Have you upgraded to iOS 14 and iPad OS 14 yet — or, for that matter, iOS 14.0.1, the latest release that came out yesterday with some bug fixes? If so, you are starting to experience all of the new features. I had planned to write a post this week about widgets, one of the most obvious new features because once you add them to your home screen, you can't miss them. It's a great addition. But almost every day, I find myself changing how I use them, plus app upgrades with widget support are still coming out every day, which changes how I use widgets. And that is just one of the many new features in iOS 14. And now, the news of note from the past week:
- One of the apps that I've been using the longest on my iPhone and iPad is Fantastical, a better calendar app. I was excited to see the app updated to add widget support this week. California attorney David Sparks explains how he is using the new Fantastical widgets. I'm enjoying the Fantastical widget on my iPhone, but on the iPad, there are some things I prefer about the built-in Calendar app's widget. This is a perfect example of how I'm still trying to make up my mind on which widget setup I like the best.
- Ryan Christoffel of MacStories wrote a more comprehensive look at the new version of Fantastical.
- Some of the initial reviews are in on the Apple Watch Series 6, and several reviewers are unsatisfied with the blood oxygen sensor. Geoffrey Fowler of the Washington Post says that some of his readings are erratic, and perhaps more importantly, he didn't see the value in getting the results.
- Joanna Stern of the Wall Street Journal had a similar reaction. She thinks it is a better idea to just use a more accurate finger oximeter, which you can get for $60.
- Even if you don't have a new Apple Watch, you can get new features on your current Apple Watch by upgrading to watchOS 7. Alex Guyot of MacStories wrote a good review of watchOS 7.
- One nice change in watchOS 7: you can finally adjust your green circle (exercise) and blue circle (stand) daily goals, as John Gruber of Daring Fireball notes.
- Apple CEO Tim Cook was interviewed at The Atlantic Festival. Ben Lovejoy of 9to5Mac has some of the highlights, along with a link to the full video.
- I'm a huge fan of the eero Pro that I installed in my home a few months ago. This week, Amazon released the eero Pro 6, a more expensive version that supports Wi-Fi 6, which means that, in some circumstances, it can be even faster. I updated my review of the eero Pro to discuss the differences.
- The new 2020 emoji should be coming to iOS 14 in the next month or so, and I gave you a preview of some of the new ones back in July. But we now have a final list of the 217 new emoji for 2021, and Jeremy Burge of Emojipedia has the full story. We will have to wait for Summer 2021 to start to see some previews of how Apple will draw these new 2021 emoji.
- If you have 90 minutes to spare and you want walkthrough of over 250 new features in iOS 14, check out this video from Jeff Benjamin of 9to5Mac.
- And finally, even though the blood oxygen sensor may not be as good as a dedicated oximeter, there is still a lot to like about the Apple Watch Series 6. Here is a video showing off some of the features prepared by Apple called It Already Does That:
