Iterate Weekly - Issue 188
This week we're talking about smart locks, Calm during the election, The Lucid Gravity, "Movies with Balls" and "Master of Change"!
Welcome to issue 188 of Iterate Weekly.
Consider this to be the perfect break from all the intense election coverage this week in the US.
Let’s hope we all make it through the week in one piece.
Thank you as always for reading!
🖥️ Tech
The state of smart locks
This week, the Verge put out a nice write-up on the best smart door locks that are available right now.
I’ve long said that smart locks are essential in modern homes. No one wants to be fiddling around with physical keys anymore!
Anyway, I feel vindicated by the Verge’s take on the August Wifi Smartlock. I’ve used August locks for many years and mostly have been satisfied. But lately, my Wifi lock has become a ridiculous battery hog. Maybe something changed in the software, maybe it’s just too far away from my router, or maybe it’s just a poorly designed product. But the batteries in this lock only seem to last a month or two these days.
It’s odd that The Verge still recommends the August lock despite its battery shortfalls. Maybe that says more about the industry as a whole, there just isn’t enough competition when it comes to smart locks. But I’m really running out of patience with my lock.
The last thing you want is for your lock to run out of battery and leave you stuck outside with no way of getting in. So while all the great features of the August look are wonderful, they’re all overshadowed with the current battery draining issues.
You’d think that we would have figured out dozens of quality smart lock options by now, but here we are.
🎓 Education/Productivity/Work
Calm continues to capitalize on election stress
Just last week I wrote about how the Calm meditation app was putting out some election-specific content in order to calm the nerves of an anxious nation.
This week the company is going a step further by purchasing valuable airtime on CNN and ABC. And what are they doing with the airtime? Just giving potential customers some much needed silence.
The election has oddly become a marquee event for the Calm app. It certainly makes sense, but they’re really leaning into the moment and dropping Super Bowl levels of add spend on pricey commercial slots.
Will stressed out voters take their advice to go sit and meditate? Will the post-election malaise cause an uptick in Calm memberships? I’m skeptical. But I’ve really enjoyed watching this play out as a Calm user and as a media professional.
♻️ Health/Environment/EVs
The Lucid Gravity is ready to ship, and it won’t come cheap
The Lucid Gravity may be one of the most exciting new EV releases in quite some time.
It’s a 3-row all-electric SUV that promises incredible battery range along with a luxurious interior and plenty of unique bells and whistles. And with all of that, Lucid has now announced a release date and price. You’re certainly going to be paying for all of the innovation in this vehicle.
Orders can be placed this week and the first model available will go on sale for $94,900.
I say first model as the slightly less expensive Touring model will retail for a mere $79,900 when it debuts this time next year.
While not a complete surprise, most experts thought that Lucid would be able to release its first version below the the $80K target price. It looks like they’ll hopefully get there with the model with the smaller battery but it won’t arrive for another year.
Lucid has had some success with its Air model, but the launch of an SUV was meant to catapult them into a more mainstream discussion in the US. That initial price point may make this vehicle a hard sell. We’ll see how the early reviews look once this in the hands of the EV media. It seems like the perfect family vehicle for EV enthusiasts, but it may be just out of range for too many.
🛍 Grab Bag
Uni Watch book review: “Movies with Balls”
It’s been a while since I’ve highlighted some of the great content from the folks over at Uni Watch. If you’re a fan of athletic aesthetics or just design in general, you’ll love some of their features.
This week I wanted to highlight a very niche post. It’s a book review of a book that highlights sports movies. But of course, since this is Uni Watch, the design of the book is quite lovely.
It’s called “Movies with Balls” and it breaks down some of the design choices in the most iconic sports movies of all time.
These are the kind of features that really only Uni Watch can provide, it’s a fascinating discussion with the author of an even more fascinating book that I’m eager to get my hands on.
💬 Quote of the Week
"The breaking of a wave cannot explain the whole sea."
-Vladimir Nabokov
📕Content Review
Master of Change
Consider this a quick early review as I’m working my way through the audiobook during dog walks. But so far I am really enjoying “Master of Change” by Brad Stulberg.
Maybe this topic is even more poignant during a stressful election season, but change is obviously inevitable. Stulberg breaks down ways to prepare for, embrace, and hopefully thrive through change in all sorts of scenarios.
There are some great case studies highlighted and these are the kind of books that truly will be beneficial for all to read. I recommend checking it out.
Thanks for reading, I’ll see you next week!
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