Apple's Chip Source

Here's an article discussing Apple's plan to source chips from a TSMC plant outside Phoenix. This should benefit Apple in having their chips sourced here instead of Taiwan.

Jim Hamm

Apple’s plans to source chips from Arizona is a major step forward for American semiconductor manufacturing. Those chips will likely come from the new fab that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) is building outside Phoenix, as that company is the sole supplier for Apples processor chips use in iPhones, iPads, and Mac computers.

Apple is a large customer for TSMC’s 5 nm process, and it is said to be getting ready for its 3 nm process. TSMC’s Arizona fab will have an initial capacity for 20,000 12” wafer starts a month, and it recently announced plans to build another fab adjacent to the first. This might be related to Apple’s announcement, as 20,000 12” wafer starts a month is miniscule compared to its capacity in Taiwan, where its fabs have an aggregate capacity exceeding a million 12” wafers per month. It’s Fab 18 in Southern Taiwan Science Park is believed to be where it is focusing 3 nm production, and reportedly is on track for production in the fourth quarter of 2022.

TSMC reports that their largest customer (presumably Apple) accounted for 26% of its revenue in 2021, while its second largest was only at 10%. More intriguingly, that share has been on an uptrend from 23% in 2019, and 25% in 2020. The company points out that there are only a limited number of customers who are able to operate in this space – namely designing their own semiconductors and dealing directly with foundries like itself. That suggests that Apple and the Arizona expansion are closely linked. The Arizona fab is slated to come online in 2024 with 5 nm production.

If indeed Apple shifts some part of its sourcing to Arizona, it will pave the way for other fabless companies such as Qualcomm QCOM +4.3%, AMD, and Nvidia to move some of their production there as well. Like Apple, all of them likely want to diversify their sourcing needs, and TSMC also likely would not want to have a fab dedicated exclusively to Apple. Apple CEO Tim Cook reportedly commented that “60% coming out of anywhere is probably not a strategic position.” But getting some of that production back on U.S. shores will be pretty strategic for the U.S.

Apple Weather App

To be honest about it, here's a brief story about an Apple app that I didn't even know was missing. But this writer and owner, from Small Dog Electronics (https://smalldog.com/), has some enthusiasm for this weather app.

Jim Hamm

Check the Weather on Your Mac and iPad, Finally!

At long last, Apple has plugged one of the most inexplicable holes in its app library—the lack of a Weather app for the iPad and Mac. In iPadOS 16 and macOS 13 Ventura, you’ll now find a large-screen version of the iPhone’s iOS 16 Weather app. Locations you enter on one device automatically sync to your other devices, and the feature set is identical across the different platforms. That’s especially welcome now that Apple has integrated all the features of the acquired Dark Sky service, including hyperlocal notifications of incoming weather, next-hour and 12-hour animated forecast maps (tap the map), and time-based graphs of temperature, UV index, wind, precipitation, “feels like” temperature, humidity, visibility, and pressure. Plus, you’ll find cards for air quality and sunrise/sunset times. You no longer need to look elsewhere on the iPad and Mac for a basic weather app!

I love Dark Sky and it is great that it is now fully integrated into the Apple OS.  I have my own on-site Tempest weather stations both in Key West and Vermont which give me micro-climate data but this long overdue expansion of weather data to iPad and Mac is welcomed!

Passkeys

If you use a computing device or a smartphone, then you're well aware of Passwords and how to use them. Well, according to the following article, "Passkeys" may soon replace Passwords:

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2022/10/passkeys-microsoft-apple-and-googles-password-killer-are-finally-here/

Now, I did read the article but must admit I'm still a bit fuzzy on how Passkeys work -- but they're supposed to be "mo bettah". If you have a simpler explanation, I'd appreciate hearing about it.

Jim Hamm

Apple Update

If you're a user of Apple products, you may enjoy the following brief update on the company, which comes from a blog I subscribe to.

Jim Hamm

Apple unveiled its latest product lineup recently at a live event with enough fanfare to be confused for a royal wedding.

Some highlights:

  • Four new iPhones, including the iPhone 14, 14 Plus, and new Pro models that run on an advanced chip and feature fancy cameras

  • Next-gen Apple Watches with new temperature sensors (that can, controversially, help track ovulation cycles)

  • Souped-up AirPods with better noise cancellation and six hours of listening time per charge

But marginally better gadgets aren’t the growth drivers they used to be for Apple. So, with smartphone sales plateauing globally, the company is now embracing something it largely used to avoid: selling online advertising.

Helping itself

For now, Apple’s got a much smaller piece of the online ad sales pie than rivals Google and Facebook. Recently, though, it’s started carving out a bigger slice: A study released Tuesday by Appsumer found that Apple’s advertiser adoption rate rose four percentage points year over year in Q2, while Facebook’s dropped three percentage points and Google’s slipped two points.

The company plans to start showing you ads in new places, like Apple Maps, to boost ad revenue—but also it may not exactly be a coincidence that Apple’s gains in online advertising happened following its App Tracking Transparency update last year. That change limited the user-tracking data Apple made available to advertisers in the name of privacy and cost companies that depend on ad sales, like Meta and Snap, billions in revenue.

Apple is now working to nearly double the size of its advertising staff, per the Financial Times, leaving it poised to benefit from the new landscape it created.

Apple claims its own ad business is different from the others. So far, it is: Apple doesn’t allow ads that target you for visiting a competitor’s website, and it won’t tailor ads to specific individuals. Still, experts told the NYT that Apple might have to start making compromises if it really wants to grow its ad sales.—AR

iPhone Tips

If you have an iPhone you may already be well aware of and using these tips, but just in case, here's an article discussing a few. One of my favorite tips is silencing incoming calls unless they are in my contacts list. Really helps with so many robocalls existing. One must be careful, though, to add the phone # for a new contact -- say, a new doctor or dentist, or you might miss their incoming call.

Jim Hamm

10 Great iPhone Features You Should Be Using (howtogeek.com)

Interested in a New Laptop?

If you might have an interest in getting a new laptop, Tom's Guide has an article comparing the MacBook Air M2 to the Dell XPS 13 Plus. Which to choose? Your decision will probably depend on what your primary use of the laptop will be, or perhaps which OS you prefer? The article clarifies this. If gaming is your thing, you'd probably want the Dell. The link here: https://www.tomsguide.com/news/macbook-air-m2-vs-dell-xps-13-plus-which-laptop-wins?

I have a MacBook Air (running macOS Monterrey) and a Dell XPS 13 ( running Windows 11), and both laptops are about 3 years old. In size, shape, and function, both are quite similar, other than the operating system. I like them both, and just alternate back and forth. One thing I've noticed over the years, laptops keep getting lighter and lighter, which makes them much easier to transport around.

I'm not in the market for a new laptop, and maybe neither are you. But I enjoy reading articles such as this one, just to see what is coming onstream in the computer world, and maybe you will, too.

Jim Hamm

How Well Are You Treating Your iPhone or iPad Battery?

Lithium (Li) batteries, like the ones in your cell phone, will DIE if discharged to 0, so don’t let that happen! I think the iPhone shuts down when the power gets below a certain point. But your personal portable chargers that contain Li batteries also need to be carefully monitored. If they drain completely, they cannot be recharged. That even applies to those Li batteries in your expensive Harmony universal remotes.

There’s an 80-20 rule that applies to charging Li batteries. For best battery life and performance, stop charging at 80% and start charging at 20%. However, Li batteries can be charged to 100% without any side effects. It is just that it doesn’t take very long to charge to 80%, and it takes a LOT longer to finish charging to 100%.

Another consideration is temperature. Li batteries can deliver a charge below 32º, but you do NOT want to try to charge them if the temp goes below 32º. That actually damages the battery. If the Li battery gets too hot, it degrades the battery life. I don’t have any information on what is too hot, but probably letting a device sit in the direct sun (like your car dashboard or on the seat exposed to the sun) is definitely not a good thing. The iPhone shuts down when it gets too hot, and that’s a sign that you have just degraded the battery somewhat.


John Carter

Spam Texts?

If you receive spam texts on your smartphone, the following comments from a NYT columnist may be helpful.

Jim Hamm

How to report spam texts

Brian X. Chen, the consumer technology columnist for The New York Times, offers advice for becoming part of the solution to the scourge of bogus text messages.

In a recent column, I reported on the growing annoyance of text-message spam, which recently outpaced the rise of robocalls.

The texts might be shipping notices about a package that you didn’t order, or pitches for questionable health products like weight-loss pills. The links inside those texts typically point you to a website asking for your personal information, including your credit card number, which scammers could use for fraud.

There’s no sign of SMS spam slowing down. So one of the best things you can do is become part of the solution: Forward the spam text to your phone carrier.

That will help the carriers learn what phone numbers and language are being used in spam texts. That’s useful information to help the carriers improve their technology to stop those messages from ever reaching your phone.

Here’s how to forward spam texts to the carriers:

On iPhones, tap and hold down on the message and tap “More.” Then press the forward button, which is the arrow on the bottom-right corner of the screen. In the recipient field, enter 7726 and hit send.

On Android phones, tap and hold down on the message. When a menu pops up, select “Forward Message.” Enter 7726 in the recipient field and hit send.

iPhone Photos

If you use an iPhone and like to take pictures with it, here is an article on how to adjust the settings so the pictures take up less space in storage:


https://www.howtogeek.com/803010/stop-taking-live-photos-on-iphone/I have an iPhone, but don't take many pictures with it, though. Anyway, after reading the article I went to change the settings per the article, but found I had already done so sometime in the past -- so long ago I had forgotten all about it.The settings changes are worth doing, I'd say.

Jim Hamm