It’s Thursday, so we’ll look at one throwback that failed but has been reborn, some updates to Apple Maps, and how Tim and Donald got along:
- Apple Maps received some good updates during the month, including several indoor airport maps, lane guidance for some European countries, and public transit instructions for five US states
- Tim Cook and Donald Trump had a productive meeting yesterday, with Cook lauding the tax cuts and tax reform, saying that Apple will be investing in the USA
- Remember the flop that was Snapchat Spectacles? Well, Spectacles 2 are out today, with some new features that might make them popular.
The text version of the podcast can be read below. To listen to the podcast here, click the play button on the player below. Apple News readers need to visit Apple World Today in order to listen to the podcast.
Text Version
This is Steve Sande for Apple World Today, and you’re listening to the AWT News Update podcast for Thursday, April 26th, 2018. Excuse my rough voice on today’s podcast, but allergies are doing a number on my throat.
Apple Maps is continually updated, and I like to make sure that we let our listeners know what’s been added to the mapping service. To start with, today Apple added indoor airport maps for three airports — Edinburgh (EDI) in Edinburgh, Scotland; Sydney International (SYD) in Sydney, Australia, and Hamad International (DOH) in Doha, Qatar. The maps are pretty detailed, and allow people to search for gates, bathrooms, security checkpoints, and businesses that operate in a terminal. That’s not all — you can also ask for navigation help using Apple’s indoor positioning technology. Last week, Apple added lane guidance to maps for Czech Republic, Finland, Hungary, Ireland and Poland so that drivers know what lanes to be in for an upcoming turn or exit. Apple has also recently added public transit instructions for the states of Tennessee, Arkansas, Ohio, Maryland, and West Virginia.
Apple CEO Tim Cook met with President Donald Trump yesterday, and it appears that the meeting went quite well. White House Director of the National Economic Council Larry Kudlow attended part of the meeting and said that “Tim Cook was most helpful… He loves the tax cut and tax reform. He said it’s great for business. And Apple is going to be building plants, campuses, adding jobs, lots of business investment.” Kudlow also gave Cook kudos for his vast experience with doing business in China, and made suggestions about how to handle negotiations with the Chinese government. Considering that the stock markets have been chaotic over the past few months due to the possibility of a trade war with China, Cook’s input could be helpful in smoothing things out.
Remember Snapchat Spectacles? They were eyeglasses that had the capability of streaming video, and they lost Snap about $40 million when hundreds of thousands of Spectacles remained unsold. Well, the company launched Snapchat Spectacles 2 today for $150, and it appears that Snap did its homework to address user concerns. The glasses now take photos and video, and don’t have the tacky yellow ring around the cameras that alerted people to the fact you were taping them. The new glasses come with a prescription option, a slim frame, and a smaller charging case, and can even be used in shallow water. Gone are the childish colors of pink and teal — the new Spectacles come in onyx black, ruby red and sapphire blue, with mirrored or natural lens colors. Syncing the Spectacles via Bluetooth to an iPhone now just requires a seven-second press of the shutter button, and exports always happen in high definition. To be honest with you, they still look somewhat dorky, but are a huge improvement over the original flop. Time will tell if Spectacles 2 will start a new trend or if the world isn’t ready for sharing HD circular photos and videos through Snapchat. By the way, if you go with prescription Spectacles and need progressive lenses, want your lenses to be polarized, and want to go with high-index lenses to make the glasses lighter, you’re looking at a $450 bill. Not that I looked or anything…
That’s all the news for today – join me tomorrow afternoon for another edition of the AWT News Update.
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