Basic AF: a (mostly) tech podcast cover art

Basic AF: a (mostly) tech podcast

Basic AF: a (mostly) tech podcast

By: Tom Anderson & Jeff Battersby
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Summary

Apple makes incredible products. The tips and insights that actually help are harder to find. Basic AF cuts through the hype cycles and gets straight to what matters for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch users. Plus, app recommendations, gear reviews, AI tools, and the everyday tech that actually shows up in your life. Every other Monday, Tom Anderson and Jeff Battersby bring 25+ years of real-world Apple experience to practical, insightful conversations for people like you.

© 2026 Basic AF: a (mostly) tech podcast
Politics & Government
Episodes
  • Mac Mini Gets Pricier, Siri Payout, and iOS 27 Rumors
    May 11 2026

    There's a lot happening in Apple land right now. Mac mini prices just went up, a Siri class action settlement might land in your inbox soon, and a fresh iOS 27 rumor has some good news for anyone who'd rather talk to Claude than ChatGPT. Tom and Jeff break it all down.

    In this episode:

    • Apple Notes tips: how search really works, Smart Folders, and ProNotes — a free plugin that brings markdown and slash commands to the Notes app
    • Mac mini's base model is gone — the entry price jumps to $799, and Tim Cook says supply constraints won't recover for several months
    • Apple Education Store now requires UNiDAYS verification, and Apple Watch just joined the discount program
    • iOS 27 rumor: you may soon choose Claude or Gemini as your Apple Intelligence AI instead of ChatGPT
    • Apple's $250M Siri lawsuit settlement — if you own an iPhone 15 Pro or 16 series, you might be owed $25–$95
    • M5 MacBook Air first impressions: Jeff's testing one alongside his MacBook Pro — and Tom's university just ordered 100 of them

    Links from the show:

    • Apple Notes: Four Tips That Make Finding Things Effortless
    • Four Fast Ways to Capture to Apple Notes
    • ProNotes (free Apple Notes plugin)
    • Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor
    • Playworld by Adam Ross

    We'd be honored if you'd drop a 5-star rating for us on Apple Podcasts and/or Spotify!

    Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!

    Contact Us

    • Drop us a line at feedback@basicafshow.com
    • You’ll find Jeff at @reyespoint on Threads and reyespoint.bsky.social on Bluesky
    • Find Tom at @tomanderson on Threads
    • Join Tom’s newsletter, Apple Talk, for more Apple coverage and tips & tricks.
    • Tom has a new YouTube channel
    • Show artwork by the great Randall Martin Design


    Enjoy Basic AF? Leave a review or rating!

    • Review on Apple Podcasts
    • Rate on Spotify
    • Recommend in Overcast


    Intro Music: Psychokinetics - The Chosen

    • Apple Music
    • Spotify


    Transcripts and some images are AI generated and may contain errors and general silliness.

    Show More Show Less
    45 mins
  • AI Tools: What's Actually Working (and What Isn't) with Bill McLean
    Apr 27 2026

    Big news out of Cupertino: Tim Cook is stepping down as CEO, with hardware engineering chief John Ternus set to take the helm this September. Tom and Jeff spend a few minutes on the transition — then welcome back guest Bill McLean for an honest, no-hype check-in on AI tools: what they're actually using, what's working, and where the marketing is writing checks the technology can't cash.

    In this episode:

    • The Tim Cook → John Ternus CEO handoff and what a hardware guy at the top might mean for Apple's software
    • Which AI platforms Tom and Bill settled on, and why ChatGPT got dropped
    • Claude Co-Work in real life: web scraping, YouTube analytics, and why you still have to babysit it
    • The "dopamine hit" problem: why AI-generated ideas can kill your motivation to actually do the work
    • How Bill replaced his Squarespace subscription using Claude Code with zero coding background
    • Why context might be AI's real superpower and why Apple could have the biggest edge
    • MCP integrations worth building: Readwise, Craft, Apple Reminders
    • Why Claude projects and skills outperformed an Obsidian vault for real workflow results
    • A must-read New Yorker profile on Sam Altman

    Links from the show:

    • Bill McLean on YouTube: youtube.com/@BillMcLean
    • Sam Altman May Control Our Future—Can He Be Trusted? - The New Yorker

    Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!

    Contact Us

    • Drop us a line at feedback@basicafshow.com
    • You’ll find Jeff at @reyespoint on Threads and reyespoint.bsky.social on Bluesky
    • Find Tom at @tomanderson on Threads
    • Join Tom’s newsletter, Apple Talk, for more Apple coverage and tips & tricks.
    • Tom has a new YouTube channel
    • Show artwork by the great Randall Martin Design


    Enjoy Basic AF? Leave a review or rating!

    • Review on Apple Podcasts
    • Rate on Spotify
    • Recommend in Overcast


    Intro Music: Psychokinetics - The Chosen

    • Apple Music
    • Spotify


    Transcripts and some images are AI generated and may contain errors and general silliness.

    Show More Show Less
    55 mins
  • Mac Mini & Mac Studio Shortages, Kindle Cutoffs & Four Things Worth Knowing About iOS 26.4
    Apr 13 2026

    Tom and Jeff dig into why it's getting harder and harder to buy a Mac mini or Mac Studio in anything beyond a base configuration — and what that might mean about upcoming M5 refreshes. Plus, Jeff gives a six-month health update (he's at 92% and back on stage), and the guys get into a friendly debate about Amazon pulling the plug on pre-2012 Kindles. Is it reasonable after 14 years, or does it prove physical books always win? And they wrap up with four things to know about iOS 26.4.

    Topics covered:

    • Mac mini and Mac Studio availability issues and what's behind the long wait times
    • MacBook Neo demand and Bill McLean's hands-on review
    • Jeff's updated take on the BookTracker app
    • Amazon deprecating pre-2012 Kindles — and what it means for your digital library
    • The Libby app and library cards for free books
    • Merriam-Webster's Visual Dictionary (Jeff's new obsession)
    • iOS 26.4: keyboard accuracy improvements, Urgent Reminders update, Stolen Device Protection, and AI apps in CarPlay
    • Resetting your keyboard dictionary after updating

    Links from the show:

    • BookTracker app: https://booktrack.app
    • Libby app: https://libbyapp.com
    • Bill McLean's MacBook Neo review
    • Apple Talk newsletter (keyboard reset tip): https://www.tomfanderson.com/p/ios-26-4-iphone-keyboard-fix
    • Merriam-Webster's Visual Dictionary


    We’d be honored if you'd drop a 5-star rating for us on Apple Podcasts and/or Spotify!

    Question or Comment? Send us a Text Message!

    Contact Us

    • Drop us a line at feedback@basicafshow.com
    • You’ll find Jeff at @reyespoint on Threads and reyespoint.bsky.social on Bluesky
    • Find Tom at @tomanderson on Threads
    • Join Tom’s newsletter, Apple Talk, for more Apple coverage and tips & tricks.
    • Tom has a new YouTube channel
    • Show artwork by the great Randall Martin Design


    Enjoy Basic AF? Leave a review or rating!

    • Review on Apple Podcasts
    • Rate on Spotify
    • Recommend in Overcast


    Intro Music: Psychokinetics - The Chosen

    • Apple Music
    • Spotify


    Transcripts and some images are AI generated and may contain errors and general silliness.

    Show More Show Less
    46 mins
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