Hi, friends! Welcome to Installer No. 133, your guideline to the champion and Verge-iest worldly successful the world. (If you’re caller here, welcome, happy belated Juneteenth, and besides you tin publication each the aged editions astatine the Installer homepage.)
This week, I’ve been reference astir Sam Bankman-Fried and PE Guy and admin nights (which we should wholly each do together 1 of these days), listening to Paul McCartney connected Song Exploder, trudging done the bugs of the iOS 27 beta successful bid to usage the bully caller Siri, erstwhile again trying and failing to move to YouTube Music, free trial-hopping my measurement done the World Cup, yet upgrading my camera setup pinch the Elgato Prompter, and seeing if this strange, inexpensive headband tin thief maine autumn dormant faster. So far… inconclusive.
I besides person for you the caller Pixar movie worthy your time, a amended measurement to clasp your phone, a bully upgrade for Android users, a beautiful caller Windows laptop, and overmuch more. Let’s do this.
(As always, the champion portion of Installer is your ideas and tips. What are you watching / reference / playing / listening to / doing during commercials this week? Tell maine everything: [email protected]. And if you cognize personification other who mightiness bask Installer, guardant it to them and show them to subscribe here.)
- Toy Story 5. The bad feline is an iPad! I emotion it. And by each accounts, the movie wholly useful some arsenic a communicative and arsenic a thoughtful look astatine the existent pros and cons of screentime. We often talk astir instrumentality usage successful each the incorrect ways; time off it to Pixar to get it right. I’ll beryllium successful the theatre Saturday morning.
- Lettera. Markdown editors are a dime a twelve correct now, but hardly anybody does matter editing amended than Shiny Frog, the folks down the awesome Bear app. This matter editor is successful beta, but it’s already ace accelerated and unchangeable astatine slightest for me. Gonna usage this a lot.
- The PopSockets Low-Pro Grip. I mightiness beryllium the world’s astir fervent protagonist of PopSockets, and of telephone grips of each kinds. (Phones are not comfortable to hold!) I’ve been utilizing the kickstand PopSocket for a while, but americium going to gladly waste and acquisition it, and my $40, for the super-thin caller model.
- Mastodon 4.6. I don’t walk that overmuch clip connected Mastodon anymore, but this mightiness thief triumph maine (and immoderate others) back. Collections are a clever measurement to lick Mastodon’s large find and hunt problem, and a bully measurement to thief group get started connected a caller societal network. Plus, you tin fto group motion up to get your posts sent via email. Fediverse, baby!
- Snap Specs. $2,195 for a brace of smart glasses! Wild. I confess I americium not astatine each convinced anyone’s going to want these — they’re large and wonky and measurement excessively expensive. But I besides deliberation Snap understands really group really want to use exertion amended than conscionable astir anybody. So I’m not penning these disconnected conscionable yet.
- Android 17. Coming soon to a Pixel adjacent you: an easier measurement to seizure guidance videos, floating app windows that look for illustration a very useful multitasking strategy that I dream iOS copies immediately, and a built-in controller for playing games connected foldables. As ever pinch Android, it’s only immoderate features, for immoderate phones… but I for illustration wherever Android is headed.
- VSCO Studio Pro. VSCO makes bully photography stuff, and this app, which is made for editing immense sets of photos each astatine once, is very clever. “Make each my different photos look for illustration this photo” is conscionable specified a useful editing trick! I’m not chaotic astir the looming subscription exemplary here, but I for illustration what VSCO’s making.
- “The Music Industry is Broken.” Really bully Drew Gooden video astir really the business of euphony is changing acknowledgment to streaming services, AI, ticketing monopolies, and more. There’s decidedly immoderate “you’re conscionable huffy astatine capitalism” going connected here, but Drew does a bully occupation astatine hitting connected each the ways things person changed, and why it each feels bad.
- The Microsoft Surface Laptop 8. There’s a caller Surface Pro, too, but I person agelong thought the much normal Surface Laptop (not to beryllium confused pinch the Ultra) was 1 of the champion Windows devices retired there. If the caller Qualcomm chips are arsenic bully arsenic advertised, this should beryllium a really useful all-purpose laptop. And it looks great in green.
- Songs of The Dead. The opening of a caller bid coauthored by Installerverse favourite Brandon Sanderson, called The Strata Wars, this book is astir euphony and magic and clip and abstraction and a cardinal different things. Some reviewers seemed to find it a spot much, but others loved it. And I cognize a batch of america emotion Sanderson.
Josh Cajas conscionable joined The Verge this week arsenic a shaper connected The Vergecast. (Which is now publishing each day, and has cool merch, did you know??) Before he joined us, Josh had galore lives: He worked successful the US House of Representatives, he was successful an highly cool and bully band, he has made galore cool things and will make galore much pinch us. He’s besides conscionable bully people.
I for illustration to person caller Verge folks stock their homescreen pinch america early successful their tenure to spot who they genuinely are earlier they’re dropped into a squad afloat of mechanical keyboard weirdos and to-do database app maniacs. So here’s Josh’s homescreen, positive immoderate info connected the apps he uses and why:
The phone: I person a Google Pixel 10.
The wallpaper: A photograph I took past twelvemonth during a travel to Japan of the Kiyomizu-dera shrine astatine sunset (shot connected my Pixel 9 Pro XL). Kyoto is incredibly picturesque, particularly astatine that clip of day, and I was fortunate capable to drawback it during cherry blossom season.
The apps: Settings, Google Maps, Gmail, Google Keep, Phone, Messages, Edge, Camera, Play Store, Photos, Translate, TrainTime, ChatGPT, Focus Friend, Snipd.
I usage the Microsoft Launcher to ditch the At a Glance widget and hunt bar, and to fto maine usage icon taxable packs. I’ve mostly utilized Flight Pack, Retro Mode - Neon, and Viral to springiness my apps much of a cohesive look. KWGT has besides been awesome for building a civilization Apple Music widget and inferior barroom connected my homescreen. I besides emotion the Google Photos widget cycling passim the day, and my canine Butters makes an quality successful my screenshot!
My first page covers my essentials (work apps, socials, streaming services) and a favorites files for shopping, banking, and food. Since it’s shot season, my MLB app typically gets a batch of use. Not truthful overmuch this year, though, pinch the measurement the Mets are playing.
My 2nd page is for fittingness and productivity. I’m a large Pixel Watch guy, truthful my Google Health widget is beforehand and center, alongside my MyFitnessPal widget for regular calorie tracking. My favourite productivity app has been Focus Friend by Hank Green that’s adjacent parts Tamagotchi pet and attraction timer. You gain beans each clip you activate it and enactment disconnected your phone, which you tin past walk connected items for your Bean Friend’s environment. And for podcasts, I’ve utilized Snipd since it first launched and ne'er near it. Its increasing database of AI features for illustration transcriptions, summaries, clips, and insights make it easy for jotting down ideas and catching up connected my favourite shows.
I besides asked Josh to stock a fewer things he’s into correct now. Here’s what he sent back:
- I’m watching Mindy Kaling’s caller show Not Suitable for Work connected Hulu, and it’s amazingly awesome for personification who doesn’t watch a batch of sitcoms. I’m a large Seinfeld guy, and it scratches that aforesaid itch of adults stumbling done life successful NYC — but make it modern.
- I’ve fallen down the YouTube Shorts rabbit spread recently, and 1 of my favourite creators correct now is AsamaPOV. If you’ve ever wanted to conscionable “walk” done section restaurants successful Japan without hopping connected a plane, this is the feline you should watch. His interactions pinch the owners and cooks are incredibly wholesome, and the nutrient he gets to eat looks amazing.
- I support coming backmost to PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale connected my PS Vita. I’m a PlayStation fanboy astatine heart, and while it’s nary Smash Bros., I emotion the gameplay, stages, and finishing moves successful this game. Especially PaRappa the Rapper’s!
Here’s what the Installer organization is into this week. I want to cognize what you’re into correct now arsenic well! Email [email protected] aliases connection maine connected Signal — @davidpierce.11 — pinch your recommendations for thing and everything, and we’ll characteristic immoderate of our favorites present each week. For moreover much awesome recommendations, cheque retired the replies to this station connected Threads and this station connected Bluesky.
“I conscionable watched Cunk connected Life. It’s a BBC comedy/documentary connected the taxable of “life” from an absurdist’s perspective. It’s by Charlie Brooker of Black Mirror. I laughed truthful hard, I gave myself hiccups.” — Kelly
“Really enjoying Young Sherlock connected Amazon Prime. It’s Guy Ritchie astatine his (almost) best: stylish, British, accelerated talking, crime-ridden, pinch a dash of joke and a patient dose of fun.” — Logan
“I’ve been utilizing Wildbirds since closed beta and it’s everything birders want from Instagram, but better.” — Michiel
“Playing Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition — Nintendo Switch 2 Edition and really hoping that these titles alteration astatine immoderate point.” — Connor
“I’m studying for a method exam and put each the materials into Claude. I had it break down the worldly into daily, 30-minute study chunks to beryllium emailed to maine complete the adjacent 2 weeks. Each email has a punctual to do a short quiz astatine the end. A small wonky to commencement but it’s moving good truthful far.” — Ian
“I’ve been utilizing the Dirty Little Zine website to make pocket-sized photography zines. Cheap, fun, and easy measurement to get your photos retired of the integer wasteland and into the existent world.” — Mark
“Finished reference the bid of Silo books successful beforehand of the adjacent play coming successful July.” — Chris
“I’m presently going done Craig Alanson’s Expeditionary Force sci-fi novels, they’re kinetic and silly and a spot unsmooth astir the edges astatine the aforesaid time, I’m having a blast.” — Carlo
“I’ve gotten backmost into playing PowerWash Simulator aft work. I’m really benignant of excited astir Star Wars again aft watching The Mandalorian and Grogu a mates of weeks agone truthful now I americium looking guardant to the PWS2 Star Wars DLC adjacent month.” — Salt Palace
There was immoderate sneakily big, Installerverse-adjacent news this week: Google Calendar now has much colors! Instead of conscionable Google’s bad ideas astir greenish and blue, you tin now color-code your almanac pinch 200 civilization colors. The characteristic is rolling retired now, and mightiness genuinely alteration really I scheme my days. I’ve been toying pinch the thought of conscionable ditching a to-do database wholly and surviving my life retired of my almanac — I proceed to aspire to beryllium a one-text-file benignant of personification — and now I tin yet make my almanac look the measurement I want it to. I’m fighting the impulse to get way too elaborate pinch the color-coding, though I presume that’ll happen. For now I’m conscionable backmost to timeblocking for illustration a madman. Feeling powerful.
See you adjacent week!
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