Mac Power Users 829: Tech That Worked in 2025
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Dec 28, 2025 In a tech year-end review, Stephen and David analyze the success of Apple Silicon, discussing its transformative impact across all devices. They explore the rise of home automation that truly 'just works' and the interoperability benefits of Matter and Thread. Exciting advancements in on-device AI and automation in daily tasks are highlighted, along with practical uses of tools like ChatGPT and Claude. They also share insights on improved default Apple apps and the evolving landscape of iPadOS, making it better aligned with its hardware.
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Apple Silicon Solidified Apple's Platform
- Apple Silicon's multi-year rollout transformed performance and platform consistency across Macs, iPads, and iPhones.
- David Sparks and Stephen Hackett say it's now safe to recommend Apple Silicon broadly, aside from niche Mac Pro needs.
Lock Down Senior Accounts
- Create a standard non-admin account for less technical users and keep an admin account you control.
- Restrict app installs to the App Store to reduce scam and malware risk for vulnerable users.
Mac Clusters Enable Local AI
- Macs can be clustered over Thunderbolt to share memory and compute for local AI workloads.
- This approach raises the ceiling for running powerful local models on Apple hardware.
