Hey {{first_name|there}}!

I hope the new year is off to great start!

Here’s what I have for you today:

Let’s get started!

I’m working on improving Apple Talk this year, and the best way to do that is by hearing directly from you.

I’ve put together a very short survey (it should take 1–2 minutes max) to learn a bit more about:

Your responses will help me decide what content to focus on, what to go deeper on, and what might be worth changing or improving.

A quick privacy note:

Your answers are only used by me to improve this newsletter and related content. I won’t sell, share, or give this information to any third-party.

If you’ve got a minute, I’d really appreciate you taking the survey.

Thank you!

Ever lost track of an important task that needed to be done?

Yeah, me too. Notifications can be helpful, but when everything is a notification, it’s easy for an important one to slip through the cracks.

Apple is taking steps to fix this. New in the 26.2 updates released last month, you can now set alarms in Reminders, meaning they behave more like a Clock alarm than a simple notification.

This is incredibly helpful for tasks you can’t afford to miss.

Here’s how it works:

When the alarm goes off, you can snooze it right from the Lock Screen, and it sticks around as a Live Activity until you reschedule or complete it.

This is a great addition to Reminders and is helpful for important tasks such as picking up the kids at school, leaving for an appointment, or major deadlines.

In the last poll, I asked what’s the GOAT of Christmas movies. It was close, and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation took the top spot, followed by Die Hard in second, and A Christmas Story in third.

Thanks to each of you that voted!

Everyone expects Apple to release its first foldable iPhone later this year and the rumors and “leaks” are heating up. Jeff and I discuss the latest, including the 3D printed model that looks nothing like current iPhones.

If you not familiar with it, here’s what the printed model looks like:

Thanks to my friend, and friend of the show, Gannon Nordberg, for sending over the photos!

In the second half of the show, I share how things went after I decided to reset my iPhone in an attempt to resolve the ongoing battery life issues I’ve been having with iOS 26.

Listen to and follow the show in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, all the other podcast apps, as well as on YouTube and YouTube Music.

I shared my essential apps heading into the new year:

Here’s the link for more: https://www.tomfanderson.com/p/my-essential-apps-services-for-2026

Here’s a quick rundown of noteworthy things that I’ve hand-selected just for you: