iOS and iPadOS 14: The MacStories Review

Even with (unsurprisingly) smaller releases, Apple is pushing forward with bold ideas across all platforms.

Credits

This review wouldn’t have been possible without the help, feedback, and existence of the following people, animals, beverages, and apps:

  • My girlfriend Silvia, for her patience, love, design skills, photos and videos, and wisdom
  • Brian King, for bringing this review to life once again with his amazing animations and 3D graphics
  • Ryan Christoffel, for his outstanding editing skills and patience
  • John Voorhees, a friend and amazing colleague
  • Alex Guyot, for his work at MacStories and help this summer
  • Zelda and Ginger, for always keeping me company while I was writing the review
  • Myke Hurley
  • Stephen Hackett
  • Martyn Pysanczyn
  • Brett Terpstra
  • Simon Støvring, for helping me with JavaScript and saving me dozens of hours with Scriptable
  • Misu, for their iOS 14 System Theme Home Screen
  • Victoria De Las Casas, for her fall-themed Home Screen (icon pack available here)
  • Tom, for their sketches Home Screen
  • Poggy, for her doodles Home Screen (icons available here and here)
  • Katie Mae, for her peaches Home Screen
  • Veronica, for her pink-themed Home Screen
  • iA Writer, Working Copy, Timery, Shortcuts, and MindNode – essential apps that helped me create this story
  • Every app developer who sent me betas during the summer
  • Every engineer at Apple who always makes reviewing iOS and iPadOS each summer fun
  • @TiccisEspresso – you know I’m always going to need you
  • Every Club MacStories member

And finally, every MacStories reader, for allowing me to keep doing what I love. Thank you.

    Apple’s HomePod mini: The MacStories Overview

    I have two HomePods: one in our living room and another in my office. They sound terrific, and I’ve grown to depend on the convenience of controlling HomeKit devices, adding groceries to my shopping list, checking the weather, and being able to ask Siri to pick something to play when I can’t think of anything myself. My office isn’t very big, though, and when rumors of a smaller HomePod surfaced, I was curious to see what Apple was planning.

    Today, those plans were revealed during the event the company held remotely from the Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino. Apple introduced the HomePod mini, a diminutive $99 smart speaker that’s just 3.3 inches tall and 3.8 inches wide. In comparison, the original HomePod is 6.8 inches tall and 5.6 inches wide. At just .76 pounds, the mini is also considerably lighter than the 5.5-pound original HomePod.

    Read more

    Apple’s October 13, 2020 Keynote: By the Numbers

    As usual, Apple sprinkled facts, figures, and statistics throughout the keynote today. Here are highlights of some of those metrics from the event, which was held online from the Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino, California.

    HomePod mini

    • The HomePod mini is just 3.3 inches tall, 3.8 inches wide, and weighs .76 pounds (345 grams)
    • The mini analyzes your music to adjust playback dynamics 180 times/second
    • The tiny smart speaker features 360-degree sound using a custom acoustic waveguide
    • HomePod mini uses 99% recycled rare earth elements
    • The neodymium magnet in the speaker driver is made of 100% rare earth elements
    • The mesh fabric of the mini is made of 90% recycled plastic

    Read more

    Apple’s iPhone 12 Lineup: The MacStories Overview

    Today during its streamed event from Apple Park, Apple debuted its flagship iPhone 12 lineup consisting of four separate devices, the largest number of new models ever debuted at once:

    • iPhone 12 mini
    • iPhone 12
    • iPhone 12 Pro
    • iPhone 12 Pro Max

    The iPhone 12 and 12 mini are the more affordable options, while the two Pro models add premium features, most notably better camera systems, at an additional cost. All four devices share a lot in common, however, such as the new A14 processor, support for 5G networking, a fresh physical design inspired by the iPad Pro, camera upgrades, support for new magnetic accessories, and more.

    The iPhone 12 and 12 Pro will be available for pre-order this Friday, October 16 starting at $799 and $999, respectively, and ship on October 23. The iPhone 12 mini ($699) and 12 Pro Max ($1,099) won’t arrive until a few weeks later: their pre-orders open November 6 and they’ll arrive in customers’ hands on November 13.

    Which model is right for you? Here’s a full overview of everything new for each device.

    Read more

    Replay Apple’s October 13, 2020 Keynote and Other Videos

    If you didn’t follow the live stream or announcements as they unfolded at the Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino today, you can replay it on Apple’s Events site and catch the product videos on Apple’s YouTube channel.

    The keynote video can be streamed here and on the Apple TV using the Apple Events app. A high-quality version is also available through Apple Podcasts as a video and audio podcast or you can watch it on YouTube. First debuted at the September event, there is also an American Sign Language version of the event, which is available here.

    Apple also posted other product videos and a 51-second recap on its YouTube channel, which are embedded after the break.

    You can follow all of our October event coverage through our October 2020 event hub, or subscribe to the dedicated RSS feed.

    Apple Announces New iPhone and HomePod mini Availability

    Today Apple announced the following preorder and availability dates for its iPhone 12 lineup:

    • iPhone 12
      • Preorder Date: October 16
      • Availability: October 23
    • iPhone 12 mini
      • Preorder Date: November 6
      • Availability: November 13
    • iPhone 12 Pro
      • Preorder Date: October 16
      • Availability: October 23
    • iPhone 12 Pro Max
      • Preorder Date: November 6
      • Availability: November 13

    Apple also announced dates for the new HomePod mini:

    • Pre-order: November 6
    • Availability: the week of November 16

    Today’s iPhone announcements continue what is shaping up to be an unusually spread out product release schedule. What wasn’t mentioned today are a launch date for the iPad Air, a release date for macOS Big Sur, or Apple Silicon Macs, the first of which Apple said at WWDC would be released before the end of the year. I suspect that, as a result, we’ll see one more Apple event in 2020, most likely in November.

    You can follow all of our October event coverage through our October 2020 event hub, or subscribe to the dedicated RSS feed.

    Ulysses: The Ultimate Writing App for Mac, iPad, and iPhone [Sponsor]

    Ulysses is an extraordinary text editor for the Mac, iPad, and iPhone with an unparalleled set of advanced features and a beautiful design that received an Apple Design Award. What sets Ulysses apart from the pack is a carefully balanced set of advanced tools that writers appreciate in a refined, elegant, distraction-free UI that makes writing a pleasure.

    No matter whether you’re writing at home, the office, or on-the-go, Ulysses is always there to help. The app includes fast and reliable sync, so you’ve always got what you need with you.

    With the latest update, Ulysses has added grammar and style checking for over 20 languages, offering suggested changes for all sorts of issues. There’s also a special dashboard in the sidebar that includes statistics, keywords, footnotes, and an outline of the headings in your writing that provides a bird’s-eye view of your work and a way to navigate your document.

    Ulysses’ Library sidebar brings order to your writing too, allowing you to organize it into groups that can be nested. The app also features powerful search and filtering options, keyword support, and in-line images that can be stored locally or remotely on a server.

    Ulysses lets you set character, word, and other types of writing goals that can be attached to a single document or entire group. Goals can be combined with deadlines too, which is a fantastic way to form good writing habits.

    When you’re finished writing, Ulysses has lots of export and publishing options too. Your work can be exported as plain text, Markdown, TextBundle, rich text, DOCX, ePub, HTML, and PDF and published using WordPress, Medium, or Ghost. To learn more about Ulysses, visit ulysses.app.

    Ulysses is a free download and try before deciding whether to subscribe for $4.99/month or $39.99/year. Students can subscribe for six months at a time for $10.99. MacStories readers can take advantage of a special extended three-month free trial for a limited time. It’s a terrific way to discover the app’s full capabilities, so be sure to check out Ulysses’ new features right away.

    Our thanks to Ulysses for sponsoring MacStories this week.

    MacStories Unwind: Food Tracking, Time Tracking, and Text Editing, Plus Federico on His Review and American TV

    AppStories+ Deeper into the world of apps
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    AppStories+ Deeper into the world of apps

    Sponsored by: CardioBot – Heart Rate and Activity Tracker

    This week on MacStories Unwind:

    MacStories

    Club MacStories

    • MacStories Weekly
      • 11 more app Giveaways
      • A collection of apps with widgets
      • Ryan’s iPadOS 15 wishes
      • An interview with Markus Müller Simhofer, developer of MindNode

    AppStories

    Unwind