I just got a great deal on a cheap Wi-Fi 6 router, but I immediately started getting FOMO about Wi-Fi 7.

Wi-Fi 7 is the latest standard, of course, and it promises significantly higher speed than Wi-Fi 6.

More speed is always better. Plus, I just dropped a pretty penny on a new device that supports Wi-Fi 7 — my brand-new iPhone 17 Pro.

Should I have saved my money and gotten a newer router instead?

Maybe not. Real-world testing shows Wi-Fi 7 in the latest iPhone 17 lineup is barely faster than Wi-Fi 6 in older iPhones. (Apple added Wi-Fi 7 support in 2024’s iPhone 16.)

Say what? Can that be right?

Apparently so. And it appears to be because of trade-offs. Apple decided raw speed was less important than other factors — and Apple might be right!

Also in today’s newsletter:

  • It only took 17 years, but Apple finally put the iconic App Store on the web. For one thing, it’ll allow potential switchers to see the rich offerings on the other side.

  • Apple is reportedly turning to its old friend Google to power the smarter Siri, but it won’t work like the current ChatGPT integration into Apple Intelligence.

  • This is an incredibly good deal on the entry-level Apple Watch SE, if you don’t need the latest generation of the device.

  • I had very low expectations for author Mick “Slow Horses” Herron’s latest Apple TV comedy/thriller series Down Cemetery Road. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the first two episodes. Here’s our enthusiastic review.

  • You might have been hoping for iOS 26.1 today. Instead, we got a new logo treatment for the Apple TV rebrand. It’s not bad, though. See the X post below. And take today’s poll: Are you glad "Apple TV+" changed to plain old "Apple TV"?

— Leander Kahney, EIC.

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A message from the Cult of Mac Deals team

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Tweets of the day

Wallpaper of the day

One more thing ...

Some people say, “Oh, God, if [Jobs] got run over by a bus, Apple would be in trouble.” And, you know, I think it wouldn't be a party, but there are really capable people at Apple. And the board would have some good choices about who to pick as CEO. My job is to make the whole executive team good enough to be successors, so that's what I try to do.

— Steve Jobs, 2008.

Today’s poll

Results from Friday’s poll: Smarter Siri: Yay or nay?

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