- Apple Talk by Tom Anderson
- Posts
- 📱 Apple's Event Next Week and A Look at CarPlay in iOS 26
📱 Apple's Event Next Week and A Look at CarPlay in iOS 26
Also: Matthias Hilse, creator of Forever * Notes, joins us on Basic AF
In partnership with
Hey there!
Greetings from Virginia where we’ve had delightfully pleasant weather for the last week of August and first part of September.
Here’s what I have for you today:
Apple’s Fall Event is Next Week
A Look at CarPlay’s Significant Updates in iOS 26
Matthias Hilse, creator of the Forever * Notes framework for Apple Notes, joined us on a great episode of Basic AF
Plus, I have a new word scramble and the latest Apple news!
📆 Apple’s Fall Event Next Week
Apple announced its fall iPhone event will take place on September 9 at 1:00 PM ET.
New iPhone 17 models, including the rumored new and very thin iPhone Air, are expected, plus Apple Watch Series 11 and Ultra 3 models, and perhaps new AirPods Pro.
If recent trends continue, the new hardware should be available for pre-order on Friday September 12th and official launch day should be the following Friday.
The new versions of iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, macOS, and other operating systems will likely be available on Monday, September 15th.
Full coverage to follow here and on Basic AF.
📈 Poll
Which upcoming iPhone model are you most interested in?Apple’s new line-up is on the way, where do you stand? Curious about the thinner and lighter iPhone Air? Let me know what you’re thinking. |
👀 A Look at CarPlay in iOS 26
Liquid Glass icon options in CarPlay with iOS 26
I love CarPlay. It doesn't see meaningful updates every year, but iOS 26 is bringing some significant improvements.
Liquid Glass (including new "Clear" icons)
CarPlay now adopts Apple's new Liquid Glass design language, with UI elements and updated icons that align with the broader iOS 26 aesthetic. Users can choose between Default, Dark, and a brand-new Clear mode with even more transparency options.
Widgets
iOS 26 introduces full widget support, meaning any widget from your iPhone, such as Weather, Calendar, and third-party apps, will work. Apps do not even need to support CarPlay for widgets to be available.
Tapbacks in Messages
iOS 26 adds support for Message Tapbacks to allow you to quickly add a thumbs up, thumbs down, or other tapback to a message. Pinned conversations are supported as well.
iOS 26 Brings Tapbacks to Messages in CarPlay
Phone calls no longer take over the entire screen
Incoming calls now appear as compact banners rather than taking over the entire screen, so you won't lose sight of navigation directions or other views when a call comes in. Finally.
Live Activities
Live Activities like tracking a flight, weather conditions, or sports scores, now appear in CarPlay alongside your other widgets and navigation apps. Love this!
Live Activites arrive in CarPlay with iOS 26
Video via AirPlay
When parked, your CarPlay screen can now play video via AirPlay from your iPhone. It's a nice addition, though third‑party app support will vary.
It’s great to see CarPlay receiving significant improvements this year as part of iOS 26!
📺️ My Day with Craft on YouTube
I shared this in the last edition, but wanted to mention it briefly again in case you missed that one.
I am thrilled to be part of Craft's new "My Day with Craft" series on YouTube. My episode, where I show how I use Craft to produce the podcast and newsletter, and how I published my Mac buying guide directly in Craft, was released a few weeks ago. You can check it out here:
🧩 Word Scramble Puzzle
🎙️ Basic AF: Chaos to Clarity in Apple Notes: Forever * Notes with Matthias Hilse
If you’re an Apple Notes user who’s feeling buried in folders, tags, or forgotten ideas — and you’ve struggled to bring order to your notes — this episode is for you.
We dive deep into the Forever * Notes system with its creator, Matthias Hilse, and explore how it brings clarity, structure, and intentionality to even the messiest note collections.
Chapter Listing:
00:00 - Intro
02:52 - Welcome, Matthias Hilse!
05:48 - Origin of Forever * Notes
10:26 - The Components of Forever * Notes
14:28 - User Experiences and Customization
17:34 - Tagging and Organization Strategies
26:40 - Forever * Notes Workshop
32:38 - Navigating Feedback and User Experience
34:44 - Ways Apple Can Enhance the Notes App
38:32 - Future Additions
40:48 - Task Management Tools and Preferences
45:13 - Framework Portability Across Apps
49:10 - Beta Testing New Operating Systems
54:17 - Where to Find More on Matthias and Forever * Notes
55:58 - Close
Listen to and follow the show in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, all the other podcast apps, as well as on YouTube and YouTube Music.
📣 News to Know About
Here’s a quick rundown of noteworthy things that I’ve hand-selected just for you:
🧩 Word Scramble Answer
Voice Memos is Apple’s built-in app for recording audio. It supports editing, transcription, playback speed adjustments, and syncing via iCloud.
Reply