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Opening
Sponsor: Kandji
  Kandji
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News
  The hubbub over new Macs
    Despite not likely being a Mac only event there seems to be a lot of focus in the community on the Macs Apple may or may not announce in March.
    Many think Apple’s next event will happen March 8th. We’re expecting a new iPhone SE and entry-level iPad, but it’s the possible M2 Macs that have the rumor mills buzzing
    Three new Mac models have been spotted in filings to the Eurasian Economic Database
      A2615, A2686, and A2681 all listed as running macOS Monterey
      The models I assume would be a new 13-inch MacBook Pro, new MacBook Air, and new Mac mini.
      The successors to the M1 versions from last year with updated M2 processors
    In recent note from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman he thinks Apple will announce the updated entry level MacBook Pro and the Mac mini, but the MacBook Air will likely come later in the year maybe near the holidays.
    For the 13-inch MacBook Pro model MacRumors claims to have sources telling them that there will be no design changes, just a M2 processor update
      That means it keeps the TouchBar, doesn’t gain a notch, and no ProMotion like it’s bigger 14-inch and 16-inch sisters
      Seems really odd to me to not bring all the models together with the same design language.
      Ultimately that means just adding two graphics cores, bringing it up to 10, but keeping the same number of CPU cores and bumping performance a bit.
    Some had been hoping to see a 27-inch M1 Pro and Max version of the iMac, but now display analyst Ross Young says that model is likely coming in June (honestly I felt like the “Pro” announcements would be in June)
      It’s believed that Apple has been working on a miniLED version of the 27-inch iMac for a while and it will likely come with a “Pro” moniker
      Previously he had said a possible August or September launch, so that’s moving the date up quite a bit.
    A company that makes password cracking tools called Passware claims to have found a vulnerability in Apple’s T2 chip that allows it to bypass the password lockouts and crack passwords on the machine
      They already have a tool that uses GPU acceleration to make brute-force attacks at a rate of tens of thousands of passwords per second which can potentially crack password on older non-T2 Macs
      But the password lockout on T2 Macs had previously thwarted them. There they’d have to go after brute-forcing the decryption key and that takes millions of years.
      With the new method they still are extremely slow, about 15 or so attempts per second.
      So as long as you have a good, random, and sufficiently long password it would still take thousands of years to brute force crack.
      If you have a short, say six character, password that is not random and contains dictionary words it could crack in as little as 10 hours or so.
      The tool also requires direct physical access to your Mac, so choose a good password and keep control of your own computer and you should be fine.
  Apple TV+ focus on SXSW
    The 2022 SXSW film festival in Austin, TX happens on March 11-19 and looks like Apple plans to debut a new film and four of their new series at the show
    For the film they’ll screen "Cha Cha Real Smooth" which stars Dakota Johnson and is directed by Cooper Raiff. The film also won the Audience Award at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival.
    Apple will also screen the series “We Crashed” which follows the story of the rise and fall of the WeWork founders and stars Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway.
    They will show their new docuseries about basketball legend Earvin "Magic" Johnson called “They Call Me Magic"
    Along with the new drama series "Shining Girls" which stars and is executive produced by Elisabeth Moss
    And finally a new project from the filmmakers behind “McMillion$” James Lee Hernandez and Brian Lazarte. A docuseries called "The Big Conn” which tells the story of Eric C. Conn, an attorney who "defrauded the government over half a billion dollars in the largest Social Security fraud case in history."
    Meanwhile Apple is also prepping for the upcoming Oscars
      Their films CODA and The Tragedy of Macbeth received several nominations, Apple films are up for six awards in all
      According to “Just Watch” following the announcements of the nomination both films returned to the top 10 streaming charts in the US.
      In addition Apple plans to re-release CODA into theaters select major cities in the U.S. and London for a limited run and the showings are free on a firs come first served basis.
        The showings will happen three times a day from February 25 through February 27 and they will all have open captions to "be fully accessible to the deaf and hard-of-hearing"
    And of course Apple TV+ continues to announce and expand it’s line-up of content
      They announced a new docuseries called Omnivore
        It’s about food and “will tell the story of humanity and the planet through eight defining ingredients.”
      They also seem to really want to get more sports content one way or the other (we talked bout their rumored bid for Thursday night football)
        A report from “THR’ claims Apple has ordered a 10-part docuseries called “The Dynasty” about the New England Patriots
        The project comes from Imagine Documentaries and NFL Films and is based on a book of the same name by Jeff Benedict
        It follows the Tom Brady years of the franchise
  Dutch fine up to 20M now
    Back in January the Dutch Authority for Consumers and Markets expressed their displeasure with Apple’s proposed solution for allowing 3rd party payments in dating apps on the Dutch App store.
    The authority had ruled that Apple need to allow for such payments and Apple complied but said developer would have to create a new version of their app if they wish to use an alternative payment system.
    As such they gave Apple until January 15th to change their conditions or they would start fining Apple five million euros a week up to 50 million euros until they changed their policies
    Plus Apple still will collect a 27% fee on 3rd party purchases, but the Dutch Authority doesn;t seem to have any issue with that.
    Well Apple didn’t do anything and hasn’t for the past 4 weeks so as such they’ve now paid 20 million euro in fines.
    I think that Apple plans to just payout the full 50 million to have their way. It’s not clear to me what, if anything, happens to Apple after they reach the maximum fine.
  iPhone 14 Pro: Moar RAM?
    A rumor coming out of a Korean blog says that Apple will add the most RAM it ever has to the new iPhone Pro models
    The leak says Apple will bump it up to 8GB some think to match the recently announced Samsung Galaxy S22 models.
    It’s not the first time we heard this rumor though. Haitong International Securities analyst Jeff Pu made the same claim near the end of last year
    Still even this years iPhone 13 Pro models best the Galaxy S22 and they have 6GB of RAM. It’s not clear exactly why Apple would need to add more as they’ve always been able to do more with less.
    Apple isn’t typically one to just play “keeping up with the Sams”, so if they do bump it I feel it’d have to be for some specific feature or functionality. Maybe to better support the new higher 48MP camera they’re rumored to be adding?
    It’s also looking like the iPhone 14 (non-Pro) model might not be gaining ProMotion and that will remain a “Pro” feature
      The Elect says that BOE will be supplying Apple with low-temperature polycrystalline silicon (LTPS) thin-film transistor (TFT) OLED panels for the upcoming iPhone 14 series
      LTPO displays are used in the iPhone 13 Pros and is the tech that allows for variable refresh rates up to 120Hz
Sponsor: SimpliSafe
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Feedback, commentary, opinions
  Two-step KVM
    Here’s a solution that came from Chad that seems pretty good though not exactly like the one click KVM’s of you're
    Does require dual input monitor, a wired keyboard, and a RF (not Bluetooth) mouse.
    So you connect each machine to a different source input on the monitor. Say one on HDMI and the other on Thunderbolt 3
    Then Chad uses a simple USB A/B switch from Sabrent called the [USB 2.0 Sharing Switch](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074TZKGVR/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_i_7ZZ01WD8BC89ZCJJN4F8?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1)
      It’s only USB 2.0 but for a mouse and keyboard that shouldn’t matter.
    Then the RF dongle for the mouse is plugged into the Apple wired keyboard (or any wired keyboard with a USB port)
    So to switch Chad just has to change the source on the monitor and then click the A/B switch for the mouse and keyboard.
    He says this setup has been working reliably for him for the past six years.
  TouchID in clamshell
    I think it was last episode I mentioned my new M1 Pro 14-inch MacBook Pro work computer
    I’m using it in clamshell mode with the Monoprice USB-C to DVI adapters that were my “Thing of the Moment"
    But also commented that it’s a bummer because I can’t use the TouchID in clamshell mode.
    Terry email me to remind me that Apple has their new Magic Keyboard with Touch ID keyboards in both a compact and extended edition and they work with ALL Apple Silicon machines
    It’s a bit of a costly upgrade at USD $149 and $179 respectively, plus I only have one Apple Silicon machine so far, but might be worth the investment in the future
    Side note… even though the Monoprice USB-C to DVI adapters work beautifully plugged directly into my Mac I’m finding I can’t use two monitors when plugged into my Anker 13-in-1 Thunderbolt 3 dock
    Though I don’t think I tried one on Thunderbolt and 1 on HDMI through the dock
    Thoughts? I think it’s because I might to to daisy chain on the downstream Thunderbolt port? Unfortunately not really possible with my old DVI / HDMI monitors.
    I see some new monitors in my future, but something with extra downstream ports for sure. Recommendations?
      The [32-inch LG UltraFine™ 4K UHD LED Monitor](https://www.lg.com/us/monitors/lg-32UL950-W-4k-uhd-led-monitor) 32UL950-W looks pretty nice.
      Also the BenQ [32 inch 4K Thunderbolt 3 Monitor with Display P3 | PD3220U](https://www.benq.com/en-us/monitor/designer/pd3220u.html)
  Apple TV Privacy Settings
    Dan wrote in about an article he read recently that compared privacy settings on set-top streamers
    The article makes it seem as if Apple auto-opts you into data collection so that they can make recommendations for you view, but that’s a bit misleading
    When Dan checked his settings he was indeed opted-in, but that is something that is part of the set-up on ANY Apple device these days.
    When setting up the set-up will ask you a few things
      Do you want location services on
      Do you want to share Siri Dictation data
      Do you want to share data with Apple
      Do you want to share App data with app developers
    The default option is “yes” in I believe ALL cases and Apple makes it appealing saying it will help them improve their products and services, but you can always opt out.
      You can adjust all of these options in Settings > General > Privacy
    Some other settings and options to be aware of…
      Allow apps to ask permission to track you
        Under Settings > General > Privacy
        Select Tracking
        Turn Allow Apps to Ask to Track on or off. (you might want “Off” if that’s your default posture)
          Each app that asks for permission to track while this setting is turned off will be treated as if you tapped Ask App Not to Track.
      Set which third-party apps can access and remember preferences for Apple TV users
        Helpful if you have multiple users on your Apple TV
        Again under Settings > General > Privacy
        Select Apple TV Users, then turn App User Access on or off, or select Reset User Access to remove any user-specific preferences from all third-party apps.
      Review Analytics data
        Fair warning it’s probably gobblety goo to most folks. JSON data format.
        Settings > General > Privacy
        Select Analytics Data
        Select a data item and click “View”
  Thing of the Moment: iPhone Leather Wallet with MagSafe
    This one comes from Justin who says he’s a “non-case” iPhone man and recently upgraded his iPhone SE v2 to a new iPhone 13 mini
    He likes the slim feel of the bare iPhone and figures that the way Apple designed it to be used
    But he also found the sharp edge (design) combined with the size hard to hold in one hand and was considering adding a bumper case but didn’t find one he liked.
    Then he had a chance to try out a relatives MagSafe iPhone Leather Wallet
    And for him adding the wallet was “a game changer"
    He said the little bit of extra depth it added allowed his hand to cup the phone perfectly making it easier for him to use and operate in one hand.
    It fits, as Apple says, about 3 cards perfectly and Justin says it’s slim and smooth enough not to interfere with easily getting the phone in and out of his pocket
    Finally as a bonus it has AirTag FindMy functionality built in and ask you if you want to set it up the first time you attach the wallet to your device.
    Sounds like a nice pick.
    I’ll also make a pick for Apple’s Leather iPhone case. I find it adds a nice grip to the device and feels great without adding a lot of bulk. Plus the wear and age very well and you can use the MagSafe version in conjunction with the MagSafe wallet.
Closing
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