jmgregory1

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jmgregory1
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  • Apple manufacturer Foxconn aiming to fully automate factories in three phases

    This is exactly why Trump's promises of bringing manufacturing back to America are more likely to have a negative effect on jobs.  Not that it's Trump's fault, but promising factory workers that there is some great future for them is irresponsible at best, and dangerous on some level.
    netroxrobin huberSpamSandwichjkichlineanantksundaramretrogustomacxpresstmayben20neo-tech
  • 'X-ray teardown' of iPad Pro Magic Keyboard illustrates complex engineering

    DAalseth said:
    MplsP said:
    apple ][ said:
    I remember people complaining about the price.

    I suppose that their complaints were based on extreme ignorance combined with a healthy dose of self entitlement and just general cluelessness, which is nothing new when it comes to comments about Apple products and especially the pricing.

    The x-ray shows that the Apple Magic Keyboard for the iPad Pro is unlike any other offering on the market. If anybody thinks it's the same, then they should go buy one of the cheaper alternatives instead.

    If you want the best, it's going to cost more than the others. There's a reason that it's the best. I haven't tried this magic keyboard yet, but I think it's pretty safe to assume that the feel, quality and usability will be way better than anything else out there.

    The two issues are separate and irrelevant to each other. I've seen no one claim the magic keyboard was a poor device, but just because it's a complicated design doesn't mean it's not too expensive. 

    Let me take it to the extreme - suppose it was $1000. Would it still be worth it? It's a complicated device, and the best, so obviously it should be worth $1000, right?


    Total straw-man argument. Anything at some price point isn’t worth the price. The most economical item is overpriced is if someone doesn’t have the money. The question, and the point apple][ was making was that those that said it was just an overpriced keyboard with a fancy stand were wrong. There is a lot more to this. If they want a $50 keyboard for their iPad, fine. More power too them. But, and there were many posts in this vein, that were saying that this was overpriced because they could buy a $50 keyboard, or a $150 keyboard case were not comparing like items. This is a lot more high tech. Maybe it’s out of their price range. Fine. But for me I learned a number of things from this article that makes me think it is worth more than apparently similar items from Brydge or Logitech.
    I agree completely with you, but I would add that for some people, the perception of high price wasn’t just that they could get something cheaper from another manufacturer, but rather Apple’s own other products, like the MacBook Air or 13” MBP can be had for less (than the iPad Pro 12.9” plus Magic Keyboard), if you’re simply looking at comparing them as laptop to laptop-like devices.

    I’ve been using my iPad Pro 12.9” since I got it back in January of 2019, with the Keyboard Folio, traveling with it as my primary computer-like device - in lieu of lugging my 15” rMBP around with me.  I’ve liked using it, but it wasn’t efficient for working on spreadsheets, given the back and forth I was doing between typing and having to touch the keyboard.  

    The new IPadOS with its trackpad support was such a significant improvement, it has me using the iPad Pro almost exclusively now, even as I have been working from my desk and not traveling.  I was one of those who was on Apple’s Store App clicking to refresh when they said the Magic Keyboard was launching, but ended up deciding that I could wait, since I’m not traveling now.  I’m actually using an old Apple Keyboard and new Magic Trackpad 2 (gray to match my iPad Pro) while the iPad sits on custom black acrylic stand I developed WAY back when the initial iPad launched.  I love the large sized trackpad, so it does worry me a bit that going down the very small sized trackpad on the Magic Keyboard will feel limiting.

    I’ll definitely buy the new Magic Keyboard once I’m back on the road again, but for now my setup is working great as is.

    headfull0winelolliverMplsPwatto_cobra
  • Phil Schiller: New MacBook Pro has more orders from Apple than any other pro model ever

    As is typical with Apple products, there is a vocal minority of complainers out there, never satisfied with some aspect of any Apple device. When Apple was selling the fastest, most powerful (fill in the blank device), the complainers said it was too expensive, or didn't have some port or drive that they just absolutely couldn't live without. As I've lived with Apple products going back to the original Macintosh, and supported them through lots of dark days, I kind of feel bad for Apple. They have been scorned for so long, especially by people in the tech (and financial) markets, even as they push entire markets and their competitors forward.
    lkruppncil49badmonkbrucemcandrewj57902old4fundoozydozenration alstevehh2p
  • Oppenheimer: Apple 'lacks the courage to lead the next generation of innovation'

    The problem here is that some people expect Apple to be releasing game-changing, groundbreaking new tech products every year. Making the iPhone faster, waterproof, with a better camera, screen, etc. isn't enough for many who seem to expect some wild new shape or case material, just because it's what they think is necessary for an item to be "new". Just like the frame-less screen demand, when it really doesn't do anything for your user experience, especially with a handheld item where your fingers are going to cover some of the screen. Other manufacturers in tech and in most other product categories are not held to the same standard, nor do we expect / demand that any automaker create some new hyper fast, oblong shaped, carbon-fiber-magnesium-fabric skinned car that floats and doesn't use any energy form. But it certainly feels like a vocal minority of tech-crazy people expect this of Apple.
    caliThe_Martini_Catbadmonkration alequality72521StrangeDaysjas99TomE
  • Apple's Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro up for preorder on Amazon, supposedly ships on May 30

    For those complaining about the price of the new Magic Keyboard folio, if you were to buy an Apple Keyboard ($99), Magic Trackpad ($129) and Folio ($99), you would be spending $330.  So for the additional $20 you would spend on the Magic Keyboard Folio, you’re getting a backlit keyboard and an additional USB-C port.  I can guarantee that this is how Apple looks at the pricing.  The value is there, if you’re simply comparing it to Apple’s other products that could serve a similar function.

    And it’s not like Apple makes 80% gross profit from their products - I’ve not looked lately, but I think their average margin is somewhere in the mid to upper 30% range?

    It will be interesting to see if Apple offers the keyboards at a discount for the Education market, or if a place like Costco will be able to sell it slightly below Apple’s MAP.  I may wait to see what deals pop up, but I’m definitely getting one, even if I end up paying full retail.
    razorpitStrangeDayswatto_cobra
  • Does YouTube's new dark theme save iPhone X battery life?

    I've been using YouTube dark mode since it was enabled on my X.  Can't say whether it reduces battery use, but it is easier to look at, especially at night.  As others have noted, I do shift to Smart Invert if I'm reading on my X in the middle of the night, as I often do.  In part it's easier on my eyes and doesn't wake my wife from the otherwise bright yellowish light.
    redsnowdropwatto_cobra
  • Foxconn's $10 billion facility in Wisconsin for 'knowledge' and not large-scale manufactur...

    Kind of seems like the "big" deal and announcement of tens of thousands of well paying jobs in Wisconsin might have been nothing more than an attempt to provide both Trump and Walker some positive media buzz.  That may seem cynical to say, but there were a lot of people who questioned how a giant tv screen plant would ever make sense in Wisconsin and I guess we now have that answer - it doesn't make sense.
    muthuk_vanalingamaaronkalbwelshdogn2itivguywatto_cobra
  • Microsoft looks to lure MacBook owners with $650 trade-in discount off Surface devices

    Just the photo of the finger / hand / arm outstretched and pointed at the screen of the Surface Pro tells me everything I need to know about what a BAD idea it is to make a laptop or desktop screen touch sensitive. This idea that it makes sense to have to hold your arm / hand / fingers up, unsupported, while touching a screen - but not too much as to push the screen back, while manipulating what can be very tiny on-screen elements, is just lunacy. There is a reason why Apple has stayed away from touch screens on anything other than hand held devices - because it's a completely idiotic thing. Once we move into the age of non-touch screen manipulation, it may make sense, but today, it just doesn't. And I'm not even getting into the mess of having fingerprint smudges all over a high res screen, that's bigger than a tablet or smartphone (that can be easily wiped with your shirt sleeve).
    pscooter63watto_cobrahydrogeniosenthusiast
  • HomePod mini delivery dates slipping rapidly, especially for Space Gray model

    I ordered one, which should arrive with the first wave.  I figured I would see how it sounds and works, before ordering a second, as I really want to have stereo sound using two of them in my kitchen / dining room.  And as others have noted, these could be great Christmas presents for those living in the Apple ecosystem.
    williamlondonjahbladewatto_cobra
  • Apple Watch again credited for life-saving intervention

    It’s nice to read about situations like this and how the Apple Watch has been helpful in people better managing their health, or even being alerted to potential issues that likely would have gone unnoticed had it not been for the Watch.  I’ve had my series 5 now for a couple of years and between it and my desire to work on my health during the pandemic, I’ve watched my resting heart rate drop from the upper 50’s to low 60’s to now in the upper 40’s to low 50’s.  

    I get the low heart rate warning on my Watch at least once a week.  It generally happens just before dawn when my heart rate slips down from the low 40’s to the mid to upper 30’s.  But in my case, it’s a reflection of just how improved my cardio health is now.  I do cardio workouts 6 days a week and I can get my heart rate up to the 160’s and have it drop back down to a normal 50-ish rate within minutes of stopping a workout, which is crazy considering I used to feel wiped out after even a semi-strenuous workout.

    The Watch isn’t making me healthier, but it does give me the tools to better recognize my own health, and has helped keep me motivated to continue my self improvement.
    qwerty52viclauyyc