“Calls” is a unique series coming to Apple TV+ told through a 12-minute phone calls. Based on the French series of the same name (Apple ordered an English adaptation in 2018), Calls is an immersive television experience that masterfully uses only audio and minimal abstract visuals to tell bone-chilling stories. Launching in a binge model worldwide, all nine 12-minute episodes are told through a series of phone calls that use sharp writing, compelling voice talent and graphics to aid in transcribing the darkly dramatic conversations onto the screen. These relatable scenarios transport the audience into familiar situations that quickly become surreal with thrilling and frightening moments. Featuring Lily Collins, Rosario Dawson, Mark Duplass, Pedro Pascal, and others. It arrives March 19.
Amazon Launches ‘GameOn’ App to Share Gaming Clips on iOS
Following its Android launch in November, Amazon has released its GameOn app so mobile gamers can share clips to their favorite social media.
Spotify Podcast Listeners to Overtake Apple This Year
Spotify’s podcasts play looks like it is paying off, with forecasts that it will surpass Apple Podcasts in terms of monthly listeners in 2021.
Ridley Scott Wants Jodie Comer for Apple TV’s ‘Kitbag’
A new report says that Jodie Comer is Ridley Scott’s choice to star alongside Joaquin Phoenix in Bonaparte film “Kitbag”.
Apple Watch’s ECG Launch in Australia Imminent Following Approval
The launch of the Apple Watch ECG features in Australia seems imminent. The 8-Bit reported that it received approval in February.
The Australian Government’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) approved the ECG feature in the country yesterday under “Medical Device Class IIa,” according to a document first spotted by The 8-Bit. This means that Apple Watch users in Australia will soon be able to access the ECG app. According to the document of approval “The ECG app is a software-only mobile medical application that is intended to be used with the Apple Watch to create, record, store, transfer and display a single-channel electrocardiagram (ECG) similar to a Lead I ECG. The ECG app determines the presence of atrial fibrillation (AF) or sinus rhythm on a classifiable waveform. The ECG app is not recommended for users with other known arrhythmias.”
[Updated] Apple's Response to The COVID-19 Pandemic
As the COVID-19 pandemic has spread around the world, Apple has found itself contributing to attempts to curtail it.
M1 Support Coming to Open Source Email Client ‘Thunderbird’
In the latest beta version of Thunderbird the company added a welcome surprise in the notes: Future support for Apple’s M1 Macs. These notes apply to Thunderbird version 87 beta 1 released February 26, 2021. What’s New: Native support for macOS devices built with Apple Silicon CPUs; New user interface for adding attachments; Clicking on an already-selected pill in the recipient list will now allow editing the address; Copying a large message to an IMAP server would sometimes prematurely display a time-out error; OpenPGP: Messages with a high compression ratio (over 10x) could not be decrypted; and other fixes and improvements.
Civilization VI and You – TMO Daily Observations 2021-03-02
Andrew Orr and Bryan Chaffin join host Kelly Guimont to discuss the latest iteration of the game Civilization, and also explain the game to Kelly.
Picture-in-picture Back in Hulu on iOS 14
Picture-in-picture has returned for Hulu users running iOS 14, MacRumors reported. The feature had been available for a short period before but was then removed for updadtes.
In the early days of iOS 14 in September, Hulu briefly supported picture-in-picture for iPhone users. Hulu soon removed support, however, to refine the feature and “work on a few updates to provide the best experience for our viewers.” Hulu has quietly welcomed back support with the latest update to the app, alongside the typical bug fixes and improvements. Apple introduced picture-in-picture for the iPhone with iOS 14, allowing users to continue watching a video while also browsing other apps on their device. Popular video-based apps such as Netflix have supported the feature for some time, while others like YouTube for iOS have not.
In-Game Video Returning to MLB Dugout iPads, but MLB.TV Off Apple TV Third Gen
In-game video is set to return to iPads used by MLB team dugouts when the season starts on April 1. However, AppleInsider noted this is happening at the same time the MLB.tv has been removed from third generation Apple TVs.
Major League Baseball will be allowing teams to watch video of the game in progress once again, following a period of absence. As part of its changes for the 2021 season, MLB is once again allowing video to be piped through to teams on iPads in each dugout. The league has extensively used iPads in the past, providing the tablets to staff and players for performance examination and analytics. Following a ban until 2015, the program started in 2016, and ran smoothly for a number of years, with the iPad Pro initially the tool of choice… While players will be able to watch the game from the dugout, owners of the third-generation Apple TV won’t be able to do the same on their devices. Support for the app was pulled late in February, preventing it from being used on the older video streaming device.
Apple Music Marks Black History Month 2021
February was Black History Month in the U.S. and Canada. Apple Music released a collection of films to mark and celebrate it. This was all highlighted in a video released on Sunday.
macOS Big Sur 11.3 Developer Beta Three Now Available
The third developer beta of macOS Big Sur 11.3 is available via Apple Developer Center and as an over-the-air update.
Apple Hearing Study Shares Concerning Statistics
The Apple Hearing Study has shared statistics from its participants (n=unknown) showing many experience dangerous sound levels.
Nicole Kidman, Cynthia Erivo, Merritt Wever, Alison Brie to Star in Apple TV+ Series 'Roar'
Apple TV+ has placed a series order for ‘Roar’, a dark comedy series of feminist fables featuring big-name stars, including Nicole Kidman.
Avanca T1 Bluetooth Wireless Earbuds: $29.95
We have a deal on a pair of Avanca T1 Bluetooth Wireless Earbuds. These Bluetooth 5.0 devices allow you to answer and hang up phone calls with a tap on the earphones, and feature up to 30 hours of standby battery life and 3 hours of listening time. They’re $29.95 through our deal.
Reviewing Revue, Substack, and Clubhouse — Media+
Techcrunch’s Steve O’Hear joins host Charlotte Henry to look at some recent media phenomena – Revue, Substack, and Clubhouse. With the first already acquired by Twitter, should Apple be looking to get involved with either of the other two?
Editor Mel Lewis is Latest to Leave BBC Radio 1 For Apple Music
Editor Mel Lewis is the latest member of staff to have left BBC Radio 1 or 1Xtra in the UK to join Apple Music.
NASA’s Perseverance Rover Runs on a Modified iMac G3 Processor
Apparently the Perseverance rover is running on a modified PowerPC 750 processor which was also used in the original iMac G3 from 1998.
Run Virtual Machines on M1 Macs With ‘UTM’
UTM is an app I recently discovered that lets you run virtual machines on M1 Macs. It uses Apple’s Hypervisor virtualization framework to run ARM64 operating systems on Apple Silicon at near native speeds. On Intel Macs, x86/x64 operating system can be virtualized. In addition, lower performance emulation is available to run x86/x64 on Apple Silicon as well as ARM64 on Intel. For developers and enthusiasts, there are dozens of other emulated processors as well including: ARM32, MIPS, PPC, and RISC-V. Under the hood of UTM is QEMU, a decades old, free and open source emulation software that is widely used and actively maintained. While QEMU is powerful, it can be difficult to set up and configure with its plethora of command line options and flags. UTM is designed to give users the flexibility of QEMU without the steep learning curve that comes with it. Mac App Store Link
For The First Time Since March 2020, All 270 U.S. Apple Stores Are Open
Apple Stores have had to close, open, then close again throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. However, for the first time since March 2020, all 270 U.S. retails locations were open on Monday, according to 9to5 Mac.
While some Apple Stores offer in-store shopping appointments and others can accept Express pickup of online orders only, all 270 US locations are now open in some capacity as of March 1, 2021. Apple Stores in Texas around Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio were the last to reopen today. Over the past 12 months, Apple Stores have weathered a rambling calendar of horrors that began when the pandemic hit. After starting to reopen from May 11, 2020, evolving health guidance and COVID-19 infection spikes forced some stores to reclose and reopen a second, third, or even fourth time. If adapting and responding to new health and safety guidelines overnight wasn’t enough, Apple Stores were then confronted with looting and vandalism, an intense heatwave and wildfire smoke throughout California in the midst of curbside operations, Election Day and Inauguration Day security precautions, and severe winter storms in Texas that pushed back store reopenings in Austin by nearly a week.
