Despite the obvious privacy and security concerns, it seems clear that the proliferation of chips will continue, and when it comes to clothes and accessories, RFID/NFC is just the starting point. As people are becoming increasingly used to the fact that everything can be located, chips will find their ways to even more products and new use-cases will emerge.
Read MoreExploring brown noise
Recently I’ve been testing what impact brown noise has on my ability to focus, relax, and fall asleep. It’s still too early to draw any definitive conclusions, but so far I’ve had positive experiences when it comes to enhanced focus. In fact, as I’m writing this blog post I’m listening to a recording of brown noise on my headphones.
Read MoreSpotify launches paid podcasts via Anchor
While subscription-based podcasts aren’t a new thing per se, the tools from Spotify and Apple make setting up and maintaining a paid podcast a lot easier than it was before. Discovering and listening to paid podcasts will also become much more convenient. Additionally, it’s great that creators finally have other ways to monetize their work than just the traditional ad-based model. When comparing the new tools from both Spotify and Apple, I must say that Spotify has surprised positively, and at least on paper it looks like Spotify has produced the winning concept. Therefore, for my own part, I will definitely continue my podcast experimentations on the Anchor / Spotify platform.
Read MoreMy wishlist for Apple's next M-series chip
The M1 Macs we’ve seen so far are mainly targeted towards consumer grade customers. We still haven’t seen a “real” new MacBook Pro, a Mac Pro, or an iMac Pro with an M-series chip. This raises the question: what’s to be expected in the next M-series chip? Here’s my wish list for the next iteration, and specifically for the one which will be targeted towards pro users.
Read MoreWill subscriptions take over the podcasting scene?
There’s a lot going on in the podcasting ecosystem and it seems clear that more and more podcasts will become subscription based. It also means that there will probably be less ads in podcasts going forward and that’s also going to have an impact on AdTech development in the podcasting space. However, subscription based podcasts aren’t for every creator, and I don’t expect that the majority of podcasts will end up behind a paywall. Many podcasters will probably do what’s commonplace in the newsletter space, i.e. offer selected bits of your work for free to everyone, and then place the premium content behind a paywall.
Read MoreDid Apple just close the universal podcast directory?
I sincerely hope that Apple never intended to close their directory from third parties and what we’re seeing now is simply a misunderstanding or a bug that will be fixed quickly. This change would absolutely not be Apple’s interests, because someone else (e.g. Google or Spotify) would step up and claim ownership of the universal podcast directory. That would clearly not be good for Apple, because being in control of such a directory has inherently a lot of value.
Read MoreA deeper look at the new iMac
I’m still impressed by the new iMac and it’s a big improvement to the previous generation. The new form factor is fabulous, despite the slightly oversized chin, and after a long break we got some color alternatives again! Much of the improvement is thanks to the small but powerful M1 chip and this new iMac proves that Apple is making good progress on their 2-year transition to Apple Silicon. The main drawback is the size of the display and I would have loved to hear that they’re planning to release a larger model later this year.
Read MoreWe got AirTags but the completely revamped iMac stole the show
The “Spring Loaded” Apple event delivered a solid package of relevant updates and we even got a completely new product – the Airtag – which of course is a rare treat. I’m also very excited to see how the new updates to Apple Podcasts will impact the entire podcasting ecosystem. The new iMac with its stunning new sleek design stole the show and the iPad Pro, especially the larger 12.9” version with the Liquid Retina XDR display, continues to be an impressive device.
Read MoreThose AirTags might be handy after all
It will be interesting to see if Apple can once again do its magic, i.e. enter a market not as the first player, but as the one who actually delivers a winning product. This is a product that clearly needs to be launched at an event because Apple wants to tell its own story about how it’s different from the competition and how it deals with potential privacy and security issues.
Read MoreThe risks are high when you strike nuclear facilities
Whatever the motivation for the Natanz attack was, and however compelling the risk/reward calculation looked, it’s undeniably true that there’s a high risk of disastrous consequences when nuclear facilities are involved.
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