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.
It’s felt like a long wait from the M1 MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro, but the M1 Pro and M1 Max MacBook Pro models are finally here. The predictions I made back in May were both correct: I was indeed unable to resist the 2021 16-inch MacBook Pro, and the price did indeed hurt!
Most of the rumors turned out to be correct – including the late one of a display notch to house an improved camera within much smaller bezels …
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There’s good news and bad news about the new 16-inch MacBook Pro charger. The good news is that it’s the first one on the market to offer a new high-power charging standard that enables USB chargers to exceed 100W for the first time.
The bad news is that the technology is so new that there isn’t yet a compatible USB-C cable.
Update: The newness of the standard also means the USB-C ports aren’t compatible with it.
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Apple has announced AirPods 3 pricing and availability, following the long-awaited unveiling of the latest iteration of its in-ear headphones.
The launch was a long time coming. The third-generation model was originally rumored to appear back in April …
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Apple’s ad business has grown dramatically since the company’s App Tracking Transparency rules came into effect, says a new report.
The rules made it more difficult to target specific interest groups through third-party ad networks like those owned by Google and Facebook, making Apple’s own ad business far more valuable. But some suggest this is because the iPhone maker breaks its own privacy rules …
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Just hours ahead of Apple’s Unleashed event, the internet is buzzing with rumors of a MacBook Pro notch.
Some alleged leaks indicate that the new 16-inch and 14-inch MacBook Pro will also feature a notch in the top middle of the display, like an iPhone. This cutout would house the FaceTime camera and ambient light sensors, but Face ID biometrics is not expected.
Many are saying how terrible this would be, but my view is a little different …
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Intel’s Apple Silicon take has so far mostly consisted of mocking Macs and describing all the ways in which the company thinks PCs are better. But the chipmaker’s CEO now seems to be rethinking this stance, describing Apple Silicon Macs as “pretty good,” and acknowledging that Apple Silicon is ahead of Intel’s own chip designs.
However, Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger seemingly thinks he can still win back Apple’s business – one way or another …
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An analyst has estimated that the upcoming launch of the 2021 MacBook Pro with M1X chip will result in almost a third of current owners upgrading to one of the new models.
Apple is expected to announce two new MacBook Pro models at its Unleashed event on Monday.
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A popular Quran app has been removed from Apple’s Chinese App Store at the request of the government, according to a new report today.
The removal of the Quran Majeed app was first noticed by a site called Apple Censorship …
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Apple Card 0% financing was first launched in 2019 for iPhone, and later extended to other Apple products. However, some people apparently missed out because they failed to select the correct option at checkout.
The company is now reaching out to customers who may have been affected, and offering to switch them to the 0% deal …
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Governments were already discussing how to misuse CSAM scanning technology even before Apple announced its plans, say security researchers.
The biggest concern raised when Apple said it would scan iPhones for child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) is that there would be spec-creep, with governments insisting the company scan for other types of images, and there now seems good evidence for this …
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Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg last month announced that WhatsApp end-to-end encrypted backups were on the way for those who like to store backups on cloud services like iCloud and Google Drive. That privacy feature is now “slowly” rolling out for both iOS and Android users.
Actual WhatsApp chats are always end-to-end encrypted, but this new feature means that any backups you choose to make get the same level of protection …
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US antitrust legislation due to be unveiled later today is reportedly continuing to gain bipartisan support, despite Apple’s PR push yesterday.
Apple yesterday published a 28-page report on how the App Store protects iPhone users from malware, and why it should be allowed to retain full control of how iPhone apps are sold …
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Environmental lead Lisa Jackson has acknowledged in a podcast that Apple buys carbon offsets in order to hit its “100% carbon neutral” claim, but says that this is a relatively small proportion of the company’s total usage.
Interviewed on the Jane Goodall Hopecast, Jackson said that a lot of companies are satisfied with simply buying offsets, but that’s not Apple’s approach …
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While Apple doesn’t ship more phones than anyone else, a new report today shows that it continues to take home most of the global smartphone profits – even before the launch of the iPhone 13.
In the second quarter of the year, iPhones accounted for only 13% of global shipments, but it’s a very different story when it comes to revenue and profit …
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The Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin quickly became one of the most iconic speakers with an iPod dock when it was launched back in 2007. The company has now launched a 4th-generation version with support for AirPlay 2 …
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Eve Online Mac support has finally landed, thanks to a new native client for macOS. You could previously run the game under Wine, though that started becoming problematic with Big Sur, but you’ll now be able to ditch the emulators …
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There have long been reports that Apple is working on ways to effectively create AirPods hearing aids – adding capabilities to the in-ear headphones that would enable them to replace hearing aids for at least some people. Or, at least, blur the lines between earphones and hearing aids.
A new report today says that the Cupertino company is still actively working on this, and has other health-related ambitions for the devices …
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Update: TSMC has confirmed the plans, but it is now clear that the plant won’t make Apple chips, as the company says it will focus on much older 22nm and 28nm processes used for far less advanced chips.
Potential plans for a TSMC plant in Japan have leaked, with the chipmaker said to be seeking to boost production to help address the global chip shortage.
Setup costs of $7B are expected to be split between TSMC, Sony, and the Japanese government …
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Update: Statement from Visible added below
Multiple reports of an apparent Verizon Visible hack, with attackers changing shipping addresses, then ordering phones that are charged to payment details held for customers. Visible is a Verizon sub-brand that operates entirely online, meaning that customers cannot seek assistance in-store.
“My account got hacked and they shipped out an iPhone 13 worth $1k that was taken from my PayPal,” wrote one customer …
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I said last time that I wanted to do a proper test of the potential of the iPhone 13‘s Cinematic Video for amateur filmmaking. My initial experiments had suggested that it wasn’t yet ready for prime-time, but those had been in mixed conditions.
I wanted to conduct a fair test, with the scene and lighting setup exactly as it would be by a typical low-budget hobbyist filmmaker. I did this by borrowing a couple of actors and filming the first scene of a (very much first draft!) pilot episode of a sitcom …
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Apple’s dependence on China has been a recurring concern, with trade wars, COVID-19-related supply constraints, and human rights abuses all being highlighted at different times. Now a group of public advocacy groups has written to congressional house leaders to flag their own worries.
The letter was written in response to claims that US antitrust legislation would disadvantage American companies, and even pose national security risks …
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Analyst concerns about the future of AAPL are so commonplace that they led to the “Apple is doomed” meme. But one of them has written an excellent counterpoint to the narrative that it’s vital for Apple to quickly find and launch The Next Big Thing …
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The 16-inch MacBook Pro is showing as unavailable for pickup at many Apple stores, with online orders showing delayed shipping too.
That is naturally creating speculating about an imminent launch of the upcoming M1X model – which turned out to be correct!
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The question of how to regulate tech giants has been high on the agenda for most countries around the world, but a new report today says that Europe is struggling to answer it.
The European Union has been working on its plans for several years, and appeared to have reached some kind of consensus last year – which would include limiting Apple’s powers in regard to the App Store, and could also place limits on its ability to acquire companies.
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