatsApp, Mail and Safari. I use those not even daily, but hourly. From entertainment, there are Music and Overcast – with Apple One it is harder to justify paying for Spotify and there is nothing better than Overcast in terms of sound (I don’t care for the design, so this was the year I’ve tried a couple of competitors, but nothing comes even close). The only change is that Overcast was demoted from the dock, but as I have only one homescreen, it’s not a big deal.

Now that I’ve exchange my bigger Pro Max for a plain Pro, I find myself not reading as many books on the phone. Still, Books app is still there whenever I find time. As is Audible, but again, that might change because I mostly listen to the audiobooks in the car and I launch the app from CarPlay there.

I’ve stuck with Reeder as my RSS app of choice, as well as read-it-later service. I intend to try Matter (I did before, but didn’t like it, now that it is more established, I want to give it another go).

Although there is a Photos’ widget, I still kept the Photos app icon just because it opens the Library, saving at least one tap compared to the Widget.

A bit more boring category – two finance apps are there as well – MoneyWiz and Revolut. Still use them daily, although I’ve changed icons for both.

Craft is my app of choice for notes, and it was “promoted” to the dock. Briefly, I tried to move writing there as well, but I didn’t like paragraph breaks for that, so returned to Ulysses, which is also still here.

Removed

I don’t use Telegram as often for personal communication and there are just two channels I like reading, that is why I started using it on a laptop more, so it was one of the first apps to go.

I also don’t watch a lot of Netflix on my iPhone anymore (the difference in screen size between Pro and Pro Max iPhones is small, but in watching videos – very noticeable). Similar with YouTube. The size of the screen is less of the issue here, it’s just I didn’t open it daily.

In 2021, I posted less to Instagram (and it feels like I took fewer photos), so wasn’t using Lightroom on my phone at all. I still have a subscription and use it from time to time, but not as much.

Replaced

TickTick – Todoist

As I’ve mentioned last year, I chose TickTick, but still searched for something better. Somehow, it never really clicked with me. So, this summer I’ve migrated to Todoist, which I’ve used a couple of years before, and I love it. I can’t put my finger on it, but something changed. I didn’t like Todoist last time I’ve tried it, but now it became good.

Tot – Brain Dump Shortcut

I also mentioned last year that I don’t think Tot would survive 2021, and it didn’t. I’ve deleted it from all my devices and replaced with nothing at first. I’ve had Craft for note-taking, but it didn’t have a simplicity of adding something random. Closer to the end of the year, I created a shortcut which opens the text input field and saves whatever you write in the Brain Dump note in Craft. This method is surprisingly good. It is fast. You can type, paste something. If you want to save it or expand on your thought, you can create a document out of the paragraph in Craft. It is still a work in progress, and I am also considering using Drafts for that. So look forward to the update next year.

Added

As we spend more time at home and winter days are very short, Philips Hue app found its way to the homescreen. I have a couple of smart lightbulbs and love them a lot. If price was lower, I would change all the lights in my house to Philips smart ones.

Surprisingly, the Camera made its return to the homescreen. I didn’t have it before because I was launching it from lock screen or Control Centre. Recently, though, with a more active child I sometimes found myself loosing precious seconds trying to open Control Centre and finding a small icon, thus losing the shot. So, I’ve added Camera icon to the dock (in the same place it is on a Lock Screen, for muscle memory).

I’ve returned Duolingo to the homescreen (and my phone), since I want to try to learn French. I’m uncertain if I’m ready to pay for the service, so trying to make my piece with thousands of ads in the free version.

My wife gave me Oura ring for my birthday. Now every morning I open the app to check on my sleep, that is why I like having it right there on the homescreen.

Conclusion

As is always the case, the homescreen is a work in progress. But as you can see over even a couple of years, there are some apps that took a strong hold, and it is hard to imagine they wouldn’t be there next year. Although, again, as life shows, nothing is certain and anything can happen.

Some Thoughts On Apple Event – September 2021

September 18, 2021
2 min read

It was yet another Apple event during the pandemic. I’m sure if you’ve watched at least one you will have a feeling about how it went.

iPad

Although updating the “no description iPad” iPad is great – it is an astonishing value for money, what surprised everyone was an updated iPad mini. It got an iPad Pro like design – doesn’t have home button, supports 2nd generation Apple Pencil and is available in a couple of different colors. This is iPad I’ve been waiting for and will definitely be getting one.

Apple Watch

It’s funny how wrong rumor sites were. It’s a nice upgrade with a bigger screen, I actually noticed a couple of months ago how big the bezel around the screen is in the current version and it looks like the Series 7 will solve that.

What I don’t like are the colors. I need to see them in person, but from the photos I only like stainless steel ones and they are either not available in Latvia or are ridiculously expensive.

I think Apple Watch is a perfect device for a two year upgrade. The battery in my Series 5 is sure ready to be replaced. I just need to choose the version.

iPhone

Although it might look like nothing much on the outside, it seems to be totally reworked on the inside. I love the bigger battery and updated cameras. I didn’t care much about Cinematic video, since it looked like the first Portrait mode version (not good).

The blue Pro looks okay, but I will need to see it in person. Pink non-Pro model looks amazing, I would get it if I was buying one.

I will be upgrading to the 13. This time just a regular Pro, since Pro Max doesn’t offer anything better in terms of camera. 

I know a lot of people are somehow disappointed by the event, but I thought it was a strong one. There were no boring demos or store updates, we’ve got some new devices and even a surprise. You can count it as a success in my book. 

MagSafe Wallet Review

August 27, 2021
3 min read

I’ve been a fan of minimalistic wallets for a long time. My last wallet before MagSafe was ETRO card holder, where I had 7 cards and a bit of cash at all times.

My previous ETRO card holder

The cards in the wallet were – ID, driver’s license, insurance card, 2 credit cards and one to get into the office, oh and also one loyalty card.

Apple MagSafe Wallet

MagSafe Wallet on the other hand holds only 3 cards without cash. Turns out – it was easy to get rid of the 4 cards. Office card goes to the backpack, since I don’t go there without it. I don’t need a driver’s license, because police can check my ID. I’ve had credit cards just in case, mostly to get cash at the ATM, since everything else accepts Apple Pay, so I just removed one – they are similar in fees (as there are none). The loyalty card turns out was available in the app for a long time.

So after a short management of cards I was ready to rock the new Wallet and I love it. Of course the quality is great and it feels nice. The way I hold it on my iPhone 12 Pro Max actually allows it to function similar to the pop socket.

MagSafe Wallet with Apple Silicone case

The cards are very easy to get out, now I use my ID a lot, because you have to show it together with a vaccination certificate and it is pretty easy even with one hand. It holds very well on the case, but it doesn’t feel too secure with just the naked phone. I think magnets are a bit to far when the phone is naked and glass is too slippery. When you put a case in between – magnet from the case itself is much closer and silicone gives it a much needed grip.

What I love is that it goes very easy on and off, so in the office or at home I just take it off and use my phone without it and when I go out just snap it on.

I use it for almost two months and love it. I’ve never even considered “wallet cases” before, because they are bulky, heavy and a lot of the times look bad, but this is just perfect. If you can manage with just three cards and some cash in the pocket (I finally have a reason to use my fancy leather money clip).

Bonus photo – here is how it looks on the iPhone 12 Mini. It perfectly aligns with the sides and adds a lot of bulk in comparison, but it’s still manageable.

iPhone 12 Mini with a MagSafe Wallet\

Apple Podcasts Subscriptions — Not Good

July 5, 2021
3 min read
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I wrote just a paragraph regarding Apple Podcasts Subscriptions in my post about April event as there were not many details. After hearing and reading more about the service, I think that in the current form, it is bad both for podcasters and users.

On the good side, premium podcasts will be available world-wide. Apple Podcasts is the biggest player in the world, so you’ll have a big audience. Apple has probably the best chance of charging users because they’ll always have a current card on file.

On the other hand, this is only limited to Apple Podcasts app, which is not available on Android. On iOS, many people are using 3rd party apps, and they won’t be able to listen to those premium shows. The 30% cut is pretty big, I don’t understand why podcasts with the audience will use the system, since they are the ones bringing all the customers so why pay Apple so much.

As a podcast listener, when I choose to support the creator, I want him to have as much money as possible, as most of the time those prices are quite low. I’m currently paying for a couple of podcasts around $5 each, in this scenario $1.5 from monthly transaction will go to Apple. Why? I learned about those podcasts from different means, they themselves created value for me to pay, I’m happy with a current model, so I don’t get what Apple is providing that is worth 30% apart from credit card processing which costs much less.

What’s more, when you subscribe through Apple, you become their customer, not podcasters. So, the creator doesn’t know a thing about you, he just knows how many people subscribed. He can’t communicate with the listeners, offer additional perks — like community in Discord or a coupon code for merchandise drop. Sure, he can give information in the podcast itself, but how would he check if you are paying?

One of the podcasts I’m paying for is Dithering. It was actually the very first podcast I paid for. I had doubts at first, but still subscribed pretty early on and enjoyed it very much. Once the card I used expired, and I got a short podcast episode in Overcast with Ben informing me about that. It was outstanding, I went to the website, updated the information and the episodes kept coming.

I’m not sure what Apple can provide me as a user. I love Overcast audio processing too much to switch or even to use in parallel another app, so I can’t think of a single thing that would force me to install Podcasts app back.