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Technology |
In today’s letter: Peloton’s fancy schmancy new bike reviewed; Mark Zuckerberg friends politics; the fastest chargers for all your gadgets; Airbnb’s pandemic turnaround; and more. But first ... |
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| iPhone 12 With a Side of 5G Hype |
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| PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: LAURA KAMMERMANN/WSJ |
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It’s hard to know how much of a focus 5G was at Apple’s iPhone 12 event last Tuesday since, you know, the term was only uttered 70 times. Let’s see here: “5G is the most exciting step yet.” “This all becomes real with 5G coming to iPhone.” “5G will bring a new level of performance for downloads and uploads.” Those are just a few quotes from Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook, who along with other Apple executives and Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg, waxed on about how 5G will unlock so much speed, it will usher in a new era of the iPhone. But will it? Where exactly is all this fast, life-changing, world-altering 5G? And if you find it, what will it do for our lives? Those are the questions I’ve been trying to answer in my annual 5G testing adventures. (Here’s this summer’s. Here’s last summer’s.) Let me remind you of the three big conclusions: 1) 5G can mean different things. In the U.S., the millimeter wave networks are blazing fast, and were the focus of the presentation from Apple. But they don’t really work indoors. Then there’s the Sub-6 networks, which aren’t as fast but provide far wider indoor and outdoor coverage. 2) It’s hard to find fast 5G right now. For the really fast millimeter-wave coverage, the maps look like chicken pox, and a lot of the Sub-6 5G coverage just feels like 4G LTE. This is understandable—we had the same slow roll out with 3G and then 4G. 3) We don’t have any real use for 5G right now. When you actually find it, what are you doing with all that speed? Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, even Apple can’t seem to find a really convincing example of a 5G advantage, beyond downloading movies and TV shows really fast and playing games with very low latency. On that final point, there’s real reason to be optimistic. The combination of 4G and smartphones unlocked everything from Uber to Instagram. When those networks first popped up, we couldn’t have dreamed of the applications we now take for granted. That’s what I believe Apple meant. Still, don’t make 5G the driving factor behind your iPhone upgrade decision. Instead, look to the new design or the promise of even better photos. I’ll be reviewing the latest iPhone 12 models over the next couple of weeks, so stay tuned. —Joanna is the Journal’s senior personal tech columnist, and currently lives under a 5G tower. And there’s more on Apple and 5G here: 👀Personal tech columnist Nicole Nguyen’s first impressions of the four iPhone 12 models 🌟 Comparing Apple’s full lineup: iPhone 12 vs. iPhone 11 vs. iPhone XR vs. iPhone SE 📶 New 5G iPhones Kick Off Poaching Season for Carriers 📱 Apple Reveals Four iPhone 12 Models With 5G Capability 👉 Apple Counts on 5G to Boost iPhone Fortunes in China |
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| 📖 Read This: How Mark Zuckerberg Became a Political Animal |
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| ILLUSTRATION: DOUG CHAYKA FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL |
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| New From Personal Tech: Peloton Bike+ Review—Rationalizing a $2,495 Exercise Bike |
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As we endured month upon month of quarantine, the word “Peloton” became as ubiquitous to in-home exercise gadgets as Kleenex is to tissue, or Band-Aids are to boo-boos. For those who can afford them, swanky stationary cycles and treadmills that pipe live-streamed classes into our living rooms are a godsend during lockdown. 👉Read John Stoll’s full column here. |
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| 📖 Read This, Too: Silicon Valley Pay Cuts Ignite Tech-Industry Covid-19 Tensions |
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| PHOTO: DAVID PAUL MORRIS/BLOOMBERG NEWS |
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Tech workers fleeing the San Francisco Bay Area to work remotely amid the pandemic are facing a new reality: pay cuts. Over the past several months, Covid-19 has shaken traditional notions of where employees can work. In Silicon Valley, which has a relatively high cost of living and an employee base with access to state-of-the-art remote-work tools, companies are devising plans for a future with decentralized staffs. In some cases, changes can include cutting salaries by 15% or more depending on where someone moves. 👉Read Katie Bindley and Eliot Brown’s full report here. 🎧 And listen to Katie on WSJ’s Tech News Briefing podcast here. |
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| 🎬 Watch This: The Best and Fastest Chargers for Your iPhone—and All Your Other Gadgets, Too |
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| PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: PRESTON JESSEE FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL |
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After years of shipping iPhones with a horribly slow charging brick, Apple has finally killed it. WSJ’s Joanna Stern kills it harder, then recommends the best fast chargers and wireless options from Anker, Aukey, Belkin and others. 🎬Watch Joanna’s video here. 📖And read her full column here. |
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• The Man Who Speaks Softly—and Commands a Big Cyber Army (Wired) • Made-for-Amazon Brand Names Are Getting Ridiculously Surreal (Slate) • The Ad-Hoc Group of Activists and Academics Convening a “Real Facebook Oversight Board” (New Yorker) |
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| 📖 Read One More: How Airbnb Pulled Back From the Brink |
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| PHOTO: CHRISTIE HEMM KLOK FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL |
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In May, after fighting to keep Airbnb from the brink of collapse, Chief Executive Brian Chesky started noticing signs of life in part of his business. Urban residents were searching for vacation rentals in neighboring towns and cities, so they didn’t have to fly. People wanted to book entire homes, meaning Airbnb could gain from travelers shunning hotels and their shared spaces. The upswing has put the home-sharing giant on a path to go public and report a third-quarter profit this year, according to investors, something that seemed all but impossible months ago. 👉Read Preetika Rana and Maureen Farrell’s full report here. |
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| ✉️ Reader Mailbag: Your Tech Questions |
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Q: | I have an iPhone 11. Will Apple come out with a software update that will bring 5G to older iPhone models?—Andy G. from Vancouver, British Columbia |
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A: | No, the faster connectivity requires new cellular radios and antennas that are only in the iPhone 12 line. Software alone can’t unlock 5G. Now, I realize this may be very confusing, especially for those in the U.S. on AT&T, who may see a 5GE signal on their older iPhones. That is really an improved version of 4G LTE—it’s not true 5G. |
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Q: | I have an iPhone 6 Plus. I’ve been waiting on the 12 because I’m going to hold onto my next phone for several years and 5G might be useful in the future. I have a hard time seeing small print, too. Should I get the 12 Pro or the 12 Pro Max?—Joy London from Roswell, Ga. |
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A: | You’re in the same boat as my father, who also has an aging iPhone 6 Plus, likes big screens and doesn’t seem to mind that his iPhone hasn’t gotten the latest software updates in years! It’s a no brainer: Get the 12 Pro Max. The bigger 6.7-inch screen is going to allow you to see more text on screen, even if you enlarge the font size in settings. Sure, it’s the most expensive iPhone, starting at $1,099, but if you plan to hold onto it as long as you’ve held onto your last iPhone, it’s worth it. Pre-orders for it start on Nov. 6. |
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Q: | I have an iPhone 11 Pro Max and my wife has an iPhone 11. I’m looking into the Aukey multi-port charger you recommended. Will I still be able to use the cables I have?—Shelly Hechtman from Delray Beach, Fl. |
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A: | The beauty of the Aukey I recommended is that it has both types of USB ports—USB-C and the classic USB-A. Your iPhone 11 Pro Max actually would have shipped with a Lighting-to-USB-C cable last year; your wife’s iPhone 11 shipped with a USB-A cable. So both will still work! If you need new cables, I recommend investing in Anker’s USB-C-to-Lightning cords. They are well made and have Apple’s Made for iPhone certification. |
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Q: | The 100-watt, four-port Aukey Omnia Mix4 you recommended isn’t available on the company’s website or Amazon. What gives?—Readers everywhere |
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A: | Unfortunately, a few hours after posting my column on Wednesday, Aukey sold out of this product. A representative from the company tells me it should be back in stock soon. If you can’t wait, I also recommend the 90-watt three-port version of the product. |
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Note: Questions are edited for clarity and length. |
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We want to know what you think! Reply to this email and share your feedback. Brought to you by tech editor Robert Wall, tech news editor Bowdeya Tweh and personal tech editor Wilson Rothman. You can reach them by replying to this newsletter, and follow them on Twitter: @R_Wall, @bowknowsbiz and @wjrothman. |
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