🍏 Apple’s WWDC sour highlights: Just as I predicted, major disappointment. Apple’s iOS 26 is coming in the fall. Will it have a ton of AI? Will it work on the new Apple flip phone? No on both counts. But there’s the new Liquid Glass theme. The screen and app tiles will become translucent, less reflective. Wowsie. You can have polls in group texts, get live translation in calls and see alerts for spam for incoming calls. And you can have two windows open on your iPad. Finally.
Duct tape fixes for the digital age

Tech doesn’t always play nice. Your laptop heats up, your Wi-Fi fizzles, and sometimes you’re just standing there, squinting at your screen, wondering where the mouse pointer disappeared to.
Don’t panic. Just try these fast fixes. Each takes under a minute and requires zero tech degree … although if you pull these off in front of someone else, you may get a slow clap, and maybe even a mozzarella stick.
1. “My internet stinks.”
💡 Try Orb.net. It’s a free, easy-to-use, excellent tool that checks if your device is the issue or if the internet itself is slowing things down. You’ll see exactly how your connection is performing in real time, including local vs. remote speed tests.
💰 Pro tip: You can also use the reports to see if you’re actually getting the connection speed you’re paying for.
2. “Is this battery dead?”
🔋 Try the bounce test. Find a flat, solid surface like a countertop or hardcover book. Hold the AA or AAA battery vertically and drop it from about 8 inches (20 cm).
If it clunks and tumbles? Still got juice. If it bounces like it’s auditioning for Cirque du Soleil? It’s dead.
Weird? Yes. Accurate? Also yes. This quirky trick works because discharged batteries have a different internal structure that makes them springier.
3. “What’s up with the mic?”
🎙️ Use your phone’s voice recorder app. Open your built-in iPhone Voice Memos or Android Voice Recorder app, press record and speak normally. Then play it back.
Sound fine? Mic’s good. Sound like you swallowed gravel? Try cleaning mic holes with a soft toothbrush or compressed air.
The truth behind airplane mode (no, it’s not a myth)

You know the drill. You find your seat, wrestle your carry-on into the overhead bin like it’s a CrossFit challenge, and then, ding! The flight attendant reminds you to switch to airplane mode.
So … what happens if you don’t? Are you going to crash the plane? Trigger the emergency slide midair?
Every 5 minutes
North Korean phones secretly take a screenshot of whatever you’re doing. A smuggled one showed the images are stored in a hidden folder that authorities can check later. Even crazier? The phone changes your words as you type. Write “South Korea,” and it becomes “puppet state.” Talk about autocorrect from hell.
The next iPhone? Nope. This one has no screen, no apps, no keyboard

I always want you to be tech ahead. That’s why I want you to think about what if your next device didn’t have a screen? Or apps? Or a keyboard?
That’s exactly why Sam Altman (OpenAI’s CEO) and Jony Ive (the former Apple design genius behind the iPhone) are working on a new kind of AI gadget that could completely change the way we interact with technology.
Love, hearing loss and Bluetooth settings

Barry and I were on vacation in the Bahamas, soaking up the sun and enjoying island life until he caught a nasty virus. The next morning, he woke up and said, “I can’t hear out of my right ear.”
Just like that, his hearing was gone.
🚁 Walmart’s drone army: Wing and Walmart are dropping drone deliveries in 100 more stores. If you’re in Atlanta, Charlotte or Orlando, your box of Pop-Tarts might arrive like it’s a military op. Drones now deliver within 30 minutes for orders up to 5 pounds. Those aren’t UFOs, Samantha. That’s your emotional support rotisserie chicken.
🫀 Teen heart hacker: A 14-year-old in Texas built an AI-powered heart screening app that can detect cardiac issues in seven seconds with just a smartphone mic. Yes, seriously. It’s 96% accurate and already in clinical trials. App detects heart failure? I wonder if it can hear mine breaking during tax season.
📅 RIP, Samsung accounts: Samsung says inactive accounts will get deleted starting July 31. If you haven’t logged in for two years, it’s over: data gone, account gone, possibly your Galaxy brain, too. Exceptions made if you bought something or used reward points. Congrats on ghosting Samsung so hard they took it personally.
🎨 Photoshop is finally on Android: And yes, it’s free (for now). You can grab it on Google Play and mess with layers, masks, selection tools and AI Generative Fill. The fine print: After the beta, it’s $7.99/month.
Silicon in your skull: Neuralink’s got company. Paradromics just put a brain chip in a human in a clean 20-minute surgery during epilepsy treatment. It’s their first human implant to prove the tech works; the brain chip was removed after 20 minutes. Next stop: a full clinical trial, and maybe someday, mind-controlled emails. What could go wrong?
AirTagged and attacked: This is frightening. Miami man Andres Dorado allegedly planted an Apple AirTag tracker in his estranged wife’s car, then used it to crash her hotel date and stab her new partner. A knife, broken window and GPS breadcrumbs later, cops found the AirTag was linked to his phone and arrested him on the spot.
🧨 Military-tech frenemies: Meta and its exiled VR golden boy Palmer Luckey are now building souped-up VR headsets for the U.S. Army. It’s part rebrand, part redemption arc and fully dystopian. Move over, Xbox Live, tactical goggles now have patch notes.
Move over, DJI: A U.S. company called SiFly says its new drones are way better. The Q12 model can fly for up to three hours, and the Q250 can carry 200 pounds. That means longer range, more gear, better performance in emergencies and no secrets sent back to communist China.
Thank-you texts are in: Millennials are making a habit of sending warm, heartfelt messages after hanging out with friends. Something like, “Had such a great time, so nice to see you!” Polite? Nope, just easing post-hangout anxiety about whether everyone had a good time.
🧨 Tap that update button: Apple quietly slid out an update that plugs a nasty hole where hackers can crash your apps or expose your private life with a malicious, cursed JPEG. Install the patch before a stranger’s selfie ends your career. iOS updates used to mean emojis. Now they mean survival.
“Oh sheet,” says Google: Perplexity AI is now doing spreadsheets, presentations and websites, all from a $20/month subscription. You can use it on iOS, Android and soon Mac and Windows.
Rural internet sucks: That’s why states like Louisiana and Nevada are spending millions on satellites instead (paywall link). Fiber is pricey and takes forever to build, so you can bet Starlink and Amazon’s Project Kuiper are smiling ear to ear. The catch? Slower speeds and more outages. But hey, it’s better than nothing.
Grad name reads go full robo: Pace NY grads scanned QR codes at graduation, then heard their names announced by an AI voice that sounded like a sentient Waze app. Phonetic accuracy? Maybe. Vibes? Students compared it to checkout somewhere between dystopia and Duane Reade. Four years of debt, and Alexa stole your thunder.
🏃🏼♂️ Fake it ’til you jog it: There’s now an app called Fake My Run that lets you draw made-up jogging routes and upload them to Strava like you’re a cardio god. Inspired by “Strava mules” (yes, people pay others to run for them), the app’s developer says it’s a comment on running’s toxic clout-chasing culture. I was running down the street where the houses were numbered, 64k, 128k, 256k, 512k and 1MB. What a trip down memory lane!