Ben Lovejoy is a British technology writer who started his career on PC World and has written for dozens of computer and technology magazines, as well as numerous national newspapers, business and in-flight magazines. He has also written two technothriller novels , a romcom novel, and an SF novella series.
He is old enough to have owned the original Macintosh. He currently owns an M1 Max 16-inch MacBook Pro, a MacBook Air 11, 12.9-inch iPad Pro (LTE 256GB), iPhone 13 Pro Max (256GB), Dell Ultrawide 49-inch monitor, an Apple Watch (Series 4 WiFi) and multiple HomePods – he suspects it might be cheaper to have a cocaine habit than his addiction to all things anodised aluminum.
He thinks wires are evil and had a custom desk made to hide them, known as the OC Desk for obvious reasons.
He’s known for his op-ed and diary pieces, exploring his experience of Apple products over time, for a more rounded review:
He considers 1000 miles a good distance for a cycle ride and Chernobyl a suitable tourist destination. What can we say, he’s that kind of chap.
He speaks fluent English but only broken American, so please forgive any Anglicised spelling in his posts.
If @benlovejoy-ing him on twitter, please follow him first so that he can DM you if appropriate. If you have information you can pass on, you can also email him. If you would like to comment on one of his pieces, please do so in the comments – he does read them all.
Plenty of people have tried to replace Twitter/X, but only a few new social media apps have achieved any traction, notably Threads and Bluesky.
But a new app created by Twitter co-founder Ev Williams isn’t trying to replace those, but instead do one of the things I most value about social media, and absolutely nothing else …
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Continuity is one of the biggest strengths of the Apple ecosystem, and iPhone Mirroring is a great addition to that – letting us not only mirror our iPhone to our Mac desktop, but also take full control of it.
I’m a huge fan of the feature, and use it every single day, but it does have a few weaknesses that I’d love to see Apple address …
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The iPhone 17 Air has reportedly entered the new product introduction (NPI) phase – the first step toward manufacture of the ultra-thin model.
Apple is believed to have prioritized a sleek design above feature set for the upcoming model, which may well be the most expensive one in the iPhone 17 line-up …
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If you’ve ever wondered whether security cameras and alarms are effective at deterring burglars, the answer is yes – and that comes from a very reliable source: burglars.
KGW-TV asked 86 inmates convicted of burglary what would make them more likely to rob a home, and which things would deter them …
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Sentiment analysis on social media suggests that certain emoji and internet acronyms are now falling out of favor, either being used less frequently, or attracting negative comments.
Top of the list is the enraged pouting face, aka 😡, while RIP is the most disliked acronym …
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Apple last month announced a new Share Item Location feature for helping to track AirTags and Apple devices, and said at the time that it would be partnering with more than 15 airlines. Those airlines would accept links from passengers tracking mislaid baggage.
United Airlines has now shown how it will integrate the feature into its mobile app, enabling customers to easily add the links …
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Long before the iPhone 16 launch, there were suggestions that it would have a side-by-side camera layout to better support spatial video across all three lenses. That of course didn’t happen, but a leaker with a decent track record now suggests this layout will be introduced with the iPhone 17 Pro.
Google’s Pixel 9 Pro has already adopted this horizontal camera bar format, and the leaker suggests that “many” Android smartphones will follow suit …
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There’s currently very little reason to buy a Mac Pro over a Mac Studio configured with the M2 Ultra chip. That’s because Apple reportedly canceled plans for an M2 Extreme chip for the top-of-the-line Mac.
A new report suggests that history may be about to repeat itself, and that a planned Extreme chip for a future Mac Pro model may also now be in doubt. In the worst case, that could be no true new Mac Pro for years to come …
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You may be aware of a bizarre feud between WordPress co-creator Matt Mullenweg and website hosting platform WP Engine. If not, you’ll find a recap below.
But things took a very silly turn today when the WordPress login acquired a new checkbox requiring users to declare that they are not in any way connected with WP Engine.
Update: On 10th December, a judge granted WP Engine a preliminary injunction, requiring access to be restored, and the login box to be removed. See statements from both parties at the end of the piece …
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Every now and then a developer creates an app that lets you turn your iPhone display into a classic iPod. They never last long before Apple pulls them from the App Store, but there’s a new one you can grab before Tim spoils the fun.
To skirt Apple’s rules, developers have to employ various tricks to disguise the functionality, and this latest example is no exception …
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An official government report has concluded that the Trump-era Department of Justice (DOJ) did not obtain the required authorizations before demanding customer call and message data from Apple and others.
It also failed to obtain authorization from the Attorney General before imposing a gag order on Apple, preventing it from disclosing the fact that it had been forced to hand over the personal data …
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Apple’s UK investment exceeds £18B ($23B) over the past five years, and the company says that it now supports over 550,000 direct and indirect jobs.
CEO Tim Cook said Apple had been serving UK customers for more than 40 years, and now has 40 retail stores in the country …
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Apple Originals have this year notched up a total of nine Golden Globe nominations, including Slow Horses for Best Drama.
No fewer than seven actors have picked up outstanding performance nominations across four different shows, with winners set to be announced on January 5 …
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Apple actually built a working cellular MacBook as a prototype all the way back in 2007, and Bloomberg reports that the company may finally release one using its own radio chip.
Steve Jobs was not sold on the idea at the time, for two reasons, but neither of those would apply today. So 18 years later, is it finally time … ?
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Vision Pro is gadget of the year, according to Popular Science. The device was also the magazine’s pick as overall innovation of the year.
PopSci acknowledges the “massive price tag” of Apple’s spatial computer, but says that it represents the first step in a new direction for the company …
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Thousands of CSAM victims are suing Apple for dropping plans to scan devices for the presence of child sexual abuse materials.
In addition to facing more than $1.2B in penalties, the company could be forced to reinstate the plans it dropped after many of us pointed to the risk of misuse by repressive regimes …
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A newly-released app lets you regularly scan your iPhone for Pegasus spyware – which can access almost all the data on a phone – for a one-off cost of just one dollar.
A mobile security firm created the app, which allows you to scan your iPhone or Android phone and send the results to them for analysis – and they’ve so far detected seven phones infected by the spyware …
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Apple has been granted another patent for technology that would allow it to have Face ID embedded in the display, enabling the company to reduce the size of the camera cutout.
While Apple has been working on this for many years, there are a couple of reasons to suspect that the tech may perhaps debut in the iPhone 17 line-up …
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A wide-ranging interview with Apple CEO Tim Cook reveals him (kind of) denying OpenAI rumors; addressing the potential conflict between the power requirements of AI and Apple’s environmental goals; the journey toward Apple Glasses; and how Apple’s greatest legacy may be saving lives.
Cook kicks off by denying that Apple was late to AI, pointing out that the company first built a neural engine into its products back in 2017 …
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Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says a HomePod with display now won’t launch until the third quarter of next year. He’d initially expected it to be launched in the first half of 2024, then said it had been pushed back to the first half of 2025.
The reason for the latest delay, he says, is that software development for the new device is taking longer than expected …
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Apple is known for playing hardball when it comes to negotiations, but it seems the Indonesian government is capable of giving as good as it gets.
The country banned the sale of the iPhone 16, saying the Cupertino company hadn’t invested enough in the local economy. Apple responded by offering to increase its manufacturing spend from $10M to $100M, but Indonesia now says it expects a billion dollars – and it wants the investment agreed within a week …
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We’ve been hearing reports of a folding iPhone for a great many years now, and the most recent of these suggest that it may finally arrive in late 2026.
There are two approaches Apple could take with this product, and so far we haven’t seen a consensus view as to which would be better …
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Data brokers may be banned from selling your personal data without legitimate justification, under a new proposal by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Back in the summer it was revealed that one of these brokers was hacked, resulting in the compromise of personal data for every person in the US, UK, and Canada.
The proposed change would limit the sharing of sensitive data like your name and social security number by subjecting data brokers to the same rules as credit checking agencies …
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British developers have been told that their billion dollar class action lawsuit against Apple can proceed, after the iPhone maker failed in its second bid to have the case dismissed.
Developers behind the antitrust case are seeking repayment of up to £785M ($995M) in commission on apps, in the latest move against Apple’s monopoly on the sale of iPhone apps …
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