WEBVTT 00:00.031 --> 00:03.156 [SPEAKER_01]: a factual data creation facility production. 00:13.075 --> 00:15.879 [SPEAKER_01]: From the storm threatened Appalachian mountains. 00:16.561 --> 00:18.964 [SPEAKER_01]: It's the OFNT podcast. 00:19.485 --> 00:24.293 [SPEAKER_01]: Now here's your host, whose glad he still has electricity, Jim Schaefer. 00:24.854 --> 00:25.475 [SPEAKER_00]: Thank you Bill. 00:26.036 --> 00:31.444 [SPEAKER_00]: Welcome to the OFNT podcast episode 305 which I'm calling, Snow Cotaster Free. 00:32.426 --> 00:33.227 [SPEAKER_00]: Or is it? 00:37.747 --> 00:44.454 [SPEAKER_00]: I'm in early this week, just in case we lose power because of this monster winter storm that's predicted to envelope half the country. 00:45.575 --> 00:48.457 [SPEAKER_00]: I'm not worried about the snow, I'm more concerned with the ice. 00:49.178 --> 01:00.389 [SPEAKER_00]: Though the area I reside in has buried energy lines, a lot of it still has the above ground lines and all it takes is one telephone pole to fall and power could be knocked out for the whole city. 01:00.429 --> 01:03.332 [SPEAKER_00]: None of my whining though. 01:03.352 --> 01:04.413 [SPEAKER_00]: Let's just get started. 01:05.074 --> 01:05.895 [SPEAKER_01]: Yes. 01:05.915 --> 01:07.416 [SPEAKER_01]: Three, two, one. 01:11.834 --> 01:12.717 [SPEAKER_00]: Check news! 01:13.519 --> 01:20.241 [SPEAKER_00]: I debated on whether or not to put this story in the entertainment section, but I finally decided on placing it here. 01:20.558 --> 01:33.933 [SPEAKER_00]: MacRumors.com reports that Facebook or Meta would ever call these days, which is X's social media platform competitor Threads, has surpassed the self-named world-town square and active users for the first time. 01:33.993 --> 01:35.235 [SPEAKER_01]: What? 01:35.515 --> 01:41.842 [SPEAKER_00]: I'm sure that this news kicked off Champaign bottle-popping celebrations across a certain segment of the population. 01:42.162 --> 01:42.803 [SPEAKER_01]: Yes! 01:42.783 --> 01:54.836 [SPEAKER_00]: According to Market Intelligence firm, similar web, threats recorded 141.5 million daily active users across iOS and Android worldwide, as of January 7th of this year. 01:54.896 --> 02:03.846 [SPEAKER_00]: The firm also estimates that X's daily active mobile user base has declined significantly, going to roughly half of what it was a year ago. 02:03.886 --> 02:12.435 [SPEAKER_01]: Do you think that people are actually listening to your and others calls to ditch social media? 02:12.770 --> 02:16.855 [SPEAKER_00]: But here in the United States, X still attracts more mobile users and threads. 02:17.596 --> 02:23.925 [SPEAKER_00]: When you run the numbers on website usage, X maintains what the article described as a decisive lead. 02:23.965 --> 02:32.255 [SPEAKER_00]: Attracting 145.4 million web visitors per day, compared to 8.5 million web visitors for threads. 02:33.577 --> 02:41.207 [SPEAKER_00]: Upon further research, most of the losses X has incurred on mobile usage was from the Android operating system. 02:42.301 --> 02:51.452 [SPEAKER_00]: am I somewhat ill-informed taken on this is that the majority of lost ground for X has to do with the EU and the UK cracking down on freedom of speech. 02:52.673 --> 02:56.077 [SPEAKER_00]: People are being arrested for posting their opinions on X for Pete's sake. 02:57.399 --> 03:04.668 [SPEAKER_00]: Also, Australia has already banned social media for those under 16 years old, and the UK seems about to do the same thing. 03:04.688 --> 03:11.616 [SPEAKER_00]: Note that Android dominates as the 03:11.798 --> 03:16.207 [SPEAKER_00]: I have no dog in this race, but, to me, this is much to do about nothing. 03:16.227 --> 03:24.163 [SPEAKER_00]: Oh, to celebrate this milestone, Meta has announced that advertisements will be coming to threads next week. 03:25.265 --> 03:27.830 [SPEAKER_00]: Since his existence, thread was at free. 03:28.191 --> 03:32.980 [SPEAKER_01]: Meta, the gift that keeps on giving, not! 03:34.175 --> 03:41.487 [SPEAKER_00]: Producers and consumers of brain rot, but the kids rightfully call these days, have cost to rejoice. 03:42.229 --> 03:44.773 [SPEAKER_00]: Well, at least here in the good old United States. 03:45.214 --> 03:47.698 [SPEAKER_01]: And what's giving them this cause for rejoicing? 03:48.239 --> 03:49.281 [SPEAKER_00]: Because it's official. 03:49.321 --> 04:00.199 [SPEAKER_00]: The deal that will allow the social media platform known as TikTok continue operating in this country has been approved and signed off by both the US and Chinese governments. 04:02.137 --> 04:10.187 [SPEAKER_00]: I'm sure those septum pierced, tatted up unnatural hair color to content producers are breathing a sigh of relief as I record this. 04:10.788 --> 04:13.071 [SPEAKER_01]: Am I detecting a bit of sarcasm here? 04:13.131 --> 04:14.592 [SPEAKER_00]: No, not at all. 04:15.494 --> 04:19.358 [SPEAKER_00]: People should have a place for showing the world who and what they really are. 04:19.398 --> 04:27.148 [SPEAKER_00]: I'm not against it, but I also have the right to not partake or pay any attention to TikTok and its content providers. 04:29.913 --> 04:35.023 [SPEAKER_00]: I've discussed on the show before about Google slowly but surely, stop calling me surely. 04:35.424 --> 04:40.513 [SPEAKER_00]: That old gag, taking away the ability to side load apps on two Android phones. 04:41.615 --> 04:48.909 [SPEAKER_00]: Last Monday, Google announced it was adding what the company called, I friction-side-loading flow for its mobile operating system. 04:49.350 --> 04:50.773 [SPEAKER_00]: What does this even mean? 04:50.973 --> 05:02.489 [SPEAKER_00]: It means an Android will be adding an accountability layer to this side-loading process, which can now only be done by a registered advanced users, which is Google's speak for developers. 05:03.470 --> 05:12.643 [SPEAKER_00]: These advanced users will be given a choice of installing without verifying, and the big G has added more hoops for them to jump through before allowing them to do so. 05:13.366 --> 05:14.267 [SPEAKER_00]: Let's be real here. 05:14.888 --> 05:23.799 [SPEAKER_00]: Google intends to stop the side loading of apps on Android, and in the process taking away one more so-called advantage Android had over iOS. 05:24.921 --> 05:36.235 [SPEAKER_00]: I'm still sticking to my prediction that eventually, iOS and Android will become one operating system, controlled by government bureaucrats. 05:38.813 --> 05:43.643 [SPEAKER_00]: This next story is sort of sad news for an old fart like myself and I'm sure others. 05:44.264 --> 06:09.208 [SPEAKER_00]: Nine to five Mac.com is reporting that Sony Corporation has as the article states, thrown in the towel as far as the manufacturer of television sets, Sony has just entered into a new partnership with a Chinese manufacturer TCL that will see TCL handled future product development and design, manufacturing sales, logistics, and customer service. 06:09.880 --> 06:14.505 [SPEAKER_00]: In other words, Sony has transferred its entire television division to TCL. 06:15.626 --> 06:18.389 [SPEAKER_00]: This chance was scheduled to launch by April of 2027. 06:18.509 --> 06:27.959 [SPEAKER_00]: I don't have much experience with TCL products, but another company makes a big splash with tech sites and consumer shows like CES. 06:28.820 --> 06:36.428 [SPEAKER_00]: Reviewers praise TCL's products, but I often wonder if that has more to do with the low prices TCL charges for their products. 06:37.522 --> 06:43.790 [SPEAKER_00]: I do have a TCL-branded 32-inch smart television that sits unused in one of my spare guest bedrooms. 06:44.912 --> 06:46.554 [SPEAKER_00]: I selected the brand for one reason. 06:46.614 --> 06:47.976 [SPEAKER_00]: It's cheap price. 06:48.937 --> 06:52.863 [SPEAKER_00]: It was a cheapest 32-inch television I could find, coming in at under $100. 06:54.245 --> 06:58.610 [SPEAKER_00]: Upon purchasing this set, I did the initial setup and just left it alone. 06:58.670 --> 07:01.655 [SPEAKER_00]: It's been sitting there unused for about a year now. 07:02.416 --> 07:07.242 [SPEAKER_00]: My impression 07:07.778 --> 07:14.784 [SPEAKER_00]: The reason behind Sony doing this is that the television market is very competitive with razor-thin profit margins. 07:15.485 --> 07:18.608 [SPEAKER_00]: It's just not worth the company's time or effort in a longer, I guess. 07:19.648 --> 07:36.283 [SPEAKER_00]: Still, when I bought my first Sony television back in what was clearly, the day, now with circa 1983, I felt that the Trinitron CRT screen was a huge step up 07:36.837 --> 07:42.124 [SPEAKER_00]: In 1985 I gave it to my grandmother, who used it until she passed in the early 2000s. 07:43.046 --> 07:48.393 [SPEAKER_00]: My final Sony television was a 32-inch Vio set that sported that weird, conclaves green. 07:49.355 --> 07:55.403 [SPEAKER_00]: That was the height of CRT television displays, and even rivaled the new flat screen displays of the time. 07:55.568 --> 07:58.593 [SPEAKER_01]: Then why didn't you continue buying Sony television sets? 07:59.295 --> 08:00.076 [SPEAKER_00]: Availability. 08:00.918 --> 08:05.205 [SPEAKER_00]: Before we purchased our LG set, Sony was at the top of our shopping list. 08:05.907 --> 08:10.575 [SPEAKER_00]: We just couldn't find the brand and stores and the sets available online didn't meet our requirements. 08:11.677 --> 08:13.941 [SPEAKER_00]: It says if Sony was true from the US market. 08:15.143 --> 08:19.872 [SPEAKER_00]: Well, TCL now has a brand name badge to help it obtain more market penetration. 08:22.737 --> 08:31.931 [SPEAKER_00]: During this past week, we witnessed the international battle royale of tech leakers, and it was all about the upcoming iPhone 18's dynamic island. 08:32.472 --> 08:33.213 [SPEAKER_00]: Wow! 08:33.894 --> 08:48.255 [SPEAKER_00]: It started when it battled Apple Leaker John Prozer, claimed that the iPhone 18 would move the front selfie camera to the upper left corner of the display, and with it the Face ID module of which the dynamic display is part of. 08:48.235 --> 08:52.643 [SPEAKER_00]: This combo Face ID Dynamic Island module would be mounted behind the screen. 08:52.703 --> 08:53.685 [SPEAKER_01]: Whoa. 08:54.145 --> 08:56.690 [SPEAKER_00]: Plus, the Dynamic Island would be smaller. 08:56.710 --> 08:57.411 [SPEAKER_00]: Huh? 08:57.832 --> 09:03.181 [SPEAKER_00]: After Prozure's revelation, Leaker, the information, was enjoying my other sources. 09:03.722 --> 09:07.729 [SPEAKER_00]: Start acclaiming that the iPhone 18 wouldn't even have a Dynamic Island at all. 09:08.452 --> 09:15.749 [SPEAKER_00]: The reasoning here was that if the module that contained the dynamic island was located behind the display, why would Apple even need to have one? 09:15.769 --> 09:17.854 [SPEAKER_00]: Oh, are you confused yet? 09:18.696 --> 09:19.879 [SPEAKER_00]: I know I am. 09:20.382 --> 09:26.595 [SPEAKER_00]: This claim was backed by Korean supply chain site ET News, which gave this claim some more credence. 09:27.396 --> 09:38.880 [SPEAKER_00]: Finally, Leeker, instant digital, declared that all this hubbub about the dynamic display was all based on a mis-translation of the original report, put out by a Korean industry paper. 09:38.995 --> 09:45.187 [SPEAKER_00]: Heck, even former display analyst Ross Young came out of retirement to back-leaker instant digital's correction. 09:45.969 --> 09:46.490 [SPEAKER_00]: Still with me? 09:46.510 --> 09:48.173 [SPEAKER_00]: I don't know. 09:48.193 --> 09:49.796 [SPEAKER_00]: So, what's the conclusion here? 09:50.678 --> 09:56.329 [SPEAKER_00]: Well, besides showing how a mistaken rumor can quickly spread and be taken as gospel, 09:56.579 --> 10:01.984 [SPEAKER_00]: The iPhone 18 will still amount the selfie camera towards the middle of the display where it now resides. 10:02.725 --> 10:07.049 [SPEAKER_00]: And there was still a dynamic island could out in the same place under the display where it is now. 10:07.810 --> 10:09.031 [SPEAKER_00]: But it will be a little smaller. 10:10.152 --> 10:11.253 [SPEAKER_00]: Man, it was hard to get through. 10:11.293 --> 10:17.199 [SPEAKER_00]: Sources use for this confusing reporting or the front page to tech YouTube channel. 10:17.759 --> 10:23.565 [SPEAKER_00]: MacRumors.com, nine to five Mac.com, and AppleInsider.com. 10:26.043 --> 10:31.049 [SPEAKER_00]: Continuing with Apple Display News, well, let's face it, it's been a slow week for Apple TechSides. 10:31.930 --> 10:34.854 [SPEAKER_00]: Remember, Chinese Display Manufacturer BOE? 10:34.874 --> 10:35.575 [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah. 10:35.995 --> 10:37.157 [SPEAKER_00]: While they're in trouble again. 10:37.217 --> 10:39.219 [SPEAKER_00]: Here's a quick refresher. 10:39.800 --> 10:46.068 [SPEAKER_00]: A couple of years ago, Apple Contracted with BOE to provide the OLED displays for the iPhone 15 lineup. 10:46.789 --> 10:54.278 [SPEAKER_00]: This all ended for BOE when Tim Cook called the CEO of BOE to the carpet, literally 10:55.017 --> 11:01.705 [SPEAKER_00]: That was because BOE was caught modifying the original design of the OLED panel to increase manufacturing yields. 11:02.726 --> 11:05.450 [SPEAKER_00]: Seems like BOE was having some problems. 11:06.251 --> 11:18.966 [SPEAKER_00]: Now fast-forwarded 2025, an old Tim decided to take another chance on BOE by giving them another shot at providing displays for the base models of the upcoming 17 and 17 pros. 11:19.655 --> 11:26.302 [SPEAKER_00]: The only caveat was that the Displaced Manufactured by BOE were to be used only for the Chinese domestic market. 11:27.344 --> 11:28.265 [SPEAKER_00]: Thank goodness for that. 11:29.226 --> 11:35.993 [SPEAKER_00]: BOE does provide a display panels for the iPhone 16E and will provide them for the upcoming iPhone 17E. 11:36.194 --> 11:44.683 [SPEAKER_00]: I bought two 16E's for my family members and the recipient's report no problems with their iPhones display. 11:45.170 --> 12:03.272 [SPEAKER_00]: an article on MacRomers.com, which quotes the ELEC, which is a pretty reliable Korean-based supply chain analyst website, and they report that BOE again is struggling with iPhone OLED production, forcing Apple to shift to Samsung to supply panels for the iPhone 17 models. 12:03.792 --> 12:07.577 [SPEAKER_01]: Well, at least consumers should be getting more reliable displays. 12:08.057 --> 12:14.485 [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I guess that could be considered the bright side. 12:14.887 --> 12:17.751 [SPEAKER_00]: BOE has some sort of relationship with Samsung. 12:18.652 --> 12:23.219 [SPEAKER_00]: That relationship is probably due to local Chinese laws for doing business in that market. 12:24.020 --> 12:29.828 [SPEAKER_00]: Samsung had accused BOE of stealing trade secrets and of infringing on its AMOLED patents. 12:30.509 --> 12:31.270 [SPEAKER_00]: Oh, imagine that. 12:31.830 --> 12:35.976 [SPEAKER_00]: Samsung took their case to the International Trade Commission and won. 12:36.978 --> 12:44.488 [SPEAKER_00]: The ITC recommended 15 years of import restrictions, but the party settled on BOE paying Samsung 12:45.143 --> 12:49.330 [SPEAKER_00]: Unfortunately, like many Chinese firms, B-O-E appears to be a bad actor. 12:50.211 --> 12:54.197 [SPEAKER_00]: I can understand Apple trying to diversify its supply chain, but what cost? 12:55.239 --> 12:59.425 [SPEAKER_00]: Not only has B-O-E cost a giant fruit company money, and we can't have that, can we? 12:59.946 --> 13:01.008 [SPEAKER_00]: No, no. 13:01.028 --> 13:01.689 [SPEAKER_00]: No. 13:01.709 --> 13:10.122 [SPEAKER_00]: But in my opinion, if they continue trying to use B-O-E, it could cost the company consumer confidence, which in the long run is even more damaging. 13:14.827 --> 13:15.910 [SPEAKER_00]: Check out I'm using. 13:15.930 --> 13:19.719 [SPEAKER_00]: I actually have a new small piece of tech to talk about this week. 13:20.662 --> 13:22.045 [SPEAKER_00]: First, the backstory. 13:22.085 --> 13:23.469 [SPEAKER_00]: Oh, here we go. 13:23.489 --> 13:32.110 [SPEAKER_00]: If you're a listener to this podcast, then you know I do a lot of my computing using my 13-inch and for iPad Pro. 13:32.647 --> 13:39.856 [SPEAKER_00]: I have the Magic Keyboard attachment also, which enables me to utilize the iPad for a task that I would normally rely on. 13:40.597 --> 13:41.818 [SPEAKER_00]: Full blown computer for. 13:42.179 --> 13:43.200 [SPEAKER_00]: But what is a computer? 13:43.681 --> 13:46.144 [SPEAKER_01]: Remember that old Apple iPad advertisement? 13:46.784 --> 13:47.425 [SPEAKER_00]: Yes, I do. 13:47.445 --> 13:48.987 [SPEAKER_00]: Don't mock at the time. 13:49.047 --> 13:50.849 [SPEAKER_00]: That I did have some merit. 13:51.790 --> 14:01.202 [SPEAKER_00]: Anyway, I'm on the go-a-jussite to purchase a new computer mouse as a backup to my Mac minis mouse, which for some reason has gotten picky about what it accepts the charge from. 14:02.077 --> 14:07.305 [SPEAKER_00]: I wound up getting a Logitech M240 Bluetooth mouth for about 12 bucks on Amazon. 14:08.426 --> 14:10.769 [SPEAKER_00]: It's powered by a single AA battery. 14:11.491 --> 14:13.934 [SPEAKER_00]: I tested out first of my iPad and it worked well. 14:14.835 --> 14:21.385 [SPEAKER_00]: The only criticism I had with it was that the mouse was a bit small from my hand, but pay was fine for a backup computer mouse. 14:22.787 --> 14:27.173 [SPEAKER_00]: For the brief time I used it with the iPad, I realized the mouse would solve problems for me. 14:28.216 --> 14:30.762 [SPEAKER_00]: I'm not a big trackpad or gesture kind of guy. 14:31.364 --> 14:36.477 [SPEAKER_00]: I had problems copying pasting or a cutting pasting using the Magic Keyboard's trackpad. 14:37.680 --> 14:40.888 [SPEAKER_00]: I have the same problems using the trackpad on my M2 MacBook Air. 14:41.931 --> 14:44.858 [SPEAKER_00]: That's why I purchased an Apple Magic Mouse for it. 14:45.361 --> 14:52.834 [SPEAKER_00]: Well, last week for some reason that I've already forgotten, I decided to dust off, said MacBook Air, to do some serious computing. 14:52.854 --> 14:55.519 [SPEAKER_00]: I think I was feeling sorry for the MacBook. 14:56.320 --> 14:58.865 [SPEAKER_00]: I hardly used the things in getting my iPad pro. 14:59.486 --> 15:10.525 [SPEAKER_00]: While attempting to cut and paste the paragraph within Apple pages using the Magic Mouse, I was re-acquainted with a frustration of doing so while using the not-so-magic mouse. 15:10.994 --> 15:17.904 [SPEAKER_00]: On a normal mouse, you would just highlight the text, right click, select Cutter or whatever from the drop-down menu, and you're done. 15:18.965 --> 15:22.650 [SPEAKER_00]: Well, not so on the Apple's version of a mouse. 15:22.670 --> 15:24.112 [SPEAKER_00]: At least from what I've experienced. 15:24.974 --> 15:33.205 [SPEAKER_00]: Instead, you have to highlight the text, go to the main app menu, click on edit, and then click on the action you wish to take on the drop-down menu. 15:33.910 --> 15:43.566 [SPEAKER_00]: Now I know there are keyboard shortcuts, trackpad and probably even magic mouse gestures, that would accomplish this, but I really don't want to take the time to memorize these things. 15:43.883 --> 15:46.568 [SPEAKER_00]: Especially with my old form, memory or lack of it. 15:47.269 --> 15:50.936 [SPEAKER_00]: It's much more intuitive to just highlight, right click, and select. 15:50.956 --> 15:53.902 [SPEAKER_00]: Then messing around with keyboard shortcuts and gestures. 15:54.343 --> 15:58.952 [SPEAKER_01]: Perhaps that's the main reason why you stopped using the MacBook in the first place. 15:59.533 --> 15:59.994 [SPEAKER_00]: Perhaps. 16:00.795 --> 16:04.963 [SPEAKER_00]: So right then and there I decided to purchase a replacement for the Magic Mouse. 16:05.298 --> 16:09.804 [SPEAKER_00]: After a bit of research, I decided on another logic-tick mouse. 16:09.824 --> 16:13.850 [SPEAKER_00]: This time, a logic MX anywhere 2S rechargeable Bluetooth mouse. 16:15.172 --> 16:18.577 [SPEAKER_00]: The MX anywhere mouse is full size, which makes it more comfortable to use. 16:19.598 --> 16:29.652 [SPEAKER_00]: It costs me 43 dollars, which is expensive, but because the model I chose charges using the now discarded USB micro-cable standard, I saved over $30. 16:30.442 --> 16:38.454 [SPEAKER_00]: the updated MX Anywhere 2S, which uses the now standard USB-C connector across 79.99, skin-flint. 16:38.895 --> 16:41.279 [SPEAKER_00]: I consider myself frugal, not cheap. 16:42.040 --> 16:46.106 [SPEAKER_00]: I have many USB microcharging cables on hand, so that was no problem for me. 16:47.368 --> 16:50.613 [SPEAKER_00]: Upon receiving the MX Anywhere, I discovered another benefit. 16:51.595 --> 16:56.803 [SPEAKER_00]: This logic took miles compared to three different devices, selectable by a button on the bottom of the mouse. 16:57.340 --> 17:04.769 [SPEAKER_00]: Now I have a computer mouse that can be used with my MacBook Air, my iPad Pro, and be used as a backup for my extra file mouse set. 17:05.270 --> 17:06.291 [SPEAKER_00]: I use for my Mac Mini. 17:07.032 --> 17:10.656 [SPEAKER_00]: Right now I'm in right-click Heaven, and I'm a happy camper. 17:11.157 --> 17:12.479 [SPEAKER_01]: Well, good for you, sport. 17:15.402 --> 17:23.432 [SPEAKER_00]: True to my word, I research the new Power Beats Fit earbuds, which replace the Beats Fit Pro's I use while exercising. 17:24.340 --> 17:29.187 [SPEAKER_00]: Last episode I talked about how these nearly five-year-old earbuds are starting to fall apart. 17:30.209 --> 17:42.888 [SPEAKER_00]: Well, after researching which entailed looking on Amazon, I discovered that the Power Beath fit, did not have the built-in heart-rate monitoring feature, and they have an old H1 chip, and of course they're overpriced. 17:43.649 --> 17:53.824 [SPEAKER_00]: This means that the noise cancellation, pairing speed, latency and connection, single-strength will not be as good as other Apple's and Beath's earbuds that are equipped with the 17:54.479 --> 17:57.566 [SPEAKER_00]: The real deal breaker was the lack of a heart rate monitoring. 17:58.648 --> 18:06.025 [SPEAKER_00]: Because I can't pair my new third generation AirPods Pro to the Peloton bike, I instead used my Apple Watch to track my heart rate. 18:06.713 --> 18:17.225 [SPEAKER_00]: While using kettlebells, I used my AirPods to track my heart rate, but the real kicker was the price of the PowerBeat Fit, which is $200, still cheaper than AirPods, though. 18:17.766 --> 18:21.550 [SPEAKER_00]: Yes, but I paid $219 for the AirPods Pro. 18:22.311 --> 18:26.396 [SPEAKER_00]: That's a mere $20 more for a more feature pack, better quality pair of earbuds. 18:27.757 --> 18:32.923 [SPEAKER_00]: Right now AirPods Pro are $240 on Amazon, but they do go on sale often. 18:33.663 --> 18:35.546 [SPEAKER_00]: Just two weeks ago they were on sale for $200. 18:36.688 --> 18:39.472 [SPEAKER_00]: The same price as the inferior power beats fit. 18:39.913 --> 18:40.854 [SPEAKER_00]: You know what they say. 18:40.914 --> 18:43.378 [SPEAKER_00]: You pay for convenience. 18:43.398 --> 18:49.527 [SPEAKER_00]: That may be true, but because of the lack of heart rate monitoring, I'm better off just sticking with my old beat fit pros. 18:50.489 --> 18:59.923 [SPEAKER_00]: That wouldn't be gaining anything with their expensive replacements. 19:00.308 --> 19:03.892 [SPEAKER_00]: You know, if you don't lose that attitude, I'll delete your voice from my software. 19:04.672 --> 19:06.134 [SPEAKER_00]: You can be easily replaced. 19:06.614 --> 19:07.375 [SPEAKER_00]: Gotcha boss. 19:07.796 --> 19:12.000 [SPEAKER_00]: The problem I had is reoccurring, which I think is linked to it and other problem I had. 19:12.020 --> 19:16.905 [SPEAKER_00]: This concerns my Macmini more specifically, software on my Macmini. 19:17.866 --> 19:29.978 [SPEAKER_00]: Starting back in October, running after I started using my road duo, I noticed a stuttering while using the app's pages and hidden burg. 19:30.430 --> 19:35.597 [SPEAKER_00]: I eventually pinned this problem on the road duo's accompanying software and banished it from my computer. 19:36.799 --> 19:39.122 [SPEAKER_00]: Since doing that, I hadn't had any problems. 19:40.083 --> 19:47.954 [SPEAKER_00]: Well, while typing a manuscript of last week on pages, I went to save the documents, but instead of saving, I got the spinning beach bowl of death. 19:49.156 --> 19:51.299 [SPEAKER_00]: Again, I noticed my Mac mini starting to get hot. 19:52.160 --> 19:57.147 [SPEAKER_00]: I had a four-squid pages and in doing so, lost a majority of the work I had just done. 19:57.751 --> 19:59.353 [SPEAKER_00]: that I remember that this has happened before. 19:59.413 --> 20:03.239 [SPEAKER_00]: Not too often, but when it previously did, it was complete disaster. 20:03.299 --> 20:09.128 [SPEAKER_00]: Now imagine typing a 4,000 word document, only defined it was often not. 20:10.190 --> 20:14.917 [SPEAKER_00]: I don't know if this has all related to the stuttering episode for sure, but I suspect it is. 20:14.977 --> 20:20.545 [SPEAKER_01]: In regards to that page's document, couldn't you have just recovered it from eye cloud? 20:21.086 --> 20:22.408 [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I tried that. 20:22.675 --> 20:28.621 [SPEAKER_00]: Not only was Pages not letting me physically save the document, but it wasn't automatically saving my work to eye cloud. 20:29.502 --> 20:34.728 [SPEAKER_00]: Now I have to find out if it's actually a software issue or even worse, a hardware issue. 20:35.949 --> 20:42.316 [SPEAKER_00]: Retroubleshooting purposes, I'll switch my word processor to IA writer, perhaps use Pages through iCloud.com. 20:43.037 --> 20:52.547 [SPEAKER_00]: At least while I'm using the Mac Mini, I've had no issues with Pages on my iPhone, iPad, or MacBook Air. 20:57.455 --> 20:58.516 [SPEAKER_00]: entertainment news. 20:59.357 --> 21:00.018 [SPEAKER_00]: It's official. 21:00.078 --> 21:09.269 [SPEAKER_00]: Warner Bros. has accepted Entertainment Streaming Pioneer Netflix amended a 72 billion dollar cash offer for its production studios in streaming services. 21:09.670 --> 21:17.919 [SPEAKER_01]: But if I'm recalling this correctly, didn't Paramount offer more cash for these properties, why would Warner Bros. accept a lower offer? 21:18.500 --> 21:21.724 [SPEAKER_00]: Paramount's bid was for the entirety of Warner Bros. 21:22.058 --> 21:28.504 [SPEAKER_00]: Besides the studio and streaming services, WB owns a host of cable television channels amongst other properties. 21:29.545 --> 21:38.833 [SPEAKER_00]: Many internet commentators have been pointing out the fact that a lot of Netflix-produced content has been agenda-driven, at a point of being akin to propaganda. 21:39.754 --> 21:45.279 [SPEAKER_00]: I'd argue that most of the entertainment production has taken a very hard left turn over to last decade or so. 21:46.340 --> 21:50.243 [SPEAKER_00]: But that being so, everyone's in a while, something good still comes along. 21:50.881 --> 21:54.125 [SPEAKER_00]: But the financial bottom line will be what decides things in the end. 21:55.006 --> 21:59.531 [SPEAKER_00]: Eventually, the giant ship that's anti-entertainment industry will course correct. 22:00.112 --> 22:04.777 [SPEAKER_00]: What we're seeing now is hopefully the last gasp of the overt agenda-driven storylines. 22:06.139 --> 22:08.882 [SPEAKER_00]: Star Trek Starfleet Academy being an example of this. 22:10.224 --> 22:15.690 [SPEAKER_00]: However, until the writing rooms get sorted out, movies and television series will continue to suffer. 22:16.396 --> 22:24.050 [SPEAKER_00]: Another thing that the industry has come to grips with is the fact that the public has stopped using movie theaters as the main way of consuming entertainment. 22:25.292 --> 22:27.336 [SPEAKER_00]: A trip to the cinema has gotten too expensive. 22:27.837 --> 22:32.265 [SPEAKER_00]: At the same time, Homemade Detainment Equipment has become much more advanced and cheaper to acquire. 22:33.246 --> 22:40.800 [SPEAKER_00]: For example, the recent movie 28 days later, the Bone Temple received great reviews from both film critics and viewers. 22:40.949 --> 22:43.732 [SPEAKER_00]: Yet the movie has financially flopped in movie theaters. 22:44.634 --> 22:48.198 [SPEAKER_00]: I feel like most people are like us and the old far-house hold. 22:48.839 --> 22:50.961 [SPEAKER_00]: We'll just wait until a movie is released for streaming. 22:51.802 --> 22:53.364 [SPEAKER_00]: If it's a must-see, then we'll rant it. 22:54.105 --> 22:57.670 [SPEAKER_00]: If not, we'll just wait until it hits a some kind of streaming platform. 22:58.791 --> 23:08.543 [SPEAKER_00]: I believe in a near future, the film industry where we release movies to both theaters and streaming concurrently. 23:09.130 --> 23:16.359 [SPEAKER_00]: But Netflix gets with this deal is its very own production studios, and more importantly, probably, as the connections within the industry. 23:17.380 --> 23:23.869 [SPEAKER_00]: They also get the large content catalogue of HBO, which Netflix can use immediately when the deal is finalized. 23:25.110 --> 23:28.154 [SPEAKER_00]: The New York Post.com claims that this will occur by April. 23:28.955 --> 23:38.327 [SPEAKER_00]: Once that's completed, government regulatory reviews need to be done, but the current administration is business-oriented, so that step should go through quite quickly. 23:39.050 --> 23:44.259 [SPEAKER_00]: Netflix is already the king of streaming services, and this acquisition will cement its leadership. 23:45.381 --> 23:47.725 [SPEAKER_00]: I was rooting for Netflix and look forward to its future. 23:47.745 --> 23:53.855 [SPEAKER_00]: It's not that I use Netflix a lot these days, but it will be nice having a bunch of content in one place. 23:54.255 --> 23:59.404 [SPEAKER_01]: But you and others will be paying for this consolidation via subscription price increases. 24:00.245 --> 24:04.753 [SPEAKER_00]: Yes, we all will, but it won't have to be paying for a separate HBO subscription. 24:05.425 --> 24:09.930 [SPEAKER_00]: Oh, I just remind of myself that my streaming subscription line up is due for a good pruning. 24:10.210 --> 24:15.556 [SPEAKER_00]: Podcast News. 24:16.237 --> 24:18.679 [SPEAKER_00]: I like to give credit where credit is deserved. 24:19.661 --> 24:23.345 [SPEAKER_00]: In the world of podcasting production, that credit has to be given a road. 24:24.246 --> 24:29.591 [SPEAKER_00]: Before the podcasting explosion, most have not all of the gear used to record and produce podcasts. 24:30.653 --> 24:34.757 [SPEAKER_00]: Let's from companies which had earned their pedigree within the music industry. 24:35.918 --> 24:39.182 [SPEAKER_00]: For podcasters, this equipment was both expensive and overkill. 24:40.363 --> 24:50.134 [SPEAKER_00]: Road singlehandedly has changed that dependence on hand-me-down music gear by designing and manufacturing equipment tailored to podcasters and at a reasonable price. 24:51.255 --> 25:00.205 [SPEAKER_00]: As an added bonus, Road makes all its products in Australia, the company's home country, instead of farming it out to China like most Western countries do. 25:01.180 --> 25:06.507 [SPEAKER_00]: To meet his proves that high-grade audio equipment can still be made in the west and brought to market at a fair price. 25:07.929 --> 25:10.953 [SPEAKER_00]: My first piece of equipment from road was the ProCaster Mike. 25:12.055 --> 25:13.797 [SPEAKER_00]: I have to price of other high-end mics. 25:14.278 --> 25:20.006 [SPEAKER_00]: You got a professional soundy microphone, which also had the benefit of being built like a proverbial tank. 25:21.207 --> 25:26.074 [SPEAKER_00]: I'll ask my voice didn't mesh well with the ProCaster, so I had to stop using it. 25:26.240 --> 25:27.662 [SPEAKER_00]: That's no fault of road, though. 25:27.682 --> 25:35.613 [SPEAKER_00]: The company's NT-1 condenser microphone became the secret sauce of many European-based voice-over artists. 25:35.633 --> 25:42.602 [SPEAKER_00]: While the US-based counterparts plop down insane amount of money on Neumann Mike's, well, it's only achieved basically the same results. 25:43.744 --> 25:51.775 [SPEAKER_00]: I've since purchased a roadcaster duo, and after a rough start, I have finally gone 25:52.649 --> 25:56.954 [SPEAKER_00]: The first time since a doing the OF&T podcast, I've gotten compliments on my audio. 25:57.835 --> 26:04.882 [SPEAKER_00]: First from my daughter Jessica, and then from a listener, well, I'm unsure if they want their name repeated here, so I'll just mention the country they were based in. 26:05.242 --> 26:05.663 [SPEAKER_00]: Germany. 26:06.824 --> 26:21.660 [SPEAKER_00]: The one fault with road is their sparse documentation, and finding an answer on their website isn't very fun to say to least, lately I've gotten hold of a road pod mic. 26:22.282 --> 26:29.071 [SPEAKER_00]: Well, not the best sounding mic I've heard or used, for it's under a $100 price tag, it really can't be beat. 26:30.132 --> 26:40.846 [SPEAKER_00]: The pot mic was developed for the podcast market, and rode tuned it for what's considered to be these days, the modern sound, which is less bass with boosted mid and high end frequencies. 26:41.787 --> 26:45.252 [SPEAKER_00]: Not to my taste, but I guess I'm apparently in the minority. 26:45.822 --> 26:49.327 [SPEAKER_00]: I've seen radio stations using the pod mic for remote broadcasts. 26:50.008 --> 26:52.211 [SPEAKER_00]: Now I'll be using mine for when I'm traveling. 26:52.251 --> 26:54.033 [SPEAKER_00]: Since when do you travel? 26:54.093 --> 26:56.817 [SPEAKER_00]: I'm planning to start someday. 26:56.857 --> 27:03.345 [SPEAKER_00]: Road has also started expanding into the video realm with a flurry of products over the last couple of years. 27:04.187 --> 27:12.758 [SPEAKER_00]: To sum it all up, Road is the podcast company, and soon it will be the video production equipment company, at least for independent creators. 27:13.210 --> 27:20.763 [SPEAKER_00]: I'd even go as far as saying that road is responsible for the explosion of podcasting that we've seen, especially outside of the United States. 27:27.233 --> 27:32.061 [SPEAKER_00]: The music is playing on yet another freezing cold evening here amongst the mountains of Tennessee. 27:32.102 --> 27:34.926 [SPEAKER_00]: This weather is unusual for the area. 27:35.708 --> 27:37.210 [SPEAKER_00]: I may change indeed. 27:37.865 --> 27:43.474 [SPEAKER_00]: While the temperature might not be rising, I know what certainty that my energy bill will be. 27:44.035 --> 27:46.979 [SPEAKER_00]: Big time, I hope you enjoyed this episode. 27:47.540 --> 27:48.702 [SPEAKER_00]: I enjoyed making it for you. 27:49.163 --> 27:52.448 [SPEAKER_00]: If you like what you heard, you can make a donation using the link in the show notes. 27:53.550 --> 27:55.533 [SPEAKER_00]: And the old donations will be appreciated. 27:57.516 --> 28:01.923 [SPEAKER_00]: You can always reach me at OFNT Podcast at Gmail.com if you're so inclined. 28:03.365 --> 28:04.767 [SPEAKER_00]: I'd enjoy hearing from you. 28:05.810 --> 28:08.213 [SPEAKER_00]: Remember, don't listen to what they say. 28:09.054 --> 28:10.116 [SPEAKER_00]: Watch what they do. 28:11.958 --> 28:14.101 [SPEAKER_00]: I know you're probably frozen solid by now. 28:15.062 --> 28:18.006 [SPEAKER_00]: So, break yourself free and get off my lawn. 28:19.208 --> 28:20.169 [SPEAKER_00]: Stay skeptical. 28:22.172 --> 28:22.632 [SPEAKER_00]: Ah, I'm out. 28:22.672 --> 28:23.814 [SPEAKER_00]: See ya! 28:25.916 --> 28:27.859 [SPEAKER_01]: And that folks is the end of the show. 28:29.621 --> 28:30.923 [SPEAKER_01]: Not fair, you'll be too late.