Episode 38: Let’s Get the Show on the Road!

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This is Episode 38 of the iTechGear Weekly, Let’s Get the Show on the Road! We were so excited about this show during the Pre-show, but only because – we love yacking about tech! This week we discuss Apple’s imminent release of the latest versions of all the Apple operating systems, including iOS 16.4, iPadOS 16.4, and macOS 13.3; the BEST mobile device for you – is it an iPhone or an Android device; and the inclusion of Adobe Acrobat Reader in the latest version of Microsoft EDGE!

Apple Segment

iOS 16.4 Release (and all other Apple OS’) on Monday, 3/27 – Chris G.
iPhone 15 Dynamic Island to get New Proximity Sensor
Where are the 11″ M2 MacBook Airs? – Larry
Apple Monitoring Badge Swipes for 3 Days/Week Link 1, Link 2

Mobile/ Linux Segment

YouTube Premium Subscribers Get Free Walmart+ and XBOX PC Games Pass 
Supreme Court Rules Against Internet Archive – Chris G.
The Best Phone for you – Pixel 7/Pro vs. iPhone Pro Max Link 1, Link 2

Windows Segment

Microsoft EDGE now uses Adobe Acrobat Reader Link 1, Link 2

Pick of the Week Segment

I’d like to take just a moment to let our listeners know that our show picks are typically hardware, software, and other items of interest that we have individually purchased and actually use and like enough that we want to recommend them to you. They are not paid advertisements or items with which we have an affiliate marketing relationship. We sincerely believe in the picks we bring you at the end of each show.

Joel

SAMSUNG 970 EVO Plus SSD 1TB NVMe M.2 Internal Solid State Hard Drive 

 

 

Download the Show Notes – Show Notes Episode 38 – Let’s get the show on the Road

Listen on Apple Podcasts – Episode 38 – Let’s Get the Show on the Road!

iTechGear Weekly – Episode 36 – What IS it with Gyms and Crappy Music??

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This episode of the iTechGear Weekly Episode 36 – What IS it with Gyms and Crappy Music??, recorded on 2023-03-05.  In this episode, the team discusses the potential for an Apple Watch ban, Android support for eSIM transfers, and Windows getting iPhone Support among other things.

 

Listen & Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts! 

The iTechGear Weekly is on Apple Podcasts!

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In an amazing step of, “Let’s get this thing moving,” and “Hey buddy… The site is supposed to be about making tech easier,” the iTechGear Weekly has finally made it to Apple Podcasts!

The podcast comes out every other week, and you can use the link above to follow/ subscribe to the show on your Apple iPhone, iPod, or Mac.  I’m working on an RSS feed URL, but everything costs money…

For now, join my mom as part of our listening public and follow the show to insure you get your bi-weekly allowance of four old guys kvetching about technology, and learn more about everything you didn’t know before!

iTechGear Weekly – Episode 30 – Ideas to help Santa Say Ho-Ho-Ho

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This episode of the iTechGear Weekly Episode 30 – Ideas to help Santa Say Ho-Ho-Ho , recorded on 2022-12-04.  In this episode, the team provides gift ideas for your 2022 Holiday shopping convenience.

  • Picks of the Week
    • Joel
    • Chris
    • Chris G.
    • Larry
https://itechgear.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Episode-30-Ideas-to-help-Santa-Say-Ho-Ho-Ho.mp3?_=1

Download MP3 – Episode 30 – Ideas to help Santa Say Ho-Ho-Ho

Show Notes – Show Notes Episode 30- Ideas to Help Santa Say Ho-Ho-Ho

SIO2SD CASED 2.0 XL Review

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If you actually listen to our podcast, you know I LOVE 1980s video games and computing.  One of the first computers I have ever owned was an Atari 800XL from the second generation of the Atari 8-bit computer line. In the 80s, I never had a floppy drive because the drive itself actually had the same chip that ran the 800XL inside of it which made the drive really expensive. So at the time, I used cartridge games and the occasional cassette game. Fast forward 38 years and now we have the technology we never dreamed of. Well, the device I am reviewing today takes the technology of today and lets you have more storage than you EVER had in the 80s on your old Atari 8-bit computer by leveraging the technology available to us today. The device I am talking about was made in Poland and is called the SIO2SD from Lotharek.

I have the second version of this device made in the Atari XL colors so it is designed to fit with the Atari 800XL from the start. The SIO2SD is made to emulate a floppy drive using the standard port on the Atari 8 bit line, called the SIO port. How it works is you take a standard SD card, create a directory called atari, then you can create sub folders inside of that to help you organize the floppy images which are called atr files. Take this SD Card and put them in the SD slot on the SIO2SD and turn on the computer.  This device is powered from the SIO port so there is no need to have an AC adapter to power the device.  On first power up, it will use whatever image you had previously selected and boot it. At this time you can select the image you want to load, turn off the computer then turn it back on and then it will boot the selected image.

You can get these images in various places on the web and sometimes they are compilation disks where it may have more than one program on the disk. Once the disk is booted it has a menu and you can press the letter of the program and it will load that program.

You can also create a blank image to use with cartridge software or even if you have a real Atari drive. It acts just like any other floppy drive.  The only difference is the floppy image is on the SD card.

Really that’s really all there is.  It does what it does and does it well. It makes playing with your old Atari 8 bit much more fun as now you can have mass storage for the Atari.  Hard disks existed in that time period but they were REALLY expensive and the size of these disks were really small and nowhere close to what you can have today storage-wise. An example is the third-party Supradrive.  It was only 10 MB in size….massive with regards to the Atari 8 bits but it was $799 at that time….which was more than Atari 8 bit computers themselves cost! So no one had them. Thanks to today’s technology you can now have a gigabyte sized storage device for your old Atari 8 bit computer from at time period where computers were fun!

The Lotharek SIO2SD at the time of this writing costs $54.25 in US Dollars, plus shipping and will take a week or so to make it across the pond to the US.

iTechGear Weekly Episode SE5: #MadeByGoogle

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This episode of the iTechGear Weekly is Episode SE5: #MadeByGoogle, recorded on 2022-10-06.  In this episode, Chris, Joel and Chris G. talk about the products introduced by Google at 2022’s #MadeByGoogle event

Links to the show player AND the MP3 and show note downloads can be found at the bottom of this post (the show outline is a tad long…)

  • Mobile/Linux Segment
    • Pixel Portfolio
      • designed and capable via Google Tensor
      • Google Tensor G2 Platform
      • Next-gen on device G2
      • All designed to work and look like they belong together – Unified design language
      • Designed to be personal
      • colors and finishes that are unique to Google
      • Zirconia blasted aluminum cases (I thought cubic zirconia was QVC only)
        • durable but soft feeling
        • Pixel material U adapts to your color and UI choices and
    • Pixel Watch
      • Designed to be worn every day
      • Bezel disappears
        • Black
        • Silver
        • Gold
      • Bands twist and click into place
        • Bands are easy to change
      • Dozens of customizable watch faces
        • Hazel
        • Lemongrass
        • softer hues that work together but are easy to read
      • Tablet
        • Nano ceramic coating
      • Privacy and Security
        • Secure and Private by design
        • Pix 7 has multiple layers of verifiable security
        • Titan M2
          • Same security as banks & governments
        • Everything is Private by Design
          • minimize your data footprint
          • Deidentifying data
          • Restricting Access
        • Health & Wellness
          • Sleep data is kept on the device
        • online activity – P7 P7P will come with on-device VPN
          • Android 13 Privacy & security settings in 1 place
          • Action Cards
    • Pixel 7
      • Pixel Feature Drops
        • New features are released monthly
        • 5 yrs of feature updates
      • Ultimate refinement
      • 3″ display with smaller bezels
      • All-day battery 72hrs with extreme battery mode
    • Pixel 7Pro
      • 7″ display
      • triple camera system
      • The front camera uses ML for Face Unlock
      • Tensor G2 Chip
        • 60% faster ML
        • 20% faster than P^P
        • Voice Assistance
          • Live Translate
          • Navigate without tapping
          • Send messages with voice
          • Advanced tech to get the right emoji
          • Transcribe voice in real time for messages
          • RCS Texting
          • The recorder app is getting Speaker labels. Auto speaker separation
        • Phone Calls
          • Call Assist
          • Call screen auto spam filter
          • Direct my Call can work with business dialer systems
            • on-screen display of dialer options
          • Clear Calling
            • auto suppresses background noise
            • enhances callers voice
          • Camera
            • Best camera in the industry
            • Inclusivity
              • Improved skin tone recognition
              • Real Tone improvements for skin tones
            • Guided Frame
              • helps vision impaired people take a better front camera
            • Photo Unblur
              • ML Image Quality improvements
              • auto fixes blurry images
            • Video Improvements
              • Cinematic blur
              • 10-Bit HDR
              • Active Stabilization
              • Improved Autofocus
              • Speech enhancement 4k 60 FPS
              • Autofocus
            • Zoom Tech
              • P6P – 4x Optical Zoom
              • P7P higher-powered zoom
              • Super Res Zoom
                • reengineered
                • 5MP image
                • auto denoise
                • ML composites photos to help produce better detail
                • 2x, 5x 10x Zoom
              • Zoom Stabilization
                • keeps pix steady at 15x
                • ML Digital Zoom at 20-30x
              • Macro Focus
                • 3cm closeness
              • P7 – $599
              • P7P – $899
    • Pixel Watch
      • First WearOS with Fitbit
      • Health features powered by Fitbit
      • 24hr battery life, even with health features active
      • concentration on heart rate tracking
        • Fitbit Pro
          • Active Zone Minutes – tracks HR at your target, & counts mins there
          • more than 1000 workouts
          • Sleep Tracking from Fitbit to PW
          • GPS – 349
          • LTE – 399
          • Pre Order today
    • Tablet
      • Foundation is Android
      • Material You
        • Pure Android
      • Split Screen
      • Stylus Support
      • G2 Powers the tablet
      • Favorite P7 features also on the tablet
      • New Charging Speaker Dock
        • Charges and is helpful 24/7
        • turns it into a smart display
        • Works with Voice Assistant
        • Smart Device Control
        • Magnet is tuned to dock and undock easily
      • Coming 2023
    • wearOS Updates
      • Fast Pair
        • Credential/network sharing
      • screen casting/ video sharing
      • Selfies controlled via Watch
      • Voice Assistant works across devices
        • Every device is a control panel
        • control home on every device
    • Wrap-Up
  • Apple Segment
  • Windows Segment
  • Picks of the Week
    • Joel
    • Chris
    • Chris G.
    • Larry
https://itechgear.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Episode-SE5-Made-by-Google.mp3?_=2

Download MP3 – Episode SE5 – Made by Google

Show Notes – Show Notes Episode SE5 – MadeByGoogle

iTechGear Weekly is Episode SE4: Apple Event – Far Out: Can I Please be Voted Off the Dynamic Island??

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This episode of the iTechGear Weekly is Episode SE4: Apple Event – Far Out: Can I Please be Voted Off the Dynamic Island??, recorded on 2022-09-07.  In this episode, Chris, Joel and Chris G. talk about the products introduced by Apple at 2022’s iPhone Event while Larry is out sick.  (Get well soon, Larry!)

Links to the show player AND the MP3 and show note downloads can be found at the bottom of this post (the show outline is a tad long…)

  • Mobile/Linux Segment
  • Apple Segment
    • Apple Watch
        • Shared Stories
        • AW S8
          • Always on Display
          • Narrow bezels
          • New Faces
          • New Health features
            • Temp sensor for Women’s health
            • Ovulation Prediction
              • Private Data
              • Retrospective report on when you ovulated
              • 2 temp sensors
              • Samples wrist temp every 5 secs
              • Can track bi-phasic shift to predict/track ovulation
              • Data protected via Touch/Face ID
            • Car Crash Detection
              • Can detect if you’re in a crash
              • Auto connection of EMS
              • Auto notification to chosen contacts
              • 2 new sensors to detect crashes
                • Passenger cars
                • SUVs
                • Pickup trucks
            • Low Power Mode
              • 18 battery life normally
              • 36 hrs in low power mode
            • International Roaming
            • 4 Aluminum cases
            • 3 Stainless colors
            • 399-499
              • 3 mo of Fitness plus
              • Order 9/7
              • Ships 9/16
      • AW SE
        • Cases
          • Silver
          • Midnight
          • Starlight
        • Display 30% larger than S3
        • 20% faster than S8
        • Parental Controls
        • 249-299
        • Order 9/7
        • Ships 9/16
      • AW Ultra
        • Exploration
      • Titanium Case
      • Sapphire front crystal
      • 49mm Case
      • Big display
      • Action button
        • Customizable
      • Larger Digital crown
      • Designed to be used with gloves
      • 2nd speakers
      • 3 mics
      • Includes cellular
      • 36hrs of battery life
      • 60 hrs of battery life with Extended Settings (later this fall)
      • New Face – Wayfinder (color & monochrome red)
      • Bands
        • Alpine Loop – hook
        • Ocean Loop – buckle
        • Trail Loop – velcro
      • New GPS solution
        • L1 + L5 GPS frequencies
        • New Exercise Screens
        • Good for Tri-Atheletes
        • Can work in extreme temps
        • Redesigned Compass App
          • Back track GPS function
      • Diving Features
        • WR100 Water Depth
        • EN13319 Diving Certification
        • Can be used up to 40M/130ft depths
        • Dive Computer App – Oceanic App
        • Dive Profile data plus sharing
        • 799
        • Order 9/7
        • Delivers 9/23
      • Air Pods
        • New H2 Chip
          • Hiband connectivity
          • Improved sound quality
          • Low distortion driver
          • Custom amplifier
        • Spatial Audio
          • Immersive sound
          • Personalized Spacial Audio
            • Personal profiles
            • Based on shape of head/ears
        • Active Noise Cancellation
          • Reduces background noise
          • Optimized functionality 2x better noise cancellation
          • XS ear tips = better sound
        • Adaptive Transparency
          • Processes 48k/per second
        • Touch Control
          • Capacitive touch sensors
        • Battery
          • 6hrs of battery live
          • 30 hours of listening time
          • Apple Watch Charger now works
      • Find My Improvements
        • Precision finding can help you find the case
        • Each Pod can play a sound
      • 299
      • Order 9/9
      • Ships 9/23
      • iPhone 14 Series
        • 14 6.1″
        • 14 Plus 6.7″
          • See more or larger text
          • New lock screens
          • Enhanced workout summaries
          • Updated inernal design – stays cooler
          • 1200 NITS
          • Ceramic Shield Glass
          • Aluminum
            • Midnight
            • Starlight
            • Blue
            • Purple
            • Product Red
          • All Day Battery life
      • Performance A15 Bionic
        • 5 core GPU
        • 6 Core CPU
        • 16 Core Neural Engine
        • Image Signal processor
      • Camera System
        • 12MP Main camera
        • 1.9 micro pixel
        • F1.5
        • 49% improvement in Low light capture
        • 12MP True Dept front camera
        • F1.9
        • Photonic Engine
          • Deep Fusion process applied earlier in the process to enhance shots
          • Photo low light 2x improvement
          • 2-2.5x improvements on back cameras
        • Video Improvements
          • Action mode
            • Full sensor
            • OIS mode
      • Connectiviity
        • 5G
        • Multiple eSIM capability
        • All US models are eSIM only
      • Safety Features
        • Crash Detection (same as on AW)
        • 256G force detection
        • Can call emergency contacts
        • Works with AW if you have both
      • Satellite Connectivity
        • Emergency SOS via Satellite
        • New SMS service
        • New responses canned to insure help is gotten and sent
        • Send location to loved ones
        • Launches in November
        • US & Canada only to start
        • 14 – 799
        • 14+ 899
        • Order 9/9
        • Ship 9/16
        • Ship 10/10
      • 14 Pro
        • Stainless Steel
        • Ceramic Sheld
        • Colors
          • Space black
          • Silver
          • Gold
          • Deep Purple
          • New True Depth camera
        • Dynamic Island
          • Notch enlarges to show icons or alerts
            • System Apps morph into it
            • Always live and active
            • Live activities on Lock Screens
            • Consistent alerts despite app they are coming from
          • New Pro Display
            • 6.1 Pro
            • Pro Max 6.7
            • 1600 nits – display XDR brightness
            • 2000 nits outdoors
            • New Lock screen
              • Widgets
              • Always on Display
                • 1hz low power mode
                • Widgets always available
                • Screens are dimmed without reducing readabilty
          • A16 Bionic Chip
            • Power efficency
            • Display
            • Camera
      • 16B trans
      • 4nm process
      • 40% faster
        • 6core CPU
          • 2 hi performance
          • 4 Efficiency
          • Use 1/3 the power
        • 16 core Neural engine
        • 5 core GPU
        • New Display Engine
      • Camera
        • 4 Trillion actions per photo
        • 48MP sensor
        • 65% larger than 13 pro
        • 24mm focal lens
        • Quad Pixel sensor
        • 2x low light improvement over 13 Pro
        • 2x telephoto
        • Apple Pro RAW
          • 48MP resolution support
          • 12MP Ultra Wide Lens
            • 3x better than 13 Pro
          • Flash
            • 9 LEDs
            • Low Light mode 2-3x better than 13 Pro
          • Cinematic Mode
            • Now 4k support
            • 60 F/S
        • All Day battery Life
      • 14 Pro – 999
      • 14 Pro Max – 1099
      • Order – 9/9
      • Ships – 9/16
  • Windows Segment
  • Picks of the Week
    • Joel
    • Chris
    • Chris G.
    • Larry
https://itechgear.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Episode-SE4-Can-I-Please-be-Voted-Off-the-Dynamic-Island.mp3?_=3

Download MP3 – Episode SE4 – Can I Please be Voted off the Dynamic Island??

Show Notes – Apple Event – Can I Please Be Voted Off the Dynamic Island

The Last of its Kind – Unboxing the iPhone 13 mini

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Some of you will get the STOS pic I used as the Feature Image of this post. Some won’t.  Those that are interested can check out its Wikipedia Page and find out what I’m referencing.  It’s kinda thin, I know; but it’s the first thing I thought of when I said, “it’s the last of its kind,” a line from the show.

The unboxing of the last of its kind… This is the unboxing of the iPhone 13 mini. According to current rumors, the iPhone 14 series won’t have a mini version. Is the mini worth having? Is it something you want to use? Will it be worth switching to this device? What good is a 5.4″ screen gonna do you now? Let’s see…

 

This is a dynamite little device, especially if you’re looking for something that will hide away while you’re carrying it, but still has the regular power of the iPhone 13.

The iPhone 13 mini provides the following features and specifications:

  • Device Size: 131.5 x 64.2 x 7.65mm, 141g
  • Display Size: 5.4 inches
  • Refresh Rate: 60Hz (ProMotion is only available on the Pro models)
  • Cameras: Dual Rear/Single Front –
    • 12Mp Main f/1.6,
    • 12Mp Ultra Wide f/2.4
    • 12Mp Front Camera
    • Smart HDR 4
    • Portrait Mode with advanced bokeh, Depth Control, Night Mode, and Deep Fusion
    • Photographic Styles & Cinematic Video
  • Battery – Up to 17 hours
  • Storage – 128GB, 256GB, 512GB
  • GPU – 4 Core
  • Colors: 6
    • Starlight
    • Midnight
    • Blue
    • Pink
    • Green
    • Product (RED)

To say that the iPhone 13 mini is small but mighty, is an understatement.  Hopefully, more to come!!

Unboxing the New Midnight M2 MacBook Air

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Throw out the old and busted and make way for Apple’s all-new, new hotness, the Midnight Blue, M2 MacBook Air!

This is NOT your father’s MacBook Air! This is the all-new, doesn’t make a sound, can handle just about anything you may EVER need in a true, laptop computer, sporting Apple’s latest and greatest entry into the ARM-based silicon market – The M2 Processor!

I do a quick comparison with a previous model and form-factor MBA and then take a break to set it up. Come see the new hotness and drool, baby! This one is AWESOME!

 

 

Stay tuned, kids. I’m going to take this one and put it through its paces as both a work and play machine – at least for me – and we’ll see what it can do!

iTechGear Weekly – Episode 21: There’s Something in the Waze She-he Moo-oo-oo-ooo-ooo-oooves Me

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This episode of the iTechGear Weekly is Episode 21: There’s Something in the Waze She-he Moo-oo-oo-ooo-ooo-oooves Me, recorded on 2022-06-26.  In this episode, the team talks about the Galaxy Fold 3 being on sale, the Nothing Phone, and how Waze may be the only fix for Android Auto, among other things.

  • Windows Segment
https://itechgear.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Episode-20-Larry-Solved-his-Pixie-Problem-–-Sort-of.mp3?_=4

Download MP3 – Episode 20: Larry Solved his Pixie Problem – (Sort of)

Show Notes – Show Notes Episode 20 – Larry Solved His Pixie Problem

 

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