Upgrade

As the year comes to an end, it's time for the Ninth Annual Upgradies! Myke and Jason discuss their favorites of 2022, take the input of many Upgradians, and hand out awards in numerous categories! Only the finest will walk away with the most coveted of titles: Upgradies Winner.

It's the most wonderful time of the year, but the news doesn't stop! We discuss next year's Mac lineup, the end of Apple's NFL Sunday Ticket negotiations, and reports that Apple is planning to open up the iOS app ecosystem in response to new rules from the European Union. But before we're done, we also take a little time out to re-tell our Apple origin stories. Happy holidays to all Upgradians!

Myke has returned, and so have the Apple Car rumors. But before we try to figure those out, we've got to consider Apple's encryption announcements, Tim Cook's appearance at a chip factory in Arizona, and John Siracusa's appearance in our shared show document.

John Siracusa returns to the show to chat about Jason's recent visit to his house, Mac app development, Apple's brain drain, TSMC breaking ground in Arizona, the problems with AI training models, the current state of macOS, and what makes a Good Product.

John Gruber joins Jason on Upgrade for the first time. Topics include eWorld, Apple's iPhone production problems in China, FIFA and Qatar and the World Cup, the reasons behind Apple's sports ambitions, BBEdit, regular expressions, Perl and Python, MarsEdit, nanotexture displays, webcams, and the state of the art in ADB-to-USB adapters. Happy Cyber Monday to all those who celebrate!

There's some huge news from the world of streaming, as Disney switches bosses and Apple plans its next wave of sports-streaming products. Meanwhile, Myke's busy building out his smart home while Jason has been reminded of the fragility of smart-home networking.

Let's get real about the Apple VR headset. Is it really coming next year? What's it going to look like? What features should it have? What lessons can Apple learn from Meta's foray into VR products? We break it all down. Also, we've got home automation on our minds in various ways, as a smart switch fails Jason, Myke seeks advice, and it's beginning to look a lot like expensive fairy-light season.

The strong dollar is helping to drive up Apple's prices around the world, but is it teaching the company that high prices don't matter? Also, Apple downgrades our favorite tvOS feature, Apple gets into the TV ad game, and iPhone production grinds to a halt.

Apple and the Mac had another record quarter, but there are some serious questions about slowing growth in services and what it means for Apple's future strategies. This leads naturally into a discussion of Apple sticking ads all over the App Store and changing its App Store guidelines again. And Myke has taken Stage Manager for a spin on macOS Ventura.

Jason's got new reviews of macOS Ventura, the tenth-generation iPad, and the M2 iPad Pro. We discuss Stage Manager, System Settings, the Magic Keyboard Folio, and the curious pace and nature of iPad innovations.

This week we praise trackpad gestures, condemn Google's Matter strategy, ponder whether looks matter when it comes to VR headsets, and think big thoughts about the AirPods Pro 2. Then it's time for some final prognosticating about what products Apple might be introducing in the next few weeks.

What's in a name? Myke and Jason wrestle with what to call a rumored new Apple display and whether "laptop" is better than "notebook." Also, Matter is almost here to save us from our smart homes, the USB-C iPhone approaches, and Jason tries to keep mini magic alive.

It's pretty late in the game, but Stage Manager on iPadOS keeps changing--most lately adding support for older iPad Pros while temporarily dropping support for external displays. What's going on, and where does it go from here? Meanwhile, Apple execs take a European tour, allowing us to marvel at Eddy Cue's energy and wonder at the surprising company Tim keeps.

Jason reviews the iPhone 14, we speculate about how Apple could make an October Mac event worth having, Myke solves his iPhone migration problems, and we answer your Dynamic Island questions!

After reviewing the iPhone 14 Pro and discussing the pros and cons of the Dynamic Island and the new 48MP camera, Jason and Myke discuss the current pace of upgrades and innovation across all of Apple's product lines.

Five days later, we take stock of last week's Apple announcements, disclose our pre-orders, ponder future changes to the iPhone product line, and discuss our favorite features of iOS 16.

Apple has unveiled four new iPhones, new Apple Watches (including the new Apple Watch Ultra), and a new generation of AirPods Pro. Jason reports straight from the event--and still on the Apple Park campus!--as we break down all the details.

Jason and Myke predict what will happen at next week's Apple media event. What new features will the new iPhones have--and will they be more expensive? Will the Apple Watch expand? And what other surprises might propel one of us to a decisive draft victory?

Before the sun sets on the Summer of Fun, Jason has rounded up three Apple automation experts--Federico Viticci, Rosemary Orchard, and Matthew Cassinelli--to discuss the present and future of user automation on Apple's platforms. Also, Myke and Jason debate the iOS 16 music scrubber.

What bothers Jason more, bad candy or App Store ads? Tough call. We also discuss some possible iPhone price hikes, Jason's HomeKit (sort of) cameras, a return to macOS Ventura, and the pronunciation of Apple silicon.

Thanks to the M2 MacBook Air, Myke has decided to live a two-laptop lifestyle. We ponder the rumored delay of iPadOS 16, whether it's a good or bad thing, and what form a new iPad Pro might take.

This week Jason and Myke take a closer look at Apple's weird quarterly results, which reassured Wall Street while not being altogether reassuring. Then automotive expert Sam Abuelsamid joins Jason to talk about what Apple's WWDC 2022 announcement of a new integrated CarPlay might actually mean if and when it arrives late next year.

In this special Summer of Fun episode, Jason and Myke welcome three special guests to discuss how development, accessibility, and widgets have been affected by Apple's latest operating-system cycle.

Myke and Jason both have new M2 MacBook Airs, so it's time for our full review. Jason opens the Stocks app for the first time in ages. Jony Ive's long fade-out from Apple is completed. And in honor of World Emoji Day, we select our favorite emojis in seven categories.

Apple's iOS, macOS, and iPadOS betas have gone public and we have our first impressions! Also, the M2 MacBook Air has gone on sale, the new "extreme sports" Apple Watch is coming into focus, and for the Summer of Fun we're drafting favorite app icons.

This July 4 Jason spends some time away from the grill to discuss charity shops, stroopwafels, and the differences between the U.S. and the UK. Meanwhile, Myke has been inspired to build his own iPad-based status board. Vive la différence, as they say in yet another country.

For the Summer of Fun, Jason and Myke compare their iPhones--one's Max, one's Mini, but which one has the most apps and which one has the most photos? Also, Mark Gurman's got our next 75 episodes plotted out thanks to his detailed dump of future Apple product announcements, Jason is unenthusiastic about the M2 MacBook Pro, and Justin did it.

This week we consider Stage Manager and how it works, as well as how Apple has chosen to communicate its decision-making. Also, Apple makes a surprising deal with Major League Soccer, Myke decides that an iPad Studio and MacBook Studio sound like great new products, and we dare to ask the question: what if they made a laptop entirely out of legacy nodes?

It's the aftermath of a WWDC like no other, so in this very special episode Myke and Jason kick off the Summer of Fun with an episode recorded live in the California sun. The breeze is blowing, the questions about the M2 processor and Stage Manager are flowing, and we're trying to get our heads around what last week's announcements mean for the future of Apple's platforms.

Live from Apple Park, Jason has a first-hand report from the WWDC Keynote. (Myke was nearby, but that’s a whole other story.) Together they discuss groundbreaking iPad news, the new M2 Macbook Air, some familiar iPhone lock screen customization features, and a whole lot more.

It’s time for our seventh annual competition regarding what will happen at Apple's WWDC keynote! In a surprise development, Jason and Myke are attending in person--but beyond that, they're totally in the dark. Will it be inside or outside? Will it be live, or recorded? Will there be new hardware announced? It's time to let our imaginations run wild.

The much-rumored Apple AR/VR headset appears to be on the horizon, so Myke and Jason break down several reports about its development and debate what approach Apple should take. And as WWDC approaches, there are also rumblings about a new HomePod, Apple Watch design changes, and more Apple displays.

Is Apple ready to embrace USB-C across its entire product line? Jason loves his Playdate, but is frustrated by Apple Music playing songs he dislikes. And the music may go on, but the iPod won't be coming along for the ride.

An unlikely alliance of tech giants beckons us toward our passwordless future, but in the meantime there's a new version of 1Password. We also discuss Apple Car rumors, hope for the future of AirPods Max, our disassembly of a Magic Keyboard, and more!

This week we check in on Studio Display firmware, ponder what form the iPhone 14 might take and whether it's different enough from the iPhone 13, and break down the results of Apple's record fiscal quarter--including some trepidation about the future. Also, Myke finally got his Playdate!

Jason added a (working) Studio Display and a Playdate to his house last week, and Myke's a little upset. Also CNN+ died, Netflix went into crisis, and Apple kept making sports streaming deals. We also discuss the parking situation at Apple Park, accept the passing of the iPhone mini, and envision a new use for the HomePod name.

This week we're imagining the right and wrong improvements for the Apple Watch, speculating about the first wave of M2 Macs, lamenting Apple's process for replacing a defective product, and buzzing (in a bad way) about CNN+.

Baseball season is here and Jason has a detailed critique of Apple's first Friday Night Baseball broadcasts. But it's not all home runs and calls to the bullpen, as Myke goes home to Dongletown and we ponder just what might be announced at WWDC 2022.

Myke takes possession of his Apple Studio Display, Jason gets excited about the arrival of Audio Hijack 4, and Apple revises its approach to allowing external links in iOS apps.

It's episode 400! We evaluate the forward-looking predictions we made back in episode 300, and then draft stories we'll be talking about over the next hundred episodes! Also, an Apple TV+ movie won Best Picture and we round up an awful lot of Apple rumors.

Jason's got the new Mac Studio and Studio Display and it's time for his complete review. We also discuss where the M2 chip might appear, and what the Mac will look like in 2023.

John Siracusa joins Jason to talk about the Mythical Mid-Range Mac Minitower, the distortion of the iMac over time, the modular possibilities offered by the Apple Studio Display, and other fallout from last week's Apple announcements.

It's not every day that Apple introduces an entirely new Mac line. But on March 8, that's exactly what happened. Jason, Myke, and special guest Stephen Hackett discuss the new Mac Studio and Studio Display, along with the updated iPad Air and iPhone SE.

Our most speculative draft yet! Jason and Myke refuse to wait for Apple. Instead, they predict what will happen at Apple's next product launch--whenever it might happen. Will the M2 make its debut? Will there be an iPhone SE, and will it look any different? Are there other Mac and iPad offerings in the works? And most importantly, what fresh colors will be on offer for spring? We do our job--and now it's time for Apple to do its.

Jason imagines a future iOS App Store improved by sideloading, Myke gets back into reading digital comics, and both of them have a very strongly worded wish list involving the rumored big new iMac.

This week Jason and Myke both revive some classic hardware that hits them right in the feels. Also, there's a confusing set of Apple event rumors, and Apple tries to address AirTag security concerns.

It's time for our annual dive into the Six Colors Apple Report Card, as Jason and Myke interpret the scores and comments of several dozen Apple-watchers and add their own views on where the company is succeeding--and where it's not. Also discussed: future M2 Macs and the intricacies of Dutch dating.

Apple made a ton of money and released a ton of betas with new features. Face ID works with masks, Universal Control causes the soul of the Mac pointer to leave its body, the iPad relies on legacy nodes, the iPhone may take on Square, Dutch regulators are unsatisfied, and we tried to warn Spotify but it wouldn't listen.

Myke and Jason discuss the mysteries of Apple's car project, and express confusion about Apple's 2022 product release schedule. And at last, France makes a big box-related move.

Apple's rumored VR headset might not ship until 2023, but will it be the best VR headset ever made? And if so, at what cost? Also, Apple seems to have a settled on a strategy for handling demands to open up payment processing and external web links, and we're frustrated by the decision. Following a silly Wall Street Journal article, Android's SVP got a little too angry about iMessage. Also, we take an unexpected dive into the Users & Groups preference pane.