This week on AppStories, we pick up where we left off in episode 300 by revisiting episode 200 about calendar apps, communications, home assistants, and Federico’s first surprise of 2021.
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Apple announced that later this month, it will launch Emergency SOS via satellite, a new service for the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro that allows users who are out of range of mobile and WiFi networks to message emergency services. The company also said that the upcoming service is the result of a $450 million investment by the company’s Advanced Manufacturing Fund, which predominantly went to Globalstar, a global satellite service company.
Globalstar operates 24 low-earth orbit satellites that will relay messages from iPhone 14 users via satellite and ground stations to emergency services or a relay center with Apple-trained emergency specialists if local emergency services cannot receive text-based messages. The ground stations use high-powered antennas designed for Apple by Cobham Satcom. In addition to Emergency SOS, iPhone 14 users will be able to send their location via satellite using the Find My app.
Jeff Williams, Apple’s chief operating officer, said:
Emergency SOS via satellite is a perfect example of how American ingenuity and technology can save lives. We are proud this service is enabled by leading US companies, and that our users can explore off-the-grid areas knowing they are still within reach of emergency services if they are in need.
Seeing the infrastructure that goes into Emergency SOS really drives home the complexity of the technology that underlies the service. I hope I never need to use Emergency SOS, but I’m looking forward to trying the Find My integration the next time I’m beyond the reach of a mobile or WiFi network.
Today, Apple Music announced that Bad Bunny is its 2022 Artist of the Year. Un Verano Sin Ti, which Bad Bunny released in May, is the most streamed album on Apple Music and the biggest Latin album of all time.
In Apple’s press release, Oliver Schusser, Apple’s vice president of Apple Music and Beats, said:
We’re thrilled to celebrate the achievements of Bad Bunny, whose influence on every corner of culture could not be ignored in 2022. Watching Bad Bunny ascend from an Apple Music Up Next artist in 2018 to our Artist of the Year this year has been nothing short of extraordinary. We congratulate him on his record-breaking year and for continuing to bring Latin music to a massive global audience.
Apple Music has created a dedicated section of the Music app celebrating Bad Bunny’s achievement and music. Bad Bunny has also taken over the La Fórmula playlist to spotlight some of his favorite Latin tracks. Plus, Apple Music 1 is dedicating today to Bad Bunny’s music, interviews with the artist, and more.
Apple’s Artist of the Year is celebrated with a unique award featuring a 12-inch silicon wafer suspended between a sheet of glass and anodized aluminum. Last year and in prior years, Apple announced additional awards like the Breakthrough Artist of the Year, Songwriter of the Year, and more. This year, though, only an Artist of the Year was named.
Because Club MacStories now encompasses more than just newsletters, we’ve created a guide to the past week’s happenings along with a look at what’s coming up next:
This week, Federico and John pick up where they left off in episode 300 by revisiting episode 200 about calendar apps, communications, home assistants, and Federico’s first surprise of 2021.
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One of the primary ways I discover new music is through Apple Music playlists. Sometimes it’s Friday’s New Music Mix, but it’s just as likely to be something from one of Apple’s curated Indie or Alternative playlists. When I come across an artist or album that I like but have never heard before, I’m torn....
MenuBot MenuBot is a clever combination of Shortcuts and a menu bar app that makes it simple to add and update bits of data in your Mac’s menu bar. The app makes use of SF Symbols to provide a single icon per shortcut, providing a style that works perfectly with other menu bar icons....
Jennifer Pattison Tuohy writing for The Verge reviews the Level Lock Plus, which includes support for Apple’s Home Keys feature. (Link) Rewind promises to make finding things on your Mac easier by recording everything you do and storing it locally, which may nonetheless raise privacy concerns among many users. (Link) Aqara, the maker low-cost...
This week on MacStories Unwind, Federico and John talk about the new Apple TV 4K, changes to the TV app, and Taylor Swift’s latest album, Midnights.
Links and Show Notes
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Federico