Basic AF: a (mostly) tech podcast

Tom and Jeff are back with a packed episode that wanders from Apple hardware to Apple history to Apple TV+ sports to, well, a scientific fart study. If that sounds like a lot, it is.
Topics covered this episode:
MacBook Neo hands-on — Tom got a brief look at the new $599 MacBook Neo at an IT conference. Build quality impressions, the Indigo color, and why the "it's just an iPhone chip" skepticism sounds a lot like what people said about the original M1 with 8GB of RAM. (Spoiler: they were wrong then too.) 
David Pogue's Apple: The First 50 Years — Tom pre-ordered it, it arrived while he was out of town, and he's had exactly 15 minutes with it. It's a 600-page textbook-style history (not a glossy coffee table book), and he's planning a more thorough read over the summer. 
A history tangent worth taking — The origin story of the PowerBook's palm rest design — and how one engineer's persistence against resistance accidentally shaped every laptop keyboard layout that followed.
Jeff discovers F1 — Apple TV+ now carries every F1 race, and Jeff is in. The tech angle (real-time telemetry, PlayStation-style steering wheels, hybrid power transitions) makes it surprisingly interesting.
The Human Flatus Atlas — Jeff has enrolled in a legitimate University of Maryland research study on human flatulence. Smart underwear device incoming. Butt tag update promised for next episode.
Links from the show
Tom’s Photos of the MacBook Neo
Apple: The First 50 Years – David Pogue
Human Flatus Atlas Project
F1 on Apple TV+
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Contact Us
Drop us a line at [email protected]
You’ll find Jeff at @reyespoint on Threads and reyespoint.bsky.social on Bluesky
Find Tom at @tomanderson on Threads
Join Tom’s newsletter, Apple Talk, for more Apple coverage and tips & tricks.
Tom has a new YouTube channel
Show artwork by the great Randall Martin Design

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Transcripts and some images are AI generated and may contain errors and general silliness.
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Apple's dropping a wave of new products this week — and Tom and Jeff break down everything that's expected: a budget MacBook starting around $600, an iPhone 16E follow-up, iPad updates for the non-Pro models, and possible MacBook Pro upgrades with M5 Pro and Max chips. It's a preview packed with speculation, opinions, and the occasional tangent about fingerprints on laptop screens.
Then things get analog. Tom just joined Jeff in the Field Notes notebook club, and they talk about why a pocket-sized paper notebook has become a surprisingly useful tool alongside all the digital gear. They also cover two weather apps worth knowing about — Acme Weather (from the Dark Sky team) and what's new in Carrot Weather 6.4.
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Links from the show:
Field Notes notebooks & subscription: https://fieldnotesbrand.com
Acme Weather app: https://acmeweather.com
Carrot Weather: https://www.meetcarrot.com/weather/
Is Apple Notes Holding You Back? (Press Pause with Bill McLean, featuring Tom)
GoFundMe for Aliyah (Jeff's bartender friend who lost everything in an apartment fire)
Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!
Contact Us
Drop us a line at [email protected]
You’ll find Jeff at @reyespoint on Threads and reyespoint.bsky.social on Bluesky
Find Tom at @tomanderson on Threads
Join Tom’s newsletter, Apple Talk, for more Apple coverage and tips & tricks.
Tom has a new YouTube channel
Show artwork by the great Randall Martin Design

Enjoy Basic AF? Leave a review or rating!
Review on Apple Podcasts
Rate on Spotify
Recommend in Overcast

Intro Music: Psychokinetics - The Chosen
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Transcripts and some images are AI generated and may contain errors and general silliness.

Tom flies solo this week and welcomes first-time guest Nate Gorby for a conversation about Apple’s ongoing Siri delays, the state of Apple Intelligence, and what it all means for everyday users.
They discuss the latest report that Apple’s context-aware Siri may be pushed back again, whether privacy is helping or hurting Apple’s AI progress, and why even basic Siri tasks still frustrate longtime users.
In the second half, Nate shares his real-world experience using Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses for the past year — what works surprisingly well, where privacy concerns come in, and whether Apple needs to move faster in the wearable AI space.
More from Nate:
Nate's podcast: Last Month Online https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/last-month-online/id1824514139
Nate on Threads: https://www.threads.com/@ngorby
Nate on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ngorby

Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!
Contact Us
Drop us a line at [email protected]
You’ll find Jeff at @reyespoint on Threads and reyespoint.bsky.social on Bluesky
Find Tom at @tomanderson on Threads
Join Tom’s newsletter, Apple Talk, for more Apple coverage and tips & tricks.
Tom has a new YouTube channel
Show artwork by the great Randall Martin Design

Enjoy Basic AF? Leave a review or rating!
Review on Apple Podcasts
Rate on Spotify
Recommend in Overcast

Intro Music: Psychokinetics - The Chosen
Apple Music
Spotify

Transcripts and some images are AI generated and may contain errors and general silliness.

Jim Eagar joins Tom Anderson and Jeff Battersby for a thoughtful, experience-driven conversation about productivity, tools, and the often-tempting urge to switch apps. Drawing on decades of professional experience—from Air Force chaplain to attorney to productivity writer—Jim shares how his workflows evolved alongside Apple technology, why “shiny new app syndrome” can quietly sabotage real work, and how to evaluate whether switching tools is actually worth the cost.
The discussion digs into intentional productivity, app minimalism, and using frameworks (not rules) to make better decisions about software—especially in an era overflowing with AI tools. Jim also walks through his personal writing and planning stack, explains why he recently switched from ChatGPT to Claude, and shares David Sparks’ advice on limiting major app changes to once per year. The result is a grounded, reassuring episode for anyone feeling overwhelmed by productivity tools—and a reminder that clarity beats novelty every time.
More from Jim:
Original Mac Guy
Retirement Reinvented!
Links from the show:
A Very Nerdy Christmas: Evaluate Your Tech Stack
Why I Quit Paid Apps
MacSparky
Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!
Contact Us
Drop us a line at [email protected]
You’ll find Jeff at @reyespoint on Threads and reyespoint.bsky.social on Bluesky
Find Tom at @tomanderson on Threads
Join Tom’s newsletter, Apple Talk, for more Apple coverage and tips & tricks.
Tom has a new YouTube channel
Show artwork by the great Randall Martin Design

Enjoy Basic AF? Leave a review or rating!
Review on Apple Podcasts
Rate on Spotify
Recommend in Overcast

Intro Music: Psychokinetics - The Chosen
Apple Music
Spotify

Transcripts and some images are AI generated and may contain errors and general silliness.

In this episode of Basic AF, Tom Anderson and Jeff Battersby kick off the year by digging into some of the biggest Apple stories in early 2026—starting with the news that Apple is partnering with Google to have Gemini power a revamped Siri and Apple Intelligence. The discussion looks at how Gemini might be integrated behind the scenes, and whether Apple’s privacy promises can hold up when Google enters the equation.
The conversation then turns to Apple Creator Studio, Apple’s new subscription bundle that includes Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, Pixelmator Pro, and other creative tools. Tom and Jeff debate who this bundle is really for, how it compares to Apple’s older one-time purchase model, and whether subscription fatigue is simply the cost of modern software.
From there, they break down Apple’s controversial new app icons and macOS Tahoe design changes, followed by concerns over App Store ads becoming harder to distinguish from real search results. The episode wraps with a broader look at Apple’s record-breaking services revenue and what it signals about the company’s priorities moving forward.
Links from the show:
Google and Apple issue joint partnership statement
Report: Google Gemini will expand Siri’s capabilities
Report: Apple will fine-tune Gemini independently
Apple confirms Google Gemini will power new Siri features
Apple announces Apple Creator Studio
Apple reports record-breaking Services revenue in 2025
Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!
Contact Us
Drop us a line at [email protected]
You’ll find Jeff at @reyespoint on Threads and reyespoint.bsky.social on Bluesky
Find Tom at @tomanderson on Threads
Join Tom’s newsletter, Apple Talk, for more Apple coverage and tips & tricks.
Tom has a new YouTube channel
Show artwork by the great Randall Martin Design

Enjoy Basic AF? Leave a review or rating!
Review on Apple Podcasts
Rate on Spotify
Recommend in Overcast

Intro Music: Psychokinetics - The Chosen
Apple Music
Spotify

Transcripts and some images are AI generated and may contain errors and general silliness.