Subtitle: The 2024 Upgrade Holiday Special

To celebrate the season we discuss Christmas lights, tech gifts, favorite holiday food items, holiday TV and movies, and answer some holiday-themed listener questions. Happy holidays to all Upgradians!

This episode of Upgrade is sponsored by:

• Squarespace: Save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code UPGRADE.
• Vitally: A new era for customer success productivity. Get a free pair of AirPods Pro when you book a qualified meeting.
• Lex Games: Word games, word games, word games, words games, Who's got all the word games?

Links and Show Notes:

Gift lists

Myke:

• Racing Sim Setup for F1 games
• M4 Pro Mac mini (64GB RAM, 2TB SSD, 10GB Ethernet, Two Studio Displays)
• PlayStation 5 Pro 30th anniversary edition
• Remarkable Paper Pro
• Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold

Jason:

• Retro arcade cabinet (Dream Arcades, Arcade1Up, Xgaming)
• Sony BRAVIA XR A95L 77 inch QD-OLED 4K HDR Smart TV
  
• Litter Robot 4
• A proper set of reliable video cameras for the outside of my house
• A robot mop, probably

Final food tier list

• S – Roast Potatoes, Chocolate, Ginger snaps/Gingerbread
• A – Mashed Potatoes, Brussels sprouts, Stuffing, Pigs in blankets, Pumpkin/Sweet Potato Pie
• B – Turkey, Maple glazed parsnips and carrots
• C – Roast Beef, Ham, Egg Nog
• D – Candied Yams
• F – Green bean casserole, Aspic

Christmas content draft results

• Jason: A Charlie Brown Christmas
  
• Myke: Home Alone 2
  
• Jason: Miracle on 34th Street
  
• Myke: Die Hard
  
• Jason: Elf
  
• Myke: Frozen
  
• Jason: Duck Soup
  
• Myke: Jingle All the Way
  
• Jason: Doctor Who: “Last Christmas” and “A Christmas Carol”
  
• Myke: The Bear: “Fishes”
  
• Jason: Muppets Christmas Carol
  
• Myke: Love, Actually
  

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Upgrade 526: Journal and Learnal - App Icon Tier List - YouTube

Green Bean Casserole

"Miracle on 34th Street" - Myke at the Movies #46 - The Incomparable

Jingle All the Way - Wikipedia

Why Can't All Movies Be Muppet Movies? - The Incomparable Mothership #570 - The Incomparable

Ginger-Molasses Cookies — Pixels + Crumbs

Holiday Cocktails ft. How to Drink | Basics with Babish - YouTube

Incomparable Game Show 245: Mind Meld (with Nog)

A Marshmallow World - Wikipedia

Myke prepares the way for a big arrival (including of many Upgrade guest hosts), we're deeply puzzled by reports of a large folding Apple device, and Myke gets out the conspiracy yarn regarding what Tim Cook is up to in the United Kingdom.

This episode of Upgrade is sponsored by:

• Squarespace: Save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code UPGRADE.
• Fitbod: Get stronger, faster with a fitness plan that fits you. Get 25% off your membership.

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Baby Hurley! – Myke Hurley – Instagram

iOS 18.2/macOS 15.2 Review: Picture not so perfect? – Six Colors

Mango Baby: Newborn Tracker with Siri Shortcuts

Appearance: Apple Intelligence’s generic humans – Six Colors

Report: Apple to Stop Selling iPhone 14 and iPhone SE in EU This Month - MacRumors

Get 20% Off an Annual Membership of Upgrade+

BBC complains to Apple over misleading shooting headline - BBC News

The Upgrade Episode 600 Draft of the Ages

ChatGPT Won't Say Certain Names and No One Seems To Know Why - Newsweek

Apple’s new Messages features are great, but the notifications are overwhelming – Six Colors

Apple expands U.K. investment and doubles local engineering teams - Apple (UK)

Tim and Keir – Instagram

His Majesty King Charles III visits Apple’s U.K. headquarters - Apple

Tim Cook is the latest tech CEO to meet with Trump at Mar-a-Lago - The Verge

Daring Fireball: The Information Suggests, in an Aside, That Apple Scrapped Work on a Quad-Max/Double-Ultra M-Series Chip

Apple Working on Giant Foldable iPad, Revamped Mouse, Longer-Range AirTag 2 - Bloomberg

Apple Plans Thinner, Foldable iPhones to Revive Growth - WSJ

Report: Apple designing all new Magic Mouse, fixing charge port placement - 9to5Mac

Apple Watch Could Get Blood Pressure Monitoring in 2025 - MacRumors

iOS 18.3 beta 1 now available - 9to5Mac

Carbon Copy Cloner

Jason's Bluesky post

Jason bought a laptop, Apple and Sony may be cooking up a Vision Pro scheme, and we review Apple Intelligence in iOS 18.2.

This episode of Upgrade is sponsored by:

• DeleteMe: Get 20% off your plan when you use this link and code UPGRADE20.
• Ooni Pizza Ovens: Bring restaurant quality pizza to your home. Discount automatically applied at checkout.
• Data Citizens Dialogues: Unpacking the importance of data and its impact on the world. Listen now.

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Why I'm finally ditching my desktop Mac for something better | Macworld

The Eleventh Annual Upgradies Nomination Form

Apple, Sony Talk PlayStation VR Hand Controller Support for Vision Pro - Bloomberg

Apple’s Vision platform needs to do more than get cheaper – Six Colors

Simply brings its piano app to Vision Pro – Six Colors

It's Good for Apple, and Okay for You - Allen Pike

Daring Fireball: Mountain Lion

Stephen Hackett joins Jason to discuss emergency calls, reaction to Jason's "The Mac is the Model" piece, iPhone metals, our innate troubleshooting powers, Jason's laptop dilemma, the ChatGPT Mac app, and some very old Vision Pro news.

This episode of Upgrade is sponsored by:

• DeleteMe: Get 20% off your plan when you use this link and code UPGRADE20.
• Smarter World: Enabling a better, safer and more secure connected world with breakthrough technologies.. Listen now.
• ExpressVPN: High-Speed, Secure & Anonymous VPN Service. Get an extra three months free.

Guest Starring:

Stephen Hackett

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Upgrade+ - Relay FM

Give the Gift of Relay FM

Use Emergency SOS on your Apple Watch - Apple Support

Once again, the only way forward is the Mac | Macworld

Vote on the Eleventh Annual Upgradies!

The Upgradies - history

Apple to Keep Titanium Chassis for iPhone 17 Pro Models, Claims Leaker - MacRumors

Mac Power Users - Relay FM

AI insiders worry that model progress is hitting scaling wall - The Verge

Indecision at the intersection of Mac Studio and Mac mini – Six Colors

How I turned the M4 Mac mini into a travel computer - 9to5Mac

ChatGPT on your desktop | OpenAI

LaunchBar 6

Apple has been working on Vision Pro since at least 2008 - 9to5Mac

Apple is most dangerous when it shows up late | Macworld

Fast charge your MacBook Air or MacBook Pro - Apple Support

Sol | Illuminate Your Mind

Apple might recommit to the smart home, Smart Siri feels a long way off, Apple's movie movies anger Hollywood creatives, and Jason's done with the era of App Store exclusivity.

This episode of Upgrade is sponsored by:

• Squarespace: Save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code UPGRADE.
• Fitbod: Get stronger, faster with a fitness plan that fits you. Get 25% off your membership.
• Data Citizens Dialogues: Unpacking the importance of data and its impact on the world. Listen now.

Links and Show Notes:

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Bears Stage Memorable Comeback To Win Big Game - California Golden Bears Athletics

Cal Highlight Vault: "The full Fernando Mendoza post game interview after defeating Stanford"

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Give the Gift of Relay

Review: Belkin Travel Bag and Head Strap for Vision Pro – Six Colors

Apple’s first smart display needs to make the smart home just work - The Verge

Time for Apple to take the Smart Home seriously – Six Colors

How Apple Intelligence can take over the world (or just the Apple ecosystem) | Macworld

Jason Snell (@snell.zone) — Bluesky

Myke Hurley (@myke.social) — Bluesky

Introducing Sill | Tyler Fisher

The Eleventh Annual Upgradies Nomination Form

Apple Readies More Conversational LLM Siri in Bid to Rival OpenAI’s ChatGPT - Bloomberg

Mark Gurman on iOS 19 – Threads

Downstream - Relay FM

Jon Watts On Why He Canceled George Clooney & Brad Pitt 'Wolfs' Sequel – Deadline

Paramount Boss on Gladiator II, Scary Sequels and Wicked Showdown - Bloomberg

Once again, the only way forward is the Mac | Macworld

"Say Anything" - Myke at the Movies #6 - The Incomparable

Is Apple trying to boost revenue by truly embracing smart home products, or is it too late? Also, Jason reviews Kindles while lamenting the current state of e-readers, and the Vision Pro gets new accessories and a music video by The Weeknd!

This episode of Upgrade is sponsored by:

• Squarespace: Save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code UPGRADE.
• Fitbod: Get stronger, faster with a fitness plan that fits you. Get 25% off your membership.
• Notion: Try the powerful, easy-to-use Notion AI today.
• Smarter World: Enabling a better, safer and more secure connected world with breakthrough technologies.. Listen now.

Links and Show Notes:

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Planes, Trains and Automobiles - Wikipedia

The Incomparable Mothership

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Give the Gift of Relay

The Eleventh Annual Upgradies – Nomination Form

Apple Home Hub Detailed: Apple Intelligence, HomeOS, Square iPad-Like Design - Bloomberg

David Smith: "Reading the report of a possible Apple Home Hub Device" - Mastodon

Kuo: Apple to release its own smart home camera in 2026, with AI features - 9to5Mac

Gurman: Apple 'evaluating' idea of releasing a TV set again - 9to5Mac

2024 Kindle Colorsoft and Paperwhite Review: No perfect choices – Six Colors

Apple debuts The Weeknd’s immersive music experience for Apple Vision Pro - Apple

Channel 4 launches Vision Pro streaming app with a Taskmaster environment - 9to5Mac

Review: Belkin Travel Bag and Head Strap for Vision Pro – Six Colors

Jason's gotten his hands on the M4 MacBook Pros, the M4 iMac, and a visionOS widescreen Mac display. (And we're both considering Mac mini purchases.) Plus: Apple's issues with new products, and the threat of huge EU fines.

This episode of Upgrade is sponsored by:

• DeleteMe: Get 20% off your plan when you use this link and code UPGRADE20.
• Ooni Pizza Ovens: Bring restaurant quality pizza to your home. Discount automatically applied at checkout.
• Vitally: A new era for customer success productivity. Get a free pair of AirPods Pro when you book a qualified meeting.
• Smarter World: Enabling a better, safer and more secure connected world with breakthrough technologies.. Listen now.

Links and Show Notes:

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The Eleventh Annual Upgradies Nomination Form

The Upgradies – Past Winners

Apple-backed Matter adds new smart home device types, better cross-platform experience, more - 9to5Mac

Testing the Vision Pro With New Ultrawide Display Option in visionOS 2.2 - MacRumors

Apple Explores Push Into Smart Glasses With Internal Study - Bloomberg

Connected #526: At Least Mine Has Four Legs - Relay FM

iPad Accessory Integration Becomes the EU's Next Regulatory Feud With Apple - MacRumors

EU puts iPhone interoperability with watches and headphones on notice - The Verge

Apple to Face First EU Fine Under Bloc’s Digital Markets Act - Bloomberg

M4/M4 Pro MacBook Pro review: Brighter, clearer, faster – Six Colors

M4 Mac mini Review: Phenomenal cosmic power, itty-bitty form factor – Six Colors

M4 iMac Review: Gloriously niche – Six Colors

Apple explains why the M4 Mac mini power button is located on the bottom - 9to5Mac

@macstadium • Racking the new M4 Mac mini? No problem – Threads

New iPad Mini Compatible With Final Cut Pro, But Lacks Stage Manager - MacRumors

Scoring our very weird draft, The new Mac mini and MacBook Pro announcements, Apple's latest financial results, our reactions to Image Playground and Genmoji betas, and pondering the actual job of a CEO.

This episode of Upgrade is sponsored by:

• DeleteMe: Get 20% off your plan when you use this link and code UPGRADE20.
• Factor: Healthy, fully-prepared food delivered to your door.
• ExpressVPN: High-Speed, Secure & Anonymous VPN Service. Get an extra three months free.

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Connected #525: Daddy Come Back Please Daddy! - Relay FM

The Upgrade 2024 October Event? Draft – Scorecard

New Mac mini shrinks down, gains M4 and M4 Pro chips – Six Colors

(Beta) "Mac mini Pro" enclosure for M4 Mac mini by Jerrod H - MakerWorld

Apple introduces new MacBook Pros with M4 chips, brighter screen – Six Colors

16GB for everyone: MacBook Air joins the RAM upgrade party – Six Colors

Upgrade #523: I Got It to Hallucinate Already - Relay FM

The Jingle Episode

Lex's Games by Lex Friedman

Apple’s Q424 results: $95B revenue–with a twist – Six Colors

Apple sinks $1.1 billion into Globalstar’s satellite network, takes ownership stake – Six Colors

A new home for Pixelmator - Pixelmator Blog

Fileside

Apple CEO Tim Cook on How Steve Jobs Recruited Him and More | The Job Interview - YouTube

Subtitle: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

We kick off a busy week by analyzing the new M4 iMac, the arrival of two different waves of Apple Intelligence, and Jason's review of the iPad mini, but we'll have to wait a week to score our draft because there's more yet to come!

This episode of Upgrade is sponsored by:

• Squarespace: Save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code UPGRADE.
• Fitbod: Get stronger, faster with a fitness plan that fits you. Get 25% off your membership.
• Notion: Try the powerful, easy-to-use Notion AI today.

Links and Show Notes:

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iPad mini 2024 review: A familiar friend gets an A.I. refresh – Six Colors

Interview with Warner Bros CEO – Variety

Introducing Vimeo for Apple Vision Pro

Clip from 'The Watch' podcast – Greg Seay

Apple Intelligence is available today on iPhone, iPad, and Mac - Apple

Apple Intelligence .1 Review: A small start of something big? – Six Colors

Apple’s Craig Federighi Explains Apple Intelligence Delays, Siri’s Future and More | WSJ - YouTube

Apple releases second wave of Intelligence features via new developer betas – Six Colors

iOS 18.2: Everything You Should Know About Image Playground - MacRumors

'Angry Myke CEO' from Image Playgrounds

iMac - Apple

Direct Link to the iMac Video Announcement

iMac Announcement - October 28 - YouTube

Six Colors - YouTube

Myke Hurley - YouTube

@imdavidpierce • I'm sitting here scrolling on both the 2021 and 2024 Mini, and if you forced me to pick which one... • Threads

This week we recommend some TV shows, differentiate between types of vaporware, and break down the new iPad mini and Amazon Kindles. Then, Myke and Jason try to predict exactly what Apple might announce later this month.

This episode of Upgrade is sponsored by:

• Squarespace: Save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code UPGRADE.
• Fitbod: Get stronger, faster with a fitness plan that fits you. Get 25% off your membership.
• Vitally: A new era for customer success productivity. Get a free pair of AirPods Pro when you book a qualified meeting.

Links and Show Notes:

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Tim Goodman | Substack

What's Alan Watching? | Substack

Tim Cook on Apple Intelligence, Vision Pro and More Bets The Company Believes Will Pay Off - WSJ

Tim Cook Admits Truth About Vision Pro Following Lackluster Sales - MacRumors

Ted Lasso (Season 4) - Production List | Film & Television Industry Alliance

The new iPad mini’s surprising not-new processor – Six Colors

The new iPad mini 7 has a binned version of the A17 Pro chip

iPad Mini 7 Has Display Hardware Changes That Likely Fix Jelly Scrolling - MacRumors

Amazon’s new Kindle family includes the first color Kindle - The Verge

The future of the Kindle with Panos Panay | The Vergecast - YouTube

The last Kindle with page-turn buttons is dead – Six Colors

2021 e-reader roundup: Kobo Sage, Kobo Libra 2, Kindle Paperwhite reviews – Six Colors

Upgrade Scorecards

Upgrade Merch

What AirPods Adaptive mode is for, Apple's first immersive narrative film, tricky executive retention efforts, the Vision products roadmap, Apple TV+ goes to Amazon channels, and the trouble with iPhone 16 Camera Control.

This episode of Upgrade is sponsored by:

• DeleteMe: Get 20% off your plan when you use this link and code UPGRADE20.
• Ooni Pizza Ovens: Bring restaurant quality pizza to your home. Discount automatically applied at checkout.
• Vitally: A new era for customer success productivity. Get a free pair of AirPods Pro when you book a qualified meeting.
• Tiptop: The first payments provider that lets you accept trade-ins with zero risk.

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mahabis

Good Store - Awesome Socks Club

American Trench

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Bombas

Connected #522: I Consume All of My Dark Secrets - Relay FM

Apple Tweaks Screen Recording App Permissions to Decrease Popup Frequency in macOS Sequoia 15.1 - MacRumors

Schiller Institute - Boston College

Apple’s Dan Riccio, Key Executive in Both the Jobs and Cook Eras, to Retire - Bloomberg

New iPhone SE 4 case leak highlights three things to expect - 9to5Mac

Apple Smart Home Plans: New OS, Smart Displays, Vision Pro Integration, Robots - Bloomberg

“Submerged” brings immersive narrative to Vision Pro – Six Colors

The Making of Submerged | Apple Vision Pro - YouTube

Glengarry Glen Ross (film) - Wikipedia

Apple debuts the first scripted film captured in Apple Immersive Video - Apple

Apple TV+ Coming to Amazon Prime Video as Subscription Add On – Hollywood Reporter

iPhone 16 Pro review: Control before Intelligence – Six Colors

Apple Knowledge Navigator Video (1987) - YouTube

Knowledge Navigator - Wikipedia

College students used Meta’s smart glasses to dox people in real time - The Verge