Automators 111: Automating Endor Studios

On this week’s Automators, Rose and I dive into my new studio and plan out how to automate everything.

This episode of Automators is sponsored by:

  • Electric: Unbury yourself from IT tasks. Get a free pair of Beats Solo3 Wireless Headphones when you schedule a meeting.
  • Trade: Save Big, Support Small Roasters. Get $30 off your first order.
  • LinkedIn Jobs: Post a job for free by visiting this link.
  • Rogue Amoeba: Save 20% in celebration of the 20th anniversary.

DEVONthink: The Unparalleled Data Tool (Sponsor)

This week MacSparky is sponsored by DEVONthink, the app that organizes and tracks your files and data for you. I use DEVONthink for all of my research and record-keeping workflows. There simply is nothing else that has DEVONthink’s combination of file management, meta-data, and artificial intelligence tools. Also, DEVONthink performs OCR (optical character recognition) on everything for you.

Since releasing the DEVONthink Field Guide I’ve heard from so many people that rely on DEVONthink. To name a few:

  • I heard from a high school student that tracks all her class work in subject-based DEVONthink databases. (That would also work for college.)
  • I heard from a pH.d student writing his thesis with DEVONthink.
  • I heard from a listener that builds plastic models of WWII aircraft. He researches every plane before a build and uses DEVONthink to store his growing database.
  • Stephen Hackett, our too-young but too-smart Apple historian has gigabytes of Apple data in his DEVONthink database.

These are just a few. If you have need of tracking, sorting, organizing, or searching, or analyzing data, DEVONthink is the tool for you. Check it out today.

Apple Watch Ultra Reviews and Trade-Offs

The initial Apple Watch Ultra reviews are in. I spent the morning reading them. Some of the best coverage came from The Verge and Marques Brownlee.

The trade-offs of this watch are not in dispute.

The Good Parts

  • Doubled battery life (two days, perhaps three)
  • Lots of power-user features
  • An additional button
  • Rugged, bulky design

The Bad Parts

  • It’s big
  • It’s pricey
  • Rugged, bulky design

For a lot of people, myself included, the Apple Watch Ultra is overkill. That doesn’t change the fact that I’m interested. I am a fan of rugged design and the thought of never having to think about battery life on my watch is an appealing one to me. Best of all, it appears I’d be able to trigger shortcuts with that action button.

I’ve ordered one. Whether I keep it will come down to how big it looks and feels on my wrist, but I’m looking forward to trying it out.

Mac Power Users 658: Every Letter Is Precious

In this feedback episode of Mac Power Users, Stephen and I revisit iOS 16 and the M2 MacBook Air, then dive into some listener questions and talk about the state of voice dictation.

This episode of Mac Power Users is sponsored by:

  • 1Password: Have you ever forgotten a password? You don’t have to worry about that anymore. 
  • Electric: Unbury yourself from IT tasks. Get a free pair of Beats Solo3 Wireless Headphones when you schedule a meeting.
  • Squarespace: Make your next move. Enter offer code MPU at checkout to get 10% off your first purchase.
  • Setapp: More than 240 powerful apps. Try it free for a month with code ‘MACPOWER’.

Focus Mode Deep Dive (MacSparky Labs)

I’m doing a Focus Mode Webinar on September 30 at 10:00 AM Pacific. There are a lot of changes with Focus Mode in iOS 16, and I’ve changed my workflows. I’ll be sharing my favorite new Focus Modes with you during the webinar…

This is a post for MacSparky Labs Tier 2 (Backstage) and Tier 3 (Early Access) Members only. Care to join? Or perhaps do you need to sign in?

Daylite and the New Opportunities Board

This week MacSparky is sponsored by Daylite, which just announced its new Daylite Opportunities Board.

Unlock your sales potential with the new Daylite Opportunities Board

For small businesses, acquiring new business often means juggling multiple priorities at the same time, as each deal has its own time frame and different client requirements. That’s why you need a tool that will help better manage your sales pipeline, so you’re making the most of every sales opportunity that comes your way.

Meet the Daylite Opportunities Board

The Daylite Opportunities Board lets you visually track your deals’ progress at every stage and helps you prioritize sales opportunities. This powerful feature gives you a holistic view of your sales pipelines, allowing you to track where each Opportunity is in the process, so you and your team can focus on the most valuable ones. The drag-and-drop functionality allows you to move opportunities from one stage to the next, and you can easily classify deals as “won” or “lost” by dragging them to the respective status categories. Learn more about how this powerful Daylite feature has become a game-changer for Apple-savvy small businesses. 

I really like this new feature. Something visual like this is the best way to keep all of your team on the same page.

About Daylite

Daylite is an award-winning CRM and productivity business app that empowers small businesses to get more done throughout the full customer lifecycle. Daylite is a native app built exclusively for Mac, iPhone, and iPad. From meeting prospects and taking control of your sales to managing the moving pieces on projects, all the way through to winning more repeat business, it’s all done in Daylite. 

And now, with the Daylite Opportunities Board, you can finally better manage your sales process and unlock your sales potential. 

Are you ready to close more deals with Daylite? Start your free trial here.

Austin Mann on the iPhone 14 Pro

One of my favorite reviews with each new iPhone is that of Austin Mann. Austin always takes the new iPhone someplace interesting (this time, it’s Scotland) and takes some amazing pictures with the new iPhone Pro while pointing out its strengths and weaknesses. Austin’s iPhone 14 Pro camera review is now up.

This time, he spends a lot of time explaining the advantages of the 48 Megapixel sensor and where its limitations are. He also has thoughts on the three camera sensors. If you are interested in iPhone photography, don’t miss this one.

The Initial iPhone 14 Pro Reviews

Today a lot of early reviews dropped for the iPhone 14. I read a lot of them. The best, in my opinion, are from Matt Panzarino and Marques Brownlee.

The reviews are all positive. The features that seem to stand out the most are camera performance and the Dynamic Island, where Apple took a negative (the notch) and turned it into a delightful user interface element. I’m getting my phone Friday and looking forward to checking out all the new features.