In this episode of Compile & Conquer, we explore the life and legacy of Steve Jobs, the iconic innovator who transformed technology and design. From co-founding Apple in a garage to revolutionizing industries with products like the iPhone, Jobs left an indelible mark on the world. Join us as we dive into his journey, vision, and lasting impact on tech and culture.
Apple
What Happened at The WWDC19 Keynote Presentation
Who has time to watch the entire thing? Here’s a good summary:
How To Force Restart Frozen iPhone X
How To Force Restart Frozen iPhone X:
Press and quickly release the Volume up button then press and quickly release the Volume down button. To complete, press and hold the Side button until the Apple logo appears on the screen.
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For some reason Apple decided to hide this information after changing how the phone works.
Spotify, Apple Battle Songwriter Royalties
The drama heated up in January 2018, when the U.S. Copyright Royalty Board decided to boost the royalty rate that Spotify, Apple Music, and similar streamers must pay songwriters and publishers. Flash forward to last week, when Spotify, Google, Pandora, and Amazon revealed they were each planning to appeal that ruling. The National Music Publishers Association (NMPA) blasted the move, claiming that Spotify and Amazon had chosen to “sue songwriters.”
Perhaps fueled by this incendiary wording—which a NMPA spokesperson tells Pitchfork is “shorthand for the technical legal process of them appealing”—backlash against the streaming services quickly spread among songwriters and industry figures. This week, Spotify responded to the criticism with a blog post noting the complexity of the situation.
Apple is not taking part in the appeals. As such, the NMPA and other industry figures were quick to praise Apple as pro-artist. That said, if the appeals succeed, Apple could conceivably have its cake and eat it too, enjoying the benefit of lower rates without the ire of coming out in favor of them. Apple’s vast phone business and huge cash reserves also mean it’s more insulated from higher costs of doing business than Spotify would be.
It’s a mess.
Samsung Galaxy S10 Face Unlock is Not Reliable
There are a number of reports that say—surprise!—a 2D image sensor can be fooled by a 2D image. The Verge was able to unlock the device with a video, and YouTube channel Unbox Therapy was able to unlock the S10 just by playing one of its public channel videos in view of the camera. The worst example is probably from AndroidWorld.it, which was able to unlock the Galaxy S10 by waving a still photo around in front of the device.
The Galaxy S10 can also reportedly have trouble telling different people apart. Security Researcher Jane Wong was able to unlock her brother’s phone with her face.
Not surprised.
Apple Rumored to Release AR headset glasses
Rumors that Apple is preparing to release its own AR headset have been around since 2017 when Bloomberg predicted that it could release a headset as early as 2019. A further report from CNET last year claimed that the headset could be released in 2020 and would offer a combination of both AR and VR.
Apple’s AR headset won’t be the first to rely on an external phone for its processing power. LG released a similar (albeit VR) headset alongside its G5 flagship back in 2016, while more recently, North’s Focals smart glasses (which the company produced after acquiring the technology portfolio behind Intel’s canceled Vaunt glasses) paired to a connected phone via Bluetooth. Just last month, chipmaker Qualcomm announced a dedicated platform to help manufacturers produce their own phone-connected AR or VR headsets.
I think it’s a dumb idea to work on AR headsets. We should get them into Car windshields first, etc. Humans should be last on the list.
Samsung Galaxy Watch Active Review 2019
The Active’s design is fairly generic. It comes in nicer colors than the black variant I reviewed, but all of them share the same understated style that almost looks like something Pebble would have made. It’s not flashy, but it works. The 20mm bands are easy to replace, as well.
But Samsung took something very important away from the Galaxy Watch Active: it lacks the rotating bezel that has proven to be an intuitive, natural, and fun control mechanism on the company’s other smartwatches. The Tizen Wearable OS 4.0 software is designed to put the display’s circular shape to good use, but navigating the Galaxy Watch Active can feel more finicky without the rotating bezel and its satisfying clicks.
For one, the watch’s software doesn’t really take into account this significant change in how you interact with it. The user experience is largely identical to that of the Galaxy Watch, and it’s clearly meant to work best with a rotating bezel that can quickly scroll through menus.
Translation: not as good as Apple.
Sony Officially Kills PS Vita
But despite its niche appeal, the Vita ultimately failed to live up to Sony’s expectations, says Stefan Langford.
“It certainly comes as no surprise that the PS Vita has finally ended production, ultimately sounding the death knell of Sony’s mobile gaming ambitions,” says Mr Spendelow.
While the PS Vita has been consigned to history, Sony is believed to be readying a new games console.Last year, company president and chief executive Kenichiro Yoshida told the Financial Times that it was “necessary” for Sony to work on next-generation hardware. He declined to say whether this machine would carry the name PlayStation 5.
Apple is eating everyone’s lunch.