The Mac Observer's Daily Observations Podcast

The latest round of leaked iPhone 7 pics show a smartphone without the familiar mute switch. Bryan Chaffin joins Jeff Gamet to talk about why this has them concerned, and why it may not be such a big a deal. Jeff also explains why he’s enjoying Pokémon GO even though he’s not big into gaming.

With the Mac Pro and Mac mini languishing as years-old machines without refreshes, the future of Apple’s desktop lineup is in question. John Martellaro and Bryan Chaffin join Jeff Gamet to share their thoughts on what Apple may‚or may not—have in store for its desktop computers.

Apple is being accused of intentionally ruining performance on older devices to push sales. Bryan Chaffin joins Jeff Gamet to talk about a petition calling out Apple for planned obsolescence, plus they talk about how to install the iOS 10 and macOS Sierra public betas.

The iOS 10 and macOS Sierra public betas are here! John Martellaro joins Jeff Gamet to look at the public beta releases, talk about what they like, and remind everyone that betas shouldn’t go on our primary devices. They also have something to say about gun-shaped iPhone cases.

AI agents are great for helping us, but the come with a cost that not everyone is comfortable with. John Martellaro joins Jeff Gamet to talk about the personal data we give up to make AI agents more useful, and how we can limit what we share. They also take a look at the Backdoor.MAC.Elanor malware that’s threatening Macs.

Becoming an organ donor will get a lot easier once iOS 10 ships this fall. John Martellaro and Bryan Chaffin join Jeff Gamet to look at Apple’s partnership with Donate Life America to add donor registration to the Health app, plus they offer up their thoughts on the impact of the tragic Tesla autopilot car crash.

Word on the street says Apple is in talks to buy the streaming music service Tidal. Bryan Chaffin and Dave Hamilton join Jeff Gamet to share their thoughts on whether or not a deal between the two makes sense, plus they look at Spotify’s complaint that Apple is blocking competition in the streaming music market with its App Store approval process.

Apple, Amazon, and Google are all big players in the tech market, and Senator Elizabeth Warren says they’re stifling competition. John Martellaro and Bryan Chaffin join Jeff Gamet to look at the Senator’s concerns and share their thoughts on competition in the tech world.

Apple patented a way to block our smartphone cameras from recording. Kelly Guimont and John Martellaro join Jeff Gamet to share their thoughts on the patent and its potential for abuse. They also look at a lawsuit alleging Apple stole the idea for the iPhone.

Speculation about the audio ports on the next iPhone are still going strong. Today Dave Hamilton joins Jeff Gamet to talk about the potentially missing headphone jack on the new iPhone, digital to analog converters, and how we listen to our music. They also get a little creeped out over Facebook’s location-based friend suggestions.