It’s the end of an era. On June 20, 2026, Apple Trumbull will close it’s doors for the last time.
Apple Trumbull’s grand opening was on Oct. 11, 2014, at 10:00am. I was there with my Dad. We were customers #12 and 13. You could say that we’ve been there, done that, and we have the t-shirts.
Except for me, for the two of us, it hasn’t been a one-and-done thing. We kept going back. Year after year. For iPhones. For Macs. For iPads. For Apple TVs. And yes, for me specifically, more HomePods than I should probably admit.
It isn’t just about the products. It is the sense of community and friendships. I’ve met many people who are just as enthusiastic about the Mac and iPhone as I am. Members of the Business Team became trusted partners for equipment purchases and upgrades.
iPhone Pro launch days became an annual event, my Super Bowl if you will, that we would all look forward to. Dad and I would don our 🍎 Trumbull t-shirts and get in line early on iPhone Friday mornings.
‘What can I help you with today?” a cheerful Trumbull employee would aways ask. “I’m here to pick up a new Samsung Galaxy S-something or other” would be my playful response.
I didn’t stop with just the Store t-shirt. In later years, I have ramped up the shenanigans and bring “special guests” with me. It started off small. I would bring my working (without service) 2007 iPhone. Then a Newton MessagePad 2000. Then a restored original Newton MessagePad 100. Who wouldn’t want to take a family reunion phone with the OG iPhone, Issac, and Newton? Even 50 years later, there are still sparks of playful whimsey inside the massive corporation that Apple has become. Buying a new white iPhone 11 Pro? While not bring all of my other white iPhones from my collection for a family photo? Then came the WWDC jackets when they lined up with iPhone models…13, 14, and 16. Buying my first titanium iPhone? Let’s charge up my PowerBook G4 Titanium and boot into Classic MacOS 9.22 for the “kids” to see while upgrading?
For my last trip to Apple Trumbull later this year, I want to plan something fun, it not a little over the top, for one more photo.
There are other Apple Stores in Connecticut, and I will still go to one to purchase a new iPhone on launch day. But it won’t be the same. Trumbull is “my” store.
Apple has already announced that when Trumbull does finally close, the staff will keep their jobs and transfer to other nearby stores. I am happy to hear that everyone will land on their feet.
And that means that come this fall, there is a chance to see familiar faces again.
The next closest store is Apple New Haven. The full list of Connecticut Apple Stores can be found on Apple.com.
iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone Air, iPhone 17, Apple Watch Series 11, and AirPods Pro 3
Earlier this month, Apple held their annual September event to introduce new iPhones, new Apple Watch, and AirPods Pro 3.
In short, the prerecorded event was used to introduce the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, both in mind breaking Cosmic Orange, Apple Watch SE 3, Series 11, and Ultra 3. Apple also introduced AirPods Pro 3, with improved Active Noise Cancellation and, in a first for AirPods Pro, a workout heart rate sensor.
Other products that were rumored, such as a new Apple TV box, MacBook Pro laptops, and AirTags 2, will have to wait for another chance in the limelight. There’s aways October.
What Did I End Up Buying?
This year, I got a little carried away with a pre-order extravaganza.
Going into the event, I was looking for just about any excuse to replace my old Bluetooth Palm Buds Pro ear buds. (Yes, thatPalm, but in name only.) The plan was to retire the Palm buds and cycle down my AirPods Pro 1 ear buds to be my at the office ear buds for listening to music from my iPhone. While watching the Apple video, I paused it and placed the pre-order for engraved AirPods Pro 3. My AirPods Pro 1 buds will work nicely at the office. Back to the video.
Apple Watch was up next. Watch SE 3 is a nice upgrade for people who wanted to get into the Apple Watch without spending too much money. I like the big screen and the large battery on Apple Watch Ultra 3, but my weekly pickleball games hardly need the kind of protection that a thick chunky watch like Ultra 3 provides. But, if I’m being honest, I just don’t love the look of the Ultra. If Tim or John gave me one, sure, I’d use it, but I can’t see myself buying one with the raised ledge and digital crown guard.
Apple Watch Series 11 is where it’s at. Available in aluminum and titanium again this year, I went to go with a “Sport” silver aluminum Series 11 upgrade from my Series 10. (Remember the Sport, Watch, and Edition monikers?) It’s a small spec bump to be sure, but with a trade in and a fresh battery, it seemed worth it. Also, through the power of watches’ 26 running on a Watch Series 9, 10, 11 or an Ultra 2 or 3, the FDA has approved a hypertension (aka high blood pressure) warning algorithm. Apple Watch can’t diagnose high blood pressure, but it can warn you if, after 30 days of readings, that you might want to follow up with a doctor for further review. Apple Watch. The device that will save your life. That’s a pretty great marketing subtext. At the end of the segment, I paused the video again and placed a Watch Series 11 pre-order with a trade in for an in-store pickup on launch day. Back to the video.
But the main attraction for the September event is the new iPhones. This year, Apple unveiled iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, and the ultra-thin iPhone Air. The iPhone 17 is a great all-around iPhone. Most people and corporate purchasing departments should buy this iPhone by default. If you want the absolute thinnest and lightest iPhone, the iPhone Air is for you. If you are an iPhone power user, iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max are for you. In what I can only describe as an amazing twist of fate, the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max are available in Cosmic Orange (!!), Deep Blue, and Silver. Black, Gold, and Rose Gold are on hiatus this year. As are all of variants of Grey. I’m not sure what happened in Cupertino, but someone scored a major victory and snuck colorful paint jobs past Tim Cook for the Pro models! Pro models should come in fun colors like the no adjective iPhone line.
Let’s face it, I was always going to get the new Pro Max model because I want to have the best possible camera with an optical zoom with me at all times. But this year, there are some really nice upgrades. The Pro Max comes with an all-new unibody design, just like MacBook Pro laptops. There is an all-new front facing Center Stage selfie camera, improved rear facing 48MP Pro Fusion camera system with 8x optical zoom. You can get a quick rundown of the models and their features on the iPhone Compare page.
Wrap Up
Apple unveiled some really nice upgrades for anyone who plans on getting new gear this year. Most people don’t, and shouldn’t, upgrade their iPhone every year like I do. To be fair, I don’t upgrade my Macs or iPad every year. But you only get to go around once in this life, and I want to make sure that I have the very best everyday camera system with me to capture the moments that my family and I will hopefully cherish for many years to come, so I upgrade ever year.
Why is it, that in the Year of Our Lord 2024, there are songs and albums that I purchase from Apple that do not contain the lyrics to the songs I’m listening to. On Apple Music. On my iPhone 16 Pro Max.
What. The. Heck?
Here’s an example. I’ve been exploring Pat Monahan’s music, both his solo albums and his work in the band Train. He’s a very talented artist and song writer. Which is why I want to read the lyrics why the song is playing.
I recently purchased Last of Seven, the Monahan solo rock album. It’s really good and there are several tracks on that record that speak to where I am in my life right now.
When I play the song Someday in Apple Music in iOS 18, 18.0.1 specifically, the Lyrics button is dimmed out. No reading along. Absolutely no Alan Karaoke sessions going on while I’m cleaning the house.
If I switch over to my Mac Studio, with macOS Sequoia 15, Apple Music (RIP iTunes), the situation is only marginally better. Apple Music on Mac doesn’t have the lyrics either. That makes sense because the song is coming from the same source: Apple. What you can do on the Mac, however, is add custom lyrics. This has been a feature of Apple Music, and iTunes before it, for years. The process is a like “jank,” as the kids say.
Find the track in your Apple Music library on your Mac.
Get Info (Command + i on your keyboard) to bring up the details.
Switch to the Lyrics tab. Click the Custom Lyrics checkbox.
Go to the web and search for the song lyrics.
Copy the lyrics from an ad-infested sketchy website.
Paste the lyrics into the Custom Lyrics box in Apple Music.
Clean up any ad or tracking HTML code that was embedded in the page you copied.
Click Ok to save your lyrics.
Pray to the Goddess of Perpetual Maintenance that Apple actually syncs the changes.
To be fair, for every Train track or album I have purchased to date, or any other major artist, the lyrics have been included. Well, mostly. I’m looking at you, Apple and Def Leppard. Why are the lyrics missing from Pour Some Sugar on Me from 2023’s Drastic Symphonies?!
So, what do I want to happen? I would love Apple and the record companies to get their acts together. As an Apple One Premier customer, all song lyrics should be included. Period. That plan isn’t exactly cheap. Tim Cook loves his sweet services money. I would like to have lyrics. The same is true for purchases made in the iTunes Store app on iOS.
But we know that Tim, Apple, and the record companies aren’t going to spend a minute on edge cases like this. So, my hope is that “Someday,” the Apple engineers working on the Apple Music app, not the service, will finally add an easy way to add lyrics to downloaded tracks on iPhone, Mac, and, yes, even the iPad. (The iPad Pro has great on-board speakers!)
For my next video, I try to remember how to setup and use a 37 year old dot matrix printer. How many mistakes can I make trying to print a short ClarisWorks 2.0 document from a Mac Classic II?! You will have to watch to find out.
Last month, Honda announced that the company would make a dealer installed upgrade available for model year 2018 – 2022 Accord vehicles to add Apple’s wireless CarPlay feature. (The same upgrade adds support for wireless Android Auto also.) The cost of the upgrade kit will be $112 MSRP plus technician labor charges.
This software only upgrade is great news for owners like me who have a 2019 Accord with wired CarPlay. I mean, a wire! In 2024! The struggle is real.
To me, the press release announcing the upgrade kit is validation of what I had expected all along: the 2019 Honda Accord line of vehicles had all of the internal hardware that could have supported wireless CarPlay, but that Honda chose not to make the feature available. Whatever the internal decision making process might have been, a global pandemic, snarled computer chip production lines, and waitlists for a new Accord likely convinced Honda to change their thinking on older model upgrades.
From the official press release, Honda states that “[t]his quick software update enables customers to leverage hardware already in their Honda vehicle to enjoy seamless connectivity through wireless Apple CarPlay” and that this upgrade is “a key strategy in pursuit of our goal to have zero environmental impact by 2050.”1
Getting Ready for the Upgrade
If you are reading this blog, you know I’m a computer nerd. You’re probably a computer nerd too. I have no idea about car people react to changes like this or how quickly the network of Honda dealers could roll out an upgrade like this. My Accord needed an oil change, so I called one of my local dealers and asked if they could do the oil change and the software upgrade at the same time. I was assured that the upgrade could be done, but that I should bring the car in during the week to avoid the Saturday rush. The cost of the software upgrade would be $120. I made the appointment for two days later.
Service Day
Potholes started appearing on the information superhighway when I arrived at my dealer. First, I was told that I needed to leave the car for the day as the software upgrade would take several hours because the update needed to be downloaded to the car via the satellite radio connection. That didn’t sound like a “quick software update” to me. Still, I really wanted wireless CarPlay in my Accord, so I agreed.
After getting a ride to work, the dealer’s service center called me to tell me that the total cost of the upgrade would be $270! The price increase was due to the wireless CarPlay upgrade kit software license ($120) plus one hour of labor ($150). I asked if I could buy the upgrade kit and do it myself and was told that it was a dealer-only install option. I was annoyed, but the excitement and satisfaction of having CarPlay in my Accord overtook me and I approved the work.
It Gets Worse
About three hours later, I received another call from the dealer. Things were not good. I was told that the software upgrade was attempted on my Accord via a USB flash drive and that it had failed. The dealer called the Honda support center, and they weren’t able to resolve the issue either.
Asking about the software upgrade process, I came to learn that this wasn’t a patch to CarPlay, but a full infotainment system OS upgrade to a newer version of Android Automotive – the software that many car manufacturers use in their infotainment systems. Android Automotive is able to “project” CarPlay and Android Auto (a completely separate CarPlay-like feature for Android smartphones) on the in-vehicle infotainment screen(s).
It was the OS upgrade that crashed and couldn’t be restarted. In its current failure mode, the radio head unit was completely unresponsive and would not turn on. In computer terms, we call that “bricked”. None of the vehicle functions that use the infotainment system worked. No AM or FM radio. No satellite radio. No backup camera. No auxiliary input. No wired CarPlay. Obviously no wireless CarPlay. No iPhone charging. Nadda. In other words, “She’s dead, Jim.”
This was not good. Seeing out the back window of a 2019 Accord is difficult and, in my opinion, really requires the assistance of a backup camera. Since they couldn’t get the radio head unit to respond to any maintenance commands and could not turn it on, the entire head unit needed to be replaced.
Thankfully, it will only be about a week before the replacement service can be performed. I couldn’t help myself. I had to press the poor service department staffer harder. “This replacement head unit is going to come with the new Android Automotive software preinstalled so that I will have the wireless CarPlay feature, right?” We both knew that the service staffer couldn’t answer the question and that the head unit that would be pulled off an inventory warehouse shelf wasn’t going to have the upgrade.
Furthermore, I was later told that it took three attempts to upgrade another compatible used Accord on the dealer’s lot and that Honda wanted all dealers to install the upgrade on every compatible used Honda Accord in inventory.
Based on the headaches I caused the dealer’s service department crew; the general manager told me that he was shutting down all future upgrades and was not installing the software update on any other Accords in their inventory.
So Now What?
What this story reveals is that software is hard. It’s hard for nerds like us. It is harder still for service techs who aren’t properly trained on how to install and support the software. And it is absolutely disastrous for dealers and customers when the software is so poorly tested that it is bricking the entire infotainment system in such a way that Honda has to cover the cost of replacing them.
For now, I am driving my Accord around and singing to myself. I’m also backing up carefully. Hopefully, the replacement part(s) will arrive at the dealer this week and we can schedule another full day of service to have the new unit installed in the car.
I would have loved to have seen the documentation and the upgrade process, but the general manager wasn’t going to let me anywhere near any of the official upgrade materials.
I will post a follow up when the issue is resolved. In the meantime, I need to get working on my singing voice.
By 2050?! How many of the current automobile executives do you really think will still be working at Honda in 2050? Talk about kicking the can down the road. Environment?! It’s someone else’s problem. And that’s the problem – no one wants to take up this issue now. ↩︎
Yes. I admit it. I bought another HomePod mini. This time, I wanted to do something very specific with it – create a stereo pair with my older HomePod mini and use that stereo pair with my Apple TV as replacement speakers when watching movies and TV shows that I purchased from the thing formerly known as iTunes.
While attempting to add my new HomePod mini to my digital home setup in the Home app, my new HomePod was getting stuck at the “Downloading” or “Configuring” stages. The other four Home Pods – two original “biggies” and two current HomePod minis – joined the Home app with no issue. But not HomePod #5. This is a common occurrence based on the Apple support forums threads and how-to explainers.
Adding to the knowledge base that is the Internet, here is how I fixed my issue with a current generation HomePod mini (2020), iOS 17.2.1 (21C66) on iPhone 15 Pro, and Mac OS Sonoma 14.2.1.
Unplug all of the Home Hub devices (HomePods and Apple TVs) in your setup except the new HomePod and the device you want to be the “active” (my word) Home Hub. You can leave other HomeKit and Matter devices like lights and thermostats connected.
Load the latest version of HomePod OS on the stuck HomePod. Depending on how your HomePod is stuck, you may need to hard reset it first. Then, connect the HomePod USB-C cable into your Mac. An orange/red light will start swirling on top of the HomePod.
After a few minutes, double-click the Macintosh HD icon on your desktop to open a Finder window. Click on the HomePod text link in the left column.
Use Finder to Restore the HomePod. Full directions are available on Apple.com. In my case, the HomePod shipped with HomePod OS 15.4 (released 3/14/22) meaning my new HomePod mini was sitting on a shelf for a long time. The upgrade process to HomePod OS 17.2 took less then 10 minutes.
Disconnect the HomePod after the upgrade is complete. I put my HomePod mini back on the TV stand. Unplugging and replugging in power restarted HomePod mini. I also plugged in the HomePod mini I wanted to make the other half of the stereo pair.
Using my iPhone, run the HomePod setup wizard again.
After a successful setup, you can then go back around your home and plug in your other Apple TVs and HomePods.
All told, it took me six attempts and several hours to get everything setup. After creating the stereo pair “TV Pods”, I ended up having to reboot both HomePod minis, the family room Apple TV, and my iPhone 15 to get everyone on the same “page” an agree that there was in fact a stereo pair of HomePod minis called “TV Pods” made of up “Left TV Pod” and “Right TV Pod”.
The entier process was messy and very frustrating for a day after Christmas project. In my opinion, HomePod (hardware, software), Apple TV (hardware, software), and Music (app, service) are third-class citizens after iPhone, subscription services revenue, and the Mac.
Hopefully, this post will help save you some time and aggravation setting up your next HomePod.
You will be forgiven if you don’t remember App Clips feature that was released as part of iOS 14 (Sept. 2020).
App Clips is a feature that loads a small sub-set of functionalities of apps in the App Store to complete a transaction without having to find, install, setup, and then use the app. The examples often cited by Apple include transactions like paying for take-out meals, renting bikes or scooters, or setting up a home automation device.
The whole point of an App Clip is to speed things up for customers who do not have your app installed. To Use an App Clip, you pull out your iPhone, open the Camera app, and point the lens at a QR-like code that only Apple would take that the time to make look good and work well.
Up until now, the only place that I have seen App Clips used was in Apple Stores on the accessories walls.
While running around in the pre-Christmas hustle and bustle, I needed to stop to put gas in the car. While filling up at an area self-service Exxon Mobil station, I noticed an App Clip sticker on the pump.
Here’s how the process works:
Scan the App Clip icon with the Camera app.
Tap on the yellow Exxon Mobil pill button to start the App Clip.
Tap Open.
Use Sign In with Apple to use your payment options in Apple Wallet.
One real world use for App Clips that I wish was available is when I need to park my car downtown. There have been two occasions this month and at least one next month were I will need to park my car in a public parking garage. It would be really nice to have the App Clip option to pay for parking. Unfortunately, the company that manages this parking garage hasn’t added App Clip support to their app yet.
My Dad and I will be picking up our new iPhones at our local Apple Store this morning. For folks who pro-ordered like we did, I hope your pickup experience goes well.
For folks who are hoping to score a new iPhone 15 today, I hope that you are able to find the iPhone in the color and size that you are looking for.
Have a great day everyone, and congratulations on your new iPhone purchase!
Today, Sept. 15, at 8:00am Eastern, the one true time zone in my opinion, Apple will begin taking pre-orders for iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro. You will be able to pre-order your iPhone using the Apple.com website, or via the Apple Store app on your current iPhone.
This year’s iPhone 15 line up has a similar pricing ladder as last year.
iPhone 15 $799 iPhone 15 Plus $899 iPhone 15 Pro $999 iPhone 15 Pro Max $1,199
Last year’s iPhone Pro Max 128GB storage tier has been dropped and the 256GB storage tier has remained at the same price. So, in effect, the iPhone 15 Pro Max has gone up $100 in price if you wanted then 128GB version or has stayed the same year-over-year if you go for the 256GB tier like I do.
People who get their pre-orders in this morning will likely be able to reserve their new iPhone 15 for in-store pick up or delivery next Friday, 9/22.
Good luck to everyone who will be pre-ordering today! I hope you get your pick for launch day.
I have been working on restoring an Apple Power Macintosh 7100/80, first released in 1994. While tearing it down to remove the original PRAM battery from 1994, I decided to also pull out the 3.5-inch floppy drive to service it before attempting to power on the Mac.
What I discovered was that I couldn’t find any documentation (service manual, blog post, YouTube video) about how to open the drive without breaking the plastic faceplate. So, I made a video of me fumbling around trying to open the drive so you don’t have to wonder how to open it or break any plastic clips.
