Blame the Pandemic,
or the Ever Given?
Below, some LONG-expected recent announcements worth sharing.
If you’re not an Apple person
Microsoft just announced the very thin and light Surface Laptop 4 with a 15” screen, improved performance and excellent battery life. Looks to be a worthy competitor to our favorite Windows laptop, the Dell XPS line, but it’s always a good idea to try the keyboard for yourself. (From $999, review here).
The fun part of the job
Watching Apple’s events has been a pandemic highlight because the usual series of nerds talking on a stage is replaced by gorgeous, charming fantasy/action sequences interspersed with . . . nerds talking on various parts of the Apple campus.
You can watch the latest one yourself here, but if you have better things to do, here’s a rundown of the essentials.
Tim Cook opened with Apple’s carbon goals and environmental considerations were front and center throughout. That soda can may be part of your next computer!
Note: most items will be orderable April 30th, but available as noted below.
Major stuff:
Airtags: Tiny personalizable disks that attach to your keys, luggage, dog, husband?,to make them locatable with the Find Myapp. Not a new concept (remember Tiles?), but leverages the network of >1 billion Apple devices worldwide to help, while protecting your privacy. ($29 ea or $99 for a 4-pack, plus the various holders–including an Hermes option)
New Apple TV 4K has fancy new specs and a new remote. Two favorite features: Color Balance will ensure that Mr. Spock is the correct shade of green, and the new remote control can (finally!) turn off your TV. ($179/199, available late May)
The VERY-long-awaited new iMac now comes in 7 “joyful” colors but only one size: 24” (diagonal) screen in a body only slightly larger than the old 21” version. It’s slimmer, quieter and a lot more powerful than the old iMac, and has a better camera and mic for video calls, BUT none of the old rectangular USB-A ports at all–only USB-C and Thunderbolt–so legacy devices will need adapters.
One clever innovation: The network port has been moved off the computer completely to the power adapter, so wired network users can have fewer cables draped across their desks. They’ve also added TouchID to the wireless keyboard, although we suspect you won’t be able to use the new keyboard with an older Mac–to be confirmed. (from $1299, available late May)
And finally, a new iPad Pro with a bunch of fancy features (11” from $799 or 12.9” from $1099, also available late May)
Minor stuff:
The (free) Apple credit card from Goldman Sachs can now be shared with your spouse/partner/family, including kids over 13 (with optional spending limits), and you can even share the credit score–an industry first, apparently.
The Podcasts app has been redesigned and will support paid subscriptions.
iPhone 12 and 12 mini now come in purple.
Happy Spring! Hoping you are fully vaccinated, and warm thanks to our reader PB in London for this interesting bit of non-tech news about how vitamins may help protect women from COVID.
