Iterate Weekly - Issue 148
This week we're looking at double-screened laptops, The Fundamentals of Focus, Apple's EV, the death of Pitchfork and The Morning Show!
Welcome to issue 148 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.
Thank you as always for reading!
🤖 Tech
The double-screened laptop could be the next big thing
Asus showed off a pretty cool device at CES this year. It was their Zenbook Duo laptop that comes with not one, but two 14” OLED screens. Of course, we see plenty of futuristic ideas at CES that never come to fruition.
But Asus is taking orders for the Zenbook Duo right now and I think I want one.
This isn’t the first dual-screen laptop from Asus, but previous versions had much smaller second screens. This is their first attempt to offer matching 14” displays that will offer a whole lot more functionality. And as you can see from the image above, you’re not limited to just one configuration.
You can opt for a traditional laptop setup with the keyboard covering one of the screens. Or you could arrange the monitors vertically or horizontally with the detachable keyboard or the virtual keyboard on the lower screen.
It’s a really compelling product that starts at $1,499 and could just be a refreshing change of pace from the standard way we use our laptops. I could see it being the perfect mobile compliment to my Mac Mini desktop setup. It’s been a while since I’ve owned a laptop that ran Windows, but this is the sort of innovation that would get me to try it out.
I can’t be the only one interested in something like this can I? We’ve seen how folding phones with different viewing options are starting to take off, I’d have to imagine people will want something similar in their laptop setups right?
🎓 Education/Productivity
The Fundamentals of Focus
The fine folks at Caveday have another amazing training program in the works and it’s called “The Fundamentals of Focus”.
While I’d like to think I’ve gotten pretty good at focusing over the years, I still need some work and I’m sure you feel the same way. With so many things competing for our attention these days, it behooves us all to be better educated when it comes to focus.
This is a two-week course that is broken up into three distinct modules. It’ll examine the obstacles that get between us and our focus, give tips on how to reach that magical “flow” state in our work, and also highlight the importance of balancing work and rest to better achieve our goals.
I’ve personally learned a ton from previous Caveday courses and can’t recommend them enough. If you’re looking to achieve some big goals in 2024, an enhanced sense of focus will really help. Sign up for “The Fundamentals of Focus” here.
♻️ Health & Environment
Apple’s electric car isn’t coming anytime soon
There were rumors that Apple was pretty far along on the production of an electric car. Some even thought that it could be announced this year. But apparently the company is realizing just how hard it can be to enter into this extremely competitive space.
Bloomberg is reporting that Apple is scaling back the ambition of this plan with hopes to have something available by 2028.
What’s causing the change of plans? To put it simply, I think Apple just bit off more than it could chew with this project. The Bloomberg report says that they aren’t making the progress on the autonomous driving features that they were hoping for. The EV that is taking shape will likely have Level 2+ autonomy closer to what Tesla currently offers rather than the ambitious Level 4 capabilities that Apple was striving for.
I think many of us thought that Apple would just pull up the curtain one day and show off a vehicle that none of us had ever seen before. And I hope that still is the case! But for now, it seems like they’re dealing with the issues that almost all other startup automakers have felt. They may be better off looking to acquire some existing tech that they can add some “Apple Magic” to rather than building their own thing from the ground up.
Hey, maybe they can acquire Nimbus to get that project back off the ground! A guy can dream right?
🛍 Grab Bag
Pitchfork’s death signals the end of an era
Pitchfork media is all but dead these days after the announcement that it would be swallowed up into GQ and the larger catalogue of Conde Nast properties.
While this is sad for us music fans who’ve relied on Pitchfork for new music news, it could spell a bigger issue for journalism in general. It’s reported that Pitchfork is down to a meager staff of eight employees who will be finding their footing while being part of a struggling “men’s magazine”. I have my questions about my why music content falls strictly into the masculine domain of GQ but ok.
Now it begs the question. If all of our music player algorithms are feeding us new artists that are (supposedly) hyper-accurate and timely, what use is long-form music journalism? Of course, I think that music journalism is important, but I can’t say that I actively read a ton of it these days and I know I’m not alone.
While there were some sudden layoffs for Pitchfork employees, Conde Nast head Anna Wintour claims that the brand itself will not be going away. The outside reader of Pitchfork may not see any discernible changes in the short term but the writing is clearly on the wall. As someone who has been part of a media company acquisition in the past, I have first-hand knowledge of that awkward transition. Everyone will say the right things today, but let’s check back on the status of Pitchfork in six months to see how things are looking.
Here is your official PSA. Go support your local independent music journalists! They may not have that long of a shelf-life remaining.
💬 Quote of the Week
"When I eventually met Mr. Right I had no idea that his first name was Always."
-Rita Rudner
📺 Content Recommendation
The Morning Show
I know I’m pretty late to this one, but I’ve finally started watching “The Morning Show” on AppleTV+
It was really the first big title offered up on the streaming service back in 2019 and it’s been chugging along steadily for three seasons. I’m still on season one but will definitely catch up to the end in relative short order.
If you’re at all curious about the inter-workings of a fictitious daily news program, this show will be right up your alley. The performances are wonderful lead by Jennifer Anniston and Reese Witherspoon. Personally, I think Billy Crudup’s character is my favorite.
Certainly go check it out if you haven’t watched it yet.
Thanks for reading, I’ll see you next week!
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