Space Javelin

Still yet more about the Apple TV 4K this week, in the context of comparing it to the FireTV 4K (and why it's not an obvious win for either device), but before all that Charles and Mike rant about the terrible reporting on the "hidden FM radio" inside iPhones, blasting both FCC Chair Ajit Pai (who should really do some reasearch) and the media for not questioning this nonsense. Senator Al Franken also gets lightly toasted for not retracting his "concerns" about Face ID after Apple's white paper answered all his questions. See? Space Javelin can be bipartisan!

Speaking of epic battles, also discussed are Star Trek: Discovery and CBS streaming, plus the alternative known as The Orville (which is on free TV); getting to know the Files app (aka iCloud Drive) on iOS 11; the Apple community raising money for hurricane relief; and Apple Music hits 30 million paid subscribers. From there we cover a couple of trouble spots, including some APFS conflict with some games, and a possible (but unlikely) EFI vulnerability on some older or un-upgraded Macs. Then and only then do the crew get to the Apples vs. Amazons comparison, including all the new Echo stuff just released; Nvidia's new drivers for eGPUs and the Mac Pro; and Twitter's probably-bad idea of expanding the number of characters allowed in tweets. All this and a free rant about obnoxious product branding on stuff you've already bought, cadets, so tune in your interocitors and get ready to rumble!

There's a lot of detail out now about the Apple TV 4K and of course the iPhone 8, so Mike and Charles wade into the thick of it and pull out all the good stuff for you, even ahead of this week's special guest! Apple recently got the honor of the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus being named the world's fastest smartphones (by a country mile, we might add), and that's before they've even tested the iPhone X. In addition, the new iPhones also got the best-ever marks given to smartphones from the revised DXO benchmarks (which, though widely regarded, are not scientific). There is also, as predicted, a teardown report -- but there's not much to say there, the innards (apart from the remarkable A11 Bionic) are largely the same, albeit with the notable fact that these new iPhones are doing so much more even with a (slightly) smaller battery. But wait, it's not *all* about the iPhone!

The crew also go over the facts on Intel's latest delay (the fourth) of the Cannon Lake chips and beyond (not great news, sorry to say), and look into a "caveat emptor" situation with regards to AppleCare+ costs (suffice to say, avoid breaking the back glass on these new iPhones). There's also some updates on Qualcomm versus Apple that are probably good news for Apple; some insight on Google's acqui-hire of HTC's Pixel engineering team (a key asset HTC were fools to let go of), along with the continuing benefits of Apple's ecosystem versus that of Android (or Windows, for that matter); and a caution about using non-MFi approved Qi chargers with your new Apple gear. And that's just the first half!!

We take a break from all the news to welcome our special guest Don Klees from Acorn TV, a streaming video service that focuses on the best TV (and some movies) from outside the US but primarily in the English-speaking world (the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and more). At $5 a month, if you enjoy PBS-type programming you should probably check it out.

From there, we have a lot of news related to the Apple TV 4K, starting with Google's decision not to support VP9 (their 4K codec) on the Apple TV 4K (or the Mac); good news that iTunes redemption codes (seen on some HD and 4K Blu-rays) work for streaming 4K versions of the film on Apple TV 4K (but no downloading); the very quiet change from Apple to allow iTunes movie renters to watch the films over (up to) 48 hours instead of the previous 24 once you'd started viewing it (you can hold on to the film for up to 30 days if you haven't gotten around to starting to watch it yet); and the surprising killing of the Videos app on iOS 11 in favor of the TV app, which finally has a purpose for non-Apple TV owners. There's also news that live news and live sports will be coming to the TV app in the near future.

Whew! We wrap up this super-dense hour with a quick look at some interesting ARKit-based app for iOS 11; a new payment system that uses your veins (what?!); and issue a shout-out to recent cadet recruit Horvath from Hungary, who wrote us a lovely fan letter. All this and (believe it or not) a bit more, so bust out the hip-waders, cadets, it's gonna get more than knee deep aboard the Space Javelin this time!

This week, Charles and Mike cover the pre-order and imminent arrival of all the shiny new baubles, dig into the fine print on the new iPhones (take note, pundits: all THREE models!), get into the metric system, lambast crybaby ad industry apologists (and Apple's subsequent smackdown), Senator Al Franken's inquiry about Face ID privacy/security, the power behind the new A11 Bionic chip, and how not to have a hissy fit about the iPhone X's notch (which isn't even expected to be an issue for anyone until early next year). Also included (at no extra charge) are some new details about the Apple Watch, iTunes now rolling out 4K/HDR content early. This part wanders into talking about Star Trek: Discovery, the Orville, and the forerunner of The Orville, Quark. Strap on your nostalgia guards, cadets, this week we're looking forward *and* back at the same time! Wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey!

If you'd like to hear Mike's recent appearance on WMAL (DC morning area), you can take a listen here: https://audioboom.com/posts/6300297-wmal-interview-mike-wuerthele-09-13-17.

SPECIAL REPORT! Apple held its big event on Tuesday and we just couldn't wait until Monday for you to hear about it, so we rounded up all the big announcements, hidden details, surprise features, and a bunch of price changes and other stuff they didn't tell you about in the keynote in a tight 40 minutes. Everything you need to know, straight from the Steve Jobs Theatre, and yet Episode 27 will be waiting for you on Monday like usual anyway! Suit up, cadets, Mike and Chas are on double duty this week!

Captain Mike is back, cadets, and just in time to help us cover a ton of news. We start off with some PSAs for how to help the hurricane victims as well as a reminder that -- contrary to internet myth -- the Zello walkie-talkie is not an actual walkie-talking; it needs internet connectivity. Mike anc Charles also get into the Apple vs. Qualcomm mess, the Equifax hack and the company's subsequent PR stumbles, Disney's takebacks of its movies, Apple bids on Bond, Spotify bullying, no more Apple Music Festival (what?! why?!), Apple's surprising success in China, and using the Apple Watch to cheat at sportsball. All this and an update on William's Apple Watch, and of course more.

Please note that your trusty Space Javelin crew will be recording a special mid-week episode, out on Wednesday, that will go over what Apple announced at their special event from the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple Park. So much discovery we can't fit in all into our regular episodes, cadets, so be sure to subscribe or stream from Soundcloud or iTunes to be sure you get all our mission details. Stand by for adventure!

It's the return of anarchy from the UK on Space Javelin this week, cadets, as Malcolm and William climb up from the lower decks to join Charles for news and analysis of the week's tech events, plus stories about heat, bats, three-armed iPhone buyers, and much more. The biggest headline as of Friday was the press invites to Apple's iPhone and software announcements on Tuesday, September 12, with (likely) additional formal unveilings of a new Apple TV, probably a new LTE Apple Watch, and possibly some surprises. Apple's new macOS version, High Sierra, has some caveats for people who aren't all-SSD and who might be using older OS versions or software, and we'll go over those as well. We also talk about Apple's dominance of wearables in two areas, all of Intel's latest chip refreshes, the return of Golden Axe to iOS, and much more. When the captain's away, the officers will play, cadets, so enjoy shore leave while it lasts!

Captain Mike turns his back for two minutes, and suddenly we're all Samsung, all the time! After weeks of Apple leading the news, this time it's about Samsung: the introduction of the Galaxy Note 8, including an in-depth look at its features; the odd processor and color choices (and where to get what); the cost of the new device vs. the rumored cost of the "iPhone 8"; and the comedy of errors that is Linus Tech Tips' coverage of the rollout. If that's not enough Samsung for you, special guest Malcolm Owen and Charles talk about the company's plans for getting into the "intelligent home speaker" market as well. But it's not all rosy in Seoul these days; the upper management of the company are largely going to jail.

Also on tap, the retirement of Crashplan from the consumer market (and what to do about that); Tim Cook in Austin announcing more Swift programming classes; the dismissal of a texting-while-driving lawsuit against Apple; AccuWeather's super-squirrelly dirty data secrets; Epic Games guy puts food a bit into the general mouth region; and yes, some news about Apple -- including "iPhone 8" parts leaks, cost, and a new video pitting the iPad Pro 12.9-incher against a MacBook. The results may surprise you. All this and much more, cadets, so put your life on autopilot for an hour and warp out with the crew of Space Javelin!

More than just recapping and analyzing the big tech stories of the week, we here on the good ship Space Javelin strive to bring you 60 minutes worth of depth, background, caveats, and color. We offer heads-up on good deals, warnings on bad headlines, and what we hope is genuinely useful information. This week alone, we debunk two alarmist stories about iPhone security, speculate on Android "O", follow-up on the growing Microsoft-Consumer Reports argument on reliability, and explore the value of Comcast's Xfinity Mobile and AT&T "free" Apple TV offer. Also in this episode: Ireland vs the EU vs Apple; Nonsense and half-truths about the next Apple Watch, expected this fall; the details on Thunderbolt cables and USB-C 3.1 compatibility; and finally, Mike and Charles go all Mythbusters on claims of a 60-inch Apple HDTV. All this and more, cadets, so strap in and get ready to spend 60 minutes on a mission to the best of technology news!

We start off this time with Mike's crankiness about missing a three-game sportsball series between the Red Sox and the Yankees due to podcast recording, before heading head-first into a sizable tech news week. Microsoft had their world rocked by a withdrawal of a recommendation from Consumer Reports based on above-average number of issues reported by readers. Mike and Charles look into the numbers, the survey methods, and other data, finding that while the problem reports are higher than average, it's not nearly as alarming (at least in lieu of more evidence) as other media outlets have made out. They also analyze the decision of the developers of Ulysses to go subscription and the new value proposition; speaking of surprises, Disney announced that they will pull out (most?) of their products out of Netflix so they can start their own streaming service; and Mike's latest hardware reviews, including a new Thunderbolt dock, and yet another Thunderbolt eGPU breakout box, along with more insight on when it might be time to jump into these devices.

Also on tap for this week: Twitch launches a desktop app for the Mac; the sounds of silence (#seewhatididthere) are climbing up the iTunes charts (and we'll tell you why and an old-school alternative); our own Space Javelin Back-to-School hardware guide (and sponsor-free advice); and the incredibly strange tale of the crowdfunded submarine and the missing woman -- and if that doesn't sound like the title of a Hardy Boys thriller, we don't know what does. All that plus vaguely inappropriate jokes, our usual cynical stink-eye, and more. it's an hour well wasted, cadets, so climb aboard!

Naturally, the tech week that was last week was dominated by news of Apple's surprisingly strong June quarter -- another record-breaker in nearly every respect. Charles and Mike also take a hammer to some of the iPhone 7s/7s Plus/"8" speculation and how the High Sierra beta is a little *too* good at blocking ads (and yes, that's a bad thing); an exploit in first-gen Amazon Echo hardware that poses a small but serious security risk; and the endorsement of the iPhone 7 Plus from a former Google and MS exec. There's also news of a free video editor for Macs, along with a remastering for 4K of the venerable Bioshock for Mac; Mike's review of the Vinpok USB-C "Magsafe" type cable; and a money-saving guide to the Mophie USB-C mega-battery and its rivals. Now how much would you pay? But wait, there's more!

Also stuffed into the program this week: some new (and kinda sweet) AT&T deals that either nab you a (second) iPhone for free, or free DirecTV for new iPad buyers; Spotify mis-reporting, and Bluetooth Low Energy Audio under-reporting; and a new Rumor Roundup where we rain on the magical-thinking parade of (first) a pair of Apple Watch rumors that can't both be true, and (second) when there might actually be another iPhone SE update. Some kudos are given out for Apple's forestry program (psst Apple -- we're having a "fire sale" on our forests up here in British Columbia ...), and finally a story about pilots trading photos of each other at 35,000 feet, with bonus algebra questions. Put your thinking caps on and strap in, cadets, it's an action-packed hour aboard the Space Javelin!