Jonathan Reed

35 posts on MacStories since February 2024

Jonathan is a freelance graphic designer. As well as being a long-time Apple user he is a huge film and television aficionado and is very interested in the intersection between the two mediums and technology. He lives in London with his wife and daughter and is writing his bio in the third person.


CarPlay in iOS 26: The MacStories Review

When CarPlay Ultra was announced… checks notes… three years ago, it was a bold vision for the future of in-car displays. There was as much drooling over the new designs as there was skepticism over whether any car manufacturer would agree to such an extensive display overhaul.

Underneath all that, there were also some concerns about where this left regular, vanilla CarPlay. The kind that many people had fallen in love with, and which was often a prerequisite when buying a new car. Was this going away, or would it just be left to wither on the vine?

Thankfully, with iOS 26, the answer seems to be a firm “no” as Apple brings much more customization to our in-car displays, mainly by letting the much heralded features of CarPlay Ultra trickle down to regular CarPlay. There’s more than you’d think, so let’s take a look.

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watchOS 26: The MacStories Review

Last year was my first covering the watchOS beat with version 11. It turned out to be a trial by fire, with the annual software update for the world’s most popular smartwatch proving to be both sizable and significant.

While controversy reigned over iOS, iPadOS, and macOS regarding new Apple Intelligence features, watchOS took an exit off of that highway to a more peaceful, focused road that contained real, tangible updates. There were long-requested customizations to Activity Rings, as well as added power and functionality in the Smart Stack. Brand new features like Training Load and the Vitals app started to hint that Apple was maybe, finally, getting serious about, well, serious athletes.

If I’m being honest, I expected more of the same this year. The watchOS team seemed to be on a roll. Unfortunately, that hasn’t come to pass with watchOS 26, which – unlike watchOS 11 with Apple Intelligence – has been brought along for the ride with this year’s big controversy: Liquid Glass.

Can watchOS 26 handle this big UI overhaul and still deliver some tangible additions in this, the year of the Apple Watch’s tenth anniversary? Let’s take a look.

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Sound Designer Dallas Taylor on the Audio Enhancements to AirPods Pro 3

Source: [Dallas Taylor](https://www.youtube.com/@dallastaylor.mp3).

Source: Dallas Taylor.

While the highlights of Apple’s AirPods Pro 3 reveal seemed to be the addition of heart rate sensors, increased battery life, and improved Active Noise Cancellation, Dallas Taylor on YouTube went a bit deeper on the actual listening experience.

Taylor is a sound designer and the host of the excellent Twenty Thousand Hertz podcast. (I can highly recommend this episode about the famous sounds of Apple and this one about the iconic sound of HBO.) He also runs a YouTube channel and was invited to Apple Park yesterday to try out the new AirPods Pro for himself.

He came away very impressed with the improved ANC, but what stood out to me was the significant upgrade in sound quality he mentioned, especially the bass. You can watch Taylor give his thoughts below, but it’s interesting to hear about a notable improvement in what people use AirPods for the most: listening to music.


You can follow all of our September 2025 Apple event coverage through our September 2025 Apple event hub or subscribe to the dedicated September 2025 Apple event RSS feed.

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Jess Weatherbed Breaks Down Why Apple’s Crossbody Strap is a Great Idea

Source: Apple.

Source: Apple.

In the run-up to yesterday’s Apple Event, there were increasingly loud rumblings that Apple would introduce a crossbody strap or lanyard that could be attached to new iPhone cases.

What followed was a noticeable amount of confusion from those in the tech sphere as to why Apple was entering this market. Now that the Crossbody Strap has been released, Jess Weatherbed at The Verge has a great explainer on why crossbody straps are an increasingly popular trend and why Apple’s take on them is so good. (Spoiler: it’s magnets. It’s always magnets.)

This trend seems to be more popular in Europe and Asia, but it’s picking up steam in the United States, too. I personally see them all the time in London, both as fashion accessories and practical ways for people to carry their most important device. In fact, as a quick experiment, I counted almost 20 of them on my five-minute walk back from this morning’s school drop-off.

The Apple Crossbody Strap is available to order now and is only compatible with Apple’s cases for iPhone 17, Air, 17 Pro, and 17 Pro Max. For more on all the accessories Apple released this week, check out Niléane’s overview.


You can follow all of our September 2025 Apple event coverage through our September 2025 Apple event hub or subscribe to the dedicated September 2025 Apple event RSS feed.

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Apple Announces Final Cut Camera 2.0 with Support for ProRes RAW and Genlock

Today, in tandem with new video recording capabilities and lenses in the iPhone 17 Pro line, Apple announced version 2.0 of Final Cut Camera, its pro video recording app for the iPhone.

The update introduces support for ProRes RAW and genlock, which the new iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max are able to record in. ProRes RAW is an industry-standard way to record video, allowing the capture of RAW data, which unlocks incredible control of recorded video in post-production. In upcoming releases of Final Cut Pro for Mac and Final Cut Pro for iPad, exposure, color temperature, tint, and demosaicing can all be adjusted on ProRes RAW footage.

Genlock, a process of synchronizing multiple video sources by having them lock onto an external reference signal, will allow filmmakers to make frame-accurate edits in a fraction of the time it would take when doing so manually.

As part of the recording process, version 2.0 supports open gate recording, allowing the use of the whole camera sensor to capture video, instead of the current cropped version. This opens up possibilities for reframing shots, stabilizing footage, and setting final aspect ratios without reducing the quality of the image.

As well as these announcements, Final Cut Camera introduces the following new functionalities:

  • Support for recording in portrait and landscape using the new square sensor-equipped front-facing camera. The new camera can shoot portrait or landscape video without the need to rotate the device
  • Manual adjustment of the new front-facing camera on the iPhone 17 Pro
  • Support for Apple Log 2, which features a wider color gamut
  • New Timecode options like Time of Day or other external timecodes.
  • Support for recording ProRes up to 4K60 fps with the new 200mm telephoto lens on the iPhone 17 Pro

Final Cut Camera will be available later this month.


Apple Announces Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch Ultra 3, Apple Watch SE, and New Health Features

Source: Apple.

Source: Apple.

While most of the focus going into today’s event was on the heavily boosted iPhone lineup, predictions were cool for new Apple Watches. When the new lineup was unveiled, the upgrades were mostly spec bumps for the Series 11, while the Apple Watch Ultra finally got a proper update, and the SE got a notable bump. Apple also announced a potentially groundbreaking new health tracking feature. Let’s take a look.

Apple Watch Series 11

Yes, the Series 11 looks identical to the Series 10. Source: Apple.

Yes, the Series 11 looks identical to the Series 10. Source: Apple.

The updates to the flagship Apple Watch are simple but noticeable quality-of-life improvements. First, there’s battery life, which jumps from 18 hours on a single charge to a whopping 24 hours. Additionally, Low Power Mode adds an extra 2 hours over the Series 10 to reach 38 hours of battery life. Then, while the fast-charging capability remains at 0–80% in 30 minutes, you can now add 8 hours of charge in just 15 minutes.

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Apple’s September 2025 Event: All the Small Things (Bento Box Version)

Several things are ubiquitous with Apple Events. Tim Cook’s “Good Morning!”, Craig Federighi being, well, Craig Federighi, and the keynote bento boxes. Offering up a summary to each keynote section, these bento box slides provide a great way to recap a new product.

So, after today’s bumper announcements, let’s take a look at today’s bento box slides.

iPhone 17

iPhone Air

iPhone 17 Pro

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One Month with the Aqara G410 Video Doorbell

Last month, after an advanced preview at CES back in January, Aqara released an update to its G4 smart video doorbell dubbed the Doorbell Camera Hub G410 Select. I had been keeping my eye out for this release ever since its announcement, and it just so happened to coincide with the passing of my existing smart doorbell from Netatmo. That was more than enough reason to purchase the G410, and over a month of daily usage, I’ve been enjoying several of the camera’s excellent new features while also wishing for some improvements in other areas.

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watchOS 26: The MacStories Public Beta Preview

Author’s Note: Apple released the public beta of watchOS 26 last Thursday, two days after developer beta 4. Instead of immediately publishing a preview of watchOS 26, I took the time to review the OS again to ensure my preview accurately reflected the version released as a public beta.


Last year, watchOS 11 emerged from the bumpy launch of Apple Intelligence completely unscathed due to the fact that it included precisely zero AI features. Instead, what Apple Watch users got was a fully formed OS update that took some big swings in addition to refining many areas of the Apple Watch experience. It was a good year with notable updates across the system, particularly when it came to the Smart Stack and health and fitness features.

It’s unfortunate, though perhaps not surprising, that this year’s new watchOS release – dubbed version 26, like its OS brethren – is what might be considered a quiet year. However, after living with the beta for over a month, I’m happy to report that while there aren’t any substantial new features, there are still clever flourishes here and there that make my daily use of the Apple Watch more enjoyable.

Here’s a preview of what you can expect from watchOS 26.

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