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stories – MacStories
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Apple news, app reviews, and stories by Federico Viticci and friends.
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MacStories Selects 2024: Recognizing the Best Apps of the Year
Dec 9, 2024Tap to summarizeJohn: 2024 was a big year for apps, but it was also different from most. More often than not, app innovation is driven by new Apple APIs; that wasn’t the case this year. Instead, it was other trends that shaped the apps we love. Artificial intelligence played a big role, with some apps adopting it in clever ways to reduce user friction while other developers reacted to it by adopting a more human-centric, creative approach. The rapidly evolving social media landscape played a part, too, with new ways to communicate and manage our timelines emerging. However, the biggest driver of change in the world of apps this year was government regulation led by the European Commission. The full effects of the Digital Markets Act and the U.S. Department of Justice’s antitrust action against Apple have yet to play out, but nothing since the introduction of the App Store has shaken up the status quo like governments in the EU, U.S., and elsewhere did in 2024. Not all regulatory effects were what developers wanted – or even positive – but as 2024 winds down, it’s undeniable that apps that weren’t possible before regulation are now available worldwide. Plus, developers in certain parts of the world have more options than before, which we at MacStories are happy to see as fans of apps and their makers. Let’s hope the opening up of the App Store continues and spreads geographically in 2025 and beyond. Change lingers in the air, which makes me excited for the apps that 2025 will bring, but before we shut off the lights on 2024, it’s time to pause as we do each year to reflect on the many apps we tried in the year gone by and recognize the best among them. Like last year, the MacStories team picked the best apps in seven categories: Best New App Best App Update Best New Feature Best Watch App Best Mac App Best Design App of the Year Club MacStories members were part of the selection process, too, picking the winner of the MacStories Selects Readers’ Choice Award. And as we’ve done the past few years, we named a Lifetime Achievement Award winner that has stood the test of time and had an outsized impact on the world of apps. This year’s winner, which joins past winners Pixelmator, PCalc, and Drafts, is the subject of a special story Niléane wrote for the occasion. As usual, Federico and I also recorded a special episode of AppStories covering all the winners and runners-up. It’s a terrific way to learn more about this year’s apps. Plus, it’s on our YouTube channel this year, giving you a chance to actually see the awards as we cover them. You can also listen to the episode below. 0:0055:19 And with that, it’s my pleasure to unveil the 2024 MacStories Selects Awards. [table_of_contents] Best New App Croissant John: The splintering of social media began long before 2024, but it accelerated this year. For better or worse, the iPhone is inextricably linked to social media – especially Twitter, which grew up in tandem with the device. Twitter’s decline has been well-documented as the service has shed waves of users, advertisers, and employees. Today, its successor, X, is unrecognizable compared to Twitter’s heyday. What’s been different in 2024 is the rise of Twitter alternatives. The process began in earnest last year, but as Threads opened up to more of the world and added features, Bluesky gained traction among a wider audience, and Mastodon continued to dominate the tech sphere, social media became hard. Sure, you could pick one service and run with it, and many people did. However, I know that a lot of the MacStories audience didn’t just pick one; instead, we nerds split our time and attention between two and, often, three services. That’s where Croissant comes into the picture. It’s the kind of focused utility that we love at MacStories. It doesn’t try to consolidate your social feeds, connect you with ...
Transcribe →The MacStories Selects 2024 Lifetime Achievement Award
Dec 9, 2024Tap to summarizeTransit Earlier this year, I took the time to step back from the tech news cycle and reflect on one of my favorite iPhone apps of all time, Transit. For the past decade and more — Transit first launched in 2012 — the app has been a powerful way to plan trips and look up waiting times when traveling around your hometown using public transportation. But the team behind Transit has never stopped enhancing and improving the app. Today, Transit remains one of the best transit apps on the iPhone, and it’s not even close; not only that, but the app has also slowly but surely cemented itself as a staple of UI design in this category. I started relying on Transit in 2014, when I first arrived in France. At the time, I had never experienced a massive public transit network like the one in Paris, and I specifically remember how overwhelming it all felt. Finding Transit in the App Store truly felt like a godsend for 18-year-old me. When it was first released, the app focused on one key feature: as soon as you tapped its icon on the Home Screen, it would immediately give you real-time waiting times for bus and train stops all around you, wherever you were in the city. Unlike with its competitors, you didn’t need to tap around the UI to find the stop or train line you were looking for; in all likelihood, the information you were looking for was already there, right on the app’s main screen. Instead of trying to play the retention game and keep you in the app as long as it could, Transit was designed to be launched and dismissed again just a few seconds later, as soon as you got a glance at the waiting times on its main screen. This basic foundation immediately made Transit relevant at any time of the day. It also explains why, over the past ten years, I’ve never once removed the app’s icon from my Home Screen. In fact, it’s hard for me to imagine my Home Screen setup without Transit. Transit lets you compare itineraries on a timeline and presents you with a detailed breakdown of each itinerary. Today, in addition to checking waiting times, the app also lets you plan itineraries and compare trips, and it can track your vehicle to alert you when you’re about to reach your destination so you don’t miss your stop — all of this across 741 cities and regions in 23 countries. If this sounds like a lot, just know that at every step along the way, the app is always graced with a thoughtful design that never makes any part of it feel overwhelming. Every single data point has been carefully placed in the interface and is introduced with beautiful and subtle animations. When I try to think of apps that started strong so many years ago and only evolved to become stronger, there are just a few names that come to mind. Transit is one of those names. Transit’s Live Activities are a perfect use case for the feature. They let you keep track of your trip and alert you when you’re about to reach your destination. One of the reasons the app has been able to achieve this is its ability to gracefully adopt Apple’s new system APIs in iOS every year. This was especially true in iOS 16 with Live Activities, which allow you to track your trip and keep an eye on your next stop right from your iPhone’s Lock Screen. And just last month, the Transit team went beyond our expectations, revealing an impressive new way to track your train when it’s underground and you don’t have a GPS signal. The app now utilizes the iPhone’s built-in accelerometer and analyzes its patterns to identify when your vehicle is in motion and every time it reaches a new station. I’ve been able to try this new feature over the past month in the tunnels of the Paris Métro, and I’m happy to report that this wizardry actually works. In November 2024, Transit added a prediction model that allows it to track your train underground without GPS, using only the iPhone’s accelerometer. The Transit team’s ability to innovate and expand to more regions around the world, all while keeping the app focused on the main feature set that it launched with 12 years ago, is remarkable. For that, and the app’s ever-beautiful design, Transit deserves to be recognized with this year’s MacStories Selects Lifetime Achievement Award. Learn more about Transit: Website App Store MacStories Review Access Extra Content and PerksFounded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now
Transcribe →The MacStories Holiday Gift Guide for the Apple Nerd in Your Life
Nov 26, 2024Tap to summarizeWith Black Friday sales in full swing and the holidays around the corner, we here at MacStories thought we’d each share gift ideas for the Apple nerd in your life. Some of these items are currently on sale, so be sure to get your shopping started and check them out soon. Federico UGREEN 300W 48,000mAh Battery I love this big, chunky battery with a handle. As I recently mentioned on Unwind and NPC, I’ve been really into the idea of gadgets that are “portable, but for the home” this year. These are accessories that are portable in the sense that they can be moved around, but you wouldn’t commute or travel with them. In this case, I was looking for a powerful battery I could place on my living room table to charge multiple devices at once, such as Silvia’s MacBook Pro and my iPad Pro, or my Legion Go and iPhone. The internal capacity of this battery ensures it can stay on for hours when charging a single device like a Steam Deck, too. The battery comes with a front-facing display with details about its charge and in/out wattages, and it even offers an LED light on the side for illuminating your environment. Plus, if you have a 140W USB-C charger, filling it up completely doesn’t take too long. This has to be one of my favorite tech purchases this year, and I can’t recommend it enough. UGREEN Nexode Pro 100W Charger Speaking of UGREEN, I also like their latest 100W GaN charger. Part of the company’s Nexode line, this is a compact USB-C wall charger that can output up to 100W via its first USB-C port when used by itself. This one is actually bag- and travel-friendly, and it’s become my new default for fast-charging the iPhone and iPad Pro. Baseus 240W USB-C Cable Do I have any devices that can charge at 240W over USB-C yet? Absolutely not. But has that stopped me from seeking a USB-C cable that theoretically supports that charging speed? You know me. I like this cable! The nylon texture is nice, the connector feels sturdy, and it’s what I’ve been using on my nightstand for the past few months. Satechi Mobile XR Hub I love that Satechi made an accessory for people like me, who occasionally like to use an iPad Pro or Steam Deck with XR glasses. Basically, this compact adapter allows you to output video up to 4K over USB-C, receive USB-C charging up to 100W, and have a 3.5mm audio jack port for headphones. This is perfect for a USB-C-based handheld or tablet, and it’s replaced my previous flimsy Viture dongle for whenever I want to put on my XREAL Air glasses to play some Steam games. Spigen Head Strap for Apple Vision Pro This is the Vision Pro accessory Apple should have made: it’s a top strap that you combine with the Solo Knit Band on the Vision Pro to relieve pressure and weight from the top of your head. I’ve been using it for the past month and cannot recommend it enough. The strap is comfortable, it’s easy to adjust (I’ve only done it once and never touched it again), and it attaches perfectly to the headset. TineeOwl Kickstand Cover for iPad Pro A few weeks back, I was finally able to find the iPad Pro accessory I’d been looking for since the debut of the M4 models: a back cover with a built-in kickstand. I used a similar cover for the M2 iPad Pro last year, and the idea is the same. This accessory only protects the back of the device, doesn’t have a cover for the screen, and comes with an adjustable kickstand to use the iPad in landscape at a variety of viewing angles. The reason I wanted this product is simple. This is not a cover I use for protecting the iPad Pro; I only want to attach it in the evening, when I’m relaxing with the device on my lap and want to get some reading done or watch some TV. In fact, this cover never leaves my nightstand. When I’m done working for the day, I leave the Magic Keyboard on my desk, bring the iPad Pro into the bedroom, and put it in the cover, leaving it there for later. John Anker Prime Power Bank and Base I’ve had this chunky Anker battery and its base for about a year now, and I love it. At 27,650mAh, it’s big, but still airline-friendly. The two USB-C ports can output 140W of power when used alone, while the USB-A port can deliver 35W. Using two or three of the battery’s ports at the same time splits the power among them, but unlike many power banks, at least one of Anker’s ports always delivers 140W, which is one of my favorite features. Anker has included a screen on the front of the battery so you can quickly see how much charge it has left and how much power is being delivered by its ports, as well as how much time the battery will take to finish when recharging. The same information can also be accessed using Anker’s iPhone app. The base, sold separately, sits on a corner of my desk where it serves double duty. The Prime Power Bank connects to the base magnetically for recharging at 100W via the base’s pins, topping it off quickly. The touch that I appreciate most, though, is that there are two USB-C ports and one USB-A port on the side of the base, which can split the base’s 100W output if multiple devices are connected. LOC8 MagSafe Finder Wallet and Stand This is a pick I stole from Federico, who mentioned it several months ago on Connected. I’ve been using an Apple leather MagSafe Wallet for a long time, and there are two things that I don’t like about it. The first is that it only holds three cards. I don’t like to carry a lot of cards in my wallet, and I don’t use cash, but space for three cards still isn’t enough. The LOC8 wallet’s room for a fourth card goes a long way if you’ve ever been frustrated by Apple’s MagSafe wallets. The wallet opens up, so it can be used as a kickstand too. And, of course, the LOC8 also has Find My support built in. Miyoo Mini+ There are a lot of great gaming handhelds out there now, but of all the ones we’ve covered on NPC: Next Portable Console, the Miyoo Mini+ is my favorite to give to someone as a gift if they haven’t tried game emulation before. The overall build quality of the Mini+ is better than its competitors, and the 3.5” screen is big enough without compromising its pocketability. Plus, there’s a...
Transcribe →What It’s Like to Hear Better with AirPods Pro 2
Oct 29, 2024Tap to summarizeI’ll admit, I was a little apprehensive about taking Apple’s hearing test. I’ve spent my fair share of time at loud concerts and shouting above the din in crowded bars, so I was fairly certain the test would show my hearing isn’t what it once was. The question was, “How bad is it?” With the release of iOS 18.1 and an update to the AirPods’ firmware, I set out to find out. The AirPods Pro 2 didn’t get a hardware update this fall, but they may as well have, because the new hearing features they received via a software update add a whole new dimension to them. We’ve written about the hearing features before. They include three components: hearing protection, which lowers the volume of sounds that could potentially damage your hearing; a hearing test to check whether you have hearing loss in either ear; and a hearing assistance feature to boost frequencies where you’ve lost hearing. Despite covering these features previously, I didn’t have a good feel for what they were like until I tried them myself, so I thought I’d share the process here and encourage others who can to give these new hearing features a try, too, because they work remarkably well. Knowing that my hearing isn’t great made diving into Apple’s new hearing features both easier and harder in some ways. On one hand, I was eager to see if AirPods Pro could really make me hear better. On the other hand, I was concerned my hearing might be worse than I imagined and require something more. Fun facts about my audio environment. To get over the hump of my apprehension, I built up to the hearing test by opening the Health app and poking around in the Hearing section a bit. I didn’t learn a lot, except that it turns out the AirPods’ hearing protection feature first kicked in Sunday, lowering a sound by a few decibels. It may have happened when I was banging dishes around as I unloaded the dishwasher, but I’m not sure. I also discovered that October has been a little quieter for me than September and that this year has been a little quieter than last. Both are good things, I suppose. Setting up a hearing test. With that out of the way, I sat at the kitchen table with my iPhone and opened the hearing test in the Health app. The test walks you through checking that your environment is quiet and that your AirPods Pro 2 fit well before testing. You even have a chance to listen to an example tone before you start so you know what to expect. More setup. Ready to go. You can tell that a lot of thought went into the process of preparing someone for the test. The steps were simple and clear, putting me at ease with what to expect by the time the actual test started. While you’re testing, your iPhone is automatically switched to Do Not Disturb mode, too, so you won’t be interrupted. When the time came to begin testing one ear and then the other, I focused and listened carefully, trying not to psyche myself into hearing sounds that weren’t there. The test doesn’t take long, but it feels like a long time as you sit in silence tapping a circle each time you hear the test’s intermittent chimes. When my left ear’s test was complete, the Health app told me that it had failed because it was interrupted by environmental sounds. Sure enough, a truck rolled down the street beneath my window near the end of the test, and while it wasn’t that loud, it was enough. So I retreated to my bedroom, away from the street and another floor off ground level. Test complete. That did the trick. I completed the test for both of my ears and found that, while I have some hearing loss as I suspected, it is less than I imagined. According to the test, I have mild loss in my left ear and little to no loss in my right ear. The app then prompted me to set up the hearing assistance feature, which amounted to tapping a button and reading about how the feature might take a while to get used to. I spent most of my day at home alone, so I didn’t think I’d have a real opportunity to test the effect of hearing assistance until later. But then, I stood up, and boy, was I wrong. I had been sitting on my bed during the test, and when I got up, I noticed the difference the moment my feet touched the floor. As I walked across the room, every footstep was amplified and better defined. Everything I did sounded richer and fuller. I sat at my desk and started typing, and I could hear the keys on the keyboard clacking more than ever. I made lunch, and the sounds of the packaging of the food I pulled out of the refrigerator were more noticeable. Then I started up a podcast episode that I had paused earlier in the day and immediately turned the volume down a couple of notches because the hearing assistance feature helps you hear media better too. Managing the hearing assistance feature from Control Center. That’s cool and all, but if you’re wondering what the feature is like out in the world, the answer is that the difference is equally profound. To wrap this story up, I walked down to my local coffee shop to finish writing and editing. As I approached the front door of the shop, my instinct was to pull out my AirPods and drop them in their case before I placed my order, but I resisted. Instead, I walked up to the counter and ordered a drink from a soft-spoken barista. Not only could I hear the barista loud and clear, but I overheard a couple sitting at a table nearby, and when I headed outside to work for a bit, I could clearly hear nearby conversations, all against the backdrop of kids playing noisily at an adjacent park. My brief experience with hearing assistance has been wild and surprising in a very good way. I’m fortunate that my hearing loss is mild. At the same time, though, the difference from using hearing assistance is so noticeable that I don’t want to take my AirPods out of my ears. I’m sure the novelty of hearing assistance will wear off and become the ‘new normal,’ but I won’t forget the experience of those first hours using it. It was remarkable. Yesterday, Apple published a fascinating press release about how the company developed these hearing features. In it, Apple notes that 1.5 billion people experience some degree of hearing loss. That’s a lot of people, and many of them are untreated like me. My hearing isn’t so bad that I’ve ever felt like I should go to an audiologist, but by the same token, here I am writing this while listening to music and soaking in the sounds of my local coffee shop on a beautiful fall day, and it’s all crystal clear and great. Give the hearing test a try. You won’t regret it. Access Extra Content and PerksFounded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; <a href="https://club.macstor...
Transcribe →iPad mini Review: The Third Place
Oct 22, 2024Tap to summarizeThe new iPad mini. My first reaction when I picked up the new iPad mini last Thursday morning was that it felt heavier than my 11” iPad Pro. Obviously, that was not the case – it’s nearly 150 grams lighter, in fact. But after several months of intense usage of the new, incredibly thin iPad Pro, the different weight distribution and the thicker form factor of the iPad mini got me for a second. Despite being “new”, compared to the latest-generation iPad Pro, the iPad mini felt old. The second thing I noticed is that, color aside, the new iPad mini looks and feels exactly like the sixth-generation model I reviewed here on MacStories three years ago. The size is the same, down to the millimeter. The weight is the same. The display technology is the same. Three minor visual details give the “new” iPad mini away: it says “iPad mini” on the back, it’s called “iPad mini (A17 Pro)” on the box, and it’s even called “iPad mini (A17 Pro)” (and not “iPad mini (7th generation)”) in Settings ⇾ General ⇾ About. I’m spending time on these minor, largely inconsequential details because I don’t know how else to put it: this iPad mini is pretty much the same iPad I already reviewed in 2021. The iPadOS experience is unchanged. You still cannot use Stage Manager on any iPad mini (not even when docked), and the classic Split View/Slide Over environment is passable, but more constrained than on an iPad Air or Pro. I covered all these aspects of the mini experience in 2021; everything still holds true today. What matters today, however, is what’s inside. The iPad mini with A17 Pro is an iPad mini that supports Apple Intelligence, the Apple Pencil Pro, and faster Wi-Fi. And while the display technology is unchanged – it’s an IPS display that refreshes at 60 Hz – the so-called jelly scrolling issue has been fixed thanks to an optimized display controller. As someone who lives in Italy and cannot access Apple Intelligence, that leaves me with an iPad mini that is only marginally different from the previous one, with software features coming soon that I won’t be able to use for a while. It leaves me with a device that comes in a blue color that isn’t nearly as fun as the one on my iPhone 16 Plus and feels chunkier than my iPad Pro while offering fewer options in terms of accessories (no Magic Keyboard) and software modularity (no Stage Manager on an external display). And yet, despite the strange nature of this beast and its shortcomings, I’ve found myself in a similar spot to three years ago: I don’t need this iPad mini in my life, but I want to use it under very specific circumstances. Only this time, I’ve realized why. a.button { text-decoration: none !important; padding: 8px; margin: 8px; white-space: nowrap; display: inline-block; line-height: 1.18; text-align: center; } a.button:hover { transition: none; } a.club { isolation: isolate; position: relative; z-index: 1; width: max-content; padding: 8px 16px; background: transparent; border: none; border-radius: 25px; transition: transform 400ms, box-shadow 400ms; will-change: transform, box-shadow; transform: translateY(0); } a.club:hover { box-shadow: 0 0 4px #d4af37; transition: transform 200ms, box-shadow 100ms; transform: translateY(-1px); padding: 8px 16px; } a.club:after { transition: transform 200ms; transform: translateY(1px); } a.club:active { box-shadow: 0 0 2px hsl(0 0 0 / 0.4); transition: transform 100ms, box-shadow 100ms; transform: translateY(0); } a.club:active:after { transition: transform 200ms; transform: translateY(0); } a.club:before { content: ''; position: absolute; isolation: isolate; z-index: -1; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; border-radius: 25px; box-shadow: 0 1px 2px hsl(0 0 0 / 0.4); background: linear-gradient( hsl(46, 88%, 80%) 0%, hsl(45, 44%, 47%) 100% ); } a.club:after { content: ''; position: absolute; isolation: isolate; z-index: -2; background: transparent; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; border-radius: 25px; background-color: hsl(0 0 0 / 0.4); box-shadow: 0 2px 2px hsl(0 0 0 / 0.4); will-change: transform; transform: translateY(0); transition: transform 400ms; } a.plan-club, a.plan-appstories, a.plan-plus, a.plan-premier { min-width: 150px; font-weight: 700 !important; } a.plan-club span { display: block; color: #000; font-weight: 400; } a.plan-appstories span { display: block; color: #000; font-weight: 400; } a.plan-plus span { display: block; color: #000; font-weight: 400; } a.plan-premier span { display: block; color: #000; font-weight: 400; } a.plan-club { color: hsl(358, 89%, 36%) !important; } a.plan-appstories { color: #210a30 !important; } a.plan-appstories:before { background: linear-gradient(hsl(204, 100%, 75%) 0%, hsl(204, 100%, 40%) 100%); } a.plan-appstories:hover { box-shadow: 0 0 4px #0099FF; } a.plan-plus { color: #760087 !important; } a.plan-premier { color: #060e1d !important; } For Club MacStories+ Discord Members Live iPad mini Q&A Later today at 5 PM CEST (11 AM Eastern), we’ll hold a live event in the Club MacStories+ Discord. I’ll take questions from members about the new iPad mini, talk about my review, and more. To join the Club MacStories+ Discord, sign up for a Club MacStories+ or Club Premier plan, or if you’re an existing Club MacStories member, you can upgrade your account to get Discord access on our Plans page. Once you’ve joined, visit the Account page to connect your Discord account and join our server. Yesterday, we kicked off our fall Club MacStories Membership Drive with 20% off on annual memberships for anyone joining for the first time, reactivating an expired plan, or upgrading a current plan. What’s more, we have special columns, today’s live Discord event, giveaways, discounts, and more coming to all Club members throughout the event, which makes it a terrific time to join the Club. To take advantage of the discounted plans, please use the coupon code CLUB2024 at checkout or click on one of the buttons below. So join today, to participate in the live Discord event at 5 PM CEST (11 AM Eastern) and get access to all the other Fall Membership Drive perks, plus the entire back catalog of Club newsletters, discounts, downloadable eBooks and other goodies, and more. Join Club MacStories+: Now Just$80 Join Club Premier: Now Just$96 Special Episode of AppStories, Now with Video Too We recorded a special episode of AppStories all about the new iPad mini and my review. As usual, you can listen to the episode in any podcast player or via the AppStories website. Today, however, we’re also debuting a video version of AppStories on our YouTube channel. Going forward, all AppStories episodes will be released in audio and video formats via standard RSS feeds and YouTube, respectively. AppStories debuted in 2017, and with over 400 episodes recorded, it’s long past due for a video version. It’s safe to say that bringing Ap...
Transcribe →Postcards and a Mac: Niléane’s Desk Setup
Oct 21, 2024Tap to summarizeIt’s been a while since I last showed off my desk. The last time I did so as part of MacStories Weekly Issue 405 in February, I had just acquired an 11-inch iPad Pro, and my desk looked quite different than it does now. It had an imposing corner shelf holding a variety of plushies, accessories, and other knickknacks, in addition to providing support for my microphone arm. Overall, it felt a lot more cluttered than it does now. As the months went on, I’ve had to rethink my desktop layout to accommodate the many changes that I’ve made to my device usage. Now more than ever, my M2 MacBook Air is at the center of everything I do – so much so that the iPad Pro is now nothing more than an eBook reader for me and rarely lives on my desk as a result. This summer, we also launched Comfort Zone, a new weekly show in the MacStories family of podcasts. Since Comfort Zone is both an audio and video podcast, I started recording video at my desk for the first time ever, which also meant that I had to tweak my desk to optimize it for lighting and a new microphone setup. In the end, these changes have added up to a completely new desk setup. So today, I’m going to take you on a quick desk tour. Let me walk you through the main highlights of what makes this desk my favorite little corner in our home. First, I should once again address that this is a small desk tucked into a small space. For some context, my partner and I live in a three-room apartment in Grenoble, France. While this means that we get to enjoy great views of the French Alps from most of our windows, it also means that we’ve had to reach a compromise to keep our workspaces separate during the day. As a result, my partner got to install their sizable desk in the dedicated spare room, and I got to settle mine in our bedroom. This is the main reason why I have to keep my desk space cozy and compact. My desk corner in our main bedroom. The main thing you may notice when looking at my desk is the monitor hooked up to my M2 MacBook Air. It’s the 28.2-inch Huawei MateView, which I grabbed on sale a couple of years ago for about $450.1 Huawei is not usually a brand that inspires confidence in me. And yet, I absolutely love this monitor and its unusual 3:2 aspect ratio. It makes for a taller, narrower canvas that is perfect for browsing the web (allowing you to see more of a web page at once) or working on designs in Figma, and it’s still comfortably wide enough for watching videos and playing videogames. For a monitor of this price, I’ve also been pretty impressed with the decent color accuracy and apparent contrast ratio that it provides at a 4K resolution. While I would probably save for a more expensive display today, I’m going to hold on to this one for as long as I can — mostly because I fear going back to a standard 16:9 or 16:10 aspect ratio now. The M2 MacBook Air sits on a TwelveSouth HiRise Pro stand that’s height-adjustable and made of sturdy aluminum. I used to keep the Mac closed in a vertical stand tucked behind the monitor, but I’ve come to realize how handy it is being able to occasionally open it to use the built-in display alongside my main screen. I do this when I’m on video calls to keep the call window visible while I’m working, or when I want to watch a video on the side. Otherwise, I like to keep the MacBook lid closed and focus on a single screen. Between the Mac and the monitor, I’ve installed a Belkin Thunderbolt 3 Dock Pro. I’ve owned this dock for a long time, and it still works perfectly enough today that I’ve not felt the need to upgrade to a newer, more expensive Thunderbolt 4 dock. It offers two Thunderbolt 3 ports, one full-sized DisplayPort, an Ethernet port, five USB-A ports (including one on the front), a standard USB-C port, a 3.5mm audio jack, and one front-facing SD card slot. Almost everything on my desk, including a Belkin height-adjustable MagSafe stand for my iPhone, is now hooked to the Mac by this dock, and I’ve still got ports to spare. The Belkin Thunderbolt 3 Dock Pro I’ve settled on this Belkin height-adjustable MagSafe stand, which perfectly fits under the monitor at its lowest height. In my last desk setup showcase, I was using a Blue Yeti microphone for calls and the occasional podcast recording. This microphone is still in great condition and is now being used by my partner as part of their own desk setup. The reason I let it go is that I was not quite satisfied with how it made me sound. My voice already sounds deeper than I would like, and I found that the Yeti exacerbated that impression. So now, I’m using the Audio-Technica ATR2100X microphone. This one isn’t perfect by any means, but it sounds a lot closer to what I want, and most importantly, it is very affordable. Another positive aspect about the ATR2100X is that it can connect via both XLR and USB-C. Since I didn’t want to invest in an audio interface just yet, this straightforward connectivity was perfect for me. The microphone is connected directly to the Belkin dock via USB-C, and I always keep a 3.5mm to Lightning cable dangling from its built-in headphone jack so I can use my AirPods Max for monitoring while I record Comfort Zone. The microphone sits on the Elgato Wave Mic Arm LP.2 This microphone arm caused me quite a few headaches in the past few months. As you may have noticed, my desk has two built-in drawers that I find incredibly useful to store cables, medications, and other items that I need on a daily basis. However, the drawback of these drawers is that I simply can’t use the built-in clamp that comes with this microphone arm (or any other microphone arm) to attach it to the side of the desk. Elgato has a solution for this: the Heavy Base. You can use the Heavy Base’s offset mount to attach the Wave Mic Arm LP, then simply set the base down on your desk. This is perfect if your desk is too thick to accommodate a clamp. Unfortunately, for the past few months, the Heavy Base was out of stock pretty much everywhere I looked, and when retailers had one in stock, they always had the old version without the offset mount. In the end, it was only this month that I was finally able to order one from a German music store. It works exactly as intended, and the arm is firmly mounted to the base and stable. My Audio-Technica ATR2100X attached to the Elgato Wave Mic Arm LP, itself mounted to the Elgato Heavy Base When it comes to recording video for the podcast, all I use is an old iPhone SE from 2020. This phone used to belong to my partner, and today it barely holds a charge. But despite the iPhone SE’s age and its smaller camera sensor, the video quality is still miles ahead of most off-the-shelf webcams, and it has been serving me well for video calls over the past few years, and now Comfort Zone on YouTube. To mount the iPhone on my desk, I’ve come up with a somewhat hacky solution. With the help of a MagSafe-compatible case, I’ve attached the iPhone to a Belkin MagSafe mount, which itself is mounted on top of the beautiful LEGO Orchid set. Yes, I know; I’m a genius. Despite the hacky vibes of this camera mounting contraption, I just love how I’ve been able to revive this phone as a webcam thanks to Continuity Camera on macOS. If you have an older iPhone lying around in a closet, I highly recommend trying to use it as a webcam. It’s a pretty good bargain. <div class="...
Transcribe →After Five Years of Pro iPhones, I’m Going iPhone 16 Plus This Year
Oct 2, 2024Tap to summarizeMy iPhone 16 Plus. If you asked me two weeks ago which iPhone model I’d be getting this year, I would have answered without hesitation: my plan was to get an iPhone 16 Pro Max and continue the tradition of the past five years. I’ve been using the largest possible iPhone since the XS Max and have bought the ‘Pro Max’ flavor ever since it was introduced with the iPhone 11 Pro Max in 2019. For the past five years, I’ve upgraded to a Pro Max iPhone model every September. And the thing is, I did buy an iPhone 16 Pro Max this year, too. But I’ve decided to return it and go with the iPhone 16 Plus instead. Not only do I think that is the most reasonable decision for my needs given this year’s iPhone lineup, but I also believe this “downgrade” is making me appreciate my new iPhone a lot more. It all comes down to a simple idea: fun. Realizing That, Indeed, Maybe I’m Not a Pro Anymore This thought – that perhaps I could be just fine with a regular iPhone instead of a Pro variation – first popped into my head while I was watching Apple’s September keynote. With the addition of last year’s Pro-exclusive Action button and the cross-model introduction of the new Camera Control, I thought maybe I wouldn’t feel “left behind” in terms of major new iOS features. Historically, that’s always been the pull of the Pro line: there’s something exclusive to them – whether it’s the size, display technology, or design language – that pushes me to eschew the base model in favor of the more expensive Pro one, where “Pro” actually means “best”. But if the features I cared about most were trickling down to the non-Pro iPhones too, could my personal definition of “best” also change? Besides feature availability, I also had a vibe-related realization during the keynote. More than in previous years, some parts of the photography segment were really technical and, for my personal taste, boring. Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate that Apple is unlocking incredible potential for photographers and filmmakers who want to shoot with an iPhone and have unlimited control over their workflow. It is necessary for the company to push the envelope and put that kind of power in the hands of people who need it. But that’s the issue: as I was watching the segment on audio mixes and nearly dozing off, for the first time in years I felt that Apple wasn’t targeting me – and that maybe that phone wasn’t meant for me. I know, right? It sounds obvious. But if you’ve been writing about Apple or have been part of the “Apple community” for as long as I have, you know that there’s a kind of invisible social contract wherein true nerds are supposed to be getting and producing content about the most expensive iPhones every year. I know and say this because I’ve been guilty of this line of thinking before. There’s almost an expectation that whoever creates content about Apple needs to do so from the top down, purchasing the highest-end version of anything the company offers. But if you think about it for a second, this is a shortsighted approach: the vast majority of people can’t afford the most expensive Apple products and, in reality, most of our stories run the risk of sounding too aspirational (if not alienating) to them rather than practical. This meta commentary about purchasing Apple products and the parasocial pressure of writing about them is necessary context because, regardless of my initial feelings during the keynote, I still went ahead and ordered an iPhone 16 Pro Max. Despite me not caring about any of the advanced camera stuff in the Pro models, despite the Action button and Camera Control arriving on the base models, and despite Brendon’s story on this very topic that resonated with me, I still thought, “Well, surely I’m supposed to be getting an iPhone 16 Pro Max. I can’t be the type of person who ‘downgrades’ to a regular iPhone 16, right?” And so preorder I did, ever so convinced I had to stick with a more expensive (and more visually boring) iPhone because of the always-on display, ProMotion, telephoto lens, and increased battery life. When the 16 Pro Max arrived, I could instantly tell that something felt off about it this year. I’m not saying that it wasn’t a good upgrade from my iPhone 15 Pro Max; the improved ultra-wide camera was great, battery life was magnificent, and the thinner bezels looked nice. What I’m saying is that, more so than in previous years, I felt like it was almost “too much iPhone” for me, and that its changes were only marginally improving upon my experience from the previous generation. Meanwhile, I was giving up the fun looks, creative constraints, and increased portability of an iPhone 16 Plus to keep up my end of an unspoken bargain with my audience – or maybe just myself. The more I used the iPhone 16 Pro Max, the more I felt that it crossed a threshold of weight and screen size that I was not expecting. I’ve always been a strong proponent of large iPhones, but for the first time, the 16 Pro Max felt too big and heavy. This idea solidified when Apple eventually sent me a review unit of the iPhone 16 Plus: there I was, using an iPhone slightly smaller than the Pro Max (but still big enough), which was also 30 grams lighter, and, more importantly, had a stunning ultramarine color that put a smile on my face whenever I used it. I used the iPhone 16 Plus for a few days alongside my iPhone 16 Pro Max. During that experiment, I realized that my initial feelings were right and I should have trusted my original instincts. The iPhone 16 Plus had all the things I wanted from a new iPhone (large screen, good battery, Action button, Camera Control, A18 performance) in a more accessible package that traded advanced photography features for increased portability and, yes, pure aesthetics. And just like I accepted a few months ago that I’m not necessarily an AirPods Pro person but actually prefer the base model AirPods, so I decided to return my iPhone 16 Pro Max and get an iPhone 16 Plus instead. After a week, I haven’t missed the bigger, heavier iPhone 16 Pro Max at all. In fact, using the iPhone 16 Plus and forcing myself to be creative within its photographic constraints has reignited in me a passion for the iPhone lineup that I hadn’t felt in years. Using (and Loving) the iPhone 16 Plus Let’s address the elephant in the room: I’m not missing ProMotion and the always-on display as much as I feared I would. I’ve never been a heavy user of Lock Screen widgets, so not seeing glanceable information on my Lock Screen without waking up the display is not a big deal. I thought I was reliant on the always-on display, but it turns out, I was just leaving it on because I could. If anything, I’d argue that not always seeing my iPhone’s display when I’m at my desk helps me stay more focused on what I’m doing, and it’s making me appreciate using my Apple Watch1 to, well, check the time even more. In a way, the absence of the always-on display is the best Focus mode I’ve ever tested. Plus, raising my iPhone or tapping the screen to wake up the display is not the end of the world. In a way, the absence of the always-on display is the best Focus mode I’ve ever tested. The lack of ProMotion took a longer adjustment period – where by “longer” I mean two days – but now it’s fine. I’ve been switching between my iPad Pro with a ProMotion display and the iPhone 16 Plus without one, and I lived to tell the tale. I wish I had a better way to convey this that doesn’t boil down to, “My eyes got used to it and it’s okay”, but here we are. I was firmly in the camp of, “I can never go back to a non-ProMotion display”, but when you use a device that doesn’t have it but makes you happy for other reasons, it’s doable. Plenty of folks who claim that non-ProMotion iPhones are a non-starter also enjoy using the iPad mini; it’s the same ...
Transcribe →A Single Apple EarPod Has Become My Favorite Wired Earbud for Gaming
Sep 24, 2024Tap to summarizeNintendo Switch with Hori’s Split Pad Compact controllers, Steam Deck OLED, and Ayn Odin 2. Also, you should play UFO 50. Picture this problem: Because of my podcast about portable gaming NPC with John and Brendon, I test a lot of gaming handhelds. And when I say a lot, I mean I currently have a Steam Deck, modded Legion Go, PlayStation Portal, Switch, and Ayn Odin 2 in my nightstand’s drawer. I love checking out different form factors (especially since I’m currently trying to find the most ergonomic one while dealing with some pesky RSI issues), but you know what I don’t love? Having to deal with multi-point Bluetooth earbuds that can only connect to a couple of devices at the same time, which often leads to unpairing and re-pairing those earbuds over and over and over. As you know, a while ago I came to a realization: it turns out that Apple’s old-school, wired EarPods are still pretty awesome if you want a foolproof, universal way of connecting a single pair of earbuds to a large collection of devices. Handheld manufacturers, in fact, weren’t as courageous as Apple and, despite modern advancements in Bluetooth, decided to leave a universal audio jack port in their portable consoles. So whether I’m doing side quests in Dragon’s Dogma 2 on Windows, playing Wind Waker on a portable Wii (not a typo), or streaming Astro Bot from my PlayStation 5, I can grab my trusted wired Apple EarPods and know that they will work with any type of device. That’s something oddly liberating and simple about that, and I’m not alone in feeling this way. Now picture a second problem: I mostly play video games at night, and I want to remain present and be able to hear my surroundings. Dog owners will understand: we have two sleeping in the bedroom with us, and I have to be able to hear that they’re sleeping well, snoring, or whatever. Let me tell you: you don’t want to accidentally miss one of your dogs throwing up in the bedroom because you were too “in the zone” with both your gaming earbuds in. I learned my lesson the hard way. Now, I could have left my Apple EarPods alone and simply chosen not to put the right EarPod in, leaving the wire hanging there, unused. But I haven’t gotten to this point after 15 years of MacStories by not challenging the status quo and “leaving things be”. Instead, I grabbed my scissors and cut the wire for the right EarBud just above the connector where the main cable splits in two halves. Behold: the single Apple EarPod I’ve been using as my go-to gaming “headphone” for the past two months. The EarPod. I’ve been using The EarPod with all my gaming handhelds, and it’s, honestly, been perfect. After removing the right channel, audio is automatically routed to the left EarPod as mono; regardless, there are ways both on Linux and Windows to force mono audio in games instead of stereo. The result is a comfortable, good-sounding, inexpensive, easier to unfurl wired earbud that works with everything and allows me to keep an ear on my surroundings, but in particular my dog Ginger, who – for whatever reason – doesn’t want to get off the bed when she’s sick. Bless her. Could I have purchased one of the many results that come up on Amazon for “mono earbud single ear”? Yes. But I genuinely love the shape and sound of Apple’s EarPods; I just wanted to be in a place where I only had to manage one of them. Plus, this is MacStories. I’ve done far worse than cutting an EarPod wire. If both of those very specific problems I mentioned above also apply to you, well, I guess I can’t recommend modding Apple’s EarPods enough. Access Extra Content and PerksFounded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every MacStories fan. Club MacStories: Weekly and monthly newsletters via email and the web that are brimming with apps, tips, automation workflows, longform writing, early access to the MacStories Unwind podcast, periodic giveaways, and more; Club MacStories+: Everything that Club MacStories offers, plus an active Discord community, advanced search and custom RSS features for exploring the Club’s entire back catalog, bonus columns, and dozens of app discounts; Club Premier: All of the above and AppStories+, an extended version of our flagship podcast that’s delivered early, ad-free, and in high-bitrate audio. Learn more here and from our Club FAQs. Join Now
Transcribe →First Look: Logitech’s MX Creative Console Is Poised to Compete with Elgato’s Stream Deck Lineup
Sep 24, 2024Tap to summarizeSource: Logitech. Today, Logitech revealed the MX Creative Console, the company’s first product that takes advantage technology from Loupedeck, a company it acquired in July 2023. I’ve been a user of Loupedeck products since 2019. When I heard about the acquisition last summer, I was intrigued. Loupedeck positioned itself as a premium accessory for creatives. The company’s early products were dedicated keyboard-like accessories for apps like Adobe Lightroom Classic. With the Loupedeck Live and later, the Live S, Loupedeck’s focus expanded to encompass the needs of streamers and automation more generally. Suddenly, Loupedeck was competing head-to-head with Elgato and its line of Stream Deck peripherals. I’ve always preferred Loupedeck’s more premium hardware to the Stream Deck, but that came at a higher cost, which I expect made it hard to compete. The Logitech MX Creative Console slots nicely into my existing setup. Fast forward to today, and the first Logitech product featuring Loupedeck’s know-how has been announced: the MX Creative Console. It’s a new direction for the hardware, coupled with familiar software. I’ve had Logitech’s new device for a couple of weeks, and I like it a lot. The MX Creative Console is first and foremost built for Adobe users. That’s clear from the three-month free trial to Creative Cloud that comes with the $199.99 device. Logitech has not only partnered with Adobe for the free trial, but it has worked with Adobe to create a series of plugins specifically for Adobe’s most popular apps, although plugins for other apps are available, too. I use Adobe apps, but my interest in the MX Creative Console is its ability to run keyboard shortcuts, trigger various system events, and string together multiple actions as macros. For example, I’m using the MX Creative Console to navigate RSS, add files to Dropover, manage my windows, and take screenshots. Those are things you can do with a Stream Deck, too, but Logitech’s MX Creative Console has a few special things going for it that I love. Up close with the MX Creative Console’s keypad. First, there’s the fact that the MX Creative Console comes in two parts. The first is a wireless dialpad with a big knob, a scroll wheel, and four programmable buttons; the dialpad is wireless because it has no screens, allowing it to run on AAA batteries. The second part is a keypad with nine customizable buttons plus two buttons for paging among multiple sets of the nine buttons. The two devices can work together, allowing, for example, a press of something like a brightness button on the keypad to control brightness via the dialpad’s knob. The keypad’s design is closer to that of a Stream Deck than a Loupedeck, which sacrifices some of the Loupedeck’s premium feel, but I still prefer it to a Stream Deck. The keys have a similar but perhaps slightly shallower throw and aren’t as concave as the Stream Deck. That means the icons assigned to each key’s little display aren’t as distorted by the shape of the keys as they are with a Stream Deck’s. There’s also a subtle lip on the edge of each key and a bump on the center key that makes it easy to orient your hand on the MX Creative Console’s keypad without looking at it. Source: Logitech. As for the dialpad, it connects to your computer wirelessly via Bluetooth or Logitech’s proprietary Bolt dongle. Either way, the dialpad can be paired with up to three devices, just like many of the company’s keyboards – something I wish Apple would do with its own input devices. In addition to a knob that’s excellent for adjusting sliders or scrolling horizontally, it includes a scroll wheel for navigating long vertical pages and four programmable buttons. The dialpad is even compatible with the iPad, too, connecting via Bluetooth and operating the same way a third-party mouse does for scrolling and clicking. Overall, my first impressions of the MX Creative Console’s hardware have been positive. By separating the device into two parts, it’s far more portable than many similar devices. I wouldn’t hesitate to throw one or the other or both into my bag because of their compact size and minimal weight. When I’m at my desk, the keypad includes a stand that holds the device at a little more than a 45° angle, too. Programming the MX Creative Console’s keypad with Logi Options+. I’m less excited about the MX Creative Console’s software. I’ve been using a beta version, so I’ll reserve judgment until its final release in October, but so far, programming the device isn’t great. That’s true of the Stream Deck too. Like it, Logitech uses a cross-platform app, Logitech Options+, that appears to be built with web technologies and just isn’t very good. Loupedeck users will recognize elements of Loupedeck’s software when they dig into Options+ to program the dialpad or keypad. But that familiarity isn’t an advantage because Loupedeck’s software was one of its weakest points as well. Logitech has done an admirable job of competing on hardware, but at least in its beta form, Options+ feels like it’s trying to steal Stream Deck’s crown for janky setup software. The only silver lining is that anyone who has used a Stream Deck or Loupedeck before won’t be surprised by Options+’s limitations. Still, the Logitech MX Creative Console is excellent overall. I’d prefer better software support, but again, it’s worth noting that the version of Options+ I’ve been using is a beta, and it does get the job done. Although the hardware isn’t as nice as the Loupedeck Live S, I prefer it to a standard Stream Deck and appreciate that it’s been split into two components which allows for a variety of desk setups and easier portability. I can’t wait to see where Logitech takes the MX Creative Console next and how Elgato responds. The Logitech MX Creative Console is available in black and light gray and can be pre-ordered today on Amazon or Logitech’s website. According to Amazon’s listing the device pre-orders will be delivered on October 16th. Access Extra Content and PerksFounded in 2015, Club MacStories has delivered exclusive content every week for nearly a decade. What started with weekly and monthly email newsletters has blossomed into a family of memberships designed every Ma...
Transcribe →visionOS 2: The MacStories Review
Sep 18, 2024Tap to summarizeIn the lead-up to this year’s WWDC, it was hard to predict what an update to visionOS would look like. After all, the initial version had only shipped four months earlier when Apple Vision Pro became available for purchase in the United States. Given how late in the software cycle visionOS 1 shipped, it was reasonable to wonder if there would be a visionOS 2 announced at all, and if so, how much it could realistically add to an operating system that had just debuted the previous quarter. Of course, Apple’s software cycle waits for no one, so like watchOS before it, visionOS is receiving a 2.0 version rapidly on the heels of its initial release. But the shortened development window doesn’t mean that this update isn’t a significant one. I believe that the 2.0 moniker is well deserved based on the features and enhancements included in this release, especially given the quieter updates across all of Apple’s platforms this year in the wake of Apple Intelligence. visionOS 2 moves spatial computing forward with an array of welcome quality-of-life improvements, deeper integration with some of Apple’s other platforms, additional tools for developers to create spatial experiences, system app updates in line with Apple’s other platforms, and a new way to experience photos that you have to see to believe. The combination of user experience refinements and new features makes for a solid update that Vision Pro users are definitely going to notice and enjoy. Some of the changes we’ll dive into feel so obvious that you might wonder why they weren’t included in visionOS to begin with. Having used Vision Pro almost daily since it was released, I fully understand the sentiment. But then I remember that the iPhone didn’t gain the ability to copy and paste text until iPhone OS 3, and I’m reminded that developing new platforms takes time – even for a company as big as Apple. So while some might seem basic, many of the changes included in visionOS 2 improve users’ experiences in significant ways every time they interact with the platform. The end result is a smoother, more intuitive operating system that will delight Vision Pro believers and, if Apple has its way, convince more skeptics to take the plunge into spatial computing. Let’s jump into what visionOS 2 has to offer. a.button { text-decoration: none !important; padding: 8px; margin: 8px; white-space: nowrap; display: inline-block; line-height: 1.18; text-align: center; } a.button:hover { transition: none; } a.club { isolation: isolate; position: relative; z-index: 1; width: max-content; padding: 8px 16px; background: transparent; border: none; border-radius: 25px; transition: transform 400ms, box-shadow 400ms; will-change: transform, box-shadow; transform: translateY(0); } a.club:hover { box-shadow: 0 0 4px #d4af37; transition: transform 200ms, box-shadow 100ms; transform: translateY(-1px); padding: 8px 16px; } a.club:after { transition: transform 200ms; transform: translateY(1px); } a.club:active { box-shadow: 0 0 2px hsl(0 0 0 / 0.4); transition: transform 100ms, box-shadow 100ms; transform: translateY(0); } a.club:active:after { transition: transform 200ms; transform: translateY(0); } a.club:before { content: ''; position: absolute; isolation: isolate; z-index: -1; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; border-radius: 25px; box-shadow: 0 1px 2px hsl(0 0 0 / 0.4); background: linear-gradient( hsl(46, 88%, 80%) 0%, hsl(45, 44%, 47%) 100% ); } a.club:after { content: ''; position: absolute; isolation: isolate; z-index: -2; background: transparent; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; border-radius: 25px; background-color: hsl(0 0 0 / 0.4); box-shadow: 0 2px 2px hsl(0 0 0 / 0.4); will-change: transform; transform: translateY(0); transition: transform 400ms; } a.plan-club, a.plan-appstories, a.plan-plus, a.plan-premier { min-width: 150px; font-weight: 700 !important; } a.plan-club span { display: block; color: #000; font-weight: 400; } a.plan-appstories span { display: block; color: #000; font-weight: 400; } a.plan-plus span { display: block; color: #000; font-weight: 400; } a.plan-premier span { display: block; color: #000; font-weight: 400; } a.plan-club { color: hsl(358, 89%, 36%) !important; } a.plan-appstories { color: #210a30 !important; } a.plan-appstories:before { background: linear-gradient(hsl(204, 100%, 75%) 0%, hsl(204, 100%, 40%) 100%); } a.plan-appstories:hover { box-shadow: 0 0 4px #0099FF; } a.plan-plus { color: #760087 !important; } a.plan-premier { color: #060e1d !important; } Exclusive Extras & Support MacStories eBooks, Wallpapers, and Illustrated macOS Screen Saver We’re taking a different approach with paid extras for this year’s OS reviews. First of all, we’ve created a special eBook version of my visionOS 2 review for Club MacStories Plus and Premier members, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. That eBook is joined by eBook versions of the macOS Sequoia and watchOS 11 reviews for Club MacStories Plus and Premier members and the eBook version of Federico’s iOS and iPadOS 18 review, which is available to all Club MacStories members. But there’s even more, so we’ve teamed up with our friend Chris Lawley who created a trailer that describes everything you can unlock: So, to sum up: You can unlock the eBook version of this review, all of our other reviews, the wallpapers, and macOS screen saver by joining Club MacStories Plus or Club Premier using the buttons below: Join Club MacStories+: Join Annual$100/yearJoin Monthly$10/month Join Club Premier: Join Annual$120/yearJoin Monthly$12/month Scout’s illustrations are gorgeous, and they make for some amazing wallpapers. The screen saver is remarkable, too: since the illustrations were hand-drawn in Procreate (which automatically generates a time-lapse of the entire process), we were able to create a screen saver (developed by James Thomson) that makes the artwork come alive on your Mac’s display. The macOS screen saver. Or, if all you want is the eBook of Federico’s iOS and iPadOS 18 review, you can simply join Club MacStories with a $5/month or $50/year Club MacStories plan using the buttons below: Join Annual$50/yearJoin Monthly$5/month Now more than ever, an indie publication such as MacStories depends on income from members who want to directly support what we do. As always, though, we aim to provide as much value as we can in return. If you want to support MacStories and our ongoing efforts to team up with creativ...
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