Blog Archives

Apple Watch Battery Issues - Resolved

1/17/2016

This is a quick post related to the Apple Watch's battery. When I first got my watch, I took it to work and used it with Apple Music for several hours. By noon, I had burned through nearly half of my battery. I read some articles and they said to remove the Heart Rate feature from "Glances", turn off as many notifications as possible, turn off email, etc.

However, the actual cure for the issue was to unpair the watch from the iPhone. After doing this, I made an effort to listen to music for several hours at work, use it as a remote (SimpleControl) for most of the night, and to tax it is more than I would do in a typical day. I put the watch on my wrist at 8AM and took it off after 12AM (that night). I still had over 40 percent battery left.

My suggestion if you are having battery issues to start by unpairing your watch and then re-pairing it again with the iPhone. For me, this cleared up all my problems without removing a bunch of useful features.

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Hey, Dude, Where is the Headphone Jack?

1/17/2016

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The internet is ablaze with rumors of Apple's next iPhone. Many sources are saying that Apple will not include a headphone jack on the iPhone 7. What the heck is Apple thinking (if true)?

While I could fake outrage, I personally rarely ever use the headphone jack. The main reason is that my headphones typically have issues plugging into the port because I usually have a case on my iPhone. As a result, I typically use two methods for listening to music over headphones with my iPhone.

Note: I get paid commissions for purchases made through any links to Amazon products in this post.

Dragonfly DAC

When I want decent sound, I use a Camera USB adapter, a Plugable, a Dragonfly DAC, and a pair of headphones. Accessing the lightning port with the Camera Kit has never been a problem (and can't be because I have to charge the thing), so I prefer to use the lightning port from an ergonomic standpoint.

Note: I get paid commissions for purchases made through any links to Amazon products in this post.

Also, in my opinion the Dragonfly provides better sound quality and also allows 96kbps files to play. The Dragonfly has a powerful amp despite its diminutive size, so you can drive pretty much any pair of headphones without even getting the iPhone's volume to the midpoint. I have a video that I put together if you are curious about the setup:

Does Apple Expect Everyone to Use this Frankenstein Setup?

It sounds like Apple has figured out a way to put a very small DAC into an adapter that will make it easy to attach a regular set of headphones. (Note: I believe Apple is becoming more about dongles than at anytime in the past. The MacBook also required a dongle if you needed more than one port. I wonder how long it will be before the iPhone is just a sheet a glass with some small chip that will actually run from a dongle? You pick the case, then they ask you at checkout if you want the $399, $499, or $599 dongle...LOL) :) To be honest, most of my high end headphones require an adapter to work with the small jack on the iPhone rather than the typical 1/4 inch jack of most amps.

Bluetooth Headphones

Obviously, with any recent iPhone, you can use Bluetooth headphones. If you remember to charge them, they can be very convenient. I have a cheap pair and an expensive pair. The cheap pair is for walking the dogs and other activities and the expensive pair is for when I need mobility, but don't want to carry around the iPhone. Dollar for dollar, wired headphones typically have better sound quality. However, the Parrot Zik 2.0s, that I have had for a while now, have options like noise canceling and EQ capabilities that you don't typically find in wired headphones, so the trade offs are often worth it. Now that I have an Apple Watch, Bluetooth headphones are often more useful since I can pair them directly to the watch and listen to the playlist that I have stored right on the watch.

So what is the point of Apple making this move?

I think Apple wants to sell lightning headphones and take advantage of the ports extra capabilities (like noise canceling). Also, by putting the DAC and headphone jack outside the case, they can make room for a bigger battery, a smaller bezel, and/or a slimmer case. The 6s could use a better battery and because of the size of the 6s Plus, it would benefit from being shrunk all around the screen.

(The tech media is constantly arguing that people don't want lighter, thinner phones. Personally, I don't agree with that assessment at all. Try carrying around an iPhone 6 Plus or 6s Plus in a pair of jogging pants or shorts. It is cumbersome, to say the least. I have made the decision to make that trade off for a larger screen, but I would prefer to make it less of a trade off.)

While I am not saying these changes will be worth losing the headphone jack for most people, I would make that trade off without a complaint because I don't care about the headphone port. Also, I bet they will have a pair of headphones with the lightning connector included in the box. I expect that they will also have some dongle available for connecting my regular headphones.

That being said, I do wonder whether they will have some option/dongle for plugging in a microphone that I own that runs off the headphone jack now. Unfortunately, I think Apple and third party companies will just come out with more products that can use that port and some of the old accessories will be useless.

One thing they have to do is make it more powerful, though. When I plug in my Dragonfly DAC without the Plugable hub, I get an error saying that "the connected device requires too much power". If they can't improve the power output of the lightning port, then it will severely limit the devices that will work with it. Most of those devices will require a workaround like the Plugable or some sort of battery power. Not ideal and it wouldn't give you any extra abilities you can't get with the current port.

Tech Writer Outrage

I fully expect that many tech writers will scream from the rafters about how they have been wronged by Apple and that "Steve Jobs would never allow this to happen". However, Apple, yes, even in the Steve Jobs era, was all about being forward looking. They dropped floppy drives, optical drives, etc and took the brunt of the bad press. If they make this move, I am sure they are putting up the walls now for all of the arrows that will come their way. However, I am hoping that they can shrink the bezels on the Plus sized iPhone and make it more streamlined. I would also like to see them make Lightning Port more flexible and useful, so I will wait until they explain the move before I get out my pitchfork and torch.

Note: I get paid commissions for purchases made through any links to Amazon products in this post.

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Anova - the Sous Vide Champ

1/12/2016

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I have been more of an outdoor cook over the years. I have several articles on smoking/cooking on the Big Green Egg, but I thought I would move some of my cooking indoors. I happen to watch a show called MacBreak Weekly and one of the hosts (Andy Ihnatko) brought up the Anova Precision Cooker. After hearing about how easy it would be to prepare meals, I had to have one. Luckily, I was really good this year and received one as a gift.

Note: I get paid commissions for purchases made through any links to Amazon products in this post.

What does it do that is so special?

Well, it makes cooking easy and gives you the opportunity to make meals at the perfect temperature, no matter how you like your food cooked. Medium rare to well done will be cooked to the exact temperature you want and the "doneness" will be consistent throughout.

How is that possible?

You simply put water in a container and the Anova heats up and circulates the water to an exact temperature. The great thing is that you can cook the foods at lower temps because you cook the food for longer periods. For example, I typically cook chicken breasts at 350 to an internal temperature of 165. No matter how you cook it, that temperature will result in overcooked food. However, using the sous vide method, you cook it somewhere between 136 - 150 degrees depending on how well done you want it to be. However, instead of cooking it for 20 minutes or so, you cook it for 2 to 4 hours, this length of time should kill any dangerous bacteria. I typically take mine out and sear it on a grill for a couple minutes, but they turn out great every time.

What do you need to get started?

There are many ways you can go about cooking in this fashion, however, the things I am using are listed below with a brief explanation:

Anova Bluetooth Precision Cooker - I went this route because it was cheaper than the wifi model, but the wifi has the advantage of monitoring away from home. The Bluetooth unit can be controlled and monitored via the Anova app ( I use the iOS version) when you are in range. You can set the temperature for cooking, set the timer, and monitor the actual temperature of the water from the app or directly on the Anova unit.

Camwear Polycarbonate Square Food Storage Container (12 quart) - You can use just a regular pot, but the polycarbonate container allows you to see the food below the water and provided a decent amount of space for cooking for a group, if needed. The Anova attaches to the side of any pot (that is deep enough) with ease. I also bought the lid for longer cooks, but I have heard of professionals using ping pong balls to keep the water from evaporating into the air.

Foodsaver vacuum sealer - To immerse the food into the water, you have to put it in a bag first. You can use standard ziplock bags with most meals if you are careful about removing air via the water dispersion method, but I also bought a Foodsaver since it helps suck out all of the air and that means that bag should sink to the bottom of the container rather than floating on top. Also, it is nice to have a vacuum sealer around for storing food anyway. I bought an upright model (I have model v3233) because it appeared to take up less space than the versions that are flat. There are cheaper models that are supposed to work fine. In any event, they are definitely handy to have in the kitchen.

If you have never used a vacuum sealer, they are very easy to use. I had never used one before, but it is as simple as rolling out a bag to the size you want, cutting it (a simple sliding cutter is built in), and then sealing one end, putting in the food, and vacuum sealing the other end. I could not believe how easy it was. They also sell bags that are already sealed on one end and you just put the food in and seal the open end.

We were planning to just use the Foodsaver with the sous vide, but we have also started using it to store food. By vacuum sealing raw meat when you get home from the store, you can extend the life of the meat/veggies by months, and in some cases, up to three years.

Some people will want to sear the food (if desired) once it is finished with the sous vide portion of the cook. I have been putting mine on a gas grill for a few minutes, but you can also finish up with a cast iron skillet, charcoal grill, or maybe a George Foreman grill.
Note: I get paid commissions for purchases made through any links to Amazon products in this post.

In short, all you really need is a precision cooker, a pot, and a bag.

How does the food taste?

I am still experimenting with temperatures, but so far, everything has turned out great. I have already cooked steaks, chicken breasts, Italian sausage, broccoli, and mind blowing scrambled eggs with mine. It is so easy and forgiving (with time) that it makes cooking fun and simple. To be honest, it is a lot easier than cooking on the Big Green Egg, but braving the elements is part of the charm of cooking outside. When I am inside, chilling by the TV, the Anova is more attuned to my couch potato lifestyle, while still being able to enjoy food that is cooked to absolute perfection.

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Top ten tech wishes for 2016

1/8/2016

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The list below includes the things that I would like to see next year, and should be possible, if Apple and others made them priorities. The list isn't filled with self driving hovercraft and time machines, but things that I believe are a bit more reasonable.

1. I want to see USB-C/thunderbolt 3 on every new laptop for multiple 4K monitors. I may* buy a new laptop in 2016, but I wouldn't consider a machine without this port (multiple USB-C/thunderbolt ports would be preferable).

*Note: I was all set to get a new laptop because I was having major issues with my 2011 MBP. However, Apple fixed my problems for free, so I am not as desperate.

2. Major overhaul to Airplay on iOS (with backward support) - I hear rumors that Apple is going to add Hi Res audio support in 2016. Alongside this feature, they need a new Airport Express and iOS multiroom support. Actually, iOS already supports multiroom, they just need to add it to the operating system so multiple speakers can be chosen in the Control Center.

3. AppleTV 4 updates - Apple really needs to allow Siri control of the AppleTV from iOS or WatchOS. Also, they need to bring back the Podcast app. One of the main reason I own Apple products is because of the ecosystem. They need to fully exploit the ability to tie everything together.

4. Apple Watch/WatchOS needs more work - For example, a functional AirPlay button in "Glances" would be nice. Also, the Apple Remote app for your iTunes library doesn't have enough features and, once again, where is the Podcast app? It would also be nice to see a faster, thinner version, with better battery life and GPS.

5. iPad Air 3 that works with the Apple Pencil. I think the iPad Pro may* be too big to use as my main tablet, but a 9.7 inch iPad that works with the pencil would be great! Also, a keyboard cover would be fantastic. In other words, Pro options in a smaller iPad.

*Note: I haven't seen an iPad Pro at this point, so I guess the size may be okay, but 9.7 has always felt like the perfect size for media consumption while lounging on the couch.

6. Canon Full Frame mirrorless camera that competes with Sony. Man, I love the A7 RII, but it would be a pain to have to use an adapter ( to get access to more lenses) and convert to a new system. However, the Sony is so drool-worthy, I have thought about it more than once. Canon really needs to get in gear and give people what they want before it is more painful to stay with them than to leave.

7. Apple Music Casting support - they have put Apple Music on Android and Sonos. They need to add (Chrome) Casting, which is similar to Sonos, but cheaper and will eventually support Hi Res and multiroom playback ( if it isn't supporting these features yet).

8. Hybrid iOS/OS X device. I have written about this in the past and I would preorder this type of combo device if Apple just made it available. I won't be holding my breath, though. There may be a better chance of getting that hovercraft I mentioned earlier.

9. Apple mirrorless camera - can you imagine what would happen if you took Apple's software and combined it with DSLR removable lenses? If they teamed up with Canon, they would have access to affordable lenses and combined with their tech, it could be the most "magical" camera in the history of the world.

10. Affordable 4K projectors with HDR - the way prices are falling on 4K TVs, I am hoping this finds its way to the projector market. Let's be honest, you need a huge screen to take advantages of the extra resolution of 4K in most living rooms. Right now, we are still using a 100 inch tripod screen with our 1080p Epson, but I would have a screen mounted if a decent $1000 4K projector made its way to the market.

Well, there it is. These are the top ten things I want to see. I could probably put another 100 things on this list, but these were the first that came to mind. What are your tech wishes?

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Apps I want to utilize (more) this year

1/8/2016

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Workflow

I have a couple Workflows that I setup ( one launches 5 Verge articles), but I want to dig into more iOS automation in 2016.

IF (if this then that)

Another automation app. I currently have it setup to show me apps that have gone free and it uploads photos to Google Drive, but it can do a lot more than I am asking it to do.

Fantastical

I am going to try to get more organized. This calendar app gets tons of praise, so I hope it lives up to its billing.

WW Mobile

Plan to start keeping better track of my daily points. The holidays have not been my friend.

Paprika

I need to use it more for meal planning. It is an awesome app for finding recipes on the web, saving the ingredients, and moving them to a cart. We typically use Wunderlist for shopping lists, but I am hoping to set up an automation that will move the cart to Wunderlist. I think it can be done through reminders, but I will look into it and post an entry about it.

Word

I have a subscription to Office, but I use Evernote for most of my writing. I want to give Word an opportunity to be useful this year since there are concerns that Evernote might not be with us forever.

Workout app

We got an elliptical machine about a month ago and I want to use it with my phone or Apple Watch to keep track of my activities and calories. Hopefully, it will help keep me motivated.

Sleep++

I want to start tracking my sleep. I am not sure that this is the most powerful sleep app, but I don't want to spend hours going over data. I just want to get a general idea of my sleep patterns and this should fill that need.

iMovie

One of the reasons I got a 6s+ this year was to record 4K videos. So far, I have not opened any of them in iMovie. If I add a 4K computer to the stable this year, I am sure I will use iMovie more often and record more videos.

Lightroom

I have gotten out of the habit of using Lightroom on my iOS devices. I know the Lightroom app would help me get organized, but I also need to get some of my catalogs in order first. In a few weeks, I want to have stuff organized enough to be able to flag photos and make some edits on my iOS devices.

Astropad

I don’t own this yet, but plan to try it out. It is a $20 iPad app that will allow you to draw on a Mac in a way similar to Wacom. I mainly want to try it out with Photoshop.

Day One

I want to try to at least keep a journal of vacations. I have messed around with this app in the past and it has a lot of useful features for journaling.

The Wrap Up

All in all, I am going to try to be more productive with my spare time in 2016. I still love to lean back on the couch and read a magazine or surf the web, but I want to get more productive use out of my iOS devices rather than simply using them for consumption. Hopefully, I can stay focused on these pursuits.

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Best iPad Apps of the Year (2015)

1/3/2016

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I put together atop ten iPhone app list, so I thought I would also put together a list of my most used iPad apps in 2015. While some of the apps I use are on both devices, I won’t just repeat my iPhone list, so here are several that I prefer on the iPad.

Evernote

Evernote is where I do all of my writing. The main reason is that it syncs to my computers and makes it easy to post articles to my website. I also use it with Pocket. Pocket is an app that allows you to save articles from the web and most reading apps. When an article shows up in Pocket, I can either read it later or if I know I want to have it for reference later I can share it to Evernote.

Texture

Texture is the Netflix for magazines. I have been a huge fan of magazines for years. Yes, blogs and the web have curtailed that a bit, but Texture gives you access to tons of magazines for $9.99_ a month. I can access just about every magazine I like to read using this app. Some examples are Shutterbug, Consumer Reports, MacWorld, PC Magazine, Popular Photography, Dwell, etc…). It is also convenient to be able to pull up older issues and creating a favorite list of the stuff I want to read. If they would just add Outdoor Photography, I could drop Zinio (the app that lets you buy subscriptions for individual magazines).

Plex

_This is a great app for accessing music, movies, and photos from a computer or NAS running the Plex Media Server.

USA Today

Free and has the added benefit of having video weaved in with their articles.

YouTube and YouPlayer

I watch so much YouTube these days that I am thinking about subscribing to YouTube Red. The YouPlayer app will allow you to use the picture in picture feature of the iPad, so I use it when I want to surf the web with Youtube running in the corner of the screen.

Kindle

I read a lot of cooking and photography books, so I love the Amazon Kindle app on the iPad. While I do have a regular Kindle for reading by the pool or at the beach (it is much better in bright sun and I don’t mind getting sand on it), I prefer reading on the iPad when I am inside. Books with photographs included look amazing on the retina screen.

Snapseed

This is still my “go to” photography editing app. Google made some nice improvements this year that made it even better.

Wunderlist

This is what we use to put together our shopping lists. I like seeing the lists on a larger screen when I put them together and then they can be accessed from the Mac, iPhone, or Apple Watch. As you can tell, I like cross platform apps, so that I can access what I need/want no matter what device I am in front of.

Lynda

I am always looking to learn new things and Lynda’s fantastic service makes that easy. I posted a couple videos this year on Youtube and it would have been much harder to learn how to setup a channel, how to use iMove, etc.. without Lynda.

Duet Display

This makes the iPad a second display for the Mac. I have AirDisplay that will do this wirelessly, but I typically just connect the iPad to the MBP using USB and this app and I am up and running. Very convenient, no noticeable lag, and great for using apps like Lightroom when I am away from my desktop. Below was one of my first videos showing how to use it with a"mountie".

The Wrap Up

I am still a huge fan of the iPad and it would be the hardest Apple device in my collection to replace with something from another company. The size, speed, battery, apps, and great looking retina display all make it a dream to use. I still feel like I could get more out of it, which is why I am also putting together a list of apps I want to use (or use more) in 2016.

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Top 10 iPhone Apps of 2015

1/2/2016

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I have written about my favorite apps in the past, but I thought I would discuss my 10 most used iPhone apps over the last year.

1. Apple Music

Apple Music was my app of the year. With Siri integration on the iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and AppleTV, it is just more convenient than any other app. If you haven't tried it, they have a 3 month free trial and it is easy to turn off auto-renewal.

I would just recommend making a copy of your iTunes library beforehand (make sure you have a recent version of the iTunesLibrary.itl file) and also making a backup of your music. I would also recommend those things even if you weren't trying out Apple Music. When Apple updates iTunes, there is always a chance that something bad can happen.

NOTE: iTunes generally makes a backup of your "iTunes Library.itl" file before it you upgrade iTunes. So navigate to ~/Music/iTunes. Find the "iTunes Library.itl" and make a copy of the most recent file. Rename the copy so that you can find it later if something goes wrong. If all hell breaks loose and you lose everything, you can just go back to the Original iTunes file. Just remember that you can leave "iCloud" off an use Apple Music without loading your files to the Cloud. Personally, I didn't have any issue with Apple Music and turning on and off iCloud, but I was a Boy Scout, so I am always prepared for the worst.

2. Overcast/Downcast (tie)

Overcast is my favorite podcast app, but until they support subscription services, I will also have a need for Downcast. Overcast has some nifty features like "smart speed" that shortens silences, "vocal boost", adjustable speeds and now the nifty chapters so you can now skip over stuff you aren't interested (like coding talk in one of my favorite podcasts) and it also makes it easier to go right to something you want to hear or hear again. One other upside to Downcast is that it works with Casting (for Chromecast) and Overcast doesn't.

3. Twitteriffic/Twitter

I have Twitteriffic because they were the first to take advantage of landscape mode on the iPhone 6+. It also looks great with larger photos. I also use the main Twitter app because it has a bit more flexibility. Luckily, it also works in landscape mode now.

4. Arlo

I have some wired cameras around my property, but I wanted to get cameras into places that I can't easily provide power. These little Arlo cameras did the trick. With the Arlo app, I can now jump to any of my cameras and see a live feed and it sends an alert when motion is detected in any of the zones around the property. The app will also let you schedule events so certain cameras will only come on at certain times of the day. I don't have a steady schedule from day to day, but they make it easy to create "modes" where you can group certain cameras together. For example, when I get home, I don't want the Arlo in the kitchen to be on, so I can create a group that doesn't include that camera and easily select it when I walk in the door (or before).

Note: I get paid commissions for purchases made through any links to Amazon products in this post.

5. Lastpass

I am still using the Lastpass app for passwords. It has everything stored in the cloud, but you can setup multifactor authentication and/or easy access using TouchID. The only caveat is that it was recently bought by Logmein, but so far, nothing has been changed for the worse. I may look at Dashlane and 1Password this year, but Lastpass still works great, so I am hesitatant to change.

6. SimpleControl ( new name for Roomie Remote)

I use numerous remote apps (enough to have a top ten list), but SimpleControl is the best and controls everything in my media center like a much more expensive touch screen control panel. For example, I have my main system feeding a receiver in my office via a long HDMI cable (the rooms share a wall). The app will let me sit in my office and control everything in my living room at the touch of a button. They have changed a few things since my Roomie Remote app review, but I am hoping SimpleControl doesn't set things back.

7. Flickr

Flickr automatically loads up all my iOS photos to their server (up to a terabyte), allows me to view comments and favs on my photos, and allows me to comment and fav other photos. I also loved Google photos for backups, but I just don't feel as compelled to visit it.

8. Refine AdBlock

Refine kills off annoying ads and let's you keep a list of sites to whitelist. For me, this is ideal. I still want to support sites that I frequent that don't have hyper-annoying ads. However, when they cross that line, I will just pull them from the whitelist.

9. iDevice Connected

I have a couple “iDevices" that plug into the wall and then you plug a lamp or something you want to control wirelessly into the device. They can work with Siri ( which is amazing) or you can set a schedule for the device to come on and go off. We have a Himalayan Salt Lamp in our living room that I have scheduled to come on as a night light (a beautiful orange glowing night light), but I can also just say "Hey Siri, turn on light" and it just comes on. I also know more iDevices are in my future, I just got something called an iGrill 2 that is an iDevices product that uses bluetooth to monitor the temperature of my Big Green Egg Smoker and food on the grill using probes.

10. Feedly

I use apps like Flipboard and News, but I ended up going back to Feedly this year. I use a Gmail account to sign in and I can access the same feeds from my iPhone, iPad, Mac and it will even show recent articles on the Apple Watch. It also has more flexibility about sites that you can add than apps like Apple News.

Wrap Up

Obviously, Apple native apps are always on my list of most used apps. Safari, Mail, Phone, Messages, Camera, Photos, all get tons of use, but you knew that already. I want to also mention that Siri has finally become much more usable this year since it added untethered "Hey Siri" control. If it was an app, it would have topped my list.

Anyway, these were my most used apps this last year. Hopefully, this article will introduce a few of these apps to people that aren't aware of them. Have fun and have a great 2016!

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Dragonfly DAC

Does Apple Expect Everyone to Use this Frankenstein Setup?

Bluetooth Headphones

So what is the point of Apple making this move?

Tech Writer Outrage

What does it do that is so special?

How is that possible?

What do you need to get started?

How does the food taste?

Lightroom ​

The Wrap Up

YouTube and YouPlayer

The Wrap Up

1. Apple Music

2. Overcast/Downcast (tie)

3. Twitteriffic/Twitter ​

4. Arlo

5. Lastpass ​

6. SimpleControl ( new name for Roomie Remote)

7. Flickr

8. Refine AdBlock

9. iDevice Connected

10. Feedly

Wrap Up

About me:

Archives

Categories

Lightroom

3. Twitteriffic/Twitter

5. Lastpass