Apple chooses Apps of the Year and announces Music Awards

Post a comment / News / From Jen Kleinholz

Chapter in this post:

1 Apple selects Apps and Games of the Year 2019
2 iPhone
3 iPad
4Mac/MacBook
5AppleTV
6 Apple Arcade Game of the Year
7 Apple Music Awards on December 5, 2019

While the hardware events from Apple are felt to be fewer, the technology giant from Cupertino is increasingly concerned with media and streaming. As already shown here, Apple used yesterday to choose its apps of the year 2019. It was also announced today that the first Apple Music Awards will be held on December 5th at 3:30 am CET. In this post you will find a summary of all information about the individual reports as well as the official sources.

Sir Apfelot recommendation: Clean up your Mac hard drive with CleanMyMac

Apple selects apps and games of the year 2019

Apple has not only selected the best apps and games for a specific system or device type, but also an app and a game for all systems: iOS, iPadOS, macOS and tvOS. In addition, for the cross-device service Apple Arcade selected the “game of the year”. You can find the winners below.

iPhone

App of the year: Specter camera by Lux Optics
Game of the year: Sky: Children of the Light by thatgamecompany

iPad

App of the year: Flow from Moleskine from Moleskine
Game of the year: Hyper Light Drifter by Abylight SL

Mac / MacBook

App of the year: Affinity Publisher by Serif Labs
Game of the year: GREY by Devolver / Nomada Studio

The Mac App of the Year is an inexpensive, yet professional way to design publications. Mac Game of the Year is a puzzle-riddled confrontation with loss. — The Mac App of the Year is an affordable yet professional way to design publications. Mac Game of the Year is a puzzle-riddled confrontation with loss.

Apple TV

App of the year: The Explorers by The Explorers Network
Game of the year: Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap by DotEmu

Apple Arcade Game of the Year

Sayonara Wild Hearts by Simogo

Sayonara Wild Hearts by Simogo was featured in a big way at the start of Apple Arcade. Now it's the game of the year 2019.

Source: Official Apple press release

Apple Music Awards on December 5, 2019

With the Apple Music Awards, the iPhone manufacturer wants to honor those musical artists in two days, "who have a real passion for their craft, who bravely defy the conventions in this category and have that certain sense of humanity, where the audience is equally drawn to the personality and the music". But it won't be too exciting or large-scale. After all, the few winners have already been determined:

Billie Eilish: Artist of the Year
"WHEN WE FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?" By Billie Eilish: Album of the Year 2019
Billie Eilish & FINNEAS: Songwriter of the Year
Lizzo: Breakthrough Artist of the Year
"Old Town Road" by Lil Nas X: Song of the Year

This is what the Apple Music Award looks like in physical form - it includes a 12-inch disk made of silicon.

The most extensively honored artist with the Most Played Album of the Year on Apple Music, Billie Eilish, will also play a concert at the 2019 Apple Music Awards. The whole thing takes place in the Steve Jobs Theater in Apple Park in Cupertino. The worldwide live stream can be followed in this country from 3:30 a.m. on December 5, 2019. You can find more information as well as pictures, statements and other details from the artist, the price with its 12-inch silicon wafer and statements from Apple itself in the official press release.

1,79 EUR

WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?

Billie Eilish - When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go
Audio CD - audiobook
Interscope (Universal Music) (Editor)

Jen Kleinholz( Founder & Sir Apfelot )

Jens has been running the blog since 2012. He appears as Sir Apfelot for his readers and helps them with problems of a technical nature. In his free time he drives electric unicycles, takes photos (preferably with his iPhone, of course), climbs around in the Hessian mountains or hikes with the family. His articles deal with Apple products, news from the world of drones or solutions for current bugs.

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Sir Apfelot newsreel week 5, 2023
From today you can buy a new HomePod in stores. But that's not the only news to report this Friday. Because during the course of the week, a few more headlines caught my attention. And so there is a Sir Apfelot newsreel again today. This time it's about Apple and tech news from calendar week 5 of 2023. Among other things, these reports are included: almost collision of space debris, Netflix with details against account sharing, Twitter makes interfaces chargeable, dogs can swallow AirTags , foldable Apple devices from 2024 or 2025, and more.
Also included in the Sir Apfelot newsreel for calendar week 5 of 2023: space debris almost causes a catastrophe in orbit, Netflix vs. account sharing, dogs can swallow AirTags, Twitter API will be chargeable, rumors about new Apple devices in 2024 and 2025, and more.

Space junk just barely missed the "worst case" scenario
How is it online this week has pointed out, according to the US company Leo Labs, two pieces of space debris just flew past each other at an altitude of 984 km. The relative speed of the Soviet rocket stage and the Russian satellite, which is no longer used, was 11 km/s and 39.600 km/h, respectively. A collision in this region of Earth orbit would have "catastrophic Folgen’, as the source emphasizes several times. Because not only does the area escape direct influence, there are also around 160 rocket stages and the payloads of the rockets launched with them. So flying debris would hit other objects, trigger a chain reaction and possibly "practically empty the entire level". Recommended reading: Amazon Project Kuiper – development, numbers and criticism
Federal Network Agency has withdrawn more than 2022 million products in 15
More than 15 million products are according to one press release removed from the market by the Federal Network Agency last year. There were various reasons for this: they did not meet the legal requirements, they could cause radio interference or they had significant formal defects. In addition to this individual consideration, the comparison with the previous figures is also impressive. Because in 2021, almost 23 million products were taken off the market. In the linked source there are further details on market surveillance in online and retail trade as well as information on cooperation with customs and tips for consumers.
Over 200 million paying customers on Spotify
Nachdem last week While the news of mass layoffs was still making the rounds at Spotify, a new (financial) milestone made headlines about the music streaming service this week. As several media reports, more than 200 million users are said to have subscribed. "At the end of the past quarter, the Swedish company said it had 205 million paying users", it is summed up in a current one Entry from hot online. The increase in subscriptions says, among other things, that around 20 million were added in three months. For the total number, i.e. everyone with and without a subscription, the milestone of 500 million is forecast for the current quarter.
Netflix is working on the implementation of the blocking for account sharing
The so-called account sharing, i.e. the sharing of paid user accounts, is a thorn in the side of Netflix. Although family use in the same household should remain possible, access outside of the paying household should be a thing of the past as quickly as possible. This has been planned for a long time and also openly communicated by the streaming provider. Seems a bit too open lately. Because corresponding regulations, in which the implementation of WLAN controls were addressed, quickly disappeared from the Netflix website. Here's what iFun is showing this week: Here with information about the new procedure, and here to remove the remarks.
Twitter APIs are subject to a fee: bots and partial accounts are closed
Various Twitter accounts created by programming foxes and geeks that have used the previously free Twitter APIs may have to stop providing information, entertainment, or other useful services in the future. At least if they don't want to pay anything to use the interface. Because if you want to continue using it in the future, you should take out a monthly subscription – starting February 9, 2023 ( ). On some profiles, which are mainly powered by the API connection to Twitter, it is already written that there will be no more new posts soon - such as @iOSReleases.
Be careful when using AirTags on dog collars: they can be swallowed!
Putting an AirTag on your dog's collar or harness so they can be tracked in an emergency isn't a bad idea. At least if you have to reckon with the fact that he runs away. However, trackers from Apple (as well as from all other manufacturers) should not dangle from the collar or be easy to remove. Because this can lead to the AirTags being swallowed by dogs. Several cases have already been documented. If vomiting of the AirTag cannot be induced, then surgery may be necessary. The battery in the tracker or leaking chemicals can also injure the dog. More on this at heise online (German) and MacRumors (English).
Foldable iPad and MacBook models in the years to come
Apple is said to want to bring a breath of fresh air to its own range and to the market for foldable mobile and tablet computers in 2024 and 2025. As several media reported this week, a foldable iPad should appear in the coming year. And in the following year, a foldable laptop with a 20,5-inch display will be launched. The respective information comes from the analysts Ming-Chi Kuo and Ross Young. However, Young Kuo seems to disagree when it comes to the tablet. As is also said by Mark Gurman, there is no sign of a foldable iPad in 2024. Apparently, however, for the mobile computer with a complete display instead of a display, keyboard and trackpad. Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4
More Apple rumours: Bigger Apple Watch Ultra and HomePod mini 2
Several rumors were also passed around this week about other devices from the iPhone manufacturer. A future generation of the Apple Watch Ultra should have a 10% larger display than the first version of the professional smartwatch. The device with a 2,1-inch display should be presented in 2024. It is not yet clear whether this will be the second or third generation of the watch. It is not yet known whether an Ultra model will appear this year ( ). And the HomePod mini will also be relaunched in 2024, they say. The coming year seems to be accompanied by many new or renewed products for Apple. Production of the new version of the small smart home speaker is scheduled to start in the second half of the year. This suggests that it will be presented again at an October event. At least when there are major changes - such as new sensors or better audio drivers. Otherwise, the presentation could be boiled down to a press release again. The info is again from Ming-Chi Kuo, and again there is disagreement from Mark Gurman. So there seems to be conflicting information in the analyst scene right now ( ).
Apple shows 30-minute film shot with the iPhone 14 Pro
"Shot on iPhone 14 Pro" is the title of the half-hour short film "Fursat" uploaded by Apple to YouTube. Vishal Bhardwaj's film contains a wide variety of scenes and moods - sometimes brightly lit, sometimes rather dark, sometimes in a calm composition, sometimes with fast movements or objects in motion. All of this should of course show how well the iPhone can now be used to create more or less cinematic films. Which brackets were used for certain camera angles, which audio equipment was used and what the post-production looked like is not shown in detail. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1VEks-QQ4Y
POCO X5 5G with 120Hz AMOLED Display (Sponsor)
The new POCO X5 5G is a mid-range smartphone that can stand out in the rather cheap price segment with an AMOLED display made by Samsung with up to 120 Hz. With a price of less than 300 US dollars, it sets a new standard for inexpensive smartphones. In addition to the display, which offers high contrast and a respectable color depth, the Snapdragon 695 as the central processing unit and the good battery life ensure that this device ideal for different media can be used. In addition to films, series and videos from online libraries, this also includes photos and game apps.
What is an AMOLED display?
The first two letters are the abbreviation for "Active Matrix". The associated technology is used in almost all OLED displays with a diagonal of more than 3 inches (7,62 cm). Below this size, "passive matrix" screens are also possible. The POCO X5 5G uses an OLED display, which in turn stands for "Organic Light-Emitting Diode". These emit light themselves and can be controlled individually. In contrast to LCD displays illuminated from the front or from the back, in which individual color dots represent an image together, but the entire screen always has to be illuminated, here only the imaging pixels are illuminated in the amount required to display the image will. Black is really deep black. The contrast is therefore 100.000:1.
The AMOLED display runs at a refresh rate of 120 Hz, which makes movement and scrolling on the display much smoother.

Extremely fast 120 Hz refresh rate
With such a display, not only are bright colors and deep contrasts possible, but also high refresh rates. The POCO X5 5G offers up to 120 Hz in this range, which not only promises a fast reaction to display inputs, but also smooth animations of the system and apps - and last but not least a very good gaming experience. Shooters, racing games and other fast game genres find a home on the new POCO X5 5G. Speaking of response time: Compared to LCD displays, an OLED display of this type is particularly worthwhile in changing temperature conditions. When it gets cold, the coloring elements in an LCD display cannot react as quickly. It comes to jerky animations and the so-called smearing effect. Stripes of the previous image content can still be seen even if this has already given way to another. This is very annoying, especially when changing images quickly.
With a resolution of 108 MP, the POCO X5 Pro 5G sets new standards in terms of the richness of detail in the images. But of course also with regard to the memory requirements of the photos.

Longer battery life and option for RAM expansion
In contrast to other Android smartphones in the same price range, the POCO X5 5G promises other exciting advantages. The use of the OLED display, for example, increases the battery life. Because the display does not have to be completely illuminated when using the device, but only the areas that have to be visible are illuminated, electricity is saved. In order to save even more battery, the refresh rate can also be reduced (60 Hz is still very smooth). Another selling point is the option of expanding the main memory (RAM) by 5 GB in just a few seconds. There is a "Memory Expansion" option in the device's settings for this. In order to get more RAM, space in the SSD memory is reserved for computing processes. The individual models with 6 GB or 8 GB RAM can be increased to 11 GB or 13 GB RAM. Internal memory can be selected in sizes of 128 GB and 256 GB. So enough space to store a lot of media and apps even when using the RAM expansion.
Conclusion on the new POCO X5 5G
If you are looking for a comparatively cheap but technically very well-equipped Android smartphone, you will find it in the POCO X5 5G. The state-of-the-art display made by Samsung, the battery-saving display of image content, the computing power for gaming and the simple RAM expansion are just the beginning. These technical possibilities form the basis for your own individual use. And at a good price. So this device sets new standards for mid-range smart devices.
In stores today: Apple HomePod (2nd Gen)
Last month Apple introduced the second generation of the Apple HomePod. Very similar in terms of external design, it comes with some technical changes compared to the 2018 model. Details on the features of the new hi-fi speaker from Apple can be found here: Apple HomePod 2023 – Smart Speaker with Apple Silicon. By the way, you can take a look and buy the device for €349 starting today. In addition, the pre-ordered units should be delivered during the day. What else you should know about the topic, I have summarized it for you below.
The new 2nd generation Apple HomePod, launched in January 2023, is now available to view and buy in stores. Details about the device and links to more information can be found here.

This is the Apple HomePod (2nd Gen)
The new HomePod has a high-excursion woofer specially developed for the device. This bass-giving component is supported by a ring of five tweeters. Room sensors and internal temperature sensors ensure that algorithms can calculate the best settings for convincing sound. This makes 3D audio possible, even with just one speaker. Two of them can be linked to form a stereo pair, for use with the Apple TV, for example. Multiroom audio is also possible. The Apple HomePod (2nd gen), which can also be used as a smart home hub, also has sensors for room temperature and humidity. Last but not least, Siri, an intercom feature and other functions can be used.
Notes on stereo pairing, sensors, and sound detection
Since the presentation of the new second-generation Apple HomePod, more and more details have been gleaned from Apple's websites and documents. So e.g. B. It is important to know that the current device from 2023 cannot be paired with the model from 2018 to form a stereo pair. In addition, there are some restrictions with regard to the functionality of the installed sensors. And the noise detection should initially be able to be used primarily to recognize the alarm of smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors. This should then trigger a notification on the iPhone. Here are the details in individual blog posts:
What does "bricked" mean and what is a "bricked device"?
"Bricking" is a term widely used in the technology industry to describe the condition of a device in which it no longer functions and is therefore unusable - it is then practically just a brick. The term is used for a variety of electronic devices, including smartphones, game consoles, routers, and other electronic devices. In this article I would like to explain what a "bricked device" is, how it happens, how to prevent it and what to do if it does happen.
Midjourney AI created the images in this post for me. Ok, here it looks like a chocolate-covered smartphone, but still nice graphics (images: Sir Apfelot).

What is bricking?
Bricking is a term used to describe the state of a device where it permanently stops working, making it unusable. The term "bricked" is often used when a device's firmware or operating system has become corrupted, causing the device to stop responding to input or start properly. In other words, a bricked device is like a brick - and just as useful as a brick. You can use it to keep doors open or to weigh down letters.
Causes
The causes of bricking in mobile devices can be either physical or software related. Damage to the device's hardware can cause bricking, but far more often it's the result of software issues. Modifying, hacking, jailbreaking, or rooting a device carries the risk of making the device inoperable by altering important system files. But even updating the firmware or the operating system can lead to a bricked device if an error occurs during the update. It is not for nothing that the iPhone always wants to have 50% battery level before it allows an update of iOS.
Practical as a brick - that's how you could describe a bricked iPhone.

Precautions
There are a few measures to prevent bricking on smartphones, tablets or laptops or, if the worst comes to the worst, to at least minimize the problems afterwards. First, it is important to always back up important data before making any changes to the device's firmware or operating system. The Time Machine backup is ideal for Macs and backups can be created in iCloud for iPhones and iPads. This ensures that important data is not lost when the device is bricked. Also, it is important to follow proper procedure when updating firmware or operating system. This includes downloading the update from a reliable source if you have a choice here. In addition, the device should have a sufficiently high battery level or ideally be connected to the power supply. You can also save yourself problems if you wait a week or two before updating to see whether other users might have massive problems with the update and the manufacturer has to withdraw or revise it. This has also happened to Apple.
With the right precautions, you can reduce the risk of your smartphone becoming a paperweight in the future.

Restoration
If a device is indeed bricked, it may not be recoverable. How good or bad the odds are depends a lot on the device. From my experience, I would estimate that bricked iPhones are significantly more common than bricked MacBooks. But that can also be a quirky perception, because probably a lot more people in my orbit have iPhones than MacBooks.
Firmware or operating system reinstallation
In some cases, bricking can be fixed by simply reinstalling the firmware or operating system. In other cases, the device may need to be repaired or replaced. If the device is still under warranty, it may be covered by the manufacturer and will be repaired or replaced free of charge. With Macs and iPhones, you may be able to use a working Mac to reload the firmware on the bricked device. Apple has already created a good tool for this with the recovery partition on the Mac, with which Mac users can install a new operating system themselves.
Questions or further information?
Do you have any questions or tips on the subject? Then please leave a comment here. I'm happy to add to or revise the article, because I personally haven't had an iPhone, iPad or Mac that was actually bricked. The worst thing that had happened to me so far was the iPhone boot loop, which my iPhone 7 Plus got stuck in. Only a repair by Apple actually helped here.
Create AI art locally: Apps for stable diffusion and other deep learning models
It seems that AI art is currently on everyone's lips - and eyes. In addition to completely confused compositions, there are sometimes very respectable images from the individual programs that can create images locally with "Stable Diffusion" and other deep learning models. With regard to the Apple Mac, these apps are primarily made for models with "Apple Silicon" chips; you won't find Intel versions. And the operating system should also be up to date, since the programs are mostly Monterey oder sogar Ventura assume. The following is about Mochi Diffusion, Diffusers, AI Photo and Invoke AI.
In the following I will introduce you to four programs for creating AI art locally on the Apple Mac. I tried three of them myself. The fourth should also be good, but I failed with the installation.

Preview: The setup I use to try out apps
Apps for creating AI art on the Apple Mac are primarily designed for M chips, i.e. the M1 Pro and M1 Max, to the M2 chip as well as on the new ones M2 Pro and M2 Max. In addition, you should always have the latest operating system installed to ensure compatibility with the programs. Personally, I'm currently working with this setup, which is well suited for testing the AI apps mentioned:
- Device: 16 inch MacBook Pro from 2021
- System on Chip: Apple M1 Pro
- CPU cores: 10 / GPU cores: 16
- RAM: 16GB shared memory
- Operating system: macOS Ventura 13.2
Mochi Diffusion – My current favorite
I've made my first steps in the field of AI art in the last few days. I looked at various apps for macOS. The one I think is the best so far is called Mochi Diffusion. It's not the easiest when it comes to installing and integrating deep learning models - but you can get it done. You can then enter image descriptions, specify things that should not occur, set the number of work steps and AI intensity and more. Also, not only one image can be output, but up to 100 attempts per prompt to satisfactorily implement the entered instructions.
Mochi Diffusion is currently my favorite due to the customization options and ease of implementation of various deep learning models. However, I've only just begun to look into the subject.
In addition to stable diffusion, deep learning models such as Fruity Mix, Anything, Redshift Diffusion and the like can also be used. Some are better for landscapes, some better for people, still others for animals or objects, and others for imitating art styles. Here you either have to read in or try everything out and make a note of which models and which settings are best for your own purposes. From an image of a D&D character for the character sheet to a fictional artwork in the style of a specific person, anything is possible. Sci-Fi or a crocodile with a top hat can also be created.
Mochi Diffusion Download
You can find the free download of Mochi Diffusion with this link on GitHub. The source code of the open source software is also available there. In order to feed the software with models, from which the necessary resources for image creation are then drawn, it is best to visit this website. There are models designed for Apple “Core ML” technology, currently 38 pieces. There is a small description and example pictures for each. For coolly designed comic images that should look like they were drawn with ink, e.g. B. Made Inkpunk Diffusion. The models are each several gigabytes in size. After downloading and unzipping, pull them in Macintosh HD/Users/[name]/Documents/MochiDiffusion/models.
As of now, there are 38 models that you can download for different AI styles and implement them in Mochi Diffusion. However, each model takes up several gigabytes of storage space on your hard drive.

Diffusers - Simpler, but also quite good
Although I'm mostly into Mochi Diffusion, I have other apps installed for creating AI art as well. Diffusers is one of them. It comes with various "Stable Diffusion" models and can also be fed with prompts (image descriptions) and negative prompts (content that should not appear in the image). Up to 150 work steps can be defined, but no AI intensity. All in all, it's a similar app, but with fewer customization options. However, it is useful for first steps, especially since it can also be downloaded and used free of charge.
Diffusers is also a good app for creating AI art on macOS. Several "Stable Diffusion" versions are already included. Definitely suitable for the first steps and beyond.

Diffuser's download
Diffusers doesn't need a trip to GitHub and other websites — and neither do they Port-Inputs. Because this app is offered in the Mac App Store. With this link you come directly to the offer. There you will also find the first example images, including the "Labrador in the style of Vermeer" example, which is displayed when you first open the app. It's a bit reminiscent of one of Vermeer's most famous paintings, Girl with a Pearl Earring.
AI Photo - Image sorting as a great strength
While I've had good experiences with Mochi Diffusion when creating landscapes, fantasy characters, animals, vehicles and sci-fi scenes, the AI Photo app convinced me with a completely different thing: sorting the created images. In addition to an "All images" overview, there are various "Collections" that you can expand with your own folders as you wish. From cats to architecture to textures, everything can be organized and quickly found here. There is also a search function and you can mark favorites. So if you work with large amounts of AI images, you should give AI Photo a try.
The strength of AI Photo, in addition to creating images in a wide variety of styles, lies in the sorting of the various images. These are saved in the app and are not lost when it is closed (which is the case with Mochi Diffusion, for example, if you do not save the images manually).

AI Photo Download
AI Photo can also be easily downloaded from the official Mac App Store – Right this way. So you don't have to search for the right version on GitHub or use the terminal for any scripts. And useful pictures come out with this program as well. Of course, you also have to play around a bit here and refine the specifications from time to time in order to get exactly the picture you want. But what you have to keep in general and what you have to describe in detail, you learn over time. A bit of patience is required.
Invoke AI – The most complicated install of them all
I value the developer community and love GitHub, the open source software provided elsewhere, and the free app offerings beyond that. But you can also make the installation unnecessarily complicated. Sometimes the (ease of) installation and use of the developed application does not seem to be as important as the feasibility of the project. At least that's how I feel about Invoke AI. I tried the GitHub download (to be found here) with the instructions from this page to be implemented via the terminal. But it didn't work because of some Python errors or something.
??
I have to admit that I didn't linger long here with the error solution. After a second attempt didn't work, I postponed the test of Invoke AI indefinitely. However, if you were able to successfully install the app and noticed special advantages (especially compared to the other apps presented here), then please leave a comment. I'm really excited to see what the program can do and whether it was able to convince you. Personally, at the moment I just feel reinforced in my wish that developers think about the normal user and make the installation of software as easy as possible.

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