The Talk Show With John Gruber

Special guest MG Siegler returns to the show. (Finally.) Topics include rumors of an upcoming Siri SDK and an Amazon Echo-like device from Apple, the future of the MacBook lineup, Peter Thiel's secretive role as the financial backer of Hulk Hogan's lawsuit against Gawker, and my hatred of Roman numerals. Sponsored by: Wealthfront: An automated investment service with over $3 billion in client assets under management. Audible.com: With over 250,000 audiobooks, you’ll find what you’re looking for. Get a free 30-day trial. Casper: An obsessively engineered mattress at a shockingly fair price. Use code thetalkshow for $50 toward your mattress. Links: 500ish Words -- the new home for MG's writing. Why do movie studios use Roman numerals for the copyright year in end credits? Felix Salmon on the strategy behind Peter Thiel's heretofore secret campaign to bankrupt Gawker. 9to5Mac on purported upcoming MacBook Pros that replace the function keys with an LED touchscreen. The Optimus Popularis -- a humongous $1500 keyboard where each key cap is a small LED. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Rene Ritchie returns to the show. Topics include Apple’s new flagship retail store in San Francisco, recent improvements to App Store approval times, and Google’s announcements at I/O this week — Google Home and Google Assistant, Allo and Duo, and Android “N” and Android Instant Apps. Sponsored by: Casper: An obsessively engineered mattress at a shockingly fair price. Use code thetalkshow for $50 toward your mattress. Warby Parker: Boutique-quality, vintage-inspired glasses at a revolutionary price. Try up to five pairs at home for free. Wealthfront: An automated investment service with over $3 billion in client assets under management. Links: Rene’s preview of the new SF Apple Store. Apple Talk — iMore’s new podcast, with yours truly as their first guest. App Store review times. Privacy advocate Christopher Soghoian on Twitter. Google I/O 2016 Keynote on YouTube. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Ben Thompson returns to the show to talk about Apple’s recent quarterly results, what we think is going on with iPhone sales, Tim Cook’s misleading guidance, Apple Music, and a lot more. Sponsored by: Wealthfront: An automated investment service with over $3 billion in client assets under management. Automatic: Your smart driving assistant. Get $20 off with this link. Audible.com: With over 250,000 audiobooks, you’ll find what you’re looking for. Get a free 30-day trial. Links: Yours truly, last week: “Apple and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Drop in iPhone Sales”. Ben, two weeks ago: “Apple’s Organizational Crossroads”. Neil Cybart: “iPhone Warning Signs”. Due, an iPhone reminder app that I’ve been using daily for years. Gary Allen, now-deceased writer behind IFO Apple Store. Mini Microsoft. Dodger Trayce Thompson, brother of Golden State Warrior star Klay Thompson, hit a run in Tampa that never came down from the rafters. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Special guest Guy English returns to the show. Topics include Ben Thompson’s argument that Apple’s functional organizational structure is hindering their efforts in online services, recalling our first Apple computers and the elegance of the classic Mac OS’s conceptual design, Prince (and his early use of Macs for creating music), emoji and exclamation marks, WWDC 2016, and yours truly’s youthful foray into on-the-job vandalism. Sponsored by: Squarespace: Build it beautiful. Use code GRUBER for 10% off your first order. Audible.com: With over 250,000 audiobooks, you’ll find what you’re looking for. Get a free 30-day trial. Fracture: Photos printed in vivid color directly on glass. Use promo code TALKSHOW10 for 10% off your first order. Links: Great article by Ben Thompson: “Apple’s Organizational Crossroads” BeOS developers tossing CRT monitors off the roof of their office building, circa 2000. Interesting study on differing interpretations of emoji across platforms. Napkin — a terrific Mac image annotation app from Guy and Chris Parrish. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Serenity Caldwell returns to the show. Topics include the new 9.7-inch iPad Pro, using an iPad for “work”, podcasting microphones, the damn Siri Remote for the new Apple TV, the Star Wars: Rogue One teaser, and more. Sponsored by: Casper: A mattress with just the right sink, just the right bounce, for better nights and brighter days. Use code thetalkshow for $50 off. Squarespace: Build it beautiful. Use code GRUBER for 10% off your first order. Igloo: An intranet you’ll actually like. Try Igloo for free. Fracture: Photos printed in vivid color directly on glass. Use promo code TALKSHOW10 for 10% off your first order. Links: iFontMaker — iPad app for creating and editing fonts. Apogee MiC Digital Microphone — a good (but $230) Lightning port microphone for iOS devices. Serenity: “Some Day, I Would Like to Stop Losing My Siri Remote”. Jared Newman attached a Tile tracker to his Siri Remote. The first trailer for Star Wars: Rogue One. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Jason Snell (Six Colors, The Incomparable, Upgrade) returns to the show for an in-depth look at last week's Apple Event, and the two products that were introduced: the iPhone SE and the 9.7-inch iPad Pro. Other topics include the ongoing FBI/Apple encryption soap opera, what's wrong with the Apple Watch -- and our appreciation for the late great Garry Shandling. Sponsored by: Hello Fresh: The meal kit delivery service that makes cooking fun, easy, and convenient. Save $35 off your first week of deliveries with code "TALKSHOW". Squarespace: Build it beautiful. Use code GRUBER for 10% off your first order. Backblaze: Online backup for $5/month. Native. Unlimited. Unthrottled. Uncomplicated. MailRoute: Hosted spam and virus protection for email. Use this link for 10 percent off for the life of your account. Links: Great article by Ben Thompson: “Apple’s Organizational Crossroads” BeOS developers tossing CRT monitors off the roof of their office building, circa 2000. Interesting study on differing interpretations of emoji across platforms. Napkin — a terrific Mac image annotation app from Guy and Chris Parrish. Walt Disney World’s “Philly Cheesesteak” hot dog. (You can get it with apple slices to keep it healthy.) This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Glenn Fleishman joins the show. The primary topic: Apple’s legal battle against the FBI regarding the iPhone and encryption. Other topics include Aaron Burr’s resurgence in popularity, the U.S. founding fathers’ use of cyphers and codes in their correspondance, next week’s Apple event, USB battery packs, and more. Sponsored by: Casper: A mattress with just the right sink, just the right bounce, for better nights and brighter days. Use code thetalkshow for $50 off. Igloo: An intranet you’ll actually like. Try Igloo for free. Audible.com: With over 180,000 audiobooks, you’ll find what you’re looking for. Get a free 30-day trial. Fracture: Photos printed in vivid color directly on glass. Use promo code TALKSHOW10 for 10% off your first order. Links: Free chapters of Glenn Fleishman’s upcoming book, Take Control of Slack Basics. Graydon Carter: “Why Donald Trump Will Always Be a ‘Short-Fingered Vulgarian’”. Political action committee changes name from “Trump Has Tiny Hands PAC” to “Americans Against Insecure Billionaires with Tiny Hands”. Donald Trump back in October 2013: “As an addition, Apple must go to a larger screen now—asap! They’re losing their standing in the market!”. Wordnik. Low self-discharged (LSD) nickel–metal hydride batteries. Walt Mossberg’s review of the modular Eero home Wi-Fi system. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Special guest John Moltz returns to the show. Topics include the Apple/FBI encryption fight, Apple's upcoming event and the products they're expected to announce. And Campo Santo's fantastic new video game Firewatch. Sponsored by: Backblaze: Online backup for $5/month. Native. Unlimited. Unthrottled. Uncomplicated. Squarespace: Build it beautiful. Use code GRUBER for 10% off your first order. MailRoute: Hosted spam and virus protection for email. Use this link for 10 percent off for the life of your account. Links: L. Gordon Crovitz’s jacktastic op-ed piece on the Apple/FBI fight. Firewatch. Olly Moss’s Star Wars trilogy posters. Geek Remix’s excellent video analyzing the plot of Firewatch. Spoilers galore — do not watch this unless you’ve finished the game. You don’t even want to look at the title of the video. The cast of Firewatch. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Special guest Jim Dalrymple joins the show to talk about the Apple/FBI legal showdown, the debate over Apple software quality, and more. Sponsored by: Squarespace: Build it beautiful. Use code GRUBER for 10% off your first order. Fracture: Photos printed in vivid color directly on glass. Use promo code TALKSHOW10 for 10% off your first order. Harry's: An exceptional shave at a fraction of the price. Use code TALKSHOW for $5 off your first purchase. Links: Walt Mossberg: "Apple's Apps Need Work" Jim Dalrymple: "About Walt Mossberg and Apple’s App Problem" Yours truly: "Apple's App Problem" This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.

Very special guests Eddy Cue and Craig Federighi join the show. Topics include: the new features in Apple's upcoming OS releases (iOS 9.3 and tvOS 9.2); why Apple is expanding its public beta program for OS releases; iTunes's monolithic design; how personally involved Eddy and Craig are in using, testing, and installing beta software; the sad decline of Duke's men's basketball team; and more. Some scoops too, including: the weekly number of iTunes and App Store transactions, an updated Apple Music subscriber count, peak iMessage traffic per second, and the number of iCloud account holders. Sponsored exclusively by Meh.com — the daily deal site from the people who created Woot, sold Woot to Amazon, abandoned Woot, and started again. Links: Apple’s iOS beta preview page. Apple Insider on the new features in tvOS 9.2. Walt Mossberg: “Apple’s Apps Need Work”. Yours truly, following up on Mossberg’s column. Duke falls out of AP Top 25 for the first time in more than eight years. This episode of The Talk Show was edited by Caleb Sexton.