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 several books, and creates occasional videos.
He is old enough to have owned the original Macintosh. He currently owns an M1 Max 16-inch MacBook Pro, an M1 13-inch MacBook Air, an iPad mini, an iPhone 16 Pro Max, and multiple HomePods. He suspects it might be cheaper to have a cocaine habit than his addiction to all things anodised aluminum.
He’s known for his op-ed and diary pieces, exploring his experience of Apple products over time, for a more rounded review:
He speaks fluent English but only broken American, so please forgive any Anglicised spelling in his posts.
He gets a lot of emails and can’t possibly reply to them all. If you would like to comment on one of his pieces, please do so in the comments – he does read them all.
A new TSMC Singapore plant is being discussed, as a way to help tackle the global chip shortage. The company is said to be in discussion with the government over the potential move.
A Singapore plant would help Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company achieve another key objective, says the report …
Expand Expanding Close
A two-minute video sketch (below) in which Siri visits Couples Therapy star Dr. Orna Guralnik is the basis of an ad for web accessibility company Userway. It’s the second time that Siri voice actor Susan Bennet has starred in an ad for the company …
Expand Expanding Close
A new Audi Apple Music integration means that owners of almost all 2022 models will be able to play the streaming music service directly from the built-in infotainment system. No connection to your iPhone is needed.
The company says that existing owners of 2022 models will also get the feature, via an over-the-air update …
Expand Expanding Close
A tweet by Elon Musk mocks Apple over the company’s announcement of a further delay to the next phase of its return-to-office plans …
Expand Expanding Close
A second Apple union-busting charge has been filed against the company, alleging that the company has violated multiple federal laws at the World Trade Center store.
A previous charge of violating the National Labor Relations Act related to Apple’s response to unionization efforts at an Apple Store in Atlanta …
Expand Expanding Close
Apple yesterday previewed some iOS 16 accessibility features we can look forward to, including live captions, Apple Watch mirroring, and door detection.
It’s often been argued that accessibility features in general can benefit everyone, not just the target group, and Macworld argues that this is the case for all three of the above features …
Expand Expanding Close
We didn’t have long to wait after the launch of the Mac Studio to see a bunch of M1 Ultra benchmarks. These ranged from comparisons to the 28-core Intel Mac Pro to a comprehensive set of tests by Macworld.
A new set of tests not only aims to see how the M1 Ultra and M1 Max compare in real-life usage, but also when performing tasks specifically suggested by pro app users …
Expand Expanding Close
If you thought using Apple Pay was easy, a Mastercard Biometric Checkout Program will let you pay simply by smiling at the payment terminal.
The company says that the initiative will be rolled out globally, starting with trials in Brazil …
Expand Expanding Close
A report this morning says that we may see in the future an e-Ink iPhone display, as a secondary screen on a folding iPhone.
The most likely interpretation of a follow-up tweet is that Apple is testing a type of color e-ink display that offers crisper text, brighter displays, and richer colors than conventional technology …
Expand Expanding Close
Ad tech companies share your online behavior and location with advertisers an average of 747 times a day in the US, and 376 times a day in Europe, according to a report by a civil liberties group. It describes the practice as the biggest privacy breach in the world.
The report says Google is the biggest offender, using a process called real-time bidding (RTB) to let advertisers target internet users by browsing behavior and locations …
Expand Expanding Close
Apple has long been expected to transition to fully portless iPhones at some point, and for most users that makes perfect sense. But we’re seeing growing reports that the iPhone maker is first going to switch from Lightning to USB-C, and that raises a key question.
Is USB-C just a brief interim stage before iPhones go fully wireless, or do USB-C iPhones have a longer future … ?
Expand Expanding Close
An upcoming USB-C monitor from HP includes a pop-up webcam with Center Stage-style tracking. The monitor is aimed at professionals who want reasonably high pixel density, but who don’t need the colorspace required by audiovisual pros …
Expand Expanding Close
At least two high-profile former Apple employees are assisting the unionization efforts of retail store employees, with additional advice from Google walkout organizers.
Former Apple software engineer Cher Scarlett, who organized a pay survey when she worked for the company, played a key role in the formation of Fruit Stand Workers United at the Grand Central Apple Store …
Expand Expanding Close
The Elon Musk Twitter deal is now ‘temporarily on hold,’ says the billionaire, in a tweet today. Twitter had told him that spam and fake accounts represent fewer than 5% of users, and Musk now says he wants to see the evidence for this.
While Musk followed up with ‘Still committed to acquisition,’ some are suggesting that this is not the case …
Expand Expanding Close
It seems scarcely a week goes by without a new antitrust threat to Apple, and the latest is a proposed federal Digital Platform Commission. Its remit would include addressing anti-competitive behaviors by digital stores, which would include the App Store.
US Senator Michael Bennet argues that although the DoJ and FTC already do “admirable work,” they don’t have the tech expertise required to offer robust oversight …
Expand Expanding Close
A check on Macs available for immediate shipping from Apple shows that these are now limited to just three models. Other Macs involve waiting anywhere from one to two weeks all the way up to 11 weeks, depending on both model and country. Some of those who have already placed orders are seeing even longer waits.
It’s the latest measure of Chinese supply chain problems that Apple estimates could cost the company as much as $8B in lost revenue this quarter …
Expand Expanding Close
The “‘abandoned apps” crackdown last month announced by Apple – and a similar move by Google – could see a total of 1.5 million apps removed across the two app stores.
That would, according to a new report, amount to around a third of all available apps …
Expand Expanding Close
We learned yesterday that a proposed new EU CSAM scanning law for tech giants would force Apple to revisit its own plans for detecting child sexual abuse materials. The company had quietly set these aside in response to a huge amount of controversy over its proposed approach.
Many had feared that the proposed law would involve yet another assault on end-to-end encrypted messaging, and this has now been confirmed by wording in the document …
Expand Expanding Close
Ookla’s Speedtest maps – originally only available in the Android app – have now come to the iOS one, too. This lets you see at-a-glance how different mobile carriers compare in your area, as well as identify problem spots …
Expand Expanding Close
Today saw key Apple supplier Foxconn warn that revenue could slip this quarter due to both slowing demand and growing supply-chain problems.
The company’s chairman said that there were many uncertainties in the market, and that Foxconn would be looking to further diversify to reduce its dependence on smartphone assembly …
Expand Expanding Close
For years now, Google hasn’t seemed particularly interested in the tablet market, but yesterday the company announced that it’s working on what might be the company’s first real iPad alternative – a new Pixel tablet due for launch sometime next year.
Apple getting some serious iPad competition could be just the thing we need to finally spur the company into taking iPadOS more seriously, and having the software catch up with the hardware …
Expand Expanding Close
It’s official: Apple’s groundbreaking portable music player is no more. All we’re left with now is memories of the iPod, and perhaps that one last model some plan to keep forever.
The decision was inevitable. Most of us now use our iPhones and streaming music services to listen to music. The other role played by the iPod Touch – as a device for kids too young to have a phone – has largely been supplanted by the iPad. All the same, it’s still a somewhat sad moment …
Expand Expanding Close
Update: The EU has now announced the proposed new law. More details at the bottom.
Apple’s CSAM troubles may be back, after controversy over the issue of scanning iPhones for child sexual abuse materials led to the company suspending its plans.
A report today says that the European Union is planning a law that would require tech giants like Apple to detect, report, and remove CSAM, and that we’ll see a draft of the new law as early as this week …
Expand Expanding Close
The only examples of a USB-C iPhone we’ve seen to date have been DIY versions, but Ming-Chi Kuo claims that Apple will make the switch from Lightning to USB-C next year, in the iPhone 15.
The report comes as something of a surprise, as although Apple has adopted USB-C for Mac and iPad, it had seemed the company planned to stick with Lightning until it switches to a completely portless phone …
Expand Expanding Close