This Might Be The New Best Smart Speaker

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Hi, friends! Welcome to Installer No. 134, your guideline to nan champion and Verge-iest worldly successful nan world. (If you’re caller here, welcome, dream you’re okay successful each this heat, and besides you tin publication each nan aged editions astatine nan Installer homepage.)

This week, I’ve been reference astir Polymarket lies and Jalen Brunson and the Arts and Crafts Movement, watching Not Suitable for Work and measurement excessively overmuch of nan World Cup, trying to drawback up connected The Bear earlier nan last play starts, playing a bunch of Hank Green’s 4x3 game, trying my absolute hardest not to preorder this amazing Stanley Kubrick collection moreover though I’m evidently going to, buying a bunch of new AirTags and charging cables during Prime Day, poring complete oral histories of data centers and Steven Spielberg, and reasoning rude thoughts astir whoever decided to kill Notion Mail.

I besides person for you a smart speaker worthy a look, a awesome caller remake of a awesome aged game, a mates of fantabulous video essays, and a Netflix deed to binge connected your vacation.

Oh, and 2 much things. One, we’re disconnected adjacent week for nan vacation weekend. And two, I person a question: What’s your reference setup? I mean reference successful nan broadest sense: books, agelong articles, newsletters, weird zines your kids make, thing and everything. I want to cognize nan apps you committedness by, nan decade-old Kindle you won’t fto spell of, your go-to utilized bookstore, your favourite marque of highlighter, thing and everything. I person immoderate thoughts connected nan subject, too. We’ll talk.

(As always, nan champion portion of Installer is your ideas and tips. What are you reference / watching / listening to / playing / gluing together this week? Tell maine everything: installer@theverge.com. And if you cognize personification other who mightiness bask Installer, guardant it to them and show them to subscribe here.)

The Google Home Speaker. Nine months later, it’s yet connected sale! I mostly really for illustration it truthful far — for its size and $99 value it’s a very serviceable speaker, and since each I really request is “put this connected my calendar” and “play this opus connected Spotify,” Gemini is simply a winner. Still a small worried astir Google’s ongoing liking successful nan smart home, though…
Star Fox. I was very overmuch raised by nan Nintendo 64, but I confess I ne'er really sewage into Star Fox. This is bully news for Adult David, because now I get to acquisition this crippled — which is by each accounts a beautiful religious and coagulated remake of nan original — for nan very first time. I person a batch of flying to do.
The Atonemo NTS Radio Player. I don’t cognize why I’m specified a sucker for adorable small euphony players, but there’s conscionable thing I tin do astir it. This 1 is beautiful, and I emotion that it some supports streaming services and offers a bunch of just-turn-it-on power options. The NTS infinite mixtapes ever look to hit.
“The Revolt Against Technology.” Really awesome video from Jared Henderson astir what he calls “the caller Luddites,” aliases much broadly nan ongoing backlash against everything tech has go successful our lives. I don’t work together pinch everything successful here, but I nodded a batch astatine nan worldly astir nan early we were promised that simply ne'er arrived.
Claude Tag. Work chat is truthful evidently a useful spot for AI arsenic a measurement to find accusation and execute elemental stuff. There are going to beryllium a batch of weird societal questions to fig retired present — tin you @claude a petition from your boss, correct in-line successful Slack? — but I fishy I’ll extremity up utilizing this a lot.
Meta Glasses. I’m truthful torn connected these. Love that they’re cheaper, emotion that they’re lower-profile, moreover emotion a mates of nan styles. But… Meta. I wish I could get a brace of these that were conscionable a camera, a microphone, speakers, and precisely thing else.
Deltarune Chapter 5. A bunch of caller contented for an perfectly beloved crippled conscionable dropped, and some nan Steam charts and my societal feeds propose that group are into it. If you’ve been successful this world for a while, it apparently ties a batch of things together; if you’re new, for illustration me, it feels for illustration nan cleanable clip to dive in.
Avatar: The Last Airbender play two. An Installerverse favourite is back! Heard a bunch of bully things astir this season, too; nan wide statement seems to beryllium that thing could aliases will ever apical nan original, but that’s okay and this one’s a awesome time. I’m ever successful nan marketplace for shows that are conscionable a awesome time.
“Why Everyone Wants A ‘Live-Service’ Game.” Jason Schreier’s (still new-ish) YouTube transmission is afloat of bully reporting and bully stories, but this 1 successful peculiar did a really bully occupation of answering a really analyzable question: Why does everyone support making these huge, expensive, oversized games that support failing miserably? I deliberation I get it now.

Three aliases 4 times a year, I determine to effort and make my iPad my main computer. This is almost ever Christopher Lawley’s fault. He is ever making these highly cool, glamorous videos astir really to usage your iPad! Tablet life seems truthful serene and sane erstwhile Chris does it.

I’ve been a instrumentality of Chris’ activity forever, and sewage excited each complete again erstwhile I saw that he’s been moving connected a caller tasks / planner app called Parchment. (Not to brag, but I am in nan TestFlight.) We’ll excavation into nan app different time, but I figured this was a bully infinitesimal to inquire Chris to stock his iPad setup arsenic it stands correct now. Maybe I’ll spell afloat iPad again.

Here it is, positive immoderate info connected nan apps he uses and why:

The device: 13-inch, 2TB M5 iPad Pro. I for illustration moving from nan iPad because it is simply a much focused environment. I person ADHD and I tin easy distract myself. A batch of group kick astir nan iPad because it is constrained compared to nan Mac; I find that to beryllium its biggest benefit. When I request to attraction connected immoderate book writing, podcast prep, photograph aliases video editing, aliases moreover administrative tasks nan iPad is nan instrumentality I grab.

The wallpaper: The wallpaper I americium presently utilizing is simply a photo I took astatine Bass Lake. About 12 hours from this point, a monolithic snowstorm rolled successful and trapped america for an other time — it was a awesome trip.

The apps: Files, Safari, Mail, Obsidian, Drafts, Parchment, Reminders, Calendar, Stocks, Notability, Codex, Siri, Reeder, Quick Reads, Final Cut Pro, Lightroom, Photoshop, Messages, Indigo, Apple Music, Overcast, PCalc, Shortcuts.

Oh boy, do I emotion apps. That was nan full logic I started my YouTube transmission almost 10 years ago.

I person to commencement pinch my beloved Obsidian. At its halfway Obsidian is simply a lightweight note-taking/writing app. If you will let maine a self-indulgent plug for a second: If Obsidian seems daunting to you I made a starter’s guide for it. Obsidian besides has a web clipper that I usage for research, redeeming articles, and moreover YouTube videos. It’s really bully astatine pulling a batch of metadata.

During Apple’s OS beta play I ever move backmost to Reminders and Calendar arsenic my halfway productivity apps. I do this truthful I tin decently screen them successful item successful nan fall. I person immoderate issues pinch Reminders and really agelong it takes to input elemental stuff, but it’s very powerful for a free task manager. I negociate my full business retired of a task manager, and it’s conscionable this free instrumentality that comes pinch our devices.

I spent 4 years moving a full-time occupation while trying to build my YouTube channel. I ne'er automated my imaginative work, but moreover pinch a YouTube transmission location is simply a ton of administrative activity that goes down nan scenes. For years I utilized Shortcuts (technically it was Workflow—that was what nan app was called earlier Apple bought it). Lately I person been utilizing agentic AI, specifically Claude Cowork and Codex. I’ve been utilizing this truthful overmuch that I built a shortcut that jumps correct into Codex. I moreover had Codex extract its ain app icon truthful I could conscionable spot it successful nan dock.

A fewer imaginative apps I usage connected my iPad are Final Cut Pro, Lightroom, and Photoshop. I did effort to spell each successful connected Apple’s Creator Studio, but nan deficiency of lens profiles successful Pixelmator Pro specifically caused maine to spell backmost to Lightroom. For me, I tin get my activity done successful each of these apps. They do person immoderate features missing that their desktop counterparts have, but I make it work. It each goes backmost to nan iPad being nan level I for illustration to activity on.

My pal Matt Birchler has been connected a spot of a tear lately making a bunch of apps. One of his much caller ones that I person fallen successful emotion pinch is Quick Reads. This is simply a read-it-later service, pinch support for listening to articles pinch really good, natural-sounding voices.

I person been hopeless to switch Twitter ever since its downfall. I person ended up successful 2 places, Mastodon and Bluesky. Indigo combines some feeds into a azygous timeline. You tin moreover station to some platforms astatine once. I really for illustration it arsenic a measurement to support up pinch friends and group I follow.

An app that isn’t connected my location surface but I usage a batch is nan Nintendo Music app. I emotion this app for erstwhile I request to get activity done. I americium personification that can’t attraction erstwhile euphony pinch lyrics is playing, but a wholly quiet room drives maine up nan wall. Nintendo has done a awesome occupation curating immoderate of nan champion euphony successful video crippled history into 1 place. There is moreover a slayer characteristic for immoderate supported tracks to widen nan opus up to an hour. This useful pinch a batch of overworld music; lately, I person been playing nan Breath of nan Wild and Tears of nan Kingdom tracks. The Animal Crossing tracks are besides awesome to activity to. There is moreover a characteristic to sync nan Animal Crossing tracks pinch real-world time.

I besides asked Chris to stock a fewer things he’s into correct now. Here’s what he sent back:

I conscionable vanished 007: First Light. What a awesome game. As personification who has seen each 007 movie a fewer times (yes, moreover Die Another Day), I loved this type of Bond. What a awesome game.
I’ve been really into 3D printing lately. I sewage a Bambu Lab A1 for Christmas. I had been printing Gridfinity almost nonstop, organizing my office/studio. I yet vanished that. Now it’s clip to do nan remainder of nan house.
Lastly, my woman and I adopted a caller puppy. Her sanction is Riley. She is an almost 4-month-old aureate retriever. She has her ain Instagram account that my woman manages.

Here’s what nan Installer organization is into this week. I want to cognize what you’re into correct now arsenic well! Email installer@theverge.com aliases connection maine connected Signal — @davidpierce.11 — pinch your recommendations for thing and everything, and we’ll characteristic immoderate of our favorites present each week. For moreover much awesome recommendations, cheque retired nan replies to this station connected Threads and this station connected Bluesky.

“I person been looking into nan Polastax project, which fundamentally uses a inexpensive movie holder to fto you sprout Instax movie connected aged Polaroid battalion movie cameras. It’s ace kludgey: You tin only return 1 changeable astatine a clip and past you person to put it into an Instax wide assemblage to ‘develop’ nan shot. But astir different ways to do this costs hundreds of dollars aliases require an engineering degree, this is somewhat much attainable!” — Richard

“Watching Star City (spin-off of For All Mankind) really made maine rewatch FAM play 1, and location are bully call-backs. These TV shows are apical notch for me.” — Fabrice

“I sewage a brace of XReal One Pros and I’ve been utilizing them to watch movies and play games connected nan Steam Deck. Really cool tech. The measurement it tin 3D person immoderate video connected nan alert truthful seamlessly is amazing. It has a very crisp image arsenic well.” — Yoinks

“Over-the-air HD integer broadcast is still a point and, coupled pinch a inexpensive DVR for illustration HDHomeRun makes catching nan World Cup erstwhile clip permits ace easy (and free, too!).” — David

“Currently I’m pursuing up connected immoderate Installer proposal from a fewer weeks agone and listening to soundtracks while I’m working. It’s difficult to focus, though, while nan people for Into nan Spider-Verse is pulsing done my speakers.” — Ben

“Just started Shoe Dog: A Memoir by nan Creator of Nike, by Phil Knight. Excited to perceive nan communicative of 1 of nan world’s biggest brands, particularly correct now arsenic it struggles to accommodate to nan modern era of moving shoes.” — Ryan

“RE: PopSocket Low-Pro Grip. OhSnap did it first, and it’s great!” — Deb

“Lately I’ve gotten into fountain pens and inks. I love, love, emotion nan online shop by Italian institution Stilo & Stile. Inks are swatched and truthful are astir of nan fountain pens, positive you tin whittle it down to each nook and cranny! JetPens has a terrific online shop arsenic well. Probably 2 of nan champion online stores I’ve tally into.” — Elif

The crippled On-Together is benignant of having a infinitesimal right now. Though I’m not moreover judge I’d telephone it a game. It’s conscionable an online space: You subordinate a server, locomotion astir for a while, find a spot to sit, and sit. Sit a while, get tickets, bargain caller worldly for your avatar. That’s it! But there’s thing astir nan thought of this benignant of integer co-working that really seems to activity for group — it’s not astatine each a caller concept, but I deliberation there’s thing really cool astir nan measurement On-Together actually makes these spaces consciousness communal.

Right adjacent to this game’s fame is nan conception of “admin nights,” which is fundamentally erstwhile you get together pinch a bunch of strangers to execute each your boring tasks together. I emotion this idea! We should do an Installerverse admin nighttime 1 of these days. I have… a batch of boring tasks to accomplish. And successful general, I deliberation there’s thing powerful astir uncovering moreover these very low-touch ways to beryllium together. We should each do that more.

See you successful 2 weeks!

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