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homepod

On the HomePod's Supposed "Lagging Sales"

Report: HomePod sales lagging - Six Colors Yes, the HomePod is a great sounding speaker. Yes, it’s ability to recognize its wake word, no matter the volume, is better than the Echo’s. But the amount of tasks that it simply falls down on gives me little reason to use the voice control part of
meta

A Supporting Character in Everyone Else’s Narrative

It’s hard to be a team player sometimes. I know it is for me, at least. We so easily get sucked into our own thing, assuming that what we have going on is the most important thing ever. We are all the center of our own universes, after all. But the value of breaking
podcast

Podcast #72: The Ridiculously Brilliant Breath of the Wild

Quick episode today where I gush about the latest Zelda adventure. Subscribe to The BirchTree Podcast here.
podcast

Podcast #71: Strongly Held Opinions, but Opinions Nonetheless

I love the Magic Keyboard, and I actually really like the new MacBook keyboards too. These keyboards are not factually great, but they're great for me. Subscribe to The BirchTree Podcast here.
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A Solo, Daily, Non-News Podcast is Probably a Bad Idea, but I Love It

You don’t have to be an eagle-eyed observer to notice that I have begun daily podcasting over the past few weeks. I’ve done 15 episodes over the past 30 days1, and 6 over the past 6 business days. Each episode has nearly zero planning and I record around 7AM before I go

The BirchTree Podcast #70: My Android adventure lasted 6 days

I spent less than a week back on Android full time and it was just more trouble than it was worth. I'm a little harsh on Android in the episode, so maybe skip today if you're a die-hard Android fan, but I had to be honest. Subscribe to The BirchTree
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Today’s Forecast Status Update

8 months ago I released my first app to the iOS App Store: Today’s Forecast. The app was intended to be the weather app I’ve always wanted to use, and I did a really good job of doing that. It’s still the weather app I have on my home screen and I
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The BirchTree Podcast #69: How I'd fix AirPods and Google Pixel Buds

The AirPods and Pixel Buds have features I wish they'd steal from each other. Subscribe to The BirchTree Podcast here.
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The BirchTree Podcast #68: Love for Apple's Under-appreciated Calendar App

I've found myself very happy with and impressed with the Calendar app for iOS recently. There are few apps that I have made such a full 180 on and it's a good illustration on how software is deeply subjective and how a change in circumstance can totally change your opinion on
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The BirchTree Podcast #67: 3 Things I Love About the Google Pixel 2

It's all about the camera, the feel, and the speed. (P.S. I'm trying this daily thing out to see how people like it. Let me know if you are into this or if it's just too much.) Subscribe to The BirchTree Podcast here.
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Apple's New AI Guru

Apple Hires Google’s A.I. Chief - The New York Times Apple has hired Google’s chief of search and artificial intelligence, John Giannandrea, a major coup in its bid to catch up to the artificial intelligence technology of its rivals. Giannandrea will be in charge of “machine learning and A.I. strategy” at Apple
podcast

The BirchTree Podcast #66: A Platform that Inspires no Passion (from me)

I'm a few days into Android again, and it really struck me already how little passion I feel for this platform. The types of experiences that make me really appreciate iOS and macOS just aren't here. There are some surface-level customizations that are nice, but the third party (and even
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The BirchTree Podcast #65: I'm Back on Android, Baby!

I moved my SIM card back to the Pixel 2 yesterday and I'm going to try and do a full month on Android. There's not intention of writing anything specific about the differences between iOS and Android this time, so I am curious to see if using Android in a non-
Android

Going Back to Android for a Bit

I debated whether to post this on April Fool’s Day or not, but hey, the timelines just so happen to line up 🤷🏻‍♂️ I’m going to pop my SIM card back into my Pixel 2 for a while. I’m doing so this time without the pressure of having to write a review, which
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On a Round Apple Watch

I am on the record saying I think a round Apple Watch is both not needed and not a great idea unless Apple makes substantial changes to the entire watchOS interface. But there are some people who think this is the most important change Apple could possibly make and it would help sales dramatically. In
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It's Time to Look at RSS Again

RSS Readers Are Due for a Comeback: Feedly, The Old Reader, Inoreader | WIRED Anyone weary of black-box algorithms controlling what you see online at least has a respite, one that's been there all along but has often gone ignored. Tired of Twitter? Facebook fatigued? It's time to head back to

Apple and Education with Bradley Chambers

As I try to understand this market better, I’m currently finding it more helpful to ask questions and listen to what people have to say, rather than charge in and confidently make wild guesses about what Apple is doing right and wrong. I previously asked my wife, a high school teacher, for her throughts

200GB of Free iCloud Storage for Students, but What About Everyone Else?

200 GB iCloud Storage for Students; What About the Rest of Us? - Kirkville In Apple’s educational event yesterday, the company said that students would get 200 GB iCloud storage for free. I own – let’s see… – seven iOS devices and Macs, and I only get 5 GB. I get it, iCloud storage is a