Apple Watch

This $2 App Brings Amazon Alexa to Your Apple Watch…Sort Of
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This $2 App Brings Amazon Alexa to Your Apple Watch...Sort Of

Jim Tanous ·

An Apple Watch app called Voice in a Can is seeking to satisfy the desires of those who love Apple hardware but rely on Amazon Alexa for its home automation capabilities. As a standalone app, Voice in a Can runs entirely on the Apple Watch without needing to pair with the iPhone. With just a Wi-Fi or LTE connection you ask Alexa to control your home lights, unlock the door, or set your thermostat. However, since Apple prevents third party apps from replacing Siri, you can’t use Voice in a Can to have Alexa make calls or control the audio playback on your watch. It’s by no means a perfect solution, but it’s the best Alexa users have thus far until Amazon and Apple work out an official solution. Grab it now on the App Store for $1.99.

Podcast

Senate Net Neutrality, Nader's Whiff, Jony Watchman - ACM 462

Bryan Chaffin · · Add Comment

The U.S. Senate passed legislation that would restore Net Neutrality in the country, but Bryan Chaffin and Jeff Gamet explain why they don’t think it will go any further. They also break down Ralph Nader’s kind-of-weird whiff in complaining about Apple’s share buyback program. They cap the show with a look at how Sir Jony Ive is a watch-man, though Steve Jobs wasn’t involved with Apple Watch.

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Hodinkee Does the Watch-Lover's Interview with Sir Jony Ive

Bryan Chaffin ·

Check out this great interview with Sir Jony Ive by Hodinkee‘s Benjamin Clymer. It’s essentially the watch-lover’s interview with Jony Ive. Here’s a snippet:

A publicist makes his way toward the rope – yes, it’s velvet – and straightens the post to which it is attached. He looks at it once more, and adjusts it again. It all feels very natural. The elevator bank opens and Jony strides off. He swiftly passes the twice-considered rope and is greeted by the team. I go in for a hearty handshake. But as with each time I converse with this man who has designed much of the world around us, I stumble at his kindness. “So nice to see you, Ben.”

Beautifully written, this interview includes annotations by Mr. Clymer to explain why he asked what he asked. And all of it is a piece by a fine timepiece enthusiast for fine time piece enthusiasts. One of the tidbits I found particularly interesting is that Jony Ive said he never talked about watches with Steve Jobs, and that the Apple Watch was first discussed a few months after his passing. This is a great interview.

Apple Watch Deal: Series 1 For Only $149 at Walmart
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Apple Watch Deal: Series 1 For Only $149 at Walmart

Andrew Orr ·

For a limited time Walmart is having a fantastic Apple Watch deal. It’s selling the Series 1 38mm aluminum model with sport band for US$149. You can pick between the silver model with the white band, and the space gray model with the black band. If the 38mm is too small for you, the 42mm model is also being sold for US$179. The Series 1 Watch has a dual-core CPU, ambient light sensor, gyroscope, heart rate sensor, 8GB storage, accelerometer, and is splash resistant. The OLED screen is 450 nits.