Apple Watch

Apple Releases ‘Unity Lights’ Watch Face for Black History Month
Cool Stuff Found

Apple Releases 'Unity Lights' Watch Face for Black History Month

Andrew Orr ·

Apple has released a Unity Lights watch face to celebrate Black History Month. In a press release this morning, the company shared all the ways in which it will celebrate this year. Throughout February, Apple Watch users can participate in the Unity Challenge and earn a limited-edition award by closing their Move ring seven days in a row. The Unity Lights watch face will be available today and requires Apple Watch Series 4 or later running watchOS 8.3, and iPhone 6s or later running iOS 15.2. The Black Unity Braided Solo Loop is available now at the link below and in the Apple Store app, and will be available in select Apple Store locations beginning Tuesday, February 1 for US$99. The Black Unity Braided Solo Loop is compatible with Apple Watch SE and Apple Watch Series 4 or newer.

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The Four Products Apple Should Drop in 2022

Jeff Butts ·

For me, these are the four products Apple should discontinue from its lineup. I do believe they’re lost in time and any customer that bought one right now would be disappointed with the general experience.

I agree that it’s high time for Apple to discontinue the iPod touch, Watch Series 3, and Beats Solo3 Wireless. These products just aren’t reflective of the best Apple can offer anymore. Some might say the Apple Watch Series 3 is still a good choice. I’d argue most would be better off with the SE model. It’s only $70 more expensive and much more robust. But the Intel-powered Mac mini? I can’t really buy into this idea, simply for the sake of anybody who still needs to dual-boot Windows and macOS.

Update to ‘Phone Buddy’ Adds Play Sound on Apple Watch Feature
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Update to 'Phone Buddy' Adds Play Sound on Apple Watch Feature

Andrew Orr ·

Phone Buddy is an app that monitors the Bluetooth connection between your iPhone and Apple Watch and alerts you when needed. Alerts can be configured to display when your iPhone connection is lost, when you leave your Apple Watch behind, or when devices move apart with Distance Going Away Alerts. With Phone Buddy, if you step away from your iPhone, you get a notification on your Apple Watch. With Phone Buddy 7.2 you can now trigger a sound to play on your Apple Watch from your iPhone with the Play Sound on Apple Watch feature. This update also includes a new error detection heuristic that aims to reduce errors and failures. As always, core stability updates are also included with this update.

Podcast

Opening All The Doors – Mac Geek Gab 904

John F. Braun & Dave Hamilton · · Add Comment

A big part of keeping your computer running is troubleshooting the *right* things, and that’s not always easy to discern. It often requires opening all the wrong doors before you find the right one to pass through en route to your solution. Listen today as Dave and John share some troubleshooting tips about Dolby Atmos, AirPods, Notifications, Backing up iCloud Drive, the Terminal, and more. Of course, your two favorite geeks also share your (and their!) Quick Tips, Cool Stuff Found, and more. Press play and enjoy learning five new things together!

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iPhone 13 And Apple Watch Carrier Rebate Wrangles

Charlotte Henry ·

A significant number of customers have reportedly found it difficult to get an expected rebate back from carriers on various products, including the iPhone 13 and Apple Watch. One of those was Bloomberg News’s Mark Gurman. In his latest Power On newsletter, he described the issue and the various ways some people had resolved it., which is likely to be useful to others.

My struggles with the rebates process started with the Apple Watch. I had purchased the Apple Watch Series 7, which came out in October, and submitted a request to T-Mobile for its $100 rebate.  Several weeks after my submission, to my surprise, T-Mobile’s promotion website said that my claim was denied because the product wasn’t activated during the promotion window. This, of course, was false. Multiple hourlong phone calls with T-Mobile customer service didn’t resolve the situation, nor did messages sent to the company’s support team over Twitter. Ultimately, the issue was only fixed after talking to T-Mobile at the corporate level. We figured out that my rebate was denied because the fine print of the deal—depending on how you read it—requires the opening of an entirely new phone number.

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Google Working on Own Watch, 2022 Launch Possible

Charlotte Henry ·

Google is working on a wearable to challenge the Apple Watch, according to a report from Insider, picked up on by The Verge. It could launch as soon as next year. I suspect that such a device, long-awaited by many, will prove popular, but doubt it can displace the Apple Watch.

The watch (codenamed “Rohan”) is being worked on by Google’s Pixel hardware group separately from Fitbit, which Google bought for $2.1 billion earlier this year. According to Insider’s report, the new upcoming Google watch — it’s not clear whether Google will actually be calling it a “Pixel Watch” yet — will serve much the same role as the Pixel phones do for Android: an example for both consumers and hardware partners of what Google’s software is truly capable of when given the right hardware. The device is expected to cost more than a Fitbit and compete more directly with the Apple Watch, according to The Verge’s source.The watch will have basic fitness tracking features, including step counting and a heart rate monitor, with Google also reportedly working on debuting a Fitbit integration into Wear OS (codenamed “Nightlight”) with the new watch when it launches.

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MobyFox Apple Watch Bands Black Friday Sale

Jeff Butts ·

MobyFox, which holds official licenses to just about every geek favorite brand you can imagine, has a site-wide sale. Using the promo code “BF2021,” you can score 20% off any Apple Watch band plus get free shipping. You’ll find officially-licensed Star Wars, Harry Potter, Marvel Comics, and DC Comics watch bands, plus plenty more. The company also features Hello Kitty, Power Puff Girls, Stranger Things, Arsenal, and Willy Wonka. There’s plenty more, so check it out for yourself. The nicest thing about MobyFox isn’t just the amount of geekery you can find. Their Watch bands all come with connectors for all series and sizes of Apple Watch, along with 22mm pins for many Android smart watches. On top of that, they provide a number of free Watch faces to match your chosen band. I’m looking forward to the Beskar Armor band, from The Mandalorian, that I’ve got coming my way.

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Here's How The Apple Watch Series 7 Fares in the Scottish Highlands

Andrew Orr ·

Developer David Smith wrote how he tested the Apple Watch Series 7 while hiking in Scotland. Specifically, how the battery life compares to what he calls “adventure watches.”

What gives me some excitement about this experience is that it seems clear that an Apple Watch can already make a solid companion for a long backpacking trip. When I set off I was expecting to have to charge it completely every day, but in reality it is more like every third day. Which gets it under my threshold for consideration for use. Especially since bringing it means that I now have a fully programmable computer on my wrist.

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watchOS 8.1.1 Fixing Apple Watch Series 7 Issue Out Now

Charlotte Henry ·

The watchOS 8.1.1 update was released on Thursday. It fixes a charging issue with the Apple Watch Series 7, MacRumors reported. I could not see the update available on my SE, even after updating to iOS 15.1.1, so don’t worry if you have an older device and also don’t see it.

According to Apple’s release notes, the watchOS 8.1.1 update addresses an issue that could cause ‌Apple Watch Series 7‌ models not to charge as expected for some users. Some ‌Apple Watch Series 7‌ owners have noticed slow charging speeds for their devices, and this update should fix the bug causing the problem.