Episode Summary
Executive Summary: The episode ranges across Apple hardware and services rumors, with the hosts debating a possible larger 16-inch MacBook, Thunderbolt hubs, USB naming confusion, Apple ID subscription limitations, and foldable phones from MWC. They also discuss battery-heavy novelty phones, a possible Apple March services event, AirPods’ desirability despite aging batteries, and listener questions on iPad app cleanup, the spatial Finder, and NAS choices.
Main Topics: MacBook redesign rumors and keyboard complaints: The hosts debate whether a rumored 16-16.5-inch MacBook would be meaningfully larger than the current 15.4-inch model, arguing that Apple could fit a bigger screen without enlarging the chassis. They also criticize the current keyboard layout and wish Apple would prioritize reliability and more sensible key layouts. Thunderbolt 3 hubs vs USB-C dongles: They contrast unreliable, generic USB-C dongles with newer bus-powered Thunderbolt 3 hubs from vendors like Elgato and CalDigit. The discussion centers on certification, reliability, port combinations, and the hope for more high-quality peripherals. Apple’s subscription ecosystem and March event rumors: The hosts discuss a rumored March Apple event for news, video, and possibly gaming subscriptions, with debate over whether Apple should bundle services or launch them individually. They worry Apple’s services are valuable mainly because they are preinstalled and tied to the iPhone ecosystem. Foldable phones and flexible displays: A long discussion covers foldable screens shown at Mobile World Congress, comparing Samsung’s inward-folding design with Huawei’s outward-folding approach. The hosts see them as promising but compromised first-generation products that may eventually collapse the phone/tablet divide. Battery life extremes and the Energizer phone: They react to the Energizer-branded phone with an 18,000 mAh battery as a publicity stunt: absurdly thick, but illustrative of the tradeoffs between battery life and portability. They note that most users want modest battery improvements, not a giant battery brick built into a phone. Apple ID and subscription-region limitations: A listener’s Apple ID story about being unable to change regions until a subscription fully expires becomes a broader critique of Apple’s back-end systems. The hosts argue that region locking, subscriptions, and legacy media infrastructure make Apple’s account system unnecessarily rigid. Listener questions on app cleanup, spatial Finder, and DIY NAS: The latter portion addresses practical listener questions: deleting obsolete iPad apps, the value of the old spatial Finder, and whether building a home NAS is worth it versus buying Synology. The hosts favor simpler, supported solutions over DIY complexity.
Key Arguments: A rumored 16-inch MacBook may fit inside the current 15-inch footprint if bezels shrink enough; the bigger question is whether Apple improves the keyboard and overall usability. Thunderbolt-certified hubs should be more reliable than cheap USB-C dongles, and the market needs more of them in portable, bus-powered form factors. Apple’s services are likely to succeed only if bundled or tightly integrated with the iPhone, because standalone subscriptions for news or games are weak propositions. Foldable phones are exciting not because they are polished, but because they represent a genuinely new form factor that could unify phone and tablet use. The long-term goal is not just folding screens, but separating the display from the device “guts,” enabling radically different hardware shapes. Apple’s back-end subscription and region systems are too rigid; changes to subscriptions, Apple IDs, and store regions should be easier and more automated. AirPods are an ideal design constrained mainly by current battery technology; their short life is acceptable because the daily convenience is so high. For most users, a Synology or similar NAS is worth the premium because it is a supported appliance, not a hobby project that demands endless time and troubleshooting.
Data Points: Current 15-inch laptop size: 15.4 inches - Used to argue a rumored 16-inch laptop would only be modestly larger than today’s model. Potential size increase: 0.6 to 1.1 inches - Difference between the current 15.4-inch laptop and a rumored 16-16.5 inch screen. Possible screen in existing chassis: 16.21-inch screen - A calculation suggested that with iPad Pro-sized bezels, a 16.21-inch display could fit in the existing 15-inch case. Thunderbolt hub price: about $100 - Portable, bus-powered Thunderbolt 3 hubs from vendors like Elgato and CalDigit were described as around this price. Desktop Thunderbolt hub price: about $300 - The more common Thunderbolt-certified hubs discussed earlier were desktop units requiring external power. USB hub port layout: 2 display/HDMI ports, 1 USB-A, 1 Ethernet - The identified bus-powered Thunderbolt hub shared a somewhat unusual common port configuration. Backblaze price: $5/month per computer - Sponsor read describing unlimited cloud backup pricing. Backblaze data scale: over 500 petabytes - Used to emphasize the service’s maturity and scale. Apple subscription hold-up: 6 months - A listener had to wait six months for a cheap annual app subscription to expire before changing Apple ID region. Annual app subscription: 99 cents/year - The listener’s small subscription still blocked an Apple ID region change. Energizer phone battery capacity: 18,000 mAh - The oversized battery phone was described as a brick-like publicity stunt. App usage question: iOS 11 compatibility issue - The listener’s old iPad apps no longer worked after iOS 11/64-bit changes. AirPods battery life concern: 2 to 3 years - The hosts referenced typical battery aging as the reason AirPods eventually need replacement. Home storage scale: 10 to 20 terabytes - Used to explain why a larger multi-disk NAS made sense in the past.
Pivotal Quotes: "If they do end up making it a little bit bigger, it's the 15-inch. No one is buying the 15-inch because it's small." — Marco: Arguing that a slightly larger MacBook Pro would not bother buyers of Apple’s biggest laptop. "What I want from my USB-C dongles is USB-A ports and card readers." — Marco: Explaining why the Thunderbolt hub discussed would not be useful for his travel setup. "The main thing that I'm interested about these bendable screens is: what benefit are we trying to get out of it here?" — John: Questioning whether current foldable devices justify their thickness and complexity.
Implications: Apple’s next moves in Macs, services, and account management will matter because the current ecosystem feels constrained and brittle. Foldables may reshape mobile hardware, but only if the industry solves durability, thickness, and software tradeoffs.