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AppStories, Episode 385 – Our 2024 macOS and visionOS WWDC Wishes

This week on AppStories, we continue our annual wishlists with a look at macOS and visionOS.


Sponsored by:

  • Raycast – A collection of powerful productivity tools all within an extendable launcher. Fast, ergonomic and reliable.
  • Notion – Start turning ideas into action. Try it free today.
  • CleanMyMac X – Your Mac. As good as new. Get 15% off today with code APPSTORIES15

Our 2024 macOS and visionOS WWDC Wishes

  • Our macOS Wishes
    • Notifications
    • Alerts
    • Finder
    • Stage Manager
    • System Settings
    • Music
    • TestFlight
    • Shortcuts
  • Our visionOS Wishes
    • The Developer Strap
    • Multitasking
    • Better Voice Control
    • iPad Virtualization
    • Environments
    • Apple Pencil Pro
    • More Native Apps
    • Software OPtimizations
    • Home Screen Changes
    • Wi-Fi Performance
    • Support for Mice
    • Multiple Desktops
  • Related:

On AppStories+, a video experiment, i have iPad Pro follow-up, and Federico has technical follow-up and a question for listeners about streaming videogames over Wi-Fi.

We deliver AppStories+ to subscribers with bonus content, ad-free, and at a high bitrate early every week.

To learn more about the benefits included with an AppStories+ subscription, visit our Plans page, or read the AppStories+ FAQ.

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Struggling to Afford Cybersecurity Insurance? Here’s Why. [Sponsor]

When MGM Resorts suffered a $100 million hack in September, CEO Bill Hornbuckle wasn’t too worried about the lost revenue, because cyber insurance would cover the tab. “I can only imagine what next year’s bill will be,” he joked.

Weeks later, on a call with analysts, Hornbuckle complained about the “staggering” rise of insurance costs in the past few years.

This story neatly illustrates the crisis in cyber liability coverage. For years, companies have invested more in security insurance than in actual security. The result has been a tidal wave of data breaches that have driven up the cost of premiums to the point that they are rapidly becoming unaffordable.

Some large enterprises are responding to the increased costs by creating their own “captive carriers,” insurance providers that exist only to serve them. But that’s clearly not an option for small businesses, which are more likely to go without insurance altogether.

According to Andrew Bucci, VP of Sales at Amplified Insurance Partners, “It’s going to come to a point where some people may have to self-insure, which means that they don’t take a cyber policy out and they just cross their fingers they don’t have some sort of breach.” That’s a huge gamble for SMBs, since they could be driven to bankruptcy by a single security incident.

At Kolide, we’ve seen our cyber insurance premiums go up by 40% in just the last two years, and we got curious about:

  • What’s driving the increases?
  • Who really needs cybersecurity insurance?
  • How can the average company reduce their premiums?

What we found was that insurance companies themselves can help get us out of this crisis, by mandating some (pretty basic) security requirements for their customers–things like MFA, endpoint security, and retiring end-of-life software. 

Read the full blog to learn more about our findings.

Our thanks to Kolide for sponsoring MacStories this week.


MacStories Unwind: A Small Fire at 3AM

This week on MacStories Unwind, I update listeners on my new 11” iPad Pro and Federico lights a fire, plus YouTube, app, and TV recommendations.



Show Notes

Picks


MacStories Unwind+

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What If…? – An Immersive Story Will Debut May 30th

Source: Disney+.

Source: Disney+.

Earlier this month, I linked to What If…? – An Immersive Story, which Marvel Studios and ILM Immersive developed for Disney+. The project is an Apple Vision Pro exclusive for which there were few details originally. Now, however, we have a trailer and a launch date. What If…? – An Immersive Story will be available to Disney+ subscribers in just over one week on May 30th:

The trailer’s description explains the project’s premise:

The Multiverse is in danger and The Watcher needs your help. Dangerous variants are hunting Infinity Stones and altering the fate of not only their realities, but yours as well. To save the fate of the Multiverse, you’ll need to use your own hands to learn mystic spells, defend your allies in epic battles, and more. But, be careful… everything might not be all that it seems.

Source: Disney+.

Source: Disney+.

I can’t wait to try What If…? – An Immersive Story. There hasn’t been a lot of new immersive content since the Vision Pro’s launch. However, along with the appearance of Parkour in the TV app, which is set for release in a couple of days, the pace seems to be picking up.


Magic Rays of Light: Apple TV Wishes Past, Trying, and Sugar

This week on Magic Rays of Light, Sigmund and Devon highlight the return of Trying, recap the first season of Sugar, and revisit their 2023 WWDC hopes to see what came true and what remains on the wishlist.



Show Notes


Send us a voice message all week via iMessage or email to [email protected].

Sigmund Judge | Follow Sigmund on X, Mastodon, or Threads

Devon Dundee | Follow Devon on Mastodon or Threads

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Tadoº Announces New Range of Smart Heating Products Supporting Matter Over Thread

Tadoº, the European-based smart heating company, has announced a new line of products called tadoº X. These products feature upgrades from the company’s previous V3+ range, support the new Matter smart home standard, and are built on the Thread protocol for a more reliable connection.

Tadoº also announced a new product, the Heat Pump Optimizer X. This device controls heat pumps, an increasingly popular way to heat homes that is more efficient and not dependent on fossil fuels. Tadoº says the new tadoº X range “has been designed to make Smart Thermostats and the new Heat Pump Optimizer X more accessible for millions more households across Europe to cut both their energy bills and impact on the climate.”

The tadoº X line includes the following products:

  • Smart Thermostat X
  • Smart Radiator Thermostat X
  • Wireless Temperature Sensor X
  • Heat Pump Optimizer X
  • Bridge X (which serves as a Thread border router)

Amongst the notable upgrades, the Smart Radiator Thermostat X now features a USB-C rechargeable battery that can be detached without removing the whole device from the radiator. The Heat Pump Optimizer X can be used with tadoº’s smart energy tariffs to shift operation times to periods of the day when energy prices are cheaper. Finally, the tadoº Bridge X that serves as a Thread border router, allowing your devices to connect to each other and the Internet, is not necessary if you already have a HomePod mini or the Wi-Fi + Ethernet version of the latest-generation Apple TV 4K, as these also serve as Thread border routers.

The smart radiator thermostat now has a removable, rechargeable battery.

The smart radiator thermostat now has a removable, rechargeable battery.

As before, the tadoº range is compatible with the Apple Home app, but most features – such as advanced scheduling and checking battery levels – are only available in the tadoº app. The devices also integrate with an optional subscription called ‘Auto-Assist’ that gives access to additional features including Energy IQ, Care & Protect, Geofencing, and Open Window Detection. This service costs €3.99 per month or €29.99 per year, but each tadoº X product comes with 12 months free.

The tadoº app. Image: tadoº

The tadoº app. Image: tadoº

I have personally used tadoº products for over three years now (and covered them recently in our home accessories roundup), and I’ve seen genuine savings in my usage. (tadoº claims an average of 22% savings based on internal usage data.) One flaw I’ve sometimes encountered is dropped connections, as the previous V3+ range could only connect to a single bridge that had to also connect via ethernet to my router. The move to Thread should hopefully alleviate these issues.

I will have to wait for the new tadoº range, however, as it is not launching in the UK yet. In response to an inquiry about this, tadoº told me the company has a September target release date in the UK and other European countries. They also confirmed an additional product, the Wireless Smart Thermostat X, which connects to traditional gas boilers like the one I have, will be released at that time. This will enable efficient usage through the ability to remotely turn the boiler off if no radiator thermostats are on.

Another detail provided to me is that the Auto-Assist feature, which was previously complimentary to Apple users, was a limited offer through Apple. As such, after the 12-month trial, the service will now cost the standard €3.99 per month or €29.99 per year, even if you are an Apple Home user.

The new tadoº X range is now available in Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Sweden, and Denmark.


QuickTune: A Music Remote App for Mac with Tiger Vibes

I’m not usually nostalgic about apps. I appreciate classic designs from the past, but I find ‘new’ more exciting. However, for every rule, there’s an exception, and for me, it’s Mario Guzmán’s beautiful, pixel-perfect reimagining of classic Apple music apps.

Guzmán’s latest app is QuickTune, a remote control utility for Apple Music. The app is the spitting image of QuickTime 71 running on Mac OS X Tiger, with a sprinkling of modern features and fun interactions that make it a pleasure to use.

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I Turned the New 13” iPad Pro Into a MacPad and Portable Gaming Display

The updated MacPad.

The updated MacPad.

As I hinted in my story on the issues of iPadOS last week, I upgraded from an 11” iPad Pro to a 13” iPad Pro (1 TB, Wi-Fi-only model). While I was very happy with the 11” form factor, I decided to return to the larger model for two reasons:

  • I wanted to have maximum thinness with the ultimate iPad Pro model Apple makes.
  • I sacrificed the physical comfort of the 11” iPad Pro to get a larger display for my MacPad as well as portable gaming.

Today, I will explain how I was able to immediately turn the brand-new 13” iPad Pro into a convertible MacPad using a combination of accessories and some new techniques I’ve been exploring. I’ll also share my experience with using the iPad’s glorious Tandem OLED display in a variety of gaming setups ranging from streaming to emulators.

Let’s dive in.

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Apple Rolls out Support for Paris Transit Passes in Wallet Just in Time for the Olympics

Today, Apple rolled out support for Paris’ Navigo transit passes in the Wallet app, just in time for the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games. Travelers are now able to acquire a Navigo pass directly from Apple’s Wallet app and load it with transit tickets. Not only that, but this now also makes it possible to use your iPhone to get through any gates on the Paris transit network, simply by holding the iPhone near the stations’ contactless readers.

Navigo in Wallet also supports Apple’s Express Mode feature, which means the pass is automatically activated when holding the iPhone near a gate, without having to authenticate with Face ID. Additionally, this features lets you use the pass for up to five hours after your iPhone runs out of battery.

As French publication Numerama notes, this full integration with Apple’s transit pass system is a first of its kind in continental Europe. In my testing, you can add a Navigo pass in Wallet and pay for a new batch of tickets without even having to install Paris’ official transit app at any step of the process. However, this only applies to occasional travelers since the official app is still required to purchase weekly and monthly tickets before you can load them onto the pass in Apple Wallet.

Loading tickets onto the Navigo Pass in Apple Wallet, and enabling Express Mode.

Loading tickets onto the Navigo Pass in Apple Wallet, and enabling Express Mode.

This integration with Apple Wallet has been a long time in the making. Android smartphone owners have already been able to replace their physical Navigo pass with their device since 2022. At the time, Île-de-France Mobilités (Paris’ transit authority) announced they were actively working with Apple to bring the feature to the iPhone in 2023. Today, one year later than originally expected, it has finally arrived.