Anandtech Reviews Apple's iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus →

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The iPhone 6s in a lot of ways seems like it’s simple enough to review, but it turns out if you dig deep the changes have been significant. Over the course of a review, we’ve found major changes in the SoC, storage solution, camera, touch screen, fingerprint scanner, voice recognition software, cellular architecture, and WiFi chipset.

It's a doozy. Wonderfully technical and the most thorough that I've read. I love how both Joshua Ho and Randy Smith comb over the details on everything that Apple's latest "s" model has to offer. Even if you're not an Apple fan, the extent of technology, craftsmanship and design that Josh and Randy go over proves to be an exemplary read. Don't take my word for it.

The one disappointment here is that the iPhone 6s doesn’t have OIS, which increasingly feels like a pretty significant differentiator.

I completely agree and that's why I went with the iPhone 6s Plus. Check out the Optical Image Stabilization in the video below.

Can You Guess Which "New Car to Avoid" Came in First? →

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BMW’s flagship sedan seems to have lost its edge in recent years. It’s wrapped in languid styling and just doesn’t feel as sporty as it did in earlier renditions; an odd product lineup includes an expensive and not especially efficient gas-electric hybrid model. Consumer Reports takes the 7 Series to task for being “a ponderous, technology-laden vehicle with ungainly handling,” and is included in the publication’s lists of lowest-scoring cars, worst overall values and most expensive operating costs in its class. Not to pile on, but it also gets a rock-bottom resale value rating from ALG and a below average performance score from J.D. Power.

I'll admit that it was great owning an E66 (2008 BMW 750Li), but damn if I owned it past it's warranty and into the 100k mile range. They don't build them like they use to and never mind the amount of electrical glitches, failures and mishaps that can happen! I love their cars but my 5 series has proved to be too costly to maintain. When is enough enough?

San Diego Set for First Ever World Beach Games in 2017 →

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“I think they have all the ingredients for the games,” said Timothy Fok, an ANOC executive and International Olympic Committee member. “Not only the sun and sand, they live the games.”

The event, scheduled for 2017, is expected to feature about 20 sports, including triathlon, skateboarding, surfing, jet skiing, as well beach versions of soccer, track and football.

No better place to host than "America's Finest City!"

Ludicrous Speed Really is Ridiculous →

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The Ludicrous Speed upgrade combined with the "Fast and Furious"-ready Model S P90D makes for some shocking acceleration numbers. With Ludicrous mode engaged and using the new launch control feature, 60 mph in the Tesla comes in a staggeringly quick 2.6 seconds with the driver experiencing a peak of 1.1 g up through 14 mph. Given the Model S P90D hangs with hypercars in acceleration from 0 to 60 mph, the list of cars the P90D beats to 60 mph is a long one, including everything from the vaunted Nissan GT-R to the big, bad Lamborghini Aventador and Bugatti Veyron. Only two cars that we've tested can outright beat the P90D to 60 mph: the Porsche 918 Spyder and Ferrari LaFerrari. As for the "other" hybrid hypercar, the McLaren P1, the Tesla ties it in a race to 60 mph.

Just to summarize a summary, faster than the Nissan GT-R, Lamborghini Aventador and Bugatti Veyron. Ridiculous! (And so is the price at $130,000 but then again, those super cars cost more). If you see an underlined P90D, he/she just might be a tad ludicrous.

David Chang on His Favorite Beer →

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Beer snobs are the worst of the bunch. You know the old joke about cheap beer being like having sex in a canoe? I will take a beer that’s "fucking near water" every night of the week over combing out my neck beard while arguing about hop varieties.

For all the debatability of my rant here, let me make one ironclad argument for shitty beer: It pairs really well with food. All food. Think about how well champagne pairs with almost anything. Champagne is not a flavor bomb! It’s bubbly and has a little hint of acid and tannin and is cool and crisp and refreshing. Cheap beer is, no joke, the champagne of beers. And cheap beer and spicy food go together like nothing else. Think about Natty Boh and Old Bay-smothered crabs. Or Asian lagers like Orion and Singha and Tiger, which are all perfect ways to wash down your mapo tofu.

This sums up my feelings perfectly. Just a few months ago during my son's christening reception, Pacifico was flowing and it was fabulous. But to each his own as I snob just a tad on coffee and brew techniques.

Attention is in the Details and You Wouldn't Know →

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It's also evident in the MacBook parts laid out before me. The tiny logic board (aka the motherboard) fits in one of my hands. It's literally packed on both sides with chips of varying sizes and includes everything from memory to storage and even the display drivers. It's also deeply informed by everything Apple learned from building circuit boards for handheld technologies like the iPhone. As I examine it, Ternus tells me the board is 67 percent smaller than the one found in the 11-inch MacBook Air.

Simply amazing. The palm of your hand or in other technology comparisons, smaller than the Raspberry Pi!

Every single unit gets measured on line for force required to open it, and we actually adjust every single unit," Ternus said.

In fact, Apple is apparently taking the time to custom-fit all sorts of pieces in the MacBook through a process it calls "binning." Since there can be minuscule variances that might make, for instance, the Force Touch trackpad not a perfect fit for the body or the super-thin Retina display not exactly a match for the top of the case, Apple finds matching parts from the production line. Even the thickness of the stainless steel Apple Logo, which replaced the backlit logo on previous MacBook models, can vary by a micron or so, meaning Apple needs to find a top with the right cutout depth.

It's all in the details. Simply an amazing read from an engineering perspective even if you're not a fan.

The "New" Microsoft and it's Surface Book →

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So Panay’s team set a different goal: to reinvent the laptop. They spent two years designing, prototyping, and fine-tuning—all to get to the Surface Book that goes on sale today. It’s the product of everything Microsoft has learned from making the first Surface machines, and from watching Apple eat its lunch. It’s a story right out of Cupertino, really: A small group of creatives sits in a room together, passionately slaving over every tiny detail of a product until it’s perfect. To go after Apple, Microsoft learned from Apple—and then found a few places to take right turns toward the future it imagines. It cost Panay much more than one night’s sleep.

This is what sets the course for success. Still at $1,499, makes it a little hard to digest but yes, it's definitely production and hardware plus excitement heading in the right direction.

Just in case you missed the latest shenanigans, PCWorld posted their benchmarks showing it beat the Apple's MacBook Pro 13" laptop not by twice but almost three times in terms of speed. Pretty impressive nonetheless, but 9to5Mac brings to light some of discrepancies. The biggest takeaway points to dedicated graphics cards do help in processing power and frame rate. The Surface Book has one, but the MacBook Pro does not.

Republic Airways Leading the Way in Pilot Pay and Quality of Life Improvements →

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The new agreement includes significant improvements in work rules and pilot quality of life. Additionally, it establishes pay rates that recognize Republic’s pilots as leaders in the regional airline industry, including a transformational $40/hr first year new hire rate.

Republic Airways voting for a large improvement during these times will definitely enable them to bid on more flying and attract more pilots. It'd be nice to see the rest of the contract and compare it to my previous employer and SkyWest. For those who many not know, first year pay when I started in 2006 was at $16.00 an hour and I didn't get to $40 an hour until my fifth year.

In fact, this first year pay bump is just under what first year pay currently is at JetBlue, Spirit, Virgin America and Allegiant.

Sausage and Bacon Classified as Carcinogenic →

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The report outlined that simply eating 50 grams of processed meat each day -- the equivalent of two slices of ham -- can increase the risk of such cancer by 18%. However, the authors say the risks are relatively small to begin with.

The organization defines processed meat as any type of meat that is salted, cured or smoked to enhance its flavor or preserve it. Processed meat generally contains pork or beef, but may also contain poultry.

The WHO now classifies processed meat in the same category as smoking and asbestos, based on its certainty of a link with cancer, but stressed that did not mean they were equally dangerous.

Did this study include the many islanders who eat Spam or even the Europeans who eat arrays of aged meats? Once again, everything in moderation.

A $27,000 Civic? It's Getting Absurd

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Just my opinion, but at that price, for around $27,000 for the 2016 Honda Civic Touring Edition, you can grab yourself a Certified Pre-Owned Mercedes, BMW, or Lexus or for that matter, a hopped up Toyorta Camry or save a few thousand and go with a Corolla or the Honda Fit.

Motortrend's Frist Test Review proved pretty awesome, but the vehicle that they used was the top of the line Civic Touring Edition, which by the way, did I mention, is $27,000!!! It's powered by an awesome brand new turbo engine but paired with an automatic CVT, I'm leaning more and more towards the no. How much is the Si or even the rumored Type-R going to be? Abusrd.

Living the Dream Part II

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Part two of the awesome Lego animation depicting my life as an airline pilot! Love it! If anything, skip ahead to around 4:20. That is spot on!

Walt Mossberg on Sorkin's 'Steve Jobs' →

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Unlike Mr. Sorkin, I did know the real Steve Jobs, for about 14 years — the most productive and successful 14 years of his career running Apple, Inc. I spent scores of hours in private conversations with him over those years, and interviewed him numerous times onstage at a tech conference I co-produced. And the Steve Jobs portrayed in Sorkin’s film isn’t the man I knew.

Sorkin chose to cherry-pick and exaggerate some of the worst aspects of Jobs’s character, and to focus on a period of his career when he was young and immature. His film chooses to give enormous emphasis to perhaps the most shameful episode in Jobs’s personal life, the period when he denied paternity of an out-of-wedlock daughter.

Unfortunately, this is yet another Steve Jobs movie that I'll be skipping. I had high hopes but alas, the book was good enough for me.