iPhone J.D.

In the News

Next generation AI is the most exciting new development in all of technology, including legal technology. For the last few weeks, I've had the opportunity to try CoCounsel, a service from Casetext that uses the power of ChatGPT 4 but applies it to cases and statutes so that, among other things, you can ask a legal research question and get a legal memorandum in just a few minutes. Sometimes the memos are great; other times, they look like something that even a first-year associate would not be proud of. But all technology is simple when it starts—heck, how long did we have to wait for the iPhone to gain copy-and-paste?—and it is obvious that this technology will improve over time. Given this vast potential, I'm was not surprised to learn that Thomson Reuters, which of course owns Westlaw, purchased Casetext this week. Attorney Bob Ambrogi of LawSites interviewed Casetext CEO Jake Heller to discuss the acquisition. As someone who does a lot of legal research in my appellate law practice, I have to admit that I'm incredibly excited. Taking the AI in CoCounsel and adding to that the headnotes from Westlaw cases plus the fantastic articles in PracticalLaw has the potential to be an incredible legal research tool as this technology develops. And it is not just the lawyers (and their clients) who stand to benefit from next-generation AI. As Apple incorporates this same technology into its products, devices like the iPhone can become even more helpful. And now, the news of note from the past week:

• Thanks to the improvements to iPadOS over the years and the power of the iPad Pro, the gap between an iPad Pro and a computer gets smaller every year. Fernando Silva of 9to5Mac points out some iPadOS 17 features like improved Stage Manager, external webcam support, and other improvements that will let you get even more work done with an iPad.
• Every iPhone since the iPhone 6 comes with an NFC chip that can be used to communicate with other devices and even NFC stickers that are within close range, but until now, there hasn't been much you could do with this feature. Dan Moren explains in an article for Macworld how this will change in iOS 17.
• Attorney John Voorhees of MacStories reviews the Belkin BoostCharge Pro, a 10,000 mAh battery that has a built-in spot to recharge an Apple Watch. I own an Anker device that is about the same size, and I love this form factor. It is big enough to give you some impressive additional battery life while being small enough that it is easy to carry around in a purse or briefcase. Or sometimes even a pocket, but for that I prefer the smaller Apple MagSafe Battery Pack—a device that I just used last night when I needed some extra power for my iPhone but I was out and about and couldn't plug in my iPhone.
• Lance Whitney of PCMag describes useful features of the built-in Notes app on the iPhone.
• For a very long time, I tried to close all of my Apple Watch circles every day. Due to an injury to my Achilles' heel that required a recent surgery, a cast, and then a boot (which I am still not quite done wearing), those days are on hold for me right now. Nevertheless, when I did pursue this goal, I thought it was a major flaw that Apple didn't give you a way to take a day off without ending your streak. Continuing a long streak was often the very thing that often gave me the encouragement to work out when otherwise I was hearing a compelling argument from my couch about watching TV. According to Dan Moren in an article at Six Colors, I'm not the only one with this idea.
• The main reason that I put Apple's Calendar app in my dock is so that I can see the current date. Justin Myers of Gadget Hacks identifies a few other things that you can see in the app icons on an iPhone.
• Now that Apple devices are gaining support for the Matter standard, Bradley Chambers of 9to5Mac notes that you can start to use the inexpensive and well-liked WiZ light bulbs.
• Attorney Stephen Embry offers some thoughts on how the Apple Vision Pro may change the way that lawyers work on his TechLaw Crossroads blog.
• If you have ever used one of the headset devices currently on the market, you know that you have no sense of the world around you, making it very easy to bump into people, pets, furniture, sliding glass doors, etc. Ben Lovejoy of 9to5Mac explains how Apple seeks to prevent this with the Vision Pro: when you are in an immersive VR experience, the safe area is limited to five feet in each direction—i.e., a 10x10 feet area. Go beyond that and you will once again start to see your surroundings in the Vision Pro. His post also includes a YouTube video with lots of "fail" examples of people using a headset, just in case you want to see why this is an important consideration.
• I've always been someone who thought that 3D movies were a good idea in theory, but in practice they rarely made sense. I hate how a 3D movie is darker than a non-3D movie, and the home experience on even a large TV never quite worked for me. But with the Apple Vision Pro, 3D movies may make sense for the first time ever. Joe Rosensteel wrote a fascinating article for Six Colors about how 3D movies are made and some of the considerations in this process.
• Ben Lovejoy of 9to5Mac reports that a woman in the Los Angeles area who broke her leg while hiking was airlifted to safety by helicopter thanks to her iPhone 14’s Emergency SOS via Satellite feature. 
• And finally, there is a new show on Apple TV+ starring the always great Idris Elba called Hijack. It is getting great reviews, and I cannot wait to check it out—right after I catch up on the great show Silo (I missed last week's episode and the season finale is out this weekend). Hijack takes place in real time over seven hours, similar to the old 24 TV show. Here is an Inside Look about the show that doesn't seem to include any real spoilers but does provide some interesting information on how the series was filmed:

Podcast episode 103: Flexible Stages, Face Plants, and Name Drops

In this week’s edition of the In the News podcast, Brett and I talk about even more goodies coming in iOS 17 and iPadOS 17. For example, there is buzz that the improvements to Stage Manager for the iPad may make the feature appealing to many more people. We also discuss upcoming improvements to the AirPods Pro, the future of the Apple Watch, and lots of improvements to Apple services coming later this year. 

In this week’s Where Y’at? segment, we discuss a woman who was encouraged by her Apple Watch to move from her bed at home to the hospital, and thank goodness that she did so.

In our In the Know segment, we both share accessibility features that many folks might want to use. Brett explains how your iPhone can read to you what is on the screen. I discuss disabling auto-play on certain videos.

Click here to listen to the audio podcast, or just listen using your podcast player of choice.  You can also watch the episode on YouTube:

In the News

Apple first introduced the concept of Spatial Audio in 2020, and on May 17, 2021, Apple announced that it was bringing Spatial Audio to Apple Music so that music mixed in this format could sound like it was in 3D, not just stereo, even if you are only using headphones. Spatial Audio is just Apple's name for Dolby Atmos, but Apple Music has been a leader in supporting this new music format. How much I notice and enjoy songs remixed in Dolby Atmos versus just stereo depends upon the song and how it is mixed, but in some cases, the improvement is really spectacular. Bob Mehr of the New York Times wrote an incredibly detailed and fascinating article about Dolby Atmos, and if you have any interest in Spatial Audio, I recommend that you read it. And now, the news of note from the past week:

• This week, Apple released iOS 16.5.1 and other operating system updates to fix two security flaws. As Jason Cross of Macworld notes, there is a report that both of these flaws have been actively exploited. So let's all be safe and install the updates.
• Attorney John Voorhees of MacStories provides an excellent overview of new features coming this Fall to many Apple services: Apple Podcasts, Apple Music, Maps, Fitness+, Apple News+, Apple Cash, and more.
• Apple may support Wi-Fi 7 in the next version of the iPhone. Chance Miller of 9to5Mac explains what makes Wi-Fi 7 better.
• Jason Snell of Six Colors explains why third-party camera apps will work better in iOS 17.
• Tim Hardwick of MacRumors explains what is new with AirDrop in iOS 17.
• Chance Miller of 9to5Mac reports on what is new with Stage Manager on the iPad in iPadOS 17.
• Jonny Evans of Computerworld explains some ways in which iPadOS 17 can help you to be more productive with an iPad.
• John Guber of Daring Fireball explains what is new when you scan a QR code in iOS 17 and recommends (in iOS 16) using the Code Scanner app in Control Center to scan QR codes.
• Zac Hall of 9to5Mac reports on the new features coming to the AirPods Pro 2 this year.
• Benjamin Mayo of 9to5Mac reports on an interview in a Swiss newspaper with Apple VPs Kevin Lynch and Deidre Caldbeck to discuss the Apple Watch, including the reasons that Apple does not allow third-party watch faces.
• Paige Barnes of WKRP WKRC in Cincinnati reports that a woman was sleeping when her Apple Watch woke her up to tell her that her heart rate had spiked to 178 beats per minute. Fortunately, she got to the hospital quickly and learned that she had a deadly blood clot that the doctors were able to address.
• Julie Vincent of Variety reports on an inspirational speech by Jason Sudeikis on the last day of shooting of Ted Lasso and the rumors of a spin-off series.
• And finally, here is a crazy and fun video from Turkey promoting the iPhone 14 Pro's video capabilities. It must have been interesting to film this one.

Checking in on the MagSafe Battery Pack from Apple

Almost two years ago, Apple released the MagSafe Battery Pack, a small device that attaches to the back of any iPhone that supports MagSafe to provide a battery boost. I thought about buying the device during the entire first year that the product was for sale, and then I finally made the plunge almost exactly one year ago. After using the product for six weeks, I wrote this review. Today, I am checking in on this device after one year of use.

The reason that I hesitated before buying the device for almost a year was that the device costs $99.99 (although you can sometimes find it on sale) and I wasn't sure that it would be worth it. If you, too, have been on the fence about this product, I love this product and have zero regrets purchasing it.

First, it is a fantastic security blanket for your iPhone's battery. I keep my MagSafe Battery Pack in the bag that I take to work every day, so it is always nearby. My iPhone 14 Pro does a decent job with battery life and I often charge it during the day, but you never know when you are going to have one of those times when you grab the iPhone, often near the end of the day, and you realize that the battery is quite low. Perhaps you are going out with friends and you want to be able to take lots of pictures and videos. Or for me, it often happens when I am heading out to watch my daughter play basketball, where I often take lots of 4K videos. Whenever I grab my iPhone and realize that it wasn't charged close to 100% like it should have been, I simply grab the MagSafe Battery Pack and go. Thanks to this device, I virtually always have a few more hours of use, which is what I need. How often does this happen to me? Maybe once a month or so, but I love that I never have to worry about it.

Second, it is a great device to keep with you even if your iPhone already has a good charge when you start. You never know when something might happen to make your iPhone battery drain more quickly than normal when you are using it. Maybe you are in an area with poor cell tower coverage and your iPhone has to work harder than normal to get a signal. Maybe you are taking lots of 4K videos with your iPhone, which can run down the battery quickly. Or maybe you are traveling, when you may be so busy that you don't think to take the time to charge your iPhone even though you are using your iPhone more than normal.

Third, I love that the device is so small and light. And this is really key because otherwise I would think twice about putting it in my pocket.

Fourth, I love that the device is so easy to use. Just attach it to the back of the iPhone, and the magnets put it in the right orientation. It is easy to see how much power you have both on the iPhone and in the MagSafe Battery Pack just by looking at a widget.

I've made plenty of purchases over the years that turned out to be unnecessary splurges, and I was afraid that this would be one too. To the contrary, I've found this product to be incredibly useful and I love having it. In retrospect, I wish that I had purchased it when it first came out, but I'm certainly glad that I purchased it last year. If you are on the fence about this one, I encourage you to get it. It's a great product, and if you are like me, you will frequently find that you are happy to have it.

Click here to get the Apple MagSafe Battery Pack from Amazon ($99.99, but currently on sale for $94.00).

Podcast episode 102: iOS Beta Scenes and Mini 4K Screens

Although I do not recommend that you run a beta version of iOS 17 or iPadOS 17—either the currently-available version for developers or the upcoming version for the public—on any iPhone or iPad that you use to be productive, and I don't do so myself, a lot of other folks are starting to kick the tires on the beta versions which means that we have lots of folks trying out the big new features and finding cool small new features. On this week's episode of the In the News podcast, Brett Burney and I talk about many of these new features, and we like what we see. We also talk about the Apple Vision Pro, upcoming changes to the Apple TV, a neat new feature added to Readdle's Scanner Pro, and great shows on Apple TV+.

In our In the Know segment, Brett recommends the AirPods Max, the over-the-ears version of AirPods. They are expensive, but very nice—which reminds us of the upcoming Apple Vision Pro. I provide a tip for resetting AirPods when they start to act wonky.

Click here to listen to the audio podcast, or just listen using your podcast player of choice.  You can also watch the episode on YouTube:

In the News

We have just started the part of the year that is after Apple's WWDC conference and before the new operating systems for the iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and more are released. But beta versions are out, so a few folks are starting to play with the new technology and explain how things work. I virtually never run beta operating systems on my devices; I depend upon them too much to get work done and I don't want to deal with the inevitable instability of pre-release software. But I do enjoy reading about some of the interesting features that are now coming to light, and there are quite a few to report on today. Here is the news of note from the past week:

• Michael Grothaus of Fast Company discusses the privacy-focused features in iOS 17 and talks to Apple VP Craig Federighi about them.
• Gabriel Zamora of PCMag lists some favorite features in iOS 17 and iPadOS 17.
• Ed Hardy of Cult of Mac notes that the Files app in iPadOS 17 has new features when you are working with external thumb drives.
• Chance Miller of 9to5Mac notes that in iOS 17, if you change your iPhone's passcode and then forget the new number, you will have 72 hours to go back to the prior passcode. If you don't want to have this ability, you can select an option to Expire Previous Passcode Now.
• Miller also notes that iOS 17 adds interactive widgets for the Home app. This lets you put a button on your home screen that you can tap to, for example, turn a light on or off. Very useful.
• You have long been able to press a button on an Apple Watch to make your iPhone ping so that you can find it when it is misplaced. Zac Hall of 9to5Mac notes that in iOS 17, you can do the reverse: press a button on your iPhone to make your Apple Watch ping.
• Federico Viticci of MacStories wrote a great article explaining why the Apple Vision Pro is a watershed moment for personal computing.
• If you want a great, detailed, and thoughtful description of what it was like to demo the Apple Vision Pro last week, Myke Hurley does an amazing job of describing it in the most recent episode of the Cortex podcast. That's not a podcast that I normally listen to, but I heard great things about that episode, and I'm so glad that I listened to it.
• The amazing 4K-per-eye screens on the Apple Vision Pro were new to me, but Evan Selleck of AppleInsider notes that Sony first showed them off in 2022, and he even links to a video posted by Sony to YouTube on March 14, 2022, that shows it off. I guess Apple doesn't just snap its fingers and create cool new technology out of thin air.
• Ben Lovejoy of 9to5Mac cites a report claiming that because of the limited number of these Sony displays being produced, Apple won't be able to make more than 450,000 Vision Pro devices next year. I have no idea if this is true, but if it is, it may explain part of the decision for the $3,499 price tag: Apple knows that there won't be many to sell, and thus they will all sell no matter what the retail price.
• If you are a long-time follower of Apple, the name "Apple Vision" might ring a bell. Stephen Hackett explains why on his 512 Pixels website.
• Andrew Cunningham of Ars Technica argues that Apple is being very careful about how it starts to show off the Vision Pro in an attempt to normalize the public's reaction to seeing someone wearing a headset device.
• Scanner Pro from Readdle has long been my favorite iPhone scanner app. Michael Potuck of 9to5Mac notes that you can now use the app to scan receipts and automatically create a nice-looking expense report based on what it scans.
• Since 2017, Apple has come out with a new version of the Pride band for the Apple Watch every year. Nathaniel Pangaro of AppleInsider takes a look at all of the designs. I think that the 2019 version might be my favorite so far.
• Zac Hall of 9to5Mac notes that the next Apple TV operating system will make it easier to setup and personalize the device.
• Benjamin Mayo of 9to5Mac notes that Apple TV+ has renewed Silo for a second season, which I am delighted to hear. He also says that Silo is Apple's most popular drama series to date, and that news actually disappoints me a little because it means that a ton of people have somehow missed other great Apple TV+ dramas like For All Mankind, Severance, Slow Horses, Shining Girls, Tehran, Five Days at Memorial, and many more.
• Ed Hardy of Cult of Mac reports that, according to the JustWatch streaming guide, Apple TV+ has the highest rated content of any streaming service based on average ratings. Or to say it differently, the quantity of shows on Apple TV+ is smaller than other services, but the quality of the stuff that is there is good, unlike other streaming services that have some good content but also lots of stinkers. I agree with this completely. It used to be that when a new show came to HBO, I had a presumption that it was probably going to be good. Now, I feel that way about Apple TV+. And with this new Max rebranding, the HBO seal of approval is starting to become diluted.
• And finally, if you didn't see Apple's video from last week that introduced the Apple Vision pro, it is worth watching. But if you did see it and have been thinking about the Vision Pro since then, I recommend watching it again. I caught tons of details that I missed the first time.

Podcast episode 101: A Visionary Firehose of Future iOS Updates

In the second episode of the In the News podcast being released this week, Brett Burney and I discuss the updates revealed by Apple this past Monday before Apple introduced the world to the Apple Vision Pro. And there were a ton of those updates, with new hardware, new operating system software for the iPad, iPhone, Apple Watch, and Apple TV, new apps, and more. And many of these are substantial updates, so I am very much looking forward to this Fall when we can start to use all of the new software.

In our In the Know segment, Brett provides a tip for getting even more information about everything new that is coming from Apple. And I explain why this is a great time to start using widgets on your iPad and iPhone so that you are ready when widgets begin to play an even bigger role this Fall.

Click here to listen to the audio podcast, or just listen using your podcast player of choice.  You can also watch the episode on YouTube:

In the News

Can you see it? Look to the horizon and you'll find the next chapter in Apple's history: spatial computing, made possible with the Apple Vision Pro. After Apple introduced the world to this platform on Monday, a small number of folks have now had a chance to try the device, and the initial reviews have been glowing, with many reviewers stating that they had high expectations that were exceeded by how impressive the device is. I think that the review by John Gruber of Daring Fireball did the best job of helping me to imagine what it is like to use a Vision Pro. I also enjoyed reading and can recommend this article by Jason Snell of Six Colors, this article by Joanna Stern of the Wall Street Journal, and this video from Marques Brownlee. Finally, this article that Michael Liedtke wrote for the Associated Press is quite good and is written for a less techy audience. We will need to wait until early 2024 before folks can purchase the device, but that's good because at $3499, we all have lots of time to start collecting all of the loose change in the couch cushions. I've already told my family that I don't want presents for Father's Day, my birthday, and Christmas in 2023 to help to soften the financial blow next year.  And now, the news of note from the past week:

• ABC News "Good Morning America" co-anchor Robin Roberts interviewed Apple CEO Tim Cook to discuss the Apple Vision Pro, and her video report is quite good and worth watching.
• Alex Heath of The Verge shares Mark Zuckerberg's initial reaction to the Apple Vision Pro. Zuckerberg criticizes the price and the "design trade-off" as compared to what Meta is doing with its Quest 3 headset, noting that Meta has "sold tens of millions of Quests." This is probably a good time to remember what Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said in 2007 when the iPhone was first introduced: "500 dollars? Fully subsidized? With a plan? I said that is the most expensive phone in the world. And it doesn't appeal to business customers because it doesn't have a keyboard. Which makes it not a very good email machine. ... Right now, we're selling millions and millions and millions of phones a year. Apple is selling zero phones a year. In six months, they'll have the most expensive phone by far ever in the marketplace."
• Chance Miller of 9to5Mac shows what it is like to type on a virtual keyboard using the Vision Pro. You can also connect a Bluetooth keyboard if you plan to type more than just a few words.
• Stephen Hackett of 512 Pixels shares the key numbers associated with the Apple Vision Pro.
• Federico Viticci of MacStories explains how Stage Manager works better in iPad OS 17.
• Justin Myers of Gadget Hacks explains ten great new features of Messages in iOS 17.
• Juli Clover of MacRumors explains that if you use the built-in Reminders app in iOS 17 to create a groceries list, the app will automatically organize the food items into categories to make your shopping more efficient.
• Tim Hardwick of MacRumors has a short list of lesser-known but interesting iOS 17 features.
• Mitchel Broussard of MacRumors discusses the new features in Apple Music in iOS 17.
• Chance Miller of 9to5Mac notes that Apple came up with a better way to scan QR codes in iOS 17.
• Zac Hall of 9to5Mac explains how you can link from one note in the Notes app to another note in iOS 17.
• I mentioned earlier this week that I'm excited to see Continuity Camera mode work with an iPhone and an Apple TV for videoconferences. But that's not all. As Joe Rossignol of MacRumors explains, you can also use Continuity Camera so that you and others appear on screen while you sing along to the lyrics of your favorite songs. I'm not a big karaoke fan so I don't know that I myself will use this feature, but I do love that Apple is looking for additional uses of Continuity Camera.
• The Apple Watch will see substantial changes this Fall in watchOS 10. For example, buttons and gestures will perform different functions, as Dan Moren of Six Colors explains. In a separate post, Dan Moren some of the key new features in watchOS 10.
• Graham Bower of Cult of Mac provides a good overview of what is new in watchOS 10.
• Zac Hall of 9to5Mac also discusses some of the changes in watchOS 10.
• Zac Hall also shows off some of the biggest changes in CarPlay in iOS 17. For example, a passenger can now scan a QR code to control the music from their own iPhone.
• Bradley Chambers of 9to5Mac reviews the Aqara Smart Lock with Home Key and explains that if you are considering a smart lock, don't just get one that works with HomeKit; you really want one that takes advantage of Apple's Home Key feature.
• Matt Birchler of iMore reviews Final Cut Pro on the iPad, and he is impressed.
• I'm impressed too. I had a family beach vacation late last month, and after taking some videos during the first few days of vacation, I used Final Cut Pro on the iPad to put them together into a fun movie that I shared with the family on one of our last nights. The final video came out great. I did encounter some bugs along the way. First, I had trouble getting some video clips from my Photos app into Final Cut Pro; as a workaround, I moved them into the Files app in a local folder on my iPad, and Final Cut Pro had no trouble with that video. Second, I had some difficulty exporting a 4K HDR final movie, so instead I just created a 1080p version, which was more than adequate for sharing with family on a big screen. So Apple has some work to do, but the foundations were very sound. Using a finger (and sometimes a stylus) to edit clips worked really well on my iPad.
• And finally, here is a fun, quick overview from Apple of just some of Apple's announcements this week:

Podcast episode 100: Apple’s Vision of the Future

Brett Burney and I just recorded the 100th episode of the In the News podcast, and it is great to hit that milestone. To celebrate the momentous occasion, Apple was kind enough to release a brand new hardware platform so that we would have something fascinating to discuss: the Apple Vision Pro. Indeed, there is so much to say about this brand new device that this entire episode is dedicated to that groundbreaking platform. The Apple Vision Pro introduced by Apple earlier this week includes lots of new technology that is impressive in its own right, but when you consider that this is just the 1.0 version and there are years of upgrades and updates in the future, the potential is really something special.

Click here to listen to the audio podcast, or just listen using your podcast player of choice.  You can also watch the episode on YouTube:

Why lawyers will love iOS 17 and iPadOS 17

The major announcement from Apple yesterday was the Apple Vision Pro, the impressive new augmented reality headset. But even before Apple revealed the Apple Vision Pro, Apple announced tons of great new features for the iPhone and iPad. Here are the features in iOS 17 that I think that lawyers will love--as well as any other professionals who use the iPhone to get work done.

Continuity Camera for Apple TV

I love that you can use an iPhone as an external camera for a computer. With a PC, you need to use an app like Camo (my review), but on a Mac you can use Continuity Camera along with a mount, such as the one from Belkin. Yesterday, Apple announced that with iOS 17, your iPhone can also serve as a camera for your Apple TV, giving you the ability to use a huge television screen as a videoconference monitor. For now, Apple is announcing that it will work with FaceTime, Zoom, and Webex, but I have no doubt that Microsoft Teams will gain support as well. The iPad will also be able to serve as a camera for an Apple TV in iPadOS 17, although given the weight and size, it might be more difficult to get it propped up in the right position.

Thus, with an Apple TV, an iPhone, and a simple mount like the Belkin one, you can turn any TV in any conference room, hotel room, or living room into a great videoconferencing solution. This will be great for business video calls, great for family member video calls, great for everyone.

Speaking of Continuity Camera and Camo, I see that iOS 17 adds the ability to control the crop of an iPhone image in a video chat.  This was one of the reasons that I have preferred using Camo on my Mac instead of Continuity Camera. Of course, on a PC, I'll still need to use Camo for this feature.

Siri without the "hey"

Only time will tell whether this is an improvement or a hazard, but in iOS 17, you can just say "Siri" followed by a command. You no longer have to say "Hey Siri."

One definite improvement is that you can issue multiple commands to Siri, back-to-back. Siri, turn on this light and turn on that light. Siri, text my wife that I'm running late and remind me when I get home to bring in the trash can. I can think of tons of uses for this.

Phone improvements

In iOS 17, you will be able to create a Contact Poster for yourself. Pick a photo (presumably a photo of yourself) or a Memoji, pick a font to display your name, pick a background color, and then you will have a personalized Contact Poster. Now, when you call someone else with an iPhone, they will see your Contact Poster, making it easy to see who is calling them.

With a new feature called Live Voicemail, if someone calls you and you send them to voicemail, you will be able to see a real-time transcript of the voicemail that they are leaving for you. That way, if you see the person calling you is someone that you want to talk to ... or if the topic of the voicemail is something that you want to discuss ... you can tap a button to join the call. It is the iPhone version of screening your calls. Note that if your phone carrier identifies the call as spam, the iPhone won't show a Live Voicemail.

If you are calling someone using FaceTime instead of the Phone and they don't answer, there has never before been a voicemail feature. But in iOS 17, you can now leave a video message for the person. Leaving video voicemails is something that I've seen in science fiction for an incredibly long time; I'm surprised that it never occurred to me in the past to add this great feature to FaceTime.

If you are using AirPods Pro (any model) or AirPods (3rd generation), you can quickly press the stem to mute or unmute yourself on a call. That sounds useful.

StandBy (iPhone) and Lock Screen widgets (iPad)

An iPhone is incredibly useful while you are using it. In iOS 17, it will also be useful when you are not using it. For iPhones with an always-on screen, you can put the iPhone on its side (in landscape mode) and then when the screen dims it can display useful information. It can show an alarm clock, which makes this feature similar to the Nighstand mode for the Apple Watch. It can show your calendar and upcoming appointments. It can show album art for music you are playing. It can show Memories photos and videos. And it can show even more useful glanceable information that is designed to be viewed from a distance.

Since 2008, I've been using an Apple dock to keep my iPhone on my desk in a vertical position, and as I've explained in the past, I love having an Apple dock on my desk. Apple no longer sells that dock, and in light of the StandBy announcement, it looks like I will want to purchase something for my desk to hold up my iPhone in a horizontal position starting this Fall. I think that the one that Apple used during its presentation yesterday was the Twelve South Forté for MagSafe ($39.99 at Amazon) and I've currently got my eye on that one.

The iPad won't have StandBy mode in iPadOS 17, but it will have the ability to put widgets on the left side of the Lock Screen and Live Activities in the middle of the screen (at least I think that is how it will work) along with other personalization features like the font used for the time, similar to what was introduced for the iPhone in iOS 16. That way, if your iPad is next to you but not being used while you are, say, typing on a computer, the iPad can still show you useful information.

Notes improvements

The built-in Notes app has lots of improvements in iOS 17 and iPadOS 17. For example, you can now embed multiple PDF files in a note and annotate those PDFs.

Speaking of Notes and PDF files, much like you can already share a Note with someone else, you will soon be able to share a PDF with someone else and collaborate with someone else. As you annotate the PDF document, someone else will see the annotations appear in real time.

You can also link two different notes, making it easier to jump from one note to a related note. For example, you could use one note as a master index to a bunch of other notes.

Interactive Widgets

For over a year and a half, the first screen of my iPad has displayed only widgets. And I love that configuration today just as much as I did when I first described my setup in 2021.

In iPadOS 17 and iOS 17, widgets can be more interactive, a feature that I cannot wait to use. For example, using the Things app, I have a widget in the middle of my iPad screen that has my top "to do" items. I would love to be able to mark off items as done from the lock screen instead of having to tap the widget once to launch the Things app and then tap the item to mark it complete. You can also have a widget associated with a HomeKit light so that you can simply tap the widget to turn the light on or off. Thanks to interactive widgets, I suspect that I will need to rethink which widgets deserve to live on my first screen of my iPad and iPhone.

NameDrop and better AirDrop

There is a new way for the iPhone to replace sharing a business card. With the new NameDrop feature, you can hold your iPhone very close to someone else's iPhone or Apple Watch and you can each choose the specific phone numbers or email addresses to share, along with the Contact Poster mentioned above.

This feature is not exactly new. Many years ago, when I was using a Palm device, you could beam information like a phone number to another user, as Palm showed off in this effective ad called The Train. But Apple's implementation looks sleek.

The feature also seems like a natural extension of AirDrop. Speaking of which, AirDrop gets a great improvement in iOS 17. Right now, if you want to send a large file or set of files using AirDrop, you need to keep the two iPhone or iPads close to each other until the transfer is complete. But with the new AirDop, simply start the transfer when the devices are close and then you can move away. If you get out of AirDrop range, Apple will just use the Internet to finish the transfer. Apple says that this feature is coming "later this year" which likely means that it won't be part of iOS 17.0 but instead part of 17.1, 17.2, or a subsequent update.

Better Autocorrect and keyboard

Apple says that it has greatly improved autocorrect so that the iPhone keyboard will do a better job when you type. And Apple has made it easier to go back to what you typed if autocorrect "fixed" something that you didn't want to fix.

During the presentation yesterday, Apple VP Craig Federighi humorously remarked that the improved autocorrect feature will be great "in those moments when you just want to type a 'ducking' word" because the keyboard will learn the word that we all know that you intended to type.

Also, instead of just suggesting a word, autocorrect will suggest the rest of the sentence that you are typing, which you can accept just by using the space bar.

Share AirTags

If you have an AirTag (or another device compatible with Apple's Find My technology), you can now share that AirTag with up to five people. I could have used this feature a long time ago. Whenever my wife takes my suitcase for a trip, she gets alerts about someone else's AirTag following her. I'd love to be able to say that we have joint ownership of that AirTag.

Safari improvements

In Safari, you will be able to create different profiles, such as one for work and one for home, and search history and tabs can be different for the different profiles.

When you are logging in to a website and after typing your password the website texts you a verification code, Safari can now automatically enter the code without you having to leave the website.

Maps improvements

Google Maps has long has the ability to download a map area to use it even when you don't have Internet access. Apple Maps is adding a similar feature. And when you download a portion of the Map, the iPhone itself can provide place information like hours or ratings and can provide turn-by-turn directions (driving, walking, cycling, or transit). And if your iPhone is in range of your Apple Watch, the maps downloaded to your iPhone can also be used by your Apple Watch.

If you use an electric car, CarPlay in iOS 17 lets you select your preferred charging network and see in real-time what chargers are available.

Health app on the iPad

Over time, the Health app on my iPhone has become increasingly useful. In iPadOS 17, you can also use the Health app on your iPad, giving you a much larger screen to browse through your information, review charts, track trends, etc.

News+ crosswords

I'm a big fan of the New York Times crossword puzzles, but so are my wife and daughter. If you find that you need more crosswords in your life, the News+ service will add daily crossword puzzles to the News app.

External cameras for the iPad

I mentioned above that an iPhone or iPad can serve as a camera for the Apple TV. Additionally, in iPad OS 17, if you connect your iPad to an external monitor that has a built-in camera, that camera can work as the camera for your iPad for FaceTime calls.

I would love to see Apple extend this feature further. Why not let me connect any webcam to my iPad so that I can put the webcam on top of my iPad when it is in landscape mode, freeing me from looking to the side when I want to look into the cameras? Why not use Continuity Camera mode so that an iPhone can serve as the external camera for the iPad? [UPDATE: According to Filipe Espósito at 9to5Mac, iPadOS 17 does add support for an external webcam plugged in to the USB-C port.]

Messages improvements

Check In is a new way to share your location. You can already use the Messages app to temporarily share your location with someone else (although it looks like this feature is beefed up in iOS 17). With the new Check In feature, one person shares their destination with a second person, and the second person gets a notification when the person arrives. And if the person stops making progress, the iPhone checks in, and if there is no response, it shares information with the second person like the location, battery level, and cell service status.

This feature seems aimed at family members and friends who are worried about someone else safely reaching a location, such as a teenager making it home at night. But even if you are just running late for a meeting with someone else, I could see this as a useful way to share your status and provide a notification when you are in the building, even if not yet in the meeting.

Another new feature is that you can more easily search messages because Apple is adding a feature that is currently in Photos. If you want to search Photos, you can first type a person's name and then type a word like "dog" and you will see pictures featuring both that person and a dog. A similar search feature in Messages will let you search for a specific person and then a word that he or she said in a message.

Journal

Apple has a new built-in app coming later this year called Journal. It lets you jot notes to preserve memories about a day along with pictures and more. The app can even suggest items to remember such as music that you listened to that day or a workout that you did that day. I know many people who have used journaling in their professional and/or personal life for a very long time. Now that this is a built-in app, in an app that appears to be nicely designed, I can see journaling becoming even more popular.

Conclusion

These are all fantastic improvements for the iPhone and iPad, and there are even more new features that I didn't mention above. I very much look forward to using these new features this Fall.

Apple to annouce revolutionary new headset device today

No, Apple itself hasn't revealed that it will be introducing a revolutionary new headset device today, but the rumors of a new augmented reality device being released are so rampant that if Apple were not making such an announcement today, I'm sure that the company would have leaked that to some reporter. And given that this will be a rare example of Apple introducing a new hardware device with a new user interface and a new software platform, you can bet that Apple has come up with a way for it to be revolutionary. It will be fascinating to see what Apple announces.

As excited as I am to learn about Apple's new product (and I suspect that announcement will be the main focus today), I also hope that Apple saves a little time to preview some great new features for the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch.

You can watch Apple's announcement at 10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern today by clicking this link to watch it on the Apple website. Or you can click here to watch a stream on YouTube.

In the News

In 2007, Steve Jobs took the stage and said: "Every once in a while, a revolutionary product comes along that changes everything. ...  One’s very fortunate if you get to work on just one of these in your career. Apple has been very fortunate. It’s been able to introduce a few of these into the world. [In] 1984, we introduced the Macintosh. It didn’t just change Apple. It changed the whole computer industry. In 2001, we introduced the first iPod. And it didn’t just change the way we all listen to music, it changed the entire music industry. Well, today ... Apple is going to reinvent the phone." And he then proceeded to introduce the world to the iPhone. There is a chance that this Monday might be another one of those moments when Apple introduces a revolutionary product. At 10 Pacific / 1 Eastern on Monday, June 5, Apple is widely expected to introduce an augmented reality headset device. And just like the first iPod only worked with a Mac and only held 5,000 songs, and just like the first iPhone used Edge for a painfully slow cellular internet connection, and just like the first Apple Watch was painfully slow, I'm sure that there will be plenty to criticize about aspects of the product that Apple shows us on Monday. But remember, that will be just the version 1.0. If Apple plays its cards right, we will see better versions in future years. Over time, the device will cost less and do more. And then, we might have something really special. Indeed, eventually, we may get to the point where the device is even more useful than the iPhone itself. Or, it will be a complete dud. You never know, and that is part of what makes it so exciting. Having said that, I cannot help thinking how much better the announcement might be if the master presenter Steve Jobs was still around to introduce the product on Monday. This was a short week due to Memorial Day, and most of what people are talking about right now is what Apple may introduce next week, so there isn't much recent news, but here is the news of note from the past week:

• Brett Burney and I will record the next episode of the In the News podcast after we see what Apple announces on Monday. We will probably record on Tuesday afternoon, so I expect that you will have a new episode late Tuesday or on Wednesday.
• California attorney David Sparks says that even if Apple announced a new headset on Monday, it probably won't be available until the close to the end of 2023. That makes sense to me. I would expect Apple to follow the playbook from the Apple Watch introduction: it was first introduced in September 2014, but it wasn't available to buy until April 2015.
• Apple announced in a press release this week that according to a new study, the App Store facilitated $1.1 trillion in developer billings and sales in 2022. And the iOS app economy now supports more than 4.8 million jobs in the U.S. and Europe. It is interesting that Apple is telling developers just how much money they can make by releasing apps for an Apple platform when we are (presumably) days away from Apple announcing a brand new platform.
• Some people view the iPhone and Android as competitors. To a certain degree that is true, but I think that they largely cater to different audiences. One segment of the population—a major segment around the world—prefers Android because it has the cheapest phones. Another is at the opposite extreme; they want a powerful phone that they can manipulate in lots of different ways to make it perfect for them, much like one might build a gaming PC from scratch. Android is perfect for them as well. For most others, the iPhone is the phone of choice. Even so, there are still lots of folks who switch from Android to iPhone each year, and Michael Potuck of 9to5Mac discusses a study that purports to identify the top reasons for switching to iPhone.
• If the car you are driving doesn't have CarPlay, what are the best options for adding it yourself? Zac Hall of 9to5Mac answers that question.
• Two weeks after Apple released watchOS 9.5, Apple released watchOS 9.5.1 this week to fix some bugs, as reported by Juli Clover of Mac Rumors.
• What does watchOS 9.5.1 fix? Apple hasn't really said, but Adam Engst of TidBITS helpfully reports that it "probably fixes some problem." Well there you go.
• And finally, this week Apple TV+ released the final episode of Season 3 of Ted Lasso. What comes next, if anything? We don't know yet. But the first three seasons of Ted Lasso were something special, one of my all-time favorites. Thank you to Apple TV+ for giving us all such an amazing show. And that last episode doesn't disappoint. After you watch it—not before, there are spoilers!—you should watch the following video, which is under seven minutes long. But bring a tissue because there will be tears.