Business

The virtuous circle of product placement in Apple’s TV+ shows

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Tim Hardwick, MacRumors, does a nice job breaking down this paywalled Wall Street Journal article.

Apple products are visible in an average of 32 camera shots in each episode of “The Morning Show,” and an Apple logo is visible in roughly one-third of those shots.

And:

In one four-second scene in episode one of the flagship Apple TV+ series, nine Apple products are shown as two characters walk and talk through a newsroom.

Fascinating. The definition of synergy. Apple TV+’s worlds (with the exception, at least to this point, of SEE) serve as ads for Apple products, paint a world where Apple products are part of every person’s day to do. Until I read the WSJ article, I hadn’t even noticed. Subliminal.

Bob Iger takes the gloves off for Disney’s streaming debut

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Fantastic article on Disney+, on Bob Iger, and on the technology Disney has created to get their media to market.

As I’ve said numerous times, I see three obvious leaders in the coming media wars: Apple (deep war chest, deep commitment), Netflix (huge existing lead, deep brand), and Disney (incredible back catalog, shrewd technology investments).

Apple shares featurette: Creating the world of SEE

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[VIDEO] Of the major new Apple TV+ releases, I saved SEE for last. I wanted the context of the other shows, a sense of the quality level, the production values, before I dove into the world of SEE.

SEE is incredibly immersive. No Apple product placement, no stressors of modern life. Watch the featurette (embedded in the main Loop post) to get a sense of how this world, supposedly built by a people who have gone blind, was created. Very interesting.

Anyone know why the title is all caps? “SEE”, vs. “See”?

Apple TV+ renews four series as glimpses emerge of first-week activity

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Variety:

Dramas “See,” “For All Mankind,” “Dickinson” and “The Morning Show” have been greenlit for sophomore seasons. “Morning Show,” led by Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Aniston, already had a two-season order and is already at work on its next season of 10 episodes.

And:

Sources close to Apple say the service to date has drawn millions of users who are spending on average more than an hour on the Apple TV Plus platform. It’s unclear how many of those are paying subscribers rather than those taking advantage of the service’s seven-day free trial. A knowledgeable source said Apple insiders were impressed by the volume of activity on the platform, which spiked by triple digits this past weekend after the fanfare for the Nov. 1 debut.

Good to have good numbers, but I don’t think bad numbers would stop Apple from renewing these shows, green lighting new projects. It is going to take time to build a catalog with any kind of heft, and time to build up any sort of paid subscriber base.

My two cents? Apple is doing an exceptional job here. The shows I’ve watched so far (including the four that just got renewed) rise to the level of what I’d expect to see on Netflix or HBO.

Apple and bugginess

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There will always be bugs. But the level of bugginess does seem to be rising to new heights.

Let’s start off with this recent Daring Fireball post, iOS 13.2 is overzealously killing apps in the background (and yields joy if you are a fan of the DF hidden URL game):

This bug where apps are getting killed soon after they’re backgrounded is driving me nuts. Start a YouTube video in Safari, switch to another app, go back to Safari — and the video loads from scratch and starts from the beginning.

There are many similar examples. Supposedly, this issue was quashed in a new beta, but it was surprising to see it make its way into the wild.

Next, take a look at this post from Kirk McElhearn, detailing problems opening iCloud files.

Another widespread issue is the frustration of trying to get HomePod to recognize a second person’s voice. For me, the issue manifested itself when my wife asked HomePod Siri to add an item to the shopping list, something she’s done on a regular basis since HomePod first entered our house a long time ago. But now, all she got was:

Who is this?

And that took us down a wild road of trying to figure out how to get HomePod Siri to recognize her as a person. Now, you might put this off to pilot error, but this problem is pretty widespread. I’ve spent a ton of time trying to solve this problem for my setup, and also helping others fix it for their setup. There’s no shortage of people who can’t get this to work and now have loved ones shut out from the HomePod.

I suspect that the issue at the core of this HomePod problem is a poorly chosen setting, or lack of the proper update. To me, if iOS 13.2 is required for this to work, Siri should say as much, instead of simply saying the unhelpful, “Who is this?” The complexity of the Home app setup is daunting, well beyond the capabilities of a newbie to work through. And there are a lot of settings that have to be “just so” in order for this to work.

I’m not trying to pick on Apple’s developers here. But something does seem amiss. Some say the issue is too much pressure to deliver on too short a timeline. I have no idea. But as a user, I am frustrated.

Why you might see a new “Data” disk in Catalina

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Glenn Fleishman, Macworld:

Apple took system protection to the next level in macOS 10.15 Catalina by splitting your normal boot volume into two pieces. It appears like a single volume on the Desktop, but it’s really two: one is labeled with the volume’s name, while the other has “- Data” appended to it.

Great explainer on the new boot volume setup, with a side mention of that “Relocated Items” folder alias you’ll likely see on your desktop when you install Catalina.

Apple adds four week grace period for new parents returning from leave

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Fast Company:

Apple is introducing a policy that will give new parents a four-week grace period after returning from leave. During that time, they will continue to be paid like full-time employees but will have the flexibility to work part-time and set their own hours with their manager’s oversight.

And:

These benefits extend to Apple’s retail workers, as well, who account for nearly half of the company’s employees.

That last bit is especially interesting. Cool that retail workers get this benefit, interesting that they account for almost half of Apple’s employees.

iPhone connected to original Macintosh Keyboard and Mouse? WILL IT WORK?

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[VIDEO] I absolutely love the sequence of WILL IT WORK videos, connecting various devices to an iPhone. But this one takes the cake. Connecting an original old-school Macintosh keyboard and mouse to an iPhone? Ridiculous. No way.

But watch the video, embedded in the main Loop post.

Health Records on iPhone now available to veterans across the US

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Apple:

Apple and the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) today announced that veterans across the nation and surrounding territories1 now have access to the Health Records feature in the Health app on iPhone. The VA gradually launched Health Records to select patients this summer, and now veterans who are iOS users and receive their care through the Veterans Health Administration can see a fuller, more comprehensive picture of their health that includes information from multiple providers.

And:

The VA is the largest medical system in the United States, providing service to more than 9 million veterans across 1,243 facilities, including hospitals and clinics. Today, the VA joins Johns Hopkins, University of California San Diego, Quest Diagnostics, Allscripts and 400 other health care provider organizations, laboratory networks and electronic health records vendors who all support Health Records on iPhone.

Fantastic accomplishment. Here’s hoping this is a step toward unifying an extremely fragmented health records system. Certainly great news for the VA.

What would you pay for an all-inclusive Apple hardware/software subscription?

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One of the things John Gruber and I discussed on my visit to The Talk Show last week was the concept of an Apple version of Amazon Prime. Pay one price, get a bunch of services in a bundle.

For Amazon, Prime includes free shipping, music, and Prime Video. What might an Apple Prime include?

This Reddit post asked if $2000 a year would be worth the price, if you got:

  • New iPhone every year
  • New Apple Watch every year
  • New iPad Pro every 18 months
  • New MacBook Pro every year
  • All Apple services (Music, 2TB iCloud, Arcade, TV+, etc.)

An interesting proposition. One tweak I’d make to that model is to allow for different hardware levels. Price it to allow for a new base model iPhone 11, MacBook Air, and Apple Watch, for example. Then, you’d pay up to move to a Pro subscription, which would allow an iPhone Pro, MacBook Pro, perhaps a ceramic Apple Watch.

Difficult to price, difficult for a consumer to value properly. At the very least, I’d price it monthly, rather than yearly as Amazon does.

And more likely a reality, how about a yearly “all the services” bundle, which would include:

  • Apple Music
  • Apple News+
  • Apple Arcade
  • Apple TV+
  • 2TB iCloud

Priced aggressively, that would bring subscriber numbers up for all Apple services, and also provide a predictable revenue stream. It also has the advantage of getting people to try out services they might not pay for otherwise.

Personally, I’d sign up for the services bundle right now.

Apple shares trailer for Apple TV+ film “Hala”

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[VIDEO] Apple:

Seventeen-year-old Pakistani American teenager Hala (Geraldine Viswanathan) struggles to balance desire with her familial, cultural and religious obligations. As she comes into her own, she grapples with a secret that threatens to unravel her family. Written and directed by Minhal Baig and executive produced by Jada Pinkett Smith, ”Hala” was an official selection of the 2019 Sundance Film Festival and 2019 Toronto International Film Festival.

The film looks beautifully shot, the trailer (embedded in main Loop post) lays out the framework of a coming of age story, cultural conflict. The key will be in the resolution. This hits Apple TV+ on December 6th. Will watch.

10 ways Tim Cook says Apple is leading the charge on sustainability

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ELLE Decor:

On a recent visit to New York City to be the keynote speaker at a gala for Ceres, a nonprofit focused on sustainability, Cook sat down with a small group of journalists, including ELLE Decor editors, to discuss his ambitious agenda for transforming Apple into a global leader in renewable energy and climate-friendly practices.

Here are our top 10 takeaways from the conversation.

Good read, combines well with Apple’s $2.5 billion commitment to combat California’s housing crisis and, ironically, arrives as the US formally exits the Paris climate agreement.

[H/T Dman]

Benjamin Mayo: The worst part of Apple TV+ is the TV app

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Long op-ed from Benjamin Mayo on 9to5Mac. Lots of solid points. One in particular that struck me:

It’s also frustrating that the “Library” is not really a library. The Library only includes iTunes content. I want to be able to build a personal library of content regardless of how I paid for it. TV+ shows should be able to be saved to the library to find later, or any Apple TV Channels content for that matter.

If Apple wants the TV app to be the universal go-to place for watching TV, they need to create a universal watch/wish list that you can edit. I’d love a master TV list that would let me add shows I want to watch, even if they are shows from Netflix, Disney+, HBO, etc.

If Apple wants the TV app to be universal, they need to support their competition. If that’s not the goal, fine, at least add all the features that Netflix offers for managing content.

Researchers hack Siri, Alexa, and Google Home by shining lasers at them

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Ars Technica:

Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant are vulnerable to attacks that use lasers to inject inaudible—and sometimes invisible—commands into the devices and surreptitiously cause them to unlock doors, visit websites, and locate, unlock, and start vehicles, researchers report in a research paper published on Monday. Dubbed Light Commands, the attack works against Facebook Portal and a variety of phones.

The article is fascinating, no doubt. But I had to laugh at the idea of shining a laser at Siri. She’s both immortal and invincible.

Kidding aside, the exploitable tech here is the MEMS mic. Interesting read, not a thing to worry about, at least for most mortals.

Adobe bringing Illustrator to iPad in 2020

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I had a truly terrible experience trying to drop Adobe Creative Cloud. I ended up paying a monthly fee all the way through my yearly anniversary, then making a phone call to cancel in a specific window to prevent my subscription from rolling over.

I love Illustrator, miss it more than all the other Adobe apps. Hoping Adobe has changed their cancellation policy, and that Illustrator for iPad ships with a full feature set, offers a standalone subscription like Photoshop’s $9.99 a month.

Apple TV+ and video bitrate/quality

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Rasmus Larsen:

Apple TV+ has the highest streaming quality we’ve seen for 4K so far. It’s higher than most iTunes movies. Over the weekend, I took the first batch of measurements.

Lots of little nuggets here. If you are digging into Apple TV+, worth your time to watch in 4K. Interesting to watch a service unfold in which every single show is at least 4K.

An audiophile’s perspective on AirPods Pro

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[VIDEO] There’s a lot of interesting detail in this video (embedded in main Loop post). For one: I always thought noise cancelation was mathematically perfect, but some sounds are harder to cancel than others.

And the point about foam being a better solution for sealing off noise than the tips Apple created. Not sure I buy that Apple over-engineered their solution when cheap foam would have been better. I’m interested in an audio engineers take on this.

Take a look, well presented.

[H/T Loek van der Helm]

Apple TV+ and picture-in-picture

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One of the more puzzling aspects of Apple TV+ is the occasional, fleeting appearance of the picture-in-picture icon, whenever you touch (but not press) the Apple TV remote.

To see this yourself, fire up your Apple TV, then switch over to the TV app and launch one of the Apple TV+ shows (the first few episodes are free, require no signup). As a show is playing, touch the touchpad on the Apple TV remote. A PiP icon will appear. See if you can figure out how to turn on picture-in-picture mode.

Turns out, this is a tvOS 13 feature, specific to the TV app, and not specific to Apple TV+. If you tend to use individual apps like Netflix or Hulu, rather than the TV app, you might never have encountered the PiP icon. But since Apple TV+ lives in the TV app, you’ll definitely encounter the PiP icon once you move to Apple TV+.

As to the specifics of using PiP in tvOS 13, TidBITS posted an article when tvOS 13 dropped last month that lays it all out.

The key is to swipe up when you see the icon, then click the touchpad to bring PiP to life. Read the article for all the mechanics of swapping PiP window positions, swapping video between full screen and PiP, all worth knowing.

Adobe releases Photoshop for iPad

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Here’s a link to Adobe Photoshop on the iOS App Store.

And here’s a link to a MacStories writeup by John Voorhees, with a bit of background and hands on.

Seems clear to me that the public expects a full version of Photoshop, and will be disappointed by the limited functionality here, no matter how terrific a job Adobe’s developers did. Adobe lost control of the message early on. The MacStories piece does a great job laying all this out.

Jason Snell on Apple TV+, gifts for users, and the soul-sucking term ARPU

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Jason Snell:

In the regular phone call with Wall Street analysts, Apple CEO Tim Cook tried very hard to get investors excited about Apple’s opportunities to make lots of money while not making it seem like Apple’s lost its soul in the process.

And:

Consider the soul-sucking term ARPU. It stands for Average Revenue Per User (or, alternately, Unit), and it’s a useful-yet-noxious lens through which businesses can view their customers. Of course, businesses should be aware about how much revenue their customers are generating—the issue is more that focusing on ARPU is often a sign that a business is on a path that will attempt to wring every last penny out of its customers.

Jason does a nice job explaining the balance Apple finds between being purely focused on ARPU, and prioritizing a positive customer experience. Part of that balance is the. “gift” of Apple TV+:

The analysts wanted to understand why Apple, after spending billions of dollars on developing a bunch of new premium television content, was going to give it away to purchasers of Apple hardware for a year.

And Tim’s reply:

Yeah, it’s it’s a gift to our users, and from a business point of view, we’re really proud of the content, we’d like as many people as possible to to view it. And so this allows us to focus on maximizing subscribers, particularly in the early going.

Read the whole article. It’s interesting, and really frames the competing pressures of maximizing revenue, quickly building up a subscriber base from nothing, and finding a way to keep customers happy, all at the same time.

Apple commits $2.5 billion to combat housing crisis in California

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Apple:

Apple today announced a comprehensive $2.5 billion plan to help address the housing availability and affordability crisis in California. As costs skyrocket for renters and potential homebuyers — and as the availability of affordable housing fails to keep pace with the region’s growth — community members like teachers, firefighters, first responders and service workers are increasingly having to make the difficult choice to leave behind the community they have long called home. Nearly 30,000 people left San Francisco between April and June of this year and homeownership in the Bay Area is at a seven-year low.

First things first: Bravo. I’m guessing we’re going to see a wave of responses to this announcement, some of it snarky, some calling for the money to be spent in different ways. But no matter the takes, Apple didn’t have to do this. That’s a big chunk of change for anyone to spend for the public good.

The breakdown:

  • $1B, affordable housing investment fund
  • $1B, first-time homebuyer mortgage assistance fund
  • $300M, Apple-owned and available land for affordable housing
  • $150M, Bay Area housing fund
  • $50M, to support vulnerable populations

Well done, Apple.

Apple’s Halloween Messages support message

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[VIDEO] The content is useful, if not already well known. But the tone of this video (embedded in main Loop post) is just spot on and, in my opinion, worth watching all the way to the end. Great music, great voiceover.

Get an Apple TV 4K for $90, while supplies last

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That seems an impossibly good deal, 50% off from AT&T.

Is there a catch? Not seeing it. But it does make me think this is cheaper than a year of Apple TV+, assuming this qualifies for the free year. And it also makes me wonder if this is an indicator of new hardware coming.

How to watch Apple TV+, a growing reviews thread, and other useful links

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Apple TV+ is out, at least in the US. Here are a few links you might find useful:

  • Start off by launching the TV app on your Apple TV or iOS device. Or, in Mac Safari, jump to the main Apple TV+ page.

  • Follow the headline link to Apple’s main Apple TV+ support page. Lots of detail there, answers to most common questions.

  • This Reddit page is dedicated to reviews, broken down by Apple TV+ show. The goal is to keep it spoiler free, but caveat emptor.

  • This review from the New York Times appreciates The Morning Show, and just glows about For All Mankind. As to See, they couldn’t suspend their disbelief. I say, watch for yourself, and give these shows time.

  • Here’s Apple’s official Apple TV+ press release. They seem quite fond of it. 😊

A reminder: Buying a new Apple TV, Mac, or iOS device gives you a free year of Apple TV+.

Google acquires FitBit

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Google Blog:

Fitbit has been a true pioneer in the industry and has created engaging products, experiences and a vibrant community of users. By working closely with Fitbit’s team of experts, and bringing together the best AI, software and hardware, we can help spur innovation in wearables and build products to benefit even more people around the world.

And:

Similar to our other products, with wearables, we will be transparent about the data we collect and why. We will never sell personal information to anyone. Fitbit health and wellness data will not be used for Google ads.

FitBit occupies a niche outside the traditional ecosystems, a space between Apple Watch and Google’s Wear OS. FitBit runs its own operating system, FitBit OS. My guess is, FitBit will migrate that OS to Wear OS over time, but as is, the Google wearables universe is now slightly more fragmented.

Bottom line, FitBit has chosen sides. Resistance is futile.

AirPods Pro impressions from NYC

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This is a nice little writeup from a Redditor who picked up AirPods Pro from a New York City Apple Store.

Read the whole thing, but two snippets I had to post:

If you buy them in-store, set them up next to the line of display iPhones. Absolutely hilarious to watch a full line of iPhones pop up the setup box in sync. When you press connect on yours, all the other ones will switch to “Not your AirPods Pro.” If that’s not a “pro” experience, I don’t know what is lol.

I definitely want to see a video of this. If you are at an Apple Store and have a way to capture this, please do send it my way.

And this on sound quality, vs AirPods:

It’s actually a bigger step up than I thought previously (I was mostly paying attention to ANC quality). The seal makes a big difference but honestly the drivers are just better.

Was wondering if the drivers are new, and if they made a difference. If you care about the subtlety of the AirPods sound, here’s another, more detailed take on the difference.