Monthly Mini-Bytes - December 2020

 

The AirPods Max Drain Your Wallet If you can't wait for the AirPods Max Pro (it's just an egg chair, really) or you have $549 burning a hole in your pocket and don't mind spending $100 more than comparable (and better) units, then boy does Apple have a deal for you! For the ridiculous previously mentioned price of $549, Apple has the AirPods Max -- an over-the-ear headphone set that boasts a lot of the tech from the smaller AirPods. But that price... WOW! There is not a blogger, vlogger, or pundit that hasn't balked at the price of the AirPods Max. There are better options that are far less expensive. The insult continues when you consider the $549 AirPods Max don't come with a charger, headphone adapter, or practical case. I don't know what Apple was thinking, but if the Corvette C8 can sell for 40% over the sticker price, maybe Apple knows something that we don't. Hmmm.... The Pet Rock is back!!! In all seriousness, the AirPods Max are very good. They have a sumptuous design that more than communicates their premium price. They are super easy to set up and work seamlessly with your Apple products. The question is if they demand the high price. I guess at the end of the day it's up to the buyer. All I know is that it's time for me to walk my Pet Rock. To ogle at the AirPods Max, visit: https://www.apple.com/airpods-max/

The End is Nigh for Adobe Flash Player Finally! It's been years since "Flash was on it's way out." Steve Jobs railed against it way back in 2007. But it just would not go away. HTML5 has for years been better, faster, and all that, but for some reason web animations have continued to be developed with Flash. Well it's done and Adobe is ending Flash support at the end of 2020. This means if you have it on your Mac, you need to uninstall it. Here is a link to where you can download the uninstaller for 10.4 and later: https://fpdownload.macromedia.com/get/flashplayer/current/support/uninstall_flash_player_osx.dmg When complete, your browser will launch and Adobe will try to sell you something, but just ignore it. You will need the money for the AirPods Max.

Where are the Printers?

Ah! Yes... printing. The enablement of deforestation that can be done from the humble abode. They run on ink cartridges that cost as much as a trip to the grocery store. They fall off the wi-fi network. They jam with paper; their jets clog if neglected; and they are guaranteed to break the minute you need to print out a boarding pass. And now! Yes, now during a global pandemic printer prices have gone through the roof, but not really. In reality they are just being sold for full price. Printer prices are usually inflated so the office supply stores can give you 50% off so it looks like a good deal. And usually it is, but the $200 printer that normally sells for $125 is $200... if you can find one. With many students and adults operating from home, the personal deforestation device can be an elusive creature. How can you get your hands on one? If you need a printer check Staples and CostCo. Staples always seems to have the best prices, and these days if you are going to find a deal, Staples will be the place. Unless you go to CostCo, which is of course, the deal capital of the world (#factchecked). CostCo usually has a limited selection, but what they do have is very good.

Monthly Mini-Bytes - November 2020

 

The Apple M1 Chip is the Real Deal We have been waiting for Apple to be Apple and come out with a game changing new thing. Well they have, and it's the all new M1 chip. Apple is switching their processors from Intel to their own chips, the first of which is the M1. What's so exciting about it? Well, a base $1299 13-Inch MacBook Pro outperforms a $4500 loaded 16-Inch MacBook Pro with the Intel i9 processor. And that's a machine with only 8 GB of RAM up against one with 64 GB. It's just crazy! The only three Macs that currently have the new chip are the MacBook Air, 13-Inch MacBook Pro, and the Mac Mini. The chip that will be placed in the refreshed iMacs and 16-Inch MacBook Pro promises to be even more powerful. Our advice: If you are in the market for a new Mac, only get one with one of Apple's new chips. Do not buy an Intel Mac at this point. The last time Apple made a switch like this, the old Macs were sunsetted rather quickly. To learn more about the M1 Chip visit: https://www.apple.com/mac/m1/ To see a full review and speed test, watch Brian Tong at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJqk2SMJmXc

macOS Big Sur is Out! Don't Upgrade Just Yet Apple launched it's newest version of macOS this month -- Big Sur. It is much better than the last two releases for initial stability, but we would recommend upgrading until at least January so that software developers can do what they do and work out the bugs. The biggest annoyance with Big Sur is the gray on gray theme that will have you running to the Accessibility preference pane in System Preferences to darken the contrast. Also, familiar menu items have been moved around and tweaked. It will take some time to learn how to re-navigate. To learn more about macOS Big Sur visit: https://www.apple.com/macos/big-sur/

Optimize Battery: The Latest iOS Annoyance

iOS 14, along with its equivalent on the Apple Watch, has been out for a while now. When we first installed it both Wendy and I noticed that our battery was draining quickly. Our phones and watches did not make it through the day. Then we found it! Apple added something back in iOS 13 called "Optimized Battery Charging." Basically it only charges the battery to 80% to reduce battery aging. What!?!?!? Sorry Apple... I want my whole battery charged. Even though this "feature" was introduced in iOS 13, it seems impossible to turn off in iOS 14. You can attempt to turn it off on the iPhone and Watch under Settings->Battery->Battery Health. You will see an option to shut it down for 24 hours or permanently, although whatever you choose it will turn itself back on. Very annyoying! Hopefully this will get fixed in an upcoming release. I hate that Apple won't let us turn it off. I guess they know what's best for us.... Nutz! To find out more this, visit: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210512

Monthly Mini-Bytes - October 2020

 

The iPhone 4 is Back! ...or 4s, 5, or 5s. Your pick! Who said everything old is new again? Chaucer? Socrates? Kane? Doesn't matter, because rehashing a successful old design language ain't a bad thing. The iPhone 4 when it debuted way back in June of 2011 (yes, we used to get iPhones just in time to enjoy some summer wine) was an elegant and remarkably space-efficient design. I loved those phones, and held onto my 5s for over three years. When Apple updated the iPad Pros in 2017 mimicking those classics, it was a big hit. Now they have applied it to the new iPhone 12 family. And yes, the iPhone 12 is a family. From the Mini to the Pros there is a phone to fit everyone. They all benefit from the same powerful internals from the processors to 5G compatibility. If you choose any of the 12s, you will not be making a bad decision. That being said, we recommend a 12 variant over any other iPhone being sold right now. They are that good. The iPhone Mini is smaller than an iPhone 8 or SE, but with a larger edge-to-edge screen. The regular 12 is the best all rounder. Go for the Pros if you are heavy into photography, with the iPhone 12 Pro Max boasting camera advancements that will really impress. To learn more about the iPhone 12 family visit: https://www.apple.com/iphone/

Smart Speakers and Privacy Apple just launched a new HomePod mini and it is excellent. The sound of the original HomePod was fantastic, but we don't own one and we won't. It's too bad. The rich sound that seems to emanate from every part of the room is just fantastically rich, but it's the "smart" part that scares us. Apple beyond all the other smart speaker makers does the best job in regard to privacy. The HomePod listens actively for the "Hey Siri" command and only then sends your conversations to Apple's secure server for analysis. That means it's listening all the time, and whether it's an Alexa or Cortana, smart speakers eavesdrop on every single word spoken. Amazon even lets you look up conversations that Alexa has recorded. Scary? You bet. With a smart speaker you have willingly given large corporations 24x7 access to every conversation in your home. This is something the Soviets or East Germans would have employed if the tech was available, but now we plunk down several hundred dollars to give access to... who knows! Even if Apple or Amazon or Microsoft calm us with their promises of security, we know that systems get compromised all the time. And if you really want to get scared out of your mind, check out the Fox TV show Next, which chronicles a rogue artificial intelligence that uses a smart speaker to manipulate a youngster into almost doing the unthinkable. Okay, this is a bit alarmist, maybe... but is it? I think it's important to understand technology and weigh the benefits over the shortcomings. Sure, a smart speaker can pull up your playlists on demand, but I remember a time not that long ago when I walked up to a CD player, put in a disc, and listened away. And it sounded really good, too. The final thought here is to always cautiously embrace technology. The benefits to you have to outweigh the risks, and if your privacy and security is important, take a second look at that smart speaker.

iPhone 12 Family MagSafe Secret

Okay, well it's not a secret, but it's definitely a new feature. All iPhone 12 variants now have MagSafe charging along with a whole host of nifty accessories. Think of this like the evolution of the charger for the Apple Watch. It gives the iPhone 12 phones the ability to lock onto wireless charging pads to keep them from shifting about. It will be interesting to see how folks end up using this feature. To learn about the new MagSafe feature for the iPhone 12 check out this article from CNET: https://www.cnet.com/how-to/iphone-12-magsafe-accessories-how-apples-snappy-new-magnet-feature-works/

Monthly Mini-Bytes - September 2020

 

The Case Against Innovation Let's just face facts: Apple is no longer innovating. It has been almost nine years since Steve Jobs passed and the face of Apple has changed much since he was at the helm. Updates to products are evolutionary rather than revolutionary. The iMac hasn't been redesigned in eight long years. The iPhone still sports the dreaded "notch" even though competitors like Samsung have found a solution for their products. In fact the new Apple Watch Series 6 boasts tech that was present in other watches years ago. For me -- for someone who wonders why the heck we walked on the moon in 1969 and just recently put American astronauts back into space, shouldn't we be on Mars by now, or mining the asteroid belt? I digress, but my point is I love technology and the ability for humanity to advance forward through it. Apple drew us toward it with its constant innovation, change, and ability to surprise with its "one more thing." Those days are gone, and that's a sad thing for me. But it's not the end of Apple, for in 2020 technology is so intertwined into our daily lives much more than it ever was when Steve Jobs was around. Our dependency on it, for good or for bad, is a fact that we cannot deny. That being said, the most important traits for a technology company have evolved away from springing forth that new shiny object to security and reliability -- two things that Apple has always had at the core of their business. Apple products work without the hassle, complexity, and gaping security holes of their competitors. They have based their operating systems on a proven, reliable, and secure base. Their App Store follows a rigid approval process, and their mobile devices (iPhone and iPads) are the go-to for large companies, because of their ability to be secured in an enterprise. So, let Samsung and LG be the tip of the spear for foldable screens and optical blood pressure monitoring. Let them spend their capital on $2,000 phones that may only last a year. Let other companies take the risk, and let all of us understand what Apple offers today -- something it always had in the past, but has become much more important. Their stuff just works securely and reliably. And at the end of the day, that's the most important thing.

iOS 14, iPadOS 14, and WatchOS 7 are Good Apple recently released updates for all its mobile devices. We have been on them for a while. There have been a few hiccups, but overall they seem stable. I did have a problem with watchOS 7 where my Series 3 would shut down unexpectedly. The recent patch seems to have remedied that oddity. Overall the updates are mild. Your current workflow won't really change other than little things like scrolling up-and-down versus side-to-side on the Apple Watch in Apple Pay, or the Request Desktop Site being moved in Safari. There are a ton of new features, but you don't have to use them necessarily. Wendy and I have found our workflow to be about the same. To learn more about each, visit: iOS 14: https://www.apple.com/ios/ios-14/ iPadOS 14: https://www.apple.com/ipados/ipados-14/ WatchOS 7: https://www.apple.com/watchos/watchos-7/

Search Engine Letting You Down?

There is no doubt that Google is the gold-standard for search engines. They do a very good job of cleaning their search results, but over the past few years it seems as their algorithm evolves, I think it's changing into a Border Collie and herding me to certain results. You can't blame them. If you play in their sandbox, buy their ads, or maybe even have other presence in their ecosystem, I can see how that would make a site more trusted in a search result. Still, if you are having problems finding information, it may be time to diversify your search engine portfolio. Duck Duck Go has been around for many years and touts itself as super strong on privacy, and that's great. But what's even better is you seem to get slightly different results for the same search from Google. This is not unusual as you would see the same things with Yahoo and Bing, but Duck Duck Go really sells the privacy angle, so that's one other piece to the puzzle that makes it an attractive alternative to Google. Now, you will still stumble across bogus sites, so be careful. It is the internet after all. To learn more about Duck Duck Go, visit: https://duckduckgo.com

Monthly Mini-Bytes - August 2020

New iMacs Finally Come Standard with Solid State Drives No longer do you have to necessarily custom configure your iMac! For years Apple has been resistant to put modern solid state drives as standard in their iMacs. They had the Fusion drives, but with the demands of modern 64-bit operating systems and the software that runs within, solid state drives are a must. Well, now iMacs come with SSDs standard. This means you can go down to the Apple Store (when it reopens) and pick up an iMac and not be saddled with an ancient SATA or Fusion drive. They do offer the Fusion as an upgrade option, but it hardly is, so don't choose it. It's SSD all the way! To learn more about the new iMacs visit: https://www.apple.com/imac/

Managing Screen Time With work-at-home and learn-at-home there are now more faces buried in screens than ever before. Add the non-work/school technological distractions and you can see how the vast majority of the waking day can be spent in front of a screen. This is not good, which is why Apple came up with a way to track your screen time with... Screen Time. To learn how to use Screen Time on a Mac visit: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210387 For an iPad or iPhone click here: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208982

What Mac to Buy for Learn-at-Home?

With some school districts delaying the return to the classroom, you may be wondering what the best choice is for a young student to use for their very own Mac for remote learning. The base $999 MacBook Air is an excellent option. It is affordable (for a Mac), easy to carry around, and has just enough performance to do the job. College students would need more power, but for younger kids through high school the base MacBook Air is an excellent choice. To learn more about the $999 MacBook Air visit: https://www.apple.com/macbook-air/

Monthly Mini-Bytes - July 2020

What Does the Twitter Hack Tell Us About Online Security? There isn't any. That's all folks! Roll credits... Seriously, the Twitter Hack or breach or whatever is incredibly unsettling. Major accounts from the blue checkmark glitterati were used in a Bitcoin scam that unfortunately many people got swept up in. How did it happen? The FBI is investigating, but initially it seems that the bad guys gained access to an administrative tool to take over the accounts. Yes, scary. So what can be done to protect yourself and your online accounts? The Twitter Hack shows that two-factor authentication and passwords can be circumvented. Does that mean all hope is lost? No. You still have an incredible amount of control, but that control takes time and effort. There is no magic blue pill that can protect your accounts. No password manager can secure you 100%, but there are best practices that you can put into effect now. 1.) Good, Strong, and Varied Passwords - I know I sound like a broken record on this and you are probably sick of me writing about it. You must, must, must have strong passwords of at least 10 characters, and they need to be unique for each and every account. Yes, as I mentioned above, passwords can be circumvented, but just like locking the doors to your house, the more roadblocks that you put in place, the less likely it would be for you to become a victim. 2.) Use Two-Factor or Other Types of Secondary Authentication - Just like #1, the more barriers the better. Having a secondary option for authenticating your accounts in addition to a password is a must (if available). 3.) Enable All the Account Alerts - Where available, enable all the alerts that you can for login, activity, and for any transactions in your financial accounts. That way you should know immediately if your account has been breached. 4.) Close Unused Accounts - If you have any old accounts, no matter how minor, close them if they are not being used. Some sites don't let you delete accounts, but if you have old Facebook or Twitter profiles that you are no longer using, get rid of them. If the account doesn't exist it can't be breached. 5.) Clean Up Your Logins - Audit your logins to make sure that you are using your current primary email address. Overtime, many of us have used different email addresses as usernames. If you no longer use a particular email, update the username to reflect your current address.

Are You Cooking Your Mac? With many working from home coupled with the blazing summer heat, it's incredibly easy to put your Mac notebook into a situation where it can overheat. We've known of MacBook Pros sitting for hours on a bedspread streaming videos that have overheated and gone kaput. It happens, so be mindful. The good news is Apple has some tips on notebook safety: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201640

How to Run Two Versions of macOS

With macOS Catalina 64-Bit has become mainstream on the Mac, so older applications no longer run. This puts many business users into a pickle. You may have older accounting software that will not run in Catalina, or maybe even an ancient contact manager that you use everyday, but it is not compatible either. There is a solution, but it is not easy nor cheap. Parallels is a software program that will allow you to run other operating systems including Windows and older versions of macOS in a separate window. Setting Parallels up to run macOS is not easy, but it can be done. We would not recommend this solution for power-hungry design software, but for bookkeeping and contact management, it could be something to consider. This is not a permanent solution, but it would help you buy time to figure out next steps, especially if you are forced into purchasing a new Mac that, of course, would come with macOS Catalina. In order to do this you would need both the Parallels Software and an installer for the version of macOS that you require. Again, this is not simple, but can be a solution if you need to run both new and old software on your Mac. For more information on Parallels, visit: https://www.parallels.com

June 2020 - Monthly Mini-Bytes

Online Fraud is Up! Time To Protect Yourself With the lockdowns and trend to working at home over the past few months, online scams have soared. It's time to take security seriously. Protecting yourself and your data takes work and involvement. It's not really that hard, but it's a chore that you need to do. The good news is that we have three tips that will help you lock down your stuff during lockdown, even though lockdown is over... and it wasn't a lockdown anyway, but where did all the toilet paper go? "Limit two almond milks," says the mean Whole Foods lady. Who's hoarding almond milk? [Sorry... rant detected.] Okay, on to the tips. Put a Passcode on Your iPhone Your iPhone is one of the linchpins in your security arsenal. If it is not secured, it's like handing the keys to your life over to someone. Having a passcode encrypts the phone. With a passcode it would take something like two million dollars and a super computer to break it... unless they guess the password. Maybe I'm exaggerating, but a phone with a good passcode makes for good security. If you enable enhanced login features like two-factor, your phone is the way you prove that you are you. Having it unprotected is like leaving your front door open during a riot. If you have an iPad, have a passcode. It's the same rationale there, too. Tighten Up Your Email Security Your email is the gateway to your online accounts. You must have a good and strong password of at least ten characters or more with a mix of numbers and letters. Don't make it easy to guess. You don't need to remember it if you have a system to document your passwords. An email password where your name, kid's names, or birthdays are contained within can be easily cracked. Also, enable two-factor authentication or any type of advanced security. When a new login is detected, you will get a text to your phone (that's why it needs a passcode) to identify you. Some email programs offer authenticator apps that you can install. And if you haven't changed your email password in ten years, do it now. Setup Banking Account Alerts Set up alerts with your bank and credit cards for when even a penny moves in and out of your account. You will get an alert and can take action. When my credit card was compromised, I got an alert to a transaction that I did not recognize. I was able to act immediately. You will, too. Each bank is different, but you should see a "Setup Alerts" option somewhere on their site.

Apple Switching to It's Own Chips

The big news of Monday's WWDC Keynote was the fact that Apple will be moving to its own microprocessors. This is a really big deal. Apple has done a tremendous job in developing the chips for the iPhones and iPads. These chips are now rivaling the best from Intel and others. Computers will start shipping with the new chips later this year. This is much like the move from PowerPC to Intel in 2005. Intel computers will still be supported during the transition, but if you have a computer from 2012 or before, it would be a good idea to think about upgrading. For more details, see this press release here: https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2020/06/apple-announces-mac-transition-to-apple-silicon/

Which Streaming Service is Best? With many of us keeping entertainment in house, the big question is which streaming service is best? Well, that depends on what you and your family like to watch. Whether it be Netflix, AppleTV+, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max, AcornTV, Starz, or Hallmark Movies Now, content is key. Each service has their own offerings and exclusives. A movie may release on HBO Max, but not be available on other platforms -- the same for Netflix and others. The key is to determine your viewing patterns and subscribe to the services that meet those requirements. The good news is that they all offer a free trial period, and month-to-month payment options. You can subscribe/unsubscribe after you binge on the movies and shows that you choose.

May 2020 - Monthly Mini-Bytes

The New(ish) 13-Inch MacBook Pro is Here Apple announced a refresh of the 13-inch MacBook Pro. Many of us expected them to stretch the screen to 14-inches as they did with the awesome 16-inch model, but they didn't. They did put in the much better Magic Keyboard and in doing so tossed aside the widely disliked Butterfly Keyboard. It is a mild refresh and not the aggressive re-imaging that we had hoped, but it's good enough with the new keyboard, an actual Escape key, and the introduction of the 10th generation iSeries processors. Of the three models. the one that starts at $1799 is the best value in our opinion. For a $500 premium over the base 13-inch unit you get a faster processor that's two generations newer, 16 GB of faster RAM, and 512 GB of Flash Storage. For more info on the new MacBook Pro visit Apple: https://www.apple.com/macbook-pro-13/

Which Mac Laptop Should You Buy?

With the refresh of the 13-inch MacBook Pro, Apple is back to having solid offerings for all three levels of laptops. Which one to get is the big question. Here are our tips: MacBook Air - Portability The MacBook Air is built for portability and that costs money. As a result, even though it appears to be the least expensive MacBook, it isn't necessarily the best value. By the time you beef up the innards it can quickly climb in price to MacBook Pro levels, and even then it can't match the power of the Pros. Don't get me wrong here: the MacBook Air is a great computer for the right person and the right use. If portability is your main goal and you are only doing basic computing (email, web, some photos, etc.) then the MacBook Air can be a terrific option. 13-Inch MacBook Pro - General Use The new 13-Inch MacBook Pro comes in several flavors. The one that we recommend is the model with the 10th generation processors. It starts at $1799. This is a good, solid machine for general use: Microsoft Powerpoint, photo editing, and light video editing. It only has quad-core processors, and in the age of gluttonous 64-bit operating systems like macOS Catalina, six-core options like in the 16-inch MacBook Pro, the iMacs, and Mac Minis have more power to deal with year-to-year advances in software. That is not saying the 13-inch MacBook Pro can't go the distance -- it can, but it's important to decide how you are planning on using your laptop and how long you intend to keep it. 16-Inch MacBook Pro - Best Value, Great Power Even though they are pricey, the power they bring to the table is excellent. This is the computer to choose if you plan on holding onto it for years, do a lot of photo editing with Adobe Photoshop or Lightroom, edit videos with Final Cut, or just want a computer that will go the distance and handle whatever Apple throws at it with system upgrades. AppleCare+ - Yes, You Need It Once you purchase a MacBook there is no upgrading. It is all one piece, meaning if something breaks the entire machine needs to be replaced. It's just like the iPhones these days. AppleCare+ is a must, as bad RAM is no longer a $100 inconvenience, but a $700+ system board swap.

Apple Stores Are Closed: What About Hardware Issues? Apple sent out a vague email about reopening their retail shops, but there is no word about the Apple Stores here in Arizona. So what do you do if you need a hardware repair? Visiting the Support Page at Apple.com (https://getsupport.apple.com/) or calling 1-800-MY-APPLE are the ways to get in touch with them in order to get a hardware repair started. Depending if it is a device or a computer, they will mail a box to you for you to ship the item back to them for repair. No, this is not ideal, but what is right now? We've shepherded several machines and devices through this process and it's not all that bad, and in some cases was much better than slogging a machine into the Apple Store. It seems like there may be an announcement soon about when they are set to reopen, but the phone number or website options will continue to be available. It will be your choice.