My Full Responses for the 2025 Six Colors Report Card

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Yesterday, Jason shared the results of his annual Apple report card. As per tradition, I’m now turning the answers I supplied Jason into a blog post.1

Mac: 4/5

Five years into the Apple silicon era, Apple seems to be firing on all cylinders, with regular releases for most of its products (cough, cough, Mac Pro). The laptops run cool with amazing battery life, and there’s a desktop Mac for just about everyone.

MacBook Air

Apple’s external displays continue to age, rather ungracefully. Mac users shopping for a display have more options than ever beyond the Apple Store. The Studio Display is too expensive, and the XDR is just … well, there’s a lot going on there. I hope Apple has some new products ready sooner rather than later.

macOS Tahoe

macOS Tahoe is Apple’s weakest implementation of Liquid Glass. Buttons don’t look like buttons, window corners cut off content, and the locking of icons into Squircle Jail is a crime. I like a lot about Liquid Glass on the iPhone, but I fear that Tahoe was either an afterthought or redesigned by folks who don’t know what makes macOS special. I’m running Tahoe, and while it doesn’t get in my way very often, there are little bits of friction everywhere, like grains of sand scratching and pitting the windshield of a passing car.

The iPhone: 4/5

2025 brought more iPhones than ever, as Apple leaned into differentiation between models. The iPhone Pro and Pro Max were redesigned to maximize the performance of the camera and the silicon inside. The iPhone 17 gained ProMotion and the always-on display, making it the best base iPhone ever.

2025 iPhone line

Then there’s the iPhone Air. Its compromises aren’t for everyone, but if it fits into your life, it’ll slide into your pocket better than any other iPhone.

Liquid Glass feels the most complete on iOS 26, but it is far from perfect. The price paid for content reflecting and refracting under UI elements includes legibility issues and performance concerns. I don’t have the hatred for Liquid Glass that some do, but it’s clear that Apple has more work to do to make this interface serve all of its users well.

The iPad: 4/5

After years of dragging its feet, Apple finally did the thing and gave iPadOS a full-blown windowing system. Split View, Slide Over, and Stage Manager were all attempts that still (mostly) exist, but iPadOS 26 is the real deal. Paired with a keyboard and trackpad, an iPad feels more desktop-like than ever, yet the classic one-app-at-a-time interface is still alive and well for folks who prefer a simpler experience.

iPadOS 26

Hardware-wise, Apple continues to offer a wide range of devices at a wide range of price points. There’s an iPad for everyone, and that’s a good thing.

Apple Watch: 3/5

After skipping the Apple Watch Ultra 2, I upgraded my original Ultra to the 3 this time around … but I’m not sure I could tell you the differences between this Watch and my old one, other than battery life.

This has been the story of Apple Watch hardware basically forever. Every few years, a new feature or design comes along, but otherwise, things are pretty sleepy.

Apple Watch SE

I’m actually okay with that strategy, as no one other than the people reading this article upgrades their Apple Watch each year. However, this slow pace has kept the product line fairly narrow. The SE and Series Watches are indistinguishable from each other by the consumer, and even the Ultra isn’t a massive departure from the original recipe. Like the iPhone before it, it’s time for Apple to branch out.

After years of upheaval, watchOS has settled into a good place, but some of its old woes are still around. Apps will fail to update. Complications will become stale. Media handoff can be slow. And that’s all with an iPhone present. Flipping on the cellular radio and taking the Watch out alone can still be a frustratingly limited experience.

Vision Pro: 1/5

I honestly think my headset is still running an early beta of visionOS 26, but I’d have to charge it up to know for sure.

Home: 4/5

If you had told me five years ago that HomeKit would serve as the spiritual father of a smart home platform that tears down the old walls built around Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant, I would not have believed you. Yet here we are, with Matter continuing to grow in both capability and availability.

Having moved in 2025, I’ve been slowly building a new HomeKit setup, and it’s been very, very smooth. Things aren’t perfect, but putting something together with products from various vendors is way easier than it used to be.

Apple TV: 2/5

For the 2023 Report Card, I wrote, “The Apple TV hardware has been so overpriced and overpowered for so long, it feels like I’m wasting everyone’s time by mentioning it again.”

I also said, “tvOS continues to feel trapped between Apple’s vision for the platform and what it can work out with streaming giants like Netflix.”

That’s still all true, and I bet I can copy and paste it again in a year.

Services: 4/5

I use a bunch of Apple services on a regular basis, and they’re all solid. My photos and other data sync quickly and smoothly. Apple Music is great, and Apple TV (no +) continues to pump out bangers.

Some issues persist, however. Apple News+ is still filled with low-quality ads. The App Store continues to become splintered as Apple tangles with various governments around the world. Apple’s retail and support infrastructure can still feel creaky, providing uneven experiences at times.

Overall Reliability of Apple Hardware: 5/5

I bet the guy in charge of hardware would be a great CEO in the future.

John Ternus

Apple OS Quality: 3/5

It’s been years since I’ve had to reinstall an OS to fix an issue or spend time digging around in some Library folder, which is great.

iOS 26

However, because Apple keeps quoting Steve Jobs’ axiom of “Design is how it works,” the issues created by Liquid Glass cannot be ignored. There are good ideas in there, and I like a lot of the visuals, but the new UI introduced bugs and challenges for developers and users alike.

Apple Apps: 3/5

I spend a lot of time in Apple’s first-party apps, including Safari, Notes, Reminders, Calendar, Photos, Music, Logic, Terminal, and more. Some of them are great, while others need work, but my primary reflection on them is that these apps can be incredibly inconsistent. Lists in Reminders and folders in Notes should have the same options when being named and labeled. Keyboard shortcuts should be more predictable. Safari should be far less ugly.

My personal pet peeve fits in here as well: apps should have access to the entire SF Symbols library. Why am I forced to choose from a subset of them for an icon for a Reminders list or when naming a Shortcut? Emoji can partially solve these issues, but the SF Symbols library is great. It’s time Apple unlocks it.

  1. I tend to focus on the product side of things, and the questions I replied to reflect this.

    That said, it’s clear that Apple’s reputation suffered more in 2025 than in any single year I can remember in recent history. While I do not envy Tim Cook’s position in American politics, I disapprove of his handling of Trump in his first year back in the White House. Other stories like the company’s on-going struggle with AI and its legal battles around the world over the App Store don’t do it any good, either. ↩

Apple Highlights Its American Manufacturing Efforts

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This morning, Apple announced that it will begin producing Mac minis in America starting later this year:

Apple today announced a significant expansion of factory operations in Houston, bringing the future production of Mac mini to the U.S. for the first time. The company will also expand advanced AI server manufacturing at the factory and provide hands-on training at its new Advanced Manufacturing Center beginning later this year. Altogether, Apple’s Houston operations will create thousands of jobs.

“Apple is deeply committed to the future of American manufacturing, and we’re proud to significantly expand our footprint in Houston with the production of Mac mini starting later this year,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “We began shipping advanced AI servers from Houston ahead of schedule, and we’re excited to accelerate that work even further.”

I know it’s not really the point of today’s announcement, but I would love to know everything about Apple’s AI servers:

Apple AI Server

Back to the press release:

Beyond production, Apple is investing in the workforce that will drive American manufacturing forward. Later this year, Apple’s 20,000-square-foot Advanced Manufacturing Center is scheduled to open its doors in Houston. Currently under construction, the dedicated facility will provide hands-on training in advanced manufacturing techniques to students, supplier employees, and American businesses of all sizes. Apple experts will teach participants the same innovative processes that are used to make Apple products, allowing American manufacturers to take their work to the next level.

This sort of education will prove vital if Apple is going to see success with these efforts.

The Apple Newsroom article isn’t the only press today about what Apple is doing in America. Over at The Wall Street Journal, there’s a package diving deep into this work.

Rolfe Winkler writes about where the Mac mini fits:

The Mini is a niche product for Apple, responsible for less than 5% of Apple’s sales of Mac computers globally last year, estimates Consumer Intelligence Research Partners, and less than 1% of total sales. It is popular among app developers writing software for Apple products, and more recently among people looking to run AI agent software from their desktop.

Mac Mini production will continue in Asia, said Khan. As the U.S. assembly line ramps up, it will meet local demand, he said.

Apple previously tried building Mac Pro computers in Texas, at an Austin facility that opened in 2013. Production at that facility has declined significantly in the years since, people familiar with the operation have told the Journal.

Khan said Apple feels more confident projecting long-term demand for the Mac Mini, which
is more popular than the Mac Pro, Apple’s most expensive product.

This is all part of Apple’s $600 billion “commitment to America,” designed bring more of Apple’s supply chain and manufacturing to the U.S.

There are a range of reasons for this program. At The New York Times, Tripp Mickle writes about the scariest one:

In secret briefings held in Washington and Silicon Valley, national security officials warned executives from companies like Apple, Advanced Micro Devices and Qualcomm that China was making plans to retake Taiwan, which Beijing has long considered a breakaway territory. A Chinese blockade of Taiwan, the officials said, could choke the supply of computer chips made on the island and bring the U.S. tech industry to its knees.

He contines:

A confidential report commissioned in 2022 by the Semiconductor Industry Association for its members, which include the largest U.S. chip companies, said cutting the supply of chips from Taiwan would lead to the largest economic crisis since the Great Depression. U.S. economic output would plunge 11 percent, twice as much as the 2008 recession. The collapse would be even more severe for China, which would experience a 16 percent decline.

Many of the biggest U.S. tech companies would have enough semiconductors to operate for several months before their businesses broke down, according to the report, which was reviewed by The Times and has not been previously reported.

Taiwan falling into China’s hands is a true nightmare scenario, and not just for the tech industry. It would be a seismic shift in world politics that I hope we never experience.

Of course, companies like Apple make a big deal out of investments like this to play politics at home. The Trump administration’s “America First” campaign rewards such efforts, no matter if they make actual sense or not.

Apple looking to diversify beyond Taiwan makes sense, but the company’s insistence on making a big deal out of that move has certainly rubbed many in the Apple community the wrong way. For example, the timing of this Mac mini announcement is no mistake, as Trump’s State of the Union speech takes place this evening.

I’d bet money Apple’s investment is mentioned.

The 2025 Six Colors Report Card →

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It’s the most wonderful time of the year: grading time! Jason Snell:

It’s time for our annual look back on Apple’s performance during the past year, as seen through the eyes of writers, editors, developers, podcasters, and other people who spend an awful lot of time thinking about Apple. The whole idea here is to get a broad sense of sentiment—the “vibe in the room”—regarding the past year. (And by looking at previous survey results, we can even see how that sentiment has drifted over the course of an entire decade.)

This is the eleventh year that I’ve presented this survey to my hand-selected group. They were prompted with 14 different Apple-related subjects, and asked to rate them on a scale from 1 (worst) to 5 (best) and optionally provide text commentary per category.

It’s always an honor to be asked to share my thoughts for this article. You should go spend some time reading through it, but this chart highlights the differences between 2024 and 2025:

YoY Changes

Artemis II Headed Inside for Repairs →

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Stephen Clark, writing for Ars:

A day after NASA officials expressed optimism that they could be ready to launch the Artemis II mission around the Moon next month, the space agency’s administrator announced Saturday that a new problem will require the removal of the rocket from its launch pad in Florida.

The latest issue appeared Friday evening, when data showed an interruption in helium flow into the upper stage of the Space Launch System rocket, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman wrote in a post on X. Isaacman posted a more thorough update Saturday, writing that engineers are still examining the potential cause of the problem, but any fixes must take place inside the Vehicle Assembly Building.

That means NASA and contractor ground teams will immediately begin preparing to roll the 322-foot-tall (98-meter) SLS rocket off of Launch Complex 39B and back to the VAB. The rocket and its mobile launch platform will ride NASA’s crawler-transporter for the 4-mile journey.

“Regardless of the potential fault, accessing and remediating any of these issues can only be performed in the VAB,” Isaacman wrote. “As mentioned previously, we will begin preparations for rollback, and this will take the March launch window out of consideration. I understand people are disappointed by this development. That disappointment is felt most by the team at NASA, who have been working tirelessly to prepare for this great endeavor.”

NAACP Against xAI’s Southaven Turbines →

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Kailynn Johnson, writing for The Memphis Flyer:

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) called xAI’s plans to construct and operate 41 methane-gas turbines in Southaven a “civil rights issue” as opposed to a permitting one.

The advocacy group asked the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) to deny MZX Tech, an affiliate of xAI, to deny the permit for the turbines in question. NAACP sent the letter, signed by Abre’ Conner, director of the NAACP Center for Environmental and Climate Justice, in the wake of a public hearing held by the department as they consider xAI’s permit application.

“It is imperative that the Permit Board disapprove the Permit because both MDEQ and the community must understand the full impact of the MZX Tech and xAI site’s operations on air quality and address that impact as required by the Clean Air Act and Mississippi law,” the letter said.

xAI Ramps Up Turbine Usage in Southaven, Repeating Its Actions in Memphis →

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In January, the EPA ruled against xAI in a case in which Elon Musk’s CSAM machine/AI company said that if gas turbines were used in a temporary fashion, they were exempt from regulations.

At the time, I wrote:

Time will tell if the company runs into similar legal issues in the state of Mississippi, where the company is currently operating 18 natural gas turbines just south of the state line, on Stanton Road [in Southaven]. That power is then piped a few miles north to xAI’s second site in Memphis.

It appears that we are on the road to that time, as Evan Simon writes for Floodlight:

Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company is continuing to fuel its data centers with unpermitted gas turbines, according to a Floodlight visual investigation. Thermal drone footage shows xAI is still burning gas at a facility in Southaven, Miss., despite a recent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ruling reiterating that doing so requires a state permit in advance.

State regulators in Mississippi maintain that since the turbines are parked on tractor trailers, they don’t require permits. However, the EPA has long required that such pollution sources be permitted under the Clean Air Act.

Simon goes on:

However, thermal images captured by Floodlight — and analyzed by multiple experts — show more than a dozen unpermitted turbines still spewing pollutants at the plant nearly two weeks after the EPA’s recent ruling.

“That is a violation of the law,” said Bruce Buckheit, a former EPA air enforcement chief, after reviewing Floodlight’s images and EPA regulations.

Those images look a lot like the ones captured in Memphis over the last year or so:

Turbines in Southaven

The first and only public hearing in Southaven is tonight, and takes place as xAI is seeking a permit for even more turbines.

Currently, there are two xAI data centers in Memphis itself, with plans for a third in Southaven.

Patrick Anderson is a senior attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center. He is quoted in Simon’s piece as saying:

[xAI] violated the Clean Air Act the first time, and now they’re gonna copy and paste and do it again. I maybe had some naive hope that the regulators who are most in the day-to-day business of implementing the Clean Air Act in Mississippi would do the right thing.

Sadly, Anderson’s hope turned out to be naive, as Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality responded to Simon:

The turbines currently operating at the Southaven facility are classified as portable/mobile units under state law and therefore remain exempt from air permitting requirements during this temporary period.

Nothing in the EPA’s January 15 rule altered that determination under Mississippi regulations.

The Southern Environmental Law Center is planning to sue xAI over its actions in Southaven, as Eric Hilt writes:

Just south of the Tennessee-Mississippi state line sits dozens of unpermitted gas turbines that power xAI’s Colossus 2 data center while releasing smog-forming pollution, soot, and hazardous chemicals like formaldehyde. The tech company set up the de facto power plant with no permits, no public input, and no notice to nearby communities that will have to deal with the consequences. But now the Southern Environmental Law Center, Earthjustice, and the NAACP are preparing to take xAI to court for flouting federal law and threatening to worsen air pollution problems.

SELC and Earthjustice, on behalf of the Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP and the national NAACP, sent a notice of intent to sue to xAI for the tech company’s ongoing use of unpermitted methane gas turbines to power its massive Colossus 2 data center. The notice letter explains that xAI, a company founded by Elon Musk, is violating the Clean Air Act by installing and operating polluting gas-fired turbines without obtaining any permits. A 60-day notice of intent to sue is a prerequisite to filing a lawsuit under the Clean Air Act.  

“xAI has once again built a polluting power plant without any permits and without any notice to nearby communities,” SELC Senior Attorney Patrick Anderson said. “There are no loopholes or exceptions —xAI is breaking the law while leaving local communities to deal with the consequences, and we plan to take them to court.”

My personal feelings about AI in general are complicated, but even some of its biggest fans realize that the environmental impact has to be reckoned with. Hilt outlines some of these impacts:

xAI’s 27 unpermitted turbines have the potential to emit a staggering amount of nitrogen oxides, a type of pollution that causes smog. This would likely make the facility the largest industrial source of NOx in the 11-county Memphis metropolitan area — an area already struggling with problems with smog.  

“Our communities are not playgrounds for corporations who are chasing profit over people. xAI’s first data center is already creating pollution for Mississippi’s neighbors in Memphis — a community already suffering from decades of disparity — and now they are polluting in Southaven, Mississippi,” said Abre’ Conner, Director of Environmental and Climate Justice at the NAACP.  

Pollution from the turbines powering xAI’s second data center risks worsening air quality problems in the Memphis area, which is already failing to meet national standards for smog. Memphis was recently named an ‘asthma capital’ and both Shelby County, Tennessee, and DeSoto County, Mississippi, received an “F” for ozone pollution from the American Lung Association.

Someone Tell John Ternus This Would Be a Terrible Crime →

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I am excited about the possibilities of a low-end MacBook powered by an A-series chip. I think the return of a fun consumer notebook would be good for Apple. There is one terrible disappointment in the most recent reporting about this machine, however. Here’s Mark Gurman:

Like all Macs, this machine — code-named J700 — will feature an aluminum chassis. It’s not plastic, despite the lower price point. To stick with this premium material, Apple developed a new manufacturing process that allows the shells to be forged more quickly. The technique is designed to be both faster and more cost-effective than the one used with Apple’s current laptops.

Apple will market the machine to students and enterprise users and offer it in playful colors, going beyond the muted tones of the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro. Over the past year, Apple has tested options such as light yellow, light green, blue, pink, classic silver and dark gray — though it’s unlikely all of these will ship.

The lack of orange in that last sentence pains me.

Apple Announces Press ‘Experience’ for March 4 →

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Earlier today, Apple sent invites to some folks for an event “experience” on March 4, being held in New York, London, and Shanghai. This is in line with some other press events Apple has held over the last several years for smaller announcements that warrant a hands-on approach. As John Voorhees writes, these spring releases tend to be a bit smaller in nature:

With several products rumored to be getting updates in 2026, it’s hard to guess what’s planned, although in the past, Apple has launched or refreshed products like the iPhone 16e, iPads, and the MacBook Air around this time of year.

Hartley Charlton at MacRumors reminds us of what is currently rumored to be nearing release:

The announcement of several new Apple products is believed to be imminent, including the iPhone 17e, MacBook Pro with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, eighth-generation, iPad Air, 12th-generation iPad, and more. A refreshed Studio Display and an all-new low-cost MacBook with the A18 chip are also possibilities, along with a new Apple TV and HomePod mini.

I suspect we’ll hear from from Mark Gurman and others about what is planned before the 4th rolls around.

Jony Ive Designed a Car Interior

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It’s not every day that supercar news makes it onto the page of tech-centric websites, but the Ferrari Luce has done just that. The upcoming EV has made huge waves due to its interior design:

Luce

Of course, this cockpit is designed by Jony Ive and his collaborators at LoveFrom. Here’s how Ferrari describes it:

Ferrari has always been ready to innovate. The Ferrari Luce project with Jony Ive, Marc Newson and LoveFrom began with a mutual interest in learning, in understanding the future – and a deep understanding of and appreciation for Ferrari heritage. This work is motivated by excellence, and by creating something extraordinary.

And:

The Ferrari Luce’s interface is designed with clear organisational principles. Controls and displays are grouped functionally, with the most essential commands and feedback directly in front of the driver.

That webpage is worth scrolling through. The precision of the components reminds me of something like the iPhone 4. That’s the same product that came to mind for Tim Stevens:

If you’re familiar with the designs that Apple produced under Ive’s tenure, particularly in the era beginning with the iPhone 4, you’ll feel right at home here. The overall aesthetic is one dominated by squircles and circles, all with absolute, minute perfection and symmetry.

At first blush, it’s a bit clinical, but dig deeper, start poking and prodding, and you’ll see there’s a real sense of charm here. Fun little details and genuinely satisfying tactility begin to reveal themselves. The key, for example, has a yellow panel with an E Ink background. Push the key into the magnetized receiver in the center console, and the yellow on the key dims, moving across to glow through the top of the glass shifter. It’s meant to symbolize a sort of transference of life.

The shifter isn’t the only thing that’s glass. There are 40-odd pieces of Corning Gorilla Glass scattered throughout the cockpit, everything from the shifter surround to the slightly convex lenses in the gauge cluster. What isn’t glass is aluminum, much of it anodized in your choice of three colors: gray, dark gray and rose gold.

Yes, all that sure does sound like I’m writing about a new iPhone and not the latest Ferrari. But where Apple has been pruning every physical control it possibly can from its devices lately, LoveFrom will insert some great tactility in the Luce. The shifter moves through its detents satisfyingly, the air vents open and close with a clear snick and the paddles behind the steering wheel pop with a great feel.

I love the pushback against the Tesla-inspired everything-is-on-a-big-display-and-you’ll-like-it design that has taken over the car industry. I suspect more would-be buyers will struggle with the fact that this is Ferrari’s first all-electric car than they will with the interior design.