THIS WEEK’S UPDATE

The joy of iPhone review season

I think we screwed up slightly this year. A lot of my contemporaries (and by “a lot”, I mean “all of them”) appear to have grabbed a serious slice of the iPhone content engagement pie before they even had the devices in their hands. These were in the form of buying guides, accessory reviews, and other smart pieces of content that didn’t require the new iPhone to be present.

To date (I’m writing this on Thursday, 18th September), we’ve published some short-form stuff and a Tech Diary video about the iPhone 17 launch event. Those videos have done relatively well, regardless, but I’ll be making sure we’re earlier to the post with new iPhone content on the main channel next year.

The good news - for you, at least - is that we’ve decided to publish two iPhone videos on delivery day (which, by the time you read this, will have taken place). They’re both very much first impressions, but they also highlight some realities about the iPhone 17 Pro Max and the iPhone Air that you’ll need to be aware of before you buy either device.

I have more in-depth coverage of both new iPhones in the works - plus an unboxing of two more fresh Apple devices on the Tech Diary in a day or two (the AirPods Pro 3 and Apple Watch Ultra 3). See you in the comments section 😉 - watch here!

Now onto my first impressions of the iPhone Air, the first iPhone I’ve been truly excited about in a long time. I’m really interested to hear your thoughts on these devices, both of which seem like they need to justify their existence quite heavily, so get involved!

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

iPhone Air Hands-On: What Apple Didn’t Tell You!

It’s here! Apple has finally done some more of what it does best: innovation. I was very excited to pick this one up from the Apple Store yesterday. But we can’t let all that get to our heads, I’ve got some concerns…

ICYMI

The 10 macOS Tahoe Tricks I Can’t Work Without...

I’ve been getting stuck into macOS Tahoe recently, so before iPhone silly season dawned upon us, I took the chance to run through the ten most helpful things I’ve found out so far. Take a look!

GET THE LOWDOWN

This Week’s Must Reads

Goodbye To The iPhone Plus. Will Anyone Miss it?

Yes, I’m not sure if you noticed, but we lost a member of the iPhone family this year. The Plus was always a bit of a forgotten, awkward middle child that no one seemed to buy in any great numbers. Will I be sad to see it go? →

Why the Slow Tech Uprising Matters (Back Market Forum ’25)

If you don’t know, Back Market is one of the biggest sellers of refurbished tech in the EU and is growing in the USA. I’ve worked with them before to bring you giveaways recently, and I was invited out to attend their forum in Paris. It made for a very interesting day! →

iOS 26 TIP

Set up call screening 👉
Go to Settings → Phone → Screen Unknown Callers, then choose whether unknown numbers should be silenced, asked for a reason, or blocked; for extra protection, turn on Call Blocking & Identification to filter spam automatically.

TOP FINDS

What I Watched On YouTube This Week

💨 Will Anyone Buy The iPhone Air? (Apple Event Debrief!) (Not PC with Mark and Rob) - Shameless plug alert! Catch our reaction to all of Apple’s announcements here.

🎤 Glyn Johns: Recording The Beatles, The Stones, Led Zeppelin, The Who, Eagles… (Rick Beato) - Rick is smashing it with these interviews at the moment. McCartney next?!

ON THE ‘GRAM

My first thoughts on the brand new Nothing Ear (3)...

Thanks for reading this week’s newsletter! I’ve got loads of new Apple content on the way, including full iPhone reviews and coverage of the AirPods Pro 3 and Apple Watch Ultra 3, and I’d love you to join me for it. Until next week!

~ Mark