This week I’ve been diving into stories about Intel’s factories, Nobel Prize winners, and ATM thieves, looping a pop‑punk cover of Defying Gravity far too many times, and happily reliving my teenage music phase now that The Format is back. I caught up on the new Critical Role campaign, took calls with my trusty retro Pop Phone handset, binge‑watched Love Is Blind beyond what I’ll admit publicly, sent a deep‑dive on RSS readers to anyone who hasn’t blocked me, experimented with Google’s Pixelsnap Charger, and fought off the cold making the rounds. Good luck to all of us.
I’ve also got new ways to use ChatGPT, a stellar video game podcast, Tim Robinson’s latest show, the return of Battlefield, and more. Let’s dig in.
The Drop
Apps in ChatGPT – OpenAI wants ChatGPT to function like an operating system. Open the bot, speak directly to an app, and have Spotify make a playlist or Expedia find a flight. Smart strategy, smooth execution — it’s working for me.
- Hidden Levels – A six‑part series from 99 Percent Invisible and Endless Thread exploring how video game
mechanics shape real life. My interests, perfectly aligned. - A Cartoonist’s Review of AI Art – The Oatmeal delivers a heartfelt reflection on generative AI, exploring
whether machine‑made art can ever feel the same as human creation. - The Chair Company – Tim Robinson’s latest comedy dives into conspiracy rabbit holes sparked by ordinary events.
Absurd, current, and exactly my kind of weird. - Clean Your TV Screen the Right Way – Caleb Denison convinced me to ditch Windex, grab giant microfiber towels,
and achieve toddler‑fingerprint‑free perfection. - Subway Builder – For fans of Mini Metro and Train Valley, this hyper‑realistic simulation game hands you the
reins of an entire subway system. - Battlefield 6 – Reviews say this iteration strikes the perfect middle ground between tight firefights and
sprawling open‑world battles — finally fun again. - Belkin Stage PowerGrip – This $80 iPhone battery/camera grip may solve my one‑handed landscape shot problem.
Yes, I’m buying it.
Screen Share: Stephen Robles
You’ve seen Stephen Robles — on Riverside.fm, on Primary Technology, on YouTube. This week, I reached out because we need to argue about Apple Shortcuts. I think they’re a failed product; Stephen thinks I’m wrong. Expect fireworks on The Vergecast.
Stephen’s Homescreen:
- Wallpaper: Main — Basic Apple Guy September Gradients; Weekend — NASA’s Pillars of Creation.
- Apps: Maps, Wallet, Photos, Instagram, Perplexity, Home, Things, Reminders, YouTube, Slack, Bear, YouTube
Studio, Safari, Threads, Messages, Foodnoms. - Notes: Dual task apps (Things & Reminders), calorie tracking in Foodnoms (30 lbs lost in months), Perplexity for
most web searches.
Stephen’s Current Obsessions:
- Hank and John Green’s podcasts and YouTube.
- Introducing his kids to Happy Gilmore (and the sequel).
- Revisiting Four Thousand Weeks.
- Family skate‑trick TikToks from the new Skate game.
- Shortcuts — still.
Crowdsourced: Community Picks
- Instagram discovery: The Dream Eaters, an NYC art‑rock outfit blending goth, ‘80s electronic, metal, and dream
pop — found via hilarious short videos. — Jon - Interview podcast: First, Last, Everything with tech‑tinged conversations. — Roman
- PS Vita modding for “Nouveau Retro” gaming joy. — Simon
- Restoring a 2010 Mac Pro as a weekend project. — SaltedPork
- Paid Murena + Proton, but still drawn to the Nextcloud ecosystem for an ad‑free, healthier internet. — Stephen
- ExtremeRate kit for a translucent Switch 2. — Sophia
- Product manuals organized and searchable in NotebookLM. — Sara
- Learning Japanese kana with the ad‑free Kana app. — Uli
- Demo drop for visually striking Skate Story. — Sophie
- Jump‑rope fitness restart, upgraded to Powerbeats Pro 2 for better fit. — Matthias
Signing Off
For years, my go‑to movie recommendation has been Somm — the documentary about aspiring Master Sommeliers chasing one of the toughest certifications in the world. It’s about obsession, craft, and wine, and nothing since has matched its magic… until maybe now.
Apple TV Plus’s new Knife Edge follows chefs fighting for or defending their Michelin star. It’s Hell’s Kitchen meets Drive to Survive: melodramatic, intense, and addictive. Watching experts excel at their craft is always satisfying — and it made me hungry approximately 60 times in the first episode.
See you next week.
