If you use Siri to schedule events, be careful—Adam Engst learned the hard way that doing so can have unintended consequences, especially when coupled with Google Calendar. Looking to buy a new Mac or other Apple product in a hurry? Note that the company is currently experiencing some non-trivial shipping delays. Julio Ojeda-Zapata takes a look at the powerful but pricey Eggtronic Power Bar, a battery-equipped, Qi-capable charging station for your iPhone, Apple Watch, AirPods, MacBook, and other devices. Apple released watchOS 6.2.5, but it’s mostly of interest if you live in Saudi Arabia. Finally, Dave Kitabjian joins us again to look at using ExactScan to breathe new life into your old Fujitsu ScanSnap scanner. Notable Mac app releases this week include BusyCal 3.10 and BusyContacts, Logic Pro X 10.5, PDFpen and PDFpenPro 12.0.2, Pixelmator Pro 1.6.2, Microsoft Office for Mac 16.37, DEVONthink 3.5, Carbon Copy Cloner 5.1.17, and VLC Media Player 3.0.10.
Apple has released watchOS 6.2.5, a highly focused update to bring the ECG app and irregular heart rhythm notifications to Saudi Arabia, along with as-yet-unspecified security fixes.
Adam Engst recently scheduled a Zoom call with colleagues on a non-profit board and had to apologize when one of them was irritated at ending up in Google Hangouts by himself for 10 minutes. The problem arose due to a confluence of issues with Siri and Google Calendar—read on to learn how to avoid similar embarrassments.
If you need a new Mac or other Apple product, you may be waiting for a while. Direct orders for some of Apple’s most popular products have longer-than-usual shipping delays. It’s worth checking with independent Apple resellers too.
Eggtronic’s Power Bar cuts down on clutter by charging all your Apple mobile devices in one tidy location. It’s a power bank with a USB-C port for MacBook and iPad charging, and it has wireless charging pads for an iPhone, AirPods, and Apple Watch.
The loss of the 32-bit ScanSnap Manager software has prevented users of Fujitsu’s older ScanSnap scanners from upgrading to macOS 10.15 Catalina. But ExactSCAN, third-party software that supports many ScanSnap devices, might provide a solution to this problem. Dave Kitabjian takes you through the pros and cons of this promising alternative.
Watchlist
Bring enhancements and bug fixes to the two personal information management apps. ($49.99 new for each, free update, 22.9/13.1 MB)
Major update to the professional audio app that adds a professional version of Live Loops and brings a redesigned sampling workflow. ($199.99 new, free update, 1 GB)
Maintenance release for the recently upgraded PDF-editing apps. ($79.95/$129.95 new, $35 upgrade, free update from version 12, 86/133 MB)
Adds a new Replace Image feature and brings new and revised keyboard shortcuts to the image editing app. ($39.99 new, free update, 193 MB)
Adds a new way to search for commands and help in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. ($149.99 new for one-time purchase, $99.99/$69.99 annual subscription options, free update)
Major release for the information management app with a lengthy list of new features and improvements including an enhanced sidebar and new automation options. ($99/$199/$499 new, free update, 106.5 MB)
Ensures that creating new tasks via the menu bar application now works more consistently. ($39.99 new, free update, 14.5 MB)
Improves support for macOS 10.15 Catalina and offers fixes for video rendering on macOS. (Free, 49.4 MB)
