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Download

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From products and companies to services and trends, Download’s weekly panel of experts analyzed the biggest topics in tech … and a few you may have missed. Hosted by Jason Snell and Stephen Hackett.

Episodes

108: Keep Watching the Headlines

Apple releases public betas a bit earlier than we expected, Bill Gates muses on Microsoft's missed opportunity and the power of tech giants, WebOS just keeps on keeping on, and we're all going to need a fuzzy puppy update this week because this is the final episode of Download.

Jun 26, 201935 minEp. 108

107: Embankment for the Unbanked

Facebook's cryptocurrency move, 5G in rural areas, Google steals lyrics, Apple hedges on China, JJ Abrams cuts a big deal with Warner Media, Snapchat's original programming strategy, and much more.

Jun 20, 20191 hr 1 minEp. 107

106: I Think It's Us

The tech industry has a lot to apologize for, the Huawei mess escalates, and is Apple still thinking about autonomous vehicles?

Jun 13, 201946 minEp. 106

105: Live From WWDC: Dark Mode People

From Apple's podcast studio within its Worldwide Developer Conference, we're joined by John Siracusa and Shelly Brisbin to discuss iPadOS, iOS, Catalyst, SwiftUI, and Apple's new pro hardware.

Jun 06, 201949 minEp. 105

104: I Don't Know What X Means Anymore

The increasingly messy tech Cold War, Apple's keyboard troubles, the prospects for data protection laws in the U.S., and Wi-Fi stalking on the Tube.

May 23, 201950 minEp. 104

103: Where OS?

Apple gets a bad Supreme Court ruling, Disney buys the rest of Hulu, and Florence Ion joins us to discuss last week's Google IO, including the Pixel 3a and the fate of all our Nest thermostats.

May 16, 20191 hr 6 minEp. 103

102: More Ham Figures Into It

Philip Michaels joins us to talk about interesting things in Apple's latest financial results, the death of a product that never existed, and Facebook's F8 product announcements.

May 02, 201942 minEp. 102

101: Painting Something Pink

Carolina Milanesi joins Jason to discuss her time using an unbroken Samsung Galaxy Fold, Tim Cook talking up tech regulation, Jack Dorsey visiting the White House, and the words tech writers use to describe Pinterest.

Apr 25, 201955 minEp. 101

100: Modems Modems Modems!

Apple and Qualcomm make up over fried chicken, social-media companies continue to not get it, and the Galaxy Fold makes a very bad first impression.

Apr 18, 201957 minEp. 100

99: My Memory is Beyond the Event Horizon

Netflix ties its own hands, new Kindles arrive, Amazon gets criticized for cozying up to oil companies while touting its own green-energy efforts, web accessibility is trickier than you'd think, and... is that a black hole?

Apr 11, 20191 hr 6 minEp. 99

98: Important Business People With Ties

Apple's News+ pitch failed with key newspapers--but Facebook might value news curation now? Future iPhones come into focus, but Apple's 5G timeline is called into question. Dell's new XPS laptop is a winner. And the "hearables" category (by which we mean wireless headphones) heats up.

Apr 04, 201953 minEp. 98

97: Shiny Titanium Trojan Horse

Apple's big services event leads us to discuss Apple TV+, Apple Card, Apple Arcade, and Apple News+; in other news, we touch on the perils of offering a service that lets random people upload content--especially in the European Union.

Mar 28, 20191 hr 7 minEp. 97

96: Hanging With My Amazon Prime Buddies

Google unveils a cloud gaming strategy at GDC, Apple releases all the product updates, Instagram goes shopping, and MySpace deletes all your favorite music from 2009.

Mar 21, 20191 hr 1 minEp. 96

95: "Game of Thrones" With Slide Rules

The complicated reality of trying to break up the power of large tech companies, Spotify takes on Apple, Apple sets its sights on services, and takiing lessons from "Captain Marvel."

Mar 14, 201957 minEp. 95

94: From Switzerland to You

Fitbit unveils new low-cost fitness trackers, Apple goes hiring in Qualcomm's backyard, Zuck has a vision for private conversations, and we bring in our Special Automotive Correspondent to discuss electric car announcements.

Mar 07, 20191 hr 1 minEp. 94

93: Cab Drivers Were Asking About It

Mobile World Congress brings folding phones, battery phones, camera phones, 5G machinations, and a new business-oriented HoloLens. Plus there's a robot on the streets of Memphis, and maybe Netflix is bringing the world closer together?

Feb 28, 20191 hr 11 minEp. 93

92: Trapper Keepers

We cover Samsung's big event, including new flagship phones, a low-cost model that should have a lot of crowd appeal, a perplexing 5G variant, and the device everyone's talking about, the unfoldable smartphone.

Feb 21, 201958 minEp. 92

91: N Isn't for Netscape

What happens when a tech giant buys the company that makes a product you like? Also: Some ugly labor issues in the tech and journalism industries, Apple plans a services event, Samsung readies new phones including one that folds, and Amazon ditches NYC for HQ2.

Feb 14, 20191 hr 1 minEp. 91

90: Spotify Buys Podcasting

Jason and Stephen discuss Apple's retail changes and Facebook's 15th anniversary. Then Natalie Jarvey of The Hollywood Reporter visits to discuss Spotify spending a lot of money on podcasting companies, and Jeremy Burge of Emojipedia unveils the new emoji coming later in 2019.

Feb 07, 20191 hr 10 minEp. 90

89: The Second-Best of Times

Apple copes with declining iPhone sales and a bad FaceTime bug, then ends up coming down hard on Facebook for its misuse of a tool designed to read user data. Also, there's an imaginary bear in the woods... or is there?

Jan 31, 201940 minEp. 89

88: Creepy Robot Hotel

Robots roll out, smartphones get weird, Apple Pay expands, Netflix gets Oscar nominations and joins the MPAA, NBC Universal gets into streaming, and Tesla puts the squeeze on its customers.

Jan 24, 20191 hr 4 minEp. 88

87: A Game of Media Chicken

Apple's battery replacement saga and the parable of the infinite home appliance; Facebook and WordPress try to help journalism; Netflix raises prices; and with Vegas in the rear-view mirror, we ponder the biggest trends of CES with two people who actually braved the industry's largest trade show.

Jan 17, 20191 hr 3 minEp. 87

86: The 2019 CES Draft

The Consumer Electronics Show is, as always, a flood of new technology, corporate announcements, products that will never ship, and embarrassing garbage. How better to sum it all up than with a draft? In this episode, we choose the top stories of the week, then move on to pick some vaporware and the worst story of the show. But don't worry, in the end we've got some fuzzy CES puppies to cheer you up. Is that fresh bread I smell?

Jan 10, 20191 hr 3 minEp. 86

85: Top Stories of 2018

In this special New Years Day episode, we look back at the biggest trends of 2018, review some stories you might have missed along the way, and make a few bold predictions for 2019.

Jan 01, 20191 hr 7 minEp. 85

84: Shout Out to Our Nemeses

2018 ends with a lot of grim dystopia type stuff involving social media services and the synergy power of media companies and internet providers. Meanwhile, Apple takes the unlikely step of lowering its ecosystem walls and adding Apple Music to Amazon Echo devices. We're going to need a lot of fuzzy puppies for this one.

Dec 20, 201849 minEp. 84

83: Mr. Google Is My Father!

Google's CEO gets grilled by Congress; Instagram gets a new product leader; Apple does a bunch of stuff; and Supermicro defends itself against Bloomberg. Plus we honor the 50th anniversary of the "Mother of all Demos", Casey hasn't seen "My Cousin Vinny", we try to save journalism and fail, and a puppy emerges from a box!

Dec 13, 20181 hr 7 minEp. 83

82: No! This Is Terrible!

Qualcomm rolls out 5G cellular networking at a Hawaiian resort; Tumblr bans sexual imagery and nudity; Apple fails emoji biology; and streaming services consider inserting ads into paused video.

Dec 06, 20181 hr 5 minEp. 82

81: Elvis Is in the Building

The App Store goes before the Supreme Court, Amazon embraces ARM servers, and we discuss the amazing life and business lessons of IDG founder Pat McGovern.

Nov 29, 20181 hr 12 minEp. 81

80: Maybe You'll All Get Roses

Amazon finishes its 'Bachelor'-style courting of US cities; Samsung makes us ponder whether foldable phones will ever be a thing; and YouTube decries the EU's new copyright declaration.

Nov 15, 201854 minEp. 80

79: The New Flip Phone

Samsung shows off a foldable phone prototype, Apple grows its services revenue and ships new products, Amazon gets into print catalogs and embraces the east coast, Comcast builds a cable box for cord cutters, and we mourn a couple of casualties of the streaming-service wars to come.

Nov 08, 20181 hr 4 minEp. 79