The Talk Show With John Gruber

Joanna Stern returns to the show. Topics include the iPhone XR (and the argument that it might be the best phone in Apple’s current lineup), Apple’s new Smart Battery Cases, Apple Watch, and, of course, the new MacBook Air. Sponsored by: LinkedIn: A new hire is made every ten seconds using LinkedIn. Save $50 off your first job listing with this link. Care/of: A monthly subscription vitamin service that delivers completely personalized vitamin and supplement packs right to your door. Use promo code talkshow50 and save 50% off your first month. Dashlane: The simple, secure way to remember and auto-fill all your passwords. Never forget another password. Save 10% off Dashlane Premium with promo code daringfireball. Links: New York Magazine in 2016: “Is ‘Friends’ Still the Most Popular Show on TV?”. Last Month: “Netflix Will Keep ‘Friends’ Through Next Year in a $100 Million Agreement”. Joanna’s iPhone XR review. Joanna’s MacBook Air review — from a hot air balloon. “Apple Watch Series 4 Fall Detection Tested by a Hollywood Stunt Double” .

Special guest Ben Thompson returns to the show. Topics include Apple's horrible no good very bad earnings warning, the Chinese market, Apple's push toward services for revenue growth, antitrust issues regarding the App Store, and more. Sponsored by: Alex Weinstein Music: Handmade music for your next video project. Use promo code thetalkshow and save 30 percent off your first purchase. Squarespace: Make your next move. Use code talkshow for 10 percent off your first order. Eero: Finally, Wi-Fi that works. Get $100 off a Wi-Fi system and a year of eero Plus with code thetalkshow. Links: “Apple’s Errors” — Ben’s take on Apple’s earnings warning. “Apple’s Terrible No Good Very Bad Earnings Warning” — my take. “Antitrust, the App Store, and Apple”. Exponent — Ben’s podcast cohosted by James Allworth — is back. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Rene Ritchie returns to the show for a year-in-review look back at Apple’s 2018: the Mac, iPad, iPhone, Apple Watch, Siri and services, and more. Sponsored by: OmniFocus: Accomplish more every day with the trusted, gold-standard to-do app for Mac, iPhone, iPad, and now even the web. Casper: Get $50 off select mattresses with code talkshow. Terms and conditions apply. Squarespace: Make your next move. Use code talkshow for 10% off your first order. Links: The C64 Mini. Raspberry Pi. Vortex Race 3 mechanical keyboard. The other “Vortex”. The MacBook ARM — video from Rene laying out the similarities between Apple’s 2005 transition from PowerPC to Intel and the seemingly inevitable coming transition from Intel to in-house ARM chips. Apple Watch Series 4 detects man’s potentially deadly heart condition. John Giannandrea, Siri, and AI/ML. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Special guest Jason Snell returns to the show. Topics include BBEdit’s 25th anniversary, the saga of Word 6 for Mac in the 1990s, Mac iOS user interface differences (including an extensive discussion of Mojave’s craptacular “Marzipan” apps, and a few varying theories on what those apps portend), Photos on Mac and iOS, and, of course, keyboards. Sponsored by: Squarespace: Make your next move. Use code talkshow for 10 percent off your first order. Hullo Pillow: Your favorite pillow, guaranteed. Linode: Instantly deploy and manage an SSD server in the Linode Cloud. $20 in credit with promo code talkshow2018. Links: Take Control of Photos by Jason Snell. Jason’s current keyboard: the Vortex Race 3. Apple hardware SVP Dan Riccio on reports of bent iPad Pros. Studio Neat’s Canopy case/iPad stand for Apple’s Magic Keyboard. Fintie Carry Case for Apple Magic Keyboard. Jason’s favorite iPad stand. John’s favorite iPad stand. Microsoft’s Rick Schaut on the saga of Word 6 for Mac. My recent take on the Word 6 saga, in the context of the rise of Electron apps. Federico Viticci’s top iOS apps of the year. HomeBridge — open source utility for connecting non-HomeKit devices to HomeKit. BBEdit 25th anniversary merchandise and amusing press release. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Matthew Panzarino returns to the show. Topics include recent blockbuster movies, motion smoothing on TVs, iPhone demand rumors, Apple’s Made For iPhone (MFi) program, and more. Recorded live from The Overlook Hotel in Sidewinder, Colorado. Sponsored by: Linode: Instantly deploy and manage an SSD server in the Linode Cloud. Get $20 in credit with promo code talkshow2018. Tres Pontas: Single-family-estate coffee, freshly roasted and delivered right to your door. Save 10 percent off a subscription with code thetalkshow. Jamf Now: Set up and protect your Apple devices at work. First 3 devices are free. Links: Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie’s PSA on the evils of motion smoothing. Walt Hickey: “Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg Might Be the Best Collaboration in Hollywood”. Comcast Xfinity mobile service. My review of Apple’s $39 iPhone XR clear case. Guilherme Rambo finds clues suggesting new Smart Battery Cases from Apple. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Special guest Dieter Bohn joins the show to talk about Google’s new Pixel Slate Chrome OS tablet/laptop, the Pixel 3, Google’s fascinating new Night Sight camera mode, speculation on how Apple might move the Mac to ARM chips, and more. Sponsored by: Casper: Get $50 off select mattresses with code talkshow. Terms and conditions apply. Fracture: Your photos printed in vivid color directly on glass -- great holiday gift. Banktivity: Powerful personal finance app for Mac and iOS with a great native UI. Save 10 percent on the Mac version with coupon code THETALKSHOW at checkout. Links: The late great 12-inch PowerBook G4. Dieter's rather scathing review of the Pixel Slate. The Verge's review of Google's Night Sight camera feature. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Rene Ritchie returns to the show to talk about iPad Pro — the new Pencil, the new amazing new hardware, keyboard options, and the OS that in many ways still feels meant for a phone. Also: the state of Apple’s MacBook lineup, and a plea to Apple to please — please — make the small Magic Keyboard in space gray. Sponsored by: Tres Pontas: Single-family-estate coffee, freshly roasted and delivered right to your door. Save 10 percent off a subscription with code thetalkshow. Squarespace: Make your next move. Use code talkshow for 10 percent off your first order. Fracture: Your photos printed in vivid color directly on glass. Great gift idea — order now for the holidays. Links: Yours truly on the lack of third-party USB-C to Lightning cables and the future of Lightning. Rene’s Vector video on Apple Pencil, drawn with Apple Pencil. “Eat Up Martha”. Logitech’s $70 squishy AF “Keys-to-Go” slim keyboard for iPad and iPhone. Studio Neat’s excellent Canopy case for Apple’s Magic Keyboard. “Thoroughly Considered” — monthly podcast with Studio Neat co-founders Dan Provost and Tom Gerhardt. Steve Jobs introducing original MacBook Air. Bending iPads — fun video from Snazzy Labs. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Special guest Merlin Mann returns to the show. Topics include the new iPad Pro and the state of iOS as a work platform, the mid-term election results, and holiday parties of yore. Sponsored by: Away: Travel smarter with the suitcase that charges your phone. Save $20 with promo code talkshow. Squarespace: Make your next move. Use promo code talkshow for 10% off your first order. Jamf Now: Set up and protect your Apple devices at work, from anywhere. First 3 devices are free. Links: Affinity Designer for iPad. Matthew Cassinelli — former Workflow/Shortcuts engineer now posting great Shortcuts stuff. Cassinelli’s Twitter account. Jason Snell’s setup for writing on an iPad. Deliveries — great iOS and Mac app for tracking deliveries. Reconcilable Differences. Do By Friday. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

You wanted more Moltz, you get more Moltz. Our thoughts and observations on Apple’s “There’s More in the Making” event at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and the products they announced: new MacBook Airs, Mac Minis, iPad Pros, and Apple Pencil. Sponsored by: The Apple Watch Triathlete: Pre-order the How to Train like an IronMan with Apple Watch e-book before December 3 and save 60 percent with promo code thetalkshow. Fracture: Your photos printed in vivid color directly on glass. Linode: Instantly deploy and manage an SSD server in the Linode Cloud. Get $20 in credit with promo code talkshow2018. Links: Apple’s “There’s More in the Making” event video. RetroPie. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Special guest John Moltz returns to the show (finally). Topics include the iPhone XR, next week's Apple event at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and more. Sponsored by: Squarespace: Make your next move. Use code talkshow for 10% off your first order. RXBAR: Real food that tastes good and is good for you. Prime Video Channels: Create a TV lineup you love from 100+ premium and specialty channels. Links: My iPhone XR review and follow-up. Strategic Conquest. Bolo — networked Mac game from 1987. The Secret History of Mac Gaming, by Richard Moss. Joanna Stern: “Ugh, Green Bubbles! Apple’s iMessage Makes Switching to Android Hard”. Vlad Savov on Google’s imminent Night Sight feature for Pixel phones. Research paper and video showing Night-Sight-like results. Sam Byford on Chinese phone OSes based on Android. Totallee super thin iPhone cases. Jason Snell on building a Hackintosh (or as Moltz put it, a Macinstein). This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton, who insists he’s going to the grave with a tiny phone.