Jeff returns to the show 🥳 and Riley Hill joins us again to talk all things iPad.

Riley and Tom have new M5 iPad Pros (11” and 13” models) and share their experiences. Did Apple make the right call with the current iPad Pro design by choosing thinness over battery life? And how’s life with iPadOS 26? Is the new windowing system everything we hoped for, or is it a step backwards?

Be sure to follow Riley on YouTube, Threads, and at slatepad.org for more great Apple and tech-related content.

https://youtube.com/@slatepad

https://www.threads.com/@slatepad

https://slatepad.org/

Jeff’s going to be out of work for a while longer as he continues to recover from his stroke. His family has set up a GoFundMe to help out a bit and if you'd like to throw a few bucks his way, here's the link, and it's all appreciated.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-jeff-battersbys-stroke-recovery

Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!

Contact Us

• Drop us a line at feedback@basicafshow.com
• 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.

Jeff is taking a break from the show to recover from his recent stroke. He's recovering well and is working his butt off in rehab and hopes to return before long.

His family has set up a GoFundMe to help out a bit while he's in rehab kicking ass. If you'd like to throw a few bucks his way, here's the link, and it's all appreciated.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-jeff-battersbys-stroke-recovery

--

Bill McLean returns to the show to discuss the abundance of riches with modern note-taking apps. Plus, Tom has a new iPad Pro M5 and shares his first impressions of it and the Magic Keyboard.

Be sure to follow Bill on YouTube, Threads, and Substack for more great Apple and tech-related content.

https://www.youtube.com/@BillMcLean

https://www.threads.com/@williambmclean

There's never been a worse time to pick a notes app

Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!

Contact Us

• Drop us a line at feedback@basicafshow.com
• 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.

Jeff and Tom are off this week so we're going into the vault! Join us for a rewind of our 2024 Tips & Tricks show with Gannon Nordberg!

Over a dozen tips & tricks for macOS, iOS, iPadOS, watchOS and more!

More from Gannon: LinkedIn (email marketing strategies & newsletter signup)

Links from the show:

Use profiles in Safari on Mac
Turn off Listening History in Apple Music with a Focus Mode
Play music together in a car with SharePlay and Apple Music
Edit portraits on iPad
Make stickers from your photos on iPhone
Search in Messages on iPhone
Easily change photo aspect ratios
Change the color of links and highlights in Notes
See time spent in daylight
How to Automatically Change Your Apple Watch Face Based on Time or Location
Use the Smart Stack to show timely widgets on Apple Watch
Hazel for Mac

Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!

Contact Us

• Drop us a line at feedback@basicafshow.com
• 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 and Jeff welcome back Chris Freitag and Gannon Nordberg to share their experiences of using the iPhone Air.

The guys cover:

• How impossibly thin and light it feels in the hand
• The stunning 3000-nit display
• The “plateau” bump
• Battery life and overheating scares
• Why it’s delightful and a look at the future
• Is it a keeper?

🎧 Listen in for the unfiltered take: what works, what doesn’t, and whether the iPhone Air should be your next upgrade.

Guest Links

• Chris Freitag → chrisfreitag.com
• Gannon Nordberg → LinkedIn (email marketing strategies & newsletter signup)

Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!

Contact Us

• Drop us a line at feedback@basicafshow.com
• 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.

We dig into the details of Apple’s recent “Awe Dropping” event! We take a look at the innovative features of the new iPhone Air, display improvements on the iPhone 17, and what’s new with the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max. Get the scoop on the Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch Ultra 3, and new hypertension warnings and Sleep Score. Plus AirPods 3 improvements and our thoughts on when to upgrade any of your devices.

Links:

Apple Events

Introducing iPhone Air, a powerful new iPhone with a breakthrough design

Apple unveils iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max

Apple debuts iPhone 17

Apple debuts Apple Watch Series 11, featuring groundbreaking health insights

Introducing Apple Watch Ultra 3

Apple introduces Apple Watch SE 3

Introducing AirPods Pro 3, the ultimate audio experience

We Tried to Break the iPhone Air | Interview with Apple’s Joz & John Ternus

Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!

Contact Us

• Drop us a line at feedback@basicafshow.com
• 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.

If you’re an Apple Notes user who’s feeling buried in folders, tags, or forgotten ideas — and you’ve struggled to bring order to your notes — this episode is for you.

We dive deep into the Forever * Notes system with its creator, Matthias Hilse, and explore how it brings clarity, structure, and intentionality to even the messiest note collections.

You’ll hear:

• How to set up a central Home note
• The power of hubs, collections, and simplified tagging
• How Forever * Notes scales beautifully — even with thousands of notes

Plus:

• The features Matthias wishes Apple would add
• How this system completely changed Jeff’s Notes experience
• And why weekly notes are surprisingly complicated

Resources & Links

• Forever * Notes Official Site
• Forever * Notes YouTube Channel
• Forever * Notes Workshop
• Join the community: Forever * Notes Forum

Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!

Contact Us

• Drop us a line at feedback@basicafshow.com
• 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.

If you’re wondering whether it’s finally safe (or fun) to jump into the Apple public betas, this episode is for you. From iPadOS 26’s dramatic windowing overhaul to macOS Tahoe’s subtle UI tweaks — plus new features in iOS 26 and watchOS 26 — we’ve lived with them all and have thoughts.

You’ll hear why the new iPad multitasking feels like macOS (in a good way), how Liquid Glass adds personality, and where the Mac beta stumbles hard (spoiler: Tom's disk filled up fast). We also dive into CarPlay changes, and watchOS 26.

Find out what works, what’s still rough, and which betas are actually changing how we use our Apple gear — including a full week of iPad-as-primary-computer testing.

And yes, Jeff crashed out over creatine. Hit play and stick around.

Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!

Contact Us

• Drop us a line at feedback@basicafshow.com
• 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.

What happens when hip-hop meets theater, satire, and sibling bond? In this episode, we meet Jacob Battersby — artist, MC, and the man behind Celsius 7 — as he joins his brother Jeff and Tom for a funny and sometimes unfiltered journey through decades of DIY artistry. From early freestyle circles and cassette-tape beats to the lyrical power of Psychokinetics and the wild, lounge-rap theatrics of Kalri$$ian, Jacob reflects on how music became both an identity and a lifeline.

Links:

Celsius 7 - Apple Music / Spotify

Kalri$$ian - Apple Music / Spotify

Psychokinetics - Apple Music / Spotify

Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!

Contact Us

• Drop us a line at feedback@basicafshow.com
• 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.