Today is Sunday, October 16th: time for the weekly roundup of the good, the bad and the ugly tech news of the week!
The Good
The iPhone 15 will be the first to have a USB-C charging port. The next generation iPhone 15 due out in the fall of 2023 will have USB-C charging port. Apple is also transitioning to USB-C charging by the end of 2024 for other devices such as wireless earbuds. This is ahead of European Parliament’s ruling requiring mobile devices with a power delivery of 100 watts or less must use USB-C charging by the end of 2024. It is about F—ing time Apple finally gets into this decade and stop using propitiatory and outdated charging methods. Sadly, if it weren’t for the European Parliament’s ruling they’d likely would have never changed.
The Bad
Microsoft blocks Windows 11 22H2 update on systems using Windows Hello. It has been nearly a month (September 20th) since the Windows 11 2022 feature update (22H2) was released. Yet Microsoft is still discovering critical issues forcing them to block the update for certain users. This time around users who have Windows Hello enabled to use PIN or biometric login options in lieu of their Windows password are discovering Windows Hello does not work after updating to Windows 11 22H2 update. How was this (and all of these) issues not uncovered during testing or even back in early June when Windows 11 22H2 was placed on the Release Preview Channel for Windows Insider Program for Business? There was a time when Microsoft went above and beyond to make sure stuff like this didn’t happen.. Sadly those days have long since passed.
The Ugly
Microsoft rebrands Office to Microsoft 365. I have a degree in Marketing (and IT, and Cisco Networking) and this has to be the stupidest I have ever seen out of Microsoft (even more so than Window ME or the multiple editions of Windows Vista). We’re talking about brand recognition, especially given Microsoft Office was first released back in 1990 (32-years ago), Besides Windows, Microsoft Office is Microsoft’s most well known product/brand. You don’t even need to say ‘Microsoft’ when talking about the Office software suite, it is that well known. So, why on earth is Microsoft rebranding it to Microsoft 365? Microsoft 365 makes me think about a lot products (Calendar App, Gaming Console, or even a subscription based support), but not an Office suite. Let’s see if public outcry/confusion cause Microsoft to backtrack from this senseless decision. Not likely though as they already plan on starting the rebrand next month.
