Basic AF: a (mostly) tech podcast

Photographer and YouTuber Chris Freitag is back to explain what the new adjustable aperture does for your photos even if you never touch a setting, why Photographic Styles finally won him over, and how his iPhone replaced a much pricier video camera. Stick around for the free app he still can't believe costs nothing. In this episode: Apple's "Welcome home" event in New York on October 13 and what might show upHow a trip for a watch band ended with an iPhone 18 Pro at $0 a monthf/1.48 vs. f/4:...

Apple finally showed the folding iPhone, and it arrived with a $1,999 starting price and a lot of great and interesting features. Tom and Jeff bring Joe Moyer back to walk the whole event: the iPhone Duo, the 18 Pro and Pro Max, new AirPods, and Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4. One of us pre-ordered before recording. One of us is quietly doing the math on owning two phones at once. In this episode: John Ternus hosts his first event as CEOiPhone Duo: 5.4-inch outer screen, 7.6-inch inside, T...

Nate Gorby is back — and this time he's got two weeks of daily MacBook Neo use to report on. Coming from an M2 MacBook Air he'd already sold, Nate picked up the Neo on day one and has been using it the way most people actually use computers: browsing, email, watching YouTube, light social media, and a bit of writing. No benchmarks, no synthetic tests — just honest, real-world impressions. The guys dig into the details: battery life, the lack of MagSafe and Touch ID, the physical trackpad expe...

Apple's dropping a wave of new products this week — and Tom and Jeff break down everything that's expected: a budget MacBook starting around $600, an iPhone 16E follow-up, iPad updates for the non-Pro models, and possible MacBook Pro upgrades with M5 Pro and Max chips. It's a preview packed with speculation, opinions, and the occasional tangent about fingerprints on laptop screens. Then things get analog. Tom just joined Jeff in the Field Notes notebook club, and they talk about why a pocket-...

Jim Eagar joins Tom Anderson and Jeff Battersby for a thoughtful, experience-driven conversation about productivity, tools, and the often-tempting urge to switch apps. Drawing on decades of professional experience—from Air Force chaplain to attorney to productivity writer—Jim shares how his workflows evolved alongside Apple technology, why “shiny new app syndrome” can quietly sabotage real work, and how to evaluate whether switching tools is actually worth the cost. The discussion digs into i...

Happy New Year! Everyone expects Apple to release its first foldable iPhone later this year and the rumors and “leaks” are heating up. Tom and Jeff discuss the latest, including the 3D printed model that looks nothing like current iPhones. Plus, Tom decided to reset his iPhone in an attempt to resolve the ongoing battery life issues he’s been having with iOS 26. Apple’s made a lot of improvements to the process, but it’s not quite perfect and he shares what worked well and what still needs so...

In this episode of Basic AF, Tom and Jeff revisit all the Apple hardware they use every single day, 18 months after their last gear rundown. From Macs to iPads, Apple Watch, AirPods, HomePods, and even a brief Vision Pro confession, they break down what’s still great, what’s aging surprisingly well, and what upgrades they’ve made along the way. Jeff shares updates on his recovery journey, including walking unaided, writing again, and adjusting to double vision, while Tom heaps praise on the i...

Jeff returns to the show 🥳 and Riley Hill joins us again to talk all things iPad. Riley and Tom have new M5 iPad Pros (11” and 13” models) and share their experiences. Did Apple make the right call with the current iPad Pro design by choosing thinness over battery life? And how’s life with iPadOS 26? Is the new windowing system everything we hoped for, or is it a step backwards? Be sure to follow Riley on YouTube, Threads, and at slatepad.org for more great Apple and tech-related conten...