June is Black Music Month. Apple Music will be celebrating and exploring the contribution Black artists have made with playlists and other content. It also released a new video celebrating “creators and the cross-cultural dialogues that bring the world so much texture, light, and joy.”
Will Apple Ever Give More Than 5GB iCloud Storage For Free?
Steve Jobs unveiled iCloud in June 2011 and, a decade on, the amount of free storage offered has still not increased beyond 5GB. 9to5Mac has published a good history lesson of the service, including speculation on how the paid tiers could change to help both Apple and users.
There is an argument to be made that Apple’s services revenue would actually benefit from giving away slightly more upfront to reel people in and entice customers into paid plans. 5 GB isn’t enough to even try out iCloud Photos in any meaningful capacity. If instead the free tier was matching Google’s at 15 GB, it would enable Apple users to get a reasonable amount of photos backing up to iCloud, experience some of the benefits of cloud sync, and then be more likely persuaded into committing to a paid plan. To pull this off, you’d have to adjust the paid tiers accordingly. Maybe a lineup of 15 GB free, 100 GB for $0.99/month, 300 GB for $2.99/month and 2 TB for $9.99/month could be compelling. An even cheekier approach could be to only increase the storage offered as part of Apple One, making the higher-value subscriptions more attractive for consumers migrating from the free plan.
China, Not Taiwan, Now Home to Most Apple Suppliers
China and Hong Kong combined were the biggest sources of Apple suppliers in 2020, knocking Tawain of the top spot.
Apple Podcast Subscriptions Rollout Faces Delay
The rollout of subscriptions in Apple Podcasts, expected in May, has been delayed and will now happen later this month.
Apple TV+ Wins Rights to Comedy ‘The Big Door Prize’ From ‘Schitt’s Creek' Writer David West Read
Apple TV+ has landed the rights to comedy series The Big Door Prize from Schitt’s Creek writer and executive producer David West Read.
The All-Star Mac Bundle Featuring Parallels Pro: $35
We have a deal on the All-Star Mac Bundle, a collection of five Mac apps for contact Management, cyber security and VPN, PDF navigation, productivity, and it features Parallels Pro. The whole bundle is $49.99, but coupon code ALLSTARMAC at checkout brings it down to $35!
Firefox 89 Gets Design Overhaul and ‘Total Cookie Protection’ Feature
Mozilla has released Firefox version 89 on Tuesday, bringing a new design for desktop users and a privacy feature called Total Cookie Protection added to private browsing.
We’ve enhanced the privacy of the Firefox Browser’s Private Browsing mode with Total Cookie Protection, which confines cookies to the site where they were created, preventing companies from using cookies to track your browsing across sites. This feature was originally launched in Firefox’s ETP Strict mode.
More information on Total Cookie Protection can be found on Mozilla’s blog.
Tuesdays with Martellaro: iMac Purchasing – TMO Daily Observations 2021-06-01
John Martellaro joins host Kelly Guimont to chat about tips and options for purchasing a new machine, including John’s plans for a new iMac.
You Have One Week to Opt Out of Amazon’s ‘Sidewalk’ Network Service
Amazon Sidewalk is the company’s network mesh service that shares your internet bandwidth with Amazon devices. You must opt out by June 8 if you don’t want this because the setting is turned on by default.
The new wireless mesh service will share a small slice of your Internet bandwidth with nearby neighbors who don’t have connectivity and help you to their bandwidth when you don’t have a connection.
By default, Amazon devices including Alexa, Echo, Ring, security cams, outdoor lights, motion sensors, and Tile trackers will enroll in the system.
WWDC Media Preview — Media+
Chuck Joiner of MacVoices joins host Charlotte Henry to have a look ahead at WWDC 2021. How much will Apple’s media offering feature?
