iOS Today 775: Utility Apps

Emily Forlini of PCMag joins Mikah Sargent on Tech News Weekly! Microsoft launched its fall feature drop for Copilot, including a new AI avatar called Mico. Amazon is making headlines with its robotic automation efforts and also unveiled new AR smart glasses for delivery drivers. Jason Howell stops by to discuss Samsung's new Galaxy XR headset, their answer to Apple's Vision Pro. Emily discusses Microsoft's new AI avatar Mico, introduced as part of Copilot's fall feature drop with 12 new features, including group project tools and health Q&A. Emily and Mikah debate whether anyone actually wants 'real talk' with a chatbot. Mikah covers Amazon's continued automation push, replacing warehouse positions with robots as the company expands its use of robotics throughout its logistics operations. Emily weighs in with her inside knowledge on what this means for real workers. Jason Howell joins to talk about Samsung's new $1,799 Galaxy XR headset positioning itself as a direct competitor to Apple's Vision Pro. He explains why built-in Gemini AI makes it special and why smart glasses might ultimately beat big VR headsets. Mikah dives into Amazon's new AR smart glasses designed for delivery drivers, featuring hands-free navigation, package scanning, hazard detection, and automatic proof-of-delivery photo capture—all displayed directly in the driver's field of view. Hosts: Mikah Sargent and Emily Forlini Guest: Jason Howell Download or subscribe to Tech News Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/tech-news-weekly. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: ventionteams.com/twit auraframes.com/ink outsystems.com/twit threatlocker.com/twit

Tron: Ares is the third installment in the Tron franchise from Disney, which spans over 40 years. Scott Wilkinson saw it in IMAX 3D and gives his review here. Is it worth $25 or more to see it in IMAX? Host: Scott Wilkinson Download or subscribe to Home Theater Geeks at https://twit.tv/shows/home-theater-geeks Want access to the ad-free video and exclusive features? Become a member of Club TWiT today! https://twit.tv/clubtwit Club TWiT members can discuss this episode and leave feedback in the Club TWiT Discord.

Is Windows 11 on ARM finally ready for gaming? Paul Thurrott puts new Snapdragon-powered laptops to the test with both classics and demanding titles, revealing some unexpected wins and ongoing hurdles. Host: Paul Thurrott Download or subscribe to Hands-On Windows at https://twit.tv/shows/hands-on-windows Want access to the ad-free video and exclusive features? Become a member of Club TWiT today! https://twit.tv/clubtwit Club TWiT members can discuss this episode and leave feedback in the Club TWiT Discord.

This episode demonstrates how Spotlight's new "actions" feature quietly transforms your workflow, adapting to the app you're using and what you copy, delivering shortcuts you never knew you needed. Discover how to create lightning-fast quick keys in Spotlight, letting you instantly send emails, print documents, or launch commands in your favorite apps. Spotlight actions get personal—suggestions adapt to your app usage Third-party apps feed custom actions into Spotlight Actions adapt to your current app like Photos & Notes Context-aware Spotlight pulls menu bar commands and clipboard data Quick Keys for Spotlight actions let you set up fast shortcuts Real-world examples: creating shortcuts for email, Finder, and printer tasks Spotlight actions connect workflows—print PDFs and automate simple actions Host: Mikah Sargent Download or subscribe to Hands-On Apple at https://twit.tv/shows/hands-on-apple Want access to the ad-free video and exclusive features? Become a member of Club TWiT today! https://twit.tv/clubtwit Club TWiT members can discuss this episode and leave feedback in the Club TWiT Discord.

Wondering how to turn your iPhone into the ultimate utility tool? This episode reveals under-the-radar apps and clever tricks that transform everyday tasks, from scanning bizarre-shaped books to hijacking your iPhone camera as a pro-level Mac webcam. Using iPhone as a webcam for Mac with Camo and Continuity Camera Simple Scan app for digitizing documents and OCR on iOS Quick note-taking and text automation using Drafts app Network device discovery with the Discovery app for iOS and Mac Transloader app for remote Mac downloads from your iPhone News: Apple sunsets Clips social video app, replacement options suggested Feedback: Apple Watch Ultra size and user preferences Shortcuts Corner: Apple Intelligence shortcut fails on Apple Watch, troubleshooting advice App Caps: Theraview ADHD medication tracker and Terraforming Mars digital board game Hosts: Mikah Sargent and Rosemary Orchard Contact iOS Today at [email protected]. Download or subscribe to iOS Today at https://twit.tv/shows/ios-today Want access to the ad-free video and exclusive features? Become a member of Club TWiT today! https://twit.tv/clubtwit Club TWiT members can discuss this episode and leave feedback in the Club TWiT Discord.

Is the future of artificial intelligence running on your desk instead of in massive data centers? This episode breaks down how Nvidia's Blackwell chip and HP's new ZGX Nano could let anyone fine-tune jaw-dropping language models at home—and why privacy, cost, and control are suddenly up for grabs. Introducing ChatGPT Atlas Claude Skills are awesome, maybe a bigger deal than MCP Leo... AI assistants make widespread errors about the news, new research shows The Majority AI View - Anil Dash OpenAI cracks down on Sora 2 deepfakes after pressure from Bryan Cranston, SAG-AFTRA Is Andrej Karpathy Right About Overhyped AI? Happy 18th Birthday to None Pizza Left Beef Originality.ai Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paris Martineau, and Mike Elgan Guests: Joey de Villa and Andrew Hawthorn Download or subscribe to Intelligent Machines at https://twit.tv/shows/intelligent-machines. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: agntcy.org fieldofgreens.com Promo Code "IM" ventionteams.com/twit

Microsoft is promising a bold AI-infused future for Windows 11, as the company aims to turn the OS into an AI-powered "agentic" hub. Amid all the Copilot hype, the hosts ask the tough questions: Are these AI features solving real problems, or is Big Tech just chasing a revenue gold rush? Tune in for sharp takes on AI skepticism, notable buzzwords, and the practical impact of Microsoft's ambitious new direction. Windows 11... Windows.ai?? Microsoft announces several new Copilot and AI features in Windows while redefining the term "AI PC" out from under Intel New features: Hey Copilot wake phrase (and goodbye), Copilot Vision is GA, new features coming soon include Copilot replacing Search in the Taskbar, Copilot Actions for local files, Manus AI agent and Filmora integration with File Explorer AI Actions, Zoom integration with Click to Do This is about Windows transforming into an "AI native" agentic OS Which ties into Paul's AI is the End of Apps editorial, where apps became programmable so that they can be controlled by AI - You can see baby steps in Windows 11 in-box apps now Microsoft explains how it will secure agents in Windows because Recall what happened last time Microsoft releases so-called emergency update for Windows 11 after the October Patch Tuesday updates killed USB mouse and keyboard supports in the Windows Recovery Environment (WRE). Windows Insider Program: Mobile devices settings improvements, File Explorer improvements, Drag Tray improvements, and other changes head to Dev (25H2) and Beta (24H2) channels New Start menu, battery icons, Copilot Vision integration in Taskbar, File Explorer improvements, Voice access improvements, and Click to Do improvements (Copilot+ PC only) head to Release Preview, indicating they will be a Week D preview and then Patch Tuesday release in November Restyle rolling out in Paint across most Insider channels Open AI finally launches long-expected web browser, but only on the Mac because FU, Microsoft Facebook Messenger for Windows is retiring, will chase rabbits on a farm upstate Microsoft What does Microsoft's annual report say about its relationship with consumers? Three core consumer businesses: Windows, Microsoft 365 Consumer, Xbox/gaming Xbox/gaming smallest (500m) but also the most engaged - and also the most discussed in the report Not clear what % of users/revenues is consumer based, but it's not a small number (guessing its at least one-third of each) AI Copilot for Education is coming in December, $18 per student per month Anthropic Claude is coming for Copilot in Microsoft 365 commercial Copilot has AI competition on Samsung smart TVs now Opera Neon is getting an AI research agent Xbox and gaming Xbox president says next console will be "very premium". You know, like Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. ASUS ROG Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X are now available for purchase New wave of games coming to Game Pass across PC, console, and cloud, including Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, The Outer Worlds 2, and more Following console price hikes, Xbox Development Kit gets a 33 percent price increase thanks to insane U.S. tariffs Tips & Picks Tip of the week: Laptops are upgradeable again and life is good App pick of the week: A grab bag of apps for Windows users RunAs Radio this These show notes have been truncated due to length. For the full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly/episodes/955 Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Sponsors: ventionteams.com/twit helixsleep.com/windows framer.com/design promo code WW outsystems.com/twit

NordVPN Open Sources their Linux client, AMD and Intel are cooperating on what the next iteration of X86_64 will look like, and Fedora 43 is going to be a week late. Blender 5 and PipeWire 1.6 are each right around the corner and the Free Software Foundation has announced their Librephone initiative. For tips we have the FastMail desktop app, octopi for pacman package management, the Gemini CLI for agentic AI on the command line, and using shred and hdparm for secure data deletion. You can find the show notes at https://bit.ly/3WLdPVO and have a great week! Host: Jonathan Bennett Co-Hosts: Rob Campbell, Ken McDonald, and Jeff Massie Download or subscribe to Untitled Linux Show at https://twit.tv/shows/untitled-linux-show Want access to the ad-free video and exclusive features? Become a member of Club TWiT today! https://twit.tv/clubtwit Club TWiT members can discuss this episode and leave feedback in the Club TWiT Discord.

If you ever saw the IMAX spectacular, "The Dream is Alive," you've seen astronaut Terry Hart in action, capturing the Solar Max satellite with the shuttle's robotic arm. But even if you missed that film, Terry has had a fascinating career as an Air Force pilot, NASA astronaut, senior leadership at Bell Labs (more than once!), and as an academic and creator of a new aerospace engineering program at Lehigh University. Join us for an enjoyable hour with one of our favorite guys. Also, is Jared Isaacman back as the new NASA Administrator? Will the Orion capsule soon be used for non-NASA missions? And what's going on with the layoffs at the Jet Propulsion Lab? All this and more on This Week in Space. Headlines: Jared Isaacman Back in the Running for NASA Administrator Lockheed Martin Considers Launching Orion on Rockets Other Than SLS JPL Hit Hard by Layoffs and Uncertainty Amid NASA Budget Woes Main Topic: Astronaut Terry Hart's Career, Space Shuttle Missions, and NASA's Evolution Terry Hart Recaps a Multifaceted Aerospace Career from Bell Labs to NASA Behind the Scenes of the IMAX Film "The Dream is Alive" and Shooting in Space In-Depth Look at STS-41C: First Shuttle Rendezvous, Satellite Repair, and Pioneering On-Orbit Servicing Long Duration Space Experiments and the Legacy of LDEF Reflections on Challenger, Shuttle Risks, and Safety Culture in Human Spaceflight The Ongoing Shift from NASA-Led Programs to Private Spaceflight Industry Preparing the Next Generation: Aerospace Education and Lehigh University's New Graduate Program Insights on Space Bees, Life Aboard the Shuttle, and Visions for the Future of Space Manufacturing Hosts: Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik Guest: Terry Hart Download or subscribe to This Week in Space at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-space. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit

Windows 11's 25H2 release isn't hitting every device right away—find out how to jump the line and enable hidden new features before the official rollout. Host: Paul Thurrott Download or subscribe to Hands-On Windows at https://twit.tv/shows/hands-on-windows Want access to the ad-free video and exclusive features? Become a member of Club TWiT today! https://twit.tv/clubtwit Club TWiT members can discuss this episode and leave feedback in the Club TWiT Discord.