Iterate Weekly - Issue 132
This week we're talking about a new device to record everything you say or hear, no more cursive logos, fines for space debris, Uber picks up packages, and Disney's new Haunted Mansion!
Welcome to issue 132 of Iterate Weekly!
Hope you’re all doing well. This is just a friendly reminder that you can always reply directly to these messages or leave a comment on the Substack post. Feedback is highly encouraged and I’m happy to answer any and all questions that come up.
Let’s jump into this week’s stories.
🤖 Tech
A necklace microphone to record everything you say or hear
There is a new wearable out there that wants to make sure you don’t forget anything that happens in a day.
It’s called the Rewind Pendant and you can pre-order now for just $59.
What will that seemingly inexpensive price get you? Well it’s basically an audio recorder that you wear around your neck all day. It’ll record everything that you say and hear so you have it for reference. Maybe its most important feature is the ability to easily transcribe all the data and save it for locally on your phone. Yes, that may take up some storage space but not saving to the cloud alleviates a lot of privacy concerns.
You can hear the story from the product’s creator here:
I’m pretty fascinated by this product but still have some questions. They repeatedly say in the video and on the website that they value privacy and won’t record someone without their consent. But how will that work? How will your local barista agree to be part of your audio recording? If they say no, will you go somewhere else to get your coffee?
It seems like it will be able to easily recognize the wearer’s voice and record 100% of their audio. But then other voices may need to audibly opt-in somehow. Like if it detects a different voice say “sure, you can record me” it’ll start recording them as well. It could work well. Aside from your own voice, you’d mostly want to record your family or maybe close friends. I can’t think of too many times where you’d need to record a stranger in a productive, non-creepy way. Obviously recording things like songs, movies, etc. would also cause some issues.
Rewind claims to have secured almost 4,000 pre-orders in just 3 days. And the $59 price tag is compelling. But you just know there will be other upsell charges in the future. I give them credit for finding a reasonable price point to launch with however. The other thing to mention here is the look. It’s not huge, but it’s also not the coolest looking thing to wear all day. And I’d assume that you’d need to wear it outside of your shirt to get the best audio quality rather than tucking it away.
Hey, we all thought that smart watches were pretty silly back in the day too right? Maybe smart necklaces that can record things will be the next fad in wearable tech.
Anyone interested in pre-ordering a Rewind Pendant?
🎓 Education/Productivity/Work
Kids can’t read cursive - logos must adapt!
Kids these days just don’t have the same reverence for cursive handwriting as we did back in our day right?
Cursive writing has been dying a slow death in many schools at least in the United States. It seemed like an odd thing when I was growing up. We had a whole alphabet that we learned how to write with and we were good for a few years. Then all of a sudden we were faced with a whole new alphabet that was basically the same but with a few more squiggly letters. Sounds crazy right?
Well in response to the fact that a new generation of consumers are becoming less familiar with cursive handwriting, some companies are ditching cursive logos and word marks.
I have to say that I prefer the new look. The clean block letters are just easier to read and feel more modern. They even managed to fit a goose in the new logo! The animal gives it another reference point and helps connect the brand to nature, the world of wildlife, and maybe their most iconic product, down jackets.
They’re accomplishing a lot with the redesign when the previous logo didn’t tell you a whole lot about the brand if you didn’t have any context. Cursive branding does work better when your company is named after a person. It was like we were getting Eddie’s personal signature of approval on each item. But it’s clear that modern consumers weren’t connecting with the script.
Sorry cursive, you’re not long for this modern world. Be on the lookout for more examples like this that bring heritage brands into the modern world where kids don’t want to read or write cursive.
♻️ Health & Environment
Litter in space and you’ll get a fine
Dumping junk in space is just as bad (if not worse!) than littering on earth.
Well, time is up for any scofflaw company who thinks they can get away with dumping their junk in space. The first offender is Dish Network who have now been fined for their sloppy removal of space waste.
Specifically, we’re talking about satellites here. The FCC is fining the company $150,000 for not moving their junk satellite further away from earth.
This is a landmark moment for policing space debris. It’s the first fine of its kind and Dish Network seems to be accepting its punishment with plans to better comply in the future. It’s less about the dollar amount of the fine, and more about the bad publicity a sanction like this can cause.
No company wants to be fined for polluting on earth, and things get even more tricky when their garbage is floating high above the earth. To be fair, it’s totally normal for companies to no longer use aging satellites that are in earth’s orbit. But it’s not ok to just leave them up there to continue their orbit.
The real estate above the earth is getting more and more crowded these days. While it may not seem like it’s bothering anyone to have an extra satellite or two in orbit, space junk like this can interfere with important functions from the International Space Station and other important bodies in the sky.
Space junk is serious stuff but I can’t help but think of the amazing scene during the climax of “Wet Hot American Summer” where campers anticipated impending doom at the hands of space trash.
🛍 Grab Bag
Uber will return your packages for you
Uber is constantly trying to get you to open its app even if you aren’t looking for a typical taxi experience.
Now they are offering a solution to one of life’s most challenging problems, returning a package.
That last line was a little sarcastic, but it’s true that we’re buying way more online goods than ever before. And sometimes those goods don’t work out and we need to send them back. Whether it’s through the post office, UPS, FedEx, or the dreaded OnTrac, these returns are a pain in the butt.
In select regions to start, Uber is allowing you to book a package return through their app. A driver will come to pick up your package and take it to the correct carrier center. You can track the journey of your package on the way to the shipping location and they’ll even send you a confirmation photo letting you know that the drop-off has been made successfully.
I recently dealt with a situation where I had 3 packages that all needed to be dropped off at different carriers. It’s not the most tedious task in the world, but if those 3 locations are scattered across town, you may save a lot of time just letting an Uber driver sort it out. And for just $3 for Uber One members or $5 for everyone else, it’s actually not a bad rate to save yourself some time.
💬 Quote of the Week
"All the world's a stage and most of us are desperately unrehearsed."
-Sean O'Casey
🎥 Content Review
Haunted Mansion
It’s October and that means that I’m trying to consume as much spooky content as humanly possible!
So this week I’m offering up a suggestion to check out Disney’s “Haunted Mansion” which is available to stream on Disney+.
To be clear, this is the recent movie from 2023 rather than the version from 2003 starring Eddie Murphy. It’s been a while since I’ve seen that one, but I don’t remember it fondly and it still has a 13% rating on Rotten Tomatoes…
No, this movie is actually pretty decent! It’s tough to make a film based on a Disney ride but I think they finally figured out enough of the backstory and lore to give this concept some legs. The cast is really impressive featuring LaKieth Stanfield, Owen Wilson, Rosario Dawson, Tiffany Haddish, and Danny DeVito.
The plot isn’t perfect, but it’s just spooky enough to keep everyone interested. Plus the special effects and set design are just excellent to look at. If you have a soft spot for this classic Disney ride (as I do) you’ll really love it. And kudos to them for really building out the story of the cult favorite “Hatbox Ghost” who is super convincing as the lead bad guy played by Jared Leto.
Get in the Halloween spirit and go watch this movie!
Thanks for reading, I’ll see you next week!
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