POP | TECH | JAM

Dreams & Streams

On this episode of Pop Tech Jam, El Kaiser and JD discuss expert reaction to Apple’s iOS 26 and macOS Tahoe public betas, as well as a handful of other headlines from around the tech world. The hosts also share thoughts on 2025’s crop of summer movies and streaming TV. All this and more when you click Play on PTJ 383!· ‘Only Murders in the Building’ Sets Season 5 Premiere Date (The Hollywood Reporter)· First Look: macOS Tahoe Public Beta (Six Colors)· First Look: iOS 26 Public Beta (Six Colors)· iPhone 17 Pro Launching in Two Months With These 16 New Features (MacRumors)· iPhone 17 And iPhone 17 Air Unprecedented Design Changes Revealed in New Leak (Forbes)· Apple rumored to release 6 new iPhone models starting next year — including iPhone Fold (Tom's Guide)· Apple Announces 'AppleCare One' Subscription Plan for Multiple Devices (MacRumors)· Meta will no longer accept political, election or issue ads in EU (Axios)· Meta Unveils Wristband for Controlling Computers With Hand Gestures (The New York Times)· DuckDuckGo becomes first browser to add AI image filter — here's what you need to know (Tom’s Guide)· Microsoft Gets Out of the Movie and TV Business: How to Save Everything You Bought (PCMag)· The Microsoft Store versions of Office apps are being discontinued (PCWorld)· After Underwhelming Box Office Run, Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning Sets Digital Release Date (With Bonus Features) (CBR.com)· James Gunn blames ‘anti-American sentiment’ for Superman’s box office haul (The Independent)· “Wednesday” Renewed for Season 3 at Netflix (Variety)· “Fantastic Four: First Steps” (Marvel)· You Need to Cancel All of Your Streaming Services (Cord Cutter News)

Grok Spock

While counting down the minutes to the new season of “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” this week, El Kaiser and J.D. discuss recent developments in the tech world and reflect upon the opening-weekend box office for the latest Superman movie. Spin up PTJ 382 to listen in!Google confirms it's 'combining' Chrome OS and Android into a single platform (Android Authority)Is A.I. the Future of Web Browsing? (The New York Times)xAI and Grok apologize for ‘horrific behavior’ (TechCrunch)After Linda Yaccarino’s Departure As X CEO, Will Elon Musk Once Again Flip Off Advertisers In Favor Of AI? (Deadline)It’s YouTube vs. Netflix as the Streaming Wars Come Down to 2 (The New York Times)“Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” (Paramount+)“Superman” opens to sky-high $217 million at global box office, becoming DC's biggest premiere since “The Batman” (Entertainment Weekly)ACASIS Mac Mini M4 Workstation 8-in-1 Dual SSD 40Gbps DockDell UltraSharp 32 4K Thunderbolt Hub Monitor - U3225QEAstropad Luna Display

Bye-Bye Blue

On this week’s episode of Pop Tech Jam, El Kaiser and JD discuss Microsoft’s recent announcement regarding changes to “the unexpected restart experience, the stack of Substacks piling up and A.I.’s effect on plant life. Apple’s new “F1” movie with Brad Pitt, the upcoming “Superman” film and El Kaiser’s belated journey with “Andor” are also part of the discussion, so listen in here on PTJ 381!PTJ 381 LINKSMicrosoft says goodbye to the Windows blue screen of death (CNBC)There is no mystery over who wrote the Blue Screen of Death, despite what some may want you to believe(Microsoft Dev Blogs)The Windows Resiliency Initiative: Building resilience for a future-ready enterprise (Windows Blogs)Substack Is Having a Moment—Again. But Time Is Running Out (Wired)AI is ruining houseplant communities online (The Verge)Kuo: Apple to release cheaper MacBook powered by iPhone processor (9to5Mac)‘F1’ Revs To $144M Opening Weekend Around The World, Brad Pitt & Apple Original Films Records; ‘M3GAN 2.0’ Powers Down At $10M+ (Deadline)Early Reactions to “Superman” Claim It’s Complete Opposite of “Man of Steel” (Yahoo)“Andor” (Disney+)

Cooking With Gas

Apple’s annual World Wide Developers Conference brought its usual load of software announcements last week and El Kaiser and J.D. share some thoughts about it all — including the new Liquid Gas, er, Liquid Glass interface design. But it’s not ALL about Apple this episode, as Google and Nintendo had some announcements of their own. Spin up PTJ 380 for the commentary! LINKS · Apple’s World Wide Developers Conference 2025 announcements (Apple)· Introducing Liquid Glass (Apple on YouTube)· Apple introduces a delightful and elegant new software design (Apple)· Liquid Glass isn’t a design failure; it is Apple’s most tactile digital future yet (UX Collective)· Why Apple’s ‘Liquid Glass’ Design Is a Step Backward for UX (Prototypr)· Apple's Liquid Glass is a grim portent for UX (The Product Picnic)· Android 16 is here (Google Keyword blog)· Separating Material 3 Expressive from Android 16 was Google's smartest move all year (Android Police)· 7 Things We Love And 4 Things We Hate About The Switch 2 (Kotaku)· Agatha All Along (Disney+)· Andor (Disney+)

It's That Time of Year Again!

If it's September, it must be time for an Apple Event to announce new iPhones! El Kaiser and J.D. discuss the presentation and the new fall line-up of Apple gear, and take side trips into Amazon's new Batman show and El Kaiser's dilemma about saving a high-end display. And we pour one out for James Earl Jones, who made a twisted soul sound so darn good in that galaxy far, far away. All this right here on PTJ 379!