Federico Viticci

10862 posts on MacStories since April 2009

Federico is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of MacStories, where he writes about Apple with a focus on apps, developers, iPad, and iOS productivity. He founded MacStories in April 2009 and has been writing about Apple since. Federico is also the co-host of AppStories, a weekly podcast exploring the world of apps, Unwind, a fun exploration of media and more, and NPC: Next Portable Console, a show about portable gaming and the handheld revolution.
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@viticci.macstories.net
viticci@macstories.net

Logitech’s CREATE Keyboard for the 9.7” iPad Pro→

Logitech’s CREATE keyboard case, which I reviewed when the 12.9” iPad Pro launched in November, has received a new version for the 9.7” iPad Pro today. Logitech was able to fit all the features of the larger CREATE in this model – it’s a case that protects the front and back of the iPad, it’s got mechanical scissor keys with a full row of iOS-specific shortcuts, and it’s backlit.

Unlike the first CREATE, the 9.7” edition comes with an Apple Pencil holder that will allow you to carry an iPad Pro and a Pencil together with a physical keyboard in one package.

I wasn’t a fan of the original CREATE when it launched, but I feel like a smaller footprint and Pencil support could make the new version a much better deal for 9.7” iPad Pro users.

The new CREATE keyboard case is available today at $129.99 from Logitech’s website.

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Our thanks to Igloo for sponsoring MacStories this week.

Apple Airs New iPad Pro Commercial, Asks “What’s a Computer?”

Apple posted a new iPad Pro commercial today, highlighting the nature of the device as a new kind of computer.

The ad follows a simple model: it showcases common usage of an iPad Pro with accessories, apps, and system features that aren’t available on traditional computers. The video jumps from showing the Apple Pencil to mentioning the iPad’s touch screen, the detachable Smart Keyboard, and apps like Office and Procreate that offer unique functionality on iOS 9. At the end, iMessage in Split View and Picture in Picture (also two features of last year’s iPad-focused iOS 9 update) make an appearance.

In the narration of the ad, Apple explains:

Just when you think you know what a computer is, you see a keyboard that can just get out of the way. And a screen you can touch and even write on. When you see a computer that can do all that, it might just make you wonder – “Hey, what else can it do?”

The video closes with the tagline “Imagine what your computer could do if it was an iPad Pro”.

The iPad Pro’s new commercial comes at an interesting time for Apple. The company announced its latest iPad, the 9.7-inch iPad Pro, as the “ultimate PC replacement” for Windows switchers, but its upcoming iOS 10 update only includes minor iPad changes – a departure from iOS 9’s iPad breakthroughs. On the other hand, the iPad line recently returned to revenue growth after several quarters, likely thanks to the iPad Pro and its higher selling price.

Explaining to consumers how an iPad can be a PC replacement and, at the same time, a new take on desktop computing has always been one of Apple’s toughest propositions. This new iPad Pro commercial seems to start from the basics again, asking what a computer truly is and how it can be different. It’ll be interesting to see if a wider marketing campaign and more commercials will follow.

You can watch the video below.

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Consolidating 10 Years of Photos

Federico

I recently bought a 13” MacBook Pro as a birthday gift for my girlfriend. Her old 2009 model was starting to suffer the inevitable march of the times, despite having replaced the internal drive with an SSD and taking good care of it for the past 7 years (it’s even been upgraded to El...

Scrivener

Federico

I didn’t think I’d ever need a writing app like Scrivener. I changed my mind a couple of weeks ago: I was in the first stages of writing my iOS 10 review and I felt like Ulysses couldn’t scale to such a big project. After trying a beta version of Scrivener ahead of its...

App Debuts

Federico

Willow Willow is a field guide for Pokémon GO – think a modern Pokédex updated for the mobile game. Willow shows details for evolutions, weaknesses and strengths, and it also tells you how far you need to walk for eggs to hatch. Highly Highlighting parts of webpages in a browser isn’t easy on iOS...

An Ode to the iPod Classic→

Lindsay Zoladz, writing for The Ringer, has a great story on the role of the iPod Classic in today’s music streaming landscape. I understand where she’s coming from, and I found this passage on the paradox of choice particularly accurate:

“When I’m searching for something to listen to on Spotify, I feel like I end up listening to the same albums and artists again and again,” my friend Becca wrote in an email, after I asked a handful of acquaintances about their post-iPod listening habits. “My brain by itself isn’t good at cataloguing everything I love.”

The psychologist Barry Schwartz has written (or, if you don’t have too much time on your hands, has TED-Talked) about a related phenomenon he calls “paradox of choice” — the notion that, although we tend to think of freedom of choice as an inherently good thing, too much choice can leave us feeling paralyzed and anxiety-ridden. “With so many options to choose from,” he says, “people find it very difficult to choose at all.” I personally have proven this theory many times over in the past few months, when I’ve stared for a few moments at the infinite void that is the Apple Music search bar and decided, “I guess I will just listen to Pablo or Lemonade again.” Another friend I emailed summed up the Paradox of Digital Music Listening succinctly: “With device-bound listening, I absolutely feel limited by [storage] space. With streaming, I feel limited by my own memory.”

This is why I often buy videogames from a small shop in my hometown. I could open the App Store, or the eShop, or the PlayStation Store, and buy anything I want. But there’s just so much stuff. There’s too many games and too many reviews and too many Let’s Plays to choose from. Sometimes, it’s nice to have fewer options.

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Bluetooth Headphone Revenue Overtook Non-Bluetooth for the First Time in June→

Interesting data from NPD:

According to The NPD Group’s Retail Tracking Service, Bluetooth headphone revenue overtook non-Bluetooth for the first time in June accounting for 54 percent of headphone dollar sales and 17 percent of unit sales in the U.S.

And:

Beats and LG have led the Bluetooth headphone market throughout the first half of the year, accounting for approximately 65 percent of dollar sales.

Not necessarily a direct indication of decline in wired headphones, but a sign that, as average prices of Bluetooth headphones go down, consumers may prefer wireless.

Removing the headphone jack from the next iPhone will be annoying; at the same time, limitations notwithstanding, I can’t deny how nice it is not to deal with wires anymore.

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