Thoughts
The 2026 iPad Air M4: Early Impressions:
The second change is memory. The M4 brings 12GB of unified memory, up from 8GB on the M3 model. More RAM means better multitasking and more headroom for demanding tasks. Transcription in Voice Memos and background removal in Pixelmator happen almost instantly. I feel it in Lightroom as well.
My primary concern about the MacBook Neo is that I don’t think the 8 GB of RAM is enough in the current AI era of personal computing. While the quote above is about the new iPad Air, I think the point about the benefit of moving from 8 GB to 12 GB is apt.
Later in his post Om also ponders whether the Neo is a better value than the Air given it includes a keyboard. I do wonder whether Neo will affect iPad sales.
I think the whole idea of the MacBook Neo comes down to one question, is $599 a low price?
It occurs to me, that the MacBook Neo is essentially the often desired iPad that runs MacOS.
To me most of the AI coming from the BigCos is fluff and eye candy. Google is really guilty of this, adding AI flourishes to their Pixel phones that I don’t see as useful. I tried their AI Wallpaper generation that I don’t think produces anything interesting and I have to wonder whether their new custom icons will be any different.
The U.S. Men’s hockey team won the Olympic gold medal beating Canada in overtime, 2-1. The last time I saw the U.S. men’s hockey win gold I was 14 years old.
I got to admit that I am going to miss the Olympics after it concludes tomorrow. I’ve been in the habit of turning on the TV in the morning with the events going in the background as I do my morning routine.
An observation. Learned about this directory of independent journalists, and notice that newsletter - Substack is the top platform, Instagram is second. Website is fifth with 87. Can’t help but notice that what appears to me to be newer sites usually do not have RSS feeds. Most sites do have a Subscribe button that is for an email newsletter.
I really hate how streamers create horrible user experience for the sake of commercials. I am watching the Olympics on Peacock and using the “Top Events” multi-view mode to watch a hockey game, when the period ends I want to check in on the other events but cannot switch because Peacock disables navigation during commercials. How do they think people use multi-view?
A benefit of retirement is that I am able to watch the 2026 Winter Olympic events live during the afternoon and because of that I am seeing much more of the Olympics than ever before. In addition to having the time to watch, technology, particularly Peacock, is helping by putting all of the U.S. coverage in one spot. To be honest, I am not constantly watching but I have it on in the background as I sit here at my desk.
Sadly, the 250th “birthday” of the United States feels less a celebration and more like a wake. I don’t know how anyone associated with Trump, particularly his enablers, can profess the ideas that are part of our founding when they are actively working against them. Perhaps we have always truly been the land of the not yet free and brave for all. I would like to see someone start leading by making strong contrast between what is happening right now and how it started. The real issue is not the individual acts, it’s the sum total of them all in context to what the United States is supposed to be about.