Podcast Rewind: Open Minis, the RG SP Announcement, Too Much Wi-Fi, and the MessagePad with D. Griffin Jones

This week, John and Federico discuss the changing face of the AI-fueled App Store and questionable changes made to TestFlight before going into the nerdiest details of Open Minis, an iOS app that brings desktop-class agents onto the iPhone and iPad.

Then on AppStories+, Federico and John explore Cmux, a Mac terminal app with an iPhone and iPad beta that makes it easier than ever to sync coding projects across devices.

NPC: Next Portable Console

This week, the refreshingly complete announcement by Anbernic of the RG SP, Ticci buys a handheld, and people are tired of months-long hardware reveals.

Then on NPC XL, Cocoon 3.0 and Syncthing!

Comfort Zone

We have a guest! D. Griffin Jones is here to show the gang technology they could only dream of: the MessagePad. After that, we look at the brand new Pastebot 3 and the surprisingly useful Clop, and we close it out by trying to sell Niléane on a 3D printer.

This week’s Cozy Zone is all about the games we’ve been enjoying lately.

MacStories Unwind

This week, John realizes that too much Wi-Fi is never enough, Federico wonders what he’s going to do with a Linux PC, and John recommends Apple TV’s Lucky.

AppStories, Episode 495, ‘Open Minis Turns iOS into an Agent Playground’ Show Notes

This episode is sponsored by:

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App Store Chaos

App Store Chaos

See also: A.I. ‘Vibecoded’ Apps Are Flooding Apple’s App Store

TestFlight Woes

TestFlight: One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

See also: Apple just improved TestFlight for users with a lot of beta apps

Open Minis

Open Minis on the App Store

Open Minis Is the iOS Agent I Wish Siri AI Could Be

AppStories+ Post-Show

Cmux

Founder’s Edition ($30) includes iOS beta

CLIProxyAPI

Subscribe to AppStories+

Visit AppStories.net to learn more about the extended, high bitrate audio version of AppStories that is delivered early each week and subscribe.

NPC, Episode 90, ‘The Stickless Clamshell Everyone Wanted’ Show Notes

The Latest Portable Gaming News

Anbernic Announces the RG SP With Almost Everything We Need to Know

Retroid Pocket Nova Gets Hands-On Treatment Ahead of Release

See also Russ’ video at Retro Game Corps

AYANEO Restocks the Pocket Micro 2 Again

MANGMI AIR Y and AIR Y Pro Full Spec Sheet Finally Revealed

Handheld Makers Need to Stop Turning Every New Handheld Into a Month-Long Reveal

Subscribe to NPC XL

NPC XL is a weekly members-only version of NPC with extra content, available exclusively through our new Patreon for $5/month. Each week on NPC XL, Federico, Brendon, and John record a special segment or deep dive about a particular topic that is released alongside the “regular” NPC episodes. You can subscribe here.

Comfort Zone, Episode 111, ‘I’m the Guest, I Have No Consequences’ Show Notes

Things Discussed

Griffin’s blog

Apple MessagePad

Pastebot 3

Clop

Omori on Nintendo Store

Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition

Cozy Zone

For even more from the Comfort Zone crew, you can subscribe to Cozy Zone. Cozy Zone is a weekly bonus episode of Comfort Zone where Matt, Niléane, and Chris invite listeners to join them in the Cozy Zone where they’ll cover extra topics, invent wilder challenges and games, and share all their great (and not so great) takes on tech. You can subscribe to Cozy Zone for $5 per month here or $50 per year here.

MacStories Unwind, ‘Flooding the Wi-Fi Zone’ Show Notes

Networking Projects

John’s existing setup

TP-Link Tri-Band Wi-Fi 7 BE22000 Whole Home Mesh System

Added 2 TP-Link Deco 7 Pro BE63 Tri-Band WiFi 7 BE10000 routers

Federico’s Beelink SER9 Pro mini PC

More of our networking and other gear is on MacStories Setups.

Picks

John’s Pick: Lucky on Apple TV

Unwind Deal

Meet the Parents Triple Feature starring Ben Stiller and Robert DeNiro is on sale for $17.99 in the TV app.