First, some bad news for Apple as well as Apple fans. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled against Apple, stating that an antitrust against the company could move forward. Then, Apple fans got a glimpse into the future. Leaked molds for cases for the iPhone XS replacement are out and… they’re not pretty. There’s a phone scam you should know about, because it’s quite clever. Finally, I reviewed the only 60% keyboard I’ve ever loved, the KBParadise V60 with Alps-style mechanical switches by Matias.
There’s also a lot more happening in tech, so read on!
In This Article:
Leaf and Core Rewind
Supreme Court Allows Anti-Apple Antitrust Lawsuit to Continue
An Apple user, not an iOS developer, is suing Apple for monopolistic behavior. This is for charging developers 30% for every app sold on the platform, artificially inflating prices. Now, if you ask me, apps are already dramatically underpriced. That’s why we’ve seen a big push towards subscriptions and awful freemium pricing schemes. However, if Apple’s not taking their cut of sales, developers may be able to see large profits, and will be able to offer their apps at reduced prices, if they choose to. You’ll also be able to subscribe to services like Spotify from within the app again.
iPhone Molds Show Disappointing Design
From left to right, successors to the iPhone XS, iPhone XR, and iPhone XS Max
Things people don’t like about the iPhone design: rounded sides and a large camera bump. Things Apple’s going all in on for the next iPhone: rounded sides and a larger camera bump! Apple’s next iPhone will feature a comically large camera bump. The good news is that the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max sequels will get three cameras. The bad news is we’ll have a giant camera bump to thank for it. The iPhone XR will get a second camera… and also a large camera bump.
I’m on the “Upgrade every year” plan, and even I’m wondering if it would be worth it to keep my current iPhone, despite the fact that upgrading would cost me next to nothing up front.
iPhone sales are down, and Apple goes with this?
Wangiri! Or, “One Ring” Phone Scam
Have you ever received a call with just one ring, or perhaps your phone never rang at all, but you have a missed call? That’s the “One Ring” phone scam. When you call the number back, you’ll be automatically charged.
KBParadise V60 Vintage with Matias Quiet Click Switches Review
A 60% keyboard gives you more desk space, but at what cost?
I love this little keyboard. It’s the first 60% keyboard I’ve ever used. After the initial break-in period, I got used to the smaller form factor. Now I love it. Check out the full review, one of my largest ever, for details on the Mattias Quiet Click switches, the KBParadise V60, and one of the most soothing sounding keyboard sound test videos I’ve ever done. Enjoy!
Around the Web
White House Launches Tool to Report Censorship on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter: Makena Kelly, The Verge
America’s export? Hate speech.
I don’t re-write the titles from other authors. But if I did, this one would have been titled: ‘Donald Trump Launches Plan to Protect Hate Speech‘. Because that’s what this is about. Trump wants to make sure that “conservative voices” aren’t being “censored” on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and other sites. The problem? None of those sites are removing conservative voices. They are, however, banning hate speech and language that incites violence.
To Trump, there’s no difference between conservatism and violent hate speech.
Big words from the guy who should have been banned from these services when he called for the banning of all Muslims from entering the United States, in the most anti-religious rhetoric out of a world power since the 30’s.
You know who we’re talking about.
Let’s not forget that Twitter can’t ban the Nazis because their algorithms would ban a large number of Republicans. Almost as though the venn diagram of white supremacists and Republicans is a little too close to a circle.
San Francisco Passes City Government Ban on Facial Recognition Tech: Taylor Hatmaker, Techcrunch
Soon, a simple camera could ID you anywhere. Image: Microsoft
San Francisco has become the first U.S. city to ban the use of facial recognition tech. Government organizations, including police, will not be allowed to use surveillance cameras set up through the city along with facial recognition. This is in interest of privacy and preventing government overreach. No more Big Brother in San Francisco.
Facial recognition is racially biased, and biased against women as well. Women of color are far more likely to be wrongly identified by the software. As such, police could wrongly target them for crimes they did not commit. Furthermore, everyone finds the practice of tracking people everywhere they go using facial recognition a little creepy, and to reminiscent of dystopian literature.
(Weak) Facebook Live Restrictions Introduced in Response to New Zealand Shooting Video: Ben Lovejoy, 9to5Mac
A gunman took to mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand to kill Muslims worshiping. The mass murder spread his hate on Facebook, both prior to, and, horrifyingly, during his terrorist attack. He spread anti-Muslim rhetoric all too common in the United States and Europe before murdering families worshiping at these mosques.
He live streamed all of it on Facebook.
In the wake of this, Facebook has not committed itself to better oversight on hateful content. However, they have announced a new “one strike” policy. Now, if a person posts something hateful, and one of their friends reports them, they won’t be able to share live video. The idea is that people like this often make hateful statements prior to their killing sprees, like “Ban all Muslims from entering the country,” or “LGBTQ people don’t deserve rights.” Those all too common utterances of hate could ban a person from ever using Facebook’s live streaming service again. Because hateful acts of violence always start off with hate speech.
Smartphone Shipments Hit a Five-Year Low in North America: Brian Heater, Techcrunch
Smartphones are getting boring. Apple has been using the same (absolutely awful) design since the iPhone 6, released in 2014. Beyond that, they’ve gotten larger screens and better cameras, but haven’t drastically changed since Apple introduced the first iPhone in 2007. They’ve gone up in price though. We can no longer use our cellular carriers to subsidize prices, and the full price of smartphones has gone above $1,000. They’re too expensive and too boring, even for a huge techie such as myself.
The market is starting to feel that pinch. Global smartphone shipments are down 18% from last year, across many top brands. Apple itself saw a 19% decline in sales. LG suffered a 24% drop, and smaller brands, lumped together, saw a 65% drop.
People aren’t buying cellphones anymore. They’ve become too expensive and aren’t worth the upgrade. Companies are suffering. Rather than innovate, Apple has attempted to release a large number of services to hold the company over until the next great thing comes along. Until then, expect more boring smartphones.