WWDC 2019

Here's a quick rundown of my favorite updates announced at Apple's annual WWDC.

tvOS

  • Xbox One and PS4 controller support for games

watchOS 6

  • watchOS App Store => Apple Watch Independence!
  • streaming support
  • menstrual cycle tracking

iOS 13

  • system-wide dark mode
  • built-in swipe typing
  • Maps: favorites, collections, street view
  • up to 30% faster Face ID
  • up to 2x faster app launch
  • Sign in with Apple button — privacy-focused version of "Sign in with Facebook/Twitter/Google"
  • HomeKit Secure Video — store videos from HomeKit cameras to iCloud
  • HomeKit support for routers
  • iMessage Profiles — add your own display name, avatar. Only people in your contacts can see this.
  • Memoji — makeup, hats, piercings
  • Memoji stickers — automatically turns your memoji into a sticker pack with all standard emoji facial expressions
  • Video editing in Photos app
  • dual iCloud accounts per device (for personal and work)
  • smaller volume HUD — changing volume doesn't bring the stupid dialog in the middle of the screen

Siri

  • auto-announce messages on AirPods
  • audio sharing — play your music on a friend's AirPods
  • Music HandOff to HomePod — music on your iPhone will continue on your HomePod with a physical tap
  • live radio stations on HomePod
  • Siri Shortcut Events — automatically run shortcuts based on an event
  • Voice ID for HomePod => multi-user support

iPadOS 13

  • multiple windows for the same app
  • easily switching Slide Over apps
  • App Exposé
  • Safari: download manager
  • third-party font management
  • built in Zip/Unzip files
  • three-finger swipe gesture to undo/redo
  • mouse support (hidden as accessibility option)
  • iCloud Folder Sharing
  • network drives support in Files app
  • USB/SD drives support in Files app

Mac Pro

  • starts at $5,999
  • $4,999 - $5,999 for 32" monitor
  • $999 for monitor stand (LOL)

macOS Catalina

  • Project Catalyst and SwiftUI— an easy way for developers to make apps for ALL of Apple's platforms! The future of the Apple ecosystem.
  • SideCar — wirelessly use your iPad as a second monitor
  • full voice control
  • Find My - combines Find My iPhone, Find My Friends into one app. WORKS WITH OFFLINE DEVICES
  • Activation Lock — like iOS, if someone steals your MacBook, you can lock it down so they cannot format your computer.
  • approve with Apple Watch — like Unlock with Apple Watch but for EVERYTHING

ARKit 3

  • people inclusion — people are detected in real-time and AR elements can visibly work around people
  • motion capture for people

Tech I Couldn't Live Without in 2012

  • Mac mini with 1TB Fusion Drive — For a $1,100 Mac, this baby is FAST. It gives me all the performance I need to open large Photoshop files while coding sites, and plenty of space for my massive iPhoto library.

  • iPhone 4S — My iPhone is my communications hub where all of my notifications are pushed to. And the outstanding 8 megapixel camera lets me capture precious moments that I want to carry with me for the rest of my life.

  • iPad mini — For a few months, I was iPadless because I sold my first-gen iPad in anticipation of the mini. What happened? I compensated by overusing my 4S, which had a significant affect on battery life. I see my iPad mini as my primary mobile consumption device, and a way to "extend" the battery life of my iPhone.

  • Google — Chrome has the right balance of feature robustness and simplicity. Gmail is still king of email. Google Reader is an absolute must-have (I don't care if bloggers say Twitter is the new RSS). Google Voice development has been extremely stagnant for the past couple years but having web access to all of my text messages has saved my ass countless times.

  • Flipboard for iPad/iPhone — still, by far, the best way to stay up-to-date with Google Reader, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and now Tumblr.

  • Instagram — If I had to give up all social networks except one, I would keep Instagram. It's by far the most personal social network out there because everyone post things that make them happy, unlike Twitter/Facebook where some people only use for passive-aggression, bitching and whining.

  • Tweetbot for iPad — the best Twitter app out there. For me, the killer features are cross-device placeholder syncing (i.e. Tweet Marker) and being able to retweet as a different Twitter account.

  • ProCamera for iPhone — This is my secret weapon for taking great photos. Specifically, I love how I can lock exposure and enable image stabilization with one hand for close-up shots (e.g. food, lol).

  • Facebook — Simply because all of my friends are on it. Most of my friends don't have Twitter so Facebook is still the best way for me to reach everyone in my life.

  • Pinboard — This has become a big part of my consumption workflow. When I find an interesting link on Tweetbot or Chrome, I'll save it to Pinboard, which will push to my Google Reader via RSS to read for later.

  • Instapaper — While Google Reader is my inbox, Instapaper is my "Save for Later" bin where I'll dump long articles that aren't time-sensitive. Recently, it's been filled out with a lot of How To's and Quora posts.

  • Dropbox — I always need a way to share large files across people and devices. Been a loyal user since 2006.

  • Drafts App — This summer, I retired my iOS app experiment, PostMate for iPhone. Drafts shares the same workflow as PostMate for quickly drafting and sharing text, but supports a lot more external apps/services.

  • Backblaze — online backup solution. This thing has saved my ass a few times this year.

  • Bitcasa — infinite online storage. It's still in beta but I've been dumping a TON of stuff on here. I don't put anything mission critical on here because it hasn't earned that much of my trust yet, but for now, I use it to store things like movies, TV shows, etc.

  • Imgur — Tumblr used to be a very important source of entertainment for me but I figured out that 90% of viral posts on Tumblr come from Imgur. Now I just go straight to the source.

Honorable Mentions: ForkLift for Mac, DayOne, Slingbox, Siri, iTunes Match, Skype

Heating Up for 2013: 1Password, Pinterest, App.Net, New Myspace, GitHub

Cooling Down: Tumblr, Trillian, Voxer

Dismissed: Path, because none of my actual close friends are on it.