If rumors are to be believed, the next iPhone will ditch the 3.5mm headphone jack. I have mixed feeling about that. While I understand (and agree with) the need to have less cables in our lives, this will be the single most disruptive change to the iPhone since it’s arrival. There’s no doubt that a lot more smartphones and devices will follow suit once Apple decide to remove it.

The 3.5mm jack has been around for a long time ¹. Almost every piece of technology that I own uses it, including my car! How Apple approaches this is important.

Presumably they will have some sort of adapter for the lightning port to allow 3.5mm jacks to be used. This should be included in the box with new phones, although that seems unlikely based on Apples track record in making a lot of money on overpriced accessories.

Another question is what kind of headphones will be included with the new phones. Earpods are unlikely to be discontinued for some time, but they won’t work with the new iPhone if the jack is removed. Will Apple include bluetooth Earpods? Again, seems unlikely. But it would be bad for Apple to not include any earphones. That would be the first time they wouldn’t be included in the box since the original phone.

Bluetooth earphones/headphones have their own issues. They are generally more flimsy, more expensive and have to be charged or run on batteries. Who wants another battery to have to worry about? Is that not just creating a new problem that removing the jack was solving?

There doesn’t seem to be a way to make this transition pain free, but lets hope it is at least handled well. Best case scenario in my opinion? - include the adapter for free and let us make the transition at our own pace.

AgileBits on their new $2.99/month subscription service:

Our new individual hosted service comes with everything you expect from 1Password, along with these new features:

• Built-in automatic sync across all devices
• Data loss protection
• Web access to your data on 1Password.com
• Item History for restoring deleted or changed items
• Secure Document storage
• Brand new multi-factor security model

I haven’t had to remember a password in at least two years. Get 1Password.

The Loop:

With all of the press it’s received in the past couple of weeks, it will come as no surprise that Pokemon Go has been a huge success. In fact, Apple told me today that the game has set a new App Store record with more downloads in its first week than any other app in history.

Although no actual numbers were mentioned by Apple, that is seriously impressive, even if it’s not entirely surprising. The real question from Nintendo’s perspective is how many people who downloaded Pokémon Go will still be playing it in six months time. I’ve been trying it out for the past week or so and while it’s definitely addictive and brings back a lot of memories, it doesn’t take long to grow tired of having to have your phone in your hand while walking, or having to take detours that you wouldn’t usually take.

Pokémon Go could end up similar to the Wii, where the novelty of movement while gaming soon grew old and people went back to the comfort couch gaming. I hope I’m wrong.

Interesting article from Chris Hannah on how he manages notifications on iOS. It can be hard to decide which notifications should be enabled and which should be disabled on your phone. I have a lot of apps, most of which produce notifications on a daily basis. I spend far too much time checking my phone. To help combat this, I always leave my phone in Do Not Disturb mode while at work, which ensures that my phone won’t wake each time I get a notification. This is a help, but doesn’t solve the problem.

In general, this is how I prioritise notifications:

• Important: Calls, SMS/iMessage, Whatsapp
• Not Important: All social media, games, RSS, personal Email

Based on the above, I have adjusted how I get notifications on my phone. Anything in the important category gets pushed to my phone immediately, and anything in the not important must be looked up manually which prevents my phone from lighting up throughout the day. This is a small change but it’s definitely noticeable. It’s not going to cure my smartphone addiction, but it can surely help me get back some of those wasted minutes.

Pokémon Go is going to be massive.

Actually..it already is.

Jason Snell:

macOS sierra is coming Thursday. Here’s where you should install it:

• Nowhere, if you aren’t willing to constantly back up all your data and take the risks of having an unstable Mac in your life for a few months
• Nowhere, if you aren’t willing to use the Feedback Assistant app to report to Apple about the bugs you’re finding

[…]

iOS 10 beta is also due today. Here’s where you should install it:

• Not on your main iPhone
• Not on your main iPad
• On an iOS device that you don’t rely on

I made the mistake of trying out the public betas in the past and each time I regretted it. It’s not worth getting an early look at what’s new when you sacrifice performance and battery life. At the very least I would wait until the second public beta is released for both.

I had been looking for some way of tracking activity on this site for a while, and not for the first time Google have answered the call. Google Analytics provides insights on just about everything - from what device the user is viewing your site on to how long they spend on each page and even their screen resolution. It’s also free, and ridiculously easy to set up. Check it out.

Sometimes I love the internet..

Today, almost everyone I know carries a smartphone. We walk around with pocket computers hooked up to the entirety of the Internet. They can shoot amazing photos and take 4K video. I can video chat with my kids and play games on the same device.

It’s only been nine years, but I can’t imagine going back.

“Row, row, row your boat gently down the stream..”