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Matt Gonzalez

Matt is the Video Content Producer at MacRumors. His video, photography, and design work are his way of expressing his love for awesome new technology and clean, minimal design.



CES 2017: The Best Apple Related Accessories

Friday January 6, 2017 3:50 pm PST by Matt Gonzalez
Apple may not take part in the annual Consumer Electronics Show, but the event is still filled with all kinds of Apple-related accessories from third-party vendors. Some aren't so great or are the same old thing, but others are novel, fun, and bring something new to the table. For this video, we spent a couple of days exploring the show floor to find some of the best Apple accessories of CES 2017. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Incipio showed off a new iPhone 7 case that brings back the headphone jack. The case itself is rather thin, but there is a large chin at the bottom to accommodate both the headphone jack and and a Lightning charging port. Griffin displayed its BreakSafe cables for the MacBook and MacBook Pro. The cables, including a new 100W model for the 2016 MacBook Pro, are designed to replace Apple's MagSafe connector, offering the same breakaway functionality over USB Type-C. Henge Docks debuted a number of products to complement the new MacBook Pro. The original Vertical Dock allows you to dock your computer off to the side of a monitor, while the new Horizontal Dock allows you to securely dock the MacBook Pro without compromising usability. The Horizontal Dock features pressure sensors to know when the computer is present, and it then automatically connects itself with the computer. This dock has 13 ports available including HDMI, USB Type-A, and Ethernet. Henge Docks also announced the Tethered Dock, which gives you a station to connect multiple cables and charge your MacBook. CMRA showed off a prototype Apple
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Hands-On: OWC's 'DEC' Adds an SD Card Slot, Ethernet, and USB Type-A Ports to the MacBook Pro

Thursday January 5, 2017 8:18 am PST by Matt Gonzalez
With the release of the 2016 MacBook Pro, there were a slew complaints over the compromising thinness and the removal of ports. For professionals who rely on the MacBook Pro, this latest iteration fell short of expectations. The outcry was so loud, in fact, that Apple slashed prices on its USB-C adapters, a move rarely seen from the company. This is the DEC from Other World Computing. It's a new dock for the 2016 MacBook Pro that's designed to return some of the missing features Apple removed. It's unique in the way that it connects to the computer and the functionality it brings. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. The DEC attaches to the bottom of the MacBook Pro by replacing the screws that hold on the bottom plate. This method won't void your warranty, but it will allow for the dock to be securely attached at all times. At first glance the DEC looks comically large, but in person the size and weight are more than manageable. OWC claims that when attached to a 2016 MacBook Pro, the DEC will be as thin as the 2012 MacBook Pro. Weight didn't seem to be an issue, but this is an unfinished prototype that doesn't have all the hardware in place. When considering the functionality of the dock, the size and weight compromises may be worth it. The DEC connects to the MacBook Pro over Thunderbolt 3 and will bring USB Type-A ports, Gigabit Ethernet, an SD Card Slot, and up to 4TB of storage. Additional features are also being considered, such as an expanded battery pack. The models shown here are still in prototype phase, but OWC
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CES 2017: Hands-On With a Smart Ring, Smart Shower, Smart Shoe, and Smart Everything

Wednesday January 4, 2017 8:52 am PST by Matt Gonzalez
The Internet of Things is the name of the game at CES 2017. If you can think of a product, there's a good chance a vendor not only has it, but has one that's connected to the internet via WiFi, Bluetooth, and an app. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. At CES Unveiled, we went exploring for the most interesting products. Some, like the connected hairbrush from Withings and Kérastase, are grasping at a future where everything you do is monitored and optimized, while others, like the Smart Remote from Sevenhugs, are trying to truly simplify your home. Some honorable mentions are the Smart Cane from Dring Alert Systems and FeetMe smart insole. The Smart Cane monitors usage and creates a user profile. If the user deviates from the "normal" usage, or if the cane detects something like a fall, it will automatically alert a specified contact of this. The FeetMe is a smart insole that you insert into a shoe. With the insole in place, you can monitor how you walk and run, and with that information, you can adjust your stride or pressure points to be more efficient. We'll be covering CES 2017 for the rest of the week so be sure to subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel, and follow closely here on the site!
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Hands-On With the New 'Portrait' Mode Beta Feature in the iPhone 7 Plus

Wednesday September 21, 2016 3:59 pm PDT by Matt Gonzalez
When Apple announced the iPhone 7 Plus, one major feature it focused on was a new "Portrait" mode that allows the device's camera to simulate a shallow depth of field effect, similar to what can be achieved with a high-end DSLR. Portrait mode wasn't ready to go when the iPhone 7 Plus shipped, but Apple promised to introduce it at a later date and did so today, with the release of iOS 10.1. Available as a beta feature, Portrait mode is built into iOS 10.1, and we went hands-on with it to see how well it performs. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Portrait mode uses the 56mm lens to capture the image and uses the wider 28mm lens to generate a depth map of a scene. Using the small differentiations between the 28mm and 56mm lenses, the iPhone separates the different layers of an image and uses machine learning techniques to apply a blur that simulates a shallow depth of field. When shooting, Portrait is similar to other modes in the camera app, with a timer to take an image and a Tap to Focus tool to set the focus. One helpful feature is the ability to see the depth effect live before snapping a photo. In order for the Portrait effect to work properly, you need good lighting and a subject that's properly placed -- it can't be too close or too far away. Portrait mode is in beta, and is currently only available for developers running iOS 10.1. This Friday, Apple will also make iOS 10.1 available for public beta testers, so Portrait mode will be more widely available. There are some issues and quirks that still need to be worked out
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Hands-On With Google's New FaceTime-Like 'Duo' App

Tuesday August 16, 2016 2:58 pm PDT by Matt Gonzalez
This week, Google released a new app called Duo, which allows for FaceTime-style video calling. Unlike FaceTime, though, Duo allows for cross platform calls that work on both Android and iOS mobile devices, so it isn't limited to users who only have an iPhone. In the video below, we went hands on with Duo to see just how well it works and whether it's a serious FaceTime competitor. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. The Duo app is rather simple, with a similar interface on Android and iOS devices. You sign into the app using your phone number, and once logged in, you have a list of contacts to call pulled from the existing contacts in your phone. That's it. When in a video call, you get many of the features you'd expect from a service like FaceTime, including mute, switching between the rear and front-facing camera, and ending the call. One new feature, however, is called Knock Knock, which is a sort of video caller-ID that lets the person receiving a call see what the caller is doing before answering. Think of it like a FaceTime video preview that's available before the FaceTime call is accepted. Because Duo uses a phone number for authentication, the app is not available for the desktop, and you are only able to use one device associated with a certain phone number at a time. This may be a deal breaker for those who like to chat on multiple devices, but for those looking for easy video calling, it's worth a try. We all likely know someone who doesn't use an iPhone, and Duo seems to be a good alternative for those looking for a
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Video Review: Motorola's VerveOnes Earbuds are Truly Wireless but Come at a Cost

Tuesday August 2, 2016 2:43 pm PDT by Matt Gonzalez
For the past year, I've exclusively used Bluetooth earbuds while out and about. For me, the convenience of not being tethered to my phone outweighs any downside in sound quality, but all the pairs I've owned before haven't been truly wireless; they're always connected with some sort of cable. These are the VerveOnes from Motorola, and they're the first pair of truly wireless earbuds I've used. In the package you get the two earbuds and a carrying case for charging. It's a simple setup that affords you portability and battery life. The VerveOnes connect over Bluetooth to each other and to your phone. For the most part, while using them, the connection was strong, but there were instances where some interference was noticeable. The sound quality is mediocre. There's a decent amount of bass, but the sound is generally muddy with no real depth and the highs have a tendency to clip at higher volumes. These are a pair of earbuds for convenience, not stellar sound. After a few weeks of testing, it's hard to recommend the VerveOnes. They can be purchased from the VerveLife website for $199, but for that price, the connectivity issues and sound quality make the earbuds a hard
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Huawei's Dual-Camera P9 Hints at What Apple Might Have in Store for iPhone 7 Plus

Tuesday July 19, 2016 1:42 pm PDT by Matt Gonzalez
The upcoming iPhone 7 Plus is rumored to feature a dual-lens rear camera. While we've gotten some hints of what Apple might look to do with the technology given its acquisition of LinX Imaging last year, we're still not entirely clear on Apple's plans and so we can look to other vendors to get a taste of what we might expect. The Huawei P9 is the latest flagship from the Chinese company, and on the rear of the device Huawei in partnership with Leica implemented two 12-megapixel cameras. These function by taking a photo from both cameras simultaneously and combining them in software. One camera captures a normal color image, while the second takes a monochrome image that allows for more focus on the lighting of a scene. The advantage, Huawei claims, is a better overall image with higher clarity and professional camera-like quality. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. In this video featured on the MacRumors YouTube channel, we go hands-on to test how Huawei's dual-camera works, and to see whether this setup is worth the complexity and expense of implementing it. If you'd like to check out the full-resolution photos from the P9 compared to similar ones shot on an iPhone 6s, we've also shared galleries from both devices. Huawei is not the first to use a dual-camera setup, and other vendors have used somewhat different combinations of cameras to achieve varying goals. The LG G5 uses two cameras to achieve different focal lengths, while the 2014 HTC One M8 used two cameras to allow for better depth perception. We still have roughly two
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