Let me start by saying I am a big fan of Apple News+. It provides access to an incredible amount of paywalled content from some of the best publishers on the planet for my entire family for a very reasonable price. When those publishers take advantage of the formatting capabilities of the Apple News app, the content can be visually stunning.

I do feel like Apple has had too much tunnel vision when it comes to the product, though. What about subscribers that may not have their Mac, iPhone, or iPad with them for whatever reason? What about subscribers that click on a link to a publisher from Messages, a social media app, or a feed reader? Each of these user journeys seems too obvious to have been missed by the Apple News+ product team.

On the Mac, iPhone, and iPad, Apple could easily solve these user journeys by redirecting users to the Apple News app when a user clicks on a link from a supported website. The Apple News Format includes the metadata to do this assuming the publisher includes the canonicalURL. Another option would be to create a micro frontend of the Apple News app that is called from within Safari.

Regardless of approach, the current user journey must be improved. Opening a link in Safari to a publisher to which you know you have access in Apple News+ only to be denied access to the article is an incredibly disappointing experience.

Let’s get this fixed, Apple!

I am starting to get really excited to see the next generation of CarPlay become a reality. What would be great is if at least some of the enhancements become available in exiting cars. For example, our Volkswagen’s dashboard already has media and navigation data integration built in so the driver never needs to look anywhere but right in front of them. It will be curious to see what else is possible!

Next-Generation Apple CarPlay Will Feature These 8 New Apps – MacRumors

I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again. It is insanely frustrating that Google and Netflix refuse to integrate with the TV app across Apple’s platforms. There is no reason YouTube TV and Netflix cannot integrate. It is a product decision that they are making intentionally. At a time when seamless integration is an expectation, these product decisions make absolutely no sense to me.

While more expensive than its competitors, the Apple TV device is by far the best streaming device available on the market. Once a user adds all of their favorite apps and services, the TV app becomes a valuable tool to surface, aggregate, and organize shows, movies, and sporting events. Why a content provider would intentionally choose to not use every channel available to them to get their content in front of as many eyes as possible is completely illogical to me.

The reality is that my family searches the Apple TV app first, YouTube TV second, and Netflix third. I have noticed this behavior with each family member. So, if the content is available directly on another app, YouTube TV and Netflix lose those streams. Admittedly, Netflix is on notice at our house. I’m just not sure we need it anymore.

Discovered an annoying difference between the Fire TV and Apple TV versions of the YouTube TV apps this morning. I wouldn’t be so annoyed if the feature wasn’t so helpful.

On the Fire TV, the Select button takes the user back to the previously watched channel which can be super helpful when trying to check in on a couple games without using Multiview.

On the Apple TV, the Select button pauses the current show which really does not make a whole lot of sense to me. Like the Fire TV remote, the Apple TV remote also has a Pause button so why use the Select button to perform a function that already has a dedicated button? It’s not great UX design especially for those households that have streaming devices from multiple vendors.

Being a solution manager myself, it is somewhat relieving that even Google makes mistakes like this from time to time, but it is a great opportunity for the two product teams to get together and create consistent user experiences.

I delayed applying for an Apple Card until recently when Apple introduced their savings account with 4.15% APY paid monthly but accrues daily.

The features of the Wallet app for Apple Card are outstanding! It is easy to keep track of your spending and has a visual indicator of the categories with the most spending. Most importantly, it is easy to pay your balance daily if you so desire.

Apple should consider creating some sort of WalletKit or API so other banks can make it so easy to really control credit card spending. The Apple Card already has great features that differentiate it from other cards. Consumers will continue to use it even if other banks are able to enhance their user experience with an enhanced Wallet app.

Hey Apple! I have a great idea for you.

Why not make iMessages available on the web as part of iCloud+? There is even a spot just waiting there on the iCloud site for the iMessages icon. The assumption that iOS, iPadOS, and macOS users will always have access to an internet connection on their device is short-sighted and flawed.

It is important for people to stay in contact wherever they are on whatever device they are using. Why limit access when it is really not necessary?