John Voorhees

5560 posts on MacStories since November 2015

John is MacStories' Managing Editor, has been writing about Apple and apps since joining the team in 2015, and today, runs the site alongside Federico. John also co-hosts four MacStories podcasts: AppStories, which covers the world of apps, MacStories Unwind, which explores the fun differences between American and Italian culture and recommends media to listeners, Ruminate, a show about the weird web and unusual snacks, and NPC: Next Portable Console, a show about the games we take with us.
@[email protected]
@johnvoorhees.macstories.net
voorhees@macstories.net

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Dezeen Highlights The Observatory, a New Event Space at Apple Park→

Architecture and design site, Dezeen has an exclusive first look at The Observatory, a new events space built into the side of a hill at Apple Park. The building, which is near the Steve Jobs Theater, will open officially later today, presumably for the iPhone media event.

Apple’s global head of design (real estate and development) John De Maio told Dezeen:

When we built Apple Park, we wanted the entire campus to be seamlessly integrated into the landscape, and this building follows that same approach,

With its stunning views of the campus greenery and the mountains ringing the horizon, The Observatory truly is an extension of Apple Park, showcasing the best of California and the best of the natural environment around us,

The building brings in the natural stone, terrazzo and wood elements that are featured in The Steve Jobs Theater and across Apple Park. It’s a design that complements both the landscape and its neighboring buildings on campus.

The Observatory looks spectacular. Don’t miss the photos shared by Dezeen on its site.

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AppStories - Ep. 402 - 44 minutes

Productivity Powerhouses (Part 2)

FedericoJohn
AppStories+ Deeper into the world of apps

AppStories Episode 402 - Productivity Powerhouses (Part 2)

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AppStories+ Deeper into the world of apps

This week, Federico and John finish their tour of the apps they use for work and play to be productive.

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GamingBuddy

I follow a lot of videogame websites via RSS, but I often fall behind on reading them, especially at busy times of the year. When my time frees up, instead of combing through a backlog of hundreds of articles to find the ones I’m interested in, I’ve started using GamingBuddy by Filip Němeček, an iOS-only...

App Debuts

John

Ellipsis Travel If you’re looking for a free alternative to a trip-planning app like Tripsy, Ellipsis is worth a look. The app’s design isn’t as nice as that of Tripsy and others, but it brings together a lot of information in an organized way. The app supports map-focused planning of activities, events, restaurants, hotels,...

Interesting Link

John

Earlier this week, I saw this story from Joe Rossignol at MacRumors about a Twelve South USB-C GaN wall charger that incorporates Find My technology, and I’m intrigued, but do people really misplace wall chargers? (Link) Jennifer Pattison Tuohy has details on The Verge about the Philips Hue Play HDMI sync box 8K, which...

The Latest from Magic Rays of Light, Comfort Zone, and MacStories Unwind

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts:

Sigmund and Devon highlight the triumphant return of Slow Horses and rate tvOS streaming apps based on how well they take advantage of system features.

Niléane and Chris have upgraded their desk setups, but Matt didn’t get the memo and brought a hard drive or something. Then we see who can bend the rules the most to survive the challenge.

This week, a surprise apology for rain, an update on our annual OS reviews and what we plan to do with our free time once they’re finished, and a TV pick.

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Balatro+ Is Coming to Apple Arcade on September 26th

Balatro+. Source: Apple.

Balatro+. Source: Apple.

Earlier today, Apple announced several new and updated games are coming to Arcade, including one of my favorites of 2024: Balatro. Balatro is a roguelike deck-builder that mixes the familiarity of poker with special joker and other cards for combos that result in an incredibly fun roller coaster ride that’s hard to put down.

The game was originally released earlier this year on consoles and PC, but the potential for a mobile version was immediately obvious. My and many others’ wish for an iOS version of Balatro will come true on September 26th as part of the Apple Arcade service with Balatro+, which will also be available on the iPad, Mac, Apple TV, and Apple Vision Pro.

Other notable Arcade announcements today include NFL Retro Bowl ‘25 and Monster Train+, which are out today along with Puzzle Sculpt, a spatial puzzle game for the Apple Vision Pro. NBA 2K is returning with NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition on October 6th, too.

Of all these games, though, I’m mostly excited about Balatro+. We’ve discussed this on NPC and elsewhere many times, but this is exactly the sort of game that Apple Arcade needs. There’s plenty of room for variety on Apple Arcade, but for a while, it’s felt like the artistic, indie corner of the catalog has been in decline. Balatro+ is just one game, but it’s an important one that many consider a contender for ‘Game of the Year,’ so I’m very happy to see it on Arcade.

Apple Music Vibes with Five New Mood Stations

Today, Apple Music introduced five new mood stations:

The music featured by the stations is automatically updated from Apple Music’s catalog of over 100 million tracks and tuned to your listening tastes.

This isn’t the first time Apple has introduced mood stations. You may recall that it released Love and Heartbreak stations on Valentines Day. All seven mood stations are in a new ‘Find Your Mood’ section in Apple Music’s Home tab.

I haven’t spent a lot of time with Apple Music’s new mood stations yet, but as I sampled each, I was met with a familiar song or band, with every track matching the mood I picked. I’ll be digging into each of these station more as I edit my macOS Sequoia review.

Ivory 2.2 Adds New Navigation Design and More→

Ivory, the Mastodon app by Tapbots, was updated on iOS and iPadOS yesterday with a new navigation design.

The app’s new tab bar can accommodate up to six of its many views and adds a ‘More’ button on the far right for ones that don’t fit. From the ‘More’ button, there’s also a shortcut to configure the order in which Ivory’s tabs appear. I’ve been using the new design in beta for a while and love having the added level of control over my Mastodon experience.

Tapbots has also added the ability to translate hashtags by long-pressing on them and now displays media, cards, and quotes when a post is truncated with a ‘Read More’ button. Posts that quote an account you’ve blocked are no longer visible either. Finally, there’s an all-new Blueprint app icon.

The Ivory update is available on the App Store.

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