FEATURE
improvements in iOS 14, especially the
thoughtful Widgets and App Library.
And I’m doubly-impressed by Apple’s
moves to improve privacy and security,
whether it’s ‘privacy nutrition labels’
in the App Store or lights that show
when your microphone or camera is
being accessed. On the other hand,
iPadOS 14 still doesn’t go far enough
to differentiate itself from iPhone, and
Apple still doesn’t have a clean and
cohesive multitasking story on iPad.
While macOS Big Sur seems like
a mostly cosmetic update, a ton of
impressive work went on under the
hood to enable the new Apple Silicon
macs, and the fact that it’s all going
so smoothly is an amazing testament
to those engineers.Nothing really wowed me about
updates to Apple’s own apps.
Improvements to the Maps app, for
example, don’t seem especially useful.
Rather, Apple’s suite of apps saw minor,
predictable, but welcome changes all
around. Grade: BRoman Loyola: There was an update to
Apple Clips, people. Grade: BOTHER
New products: MagSafe accessories,
virtual events, and other stuffMichael Simon: While the MagSafe
tech inside the iPhone 12 is certainly
interesting, the accessories to go along
with it, particularly the MagSafe Duo
Charger, leave much
to be desired. But
I loved learning
about it. Apple’s
four events in 2020
were virtual, but
they were better
than ever, with
slick production,
engaging content,
and no applause
breaks. Here’s to
more of those even
when we can gather
again. Grade: BWe love the improvements in iOS 14, especially the thoughtful
Widgets and App Library.