The Apple Watch is a Slow Burning Success

When Tim Cook first showed-off the Apple Watch it was not necessarily clear what it was for. But, said James Titcomb at the Telegraph, it has proved to be a success.

New gadgets rarely come out of the gates fully formed; technology is an iterative process. The problem for Cook was that the company’s previous products had delighted instantly. The appeal of the iPod and iPhone were obvious as soon as they were touched. The Watch, by contrast, has been that rare thing for Apple: a slow burner. Unlike its predecessors, which were close to the finished item when launched, the original Apple Watch felt like a prototype, one that has since developed it out in the open. More recent versions have dramatically improved. Apple has dispensed with any pretence of the Watch being a luxury good, and stopped attempting to squeeze aspects of the iPhone onto its small screen.

Catching an iPhone X...On a Rollercoaster...at 130km/h

Having your iPhone fall out your pocket and break is pretty annoying, so it is particularly great if you or someone else catches it before it gets smashed on the ground. Well, that is exactly what Samuel Kempf did. Except he was on a rollercoaster travelling at 130 km/h (via iClarified). He posted the video to YouTube. It had been viewed nearly 5.2 million times at the time of this writing. In the description, Mr. Kempf explained:  “I was in Spain at Port Aventura on shambhala ride and saw the person a few rows ahead drop their IPhone X. long story short I caught it. this roller coaster is moving at over 130kms…was once Europe’s tallest and fastest coaster.. only recently beaten.”

Apple Changes App Store Algorithm to Address Antitrust Complaint

Apple is tweaking the App Store algorithm to make Apple apps less likely to appear in search results. This seeks to address complaints that the company unfairly uses the App Store to promote its own apps in favor of competition.

Mr. Schiller and Mr. Cue said the algorithm had been working properly. They simply decided to handicap themselves to help other developers.

“We make mistakes all the time,” Mr. Cue said.

“We’re happy to admit when we do,” Mr. Schiller said. “This wasn’t a mistake.”

I think the antitrust concerns about Apple have valid arguments, and I think this is a good move by Apple. Notice Phil Schiller gently correct Eddy.

Optimizing Storage, Migration, Snapshots, and Combo Updates – Mac Geek Gab 778

This isn’t the one after 9/9, it’s the one on 9/9! And that means it’s time to answer your questions and share your tips about optimizing your iPhone storage, managing your snapshots, ejecting pesky drives, finding a service better than Gazelle, and much more. Press play and enjoy learning at least five new things right alongside John and Dave!

Apple's Fifth Avenue Store Gets a Rainbow Reopening

Apple’s glass cube retail store on Fifth Avenue is reopening, and it’s bedecked with rainbows to celebrate.

A filming crew was posted outside the cube, grabbing shots of passers-by photographing themselves with the new design. One of the crew members told Quartz they were filming “a new commercial” for Apple about the relaunched store, but wouldn’t go into any further detail.

I think it looks great.

Featured image credit: Quartz/Mike Murphy