shownotes_20201227

Opening
  Opening Music
    Music is Say Anything by Manda and the Marbles
News
  2020 was not too bad for Apple
    It was pretty amazing in fact.
    I would argue they launched the best line up for products they have ever had.
    Counterpoint Research noted this past week that the iPhone 12 became the best selling 5G phone in the world in October
      And that was with only 2 weeks of sales in October
      That also made it the 7th best selling 5G phone in all of 2020
      And the iPhone 12 Pro was the second best selling 5G phone for October
    Macs saw a great boost as well.
    I a research note Goldman Sachs says that Mac revenues rose 50% year-over-year in the third quarter of 2020
      More people working remotely and doing school from home helped both Mac and iPad sales
      It’s likely that positive reviews of Apple’s M1 machines and the Holiday buying season will also help Apple post big numbers for Mac in the 4th quarter as well.
  Year-end speculation turns to Apple Car
    Reuters came out with a report speculating that Apple Car production could begin as early as 2024
      We won’t even comment on the crazy rumor that seemed to claim Apple might have a car ready in 2021
      Apple’s breakthrough is rumored to be a monocell battery design and investigating lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery chemistry
        The goals being more efficient and longer range batteries
        LFP batteries are also less susceptible to overheating
        The report also claims that Apple could “radically” reduce battery cost
      The report says Apple has once again re-shifted focus back to producing their own vehicles
        Previous reports had claimed Apple had moved to developing a self-driving system and that they would likely partner with an automobile manufacturer to integrate their system
        Apple would still likely use a manufacturing partner to build their vehicles.
      Goldman Sachs said in an investors note that Apple is likely more interested in developing in-car experiences than a vehicle
        Cited the low profit margins of the car industry
        Also noted the time people in self driving vehicles will have to interact with information and entertainment systems.
      Elon Musk claimed on Twitter that he tried to contact Apple about buying Tesla back in the “darkest days of the Model 3 program”
        Says Tim Cook wouldn’t take a meeting
      Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo doesn’t think Apple will have a vehicle ready to launch
  A Gaming focused Apple TV
    This coming from Bloomberg via Mark Gurman’s most recent newsletter
    Basically re-iterated the rumors that Apple is working on an Apple TV update in 2021
    It would have an updated processor, though it’s not clear which one. A12 or A14 variants have been rumored
    A new remote with “Find My” like capabilities
      I would assume using the Ultra-wide band capabilities found in newer iPhones
    Apple may even produce their own game controller
      Let’s just hope it’s not perfectly symmetrically shaped with only a single button and a trackpad. ;)
    Higher 64GB and 128GB storage capacity options
      Store bigger and better games with more data
    With more and more apps, including Apple TV app, making their way to smartTVs Apple needs a way to keep their set top box relevant.
  The Verizon 5G dupe
    PC Mag did 5G vs 4G tests in NY and Chicago on Verizon and by switching to 4G you could often get faster results
      The reason… to roll out it’s “Nationwide’ 5G Verizon uses a technology called dynamic spectrum sharing, or DSS
      Some of the channels for it’s 5G reuse parts of their 4G channels
      In a statement Verizon even confirmed that for many customers the 5G speeds would be similar to 4G performance.
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Feedback, commentary, opinions
  New Macs RAM vs SSD
    I never thought when I shared my thoughts on this with regard to the new M1 Macs that it’s would stir up a debate. but it did.
    To clarify, my statements we in regard to the new Apple M1 machines which reviews are showing perform very well even with just 8GB of RAM
      We also have been having a discussion on how many in our community seem to be continually bumping up against the low builtin storage sizes of their Macs
    The counter arguments to my statements are:
      In most Macs (the 27-inch iMac and Mac Pro the exceptions) you cannot add any RAM later
      You can use a fast Thunderbolt 3 external SSD to “upgrade” your storage
    I can see and understand both of these arguments
    So it ALWAYS comes back to a couple of statements that I have always made
      Every persons needs are different and the answers for one person are not necessarily right for another person
      Know what your needs are and buy the best Mac / device you can afford that will fulfill those needs at the time
  Fitness+ Community reviews
    Play review from Gary
    Josh wrote in to say he “loves” Fitness+
      Has been doing the treadmill workouts
      Particularly the Yoga and Cool Down features
      Did note he was having the issues some have noted about getting the “Pairing Cancelled” notice and not being able to an Apple TV or iPad mini 5
  A community thank you
    I could not have done this for 16 years without you.
Closing
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