The Wide, Wide World of Apple

[Monoriu]

My wife and I did a mini-upgrade of our mobiles.  I changed from Iphone 6 plus to Iphone xs max.  The lack of a home button was scary at first, but I got used to it quickly.  I was initially skeptical, but it seems facial recognition does work.  My current theory is that the phone unlocks itself if it sees *any* human face, rather than my face.  I am going to find somebody to test this theory.  Mobile seems to be much faster and the screen looks better.  Still hate that they changed the headphone input slot. 

[Caliga]

My company gave me a Crapple Watch.  What should I do with it other than pretend to be Dick Tracy.

[Barrister]

My company gave me a Crapple Watch.  What should I do with it other than pretend to be Dick Tracy.

Big thing is health tracking, if that is of interest to you.

[Caliga]

Maybe I'll test it out while I'm walking the dog or something.

[Tonitrus]

Here ya go BB, it's back... 

[Barrister]

The old Mac Pro was nicknamed the cheese grater.  I like how they just leaned into that nickname and it now literally looks like something you could grate cheese with.

But my 2008 Mac Pro cost $2000.  Starting at $6k (US) means thats right out as an option for me.

[Syt]

For just $999 you can get a display stand.

https://www.zdnet.com/article/apples-999-mac-pro-display-xdr-monitor-stand-is-the-most-apple-thing-ever/

But the ultimate Apple accessory, the one that says that money is no object, has to be the new Mac Pro Display XDR monitor stand, priced at a cool $999.

Yes, you read that right. The new Mac Pro -- starting price $5,999 -- doesn't come with a display, and the 32-inch 6k Retina Pro Display XDR -- starting price $4,999 -- that Apple is pitching to Mac Pro users doesn't come with a stand.

See where this is going?

Yup, the base Mac Pro with a base Pro Display XDR display and the stand will set you back $12,000.

[Tonitrus]

And $6K is just the base Mac Pro...some sites are estimating the max'd-out spec version at about $35K

[Syt]

[Caliga]

My company gave me a Crapple Watch.  What should I do with it other than pretend to be Dick Tracy.

Big thing is health tracking, if that is of interest to you.

Finally got it set up and paired with my iPhone today.  Installing a WatchOS update to it right now (which is slow as fuck!) but in the short amount of time I played with it, I really liked it.  Pretty cool that it can tell me if I'm having a heart attack.

[katmai]

If? don't you mean when?

[Syt]

https://www.theregister.co.uk/2019/06/05/apple_stand_copyright_lockdown/

Apple strips clips of WWDC devs booing that $999 monitor stand from the web using copyright claims.

[garbon]

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/aug/02/apple-halts-practice-of-contractors-listening-in-to-users-on-siri

Apple halts practice of contractors listening in to users on Siri

Apple has suspended its practice of having human contractors listen to users' Siri recordings to "grade" them, following a Guardian report revealing the practice.

The company said it would not restart the programme until it had conducted a thorough review of the practice. It has also committed to adding the ability for users to opt out of the quality assurance scheme altogether in a future software update.

Apple said: "We are committed to delivering a great Siri experience while protecting user privacy. While we conduct a thorough review, we are suspending Siri grading globally. Additionally, as part of a future software update, users will have the ability to choose to participate in grading."

Contractors working for Apple in Ireland said they were not told about the decision when they arrived for work on Friday morning, but were sent home for the weekend after being told the system they used for the grading "was not working" globally. Only managers were asked to stay on site, the contractors said, adding that they had not been told what the suspension means for their future employment.

The suspension was prompted by a report in the Guardian last week that revealed the company's contractors "regularly" hear confidential and private information while carrying out the grading process, including in-progress drug deals, medical details and people having sex.

The bulk of that confidential information was recorded through accidental triggers of the Siri digital assistant, a whistleblower told the Guardian. The Apple Watch was particularly susceptible to such accidental triggers, they said. "The regularity of accidental triggers on the watch is incredibly high ... The watch can record some snippets that will be 30 seconds – not that long, but you can gather a good idea of what's going on.

Sometimes, the Apple contractor said, "you can definitely hear a doctor and patient, talking about the medical history of the patient. Or you'd hear someone, maybe with car engine background noise – you can't say definitely, but it's a drug deal ... you can definitely hear it happening. And you'd hear, like, people engaging in sexual acts that are accidentally recorded on the pod or the watch."

...

[Liep]

Trying to watch the apple presentation but the first 10 minutes is just some guys playing frogger apparently to showcase Apple Arcade. Who the fuck would pay for that?

[Liep]

None of those flashy games make any sense. And how are those nerds all so good looking? Is this a cult?