Refresh
Good morning, Gareth back with you again! Hope you had a lovely sleep and woke up refreshed and ready to find out what’s been happening overnight – well, good news on that front: we’ve had a few more facts about the new devices and services unearthed.
We’ve also had a good suite of in-depth analysis from our intrepid editors – both at Cupertino and commenting from the sidelines – so here’s what you need to catch up on:
What a day. Credit to Apple for figuring out how to hold a big, bustling event with hundreds of developers, press, and analysts. Few of us expected the presentation to be pre-recorded, but there was still so much in-person energy that you couldn’t replicate without being, well, in person.
Now with some hours of perspective under our belts, we can see what Apple has accomplished here: Pushing virtually all of its platforms forward (some by a lot) and prepping the Apple faithful for an exciting fall.
With the M2 chip, which was no surprise at all, Apple breathed new life into what is arguably one of its most cherished product lines: the MacBook Air. That redesigned product, though, is also marking the end of an era. Even though Apple will continue selling the MacBook Air M1 for the foreseeable future, this marks the beginning of the end for that iconic wedge design.
Some, like Matt Hanson, think it’s time (read his MacBook Air (M2, 2022) vs MacBook Air (M1, 2020): which is best for you? for the details), but others (okay, me) will miss that particular look and feel when it’s gone.
Overall, I’m glad I came, and that Apple has reopened the door to in-person events. Now that they’ve pulled this off, the big iPhone 14 launch this fall should be a piece of cake.
Right, I’m going to pop off for a bit and find some more caffeine. It’s been a great day, lovely to see the Apple Park and get a quick play of the MacBook Air! Looking forward to reviewing it in full soon. I’ll leave you in the capable hands of Lance!
If you want to know if your Mac can run macOS Ventura, our Software writer Daryl Baxter has a Will your Mac get the macOS 13 Ventura update? guide that explains all.
Over at Ars Technica (opens in new tab), the writers feel that with macOS 13 Ventura, the new operating system announced at WWDC, Apple is ‘aggressively’ dropping support for Macs running on Intel chips, in favor of the Apple Silicone-running Macs and MacBooks.
Pre-2017 Macs will not be able to run macOS 13, and that includes the Mac Pro, which was launched in 2013, but was still being sold as late as 2019.
This sucks for owners of Intel-based MacBooks. While an Intel MacBook Air was launched in early 2020, and we expect it to get new macOS updates for a good few years yet, it does look like Apple wants to move to just supporting M1 and M2-based Macs pretty soon.
This was my first time visiting the Apple Park, and it’s a very impressive building and location. There’s the main building, which is a huge ring with curved glass that seems to go on forever, with a large, natural, space in the middle, where the keynote was played on large screens.
There’s also various smaller buildings, nestled amongst some stunning countryside. Then, there’s the Steve Jobs Theater which is where we saw the new MacBook Airs up close, and even got a surprise visit from Tim Cook!
While you’ll have seen earlier that Lance managed to get a selfie with Mr Cook, I decided not to dive into the mass of people who surrounded him. I’m sure at some point, he’ll come to me and ask me for a selfie.
Well…
Maybe…
Unlike with some launches, where Apple discontinues the older model as soon as a…
Read More: WWDC 2022 round-up: new MacBook Air with M2 chip, iOS 16, macOS 13 Ventura…