A weekly podcast discussing the latest in Apple and technology.
9to5Mac’s Happy Hour podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Castro, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play Music, or through our dedicated RSS feed.
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Hosts:
Benjamin and Chance are back from the holidays. Chance retells his experience using CarPlay and EV routing in Apple Maps, the Apple Watch is (temporarily?) back on shelves, Apple is reportedly in talks with news publishers about licensing content for its AI systems, and all signs point to an impending Vision Pro release.
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Benjamin and Chance look back on the year in Apple news, assessing the state of the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and the rest of Apple’s product lineup in light of the 2023 releases, and what is rumored to come in 2024.
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Benjamin and Chance discuss the wild situation of the Apple Watch sales ban in the US as part of an ongoing patent dispute with Masimo over blood oxygen sensor patents. Also, Apple has finally shared details of the first vehicles featuring next-generation CarPlay, Apple News+ adds The Athletic, and we round out the year with some #Ask9to5Mac questions.
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iOS 17.2 is finally here, and Benjamin and Chance break down all the new features. iOS 17.3 introduces new opt-in measures to protect against shoulder surfing thieves. Also, Apple blocks Beeper Mini, launches a USB-C case for AirPods Pro 2, and plans to start offering incentives for artists to make their songs available in Spatial Audio on Apple Music.
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iOS 17.2 beta release candidate is here with a few surprise changes in store, while Apple formally retires the iTunes TV Shows and Movies apps in tvOS. An impressive new app called Beeper brings iMessage to Android in the right way. There’s also talk of an Apple-Paramount streaming bundle, and the M3 MacBook Air might be released sooner than we thought. Benjamin and Chance discuss it all.
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Chance has some more thoughts about his new MacBook Pro, then he and Benjamin dive into the changes in iOS 17.2 beta 4, Apple services debut their Year-in-Review press, Apple seems to be on the edge of ditching Goldman Sachs for the Apple Card, and there are even more hints about when we can expect the Vision Pro to actually go on sale.
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Benjamin and Chance react to the shocking news that Apple is adopting RCS for iPhone messaging, likely with iOS 18 next year, and its implications on the ecosystem at large. We also answer your begging questions in #Ask9to5Mac, on this special holiday episode. Happy Thanksgiving to those who celebrate!
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Benjamin and Chance discuss the latest features in iOS 17.2, Mark Gurman teases a major ‘ambitious’ iOS 18 update, Ming-Chi Kuo provides a 2024 roadmap for what to expect from iPad hardware, and Apple gives some press a hands-on demo of spatial videos viewed through Apple Vision Pro.
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Following the review embargo lifting for the M3 iMac and MacBook Pro lineup this week, Chance talks about his hands-on experience with the new MacBook Pro. Benjamin and Chance also discuss the uncharacteristic Apple PR statement about the future of the iMac roadmap, the disappointing outlook for the AirPods Max, and all the new features coming in iOS 17.2.
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Benjamin and Chance discuss everything Apple announced at its October Halloween-themed event, including all the nuances of the M3 Apple Silicon generation, the new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro, and the (somewhat) updated iMac.
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Benjamin and Chance are thrilled to see Apple switching it up a bit for this end-of-month video event streaming, for the first time, in the evening. They talk about what they expect to see at the start of the M3 Apple Silicon Mac generation. iOS 17.1 has shipped with some cool new additions to Apple Music, meanwhile Apple is said to be hard at work integrating AI features into all parts of iOS 18. Plus, TV+ price rises and the rumored 2024 roadmap for new AirPods models.
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Benjamin and Chance analyze the good and (mostly) bad of the Apple Pencil lineup, following the announcement of the new USB-C model this week. Also, there are details about what Apple will cut from a cheaper Vision Pro model; how critical is EyeSight to the product, really? Listeners back up Chance’s poor CarPlay GPS experiences, more iPhone camera testing at ACL, and Apple TV+’s new film strategy begins today.
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Chance discusses his experience using the iPhone 15 Pro Max to take photos and videos at a concert, and how the Camera app leaves much to be desired for these use cases. Also, CarPlay troubles, the knock-on impact of Benjamin’s phone number changeover, and the iPhone 12 radiation remedy to appease the French government.
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Benjamin and Chance go hands-on with Apple Watch Double Tap and all the changes in the latest iOS 17.1 beta, wrap up the iPhone 15 #overheatinggate fiasco, dive deep into the ongoing Google trial that is revealing all sorts of details about the Apple search deal, and discuss why Formula 1 is a good target for Apple’s sports streaming ambitions.
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Benjamin and Chance share their hands-on experiences with Apple’s latest hardware: the Apple Watch Series 9 and iPhone 15 Pro. Plus, macOS Sonoma brings some cool new features to the Mac, and the first iOS 17.1 developer seed is released, kicking off a whole new beta cycle.
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Benjamin and Chance discuss their Apple Store ordering experiences, and assess the iPhone 15 and Apple Watch reviews that dropped this week. Chance has received his FineWoven case .. and has thoughts. They also talk about their favorite features in iOS 17 and the other Apple OS updates released this week.
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Benjamin and Chance break down all the announcements from Apple’s September event, including reactions to the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Pro and Apple Watch Series 9, Apple Watch Ultra 2, and their latest carbon-neutral environmental initiatives. Chance also retells his experience of his first time at Steve Jobs Theater.
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Benjamin and Chance discuss the impact of an aluminum Magic Keyboard on the appeal of the iPad Pro, and whether Apple could do more to focus on the education market with cheaper iPad and MacBook models. Apple surprises with an early launch for the visionOS App Store, and we prepare for the iPhone 15 announcement next week with an event-themed #Ask9to5Mac segment.
The September Apple event is finally official, and we expect to see the iPhone 15 and Apple Watch Series 9. Benjamin and Chance also break down this week’s flurry of leaks surrounding the iPhone 15 colors and cases, the Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro is reportedly getting redesigned, and Apple is testing a new 3D printing process for its products. Plus, some talk about the current state of the smart home market.
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Benjamin and Chance analyze this week’s flurry of leaks about the supposed cable coming in the iPhone 15 box. Apple also started up the Vision Pro PR machine, released the latest iOS 17 beta, and why a 2021 movie jumped to the top of the TV+ charts.
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Benjamin and Chance discuss what an ‘Apple Watch X’ could look like, in what Mark Gurman described as the biggest redesign for the Apple Watch ever. There’s a brewing social media storm about iPhone battery health possibly degrading faster than normal, the iTunes Trailers app is discontinued, and Chance is frustrated with the (un)reliability of the HomePod multi-room experience.
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Benjamin and Chance analyze the salient points from Apple’s quarterly earnings report, discuss the intriguing new Apple Music Discovery Station feature that launched this week, and everything new in the iOS 17 beta. We also think we know when the iPhone 15 event will be held in September, and how the high-end of the next Apple Silicon cycle is shaping up with details on the M3 Max chip.
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Benjamin and Chance discuss all the Apple news of the past week including rumors about new colors for Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra, the thin-bezel future of the iPad hardware design, new AirTag generation coming in 2024, Screen Time bugs annoying parents, and details of how Apple plans to crackdown on app user fingerprinting with a new policy coming with iOS 17.
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Benjamin and Chance discuss all the changes in iOS 17 beta 4, plus Apple starts handing out dev kits for Apple Vision Pro … but will developers make apps for a brand new niche platform? There are also rumors of an iPhone 15 Pro price hike, and Apple threatens to end iMessage/FaceTime in the UK if a new law goes into effect that would weaken the platform’s end-to-end encryption security.
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