Episode Summary
Executive Summary: The episode covers follow-up on Apple ecosystem backups, camera advice, photo archiving, photo resolution limits, and extensive predictions for Apple’s upcoming event, including iPhone, Apple TV, Apple Watch, and the likely shift to Face ID, OLED, and USB-C realities. A long segment also details the hosts’ practical frustrations with the 2017 MacBook Pro, dongles, ports, and legacy peripherals, followed by an in-depth discussion of Plex and an "exit interview" on the iPhone 7’s strengths and remaining wish-list items.
Main Topics: Cloud Sync vs. Real Backup: The hosts debate whether iCloud services like Photos, iCloud Drive, and device backups amount to real backups. They argue cloud sync is useful but fundamentally different from a disconnected backup like Backblaze, because sync can mirror deletions while backups preserve independent copies. Photography Advice and Beginner Gear Costs: They clarify prior advice that a beginner camera setup may require about $1,000 to beat modern iPhone image quality, including body and lenses. They also defend advice to avoid flash and take many photos as practical guidance for beginners, not advanced photographers. Photo Storage, Printing, and Resolution Limits: The discussion covers printing photos as archival redundancy, the fragility of modern prints, and the diminishing returns of ever-higher photo resolution. They predict plain 2D photos will eventually plateau at a few hundred megapixels, while more complex formats may continue growing. Plex Media Server as a Media Hub: The hosts explain how they use Plex as a central front end for movies, TV, music videos, concerts, and some home video. They detail metadata handling, on-the-fly transcoding, remote streaming, Plex sharing with friends, and offline downloads through Plex Pass. 2017 MacBook Pro, USB-C, and Legacy Peripherals: John and Casey describe extensive friction using the 2017 MacBook Pro as a desktop replacement: touch bar annoyance, unreliable adapters, port scarcity, and compatibility issues with old keyboards, mice, monitor cables, Ethernet, and audio gear. They criticize USB-C as not yet mature enough for pro workflows. iPhone 7 Exit Interview and Event Predictions: The group reviews what aged well on the iPhone 7—battery life, camera, speakers, home button, and grip—and what still matters, like 4K60 video and improved low-light telephoto performance. They then predict the next event’s hardware: new iPhones, likely Face ID, Pro differentiation, Apple TV 4K, and possibly an LTE Apple Watch. Apple Event Showmanship and Product Strategy: They speculate about naming, OLED vs LCD lineup strategy, wireless charging differentiation, 4K Apple TV content strategy, and whether Apple will mention Macs, HomePod, AirPods, or iMac Pro. A recurring theme is Apple using product tiers to preserve a premium halo while keeping mainstream models compelling.
Key Arguments: Cloud sync services like iCloud Photo Library are valuable, but they are not backups because deletions and synchronization behavior can destroy the only copy of data. A useful beginner camera setup often costs around $1,000 once the body and at least one or two lenses are included, even if that number is only an estimate. For beginners, avoiding flash and taking lots of photos is practical advice because it increases the odds of getting a usable shot and helps new photographers learn. Modern photo prints can be part of a backup strategy, but only if the printing process is archival-quality; random consumer prints may fade quickly. Photo resolution will keep increasing for a while, but plain 2D photography will eventually hit diminishing returns, likely in the low hundreds of megapixels rather than absurd extremes. Plex is valuable because it unifies disparate video sources, auto-matches metadata, transcodes for devices, enables remote access, and allows sharing and downloads. The 2017 MacBook Pro is powerful but poorly suited to legacy desktop workflows because USB-C dongles, adapters, and unreliable peripherals undermine its portability benefits. iPhone 7 was a strong generation: improved speakers, better camera stabilization, good battery life, and a solid home-button redesign outweighed the removal of the headphone jack for most use cases. The next iPhone event is expected to be more of a product-family reorganization than a single-phone upgrade, with the premium model getting the most exclusive features. Face ID may replace Touch ID entirely, but it must be close enough in speed and reliability not to feel like a downgrade. The Apple Watch is likely to move further toward being a fitness and cellular companion device rather than a pure wrist computer. Apple TV needs a 4K update and a better remote, but gaming functionality should not compromise the remote’s usefulness for ordinary TV use.
Data Points: Backup storage plan: 2TB - Referenced as a potentially adequate Backblaze/iCloud-like plan for broad Mac backup coverage Camera budget: ~$1,000 - Approximate cost of a beginner camera body plus lenses to outperform a recent iPhone in many situations Print longevity: 1.5 weeks - A joking estimate for how long an inkjet print might last in sunlight before fading Photo resolution plateau guess: 100-200 megapixels (possibly hundreds) - Predicted eventual ceiling for plain 2D photo resolution before diminishing returns dominate Audio resolution analogy: 256 kbps - Used as a consumer-acceptable quality ceiling analogy for media that has largely stopped needing improvement SNES game size: under 1 MB / around 28 KB - Remarked on how small classic cartridge games were compared with modern storage expectations MacBook Pro age: 8 years - John’s 2009 Mac Pro had been in service at work for about eight years before replacement Display resolution: 1920x1200 - John’s goal was to mirror his laptop to match his older 24-inch display’s resolution Port count on MacBook Pro: 4 USB-C ports - The 2017 MacBook Pro’s limited port count was a central usability complaint Apple TV remote history: 3 remotes - John noted Apple has already gone through three Apple TV remote designs WWDC ticket scarcity: Lottery system - Discussed as a contrast to iPhone preordering; tickets are limited, unlike eventual iPhone availability Photo backup dates: Multiple restore points - iCloud phone backups were described as offering different dated backups for restore Battery improvement wish: 20-50% more - Repeatedly cited as the extra battery life needed to fully satisfy daily use
Pivotal Quotes: "So, the problem is that it's not a backup. That's the real problem." — Marco: Explaining why cloud-sync services like iCloud Photo Library and Dropbox cannot be treated as true backups "The biggest problem for me in using this computer is that the USB-C ecosystem still can't produce reliable hardware." — John: Summing up his frustration with the 2017 MacBook Pro and modern dongle-dependent workflows "I would love for the Apple watch to really surprise me and delight me." — Marco: During event predictions, expressing hope for a genuinely compelling Apple Watch upgrade
Implications: Listeners should distinguish sync from backup, expect Apple’s next event to emphasize segmentation and camera/display upgrades, and anticipate that USB-C and pro-device ergonomics still lag behind Apple’s marketing. The industry direction is toward more integrated, wireless, and camera-centric devices.