Author: Rick

Posted on

AR Glasses Are Coming—But Will Anyone Really Wear Them?

After years of hype, AR glasses are finally on the horizon. Snap says its next-gen smart glasses will launch in 2026. Meta has already sold over two million of its Ray-Ban smartglasses. And it’s reportedly working on a new version instead of next updating its Quest line of VR headsets. Apple is rumored to be quietly working on its own version. These will be much less obtrusive than big VR headsets—they look (mostly) like regular glasses and promise real-time translation, video calls, and turn-by-turn directions, all floating in front of your eyes.

It sounds amazing. But will people actually wear them?

We’ve already seen how virtual reality (VR) goggles, while fun for gaming, are not yet regularly used by most people. Typically, people are wowed by the technology, but don’t want to strap something to their face that cuts them off from the real world. Think of it like an amusement park. It’s really great and fun, but you wouldn’t want to go every day or every week.

I’ve used both the Apple Vision Pro and the Meta Quest 3 VR headsets. Both are fun, but even if they were lighter and cheaper, they’re a niche product because they’re a big thing strapped to your head. AR is much more subtle—but it still involves wearing something on your head.

For AR glasses to go mainstream, they need to solve real problems—without being awkward or invasive. Think language translation while traveling, guided workouts, hands-free help for delivery drivers, or facial recognition to remind you who that work associate is. It could be an easy way to interact with ever more ubiquitous AI tools. But wearing something on your face is much more difficult and personal than wearing a watch. If the tech feels weird or doesn’t match people’s personal tastes, it won’t be widely used.

For now, the promise is exciting. The reality? Still very much TBD.

Posted on

Intel Mac Support Ending: Time to Plan Your Upgrade

If you’re still using a Mac with an Intel processor, it’s time to start planning your next move. Apple has officially announced that macOS 26 Tahoe – releasing this fall – will be the final version of macOS to support Intel-based Macs. After 2025, your Intel Mac won’t receive new features, and security updates will stop by 2028.

The Timeline

  • Fall 2025: macOS 26 Tahoe releases – the last macOS for Intel Macs
  • 2026 and beyond: No new macOS versions for Intel hardware
  • Through 2028: Security updates continue
  • After 2028: No support at all

Which Macs Are Affected?

All Intel Macs from 2020 and earlier will lose support. If you bought your Mac before November 2020, you’re likely affected.

How to Check Your Processor

  1. Click the Apple logo → “About This Mac”
  2. Look for:
    • “Chip Apple M1/M2/M3/M4” = You’re safe
    • “Processor Intel Core” = You’re affected

What This Means

Your Intel Mac won’t stop working immediately, but you’ll gradually face:

  • No new macOS features after 2025
  • Apps stopping support for older systems
  • Security vulnerabilities after 2028
  • Compatibility issues with new software

Your Options

Upgrade to Apple Silicon: New MacBook Airs starts around $850. The speed difference is dramatic – M-series chips deliver significantly faster performance than Intel Macs, often 2-3x faster for everyday tasks, plus much better battery life on laptops.

Keep Your Intel Mac: Fine for basic tasks, but understand the growing limitations over time.

Plan Your Timeline: You have until end of 2025 for the transition, with security updates continuing through 2028.

Bottom Line

You have time to plan, but don’t wait too long. If your Intel Mac is critical for work, start budgeting for an upgrade now. For casual use, you can take a more relaxed approach, but remember that by 2026, you’ll want to have made the switch.

Need help planning your Mac upgrade? As a DC-area technology consultant, I help clients navigate these transitions every day.

Posted on

TRMNL Non-obtrusive Status Display

I’m getting back into making short videos—something I haven’t done in a while—and the TRMNL e-ink display caught my attention as a fun tech gadget.

What TRMNL Does

TRMNL is a 7.5-inch e-ink display designed to show you information without the distraction. There’s no touchscreen or interface to get lost in—just a clean display that pulls bitmap images from their servers every 5 minutes to an hour.

This isn’t meant for real-time updates. You won’t use it as a clock or for urgent notifications. Instead, it’s perfect for the kind of information that’s useful but not urgent: weather, calendar events, web stats, and other ambient data.

The Experience

Setup happens through their website where you can add plugins for weather, calendars, and dozens of other services. The open-source ecosystem means techies can build custom plugins, but it works great out of the box for everyone else.

The hardware feels solid with good build quality. The battery lasts 1-3 months since e-ink only uses power when the display changes. You can wall mount it with command strips or use the included stand.

Why It Works

At $140, TRMNL avoids the subscription trap that plagues other smart displays. The plugins are free forever, and the company makes money through device sales rather than monthly fees. There’s also an option for a slightly larger battery for $10 extra.

The development community appears active and committed for the long haul—a refreshing change from products that get discontinued after a year or two.

The Real Appeal

TRMNL succeeds because it knows what it isn’t. It’s not trying to grab your attention or pull you into endless scrolling. In a world of notification chaos, having a device that simply informs without intruding feels almost radical.

If you’re interested, you can use promo code “techdc” for $15 off. I’ll get $5 toward future TRMNL purchases if use that code. Thanks for helping me buy more of them!

You can check out TRMNL at usetrmnl.com

Posted on

AI’s Future: Utopia or Nightmare

Artificial intelligence is racing ahead—so fast that some experts say we’re living through the most important tech shift since electricity. But where’s it all going?

Right now, there are two main visions of the future:

  1. The Optimists – Leaders like Sam Altman (OpenAI) and Dario Amodei (Anthropic) see AI as a game-changer for productivity, healthcare, and science. They predict tools that will help us work faster, solve complex problems, and maybe even extend human lifespans.
  2. The Pessimists – Others, like Geoffrey Hinton (the “Godfather of AI”) and Yann LeCun (Meta), warn we might be going too fast given that we don’t fully understand what we’ve created and how it works. Hinton even gives a 10–20% chance that advanced AI could pose an existential risk.

What’s on the Line?

  • Jobs: Most expect some degree of job losses. Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic has warned that AI technology could eliminate half of all entry-level white-collar positions within the next five years. The prediction suggests unemployment could reach 10-20% as AI systems transition from augmenting human work to replacing it entirely.
  • The Economy: AI might spark massive productivity growth for companies. But who benefits? That’s why people are now seriously discussing things like Universal Basic Income (UBI) to help distribute gains fairly.
  • Global Competition: The U.S. and China are locked in an AI arms race. Some experts are calling for international agreements—like we have for nuclear weapons—to slow things down and focus on safety.
  • Daily Life: AI is becoming your assistant, tutor, creative partner, and even your co-worker. But there are risks too: misinformation, deepfakes, a reliance on machines to think for us, and humans becoming more disconnected from each other.

So What Now?

Even the most bullish tech leaders agree: we need to be thoughtful. That means building systems we can trust, creating smart policy, and helping people adapt.

At TechDC, I help individuals and small businesses learn how to actually use AI in real life. If you’re curious, reach out.

Further Reading

AI is here and only growing in importance. Whether it becomes our greatest tool or our biggest mistake depends on how we shape it.

Posted on

Give Your Old Mac Modern Software With OpenCore Legacy Patcher

That 2013 MacBook Pro sitting in your closet isn’t broken—it’s just been abandoned by Apple. While the hardware remains perfectly functional, outdated macOS versions make it increasingly difficult to browse the web securely or run current applications.

The Compatibility Problem

Apple typically supports Macs with new macOS versions for 7-8 years. After that, you’re stuck with increasingly outdated software that can’t run modern browsers properly, lacks security updates, and struggles with today’s websites—not because your hardware is slow, but because the software is obsolete.

Enter OpenCore Legacy Patcher

OpenCore Legacy Patcher (OCLP) is a free, open-source tool that extends macOS compatibility to unsupported hardware. Developed by Dortania, it uses sophisticated boot management to allow installation of current macOS versions on Macs as old as 2007.

The key benefit isn’t speed—it’s functionality. Your 2013 MacBook Pro can run macOS Sequoia with:

  • Modern browsers that actually work with current websites
  • Current security updates and encryption standards
  • Compatible applications that require newer macOS
  • Modern features like Sidecar, AirPlay to Mac, and Universal Control

How It Works

Unlike simple patchers that modify system files, OpenCore Legacy Patcher operates at the boot level. It maintains System Integrity Protection (SIP) and security features while providing compatibility patches in memory during startup. Your system files remain untouched and secure.

Supported Hardware

OpenCore Legacy Patcher supports a wide range of Intel-based Macs:

  • MacBook Pro: 2008-2017 models
  • MacBook Air: 2008-2017 models
  • iMac: 2007-2019 models
  • Mac Pro: 2008-2019 models
  • Mac mini: 2009-2018 models

Even pre-2012 models with legacy graphics can run current macOS, though with some feature limitations.

The Real-World Difference

Moving from Catalina to Sequoia won’t make your hardware faster, but it will make your computing experience dramatically more functional. Websites that break or crawl on outdated browsers will work properly. Security warnings disappear. Apps that require newer macOS become installable.

It’s not about performance—it’s about compatibility and security in 2025.

Getting Started

If you are technically adept, the process takes a couple of hours.

  1. Download OpenCore Legacy Patcher from GitHub
  2. Create a macOS installer using the built-in tool
  3. Install OpenCore to your USB drive
  4. Boot and install the new macOS version
  5. Apply post-install patches for full hardware support

Worth the Effort?

If you can afford a new Mac, that’s the way for you to go. Modern Macs with the M series of chips are a great value.

But if you enjoy tinkering, and have a Mac with decent specs (8GB+ RAM, SSD storage), absolutely. You’ll extend your Mac’s useful life by 5+ years with current software support, modern browser compatibility, and ongoing security updates.

Your old Mac won’t become faster, but it will become usable again.

OpenCore Legacy Patcher is available free at https://dortania.github.io/OpenCore-Legacy-Patcher/. Always backup your data before system modifications.