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.
The IRS is piloting a free TurboTax alternative, offering the benefits of the paid app without the price tag, but there are plenty of limitations for now.
TurboTax has become an increasingly popular way of filing taxes, as it automates a lot of what would otherwise be a tedious manual process …
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After conflicting reports about whether Apple was going to launch new iPads, a new Apple Pencil, or both, the matter appeared to have been settled with yesterday’s announcement of the Apple Pencil (USB-C).
However, it turns out there was a new(ish) iPad also – but only in China …
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While next year’s iPhone 16 Pro models are expected to use a smaller version of TSMC’s 3nm process, Apple’s chipmaker is already planning production of its first 1nm chips …
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All current Apple processors are compared in an updated chart, mixing in iPhone, iPad, and Mac chips to show their relative power in benchmark tests – including, of course, the new A17 Pro.
One standout result is that the iPhone 15 Pro is almost on a par with the entry-level MacBook Air when it comes to processing power …
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Apple CEO Tim Cook has put in an appearance at a Chinese games tournament and local Apple Store. The rest of his itinerary isn’t yet known, though it’s likely he will be attending an international political and economic forum hosted by the Chinese government.
The visit comes at a time when Apple has been caught in the cross-fire of diplomatic tension between US and Chinese governments – and Cook also managed to get caught up in a minor photo battle of his own …
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WhatsApp passkeys are on the way, says the developer, but the security feature will be rolling out to Android users ahead of iPhone owners.
Once it does reach iPhone, however, you’ll be able to ditch your password or passcode and simply use Face ID or Touch ID to authenticate …
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I get offered a lot of Bluetooth speakers for review, and turn down most of them because I’ve experienced <insert company name here>’s prior offerings and have been left decidedly unimpressed. But the Tribit Stormbox Flow made it through, because my last experience left me very pleasantly surprised.
I wrote last year that the Tribit StormBox Micro 2 had absolutely no right to be as good as it was, for both size and price reasons – and the same is true of the company’s latest offering …
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Apple’s environmental claims have again come under the microscope, just a few weeks after Greenpeace criticized the company’s annual product cycles for driving carbon emissions.
While a new report also accuses Apple of exaggerating its environmental credentials, it does acknowledge that the Cupertino company is far ahead of its tech rivals …
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A Goldman Sachs exec reportedly responded to the announcement of the Apple Card savings account by immediately declaring it a mistake.
According to the report, the unnamed Goldman partner said: “We should have never done this f—ing thing” …
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TSMC founder Morris Chang has said that Intel won’t catch up with its technological lead, and will remain in the “shadow” of the Taiwanese company.
Intel has acknowledged that Apple’s own Mac chip designs are more advanced than any PC chip the US company currently offers, but the company’s CEO has repeatedly suggested that it will eventually catch and then overtake TSMC …
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It was suggested yesterday that new iPads might be announced as soon as tomorrow, and our own sources indicate that something iPad-related is landing this week, but a new report suggests that something might be an Apple Pencil 3.
The latest report gives weight to earlier talk of an upcoming Apple Pencil update with a choice of three magnetically attached tips …
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Customers on older T-Mobile unlimited plans are facing a price hike, thanks to a sneaky approach by the carrier.
Although it was prohibited by both regulators and its own promises from increasing the prices of the four plans concerned, T-Mobile will move customers onto new plans, and charge more for those. Thankfully, you can opt out – and here’s how …
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A MOVEit data breach resulted in “at least” 64 million people having their personal data exposed by the failings of a company they’ve likely never heard of.
The breach affected customer organizations ranging from Sony to the Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles, and the SEC is now investigating …
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The new Apple Maps experience – which include more detail, better navigation, and Look Around – has today launched in two new countries, Denmark and Greece. This brings the total number of countries covered to 35.
Apple Maps expert Justin O’Beirne notes that this is the 20th expansion of the new mapping data, which the company built from scratch …
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The launch of the two iPhone 15 Pro models is being heralded as a success for chipmaker TSMC, with the A17 Pro chip expected to account for between 4% and 6% of its total sales this year.
Next year, Apple is expected to adopt TSMC’s next-gen chip tech, known as N3E, for the iPhone 16 Pro models. Five other companies are expected to do the same for their most advanced chips …
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A class action lawsuit against Apple claims that AirTag stalking has led to “multiple murders.”
The lawsuit alleges that AirTags have been used by stalkers in at least 20 US states, and that Apple has failed to take adequate action to protect victims …
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The row over widespread Israel-Hamas hoaxes and antisemitic hate speech on X continues, with the social network’s CEO insisting the company is taking the matter seriously, while others are unconvinced …
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A new bill being put forward in New York state would require kids to get parental permission to use apps with algorithmic feeds. This would include TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, and more.
The bill is known as the Stop Addictive Feeds Exploitation (SAFE) for Kids Act, and has the backing of the state’s governor and state attorney general …
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While there was once hope of the first M3 MacBooks being launched this month, more recent reporting has suggested we’re going to have to wait until next year for these. This is echoed by a new supply chain report, which says that Apple plans to make the switch to 3nm chips in 2024.
There is still some hope that we may see some M3 Macs before then, just not laptops …
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A new report says that the impact of inflation made only a tiny dent in the spending of US teens, but that an iPhone and Apple Watch remain top priorities.
Investment banking giant Piper Sandler has shared the results of its latest large-scale survey of the behaviors and plans of US teenagers …
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A powerful new California privacy law has now taken effect, designed to make it far easier for consumers to request that data brokers delete their data instead of selling it. The state’s right to repair legislation is also now active.
It’s hoped that both laws will serve as models for other US states, with a more ambitious goal of seeing their provisions enacted in federal law …
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Update: A third US state is suing TikTok for harming children “by intentionally keeping young users spending unhealthy amounts of time on the short-video sharing platform.”
There have been threats/promises of a federal TikTok ban since 2020, but little progress has been made in the past three years. The latest development is that there are now two completely separate potential laws competing for support …
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The Narwhal for Reddit app now has confirmed pricing, after surveying the views of users. The developer says that thoughts of tiered subscriptions have been abandoned, and that the app will instead have a single plan costing $3.99 per month.
This is the same as Now for Reddit, which also considered multiple tiers – while Android app Relay is going with usage-based pricing …
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If you’re on one of four older T-Mobile unlimited plans, you’re facing a price hike of around $10 per month – but you can opt out of the increase.
Click here for instructions of how to opt out
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