Summer 2020

Regular Departments Great Gear

4 Editor's Message
6 Stuff the iPhone Life Team Is
Loving
8 What Our Team Is Downloading
10 Trending
80 iView: Cutting the Cord with
Amazon Recast 52 Guard Your Fortress
How to keep your smart
iNews home secure. 68 CES 2020
We review all the gadgets
12 Tim Cook vs. Steve Jobs Best Apps & gear we loved at this
year’s showcase.
Which Apple CEO is
building a stronger legacy? 56 Manage Your Startup 72 iPad On the Go

In the business world, let Learn about the best bags

your iPhone do the heavy to protect your iPad in
lifting. every price range.

60 Great Grilling 74 Eco Living

Get the recipes & tunes These luxury items are

you need for the perfect made from sustainably
summer BBQ. sourced materials.

16 WWDC Goes Digital

Rumored iOS 14 & iPadOS
14 releases at Apple’s first
online-only developers
conference. 76 Gear Up Your Apple Watch
20 Apple’s Privacy Policies Want more from the Apple
How Apple keeps your Watch? Check out these
secrets safe from prying smart products.
62 Deaf or Hard of Hearing?
eyes.
How to turn your iPhone iUsers
Life & Tech into a pocket-sized
interpreter.
59 Matt Wyatt
64 House Hunters
48 DIY Podcasting 71 Luca Sforza
Finding your dream home
How to start your own doesn’t have to be stressful.
podcast. 78 Nathan Sykes

Lililia/shutterstock
Marina Linchevska/shutterstock

2 i P ho ne L i f e Sum m e r 2 0 2 0
 the
A TALE O F
How-To T WO AP P LES
Guide
The Manual Apple
Should Have Made

Master 100+ of the best features

of your iPhone, iPad, Apple
Watch & AirPods with our
comprehensive guide.

29 The How-To Guide

30 iPhone
34 iPad
38 Apple Watch
42 Photography
44 Battery
46 AirPods

PRIVACY IN
THE PUBLIC AGE

20
PAGE
 Editor's Message
Closing the Distance

I
’m sitting in my home office as I write this, munching on some brownies my mom left on my doorstep and taking breaks
to wipe my phone down with a Clorox wipe. If I need to reach anyone at the office, I’ll jump on a video call via Zoom and
raise my coffee cup to the screen to virtually cheers a coworker. We like to at least simulate a normal human interaction. The
iPhone Life team has been working this way for weeks, camping out at home in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19.
While putting together this issue, we watched as the coronavirus pandemic created ripple effects in all our lives, leaving people
across the globe anxious and unsure of what the rest of the year holds.

An Uncertain Year for Apple

Apple has been taking safety measures, temporarily closing stores, sending its developers home to work remotely, and donating
10 million masks to healthcare workers in the US. The tech giant announced it will hold its annual Worldwide Developers Confer-
ence online in June (page 16), trading crowded halls of developers for virtual sessions for the first time in WWDC’s 31-year histo-
ry. For those of us who usually watch the keynote online, that won’t change the experience much though. We’ll still see Tim Cook
and his team of Apple executives unveil new software features for the iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. I wonder if he’ll
keep his usual polished look or broadcast in his pajamas with unbrushed hair like the rest of us working from home.

I’m particularly interested in what features Apple has planned for iPadOS. After creating a dedicated operating system for the
iPad last June and improving its mouse support this spring, I’m curious what new desktop capabilities it’ll add to the tablet’s
arsenal with iPadOS 14. For years, Apple has been predictable—it releases software in June and iPhones in September. This fall,
Apple is expected to launch the much anticipated 5G iPhone, but rumor has it that Apple may be delaying the release by a couple
of months to ensure demand is high amid struggling global economies. That would be the first time in nearly a decade that Apple
broke with tradition. These are unprecedented times.

Staying Connected & Safe

This issue, our editorial team has compiled some of our best tips for the iPhone, iPad, AirPods, and
Apple Watch that can help you stay connected while you’re practicing social distancing at home. The
iPhone section (page 30) features tips like how to make FaceTime calls, or if you’re working from
home, our iPad section (page 34) is jam-packed with tips like how to multitask with Safari Split View
and access an external hard drive from your iPad Pro.

Aside from staying home, scrubbing down your hands and your iPhone regularly is one of the most
effective ways to slow the spread of the coronavirus. I’ve never spent so much time washing my Scan this QR Code
hands, thinking about washing my hands, and writing about washing my hands! But here I am! At with your iPhone
iPhone Life, we’ve written a complete guide to sanitizing your iPhone, from using Clorox wipes to camera to read our
bathing your devices in virus-killing ultraviolet light. guide to sanitizing
your Apple devices.
I hope this issue helps you stay safe and connected during this challenging time. Thank you for your
continued support of iPhone Life and for being a valued member of our community. Be well!

Donna Cleveland
Editor in Chief
iPhone Life magazine, donna@iphonelife.com

4 i P ho ne Li f e Su m m e r 2 0 20
Around the Office

STUFF THE IPHONE LIFE

TEAM IS LOVING
iPhone Life’s editorial department is independent of our
advertising department. If we include products from former
or current sponsors in editorial articles, it’s because we
really like the products!

Rheanne Taylor,
Senior Video
Producer
Bliss Gardens Terrarium
Kit ($23)
I’m completely obsessed
with making terrariums—
it’s so much fun (and
surprisingly relaxing)! I
bought myself this terrarium kit off of Amazon a
few months back, and now everyone I know is
getting terrariums for their birthday. It’s out of
control.

Leanne Hays,
SEO Content
Strategist
Baker Creek 2020 Whole
Nicholas Naioti,
Seed Catalogue ($10) Ad Specialist & Video Editor
Love gardening and want Audio-Technica LP60XBT ($150)
to branch out from the I just purchased this record player, which pairs to a
same old flowers, herbs, Bluetooth speaker. I’m a big vinyl collector, and this
and veggies you plant every year? You need to check makes my setup super portable. This turntable has
out this gorgeous catalog! You’ll find hundreds of a pleasing aesthetic, hi-fi sound, and user-friendly
pages full of rare, heirloom seeds sourced from design.
around the world; you won’t find them anywhere
else!

6 i P ho ne Li f e Su m m e r 2 0 20
 Cullen Thomas, iPhone Life Sponsors
Writer &
Producer
Agent Zigzag by Ben
Macintyre ($17)
I’m loving true spy
stories—histories,
autobiographies, and
memoirs about real-life spies. I’ll single out
Agent Zigzag by Ben MacIntyre. It’s the bizarre
and amazing adventures of Eddie Chapman,
surely World War II’s most successful, crooked,
ne’er-do-well, absolutely-no-good, super-spy.

Donna Cleveland,
Editor in Chief
Hydro Flask 32 OZ
Water Bottle ($45)
This stainless-steel,
BPA-free water bottle
is helping me hit two of
my goals for 2020: drink
more water and use less plastic. I chose Hydro
Flask’s wide mouth option for easy cleaning and
the 32-ounce size so I can fill it just twice a day
and hit my recommended hydration levels. Best
of all, my flask keeps beverages at a consistent
temperature for hours, whether I want a cozy tea
at work or ice-cold Gatorade for hot yoga.

Tamlin Day,
Feature Writer
Get an iPhone tip
Matias Programmable Ergo Pro ($220)
I already loved my old Ergo Pro; it was easy on every day.
the wrist and joints and the mechanical keys
felt nice for typing long articles. Now, with the
newest model, the ergonomic keyboard is pro-
iPhoneLife.com/DailyTips
grammable. I’ve assigned quite a few phrases
to the micro keys, and it’s saved me a lot of time while writing emails!

i Phon e L i fe S umm er 202 0 7

 WHAT OUR TEAM IS
DOWNLOADING
PODCASTS, BOOKS & MUSIC TO TRY THIS SUMMER
Winter’s Bone
(Movie available on Amazon, You-
Tube, & iTunes)
A 17-year-old girl named Ree
cares for her siblings and disabled
mother in an impoverished town.
When her father jumps bond, Ree
must find him before their land is
seized. This gritty, realistic look at
rural America is set to a haunting
soundtrack.
-Leanne Hays, SEO Content
Strategist
Science Vs
(Podcast available on your podcast
player of choice)
Find out what science has to
say about hot topics ranging from
heartbreak to organic food. Wendy
Zukerman will keep you entertained
as she sorts fact from fiction with a
sense of irreverent fun and an Aus-
tralian accent to boot.
-Donna Cleveland, Editor in Chief
Risky Business
(Podcast available on your podcast
player of choice)
This well-regarded podcast is a
one-hour digest of computer
security news, interviews, and
issues for professionals. I’m not
a computer security pro, but I still
find the conversation interesting—
hacks, exploits, and privacy issues
affect us all.
-Cullen Thomas, Writer &
Producer
The Very Best of Andrés Segovia
(Available on Amazon & Apple Mu-
sic)
I’ve been on a classical guitar
kick, and Segovia is the master. His
performances are deeply expressive
and thoughtful and encompass a
wide range of moods. It’s perfect
work music.
-Nicholas Naioti, Ad Specialist &
Video Editor
My Favorite Murder
(Podcast available on your podcast
player of choice)
In this true crime podcast, hosts
Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hard-
stark share their favorite tales of
murder, as well as stories of home-
town crimes from listeners. Equal
parts fascinating and disturbing, it’s
great for staying awake on long car
trips!
-Rheanne Taylor, SeniorsVideo
Producer
Locke & Key
(Audiobook available on Audible)
This full-cast production is a
horror-driven family drama based on
a graphic novel of the same name.
When their father is murdered on
summer break, the Locke children
move with their mother to their
mysterious family home called Key-
house.
-Tamlin Day, Feature Writer
topform/shutterstock
 #
ASK AN EDITOR
TRENDING Our iPhone Life editors answer subscribers’ iPhone-
and iPad-related questions.

I like using Dark Mode on my iPhone, except in

Safari. Some sites don’t read well. Is there a way to
enable Dark Mode for everything but Safari?

Sincerely,
Browsing in the Dark

Dear Browsing,
You can’t customize which Apple apps are in Dark
Mode, but you can make it easy to quickly turn Dark
Mode off and on again by adding it to your Control
Center. Go to Settings > Control Center > Custom-
ize Controls and tap the green plus icon next to Dark
Mode. Now you’ll be able to open Control Center and
turn Dark Mode off and on again whenever you want
to browse the web. You can also ask Siri to turn Dark
Mode off and then on again, which will be even faster.

On my Apple Watch, can I stop the messages telling

me to breathe and check my activity rings?

Sincerely,
Notified

Dear Notified,
You sure can! On your iPhone, open the Watch app,
make sure you are in the My Watch tab, and tap Notifi-
cations. First tap Activity and select Notifications Off. If
you still want some notifications, you can turn off Daily
#IPHONEOGRAPHY Coaching instead. You can also toggle Stand Reminders
off while you’re there. Return to Notifications and tap
Breathe and tap Notifications Off there too. You should
Follow @amsyarnaaif on Instagram for more iPhone no longer receive notifications for either of these
11 Pro photography. features.

UNIQUE PRODUCT
The Dot Watch ($299)
Created by and for the blind community, this watch has a raised face, allowing users
to read time by touch. You can connect the watch to your smartphone so that your
texts come through as braille, as well as calendar notifications and weather alerts. If
you’re an early adopter, you’ll want to check this out; it’s the first braille smartwatch
on the market!

10 iPh on e L if e Su m m er 2 02 0
Our iOS 14 Wish List
The Ability to Tag People in Photos
Sometimes I take a photo of a person, and my
phone doesn’t recognize their face and add them
to the People album. This lack of sorting makes the
image harder to find later. Also, could Apple please
count each of my cats as individuals with their own
albums?
-Rheanne Taylor, Senior Video Producer
Stop Auto-Playing Apple Music in the Car
When I get in the car or stop or pause another audio
source, Apple Music is lurking in the background
ready to blast music at twice the volume of other
audio sources. I just need a Do Not Auto-Play Audio
option in my Apple Music settings.
-Noah Siemsen, COO
Mark Messages as Unread
In Apple’s Mail app, you can swipe left to mark a
message as unread. The blue dot by the preview
reminds you to revisit the message later. I often
forget to respond to text messages, and bringing
this capability to the Messages app would be a
huge help! Sometimes it’s the little things that
make the biggest difference.
-Donna Cleveland, Editor in Chief
Ability to Play Music on my iPhone While Using
the Camera App
I’d like to be able to play a song on my phone while
filming a video—but the music fades out when I
open the camera! While I’m sure Apple restricted
this to avoid copyright infringement, I’d only be
sharing my recordings with friends and family. I’d
use it to film my kids dancing to music, capture out-
door videos of my garden or pets, or record family
cooking challenges with a soundtrack to add extra
drama!
-Leanne Hays, SEO Content Strategist
Stop Auto-Connecting Calls to Bluetooth Car
System
Every time I make or receive a call in my car, the
audio is automatically routed through my car’s audio
system. I have to quickly switch back manually ev-
ery time. I’ve checked everywhere, and the only fix
is to have it always route through the speakerphone,
or to disable Bluetooth when making calls and then
re-pair it afterward.
-Nicholas Naioti, Ad Specialist & Video Editor
PUBLISHER AND CEO CONTRIBUTORS
David Averbach • david@iphonelife.com
David Averbach (page 52)
CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER
Raphael Burnes • raphael@iphonelife.com
Todd Bernhard (pages 12, 46)
Kenneth Boshell (pages 56, 64)
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
Noah Siemsen • noah@iphonelife.com Tamlin Day (pages 29, 30, 38, 44)
Jared Dicks (page 48)
EDITOR IN CHIEF
Donna Schill Cleveland • donna@iphonelife.com Hal Goldstein (page 80)
FOUNDER & COLUMNIST Hallei Halter (page 60)
Hal Goldstein • hal@iphonelife.com Sarah Kingsbury (page 68)
SENIOR WEB EDITOR Nicholas Naioti (page 34)
Sarah Kingsbury • sarah@iphonelife.com
Hannah Nichols (page 74)
SENIOR VIDEO PRODUCER
Rheanne Taylor • rheanne@iphonelife.com Mike Riley (pages 16, 72, 76)
ART DIRECTOR Rheanne Taylor (page 42)
Jaime Thatcher • jaime@iphonelife.com Cullen Thomas (page 20)
SEO CONTENT STRATEGIST Logan Waldo (page 62)
Leanne Hays • leanne@iphonelife.com
FEATURE WRITER
Tamlin Day • tamlin@iphonelife.com
WRITER & PRODUCER
Cullen Thomas • cullen@iphonelife.com
AD SPECIALIST & VIDEO EDITOR
Nicholas Naioti • nicholas@iphonelife.com
CUSTOMER SERVICE & SUBSCRIPTIONS
For address changes or subscription questions, email help@iphonelife.com, or call 630-474-6631.
CONTRIBUTE
To write for iPhone Life magazine or iphonelife.com, visit iphonelife.com/share.
ADVERTISE
To advertise in iPhone Life, call 641-472-9962, fax 641-472-1879, or visit iphonelife.com/advertise.
PUBLICIZE YOUR PRODUCT
Send press releases and submit products for review at iphonelife.com/getpublicity.
PRINTER
Quad Graphics, 1700 James Savage Rd., Midland, MI 48640 USA 800-448-4288
NEWSSTAND DISTRIBUTION
Curtis Circulation Company, 760 River Rd., New Milford, NJ 07646 USA 201-634-7400
NEWSSTAND COORDINATOR
National Publisher Services 732-548-1867
iPhone Life (ISSN 1949-2014) is published quarterly, four times a year, spring, summer, fall, winter by Mango Life Media
at 402 North B St. #108, Fairfield, IA 52556, USA. Periodicals postage paid at Fairfield, Iowa, and at additional mailing
offices. Subscription rates payable in U.S. dollars, checks drawn on a U.S. bank, or by credit card—one year: $15.97,
two years: $24.97. Postage: United States free; Canada and Mexico add $7 per year; outside North America, add $18 per
year. Please allow ten to twelve weeks for receipt of first issue. Executive, Editorial, Circulation, Advertising, Marketing
Offices: 402 North B St. #108, Fairfield, IA 52556. Telephone: 641-472-6330, Fax: 641-472-1879.
© Copyright 2020 , Mango Life Media LLC, all rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without
written permission. Reasonable efforts are made to provide accurate and useful information, but the reader must
make his or her own investigations and decisions; the publisher and editorial staff cannot assume any responsibility
or liability for the use of information contained herein.
POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to Cynthia Klaas, Client Relationship Manager, Hallmark Data Systems
7300 Linder Skokie, IL 60077.
Cover images courtesy of:
Apple Inc.
i P hone L ife Su mmer 202 0 11
 A TALE OF
T WO A P PLES
IS TIM COOK BUILDING ON THE LEGACY
OF S T EV E J O B S O R CR E AT IN G HI S OWN ?
BY TODD B ER NH AR D
Steve Jobs had a singular vision for
his company, his computer, and even
his customers. His leadership led
Apple to become the company it is
today, and his successor, Tim Cook,
has leveraged his supply chain
expertise to usher in an even more
profitable and successful Apple. Each
was a CEO for his time. Cook would
be the first to tell you he stood on the
shoulders of a giant.
y first encounter with
M
any computer was in
1980 in a high school
study hall. A strange
glow emanated
through the windows
of a closed-off room. I opened the door
and discovered a Bell & Howell Apple II
computer running a game called Lem-
onade Stand. I was hooked. I quickly
became a computer programming
student and got a job at a local com-
puter store, where I remember playing
with the new Macintosh computers at
the time. When I graduated in 1984, I
learned that certain universities had a
special deal on this new Mac. Report-
ers had asked Apple cofounder Steve
Jobs how regular folks could get that
special deal. His one-word response?
“Enroll.”
Enroll I did, and I studied electrical
and computer engineering at Carnegie
Mellon University. During my time at
CMU, Apple made the foolish move of
kicking Steve Jobs out of the very firm
he had co-founded with Steve Wozniak.
This turned out to be a blessing, as
Jobs created NeXT (and Pixar) during
that time. Jobs visited CMU as he
was using the school’s Mach operating
system as the kernel of his new NeXT
computer. I was one of a few folks who
got to see him speak that day. I re-
member him tossing his aviator leather
jacket on a chair, and it fell to the floor.
An assistant started to pick it up and
he just said, “Leave it.” He had more
important things to do!
Without Jobs, Apple was soon on the
brink of bankruptcy. The company had
developed too many products and its
marketing was uninspiring. Apple had
been pilloried for the less-than-perfect
handwriting recognition of its portable
digital assistant the Newton (although
I loved mine). Competitor Michael Dell
suggested Apple shut down, sell off
everything, and hand the proceeds over
to investors. Instead, Apple reached out
to Steve Jobs and acquired NeXT, bring-
ing Jobs back into the fold.
Jobs took over as CEO. Because
of Apple’s tough financial position,
he swallowed his pride and turned to
Microsoft for help, despite his historic
rivalry with Bill Gates. In 1997, Gates
appeared on the big screen at the
MacWorld conference to announce a
$150 million investment in Apple and
to promise to make Microsoft Office
available on the Mac. This lifeline gave
Apple the breathing room (and funding)
it needed and allowed Microsoft to
position itself as something other than
an evil monopolist. Although they were
competitors, Gates always admired
Jobs’ eye for design.
Jobs still had to deal with a messy
product line. He discontinued the Apple
Newton and Macintosh clone program,
which licensed its operating system
to manufacturers like Motorola. He
recognized that there was a distinct
advantage in exclusively owning the
hardware and the software and felt that
clones diminished the Apple experi-
ence. Apple was for “the crazy ones,”
as described in the Think Different ad
campaign he launched. Compared to
PCs, Macs became a predictable, reli-
able, integrated platform “for the rest
of us.” Jobs simplified the product line,
establishing laptop and desktop form
factors, with a Pro model of each item.
This made it much easier to make a
purchasing decision, as you just had to
decide if you needed a portable or sta-
tionary device and whether you needed
the high-performing, highly expandable
version or not.
But Jobs didn’t throw away every-
thing he saw at Apple. He recognized
the talent of Jony Ive, who was toiling
away as a designer. Jobs gave him free-
dom and control, which led to many of
Apple’s later successes.
“JOBS GOT
AWAY WITH A
LOT BECAUSE
OF HIS CULT OF
PERSONALITY.”
Jobs even practiced simplification
in his personal life. He was known to
wear the same outfit—a black mock
turtleneck, blue jeans, and white New
Balance sneakers. He always drove the
same style of silver Mercedes in order
to avoid having to formally get a license
plate. (He was also known to park in
the handicap spot, and I wouldn’t rec-
ommend his management style to any-
one.) Jobs got away with a lot because
of his cult of personality. He was cer-
tainly a genius. It’s no wonder his death
spawned not one but two biographical
movies.
Starting in 2004 and later in 2009,
iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 13
Jobs handpicked Tim Cook, who was the
chief operations officer at the time, to
run the business on an interim basis as
Jobs’ health was fading. Cook officially
became CEO in 2011 just before Jobs
passed. Cook was such a loyal soldier,
he is reported to have offered to be a
liver donor for Jobs, but Jobs refused.
As COO, Cook had already proven
his worth as a master of supply chain at
Apple, and he never tried to be the new
Steve Jobs. His calm demeanor meant
he didn’t berate employees, but he still
expected a high level of commitment
and expertise. One story recalled how,
in a meeting, an executive determined
that a trip to China was required. Cook
looked up at him and asked why he
wasn’t on a plane already.
Under Cook, Apple has achieved un-
heard of levels of success and has posi-
tioned the firm for revenue opportunities
that aren’t directly tied to computer and
phone upgrade cycles.
“COOK HAS
BET HEAVILY
ON PRIVACY,
TREATING IT AS
A COMPETITIVE
ADVANTAGE,
MUCH TO THE
CHAGRIN OF
THE FBI.”
Thanks to Jobs’ pivot away from
purely selling computers, Cook’s Apple
has expanded to lifestyle accessories,
thanks to the purchase of Beats in 2014
for $3 billion, the introduction of the
Apple Watch, and launching subscription
services like Apple Music and Apple TV
Plus. Cook has acknowledged mistakes
like the unfinished-at-release Apple
Maps and has invested to improve.
Cook has bet heavily on privacy, treating
it as a competitive advantage, much to
the chagrin of the FBI. As Apple became
one of the most successful institutions
14 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
in the world, it increasingly became
a target for environmentalists. While
purists may never be satisfied, he has
championed recycling and some of the
latest Apple equipment is built in part
with recycled aluminum. While work
remains to be done, particularly with
contractors overseas, the new Apple
Campus in Cupertino is a self-sustaining
wonder.
“COOK
REMEMBERS
AND REVERES
JOBS BUT ALSO
RESPECTS
HIS CHARGE
TO BE AN
INDEPENDENT
THINKER.”
From a manufacturing and inventory
standpoint, Cook has moved away
from Jobs’ focus on simplicity. There
are overlapping models of MacBooks,
iPads, and iPhones that make it hard
to know which is the right choice. It’s
easy to say, “Steve Jobs wouldn’t have
done that,” but Jobs did not want that
as his legacy. He knew that Disney was
paralyzed after the loss of Walt Disney
because of such attitudes. He wanted
Apple employees to do the right thing,
not what they thought Steve Jobs
might have wanted. Cook explicitly
relayed this to Apple employees at one
of the numerous memorials to Jobs.
“Among his last advice he had for me,
and for all of you, was to never ask
what he would do. ‘Just do what’s
right.’” Cook remembers and reveres
Jobs but also respects his charge to be
an independent thinker.
Jony Ive’s empire grew under Cook,
and eventually included software as
well as hardware. Eventually, the
iPhone’s headphone jack completely
disappeared under Ive’s run, as wireless
headphones and earbuds became more
practical. Apple led the way and wasn’t
afraid to eliminate technology cold tur-
key under Cook. Ive is a longtime lux-
ury watch connoisseur, and the Apple
Watch was his masterpiece. It truly is
the smallest computer Apple has ever
built, and Ive loved to make products
smaller and thinner. But this emphasis
on thinner and more fragile iPhones led
to sacrifices in battery life and durability.
Bendgate and Antennagate were the
result of putting form over function. An
entire industry of screen protectors and
rugged cases exist because of Ive’s de-
sign choices. Apple seems to be okay
with thicker phones now that Ive has
left to run his own design firm.
The story of Apple is one of adapt-
ing while leading the way. Both CEOs
adapted to the needs of the day. When
Apple struggled financially, Jobs simpli-
fied the product line and reached out to
his rival for help. Now that Apple is one
of the most successful companies in
the world, Cook is able to expand into
new markets like entertainment and
banking. Under Jobs, Apple was one of
the first to introduce new technology
such as the graphical user interface,
the mouse, 3.5-inch floppy discs, and
optical discs. It was also one of the
first to do away with those same tech-
nologies in favor of newer ones like
touchscreens and the cloud. Under
Cook, Apple led the way by introducing
Touch ID and then replacing it with Face
ID. Apple fans and employees may look
back in reverence on Steve Jobs, but
Jobs himself planned to replace his lat-
est products by producing better ones.
That’s true of the company itself. Jobs
built a great company that got even bet-
ter under Cook. It’s hard to argue with
their success. Jobs was the man to
run Apple while he did, and Cook is the
man to run it today. Ѷ
Todd Bernhard is founder of No Tie Software, an
app development company specializing in ring-
tones and sound effects including AutoRingtone.
Bernhard has owned an Apple Newton, a Mo-
torola Marco, an HP 95LX, a Compaq iPaq, a Palm
Treo, and a Nokia e62. In addition to writing for
iPhone Life, Mr. Bernhard has written for its legacy publications,
PocketPC Magazine and The HP Palmtop Paper.
16 iPh on e L if e Su m m er 2 02 0
The Features & Devices We Expect to See
at WWDC 2020
by Mike Riley
pple showcases new software
for its devices every June at the
World Wide Developers Conference
(WWDC), a mecca for developers
and system engineers eager to
learn about changes for the year
ahead. The event traditionally com-
mences with a keynote by Apple’s
CEO, Tim Cook. While not as cap-
tivating a showman as Steve Jobs, Cook’s enthusiasm for his
company and talented teams is infectious. This year, due to
the coronavirus pandemic, WWDC will be an entirely virtual
event, with both sessions and the keynote held online. While
this will be a big adjustment for developers, not much will
change for those of us who usually watch at home.
In keeping with tradition, Apple should debut the next ver-
sions of iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, tvOS, and macOS at WWDC.
In anticipation of the new releases, I’ve collected the top
rumors and leaks for this year’s announcements, along with
some wishful thinking and speculation. Let’s open the rumor
window to the future and see what Apple might share with
the world in June.
IOS 14 PUBLIC RELEASE
DATES
Expect Apple to release beta versions of iOS 14 and
iPadOS 14 over the summer and the official shipping versions
of iOS 14, iPadOS 14, watchOS 7, and tvOS 14 late Septem-
ber. We likely won’t see the release of macOS until October.
These dates could be pushed back by a month or two if Apple
delays its fall iPhone release as rumors are suggesting. Given
that every other Apple OS is named for the platform it runs
on, it’s possible Apple could rename the iOS to iPhoneOS.
MacRumors reports that both iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 will run
on the same iPhone and iPad models as iOS 13 and iPadOS
13. The exception is the iPad Air 2 and the iPad Mini Series 4,
which use older A8 and A8X chips. If this is true, that means
my 2016 iPhone SE should run iOS 14. Compared to Android
phones and tablets, that’s quite a long support term, and one
of the main reasons I continue to recommend Apple phones
and tablets above its competitors.
SECURITY UPGRADES
Apple made big news in the security community in Febru-
ary when it announced that, beginning in September, Safari
would no longer connect to sites with Transport Layer Security
(TLS) certificates that are more than a year old. This require-
ment will change how websites manage and renew their
security certificates. It also shows just how much leverage
Apple has to force the global internet to change with Apple’s
requirements. Emboldened by this authority, Apple will no
doubt project its intentions on other areas of web security
best practices. Expect to hear more Safari privacy and securi-
ty feature announcements at WWDC.
I’m hopeful that Apple will require more secure Domain
iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 17
Name System (DNS) protocols to help prevent imposter web-
sites from fooling your browser into thinking it’s a legitimate
banking website. I’d also like to see a new release of Apple’s
Intelligent Tracking Prevention that stops websites from fin-
gerprinting and tracking your browser as you surf. I also ex-
pect Apple to announce deeper, more seamless integration of
its “Sign in with Apple” identity protection service.
IOS 14 & IPADOS 14
RUMORS
After selling the iPad as a laptop replacement for years,
Apple needs to continue to empower the platform with desk-
top capabilities if it wants to make good on that promise. In
March, while the world was self-quarantined, Apple made big
strides when it announced new iPad Pros and a Magic Key-
board with a built-in trackpad. In conjunction, Apple released
iPadOS 13.4 with full mouse and trackpad support. Unlike last
year’s attempt at mouse support that was hard to find and a
bit wonky, now you’re able to easily connect a mouse in your
Bluetooth settings like you would a pair of headphones. This
addition creates a whole new way of interacting with iPadOS
and the platform’s applications, bringing it closer to a laptop
replacement than ever before in its history.
It will be interesting to see what other desktop capabilities
Apple announces for iPadOS at WWDC. Perhaps Apple will
develop a mouse-optimized toggle that maximizes screen
real estate and fine selection control and a touch toggle that
increases the size of icons and controls so they’re easy to se-
lect and manipulate using a finger.
Additionally, now that Apple has opened the box to support
mouse and trackpad hardware, perhaps it can continue to ex-
pand connectivity to other hardware normally associated with
traditional laptop computers. Could an official iPad docking
station be baking somewhere in the Apple labs?
The iPadOS could also use improvements in the full desk-
top browsing experience of Safari, so we could forget we’re
surfing the web with a tablet versus a macOS-powered
laptop. Such changes would bring the iPad even closer to the
functionality of a laptop.
Other probable announcements may be improvements to
gesture discoverability in the form of one-time tutorials or
reminders demonstrating the less obvious advanced features
the iPad has to offer. One example that continues to amaze
my fellow iPad-owning relatives and friends is Split View and
Slide Over. Increased user support in those areas could only
improve Apple’s hold on the mobile market.
A dream feature that Apple might announce at WWDC is
the ability to manually set a third-party app as your default
web browser, email platform, music player, and calendar
(something Android has supported from the beginning). Today
if you’ve installed Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge on your
iPhone, you are still forced to launch and use Safari when
accessing web links in messages, emails, or other programs.
Since Apple is trying to promote the iPad as a laptop replace-
ment, it only makes sense to offer the same application pref-
erences on iPadOS as on macOS. Rumor has it that soon,
Apple will allow you to set some third-party apps as the
default on the iPhone, iPad, and even the HomePod. The
18 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
question is, would that third-party support go so far as to
integrate Siri’s voice commands? If third-party support really is
coming to the HomePod, then the answer is probably yes.
Photos could receive additional photo filters, multi-editing
functions, and expanded support for higher-end photography
needs for whatever competitive response Apple has to
Google’s HDR+ format.
DUAL-SCREEN TABLETS
Continuing along the lines of elevating the iPad as a lap-
top replacement, rumors have been circulating that Apple is
considering using ARM processors in its laptops, the same
processor type Microsoft is using in its Microsoft Surface line
of tablet-laptop hybrid devices. Besides obvious battery life
improvements, an ARM-based iPad or MacBook would es-
sentially be Apple’s competitive response to Microsoft’s up-
coming dual-screen Surface Neo. If Apple were serious about
offering such a device, WWDC 2020 would be the time to
announce its intentions so that developers could start porting
and testing macOS and perhaps even iOS/iPadOS apps before
such a family of devices ships.
‘ONE MORE THING’
DREAM ANNOUNCEMENTS
When I attended WWDC in 2003, Steve Jobs surprised us
by concluding his WWDC keynote with one more thing. That
thing was the iSight camera, a state-of-the-art webcam. He
even went so far as to add, in the style of Oprah Winfrey, that
everyone there would receive an iSight. While this is wishful
thinking, this year’s WWDC would be a great place for Tim
Cook to showcase a prototype of the long-rumored
augmented reality headset. I honestly can’t think of any
better way to fully engage an audience of enthusiastic de-
velopers than to provide first opportunity access to one of
Apple’s most secretive and highly anticipated products since
the iPhone. Such a giveaway would certainly lead to the rise
of innovative AR apps from developers.
Another anticipated but unlikely demonstration is a fold-
able dual-screen iPhone or iPad. With Samsung, Motorola,
and Huawei already shipping foldable screen mobile devices
and Microsoft expected to release dual-screen tablets and
phones, all eyes will be on Apple to see if it can improve upon
those technologies. Apple changed the computing world with
the Apple II, the Macintosh, the iPod, and the iPhone. The
time has come for the team to do it again with the next big
leap forward that will reassert the company’s indelible mark in
the computer hardware industry. Ѷ
Mike Riley, a professional software developer and emerging information technologist,
is the author of Programming Your Home, published by Pragmatic Bookshelf. Mike is
also a contributing editor and author of hundreds of technical articles and reviews for
a number of popular technology publications. For more information, contact Mike via
email at mike@mikeriley.com and follow him on Twitter @mriley.
 PRIVACY
IN THE
PUBLIC
AGE
20 iPh on e L if e Su m m er 2 02 0
APPLE CLAIMS TO KEEP YOU internet stalkers, and advertising
companies all have uses for that
public data, but nobody, including

SAFE, BUT CAN IT REALLY?

Apple, can protect you from your
own willful broadcast of details
of your life.

BY CULLEN THOMAS “HERE IS THE

HEART OF
APPLE’S

A
billboard outside declares: “There is more private
Las Vegas declares,
“What Happens on
information on your phone than
in your home. . . Your location, PROMISE: THE
INFORMATION
your iPhone stays your messages, your heart rate
on your iPhone,” after a run; these are private
part of a massive things, personal things, and
push by Apple to
define the brand as
they should belong to you.” As
emotive music swells over those YOU ENTRUST
TO YOUR IPHONE
one that stands up last lines, I’m not left inspired.
for your privacy. Instead, I feel a sense of dysto-
pia at living in a world where an

STAYS ON YOUR
elite brand like Apple sells you

“I FEEL A SENSE
your own privacy as if it were a
luxury commodity. Surely noth-

OF DYSTOPIA
ing should be more obviously a
private possession than the right
to possess privacy. Yet, there is
IPHONE.”
AT LIVING IN A
money to be made in selling pri-
vacy, and that is a sure sign that
In this public age, your activ-
we do not own it by rights. But

WORLD WHERE
ity is also tracked by machines.
what exactly is Apple selling? I’d
Machines record everything you
like to discuss a few of the more
do, from websites you visit to

AN ELITE BRAND
common fears and annoyances
what you write privately in your
associated with privacy, as well
digital journals and notes. If you
as what Apple is doing and what

LIKE APPLE
use diet, exercise, and health
you can do to protect yourself.
programs, then they track what
Ours is the public age—the
you eat, how far you can run, and

SELLS YOU YOUR

age of workout-sharing, of food
when you last spent intimate
selfies, of teens using Instagram
time with a partner. What can
or TikTok to broadcast every daily

OWN PRIVACY
the companies who make those
experience. Perhaps it’s no sur-
machines do with all that data?
prise that privacy is evaporating.
This brings us to the first major

AS IF IT WERE A
But those are all individual choic-
annoyance of the public age:
es, moments in life a person
advertising.
chose to share. A key feature

LUXURY
COMMODITY.”
You may have noticed the ad-
vertising. A TV spot from Apple
of a right is the option to waive
it: the right to privacy can be
defined as the right to choose ADVERTISING
which parts of your life to make
public and which to keep from
the eyes of others. Oversharing Here is the heart of Apple’s
on Facebook may be a social promise: the information you
faux pas, but Apple cannot stop entrust to your iPhone stays on
you. Law enforcement agencies, your iPhone, and the information

i P hone L ife Su mmer 202 0 21

 you entrust to iCloud stays inside
your iCloud. Apple promises not
to transmit that data to advertis-
ing partners. It doesn’t store it
outside your account, and it can’t
access it for its own purposes
seem to know what you’re
thinking? The machine-learning
algorithms Google and Facebook
use to understand your
preferences and patterns can be
frighteningly prescient.
and stored by Google or Face-
book. What kind of bad actors
are out there, what kind of data
do they want, and how are they
most likely to gain that data?

inside your account. It’s yours.
Google, Facebook, and Amazon
make no such promises.
MALWARE
iPhone users may be insulat-
ed from this kind of preference
sleuthing, but only if they never
use Google or Facebook or their
associated apps and services.
Alas, iPhones and Mac com-

“IT DOESN’T
It doesn’t matter if you’re using
puters are not immune to viruses,
Google search on a virus-ridden
nor are they immune to malware.
PC running Windows 95 or on a

MATTER IF
The 2020 State of Malware
pristine iPhone. In either case,
Report by Malwarebytes, a virus
Google will know what you
and threat detection company,

YOU’RE USING
searched for, what you clicked
found that in 2019, malicious soft-
on, and how long you spent read-
ware infections on Mac comput-
ing it. That said, iPhone users

GOOGLE SEARCH
ers outpaced those on Windows.
may protect themselves from
The seriousness of those Mac
this kind of big-data harvesting in
infections is still somewhat less

ON A
some important ways.
than what a Windows machine
For example, Apple Maps
might experience. The most com-
doesn’t keep records of your lo-

VIRUS-RIDDEN
mon Mac threats, such as those
cation the way that Google Maps
called NewTab and Genieo, hijack
does. Apple’s Safari web browser
your internet searches and direct

PC RUNNING
submits less information about
them to sponsored pages to
you and your computer to Goo-
generate advertising revenue for
gle than does Google’s Chrome

WINDOWS 95
the malware’s authors. Windows
browser. But, on the other hand,
computers, on the other hand,
queries typed into Safari use
are much more likely than Macs
Google search by default, so Sa-

OR ON A
to be hit by ransomware or other
fari users usually end up sending
malware that thoroughly trashes
data to Google anyway. Accord-
the machine. That said, more and

PRISTINE IPHONE
ing to a Goldman Sachs’ analyst,
more users are abandoning
Apple receives billions of dollars
system-specific software and
each year from Google for the

. . . GOOGLE WILL
turning to browser and cloud-
privilege of remaining the default
based software instead. For
search engine in Safari. Phrased
example, users are giving up on

KNOW WHAT YOU

another way, Apple essentially
Microsoft Word, which runs on
sells your search traffic to
your computer, in favor of Google
Google, which then gets to

SEARCHED FOR.”
Google and Facebook make
their money by matching adver-
tisements to people who would
like to click on them. If you
think of it as a business selling
widgets, the widgets Google
and Facebook sell are packages
containing user patterns and
preferences, and they sell those
packages to advertisers. Ever
wonder how ads on the internet
Docs, which runs in a web brows-
harvest your web usage data.
er and is stored in the cloud via
You can opt out easily enough by
Google Drive. Because you can
changing Safari’s default search
use these browser-based pro-
engine to one that doesn’t track
grams on a Mac or a PC equally,
you, like startpage.com. But, if
they’ve become an attractive
Apple wants to wag a finger at
target for hackers and scammers.
Google about privacy issues, it
Why choose between writing
might consider changing Safari’s
malware to target Mac or
default search engine to some-
Windows, when you could hit
thing other than Google.
both? So yes, Apple computers
Advertising profiles and user
are safer, but that edge is slip-
patterns may seem reasonably
ping, and it is no edge at all if you
benign. Still, most of us can’t
use third-party systems.
shake the nagging fear that
The same report from
someone nefarious could gain
Malwarebytes noted that while
access to the trove of informa-
threats exist for iPhones, there
tion about us that is generated

22 iPh on e L if e Su m m er 2 02 0
is no way to know what they are
or how likely they are to hit you.
This is because Apple doesn’t
allow iOS apps to scan iOS
devices on the level necessary
to detect malicious behavior.
Therefore, companies specializ-
ing in protecting consumers from
malware can’t help very well
on an iPhone. Malicious apps
exist, and we know this because
sometimes Apple announces
that it’s removed some from the
App Store. Apple maintains sole
responsibility for finding and
removing them. So, is an iPhone
safer than an Android? Yes, prob-
ably. But the recommendation
is the same for both kinds of
phones: always check up on an
app before you install it.
“IDENTITY THEFT
IS THE BOOGEY-
MAN OF THE
PUBLIC AGE,
THE PREDATORY
DARK FIGURE,
LURKING IN THE
SHADOWS OF
THE INTERNET.”
FRAUD
Identity theft is the boogey-
man of the public age, the pred-
atory dark figure, lurking in the
shadows of the internet, lapping
up social media data, and using
it to ruin lives. This boogeyman is
real enough. In 2019, more than
two hundred forty thousand peo-
ple reported a fraudulent credit
card account had been opened
using their identity, according to
the Federal Trade Commission’s
Consumer Sentinel Network
Data Book for 2019. That number
is expected to rise in 2020 and
beyond. While credit card fraud is
the most common kind of iden-
tity theft, it isn’t the worst kind.
To open a credit card account, a
scammer only needs your social
security number, your yearly in-
come, and your street address.
Stolen personal information can
also allow scammers to take out
student loans, sign leases, and
even, rarely, to create false IDs,
but these require significantly
more access to your data.
Identity thieves usually obtain
what they need to know about
you by one of a few common
scams. In no particular order,
they include first phone calls
where they either trick you or
intimidate you into giving up your
social security number—
impersonating the IRS, banks, or
debt collectors are all common
tactics. Second, are dumpster
divers who find discarded docu-
ments. Third, by drag-net style,
are scammers who send emails
to millions of accounts, hoping
to lure the unwary into handing
over information. Owning an
iPhone will protect you from
none of these scams because,
in these situations, the victim
is the one who surrenders their
information. They either throw it
away, or they hand it out in direct
communication with a scammer.
Apple isn’t involved.
Another way a scammer might
get ahold of your social security
number is by gaining access to
online accounts where you store
personal records, like Notes,
Files, or Microsoft Word’s cloud
services. One common way
they achieve that access is by
running scripts to try common
passwords with every account
they can find. You might be
surprised how many people set
their password to something like
123456789. Grab a list of email
addresses from an advertising
agency, then enter them along
with that password on any given
cloud service website and you’re
sure to get into somebody’s
account. Here, at last, Apple can
help with its iCloud keychain
password manager and multi-
factor authentication. Apple
users who correctly employ
those services will be warned
if their password is common
or easy to guess and will get
a pop-up notification on their
phone when anyone tries to
get into their iCloud account
on an unrecognized device. It’s
only fair to mention that Google
offers a similar service with
Chrome’s password manager.
Also, multi-factor authentication
is now available from most major
cloud services. So yes, Apple will
protect you from fraud, but so
will Google or Microsoft. Apple’s
protection is better, but you still
have to actually use it.
If owning an iPhone means
you give in to Apple’s efforts to
convince you to use two-factor
authentication and employ strong
passwords, then you will certain-
ly be safer. Apple’s advertising
of privacy and security features
might be seen as an important
public service. They raise aware-
ness about the problems and
about the tools to help solve
them. Maybe that ad wasn’t so
dystopian after all. Ѷ
Cullen Thomas is a Writer and
Producer at iPhone Life, creating
tips and guides to help users unlock
the full potential of their iOS and
iPhone. Cullen spent nine years as
an instructor in media and commu-
nications at Maharishi University, lecturing on a wide
range of technical and artistic subjects,. Cullen is a
film-maker, a game designer, a sci-fi author, a coffee
connoisseur, and an obsessive nerd for all things tech.
i P hone L ife Su mmer 202 0 23
IPHONE LIFE MARKETPLACE - SPONSORED PROMOTIONS & SPECIAL OFFERS
OWC Envoy Pro EX Solid State Drive
(Starting at $119.75, Eshop.MacSales.com)
Improve your workflow with this storage solution from
OWC. The OWC Envoy Pro EX with USB-C is slim and
portable. But don’t let its size fool you; this small external
drive quickly and safely stores up to 2 terabytes of your
work. That’s a lot of storage for such a slim device, and
that’s not the only thing you’ll love about the Envoy Pro EX.
The USB-C Envoy EX is perfect for storing data so you can
free up space on your MacBook. Back up your work faster
with this external solid-state-drive. Powerful enough to back
up your operating system, the OWC Envoy Pro EX also has
enough room to store your photos, documents, and videos,
all while increasing your data processing speed.
The Envoy is built to last. The all-aluminum hard drive is
dust-tight and waterproof for up to 30 minutes in one meter
of water. This drive is built to withstand all the jolts, bumps,
and bounces that come with travel. Your data and financial
investment are safe with the OWC Envoy Pro EX with
USB-C.
24 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
Tip of the Day Newsletter
(Free, iPhoneLife.com/DailyTips)
Master your iPhone in one minute a day. Sign up to receive
free, bite-sized how-tos, tips, and tricks delivered straight
to your inbox. Our Tip of the Day newsletter is the best way
to keep up to date on all your iPhone’s latest and greatest
features. Whether you’re a beginner or an advanced user,
our tips will make your iPhone experience more efficient
and enjoyable.
Over 185,000 people reap the benefits of our daily tips. And
with an ever-expanding archive of over 1,700 iPhone, iPad,
Apple Watch, and Apple TV tips, there’s guaranteed to be
nuggets of useful information in each email. Learn better
from watching videos? Become an iPhone Life Insider to
upgrade to daily video tips (plus a whole lot of other
incredible goodies).
With our tips, learn how to repost a photo to Instagram,
set up Apple Pay on your iPhone, expertly navigate the Mail
app, customize your Apple Watch face, master the latest
features of new operating systems, and so much more.
Visit iPhoneLife.com/DailyTips to sign up for free.
IPHONE LIFE MARKETPLACE - SPONSORED PROMOTIONS & SPECIAL OFFERS
Brydge Pro Plus
($229.99, Brydge.com)
Have you ever wished that your iPad was more like a Mac-
Book? With the Bluetooth mouse support and improved
multitasking capabilities of iPadOS, it seems like Apple
wants that, too. But with all the updates Apple made to the
iPad in recent years, none of those changes compare to the
Brydge Pro Plus.
This incredible case transforms your iPad Pro, both aestheti-
cally and functionally, into a MacBook. With a working track-
pad and backlit keyboard, it integrates seamlessly with the
design of the iPad Pro. Whether you’re surfing the internet
or managing tasks for work, the Brydge Pro Plus provides
a huge productivity boost. That’s because Brydge included
keyboard shortcuts for App Expose, returning to the Home
screen, and bringing up your Dock.
This combination keyboard and trackpad makes navigating
your iPad a simpler, more intuitive experience. The Brydge
Pro Plus is so iconic, you’ll wonder why Apple didn’t think
of it first.
iPhone Life Insider
($9.99/month or $119.88/year, iPhoneLife.com/GetInsider)
If you’re like most people, you know your iPhone or iPad
can do amazing things, but you’re not actually taking advan-
tage of many of the possibilities. You’re not alone. Whether
you’re an iPhone newbie or an iOS enthusiast, iPhone Life
Insider can take you to the next level of iPhone and iPad
expertise! What all does your subscription include? We’re
so glad you asked.
Daily Video Tips
Get a one-minute video tip in your inbox every day! They’re
easy to follow, learn from, and share.
In-Depth Video Guides
Our video courses will guide you through everything from
how to use your iPad or Apple TV to how to improve your
iPhone photography skills.
Digital iPhone Life Magazine Subscription & Archive
Get access to every digital issue of iPhone Life magazine,
past and present. Plus, easily access the magazine from
your iPhone, iPad, or computer.
Ask an Editor
Have a frustrating iOS problem or an iPhone question you
just can’t figure out? Email one of our editors and a real, live
person will help you find the best solution to your problem.
Go to iPhoneLife.com/GetInsider to start on your path to
mastering your iPhone today!
iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 25
IPHONE LIFE MARKETPLACE - SPONSORED PROMOTIONS & SPECIAL OFFERS
CASEBUDi AirPods Pro Case
($11.99, Amazon.com)
Protect your AirPods Pro with this
affordable and ultra-portable travel
case from CASEBUDi. This little case
packs a big punch. With a tough exte-
rior and padded interior, your AirPods
Pro will be safe from all the bumps
and jolts that come with commuting.
Whether it’s clipped to your belt,
purse, or keyring, the attached car-
abiner clip keeps them safe and
secure, wherever, and however, you
travel. It’s also waterproof, so if the
worst should ever happen, you know
that your AirPods Pro are safe.
To charge your AirPod Pros, just set
the case on your wireless charger,
and you’ll be good to go in no time.
On top of that, you get a year-long
warranty, so if your case does get
damaged, you can get a replacement
right away, free of charge.
You spent a lot on your AirPods Pro,
so it just makes sense to invest in
protection. And with a price that can’t
be beat, CASEBUDi is the perfect
solution for your peace of mind.
26 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
Matias Aluminum Wired Keyboard
($59, Matias.ca)
The original Apple wired keyboard
was a fan favorite for years. Now that
Apple has gone wireless, Matias has
stepped in with the wired keyboard
that Apple should have made. If you
prefer a wired option, you’re going to
love the Matias Wired Aluminum Key-
board, modeled after Apple’s iconic
aluminum keyboards. And because
it’s wired, you never have to worry
about running out of power while you
type.
The Wired Aluminum Keyboard mim-
ics the smooth precision of Apple’s
vintage keyboard. Matias includes
two USB ports to connect your
mouse, flash drive, or other devices
through the keyboard. You also get
a full numeric pad and Mac-friendly
function keys, so your shortcuts stay
the same. Matias even added a vol-
ume dial, giving you precision control
of your sound.
Matias has beautifully picked up
where Apple left off with the Wired
Aluminum Keyboard. Get plugged
back in and never worry about battery
life again with this classic design, only
from Matias.
Informant 5
($2.99/month, PocketInformant.com)
You need an app that can do it all—
one place where you can review and
manage everything on your to-do
list. Informant 5 is that app. Whether
you’re managing a multi-part project
or planning a dinner date, Informant 5
keeps you organized.
Informant 5
has a 30-day
calendar view
that’s very
helpful. You
can create
events, to-
dos, projects,
and tasks
to help you
keep track of
everything
from bills to
planning your
best friend’s
birthday.
Here at iPhone Life, we love the con-
sistent updates and improvements
that come with the paid version of the
app. The newest version has a Time-
Tracker function that will change the
way you plan your events.
Other features include weather and
email integration, a TravelAssist set-
ting to automatically manage time-
zone changes, and a Dark Mode set-
ting that makes your schedule easy
to see in low light. Informant 5 is free
to try, and you can upgrade to the full
version for as low as $2.99/month.
Get started with Informant 5 on the
App Store today.
 How-To Guide
iPhone
Customize Your Communications & Be Productive
by Tamlin Day
Communication
Customize Your Profile
The new Messages Profile
feature makes it easy for you to
stand out by sharing your name
and photo when you send a
text to a contact. To enable this
feature, open the Messages
app. On the top right, tap the
three dots and select Edit Name
and Photo. From here, you can
enable Name and Photo Sharing.
The Contacts Only option shares
your updated profile with your
contacts automatically. Always
Ask will send you a confirmation
prompt before sharing your up-
dated profile.
Share Contacts with Friends
The next time someone asks
you to hook them up with your
favorite landscaper or plumber,
you can quickly share the phone
number, address, and any other
information you have saved in
your Contacts. To share a con-
tact card, open the Phone app,
then tap the Contacts tab. Se-
lect the name of the contact you
want to share. Scroll down and
tap Share Contact. Next, you
can share the contact via your
preferred method such as Mes-
sages, Email, or AirDrop.
30 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
Make a FaceTime Call
If you and your contact both
have iPhones, then you can use
FaceTime to start a video chat.
This is great for long business
trips or for when the grandkids
want to show off a brand-new
toy. First, open the Phone app
and tap Contacts. Then, locate
the person you want to call and
tap their name. Scroll down part
way and tap FaceTime to start
your call. If you’re texting a
contact, you can also start a
FaceTime call by tapping the
contact name at the top of the
message thread and then
tapping FaceTime.
Swipe to Type
All the tapping involved in
texting can add up to muscle
fatigue. Did you know you can
swipe instead, right from the
same keyboard? To swipe, place
your finger on the first letter of
a word, then swipe your finger
through the rest of the letters
in that word before lifting your
finger. A space will appear after
the word automatically. The
iPhone uses predictive text, so
if the wrong word pops up, just
tap backspace once. The word
will be deleted, allowing you to
try again.
Lililia/shutterstock
Customization
Creating a Bedtime Schedule
Getting enough sleep can be
a real challenge. Fortunately, the
iPhone’s Bedtime feature makes
it easier to get rest and still
wake up on time by creating a
consistent daily sleep schedule.
Open the Clock app and select
Bedtime. Next, tap Get Started
and follow the prompts to cre-
ate your schedule. You’ll select
several settings, including your
bedtime, wake time, and days
of the week. Once set up, you’ll
receive a reminder to get ready
for bed and you’ll wake to a gen-
tle, gradual alarm on the days
of the week you’ve enabled this
feature for.
Organize Your Apps Fast
If your Home screen is clut-
tered, the easiest way to clean
up is to move a stack of apps
into a folder. First, long-press
any icon and select Edit Home
Screen. Now, select an icon you
want to move. While holding
down that icon, use another
finger to tap another one. This
moves that icon under the one
you’re already holding, creating
a stack. Continue tapping apps
until you have all the ones you
want to move. Now, drag and
drop that stack into your pre-
ferred folder. To create a folder,
just drag and drop an app onto
another app.
Control Your Location
It’s a good idea to make sure
you’re only sharing your loca-
tion with essential apps that
you trust. You can change your
permissions for individual apps,
giving you more control over
your data. Open Settings and
select Privacy, then tap Location
Services and make sure it is en-
abled. Now, you can select how
each app uses your location. For
apps like Apple Maps that need
your location information in or-
der to function, we recommend
choosing While Using the App
instead of Always. That way,
you’ll use less battery and only
share data when it’s necessary.
iP hone Li fe
Assign Ringtones to Contacts
Your contacts all have unique
personalities. A fun way to high-
light those differences is by giv-
ing each of them a unique ring-
tone. To customize a ringtone,
open the Phone app and select
Contacts. Next, pick the contact
you want to edit. Select Edit on
the top right, then tap Ringtone.
You can pick from any of the
free ringtones already installed
on your iPhone or open the
Tone Store to purchase a unique
ringtone. When you’re finished,
select Done.
Reduce Your Notifications
Your iPhone really wants to
make sure you know what’s
happening, but frequent notifi-
cations can get annoying. To edit
how and when an app sends
you alerts, open the Settings
app, and select Notifications.
Under Notification Style, select
the app you want to manage.
From here, you can toggle off
notifications for that app or just
turn off the sounds and badges.
You can also mix and match the
types of notifications you re-
ceive from your options of Lock
Screen, Notification Center, Ban-
ners, and Badges.
Pick Your Favorite Siri Voice
Selecting a Siri voice is a
fun way to personalize your
iPhone and cut down on con-
fusion when you’re in a room
full of iPhone users. To do this,
open Settings and select Siri &
Search. Tap Siri Voice and choose
an accent. You’ll hear a brief
preview, then the voice will be-
gin downloading. You can pick a
different voice to preview before
the download is complete. Once
you find the accent you like, sit
back and wait for the download
to finish.
Su mme r 2020 31
Productivity
Scheduling Reminders
If you have trouble remem-
bering to take out the trash or
take your medications, creating
reminders can help keep you
on track. In the Reminders app,
pick a list to add a reminder to or
select Create a New List to start
from scratch. Tap New Reminder
to add a reminder. To schedule
the reminder, tap the “i” icon
and select when you want to be
reminded, then tap Done. Short-
cut! Summon Siri and say, “Re-
mind me to take my medication
every morning at 7 a.m.”
How to Add a Calendar Event
Creating events for doctor’s
appointments or a grandkid’s
dance recital is another con-
venient way to organize your
schedule. To add an event, open
the Calendar app and select a
month and date. Now, tap the
+ icon on the top right. Enter a
name and location, then set your
time. If this is a regular appoint-
ment, you can set it to repeat.
If you’ve enabled notifications
for the Calendar app, you can
create an alert to remind you in
advance of the event and even
factor in travel time.
Create a To-Do List
Going shopping and complet-
ing chores is a lot easier with a
good to-do list. To create a list in
Notes, open the app, then tap
the composition icon to create
a new note. Enter a title and tap
Return to go to a new line. Tap
the check mark icon to begin
your list. Enter an item, then tap
Return to add additional items.
To mark an item as completed,
tap the circle, and a yellow check
mark will appear beside the
item. You can indent by swiping
right on a check-marked item.
32 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
Hands-Free Texting
Dictating messages hands-
free while driving or cooking
helps you stay connected at all
times. To begin composing, say,
“Hey Siri, send a text to [name
of contact.]” Siri will ask what
you want to say. Tell Siri what
you want to write, including the
punctuation. For example, “Be
there soon, period.” When you’re
finished, stop talking and wait
for Siri to respond. If the text is
correct, say “Yes” or “Send.” If
the text is incorrect, say, “Edit”
to start over.
Enable Do Not Disturb
An interruption from your
iPhone can be frustrating during
important meetings or leisure
time. The Do Not Disturb feature
will silence all notifications when
enabled, so you can work or
relax in peace. You can enable
Do Not Disturb from Settings,
but the fastest way to toggle the
feature on and off is through the
Control Center. Open your Con-
trol Center and press the cres-
cent moon icon to turn on Do
Not Disturb. To turn the setting
off, press the same icon.
Move the Text Cursor
When you need to make a
quick edit to a text or a note, get-
ting the cursor to move to the
right spot can be a pain. But did
you know that as of iOS 13, you
can easily drag and drop the cur-
sor to the right location? In any
active text field, such as a note
or a reminder, simply press and
hold the cursor with your finger.
Now, you can drag and drop the
cursor wherever you wish. An-
other option is to press and hold
the space bar until it turns gray,
then drag and drop the cursor.
Editing text just became easier!
 How-To Guide

iPad
16 Multitasking Tips for Greater Productivity
by Nicholas Naioti

Open Easily
Multiple Drag
Apps at Photos
Once with into
SlideOver Emails or
With Messages
iPadOS13 This is
or later, definitely
you can the quick-
have many est and
apps most fun
visible way I’ve
at once. found to
This is a share pho-
multitasking game changer! While an app is open, drag up tos and videos with friends. Using the previous tips, open the
slightly from the bottom of the screen, tap and hold an icon in photos app alongside mail or messages. Touch and drag your
the dock, then drag it to the side of the screen. You can touch chosen photos or videos over into the message or email. Tap
and hold the top of the secondary app to move it around the send and you’re done!
screen or lock it to one side or the other. Touch and hold the
dividing lines between apps to adjust the proportions. Easily
Drag
Open Chunks
Multiple of Text
Windows Between
of the Apps
Same App You
Many can now
of Apple’s select a
native apps sentence,
can now paragraph,
open in or URL in
multiple Safari and
instances. pull it over
This allows into a note in seconds. Open Safari, then open Notes along-
you to side it by swiping up slightly from the bottom of the screen,
work on two notes at the same time or copy and paste from touching and dragging the app to the side of the screen. Touch
multiple conversations in messages or email. To do so, open and hold to select a chunk of text, then tap, hold, and drag the
one of Apple’s native apps, swipe up slightly from the bottom text over to Notes.
of the screen, then tap the icon for the same app to open the
App Exposé view, which shows you all open instances of a
specific app. Tap the plus sign in the top right of your display
to open a new window of the same app.

Lililia/shutterstock

34 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
 Use Your Quick
iPad as a Keyboard
Second Shortcut
Monitor If you’re
with like me
Sidecar and use an
You can exorbitant
create a amount
dual moni- of excla-
tor display mation
by pairing marks in
most iPads your texts,
running this one is
iPadOS 13 essential.
or later with a Mac (2016 or later) running Catalina. I use this While the virtual keyboard is active, you’ll simply swipe down-
all the time for my work at iPhone Life, and I’m amazed at ward on any key to type its alternate character. This saves a
how well it works. To do this, first make sure you have the cur- ton of time, as you no longer have to go into a separate key-
rent operating system on both systems. Go to System Pref- board to type your punctuation marks.
erences on your Mac, click Sidecar, then, under “Connect to”,
choose your iPad. You’ve instantly got a dual monitor system! Floating
Keyboard
Send If you
Quick find typing
Responses on the
to Texts large virtual
and Emails keyboard
This tip cumber-
is perfect some,
if a text you’re not
or email alone. You
comes in can now
that you shrink the
want to keyboard
respond down to the size of an iPhone’s keyboard and move it any-
to without where on the display. To do so, you’ll touch and hold the key-
losing your train of thought. Anytime a notification shows up board button in the bottom right of the virtual keyboard, then
such as a message or email, you can touch and drag the no- choose “Floating”. When you want to go back to the default key-
tification to the side of the screen to open the corresponding board, drag the floating keyboard to the bottom of your display.
app in Split View for a quick response.
Connect a
Open Split Bluetooth
View Mouse
Safari You can
Tabs now pair a
You can Bluetooth
now open mouse to
two tabs your iPad!
in Safari To do this,
side-by- press the
side when pairing
using your button on
iPad in your
landscape mouse so
view. I use it goes into discovery mode. Next, open Settings on your iPad
this feature to listen to music on Bandcamp while reading arti- and tap Bluetooth. Scroll down to Other Devices and tap your
cles. To do this, you’ll touch and drag a Safari tab to the left or mouse. It should appear as Connected and a circular cursor
right side of the screen. To exit this view, touch and drag the will appear on-screen. If you’re pairing an Apple Magic Mouse
top of a tab to separate it into Slide Over mode, then swipe or Magic Trackpad, type the code 0000 when prompted. If
up from the bottom of the tab. you’ve paired a trackpad, you can adjust the experience by
navigating to Settings, tapping General, then Trackpad.

iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 35

 Edit Text Save a
with Full PDF of
Trackpad a Website
Mode I used
If you this tip
hold down recently to
on the save a full-
spacebar resolution
of the full- copy of
size virtual my bank
keyboard, statement.
you’ll enter To save a
trackpad high-res
mode, PDF of any
where you can quickly scroll through the entirety of the con- website, start by taking a screenshot in Safari by pressing the
tent on your screen. This is massively useful if you’re jumping volume up button and the Sleep button simultaneously. Tap the
around and editing a large document. You can also use track- thumbnail of the screenshot, then tap “full page”.This will save
pad mode by touching and dragging around the screen with the entirety of the page as an exportable PDF. Note that if the
two fingers. page is extremely long, some of the content may get cut off.

Drag iPad Pro Tips

Multiple
Apps at Access an External
Once Hard Drive
You Using the USB-C port
can now on the iPad Pro and
drag mul- the Files app, you can
tiple apps move files from the
around iPad to an external hard
when re- drive and back. This is a
arranging simple way to back up
your Home all your photos and vid-
screen. eos without an iCloud
To do so, account. Note that this
you’ll touch and drag an app to start moving it, then tap any only works with certain
other app with another finger. The apps will bunch up and external drives. To do
move together when you release your finger. This technique this, just connect a
works with files and images as well. compatible hard drive
and open the Files app.
Add If it’s formatted correct-
Widgets ly, you should see the drive in the left column.
and
Shortcuts Charge
to the Other
Home Devices
Screen from your
You can iPad Pro’s
now have USB-C Port
your Today Did you
View at- know you
tached to can share
the Home your iPad
screen so Pro’s long
it’s always available without having to swipe right. To enable battery life
this function, go to the Settings menu, then tap Home Screen with other
& Dock. Toggle Keep Today View on Home Screen on. Now devices?
you can quickly see weather, upcoming calendar notifications, This can really cut down on the amount of cables you need
and other useful information immediately when you unlock to bring with you when traveling. Simply connect a USB-C to
your screen. Add or remove widgets by swiping up on Today Lightning cable to your iPad Pro and it will charge an iPhone
View and tapping Edit. or earlier model iPad. You can also charge your Apple Watch or
even another iPad Pro this way!

36 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
 How-To Guide
apple watch
Customization, Tips for Travel, & Next-Level Texting
by Tamlin Day
Customize Your Watch
Delete Third-Party Apps
When you first boot up your
watch, you’ll see many of the
third-party apps from your
iPhone already installed on your
watch by default. And all those
apps can be overwhelming. To
delete apps from your watch,
open the Watch app on your
iPhone. Scroll down to the bot-
tom of the My Watch screen to
the Installed On Apple Watch
section and then toggle off any
listed apps to remove its watch
app icon.
Add Apps to Your Watch
Now that you’ve gotten rid
of the apps you don’t want, it’s
time to add new ones. Open
the App Store on your watch
by pressing the crown and
scrolling until you find the App
Store icon. You can search for a
specific app or browse popular
apps. Select the app that you
want to install by tapping the
price. If there’s no price listed,
tap Get. When prompted, enter
your Apple ID password on your
iPhone.
38 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
Use Apple Pay on the
Apple Watch
A huge perk of Apple Pay on
the watch is that it works when
you’re out of range of your
iPhone. To begin setup, open
the Watch app on your iPhone
and tap Wallet & Apple Pay in
the My Watch section. If you
have a card set up on your
iPhone, tap it, and enter your
security code to activate it. Oth-
erwise, tap New Card and enter
your info from there. Next time
you leave your wallet at home,
just hold your watch close to
the card reader and double
press the Side button to make a
purchase.
Pick Your Favorite Watch Face
I love to try out different faces
on my Apple Watch. You can
pick the face that looks the best
or that displays the functions
you use most often. To pick a
new face, open the Watch app
on your iPhone. Make sure your
software is up to date, then se-
lect the Watch Gallery tab. Tap
the face you want, and then tap
Add. From there, you can cus-
tomize the complications and
colors. Return to the My Watch
tab. In the Faces section, select
the face you want to use. Scroll
down and tap Set as Current
Watch Face.
Lililia/shutterstock
Listen to Apple Music
When you’re out for a hike
and don’t want to bring your
iPhone, you can listen to music
if you have a cellular model
with an Apple Music subscrip-
tion or if you’ve purchased or
stored music via iTunes. First,
pair Bluetooth headphones or
earbuds by opening Settings on
your watch and tapping Blue-
tooth. Next, open the Music
app, select what you want to
listen to, and tap Play to stream
music. (If you don’t have a cellu-
lar watch, you must sync music
from Apple Music to your watch
first.)
Take an ECG Reading
As long as you’re getting a
workout, you might as well
learn how to take an electro-
cardiogram reading. This app
records your heartbeat and
rhythm so you can become
aware of any irregularities and is
available on the Apple Watch
Series 4 or later. To set up the
ECG app, open the Health
app on your iPhone. Open the
Browse tab, then tap Heart.
Select Set Up ECG App. Now,
on your watch, open the ECG
app. Follow the on-screen
instructions to get your results.
Activate Siri
Let’s say you want to use Siri
on your watch. You might be
inclined to say, “Hey Siri,” only
to find that your iPhone or iPad
responds instead. To talk to Siri
on your watch more easily, go
to Settings on your watch, then
scroll down and tap Siri. You can
toggle off Listen for “Hey Siri.”
To use a different method, you
can toggle on Raise to Speak
and Press Digital Crown. Now,
raise your watch to your mouth
or press the Digital Crown, and
Siri will respond on your watch.
iP hone Li fe
Set Your Watch to Wake to a
Recent App
Your watch is set to return
to the Watch Face when you
wake your watch up. But what
if you want to return to the text
you were reading or go back
to Maps? To set your watch to
wake to the most recently used
app, go to Settings, General,
and tap Wake Screen. Under On
Screen Raise Show Last App,
select how long you want your
watch to wait before displaying
the Watch Face. Scroll down
and toggle on any apps that
you want your watch to display
when awakened.
Increase Text Size
The Apple Watch is great, but
let’s face it, the small text size
can make it hard to read texts
or follow on-screen prompts.
Fortunately, you can adjust your
text size so it’s perfect for you
by going to the Settings app on
your Apple Watch. Scroll down
and select Display & Brightness.
Tap Text Size, then use the let-
ters to increase or decrease the
type. Tapping the letters on the
right will increase the font size,
while tapping the letters on the
left decreases the font.
Mute Disruptive Alerts
When you’re in the middle
of an important meeting or are
on a FaceTime call with a loved
one, the last thing you want are
annoying alerts popping up on
your Apple Watch. Luckily, you
can use a simple gesture to
mute an alert as long as you’ve
enabled the feature in advance.
Open the Watch app on your
iPhone and select the My Watch
tab. Tap Sounds & Haptics, then
toggle on Cover to Mute. Next
time your watch interrupts you,
just cover the Watch with your
free hand to silence the alert.
Su mme r 2020 39
 Find a Lost iPhone
If you can’t find your iPhone,
you can locate the missing
phone using your watch. You
don’t even have to worry about
your Find My settings to use
this method. Wake your watch
and then swipe up from the bot-
tom of the watch face to access
the Control Center. On the top
left corner, you’ll see a green
iPhone icon to indicate that your
iPhone can be located with your
watch. Tap and hold the iPhone
icon. This will cause your iPhone
to ping and light up its LED
flashlight.
Take a Screenshot
Maybe you want to save a
funny text message or share
a favorite song. Whatever the
reason, taking a screenshot
on the Apple Watch can come
in handy, but that feature isn’t
automatically enabled. To take
a screenshot, open the Watch
app on your iPhone. On the My
Watch tab, select General, then
toggle on Enable Screenshots.
On your watch, hold down the
Digital Crown and Side button
together to take a screenshot.
Send Texts with Your Apple Watch
Create a Custom Text
Message
Your Apple Watch comes
with a smart list of replies for
answering text messages. But
what if you want to say some-
thing unique like “Shiver me
timbers” or “10-4 good buddy?”
You can create custom replies
in the Watch app on your
iPhone. Open the My Watch tab
and select Messages, then tap
Default Replies. Scroll down to
the bottom and tap Add Reply.
Enter your custom reply and tap
done on your keyboard to add
the response to your smart list.
40 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
Send an Audio Recording as
a Reply
On your Apple Watch, you
can send a transcribed mes-
sage, but you can also send an
audio clip if you want to avoid
an embarrassing faux pas. On
your iPhone, open the Watch
app. From the My Watch tab,
select Messages. Tap Dictated
Messages, then set your replies
to Transcript or Audio. Next time
you use your voice to respond
to a text, you’ll be given a
choice to send either the tran-
scription or an audio clip.
Navigate from Your Wrist
Navigate with Apple Maps
When you’re on foot, you
don’t want to walk with your
iPhone out in front of you while
you navigate Apple Maps. In-
stead, you can use your Apple
Watch to find a location. Press
the Digital Crown and open the
Maps app. Tap Search to look
up a location or select an ad-
dress from the list. Next, select
Walking. As you walk, Maps will
display the next instruction. Your
watch will also buzz on your
wrist before every turn so you
know when to consult the map.
Disable Maps Notifications on
the Watch
If you’re driving, then the last
thing you want to worry about
is being interrupted with Maps
notifications on your wrist. To
temporarily disable Maps on
your watch, open the Watch
app on your iPhone. On the My
Watch tab, select Maps, then
toggle off Driving and Driving
with CarPlay. Now, your watch
will only send you notifications
when you’re on foot or on pub-
lic transit.
 How-To Guide
Photography
Top Tips for Capturing Stunning Shots
by Rheanne Taylor
Rotate & Edit Your Videos
I, for one, think it’s about
time that Apple allowed us to
edit our videos. I have a bad
habit of recording my videos the
wrong way, which means they
frequently need to be rotated. To
rotate and edit your videos, just
select your video from the Pho-
tos app and tap the Edit option
at the top right. You’ll then see
an option to rotate and crop your
video in a row along the bottom,
as well as options to add filters,
adjust settings such as contrast
and exposure, trim the length,
and remove sound.
Access the Zoom Wheel
For more control and the
ability to zoom up to 10x in the
Camera app, you’ll appreciate
the zoom wheel feature. When
you long press any of the zoom
icons listed above your shutter
button, a dial will pop up. Move
your finger to the left along the
dial to zoom in. Move your fin-
ger to the right to zoom out. If
you have an iPhone or iPad with
more than one camera lens,
you have optical zoom and can
tap the 2X option without losing
resolution. Aside from that, the
general rule is that the more you
zoom in, the more pixellated
your photo will become.
42 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
Take a 12 MP Selfie
If you have the iPhone 11 or
iPhone 11 Pro, then when you
take selfies in landscape mode,
the camera will automatically
zoom out to take a 12 MP selfie,
which is great when you are
trying to fit a bunch of people in
a single shot. If you are taking a
selfie in Portrait mode though,
by default the camera will zoom
in for a 7 MP selfie. But you
can adjust that! Just tap on the
expand icon along the bottom of
the frame and the camera will
zoom out. Likewise, if you don’t
want a wider shot, you can tap
the icon and the camera will
zoom in slightly.
View Images by Day, Month
& Year
I take a lot of photos. That
means it can be tricky for me to
find specific shots. But Apple
added some useful options to
the Photos app in iOS 13 to
help with this process. From
the Photos tab, I can view my
photos by Years, Months, Days,
or All Photos. This makes looking
back over memories a lot more
fun, as the Photos app highlights
the shots that it thinks I want
to see. And if you take a ton of
screenshots (like me), don’t wor-
ry. These shots are intelligently
sorted out of your memories
(but you can see them under All
Photos).
Lililia/shutterstock
Adjust the Intensity of Filters
& Tools
A cool part of the Photos app
is the ability to adjust the inten-
sity of filters and other settings
from the editing interface. Sim-
ply select the photo you want
to edit from the Photos app and
tap Edit at the top right of the
image. If you want to adjust
filters and other settings (such
as contrast and saturation) then
select the filter icon or other
editing tool you would like to
use and then adjust the intensity
using the slider that pops up
along the bottom.
Use the Shutter Button to Take
Burst Images
If you have the iPhone 11 or
later, you capture burst images
differently than on older iPhone
models. Instead of pressing and
holding the shutter button, you
press the shutter button, drag
it to the left, and then hold it
there! The number that appears
in the center of the circle will
show you how many photos
you’ve taken. When you lift your
finger, the camera will stop
taking photos. To access burst
images, go to the Photos app,
select your collection of shots,
choose Select, and then choose
which ones you would like to
keep.
Use the Shutter Button in
Photo Mode to Record Video
If you have the iPhone 11 or
later, you no longer have swipe
to Video mode to start a video!
This feature allows you to start
a video much easier. All you
have to do is press and hold the
shutter button and your video
will begin. When you release
the shutter button, your video
will end. If you would like to lock
recording mode, then just slide
your finger to the right and the
video recording will continue
even after you’ve lifted your fin-
ger. To end your recording, tap
the red shutter button again.
iP hone Li fe
Capture Clearer Images
Capturing the clearest images
possible is very important to
me—and there are a few differ-
ent ways you can accomplish
this! I recommend making sure
that your lens is clean first and
foremost (this makes a surpris-
ing difference). You should also
lock your focus on your subject,
which you do from the Camera
app by tapping and holding on
your subject on the screen until
AE/AF Lock appears at the top. I
would also recommend shooting
in bright, natural light whenever
possible, as well as steadying
your hand to prevent camera
shake (or use a tripod).
Use the Quick Actions Menu
to Access Features
I forget how useful the Quick
Actions menu can be when
accessing an app’s most basic
functions. If I want to quickly
jump to my Favorites album, for
example, I just press and hold
on the Photos app and the Quick
Actions menu will pop up (on
older iPhone models, you use
3D Touch). Likewise, if I press
and hold on the Camera app, I
will see options for recording
video, taking a selfie, or shoot-
ing in Portrait mode. If you tap
on one of the options listed, the
corresponding app will open to
your desired location.
Find the Photo You’re Looking
For
As of this writing, I have
12,572 photos in my Photos
app. That, my friends, is a lot of
photos. So, when I try to search
for a particular photo in my col-
lection, I hit some roadblocks
to say the least. That’s where
the Search function comes in
and saves to day. Just navigate
to the Search tab in the Pho-
tos app, enter a keyword (like
flower) into the Search bar, and
voila! You will see a collection
of images of flowers. You can
also search for specific people
that you’ve added to the people
album, or search locations and
dates!
Su mme r 2020 43
 How-To Guide
battery life
Storage, Charging & Power-Saving Settings for Your iPhone
by Tamlin Day
Physical Maintenance
Keep Your iPhone
Cool
You’ve probably
heard that letting your
battery drain helps keep
your battery healthy.
This is true for some
batteries, but not lithi-
um batteries. When it
comes to your iPhone,
temperature is more
important. High tem-
peratures can slow it
down and damage the
battery. You can reduce
your iPhone’s tempera-
ture safely by removing
the case and turning off
the device for a while.
When you’re not using your iPhone, make sure it’s stored
someplace below 90 degrees.
Check Your Cables
Having the correct
cable isn’t just a mat-
ter of Lightning versus
USB cables. You want
a cable that’s Made
for iPhone (MFi) certi-
fied. Some third-party
cables simply don’t
work well, especially
the cheap ones. When
your wire starts to fray
or fall apart, it’s time
for a new one. If you
have proprietary ca-
bles and you’re still having trouble, gently clean the charging
port of your iPhone with a toothpick to remove fuzz or dust.
44 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
Long-Term
Storage
If, for
any reason,
you want
to store
your iPhone
long term,
these steps
will ensure
your bat-
tery stays
in good
health. Your
battery should be at about 50 percent for long-term storage. If
you store your iPhone on empty, you risk returning to an
iPhone that can’t hold a charge. Keeping your battery at 100
percent can decrease its capacity too. Make sure the
temperature is cool and steady and the air is dry.
Battery Replacement
Eventually, if your iPhone is
running slow and crashing
often, it might be time to replace
your battery. You can confirm
this by going to the Settings
app. Tap Battery, then select
Battery Health. If your battery’s
maximum health is below 80
percent, then it’s time for a visit
to an Apple authorized service
provider. Replacing the battery
costs a fraction of what you’d
pay for a new iPhone. You can
expect to spend between $49 to
$60 on a replacement battery.
Lililia/shutterstock
Smart Habits
Stay Connected
Whenever possible, keep
your iPhone in Wi-Fi range.
When you’re not connected to
Wi-Fi, your iPhone switches to
cellular. This causes your iPhone
to search for cell towers, which
uses up your battery faster.
Similarly, if you’ve enabled Wi-Fi
on your iPhone but you’re out of
range, your iPhone will search
for a Wi-Fi connection. In this
case, you can turn off Wi-Fi in
your Control Center. As much
as possible, when you’re using
internet, stay near a router to
conserve battery.
Turn Off Background App
Refresh
Constantly updating apps like
Mail and Weather when you’re
not using them is a real drain
to your battery. To disable Back-
ground App Refresh, open the
Settings app and tap General.
Select Background App Refresh.
From here, you can disable the
feature for individual apps or for
all apps. Personally, I disabled
this feature, and have found
the extra app load time to be
minimal and worth the battery
savings.
Enable Low Power Mode
When your battery drains be-
low 20 percent, your iPhone will
ask if you’d like to switch to Low
Power Mode. This feature might
slow you down a little, but it will
also make your iPhone last lon-
ger. It works by reducing all the
background tasks your iPhone
usually performs like Automatic
Downloads and uploading to
iCloud Photos. You can toggle
this mode on and off from Con-
trol Center by selecting the bat-
tery icon.
iP hone Li fe
Reduce Your Widgets
The widgets in your Today
View like Weather, News, and
Calendar refresh regularly, drain-
ing your battery. These are the
notifications you see when you
swipe all the way to the right
from your Home or Lock screen.
Disabling any of these widgets
will conserve your battery. In the
Today View, scroll to the bottom
and tap Edit. Tap the red icon to
the left of any active widget to
disable that widget.
Dim Your Display
Your iPhone is set to
Auto-Brightness by default. This
causes your screen to adjust
its brightness relative to the
environment. While enabling
Auto-Brightness is better for bat-
tery than leaving your screen at
max brightness, an even better
option is to set your brightness
level low and leave it there. To
do this, open Settings and tap
Accessibility, then select Display
& Text Size. At the bottom,
toggle off Auto-Brightness. If
you need to make adjustments,
you can raise and lower the
brightness level manually from
Control Center.
Adjust Your Auto-Lock
The faster your iPhone’s
Auto-Lock engages, the less
battery your iPhone uses. Of
course, having your iPhone go
dark while you’re reading an arti-
cle is annoying. You can set your
Auto-Lock to your preferred wait
time using the Settings app.
Select Display & Brightness,
then tap Auto-Lock. From here,
you can select the amount of
time you’d like your iPhone to
remain idle before the display
goes to sleep.
Su mme r 2020 45
 How-To Guide
airpods
Connect, Clean & Enjoy Your Earbuds
by Todd Bernhard
Safely Clean Your
AirPods
The AirPods
are sweatproof,
but that doesn’t
mean they are
waterproof. Only
the AirPods Pro
earbuds are con-
sidered water
resistant and ab-
solutely none of
the charging cases
are considered
water resistant. To clean your AirPods and charging case, use
two soft, lint-free cloths. Lightly dampen one cloth with fresh
water and carefully wipe your AirPods. Then dry them with
the other cloth. Do not use the AirPods or put them in their
charging case until they are completely dry.
Customize AirPods Touch
Controls
By default, double tapping
either of the regular AirPods
skips to the next song. If you
want to choose a different action
for your AirPods, go to Settings,
Bluetooth, and then select the
info icon next to your AirPods.
This option lets you customize
the action for both the right and
left AirPod so you can activate
Siri, toggle play/pause, or go to
the previous track instead. If
you have the AirPods Pro, you
will see different customization
options (see next page for more
information.)
46 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
Control Volume
Unfortunately, you cannot
increase or decrease vol-
ume using the AirPods touch
controls. However, there are
workarounds. If you have an
Apple Watch, you can adjust the
volume by rotating the Digital
Crown while the Now Playing
screen appears on your watch
screen. Another option is to use
“Hey Siri” or activate Siri (see
tip on touch controls) and ask
Siri to increase or decrease the
volume or set it at a percentage
of total volume capacity.
Tweak Your Listening
Experience
Do you need to tweak the left-
right balance of your AirPods?
Go to Settings > Accessibility >
Audio/Visual to find and adjust
the left versus right mix. If you
want to customize the overall
sound style of your AirPods,
again from the Settings app, se-
lect Music, then EQ (for Equal-
izer) and choose from one of
many variations such as Acous-
tic, Base Booster, Classical,
R&B, and more.
Lililia/shutterstock
Track Individual AirPods
You can leverage the Find My
app to locate your AirPods if
you’ve enabled Find My for your
iPhone or iPad and it’s within
Bluetooth range of your earbuds.
The app can help you find your
left or right AirPod by playing a
sound. But remember, these are
just earbuds, so they don’t play
the sound very loud. The track-
ing capability is not as robust as
with the GPS-enabled iPhone
either. Find My only tells you
where your AirPods were when
last connected to your iPhone,
but it’s a start.
Track Your AirPods
Case
While Find My
tracks your ear-
buds, it doesn’t
keep track of their
carrying case.
Get around this
by attaching a Tile
tracker to a Cat-
alyst waterproof
AirPods case (both
starting at $24.99).
Then you’ll be able
to track your case
and sound an alarm
using the Tile app.
Prolong Battery Life
Suppose you are on a long
flight or conference call, and
you anticipate needing to listen
to audio or talk on your AirPods
longer than the rated battery life.
You can extend your AirPods’
five hours of listening time by
using one earpiece at a time
while the other is charging. This
will give you theoretically un-
limited use as long as you keep
your AirPods case charged from
another source. Sure, you will be
sacrificing stereo sound, but it
might be fine for some use
cases such as listening to pod-
casts or making phone calls. To
monitor battery life, you can al-
ways ask Siri how much battery
life you have left.
Tips for the AirPods Pro
Enable Noise Cancellation
The new AirPods Pro features
active noise cancellation (ANC),
which quiets your surroundings so
you can enjoy your music without
distraction. You can enable ANC
in your Control Center by holding
your finger on the volume slider
and selecting between Noise Can-
cellation, Transparency (a safety
feature that lets in outside noises),
or neither. You can also enable
this feature using touch controls
(see below). If you also have an
Apple Watch, on the Now Playing
screen, touch the icon in the low-
er left corner, select AirPods Pro,
and choose your preference.
Customize Controls for AirPods
Pro
As with regular AirPods, you can
use Touch Controls to control play-
back, Siri, and Noise Control. Only
this time, you’ll be pressing your
earbuds instead of tapping: once
to pause, twice to skip forward,
and three times to skip backward.
A long press will activate Siri or
change Noise Control mode. In
your Bluetooth settings, you can
toggle between Noise Cancella-
tion, Off, or Transparency mode,
and choose which AirPod to use
for Siri and which to use for Noise
Control. There is no option to cus-
tomize your playback controls.
Find the Ear Tip That Fits
Before using your AirPods Pro,
your first task is to assess wheth-
er the small, medium, or large
ear tips included in the box fit
best. Performing this task is easy,
thanks to a handy fit test nested
in your Bluetooth settings. Put
the Pros in your ears, go to your
Bluetooth settings, tap the Pros,
and you’ll be taken to a screen
that will help you determine the
correct size.
iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 47
PODCASTING
101
HOW TO START AND
MANAGE A PODCAST
BY JARED DICKS
LightField Studios/shutterstock

t began with a simple question, “Hey, do you guys

I
want to start a movie and game review podcast?”
And just like that, the Club XP Podcast was born.
Arthur pulled the sword from the stone, Spiderman
HOSTING YOUR
was unwittingly bitten by a radioactive spider, and
Harry Potter was marked with a scar. All heroes have
PODCAST
their origin story, and like them, our podcast too came
from humble beginnings.
For our podcast hosting
Like all origin stories, there would be challenges
needs, we chose Spotify’s
standing in the way. And our challenges? We are four
Anchor service. That means
guys in our thirties who are married, working full time,
we were able to host the
living apart from each other (one on another conti-
audio for our show, gener-
nent), and had a total of eleven kids between us. Our
ate a feed, and publish it to
greatest foe was not a grotesque monster or someone seek-
most popular podcasting
ing world domination. No, our greatest adversary was time.
platforms for free. Anchor
We needed guidance on where to begin and how to maximize
allowed us to have access
the time we did have. What tools would we need to make this
to baseline statistics, such
idea a reality?
as how many listens and
Even with these challenges, we managed to launch the
downloads we have on
podcast, and it’s growing daily. It evolved from a simple “yes”
different platforms.
to an actual working podcast. It has now become a fortress
While the free hosting service was exactly what we need-
of solitude, a Batcave amid an ever-dark Gotham City, and a
ed, we did have mixed experiences with some features of the
place of fellowship where we bring dreams to fruition. If you
app. For example, the group recording feature had delayed au-
find yourself wishing you could start your own podcast and
dio, a bad connection, and even booted us during one of our
facing the same challenges we did in the beginning, read on
sessions. If a group of podcasters is recording remotely and
to find out the best tools we’ve discovered and how they can
something goes wrong, it has the potential to ruin the entire
serve you in creating your own podcast origin story.
episode. In addition, the editing features of the app lacks basic
mixing controls, so we have not dabbled with it. Overall, while

48 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
we are happy with the free hosting services and basic
analytics that Anchor provides, we opted out of using its
recording and editing features. It needs some work to achieve
its potential as a complete all-in-one hosting, editing, and
publishing platform for podcasters.
EDITING YOUR EPISODES
One of the biggest hurdles I have faced is finding the right
audio editing software to use for publishing episodes. After
downloading and trying many options, I finally landed on
Audacity (free).
Audacity is a free audio software for desktop computers
that you can use to edit your recordings, cut and combine
audio, and remove excess noise at a professional-level quality.
It makes it easy to save your audio on your desktop and
export it in a variety of formats.
A great advantage of Audacity is its user-friendly interface,
letting inexperienced users hit the ground running with little-
to-no learning curve. Those with more experience in this field
need not fret— Audacity also provides higher-level effects and
tools for advanced users. In a nutshell, Audacity is the choose-
your-own-adventure book of editing software, allowing you to
move at your own pace in producing your podcast.
One of my favorite features of Audacity is its ability to re-
move hissing, popping, and other background noises that may
appear on your audio track. My background noise is three little
girls, who at times find their way into the recording studio. So,
if you are like me and have a difficult time finding a quiet envi-
ronment (or you have a low-quality microphone), then
Audacity has your back.
CREATING MUSIC ON A BUDGET
When you start a podcast, the prospect of making music
to personalize your show may be intimidating. There are so
many options for canned loopy music, but eventually you
may want to level up. That’s where Logic Remote (free) for
iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 49
the iPhone or iPad can come in to save you some time and
money. This app connects to GarageBand or Logic Pro X on
Macs either directly or through a local shared Wi-Fi network.
You can use this app to create drumbeats and melodies or
play virtual instruments all on a touch surface. Using the Log-
ic Remote app, you can fuel your inner DJ. Tap digital piano
keys and drum pads and hear the intensity of the instruments
change when you tap the screen with differing pressure. This
app comes in handy as a control surface for mixing music and
episodes as you start to combine them into a final product.
A 13-inch MacBook screen can feel crowded when using any
digital audio workstation, and using this app gives you more
real estate to allow you to be creative.
Another option is to buy a small MIDI controller keyboard
with drum pads built in, such as the Akai Professional MPK
Mini MIDI Controller ($119). This controller comes packed
with 25 semi-weighted keys and 8 drum pads that are pres-
sure sensitive. This is where this USB powered piece of
equipment shines, helping the most amateur of music pro-
ducers create melodies and beats that can capture a podcast
listener’s attention. This keyboard is light and portable, so you
can create on the go. While there are so many options on the
market, this MIDI-controller lives up to all the rave reviews.
Whether you decide to go fully digital with an app like Logic
Remote or drop a Benjamin Franklin on a midi controller, don’t
be afraid to get to tapping on something to give your podcast
that signature sound it deserves.
FINDING THE
RIGHT
HEADSET
Choosing a good
headset is another way
to ensure good audio.
The Corsair Virtuoso
Headset ($209.99)
might seem like an
unconventional choice
but hear me out. The
Virtuoso is a solid jack of all trades. The audio quality of its
drivers provides good to excellent fidelity. The battery of this
50 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
wireless headset lasts around 15–20 hours. The detachable
microphone also provides a quick mute option, as well as local
feedback of your surroundings. There is nothing worse than
finishing a podcast recording only to find it ruined because of
a low hum from the air conditioner or your annoying neighbor
screaming at their evil kids for once again throwing rocks at
cars. Ahem, where was I? Oh, that’s right, the microphone.
Wireless microphones are notorious for offering subpar qual-
ity due to bandwidth restrictions. Corsair has subverted this
by allowing the headset to utilize a much greater bandwidth
when plugged in via USB cable for near studio-quality when
recording. So, why wireless though, you ask? Why not just go
with a cheaper wired headset or a fixed microphone? All good
options, but let me ask you something. Have you ever been in
an hour-long podcast only to realize you forgot to get a drink?
Trust me, you will get parched. Editing a podcast for quality
control and really needed to use the restroom? Never fear!
Simply unplug and keep up with the current conversation or
mute your microphone to avoid any background noise and go
get that bottle of water or answer nature’s call, you deserve it!
CHOOSING YOUR
MIC
If you’re podcasting on a
budget, then look no further
than the Blackweb Premium
USB Recording Microphone
($24.88). At such a reasonable
price, this microphone allows
you to start your venture into
the podcast world without
breaking the bank. That being
said, as the time-worn cliché
goes, “You get what you pay
for.” If you’re looking for a
higher-quality microphone
that doesn’t pick up popping
and static, then this is not the
mic for you. If you don’t mind
purchasing an additional pop
shield or spending a few extra
minutes touching up the sound, then go ahead and make this
purchase. If you want to spend a little bit more, the Blue Yeti
USB Mic ($149) is the way to go. It produces a clear and crisp
sound that requires minimal editing after recording a show.
Controls and mechanics are easy to learn and understand. No
wonder it is so highly used among podcasters and streamers
alike. Ѷ
Jared Dicks is a husband and father of three who is a nerd at heart. In his free time
you’ll find him at the movie theater or working hard with his buddies on their Club
XP Podcast.
THE DEFINITIVE BUYER’S
GUIDE FOR SMART HOME
SECURITY
MINIMIZE THE HASSLE, MAXIMIZE SAFETY
AND PRIVACY
BY DAVID AVERBACH
I
n 1982, researchers at Carnegie Mellon
connected a Coca-Cola vending machine
to the internet and created the world’s first
smart appliance. The “smart vending
machine” could report its inventory and
whether or not the drinks were cold. It
wasn’t until the rise of smartphones,
however, that the so-called internet of things
(IoT) became ubiquitous. By the end of last
year, there were 8 billion IoT devices and
that number is projected to grow to 41
billion by 2027, according to Business
Insider’s Internet of Things 2020 report.
Despite the fact that nearly 40 years have passed since a
Carnegie Mellon researcher invented the first IoT device, the
market is still in the early stages and appeals mostly to early
adopters and tech lovers. Most IoT devices for consumers are
in the smart home space and are relatively expensive and dif-
ficult to set up. Internet-connected devices in the home se-
curity sector are particularly useful, though. Traditional home
security systems have historically been expensive and difficult
to install, and smart home ones can actually be cheaper and
easier to install yourself.
I’ve spent the last few months testing smart home security
products and have picked out the best ones for iPhone own-
ers. I live in a quiet neighborhood in a small town, so I’m in
a very safe area (many of my neighbors don’t even lock their
doors). Yet my house is now laughably secure. I have two
security systems running simultaneously and a security cam-
era in every corner (five, to be exact). Before sharing product
recommendations, I want to go over a few considerations for
anyone considering investing in smart home security devices.
CHECK FOR HOMEKIT
COMPATIBILITY
If you own an iPhone, one of the most important factors
when shopping for a smart home device should be whether
or not it’s HomeKit compatible. HomeKit is Apple’s software
framework that lets you control smart home devices from
your Apple devices. Most smart home products come with
companion apps, but that means you have to use a different
app for each product you own. With HomeKit, you can control
everything through Apple’s Home app or by using Siri. The
best part? You can create automations that work between
multiple brands of accessories. For example, when I walk up
my front steps, my Home app automatically unlocks the door,
disables my security system, adjusts the temperature, and
turns on the lights. These types of integrations aren’t possible
with products that aren’t HomeKit compatible.
SET ASIDE TIME FOR SETUP
& MAINTENANCE
Smart home products have come a long way, but they’re
still not as easy to set up and use as the manufacturers would
have you believe. I had installation issues with pretty much
every product I tested, which required more fussing with than
I expected. You’ll be able to set up all of these products on
your own, but be prepared to invest time in troubleshooting.
If you get stuck, you can generally find YouTube tutorials that
are helpful.
MINIMIZE PRIVACY RISKS
When it comes to smart homes, security and privacy are
often at odds with one another. While a smart home device
may secure your home, it’s connected to the internet and can
therefore be vulnerable to hackers. This is particularly
concerning when the device is a camera inside your house or
an accessory that tracks whether or not you’re home. While
you can never completely eliminate the risks, you can take
steps to protect your privacy while also securing your home.
Most importantly, purchase home security products from
trusted brands. Be very cautious before buying any knockoff
products on Amazon. Next, make sure your router is pass-
word protected so that strangers can’t connect to your Wi-Fi
network. Apple now offers a security protocol for routers that
adds an extra layer of protection for smart home products.
When purchasing a router, check to make sure it is HomeKit
compatible. Also, make sure you are using secure passwords
on all of your smart home products’ companion apps. Place
your security cameras in shared living spaces and be tactful
about where you place the devices so that visitors feel
comfortable. Finally, be cautious about who you grant access
to your Home or companion apps. Most of the devices stream
over the cloud, so if someone knows your password, they can
access your device remotely.
Apple now has a protocol for security cameras called
HomeKit Secure Video, which processes the footage locally
and encrypts it before uploading it to the cloud. This means
that not even Apple has access to the security footage. Only
a few select brands support HomeKit Secure Video (one of
which is included in this roundup with the Netatmo security
camera).
There’s also growing concern around how much access
the government has to these devices. The Washington Post
reports that Amazon-owned security company Ring has
partnered with over 400 US police forces to allow local law
enforcement to access security footage from Ring’s cameras
without a warrant. The company does require that law
enforcement request the footage, however, and the Ring
owner can refuse to provide it. Whether or not you approve of
these types of partnerships, any time you have an internet-
controlled camera in your home, you are opening yourself up
to a host of privacy concerns. A 2018 investigation by The
Information revealed that Ring provided its engineers in
Ukraine virtually unlimited access to private users’ Ring
security footage. I’ve tested every product in this roundup in
my own home and have avoided all Ring products in favor of
products with a strong reputation for protecting your privacy.
I also chose security cameras that offer features such as local
storage and encryption. With all this in mind, here are the
best products to make your home more secure:
iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 53
 automations. However, I found Simplisafe to be much sim-
pler to set up and use than Abode. The complexity of Abode
meant that I spent hours fussing with the settings, whereas
I installed and set up Simplisafe within a half hour. As with
Abode, Simplisafe allows you customize your security system
and offers a wide range of security devices that integrate with
its system. It also offers professional monitoring for a monthly
subscription fee. I ultimately decided to keep the Abode over
SUPPORTS Simplisafe thanks to the automations, but if you don’t want to
HOMEKIT spend time fussing with setup and customizations, Simplisafe
is a great option.

SUPPORTS
HOMEKIT
Abode Iota All-in-One Security Kit
($229)
Abode offers HomeKit-compatible security systems that
you can set up yourself. Thanks to HomeKit integrations, I set
up rules so that my system automatically switches modes
to Away when I’ve left the house and to Home when I re-
turn. HomeKit compatibility also lets me integrate with other
HomeKit-compatible devices. For example, I can activate the
alarm when the camera senses motion. This all-in-one security
kit has a base station that comes with a security camera and
a motion sensor built in. I found this to be really convenient as August Smart Lock Pro
opposed to Simplisafe, which requires you to install all three ($279.99)
of those devices individually. You can customize your security This product from August fits over your existing lock. It
system to include additional security cameras, doorbell cams, connects to your iPhone via Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to make sure
broken glass sensors, and more. For $20/month, you can add your door automatically locks when you leave the house and
professional monitoring to your security system. This means unlocks when you return home. The lock is HomeKit compat-
that when the alarm system is triggered, you’ll get a call from ible too, so you can integrate it with your other smart home
Abode, and if you don’t confirm your safety, they’ll contact devices. I set it to automatically turn off my security system
local law enforcement. I once accidentally triggered my alarm and turn on my porch light (which is a smart light) when I un-
and law enforcement showed up at my house within five min- lock the door. August also makes a companion video doorbell
utes, which I found to be very comforting. and security keypad. I recommend getting both of these so
that visitors and houseguests have easy access to your home.

Netatmo Smart Indoor

Camera
SUPPORTS ($199.99)
HOMEKIT This excellent all-around
SECURE indoor security camera is
VIDEO one of the first to take
advantage of HomeKit
Secure Video, which
encrypts footage before uploading it
to iCloud. The main feature that sets it
apart is its built-in artificial intelligence
(AI) facial recognition technology, which
lets you train it to recognize family
and regular visitors. This is useful for a
couple of reasons. First of all, you can
see at a glance which family members
Simplisafe Essentials Security System are home and which ones are away.
($207) Secondly, it can differentiate between
Simplisafe is arguably the industry leader in DIY home se- someone who’s supposed to be in your
curity kits. It is not HomeKit compatible, which means you home and someone who isn’t. One of
can’t integrate it with other smart home devices or build any the annoying things about smart secu-

54 iPh on e L if e Su m m er 2 02 0
rity cameras is that you’re usually putting them in high traffic
areas and so the motion sensor is triggered constantly. You
end up receiving a huge number of notifications throughout
the day. Having a security camera that sends me notifications
only when an unidentified person is in my home is conve-
nient. The camera is easy to set up and shockingly accurate at
identifying people. Netatmo also has an outdoor camera and
smart doorbell with the same facial recognition technology.
at your door and a tree blowing in the breeze, cutting down on
notifications for false alarms. Eufy also streams in 2K, which
is very convenient for identifying which packages the mailman
has left at your house that day. As I’m sure you can predict by
now, Eufy is HomeKit compatible so you can stream the video
directly from your Home app and integrate it with other smart
home devices. Eufy doesn’t charge an additional fee for cloud
storage of security cameras and allows for local storage for
greater privacy.

SUPPORTS
HOMEKIT

Arlo Ultra Wireless Security System

($399.99)
Arlo is one of the top HomeKit-compatible security camera
brands. The Arlo Ultra is packed with useful features. The cam-
era is 4K, has color night vision, and has a built-in spotlight. I
get a notification on my phone whenever the camera senses
motion (you can customize this feature) and it stores the vid-
eo in the app to review if needed. The camera automatically
zooms when triggered to get a better view of the object in
question. The camera was dead simple for me to set up. It’s
wireless, so it doesn’t require an electrician to install and only
took one screw to mount it outside. The Ultra is Arlo’s top- Pony the Great Dane
of-the-line camera, but it’s pretty expensive, especially if you (Priceless)
want several of them around your house. If you want a cheap- Pony may not put the smart in smart home (Great Danes
er option, the Arlo 3 recently added HomeKit compatibility and are the 88th smartest dog breed), but what she lacks in intel-
has a similar feature set to the Ultra. ligence she makes up for with her intimidating bark and over-
sized body. A recent study surveyed imprisoned burglars and
Eufy Video Doorbell found that most criminals will avoid a house with a large dog.
($159.99) Pony’s the only part of my home security system that could
I enjoy how my smart fight back. In reality, she’d cower in fear, but they don’t know
doorbell allows me to see that . . . Ѷ
SUPPORTS
who’s ringing my doorbell
HOMEKIT even when I’m upstairs
David Averbach is the CEO and Publisher of iPhone Life magazine. David has an obses-
or not at home and talk sion with all things Apple. He grew up on Macs and now has a MacBook Pro, iPhone,
to visitors via the built-in iPad, Apple TV, and an Apple Watch. David enjoys traveling and Ultimate Frisbee. He
mic and speaker. My video has been to over 20 countries. To contact David, email him at David@iphonelife.com.
doorbell also serves as a
security camera for my
front door and notifies me
if there’s any motion out-
side. Unlike a lot of smart
doorbells, Eufy uses arti-
ficial intelligence to differ-
entiate between a person

iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 55

Small Phone,
Big Business
How to Manage Your Business from
Your Pocket
by Kenneth Boshell Mavo/shutterstock
I
’m back in school for a business degree and just easy to use as PayPal, with almost the exact same steps.
took a course where students run a very small It gives you three customization options and offers the
venture using only $20 in startup capital. I chose clients multiple ways to pay, including credit cards. I think this
3D printing because it was already a hobby of is an excellent option for businesses that are more service-
mine and a bottle of resin was only twenty bucks. based than product-based, but it works great for either.
I named my company Jax 3D Prints, and it’s done
pretty well so far for a side hustle conducted for
school. We sell miniatures for things like Dungeons and
Dragons and custom parts that are usually more expensive, Make It Look Professional
like washing machine knobs, at reasonable prices.
While I can’t tell you how to start a business from scratch When you start a busi-
and maximize profits, I can tell you about the apps I use to ness, one of the minimum
power my own small business. I’ll cover how to manage steps you need to take is to
various parts of your business through your phone, as well as create a logo. There are a lot
your own sanity. (As it turns out, running a small business is a of apps that can do that, but
drain on your mental wellbeing.) I hope the apps I’ve included Canva (free, $12.99/month
will help you as much as they’ve helped me. Every single app for premium) is my favorite.
I’ve used has made my life and business much easier to run It is the easiest way to de-
than anything else I’ve done. sign graphics on your phone,
hands down. You can design
it on the fly, using profes-
Get Paid sionally designed templates
created by Canva’s in-house
team of designers.
To do this, just click New,
then click the logo. You’ll
have a bunch of templates to
choose from (I chose a very
simple one because I’m not
a very fancy dude), and then
just tap to edit. It’s as simple
as that.
Once you’ve made your logo, you’re ready to make a
business card. Follow the same steps, except choose
Business Card, and use the logo you just created or pick from
the pre-designed templates.
You can also create specific things for your Facebook page,
manage your Facebook stories and Instagram posts, and other
useful assets. Canva’s Stories section for your social media is a
wonder to behold. This app is at the forefront of what’s stylish
and trendy to maximize your social media engagement. Those
Aussies really know what they’re doing over there.

I love making money, and I love it when people buy things
from me that I’ve made. But how do you handle the exchange
online? I tried two apps, PayPal Business and Wave
Invoicing, both free and very easy to use.
PayPal Business has been reliable, up-to-date, and profes-
sional in every regard. It makes it effortless to build an invoice,
and it’s fully integrated within the PayPal ecosystem. This level
of integration means that when you send an invoice, you get
paid via PayPal, and you can then quickly and easily transfer
that money to the bank if you have it set up.
To build a quick invoice, just tap the lightning arrow and
select Create Invoice. Then, fill out the contact info for the
client’s PayPal, click Add Item or Service, and fill in the details,
including price. Then click Next and select Send Invoice. It’s
quick and efficient.
The second app I tried, Wave Invoicing, is what you use for
a more professional and official-looking invoice. It’s just as
Social Media-Savvy Apps
Canva ties in very well with my social media management
app of choice, Buffer (free, $15–$99/month for premium).
Buffer’s raison d’être is to schedule social media posts to mul-
tiple accounts at predetermined times. Why does that matter?
It’s been proven that your reach is much better at certain times
of the day when more people are online. Buffer has preselect-
ed times available for you to post, which makes the process
easy.
To schedule posts, all you have to do is hit the plus sign, type
out a post, include a picture or flyer or other items, then hit the
plus sign at the top to add additional social media accounts to
publish under. Finally, hit Add to Queue at the bottom. I always
include a picture of the product, a flyer, or some other graphic
that I made in Canva (y’all seriously need to get on that Canva
train).

iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 57

 I found the free version of making sorting and organizing all your notes quick and easy.
Buffer to be all that was nec- It’s saved me several times by helping me to figure out my
essary. Still, if my business priorities and tasks through correct tag management. You
were more social media fo- can’t beat that level of detail while still having as lightweight
cused, I would recommend an app as Simplenote.
the $15/month upgrade just
for the Instagram features.
To ensure that we cover
all our bases, don’t forget
the basic social media and
professional accounts for a
small business: Facebook
and LinkedIn. Most small
businesses will also want
an Instagram account and
a Twitter handle in order
to maximize their online
presence. It seems over-
whelming to use all of those,
but don’t worry: Canva and
Buffer will be the best help
you could ask for in that regard. They’ve made it very easy to
manage any online presence.

Manage Your Time

I have a terrible problem
with time management. I
think a lot of us do. That’s
OK, though, because there’s
a lot of options out there to
help. My personal favorite
is Fantastical (free, $4.99/
month for premium). I’ve
written about it before when
it was completely free, but
Fantastical recently updated
to a subscription-based
model, which is disappoint-
ing. However, the free
version is still fantastic(al),
and it’s still my number one
pick over the Apple Calendar
app.
You can manage your cal-
endars (my record is eleven
different calendars) all in one
app, quickly add events, delete events, be reminded of birth-
days, and so much more. To add an event, click the plus sign
and fill out the details. It couldn’t be simpler.
Another thing you need when operating a small business is
a healthy mind. Running a business can be mentally, emotion-
ally, and physically draining. When I started, even as a small
business, the chaos it brought was terrible for my well-being.
Enter Headspace (free, $12.99/month for premium). A legit
ex-Buddhist Monk founded this company (go hear his story
on How I Built This with Guy Raz). The Basics course is free
for anyone to use, but all their other stuff is locked behind the
subscription. It’s all extremely high quality, and I’ve found it
to be critical to helping me fall asleep and develop a sense of
well-being.
Calm from Chaos
Someone once told me that starting a small business is
a bit like raising a toddler who never matures and is always
running around naked hyped on sugar. I think that’s relatively
appropriate and accurate. It’s critical that you be able to deal
with the chaos that a small business can bring, and these
apps will help you on that path. Ѷ
Kenneth Boshell is a freelance writer who lives in Florida. His finely honed skills include
finding great taco eateries, petting random cats, and hunting for the most delicious

Manage Your Self chocolate bar in the world. He has a ridiculously large pile of books to read, which he’d
get to if he could just put down the Black Company and Harry Potter for a moment.

I also have a terrible problem with remembering stuff. That’s

why I turn to Simplenote (free, $1.99/month for premium).
This is one of the best note apps I’ve ever used. It also acts
as a reminder app and to-do list manager, consolidating three
separate iOS apps into one lightweight, fast application. I love
how streamlined it is, too. It comes with tag management,

58 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
FEATURED iUSER:
MATT WYATT
Location: Rochester, New Hampshire
Bio: Matt Wyatt is a multimedia artist. His work includes abstract
expressionism, collage, and photography. In 2011, he cofounded
the Rochester Museum of Fine Arts (rochestermfa.org) and has
served as a member of Rochester’s Commission for Arts &
Culture since 2013.

Weebly: Our museum staff is comprised of art enthu-

siasts and volunteers, not web developers and graphic
designers. Weebly made it easy to build our website and
get information out to the public. Plus, it gives us easy
CSS access for customization. We especially appreciate the ability
to incorporate the Weebly Store into what we do. All of our online
donations are made through the website and deposited directly into
our bank account. It couldn’t be easier.

Wyze: The Rochester Museum of Fine Arts (RMFA) exists

entirely in public spaces. Our exhibits are located in the
community center and public library. They are largely self-
serve locations staffed by city employees. To keep the art
secure, we utilize several Wyze cameras to keep a record of people
coming and going to our shows. You can’t be everywhere at once,
but we feel a lot more comfortable with their products on site.

Pixpro 360 VR Remote Viewer: We use a Kodak 360 VR

camera to archive every show in our two galleries. This app
is perfect for creating virtual reality footage that is easy to
share and post to social media. We love having the ability
to make our exhibits easier for people with accessibility issues or
who are not living in New Hampshire.

Square POS: Square works perfectly with Weebly, so we

use Square POS for RMFA public events. Occasionally
a patron will want to make a contribution or become a
member, and Square makes it easy and secure to make a
payment, so we can go back to focusing on the event.

iMovie: I can’t say enough about iMovie on the iPhone and

Mac. As an artist and volunteer, I love using the app to edit
videos and put together short movies to market our exhibi-
tions and public art projects. I’ve been using iMovie since
my first Mac, a ruby iMac G3.

i P hone L ife Su mmer 202 0 59

 GRILL OUT &
CHILL OUT!
PLAN, DECORATE & COOK WITH
THESE FLAVORSOME APPS
BY HALLEI HALTER squarelogo/shutterstock

G
reat weather means you and everyone you know are craving summertime favorite foods—especially barbecue! Grilling
out is a great option for a quiet dinner or a party. If you’re hosting, you can plan a meal for two or pitch in for a
potluck-style blowout. While food is the main star of every barbecue, I’ve also provided apps to make it easier to get the
ball rolling for drinks, music, and decorations. If you want to enjoy the results of some thoughtful planning, try these apps
to get some “OMG!” comments at your next grill out.

Epicurious
(Free)
This recipe app features
appetizing photography
and has Backyard BBQ as a
search filter for dishes you
can roast, grill, and wow
your guests with. It even
includes drinks that pair
well with any warm-
weather menu. Bon Appétit
owns Epicurious, so you
know the recipes are top-
notch. The instructions are
easy to follow (so don’t be
intimidated by anything that
looks fancy), and you can
add the ingredients to an
in-app shopping list for a
speedy trip to the grocery
store. Epicurious also
includes videos such as
how to chop certain
vegetables.
Pinterest
(Free)
Barbecues can be great
for birthday parties, roman-
tic dinners, or any celebra-
tion that brings people to-
gether. If you want to have
a fun theme or certain look
for your BBQ, Pinterest
can help you visualize. You
can find images to ”pin”
to your board to keep track
of inspiration for things like
decor, menu, and more.
Having trouble deciding
whether to go with tiki
torches or string lights?
Want to see a comparison
between gingham and solid
tablecloths? Do you like to
browse BBQ party themes
just because? Pinterest
provides millions of photos
and boards from its users. And you have the option to make

60 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
your boards private, so no one will know about your dream
quasi-medieval BBQ involving archery and Legolas costumes
unless you want them to.
Tasty
(Free)
Tasty is perfect for visual
learners, as each recipe
comes with a short video
showing ingredients and in-
structions for each step. If
you’ve ever been confused
by a recipe, these quick
follow-along videos can
keep you from cooking up
frustration. Buzzfeed owns
Tasty, so you’ll also find
articles like “14 Best Food
Hacks” that you may find
useful for your BBQ, if only
to bring it up in conversa-
tion with your guests. Tasty
also partners with Walmart,
so when you add ingredi-
ents to the in-app shopping
list, you’ll have the option
to pick up your groceries
curbside with Walmart Grocery Pickup.
Drink Recipes-Fruit Juices
(Free)
Are you most excited
about the drinks at the
party? Or do you struggle
to think of something other
than pre-made lemonade?
This app is stuffed with
drink recipes (both alco-
holic and non-alcoholic) to
keep the party refreshed.
Drinks are nicely catego-
rized by type, so you can
browse the photos and get
drawn in by titles like Rose-
mary Infused Watermelon
Lemonade. Users upload
recipes, so the clarity of
instructions varies, but you
can also look at comments
or reviews for help. The app
does not have an ad-free
version, so you may have
to watch ads before using certain features like adding to the
in-app shopping list.
Spotify Stations
(Free, $9.99/month for
Premium)
Don’t want the pressure
of creating a playlist? Spo-
tify Stations offers curated
options like Jazz or Pop-
Punk that have taken hints
from what music you’ve
liked on Spotify if you’ve
already set up an account.
You can also browse sta-
tions by genre or mood to
get the right party atmo-
sphere with the ability to
connect to another device
like a speaker. You and your
guests can enjoy music
without any embarrassed
or frantic skipping. You will
have to create an account
to use this app, and a pre-
mium version is available
for ad-free, on-demand listening.
Cozi Family Organizer
(Free, $29.99/year for
Premium)
Whether you’re a
one-person party planner
or you’ve got a multiplayer
planning team, Cozi can
help you organize your next
casual backyard dinner or
Hallmark movie-level family
reunion. You’ll be able to
share shopping lists, assign
tasks, and keep everyone
in the loop. Each user can
access the app via their
email and a shared family
password. Each user will
see what everyone else
sees, so no one will miss
out on any changes. You
can also pair Cozi with Goo-
gle or Apple Calendar. The
journal feature also allows
you to share posts privately with another family member. Go
premium for more reminder options and no ads.
With these apps, you’ll be able to host, cook, and decorate
your BBQ party like a professional. Even for a casual meal,
you’ll be getting compliments on your dishes or musical taste.
Enjoy the summer weather and keep the conversation going
by bragging about how the recipes weren’t that hard, really. Ѷ
Hallei Halter is currently a freelance writer & petsitter in Fairfield, Iowa.
iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 61
5 APPS FOR THE DEAF &
HARD OF HEARING
BY LOGAN WALDO
T
he iPhone as most people know it is not the
same device when it’s in my hands. As a deaf
person, my iPhone serves as a tool for accessing
a whole new world. Some of the apps that hear-
ing people use daily for recreational or profession-
al purposes are apps I rely on to communicate
with other people and to make my life more comfortable. In
this article, I’ll highlight five of my favorite iPhone applications
that make my life easier in every way.
I’ll start off with number five,
UberEats (free). Ordering food may
seem like a simple task, but it often
becomes complicated for me. When
I use interpreters to call a restaurant,
they often relate the order perfectly,
but they’re bound to make mistakes
sometimes. These mistakes often
cost me my order, or a detail or two
goes missing. Using UberEats, I can ensure that my order is
served without any complications. I’m also able to communi-
cate with the driver using a chat option in the app, rather than
having to call through an interpreter. It has made my life much
easier, just by cutting out the hassle of communicating with
restaurant staffers.
Here comes number four, Ava
(free); it’s an app that translates spo-
ken English into readable text. Ava
has served me well in meetings with
hearing people. What I like about Ava
is that it doesn’t charge you for min-
imal use; but of course, if you use it
daily for professional purposes, it’s
worth the investment as you’ll save
the cost of using interpreters. This preference varies from
person to person, but for me, the app does the job. Since
I’m able to gesture, read lips, and so on, Ava is often the only
tool I need to collect information during live meetings. This
app works just as well for one-on-one conversations with my
hearing family members. Unlike other apps that make a lot of
errors, Ava is super impressive with its ability to relay words.
For example, my roommate, who is also deaf, works at the
National Institute of Health, and says Ava is able to skillfully
relay the scientific terms he uses daily as part of his job.
Number three on my list is
Convo (free), a video-calling app that
deaf people use to relay their calls
through sign-language interpreters.
Convo is also deaf-owned, which is a
huge plus because the owners know
exactly what kinds of barriers we
face when using interpreters and
relay services. Convo has proven
to be superior in many ways, from the interpreting to the
aesthetic of the app. The only reason I put Convo as number
three on my list is because I usually use my laptop or TV for
video calling, so I don’t need my phone for it. I use Convo
once a week or so, depending on how many calls I need to
make.
This app can also literally be a lifesaver. About a year ago,
I was in an accident that totaled my truck. The only way for
me to communicate with authorities was by using Convo. The
interpreter surpassed my expectations and helped me confi-
dently maneuver through my first accident. It’s really helpful
to have such a reliable app when making an emergency call,
especially in life-threatening situations.
Coming in a close number two is
Big (free). The app is designed to
enlarge your text to the maximum
size possible so you can confidently
type to communicate without having
to adjust the text size. I use Big daily
for this reason. Often, I come across
people who left their reading glasses
at home, and Big comes in super
handy. Another nice thing about Big is that it saves receipts
of your texts so you can review them. If I made an order at a
restaurant and liked how the food tasted, I can easily make
the exact same order. This app is nice for every little conversa-
tion; from a person you’re sitting next to on the plane, to your
potential boss in an interview.
Coming in strong in first place is
FaceTime (free). If you’ve ever tried
video calling with other applications,
you’ll know that they can generally
lag due to all the live data they’re
transferring to the other phone.
Since sign language uses a lot of
motion, it requires a strong connec-
tion. A lot of apps can’t handle this.
On the contrary, FaceTime has almost always been reliable
to use for video calling. I use it when I call my parents or
grandparents because it gives me the ability to read their lips
while we’re on a call. It’s a super useful app that has earned
the trust of most deaf people. I would say I use FaceTime
anywhere from five to twenty times a day. I live with three
other deaf people, including my girlfriend, and we FaceTime
with each other to communicate. There’s something so natural
about FaceTiming other deaf people. Being able to use sign
language versus texting is a true advantage. You are able to
see emotions, facial expressions, and signs while chatting.
This makes all the difference, and for that, I have to thank
Apple. Group calling is also an option now, which is great
for deaf families who now can all join one call. Being able to
talk face to face can’t compare to using interpreters or text
messages. Call me on FaceTime, and I’ll teach you some sign
language! Ѷ
Logan Waldo is an avid outdoorsman from southern Minnesota who now lives in
Washington, D.C. He enjoys reading and writing about entrepreneurship, politics,
accessibility, and deaf culture.
iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 63
 Home
in a
Hurry!
UfwcNÀJfwVWuÀBcNbf~PNXcu’BWfwrPXc
`PršuWBcu’bfcuWšÅPqPޚWfœNXNXu
J¡PccPuWfrWP``
you want to buy a home? Learn from my
)’À mistakes and the occasional decent deci-
sion as I lead you down the path to buy-
ing a home with the help of your iPhone.
My wife and I were married three months
before we received a financial windfall and felt an urge to
settle down into a home. It took us two months to find, buy,
and move into an adorable little home in a cute neighborhood
of my home city. We experienced a lot of frustration as we
navigated buying a home for the first time, but we made it
through everything, including an Ikea trip after we moved in!
Pu7fwqXcBcKPšXcqNPq
Before you get into the
home-buying game, make
sure you’re able to provide
a down payment. For first-
time home buyers, this can
be as little as 3 percent of
the value of a home. For
second home purchases
and beyond, you’ll need a
lot more money for a down
payment. You’ll also need a
good faith payment (a.k.a.
earnest money) of at least
one thousand dollars to
show you’re serious about
buying a particular piece of
property. The amount of this
payment will vary, and you
get it back if for any reason
you or the seller backs out
of the transaction.
To get your finances in check, you can use a budget app like
my personal favorite You Need a Budget ($7/month), Mint
(free), or financial guru Dave Ramsey’s app EveryDollar (free,
$9.99/month for Plus). Following Ramsey’s methods got me
totally out of debt in under six months. Then, save up for that
down payment and ensure your finances are ready for a thor-
ough review by your bank.
Is your credit score not the best? That’s okay. There are a
number of apps out there to help you raise your credit score,
including CreditKarma (free) and Lending Tree (free). Of
course, the most important way to raise your credit is to get
out of debt and stay out of debt, and the budget apps men-
tioned above can help you do that.
XcNB(PB`ruBuPĘVPcu
The first and most important thing, especially if you’re new
to home buying, is to find a real estate agent. An agent can
help guide you through the process, giving you peace of mind.
Their services are free of charge unless you actually purchase
a home, at which time they take a percentage of the home
price as a commission (usually 6 percent), which comes from
the proceeds of the home sale.
How do you find a good agent? Simple! Ask around. Ask
friends and family or even post on Facebook groups. You’re
guaranteed to find several recommendations just by asking.
Get a Preapproval Letter
The second thing you’ll need to do is to get a preapproval
letter from your chosen mortgage lender. What this preap-
proval letter does is provide the sellers with a more solid guar-
antee of financial backing, so that they don’t go through the
process of selling their home to a buyer who can’t come up
with the money.
The easiest way I’ve found is to go to Lending Tree (free)
and fill out your information. You’ll receive a number of offers
based on the information you’ve given. Don’t fret about your
choices here, just be upfront about what you can afford, and
then later on in the process you’ll come back to your lender
and can adjust numbers up or down.
Others have found Notes (preinstalled) or Simplenote
(free) to be of tremendous help in this process. With those
apps, you can scan, fill out, sign, and even fax documents
to your lender during this somewhat extensive process. This
all depends on your lender though; some have specialty pro-
grams or secured documents that do not work with those
apps.
Find a Home
If you’re doing the house hunt by yourself, you’ve got three
apps on your side for total coverage of your intended search
area: Zillow, Trulia, and Realtor.com (all free). You would also
be surprised at how many great homes you can find listed on
Facebook, but those are normally listed by owner.
i P hone L ife Su mmer 202 0 65
 home improvement projects. It even tells you which aisle and
section to find a particular item in your local store.
Next up is the free Ikea app (get a family card if you can). If
you don’t live near an Ikea, you can always go to Walmart, but
I like Ikea more. The best strategy I can give you for Ikea is to
make a list, stick to it, and make sure you either print out the
list by tapping “Sort by location in self-service area” or take
screenshots of the locations of items on the app. You’ll fre-
quently lose cell service in the store.

Zillow, Trulia, and Realtor.com all offer similar experiences,

although I’ve found Zillow to be the most accurate and up to
date, as every listing from a realtor feeds directly into the app.
You’ll normally type in an area or move the map around to
show an area to search for. You’ll then adjust several variables,
including price and how many bedrooms and bathrooms you
want. You can also search by square footage of the home, the
lot size, and more options that vary by app, but are of much
less importance.

%`BccXc7fwqf~P
So you’ve bought the home of your dreams? Fantastic!
Now you have to move. I strongly recommend taking inven-
tory of your belongings while you’re packing. Not only will
this help with your move, it will be useful in case something
unforeseen happens and you need to make a home insurance
claim.
Let’s talk about making lists first. In the past, I used Apple’s
Reminders and Notes apps, but then I tried Any.do (free, $3/
month) and Simplenote (free) and can’t go back. They would
have made the move even easier, considering how quick and
versatile they are compared to the stock apps.
One list I recommend making is for night one in your new
home. This should include things like a toothbrush and change
of clothes. Don’t get caught trying to hunt through boxes to
find something; pre-pack it all in an easy-to-access box.
PUfqP7fwf~PXc
Ikea also has an app called Ikea Place (free) that lets you
visualize where all your new furniture should go before the
heavy lifting happens. Pre-planned is prepared! This app is
Ikea-specific but excellently made. RoOomy (Free) is a great
alternative if the flat-pack isn’t your thing. This app functions
similarly, turning pictures of your home into augmented reality
on your screen, enabling you to drag and drop furniture direct-
ly into your digital living space. All of the products listed on
the app are for sale from Wayfair, Crate & Barrel, Target, and
other suppliers.
Good Luck!
With these tips, you’ll find that home buying doesn’t have
to be a stressful process. As long as you plan everything out,
get a real estate agent, and be honest about your finances
(go for the 30-year fixed and pay an additional payment every
year), you too can get into the home of your dreams and do it
smoothly. Ѷ

Before you move into your new home, clean the house or Kenneth Boshell is a freelance writer who lives in Florida. His finely honed skills include
hire a cleaning service to do it for you. Seriously, do a deep finding great taco eateries, petting random cats, and hunting for the most delicious
clean. You’ll feel a lot better about it after. Then do any small chocolate bar in the world. He has a ridiculously large pile of books to read, which he’d
home improvement projects that will be a hassle to do after get to if he could just put down the Black Company and Harry Potter for a moment.
you move in. One of the best things I did was switch out all
of my outlets for child-proof ones from Lowe’s. Lowe’s (free)
has a well-organized app that helps you find all the hardware
and appliances you need in order to finish those small (or big)

66 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
 CHARGING

Scosche BaseLynx
Modular Charging
System (Starting at
$49.99)
The BaseLynx
stood out among a
sea of charging sta-
tions at CES because
it lets you mix and

BEST OF
match charging mod-
ules for the iPhone,
Apple Watch, and
AirPods in order to

CES
create the perfect
custom charging
station for your gear. Another advantage is that you can
eliminate the chaos of multiple cables by charging through a
single AC power cable.

STM ChargeTree
($79.95)
As we accumulate
more devices and

2020
chargers, desktop
and nightstand real
estate can become
scarce. That’s why we
appreciate the vertical
approach that STM
took when design-
ing the ChargeTree.
The ChargeTree can
power an iPhone,
Apple Watch, and Air-
Pods, all in the same
amount of space as
a charging dock for a

THE COOLEST IPHONE TECH

single phone!

FROM THIS YEAR’S

Mophie
Powersta-

CONSUMER ELECTRONICS SHOW

tion Go
($159.95)
Every
BY THE IPHONE LIFE TEAM glove com-
partment
should have
a portable car

E
very year, we search the halls of the Consumer
Electronics Show in Las Vegas for the best new
technology for the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch.
This year, we saw all kinds of amazing tech
(driverless cars! Smart fridges!) and sometimes
puzzling products (a robot that brings you toilet paper? A
hands-free carry-on that follows you through the airport?). The
following awards go to the coolest and most useful iOS gear
we discovered on the show floor.
battery jumper. This 44400 mWh, compact, portable car
jumper by Mophie can easily jump a full-size car or SUV.
But it’s no regular car jumper! It can also charge iPhones or
other mobile devices via its two USB-A ports or Qi wireless
charging pad on top. It also comes with a 115V AC power
outlet to charge a laptop and an LED flashlight. All of this is
enough to make the Powerstation Go a standout product. It is
also surprisingly stylish for such a utilitarian item, with a sleek
design and attractive color options.

68 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
IPAD
Brydge Pro+ Wire-
less Keyboard with
Trackpad (Starting
at $199.99)
Brydge is
known for making
high-quality
wireless keyboards
for the iPad and
iPad Pro. With the
Pro+, Brydge has
added a trackpad
to its wireless keyboards (they accomplished this by cleverly
taking advantage of the new iPadOS feature that lets users
pair a Bluetooth mouse with their iPad). The Brydge keyboards
are compatible with 11-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pros. The Pro+
Wireless Keyboard with Trackpad stands out by bringing the
iPad Pro that much closer to being the laptop that Apple
wants it to be.
AUDIO
Belkin Soundform
Elite Hi-Fi Smart
Speaker + Wireless
Charger ($299.99)
Belkin has
partnered with the
audio experts at
Devialet to create a
smart speaker with
impressive sound
and fast wireless charging capabilities. Devialet’s vibration-
canceling technology (called “Push Push”) makes it possible
to wirelessly charge a phone without it moving around
because of speaker vibrations. The Soundform Elite currently
works with Google Assistant, and Belkin will release models
that work with AirPlay 2 and Alexa later this year.
Audio Technica ATH-WP900
($650)
With all the focus on
Bluetooth, noise canceling,
and true wireless earbuds, it
can be easy to lose sight of the
actual sound quality offered
by an excellent pair of head-
phones. If you are an
audiophile looking for a
sublime listening experience,
the ATH-WP900 over-ear
headphones could be just
what you’re looking for. These
headphones offer crystal clear,
hi-res audio with a beautiful
and incredibly comfortable maple wood-accented design.
FOR FUN
DJI Mavic Mini ($399)
When it comes to
drones, you mostly have
two choices—buy the
$20 one that teeters a
few feet off the ground
before dive-bombing
or invest thousands of
dollars in the real deal.
That’s why the Mavic
Mini caught our eye
on the show floor. It’s
reasonably priced, fits in one hand, and has a high-resolution
camera (2.7K video) and top-notch flying features including
stabilized hovering. We got to test fly the Mini, and found the
controls allowed her to glide smoothly in any direction, open-
ing up possibilities for all kinds of cinematic videography. The
controller wraps around your phone and gives you a real-time
view from the drone’s perspective through the DJI Fly app,
so you can see what you’re capturing. Best of all, the Mini
weighs 249 grams, which means it comes in just light enough
that you don’t have to register the drone with the Federal
Aviation Administration.
Celestron StarSense
Explorer Smartphone
App-Enabled
Telescopes (Starting at
$179.95)
The new Celestron
StarSense Explorer
telescopes solves our
biggest problem with
stargazing—finding
celestial bodies in the
sky. You simply calibrate
the app with the mount
on the telescope and
you’ll be looking at planets and nebulae in minutes.
SLEEP TECH
Hatch Restore
The team at Hatch has
made it their mission to
help parents create good
sleep habits for their
children and now they’ve
turned their attention to
helping adults get a good
night sleep too. Restore is a
combination of all the
different things you might combine in your quest for a better
night sleep: sunlight alarm, white noise machine, and reading
light. All of these features combine to help users build the
best possible sleep routine.
iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 69
CASES
Incipio Organicore Case for
iPhone 11 & 11 Pro ($39.99)
Climate change is a serious
concern for most of us. If you’re
looking for ways to lessen your
impact on the environment, here’s
one possibly unexpected way:
with a biodegradable iPhone case
from Incipio! This stylish case,
made from plants instead of
plastic, offers drop protection up
to 6 feet and works with wireless
charging. And when you no longer
need the case, you can compost it
instead of throwing it in the trash!
HEALTH
Withings ScanWatch (Price
TBA)
Withings has impressed us
in the past with its other smart
health tracking devices such
as the Body+ smart scale and
wireless smart blood pressure
monitor, but this might be its
most impressive product yet.
Unlike most fitness trackers and
smart watches, the ScanWatch
looks like nothing more than
an attractive wristwatch. But in
addition to its stylish and
classic design, this watch not
only tracks its wearer’s heart rate, it is also the only smart-
watch that scans for sleep apnea. Other features include
smart notifications, automatic activity tracking, waterproof
capability up to 50 meters, and an impressive 30-hour battery
life. It requires your iPhone for GPS functionality and works
with most popular fitness tracking apps.
Glutrac Glucose Monitor
Some of the most excit-
ing tech at CES promises
to greatly improve health
outcomes for its users. This
medical wearable aims to
give users non-invasive,
continuous glucose moni-
toring. If this product gets
FDA approval, this could
mean saying goodbye to
finger pricks and test strips.
Although approval is not a given, Glutrac has been shown to
measure glucose levels with 90 percent accuracy in clinical
trials. Glutrac works by measuring the wearer’s vital signals
and using the results to calculate glucose levels.
70 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
SMART HOME
Worx Landroid WR140 &
WR150 Cordless Robotic
Lawn Mowers (Starting at
$999.99)
Whether you’re a lawn-
care and tech enthusiast or
you’re someone who hates
devoting your free time to
yardwork, these smart pro-
grammable robot mowers
from Worx are sure to get
you as excited as we were
when we saw them at CES.
These mowers can be programmed to mow yards of up to
a quarter or half an acre respectively (you can figure out the
size of your yard with the companion app). The app can also
help you program mowing by zones and mowing schedules.
Safety sensors send the mower in a different direction when
it bumps into an object. The folks at the Worx booth assured
us that the mowers could easily handle uneven ground, tree
roots, and debris like walnuts and branches. Additional acces-
sories can be purchased separately to increase the
convenience and utility, such as obstacle-detecting sensors,
rainfall sensors (so you can program how often to mow based
on rainfall), a digital fence, and a Wi-Fi extender.
U by Moen Smart
Faucet
Baking bread? Prepar-
ing a bottle of formula?
Need water to boil for
pasta? The U by Moen
Smart Faucet can give
you the exact volume
of water you want at
the precise temperature
you need. You can even
use the companion app
to program the amounts and temperatures for things you do
frequently, like preparing baby bottles, so that you don’t need to
specify the volume and temperature every time. The app also
lets you monitor your water usage and customize the faucet’s
settings. This smart faucet work with Alexa and Google Assis-
tant (but not Siri, unfortunately), so you can use it even when
your hands are otherwise occupied. It also has a motion sensor
so you can start and stop the water with a wave of your hand.
Scan the QR code to read up on the
rest of the innovative companies
who won an award from iPhone
Life.
Note: While some award winners
are or have been iPhone Life
sponsors, the editorial selection
process was independent of our ad-
vertising department; we just really
liked those particular products. Ѷ
FEATURED iUSER:
LUCA SFORZA
Location: Seattle, Washington
Bio: Luca Sforza runs a real estate photography business in
Seattle called Lensit Studio. The world of real estate photography
has evolved in recent years to include video tours, drone
photography, and 3D virtual photos, and the apps on his iPhone
help Luca do it all.

Verizon My Numbers: This app allows me to add a

business phone number to my iPhone, so I know if a call is
to my personal or work number.

Acuity Scheduling: Clients can use this app to schedule

photoshoots directly from my website. I can set up
different appointment types, determine length of session,
and collect the information I need for the shoot.

Waze: My go-to GPS app lets me check how long it will

take to drive from one property to another at different
times of the day. It reminds me when to leave so I can
schedule shoots closer together to minimize wasted time.

PayByPhone Parking: This app saves me time and money

by allowing me to pay the minimum for parking and
sending me a reminder 10 minutes before my time is up.
If I need more time, I can add it right from my phone.

Sun Seeker: This app lets me track the position of the

sun at any time of the day or year. I use this app to plan
when to arrive at a photoshoot to get the best light.

Air Map: I use this app to register each flight and make
sure I comply with all laws and regulations regarding the
operation of my drone. It allows me to check things like
the airspace and restrictions on height at my location.

DJI Go 4: This is where the magic happens. When I

connect my phone to the drone’s controller, I can access
all of the settings and see what the drone sees. It has tons
of features, like orbiting a subject and capturing reveal
shots.

Matterport Capture: A big part of my business is reality

capture for real estate. I use this app to control my 3D
camera and create interactive 3D tours of properties.

i P hone L ife Su mmer 202 0 71

TAKE YOUR
TABLET
ON ANY
ADVENTURE
BY MIKE RILEY Cocoon SLIM XS Tablet Messenger
e-Holster Tablet Shoulder Holster
($34.95)
Designed for people on the go who
Sling
require quick access to their iPads, this
onsidering that ($49.99)
bag looks and wears just like those TV
the iPad Pro This economically priced tablet bag
cop shows with detectives holstering
costs more than can accommodate all iPad sizes up
their firearms under their shoulders.
many laptops to the 12.9-inch iPad Pro. Besides the
The adjustable shoulder strap ensures a
these days, it padded front slip pocket for the iPad,
comfortably snug fit, and the additional
makes good the Slim XS contains a back pocket with
arm strap helps to stabilize the holster
sense to protect a nifty system of interwoven elastic
further. The holster is the perfect size
it during transport straps that secure a variety of cables,
for an iPad or 9.7-inch iPad Pro, but
and while you’re power stations, and accessories. Find-
the newer and larger iPad Pro tablets
using it too. Thanks ing the right combination and orienta-
exceed the holster’s main pocket
to a flourishing eco- tion of your gear can be a fun, almost
dimensions. The front includes two
system of iPad gear, puzzle-like exercise. Once solved, the
additional pockets, one for your iPhone
you’ll find an array of Slim XS comes in handy for keeping the
and another zipped pocket to carry a
choices to match nearly every type of expanding myriad of iPad accessories
small number of cables, cash, or forms
mobile lifestyle and design statement quickly accessible and tightly secured
of identification. Unfortunately, neither
you need. for transport.
pocket is ideal for storing the iPad’s
bulky power cord, relegating it to a coat
pocket or other dedicated carrying case.

72 iPh on e L if e Su m m er 2 02 0

Pad and Quill TechFolio Pro Travel
Cord Organizer
($139.95)
This premium leather organizer
stores cables in an easy-to-access and
beautifully designed carrying case.
Ideal for the swank executive or tech
consultant looking to impress, this fully
loaded case folds nicely into a compact
container that easily fits into a purse,
backpack, or gadget bag. The only zip-
pers are located on two inside pockets
ideally sized to store power supplies.
Punch hole rivets hold everything in
place, elevating the organizer beyond
just another accessory bag. The easily
identifiable pouches make cable selec-
tion nearly instant; no more unraveling
a spaghetti bowl of tangled cables and
taking up valuable client interaction and
presentation time.
Otterbox Defender Series iPad Case
(Starting at $69.95)
The Defender Series is at its best in
unpredictable or harsh environments
such as a construction zone, campsite,
or the hands of a careless user. With
support for the iPad Mini all the way up
to the latest iPad Pro line, the Otterbox
Defender Series seals the iPad within
its protective inner shell while keeping
the screen safe with a touchscreen pro-
tector and a removable outer slipcover
that can double as a stand. This stand
also has a slot for the Apple Pencil so
you can keep both safe and secure.
The Defender tightly wraps around all
sides of the iPad, and even covers ports
such as the Lightning and headphone
jack via rubber plugs to keep any dust
or moisture out. However, the current
design does not have such a cover for
the Apple Smart connector, making it
impossible to use Apple’s Smart Key-
board with the Defender case. But if
you’re already using your iPad in harsh
working conditions, you’re unlikely to
be using it frequently with a delicate
Smart Keyboard anyway.
Supwatch Vintage Brown Crazy
Horse Cow Leather Large Capacity
Travel Backpack
($179.99)
This travel backpack sports several
zipper pockets on the outside and a
padded slide-in pouch with an elastic
top strap to secure the iPad inside. The
main pouch has plenty of space for ad-
ditional items and can even work as an
overnight bag for brief visits or business
trips. Supwatch also offers Apple Watch
bands made of the same leather as the
travel bag. Combining the travel bag
and watch band from Supwatch with
the TechFolio organizer can make quite
a tech fashion statement! Ѷ
Mike Riley, a professional software developer
and emerging information technologist, is the
author of Programming Your Home, published by
Pragmatic Bookshelf. Mike is also a contributing
editor and author of hundreds of technical articles
and reviews for a number of popular technology
publications. For more information, contact Mike via email at mike@
mikeriley.com and follow him on Twitter @mriley.
iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 73
 THE ECO
IPH ONE
TECH PRODUCTS
SHIFTING THE
INDUSTRY TOWARD
SUSTAINABILITY
BY HANNAH NICHOLS

I
t’s 2020. That means it is about time tech companies more sustainable design, you can charge the speaker with its
start to reduce their carbon footprints, create products built-in solar power charger. Reveal says many users use this
that are less disposable, and move toward a more speaker completely wirelessly, by keeping their speakers in
sustainable business model. Tech companies are the sunlight! It holds up to 15 hours of power, and you can
innovators. If they enter into the sustainability even plug your iPhone or iPad into the side to use it as a por-
movement, others will follow. As consumers, we can table charger.
support companies’ efforts by buying products that
meet our quality standards as well as sustainability Incipio Organicore
goals. Here are a few of my favorite iPhone accessories I’ve Biodegradable Case
found that can help address our sustainability concerns. ($39.99)
Not only is the
Organicore construct-
ed from plants and
compostable, but it’s
also an attractive and
functional case. This
is important to me,
because I don’t feel I
should have to sacrifice
on quality for sustain-
ability. To me, part of
being sustainable is
being useful over a
long period of time. I
Reveal Solar Bamboo Speaker am happy to report that the Organicore measures up. Incipio
($80) has drop tested the case up to 6 feet, and being that I’m 5’2”,
Reveal has a unique product in its bamboo speaker. Bam- I could probably spike my phone to the ground, and it’d be
boo is one of the most sustainable sources of wood available fine. Typically, I only drop my phone from about pocket height,
to us, and it looks sleek too. The speaker design is modern so I am definitely covered. It is also wireless charger-
without drawing unnecessary attention to itself. On top of a compatible, which is a plus.

74 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
 bag, Targus processes plastic into fiber and weaves it into fab-
ric for each backpack. You can store a laptop, iPad, and iPhone
easily in the commuter backpack’s various pockets.

Nimble 5-Day Fast Portable Charger

($89.95)
Nimble is killing it with this charger. Again, I am a stickler
who doesn’t want to sacrifice on quality or performance under
any circumstance. Nimble does a great job with this. You will
get up to 80 percent charge within 30 minutes. Loaded with
three USB-A ports and one USB-A, this little guy can charge
four devices at a time, from the iPhone to the Google Pixel to
the Nintendo Switch. It isn’t too bulky or heavy either! Nimble
made this charger out of recycled aluminum and plant-based
bioplastics and ships it to you in plastic-free packaging. That is
a huge one! The loads of plastic shipping materials companies
use to send us our tech gear is out of control.
To top it off, every Nimble product includes a pre-paid
return envelope so you can send old electronics directly to
their e-waste recycling partner for safe, responsible recycling
at no additional cost. Nimble is actively working to clean the
waste created by other tech gadgets.
Targus Cypress
EcoSmart
Apple Products
Greenpeace has consistently rated Apple as one of the
greenest and most sustainable tech companies. Apple has
used 100 percent renewable energy in its data centers since
2014 and all of its facilities worldwide since 2018. It is also
taking measures to clean up its supply chain, bringing a
total of 44 of its suppliers to 100 percent clean energy last
year, double the number from the year before. At its product
assembly sites, Apple is also reducing its greenhouse gas
emissions and water usage by billions of gallons, thanks to its
Zero Waste to Landfill initiative. It is encouraging to see tech
giants like Apple move forward toward sustainable business
practices. While Apple purposefully keeps us buying products
every year (which is terrible for the environment), Apple is at
least genuinely attempting to clean up its consumption and
ours along with it.

BE THE CHANGE
Backpack
($89.99)
This year at
the Consumer The world is in crisis. While we need to address sustainabil-
Electronics Show, ity on a national government level, we can still make a dent in
one of the largest our consumption. The products in this article help us do that.
tech shows in the These companies have heard their consumers demanding
United States, higher standards and more responsible production. These
Targus rolled out companies have risen to the task. Ѷ
this amazing eco
backpack as part
Hannah Nichols is a freelance marketing consultant and writer. She is obsessed with
of the Cypress audiobooks and podcasts and always asks people for recommendations. Hannah
EcoSmart Collec- loves going to the gym and taking really long walks with friends. She enjoys travel-
tion. The product ing with her partner and seven-year-old son.
line, which is
certified by the
Global Recycled
Standard (GRS),
recycles plastic
bottles otherwise fated for the landfill. Using 26 bottles per

iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 75

WATC H I N G
YOU R
H EALTH
4 A PP L E WATC H
G I ZM OS TO U P
YOUR GAME
BY MIK E RI LEY

E
ver since releasing the Apple Watch, it’s been Apple’s you last left your smart bottle, so you don’t accidentally lose it
intention to elevate the wearable into a sophisticated on the bus or at the gym. If your friends have Hidrate bottles
personal health and fitness device. The company has too, you can find them in the app and share hydration levels
partnered with medical groups and universities to within your group. Stay healthy and well-hydrated together!
assist in achieving that goal. The addition of cellular
connectivity, storage capacity, and on-board sensors have
brought capabilities beyond what even an iPhone has to
offer. What began as a wristwatch that happened to serve as
a proxy for iPhone notifications has evolved into the premier
wearable computing platform. Accessory makers are
recognizing the Apple Watch as more than just a way to keep
time. Here are some of the most noteworthy products that
take full advantage of the Apple Watch platform.

Hidrate Spark 3 Smart Water Bottle

($59.95)
According to most health professionals,
an average adult should drink roughly eight
glasses of water a day. That’s easier said than
done, especially when most people don’t
monitor their fluid intake. While you can set
reminders to drink water throughout the day,
wouldn’t it be more convenient if your watch
would vibrate when it’s time to re-hydrate?
While the Apple Watch doesn’t come with a
body fluid sensor just yet, Hidrate has creat-
ed the next best thing with this smart water
bottle. When paired via Bluetooth, the Hidrate
app will ping your watch with reminders to
sip from the water bottle throughout the day.
As a bonus, the app will keep track of where
One Drop Glucose Meter Starter Kit
($69.95)
During early testing of the Apple Watch, rumor had it that
Apple CEO Tim Cook wore a prototype with built-in blood
glucose monitoring. Even if the rumors were true, it will be
some time before Apple brings technology like that to
market. For those who prefer not to wait, One Drop provides
a complete blood glucose monitoring kit. It includes a
Bluetooth glucose meter, lancets, a lancing device, test strips,
and a carrying case to help accurately measure your blood

76 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
sugar levels either at home or on the go. You can use the depending on where you place your feet. It took a few tries to
meter on its own or pair it with your phone, so you can see identify the sweet spot, but once located, the readings were
a history of readings. From the app on your iPhone, you can much more accurate.
generate and share reports with your healthcare providers,
and you can also keep track of levels via the Health app on
your watch. If you already have the condition, you can use the
reports to check the status of your glucose levels regularly.
Using the lancing device and Bluetooth glucose meter is as
easy as a pinprick. The results are immediate and may even
save your life. One Drop takes the accuracy of its readings
very seriously—its Aguamatrix commercial-grade meter is
clinically tested and FDA approved. If you have diabetes, are
concerned about developing the condition, or are curious to
see your blood glucose levels throughout the day, One Drop
offers an excellent way to take your health into your own
hands.

Tangram Factory LED Smart Rope

Withings Wi-Fi Body Cardio Smart Scale
($149.95)
Available in black or white, Withings’ smart scale can mea-
sure and display your weight (in pounds or kilograms), Body
($79.95)
This smart jump rope helps you get your daily aerobic
exercise in. It uses vision persistent messages to display
calories burned and rotations completed (i.e., jumps) via the
rope’s 23 embedded LEDs. Since the rope tracks and displays
your jump count and calories, you can get into a rhythm fast-
er by listening to blood-pumping music instead of counting
jumps. For extra motivation, you can use Tangram’s compan-
ion app to share your scores on its public leader board and
participate in competitions with friends. Besides capturing
your jump count, Tangram’s vision persistent LED messages
are what make this fitness accessory stand out. You must
keep the smart rope moving at a decent clip in order to trick
the eye into seeing the rope’s readouts. Room lighting didn’t
affect the display—I was able to quickly identify my jump
count even in a brightly lit room. The smart rope recharges in
two hours, and the battery lasts for around 36 hours of
continuous activity on a single charge.

A H EA LTHY F U TU RE
Mass Index (BMI), heart rate, muscle and bone mass, and
even the weather forecast! After installing the free Withings
Health Mate app on your iPhone or iPad, use it to connect to
the scale via Bluetooth. The app will use your existing Wi-Fi We’ll soon live in a world where the objects we interact
network to log your measurements, obtain weather details, with, wear, and even consume will offer real-time data collec-
and automatically download and apply firmware updates. You tion that will allow us to live healthier lives. In the meantime,
can add other family members using the scale to track their you can use these products with your Apple Watch to start
weight progress goals as well. Setup was straightforward, but enjoying their health benefits today. It’s time to get healthy! Ѷ
I did encounter a glitch when the scale attempted to connect
to my Wi-Fi network. The device only connects to 2.4 Mike Riley, a professional software developer and emerging information technologist,
gigahertz (GHz) networks and not the faster 5 GHz Wi-Fi AC is the author of Programming Your Home, published by Pragmatic Bookshelf. Mike is
networks. While this is by design, so that smart home prod- also a contributing editor and author of hundreds of technical articles and reviews for
a number of popular technology publications. For more information, contact Mike via
ucts won’t crowd your faster line, I had to make some email at mike@mikeriley.com and follow him on Twitter @mriley.
adjustments to my wireless network to get everything
operating as expected. It detected and recorded my weight
right away, and the app was smart enough to identify other
people using the scale based on the weight variations. The
only measurement that took some practice to get right was
heart rate. It requires bare feet, and it can be hit or miss

iP hone Li fe Su mme r 2020 77

FEATURED iUSER:
NATHAN SYKES
Location: Bangor, Maine
Bio: Nathan Sykes is a teen entrepreneur, best-selling author, and
TED talk speaker. He runs Howdy Interactive, which he likes to
call an “all you can eat” marketing agency. Find him at
Nathan-Sykes.com.

Alarmy: This reimagined alarm app has alarm tones that

gradually increase in volume and prompts you to do things
like shake the phone and solve math problems to make
sure you’re awake .

Basecamp 3: This hassle-free project management app

is based on the philosophy that “simple is better.” Forget
enterprise features; you’ll just find to-do lists, a calendar,
chat, and document storage. It’s simple, flexible, and
reliable, with an until-the-end-of-the-internet policy.

Lime: This scooter rental app modernizes public transpor-

tation. It’s an awesome way to get around when I’m in
a new city. I can just add money to my balance and ride
instantly. Lime is my preference because of its awesome
customer support.

Otter: Otter provides AI-based transcription of phone calls

and video chat. I use it to brainstorm ideas for clients and
side projects, because talking things out is better than
writing things down. It has a very generous free-forever
plan, but it’s also affordable if you need more than 10
hours per month of transcription.

Product Hunt: This app is the ultimate directory of

startups. Product Hunt is my way of keeping up with the
high-flying world of Silicon Valley. Every day, the best
startups and side projects are upvoted to the top of the
leaderboard for all to see.

Voxer: This web-based two-way radio is how I keep in

touch with my team. It works just like a walkie talkie, but it
saves your conversations. It’s very useful for keeping track
of things.

YouMail: This robocall and robomail bouncer is the most ef-

fective, free app I’ve found for repelling spam calls. It screens
each call against a user-generated database and plays a fake
“number disconnected” notice to spam numbers.

78 iPh on e L if e Su m m er 2 02 0
iVIEW
This Box Lets You Watch Network TV Free Forever
F
or years, I paid embarrassingly high DirecTV satellite
fees to watch shows like 60 Minutes on CBS, even
though I spent most of my screen time using stream-
ing services like Netflix. I recently discovered the Amazon
Fire TV Recast, a device that lets me watch network televi-
sion—both live and recorded—on my TV, iPhone, and iPad for
free. Thanks to the Recast, I’ve been able to cancel my satel-
lite subscription and avoid purchasing all of the big network
and cable companies’ streaming services.
The Amazon Recast Bundle
The Recast is an over-the-air Digital Video Recorder (DVR).
Normally sold separately, Amazon recently bundled the
Recast with a Fire TV Stick and an HD antenna, all for $250.
The 500 GB two-tuner model can store 75 hours of recorded
content and record two shows at once. The 1 TB four-tuner
model lets you record four shows.
The Fire TV Recast is a small black plastic box with an
antenna connector, pairing button, USB port, Ethernet port,
and plug.
Setup was easy, thanks to the iPhone Fire TV app, which
walked me through the steps to plug in the device, connect to
the Wi-Fi network, and scan for over-the-air TV stations. From
my rural home in Iowa, I was able to scan in 12 channels. By
selecting Favorites, I was able to eliminate unwanted stations
and duplicate networks. Half of the channels I’d never even
heard of, like Grit, a station that plays old Westerns, and Com-
et, a sci-fi channel with everything from cult classics to new
releases. If you live in a big city, you may be able to scan in
over a hundred stations. As a bonus, Closed Captions work
well, both on DVR recordings and on the iPhone app.
Getting Started
I use the Fire TV app to stream live TV and play recordings
on my iPhone and iPad from anywhere. I also watch shows
on my Fire TV-connected television by selecting the DVR tab.
I can use a free channel guide on the TV but not the iPhone.
From the guide, I record individual shows or series. I can
80 iPh one Li fe Su m m e r 2 0 2 0
Illustration by Mikaila Maidment, mikailamaidment.com
schedule recordings up to 14 days before they air and can re-
cord a whole series or new episodes only. Some events, like
sports or political debates, go longer than the expected run
time. In these instances, you can extend your recording time
to create a buffer so you don’t miss anything. You can only
record live TV, not on-demand streaming programs. Even so,
recording live TV expands your video library by a wide margin.
I can’t use my phone to schedule Recast recordings, but I
can with the Alexa-enabled remote for the Fire TV Stick.
The Downside
The system isn’t perfect; several times the Recast record-
ed all the aired episodes, even though I set it to record only
new episodes. Live TV and recordings are not supported on
a Mac or PC. Occasionally, when I try to watch a live show
or a recording on my iPhone, the program starts to load but
then gives me an error message. I find force-closing the app
eliminates the problem. The Fire TV Recast also only displays
in 720p resolution.
Should You Buy It?
While a bit buggy, the Recast is cheaper than the TiVo DVR,
both in terms of out-of-pocket costs and monthly fees. With
the Recast, once the equipment is paid for, the service is free.
If you’re looking for a low-cost way to watch and record free
broadcast TV, the Amazon Recast is a nice alternative.
Hal, along with his wife Rita, founded iPhone Life’s original publishing company,
Thaddeus Computing, in 1985. You can reach him at hal@thaddeus.com. Check out
Hal’s new book at meditatingentrepreneur.com.