This is a big year for MobileSyrup since Brad Shankar has been able to get us onto the jury at the awards. This meant we got to participate in the voting for all the awards, and on his own, Brad Shankar even went to the show in person.

If you want to hear what it's like to vote, how we got into the jury and more behind the scenes Game Awards talk make sure to check out this week's Syrupcast on your podcast app of choice or on YouTube.

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In the new year, we're aiming to release a new episode every two weeks. If you have any feedback, let us know on social media or by emailing us at Community@moblesyrup.com.

The next episode will be in two weeks and will be focused on the Game Awards since Brad Shankar was a judge this year.

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Joining me are special guests Drew Kozub from Canada's Breakfast Television and KissFM radio. Alongside him is TikTok star Brett Turner, who most of you likely know as Brett.Tech on social media.

You can find Drew on Twitter here - https://x.com/DrewKozub

And make sure to check out Brett's accounts here - https://www.tiktok.com/@brett.tech

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This includes checking out the TCL Ray Neo X2s, Samsung's Galaxy Ring, a lot of weird robotic AI contraptions and the highlight of the show for him, the Humane AI Pin. Afterward, the three talk about the recently announced M3-powered MacBook Air and Brad's and Patrick's experience with the new laptop.

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Are new AI features like 'Circle to Search' just a fancy gimmick gimmick? or is this functionality Galaxy S24 users will actually find useful? Listen to our latest episode to find out.

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The team also tries out several new segments, including the return of a news recap, 'Tech Treat or Tech Trash' and more, as the pod squad prepares to revamp the SyrupCast in the new year. Along with episodes still hosted by Patrick O'Rourke, Dean will also take on hosting duties for several special interview episodes (you'll likely recognize several upcoming guests). You'll also see a more unified format across the SyrupCast and the SyrupArcade Cast. Bear with us as we figure out a new format for MobileSyrup's podcasts in the coming weeks and months!

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This time, we selected two more games for a total of five titles for each participant. Points will then be awarded or deducted for every percentage point each pick falls above or below a 70 on OpenCritic. By the end of the year, we'll only look at the top four games, ditching the least impressive score for each person's collection of titles.

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The pod squad unpacks what it was like to attend WWDC, why they think this year's event was so packed and what Apple's end-game might be regarding augmented reality/virtual reality (AR/VR). If you've ever wanted a peak behind the Apple event curtain, this is the SyrupCast episode for you 🍎.

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During the podcast, we ask Doyle about her journey as a game developer and discus representation and diversity. Given it's Black History Month, we felt it was important to highlight the difficulties Black people face when breaking into the gaming industry.

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This is where Dean Daley's and Brad Shankar's new SyrupArcade episodes of the SyrupCast come in. These special SyrupArcade Cast episodes are still the SyrupCast you know and love, but with an emphasis on all things gaming. All episodes will be available in the standard SyrupCast podcast feed on nearly every podcast platform out there.

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This episode is part of a sponsored two-episode series focused on 5G (the next episode drops later in September).

This article is part of our The Future with 5G Series. A full-length documentary on 5G airs on BBC Earth Canada and MobileSyrup on August 26th. For more 5G content, check out our new hub focused on the next-generation technology.

This podcast is sponsored by Bell. MobileSyrup publishes sponsored content. These partnerships do not influence our editorial content.

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Patrick O'Rourke spends roughly an hour telling Brad Bennett about his experience with the Steam Deck so far -- and yes, we now know that Proton is just the Linux translation layer and not the handheld's OS.

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The pod squad then shifts the conversation to discussing the Galaxy S22/Galaxy S22+ and breaks down whether this year's lower-end S series smartphones are a notable upgrade over their predecessors.

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Next, the conversation shifts to Samsung's Galaxy S21 FE, a fan edition version of the S21 series that arrived on the eve of the S22 line's release. 

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To kick off the pod, Brad Bennett regales Patrick O'Rourke and Jon Lamont with news regarding Rogers' new CEO, the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE and the latest software update for the OnePlus Buds Pro. Next, Patrick steers the team towards recapping CES 2022. While this year's show was pretty dull, cool gadgets and several electric vehicle (EV) concept cars were still shown off. Finally, the team talks about some of the games they've been playing over the holidays, with Patrick shining a light on Halo Infinite and Brad talking about finally catching up on The Last of us 2. If you've been a long-time SyrupCast listener, you already know that Jon spent time with Destiny 2, but he also started playing Stardew Valley again.

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The pod squad talks about how the smartphones fit into the Canadian market, their significant refreshed designs and why Jon prefers the Pixel 6 and Dean is all about the Pixel 6 Pro. If you're interested in an hour-long conversation about the Pixel 6 series (and honestly, who isn't, right?), this is the SyrupCast episode for you.

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To start the show Brad and Dean shoot rapid-fire questions at Patrick regarding all the Apple products that he reviewed this week, including the 2021 iMac, iPad Pro and Apple TV. The trio then unpacks some of our favourites announcements from Google I/O, including new camera tech and the really funky android 12 visual refresh.

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After all of that, Brad shares his thoughts on the OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro, including how the new smartphones fit into the Canadian market.

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The crew talks about MobileSyrup's Samsung Samsung Galaxy S21 series reviews, Lenovo's wacky X1 Fold laptop and Apple Fitness+.

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The podcast opens with a brief discussion surrounding Aisha's role at MobileSyrup, and then the duo chats about what Navdeep Bains stepping down as the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry means for the Canadian telecom industry.

After that, Brad and Aisha talk about the "Netflix Tax" slated to go into effect later this summer and the launch of Starlink's beta program in Canada.

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The first half of this week's episode focuses on our favourite gadgets and announcements from CES. The team then pivots to discuss all the news from Samsung's recent Unpacked event, including the Galaxy S21, S21+ and S21 Ultra.

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Once the team gets into the M1 MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro and Mac mini, Jon brings an interesting angle to the discussion since he's spent a significant amount of time with the ARM-based Surface Pro X. Patrick is also starting to come around to the M1 Mac lineup despite being critical about them in a recent story.

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Now that both consoles are available, the podcast team talks about each system's strengths and weaknesses.

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Following that, Patrick briefly gives his thoughts on the new iPad Air and how it slots strangely into the company's existing iPad lineup.

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The squad delves into the new upcoming Pixel releases, including the Pixel 4a 5G and the Pixel 5. While the Pixel series has always been well-regarded for the most part, Google's confusing naming scheme and release plan this year take some time to unpack.

The conversation then shifts to the Nest Audio and its intriguing design and Google's new Chromecast.

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The team also discusses Microsoft's purchase of Bethesda parent company ZeniMax and Xbox game streaming possibly coming to iOS.

Total runtime: 01:05

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The Series 6 is Apple's top-of-the-line smartwatch and includes blood oxygen level detection as well as the same always-on display as the Series 5. On the other hand, the Apple Watch SE is more of an entry-level mash-up of the Series 4 and Series 5.

The iPad lineup also got a little more confusing thanks to the new iPad Air that's more powerful than even Apple's most recent iPad Pro. It also uses a colourful version of the iPad Pro's design, further separating the Air from the base-level iPads and doubling down on Apple's commitment to this middle of the road tablet. Beyond that, there's a new iPad (2020), which replaces the current base-model version.

Total runtime: 01:08

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While the smartphone is a major improvement over the first Z Fold, the crew, minus Dean, are still not sold on the extremely expensive foldable handset.

After the team finishes discussing the Z Fold 2, they move on to talk about smartwatches.

Total runtime: 01:14

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Following a discussion focused on Google's latest smartphone, the trio breaks down all the news from Samsung's recent Unpacked event, including the new Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra, the new Galaxy Tab S7/S7+ and the impressive Galaxy Buds Live earbuds.

Total runtime: 01:15

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Total runtime: 01:13

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TLOU2 is the sequel to the wildly popular and critically-acclaimed The Last of Us that initially released on the PlayStation 3 way back in 2013. While the series takes place in a post-apocalyptic world, it focuses on smaller human stories.

This is a spoiler-filled podcast that skips our usual segments, so if you haven't played the game yet, save this episode for later because it touches on all of the new game's major story beats.

Total runtime: 01:13

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Jon, of course, is in the PC corner representing Microsoft's new Surface lineup, while keeping the entire third-party Windows manufacturer ecosystem in his back pocket.

Patrick faces off from across the ring using the new 13-inch Macbook Pro and MacBook Air as a tennis racket to deflect Jon's various arguments.

Total runtime: 1:12:12

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Total runtime: 50:47

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Each of them has spent time with one of the new phones. Patrick talks about Apple's recently revealed iPhone SE, while Brad and Dean reviewed the OnePlus 8 series and P40 Pro, respectively.

Total runtime: 53:00

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The pod starts off with a rundown off how MobileSyrup, Patrick and Brad have been handling work from home and social isolation, before quickly jumping into some of the hottest tech news on MobileSyrup. 

Total runtime: 53:23

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Jon is reviewing the Galaxy S20, so he'll be defending the smallest of the three phones. Dean is working on the Galaxy S20+ review, and Pat has his hands on the Galaxy S20 Ultra.

Opinions come out as the reviewers talk about the phone they like the most and what features they think Samsung nailed this time around. Note: When this podcast was recorded, Rogers hadn't yet made the announcement that its initial 5G network is now active.

Total runtime: 55:16

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Before that, the team has MobileSyrup telecom reporter Aisha Malik on the podcast to talk about the CRTC's MVNO price reduction hearings.

Note: When this podcast was recording, Rogers hadn't yet made the announcement that its initial 5G network is now active.

Total runtime: 52:21

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Patrick O'Rourke, Brad Bennett and special guest Ian Hardy, talk about the legacy of Blackberry devices and what it means that the brand has cut its ties with Chinese phone manufacturer TCL.

Following that Dean Daley takes the third seat at the table to lay out our expectations for Samsung's Unpacked event on February 11th.  The team discusses all three of the rumoured flagships -- the Galaxy S20, Galaxy S20+ and Galaxy S20 Ultra -- a new rumour regarding Galaxy buds and the highly anticipated Galaxy Z Flip.

Total runtime: 55:47

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Jon Lamont comes on the show to talk about his recent experience with Microsoft's new Surface device, followed by a discussion surrounding 'alternative computing.' In the final segment, Brad Shankar discusses his hands-on time with Microsoft's game streaming platform, xCloud. Total runtime: 60:00

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Total runtime: 49:32

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Total runtime: 44:30

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Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to patrick@mobilesyrup.com. 

Total runtime: 36:34 Shoutouts: 32:55

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Total runtime: 40:03

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Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com.

Total runtime: 48:00

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Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to patrick@mobilesyrup.com

Total runtime: 15:52

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Last week at Apple's annual Fall keynote, the tech giant revealed all of the hardware it's launching this fall. Patrick was at the event and went hands-on with the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max, as well as the Apple Watch Series 5.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to patrick@mobilesyrup.com Total runtime: 47:12

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Total runtime:  59:07

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For the past few years, the Canadian government has promised to review the Broadcasting Act and the Telecom Act -- both of which date back to the early 1990s. Finally, last year, the government appointed a panel of seven experts to lead a review of this legislation. The panel has been accepting written submissions from various companies and organizations within the media and telecom industries to inform their interim report, which is due to release sometime this month.

Ahead of this anticipated report, Shruti and Anja breakdown the written submissions of a handful of key players. With the exception of Shaw, one thing all of the major companies involved seem to agree on is a Netflix tax.

It's important to note though that the term 'Netflix tax,' could mean multiple things and ranges from whether Netflix should be imposed a sales tax or whether it should contribute part of its revenue into Canadian content.

Shruti and Anja also ask the question, why should we care about a legislative review of the Broadcast and Telecom Acts?

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Total runtime: 30:23

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Over the last few years, the smartphone industry has evolved significantly. The difference between mid-tier smartphones and flagship devices has diminished considerably.

The SyrupCast team argues that regardless of the make and model of flagship phone these days, you're still going to walk away with a great phone. They also contend that as flagships become increasingly expensive, mid-tier phones might just start taking over the smartphone market.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts and their latest recommendations of what phone you should buy.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 32:45 Shoutouts: 30:00

Brad gives his shoutout to Anne, his apartment's ghost. Jon gives his shoutout to AMD and their rumoured CPUs. And Dean shouts out the upcoming Nioh 2.

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Huawei has been in the news a lot lately. The company is at the forefront of developing 5G infrastructure but has also garnered attention recently regarding its legal troubles.

Whether it's the arrest of CFO Meng Wanzhou back in December of 2018, the charges the U.S. recently brought against Huawei, or the lawsuit the China-based tech giant launched against the U.S. in response, Huawei has been under a lot of scrutiny lately.

Until recently, Huawei has also been a very private operation.

The company rarely speaks to reporters and is generally reluctant to open its doors to the media. Now, in an attempt to regain the public's trust, Huawei invited four Canadian reporters -- Shruti, Emily, and Alicja being three of the four -- to Huawei's headquarters in Shenzhen, China.

The question now is whether Huawei will be able to turn it's PR crisis around and win back the world's trust.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 49:15

mily, and Alicja being three of the four -- to Huawei's headquarters in Shenzhen, China. The question now is whether Huawei will be able to turn it's PR crisis around and win back the world's trust.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 49:15

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Last week, Canada began auctioning off the 600 MHz spectrum to twelve different players. This spectrum is low-frequency and capable of passing through buildings as well as travelling long distances.

Shruti and Christine discuss how this will allow Canadian carriers to serve rural and urban areas of the country better, especially as 5G becomes available in Canada.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 29:29

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Last week, Dean travelled to Barcelona for Mobile World Congress. What got everyone excited, including Dean, was all the foldable smartphone technology at the show this year. The (possibly) innovative phones feature a hefty price tag though, with Huawei's Mate X coming in at an outstanding $3,425 CAD. The Syrupcast team discusses how they feel foldable devices will fair in the long term, and whether the foldable displays will stand the test of time.

Another major point of focus at this year's MWC was 5G phones. As countries around the world build out the infrastructure necessary for the next generation in wireless technology, companies are scrambling to release smartphones capable of handling 5G.

Even though there were prototype devices on display at MWC, it's unlikely Canadians will get their hands on them anytime soon given 5G isn't set to start going online in Canada until 2020 at the earliest.

Finally, the team turns to talking about the Samsung Galaxy S10. Patrick, who has spent a few weeks with the phone, explains that the S10 is a great phone that "doesn't really have anything wrong with it" -- as long as you can afford its expensive price tag. You can find a full link to his Galaxy S10, S10+ and S10e review here.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 33:35 Mobile World Congress: 2:00 5G phones: 17:30 Samsung Galaxy S10: 24:00 Shoutouts: 30:36

Igor gives his shoutout to Tim Apple. Patrick gives his shoutout to Respawn Entertainment's new battle royale game Apex Legends. And Dean shouts out Pokémon Sword and Shield coming to the Switch.

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This week, MobileSyrup news and telecom reporter Sameer Chhabra and MobileSyrup managing editor Patrick O'Rourke discuss Netflix's Fyre: The Greatest Party that Never Happened, and share their opinions on the second major Fyre Festival documentary to debut on a U.S. streaming platform.

Later on the show, Sameer speaks with Toronto-based online content creator Casie Stewart to talk about online influencing, while University of Toronto professor Megan Boler addresses Sameer's questions about the glorious dream of the internet and humanity' digital developments.

In the interest of full disclosure, MobileSyrup recorded an original interview with Boler, and Sameer re-recorded the questions after the fact.

This episode also marks Sameer's last appearance as the host of Viewer Experience.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Do you have any recommendations or suggestions for which movies we should discuss next?

Send us an email to patrick@mobilesyrup.com. If you’re feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode! Facebook.

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The film tells the story of a young programmer who finds himself in a strange reality loop while attempting to build a choose-your-own-adventure video game based on a fictional choose-your-own-adventure novel called Bandersnatch.

This week, MobileSyrup reporter Sameer Chhabra speaks with MobileSyrup managing editor Patrick O'Rourke and staff reporter/video producer Shruti Shekar about Black Mirror: Bandersnatch.

Later in the episode, Mike MacDonald, an author of the Choose Your Own Misery series of choose-your-own-adventure novels (and a former colleague of MobileSyrup's own Patrick O'Rourke), speaks about what it's like writing narratives that depend on continuous reader input.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Do you have any recommendations or suggestions for which movies we should discuss next? Send us an email to sameer@mobilesyrup.com.

If you’re feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode! Facebook.

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Patrick's top 3 phones were the iPhone XS Max, the Pixel 3 XL, and in number 1 -- the iPhone XR.

Daniel's top 3 picks were the Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact, the Samsung Galaxy Note 9, and his number 1 pick -- the Pixel 3.

Igor's top 3 smartphones for the year were the Huawei Mate 20 Pro, the Pixel 3, and his favourite -- the OnePlus 6.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 51:37 Shoutouts: 47:20

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Completely the opposite of what Patrick predicted a few weeks ago, Apple revealed a new MacBook Air at the company's October 30th event in New York City. The device comes across as a bit of a Frankenstein laptop, borrowing features from the modern MacBook Pro and the 12-inch Macbook. The team discusses the new laptop's various pros and cons.

The SyrupCast team also chats about the new features coming to the 12.9-inch and 11-inch iPad Pro, as well as the Mac mini. The new Mac mini came as a bit of a surprise to most, and the team thinks it's an update not everyone is excited about -- though hardcore Apple fans are likely thrilled.

Finally, the discussion turns to whether or not Apple plans to do away with more ports in its various devices. Are we moving towards a fully wireless future like Bradley predicts?

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 32:48 Macbook Air: 4:15 iPad Pro: 9:20 Mac mini: 16:20 Shoutouts: 29:20

Patrick gives his shoutout to YouTube finally coming to the Nintendo Switch. Sameer's shoutout is to the CRTC, as expected. Finally, Bradley gives his shoutout to all the fallen ports out there.

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Patrick is heading out to Apple's Fall event in New York on October 30th.

There are quite a few devices expected to be revealed at this year's keynote, including a new iPad Pro, an updated MacBook Air, the iPad Mini, the Mac Mini, the AirPower, and second-generation AirPods. Rumours indicate Apple's 2018 iPad Pro will come equipped with USB-C this time around, making Apple's iPhone the only device that still features the companies proprietary Lighting port technology.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 35:51 Apple Event expectations: 2:15 Air pricing predictions: 13:30 Pat's predictions: 15:00 Shoutouts: 26:15

Igor gives his shoutout to his friend Vanessa's birthday. Patrick gives his shoutout to Call of Duty Black Ops 4's battle royale Blackout mode.

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If you haven't heard by now, recreational use of Cannabis is now legal in Canada as of October 17th, 2018. The team digs into the various technology and software solutions that have been popping up around the country in response to the big day.

The team also talks about how to actually buy cannabis online. One of those ways, at least in the province of Ontario, is through the Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS), which was built via a partnership with Canadian e-commerce company Shopify. Over the course of October 17th, the OCS' online store hit 100 orders per minute.

The SyrupCast then looks to the future of cannabis in Canada.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 35:01 Shoutouts: 31:11

Sameer gives his shoutout to the CRTC's public hearing into aggressive sales practices on October 22nd. Patrick's shoutout is to Shooting Hoops. Finally, Corey's shoutout is to his team at RNMKR Agency.

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Last week, the CRTC issued a follow-up decision to the Canada Broadband Fund. Under the regulator's previous chair, Jean-Pierre Blais, the recommended broadband target was set at 50Mbps download and 10Mbps upload speed.

Now the CRTC has halved that number to 25 Mbps download and 5 Mbps upload for rural and remote communities across Canada. Friend of the podcast and telecom journalist Peter Nowak has some thoughts on the matter that he tweeted out last week.

Among other announcements this past week, the CRTC denied the Fairplay Canada coalition on 'jurisdictional grounds.' The team talks about how the CRTC pointed out that there is already a copyright review under way in Parliament that it states is a better fit for the discussion of whether or not to block websites that facilitate piracy.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 38:22 CRTC 25/5: 2:00 Fairplay Canada: 10:00 Shoutouts: 34:30

Igor shouts out the LG G7 One. Peter gives his shoutout to LED lights. And finally, Sameer's shoutout is to Bloomberg's report on The Big Hack.

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If you listened to last week's episode, you'd know that the team predicted what they expected to see at the annual keynote. Leaks indicated that the Apple had plans to add a larger display to the Series 4 Apple Watch. It turns out that the wearable's screen gained a substantial 30 percent, resulting in a shift that the team feels is a significant improvement to the Apple Watch.

The updated iPhone XS and XS Max, on the other hand, are more iterative and have the team considerably less thrilled, with the entry-level iPhone XR being the most compelling new announcement to come out of the event. The XR still includes the majority of the XS' and XS Max's most exciting features but includes a colourful body and a more affordable price tag.

As was mentioned last week, it seems Apple will likely hold an additional fall event focused on an updated MacBook Air, second-generation AirPods and a new iPad Pro.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 41:27 Apple event rundown: 2:00 Shoutouts: 35:50

Igor shouts out 71. Patrick gives his shoutout to the MobileSyrup team. Josh's shoutout this week is to Jack Ryan. And finally, Sameer's shoutout is Uber and their investment in Toronto.

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As far as leaks go, we will almost certainly catch a glimpse of the rumoured iPhone XS and the iPhone XS Max. The team also expects to see the Apple Watch Series 4, a new version of Apple's smartwatch that's tipped to feature a larger display and smaller bezels.

Further, the team doesn't think that the new MacBook Air will debut at next week's event. A bold prediction is that Apple could hold an additional keynote in October like the company did back in 2016 to reveal a revamped MacBook Air and new version of the iPad Pro.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 35:23 iPhone XS: 2:00 Apple Watch 4: 16:20 Macbook Air: 21:10 Shoutouts: 29:14

Igor shouts out Daniel Bader and his wife and their new baby. Patrick brings back the 'Switch Minute' and shoutouts Into The Breach. Josh's shoutout this week is to National Cheese Pizza Day. And finally, Joe shouts out everyone living in the '905'.

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The Galaxy Note 9 has the team talking smart phone pricing expectations and what Samsung's latest smartphone means for the future of iterative smartphone updates. The Note 9, starting at an expensive $1299 CAD, has the team questioning how expensive smartphone prices will get in the coming years.

An added feature to this iteration of the Note series is the S Pen's Bluetooth-enabled photo snapping functionality. You can now use the Note 9's S Pen as a shutter button, which the team argues is not enough of a draw to spend $1299 on a phone. That said, the Note 9 also features significant hardware updates, including a Snapdragon 845 Processor and 8GB of RAM in the 512GB version of the smartphone. Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 44:31 Samsung Galaxy Note 9: 1:30 Shoutouts: 34:30

Igor shouts out the book Creativity Inc. Patrick brings back the Switch Minute and gives his shoutout to Octopath Traveler. Sameer's shoutout this week is to Voice Inc. And finally, Jon's shoutout is sent out to Discord.

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Justin Trudeau has shuffled his cabinet, replacing Melanie Jolie, Canadian Heritage Minister, with Pablo Rodriguez. The team discusses what they think the change will mean for Canadians.

Also in the last two weeks mobile overage rates have gone up again. Ben Klass joins the podcast to discuss the impact of these increases.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 34:01 New minister: 2:00 Increased rates: 6:00 5G: 21:00 Shoutouts: 30:20

Ben gives his shoutout to his sister Rebecca, who just ran an olympic-length triathlon. Rose gives her shoutout to all of the reader's of MobileSyrup. Igor shouts out Rose and her work at MobileSyrup.

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This week, MobileSyrup news and telecom reporter Sameer Chhabra speakers with MobileSyrup features editor Igor Bonifacic about Federico D'Alessandro's Tau.

Later in the episode, Lex Gill, a research fellow at the University of Toronto's Citizen Lab, speaks about digital profiling and the ways in which our digital footprints are being used to target us.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Do you have any recommendations or suggestions for which movies we should discuss next? Send us an email to sameer@mobilesyrup.com.

If you’re feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode! Facebook.

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The KEY2 brings all of the features that BlackBerry fans have to come to expect from the partnership between the former smartphone giant and TCL. However, the smartphone's price tag lands squarely in flagship territory, making the KEY2 a tough sell in a hyper-competitive industry, especially considering its processor is only a mid-range Qualcomm Snapdragon 660.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 17:23 Blackberry Key 2: 1:30 Shoutouts: 14:05

Sameer gives his shoutout to Justice Kennedy. Igor shouts out Viewer Experience.

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This week, MobileSyrup news and telecom reporter Sameer Chhabra speaks with MobileSyrup news and telecom editor Rose Behar about Brad Bird's Incredibles 2.

Later in the episode, Fardous Hosseiny -- national director of public policy and government relations at the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) -- sheds some insight on the subjects of internet, video game and screen addiction.

For more information about the resources offered at the CMHA, visit the Centre's problematic internet use website.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Do you have any recommendations or suggestions for which movies we should discuss next?

Send us an email to sameer@mobilesyrup.com. If you’re feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode! Facebook

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Recently, Canadian carriers released information on low-cost, data-only plans for Canadians. The plans left a lot to be desired.

Last week, a report filed by telecom analyst Ben Klass and professor of communication studies at Carleton University, Dwayne Winseck, proposed an alternate plan for low-cost, data-only rates. The proposal, called the 'CRTC flex plan,' suggests that people should be able to access a small amount of data (250 Mb) for $5, along with larger amounts of data at market prices.

Additionally, the crew discusses the federal government's recent order for the CRTC to investigate high-pressure sales at Canada's largest carriers.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts on the matter.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 30:57 CRTC Flex Plans: 2:00

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Patrick's picks are The Last of Us Part 2, Halo Infinite, and Skull & Bones. Brad chooses to highlight Spider-Man, Kingdom Hearts III, and Super Smash Bros Ultimate. Bradley selects Forza Horizon 4, Fallout 76, and Sea of Solitude. Finally, Igor takes note of Ghost of Tsushima, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and Sable.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 39:02 Gaming galore: 2:45 Shoutouts: 31:30

Patrick gives his shoutout to Fortnite for the Switch. Igor shouts out Grime Fandango. Brad gives a shoutout to The Incredibles 2, and finally, Bradley gives a shoutout toRed Dead Redemption 2.

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This week, MobileSyrup news and telecom reporter Sameer Chhabra speaks with MobileSyrup managing editor Patrick O'Rourke to try to get to the bottom of why Netflix's sci-fi slate seems to avoid being impressive.

Later in the episode, Wise Elephant Family Health Team lead physician Dr. Sanjeev Goel speaks about biohacking and the SPARK Biohacker Summit in Toronto.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Do you have any recommendations or suggestions for which movies we should discuss next?

Send us an email to sameer@mobilesyrup.com. If you’re feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

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As Patrick returns from covering the events of Apple's World Wide Developers Conference, the team sits down to discuss their thoughts on everything that was unveiled.

One notable difference at this year's conference in comparison to past keynotes was the lack of new hardware reveals. Among the new software updates announced during the conference are macOS Mojave, iOS 12 , tvOS 12 and watchOS 5.  

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 45:02 WWDC: 2:00 Shoutouts: 40:00

Patrick gives his shoutout to Moonlighter, a recently released indie game where you run a store during the day and go adventuring at night. Igor shouts out Patrick and his hard work. Finally, Josh gives a shoutout to the Nintendo Switch.

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Rose joins the team from Ottawa after attending a media event in Gatineau at the CRTC's head office. The report, requested by the Minister of Heritage and Innovation ahead of reviews of the Broadcasting Act and Telecommunication Act, suggested that internet service providers should contribute to media funding in the same way that cable providers do.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Rose gives her shoutout to VIA Rail. Igor shouts out the pipeline deal signed by Justin Trudeau. Finally, Sameer shouts out his podcast, Viewer Experience.

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This week, MobileSyrup news and telecom reporter Sameer Chhabra speaks with MobileSyrup news and telecom reporter Rose Behar to attempt to find out what Westworld all about.

Later in the episode, University of Waterloo artificial intelligence professor Dr. Fakhri Karray speaks about AI research taking place in Canada, while British Columbia-based video game developer Raphael van Lierop sheds some insight on the subject of video game design.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast?

Send us an email to sameer@mobilesyrup.com. If you’re feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

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This year at Google I/O there were over 100 announcements, with some being more notable than others. The company focused it's efforts on meaningful engagement and digital wellness. Among some of the most exciting reveals were Android P's beta and new updates to Google Assistant. Google also announced Duplex, the company's AI-powered phone call technology, which has many both worried and excited.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 34:47 Google I/O: 1:25 Duplex: 9:00 Shoutouts: 28:20

Rose gives her shoutout to Michael Geist's recent article. Igor shouts out the US Senate attempting to over-throw the net neutrality changes.

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No, this isn't 2018 and we're not talking about social media, this is the world of Andrew Niccol's Anon.

On this week's podcast, MobileSyrup telecom and business reporter Sameer Chhabra speaks with managing editor Patrick O'Rourke about their thoughts on Netflix's latest sci-fi flick.

Later on in the episode, Brenda McPhail, the director of the Canada's Civil Liberties Association's privacy, technology and surveillance project sheds some insight into the state of privacy in Canada.

Dr. Ann Cavoukian, former information and privacy commissioner of Ontario and the director of Ryerson University's Privacy By Design Centre of Excellence, speaks about her theories on privacy by design.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to sameer@mobilesyrup.com.

If you’re feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

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LG has announced its next flagship device, the G7 ThinQ, a smartphone that at least at the outset, seems to offer a solid experience -- though there's nothing particularly exciting about it. The phone has been long-awaited amid a flurry of rumours and leaks leading up to its release.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 32:25 G7 thoughts: 1:45 Shoutouts: 23:15

Patrick shouts out Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze. Rose gives her shoutout to Facebook's newly announced dating feature. Finally, Igor aires a grievance about some not so friendly reader mail.

We record the SyrupCast in Toronto at StartWell.

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Later on in the episode, storyboard and concept artist Rob McCallum and Western University media studies professor Tim Blackmore speak about science fiction, the film industry, sci-fi design and why we seem to love the genre.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to sameer@mobilesyrup.com.

If you’re feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

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On previous episodes of the Syrupcast, the team has talked about the pending CRTC decision regarding Wi-Fi-first MVNOs. After the CRTC decided to uphold previous rulings against Wi-Fi-first MVNOs, it requested that existing telecoms offer low-cost data plans. The resulting proposals from the Big Three were released this week to much criticism from consumer groups and the public.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 36:17 CRTC decision: 1:38 Shoutouts: 31:25

Sameer shouts out the Supreme Court of Canada. Rose gives her shoutout to Broad band: The Untold Story of Women Who Made the Internet. Laura gives a shoutout to the monkey who took a selfie. Finally, Igor shouts out A Gentleman in Moscow.

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Motorola just announced its 2018 series of mid-range smartphones. The team discusses the strategy behind Motorola releasing so many mid-range smartphones at once, as well as Sameer's experience at the company's G6 and E5 preview event in New York.

On the high-end of the smartphone market, Patrick discusses what it's been like to use the iPhone X for the past six months. His main takeaway is that the gestures he initially found clunky are now so ingrained that he has a hard time using any other smartphone. He also has new thoughts on the look of the phone.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 34:43 Moto launch: 1:45 iPhone 10 updated review: 14:40 Shoutouts: 28:00

Sameer shouts out the House of Commons standing committee on access to information privacy and ethics. Patrick gives his shoutout to Nintendo for filing a wireless communication patent for the Switch. Finally, Igor shouts out the movie In The Fade.

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Later in the episode, filmmaker Nicole Holland, as well as executive producer and director of marketing for Vancouver Film School Christopher Ian Bennett and festival operations manager for the Toronto Smartphone Film Festival Susan Lee-Pierce, discusses smartphone filmmaking and the potential future of cinema.

If you're a victim of stalking, please visit the YWCA as well as the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to sameer@mobilesyrup.com.

If you’re feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

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Over the course of the past few weeks major privacy issues surrounding Facebook have surfaced. This week Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg held a call with journalists to discuss the Cambridge Analytica breach. On the call, Zuckerberg said that the original number of 50 million people affected is actually more in the ballpark of 87 million, 600,000 of those being Canadians.

The team talks about what this means and what's next for Facebook.

Back in the mobile tech space, the team gets into the pros and cons of the brand new flagship smartphone from Sony, the Xperia XZ2. Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts on all things telecom.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 40:55 Facebook Privacy: 1:23 Sony Xperia XZ2: 25:15 Shoutouts: 37:47

Sameer shouts out Daniel Therrian. Rose gives her shoutout to Viewer Experience. Finally, Robyn shouts out her roommate for watching her dog Hewitt.

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Whether the subject is Steven Spielberg or Steve Jobs, the iPhone or I, Robot, you can be sure that someone at the MobileSyrup office has an opinion or interesting fact to share. Keeping in line with our love for tech and pop culture, MobileSyrup presents Viewer Experience, a podcast where tech meets pop culture.

Tune in every two weeks for a brand new episode built around a newly released movie or television show and the technology used in it or used to create it. Each episode will discuss a particular movie or television show, the technology involved with it, as well as interesting people doing fascinating things within that particular tech space.

Listener’s note: Viewer Experience isn’t replacing the SyrupCast. For now, they’re just sharing the same space. Eventually you'll be able to subscribe to Viewer Experience separately. 

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Last week the CRTC released an updated ruling on MVNOs in Canada. The team discusses how this decision impacts Canadians and if it will help drop the cost of phone plans. The team also predicts what the remainder of CRTC chairman Ian Scott's time with the regulatory body will look like and speaks about the new 600MHz auction framework.

The podcast then turns to facilities-based investment. The Big Three feel that since they've put a lot of money into networks, they should solely benefit from them. The smaller providers, on the flip side, feel they should be able to piggy back off of existing infrastructure. With the new MVNO ruling, this discussion is again at the forefront of the telecom scene.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts on all things telecom.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 44:41 MVNO: 1:00 Facilities-based Investment: 15:00 Shoutouts: 39:00

Emily shouts out the call center operators that have to deal with people trying to better their phone plans. Rose gives her shoutout to Telus and Koodo raising their connection fee. Christine shouts out the podcast Note to Self.

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People have been voicing concerns related to privacy at Sidewalk Labs, Google's new smart city development project in downtown Toronto. Rose recently spoke with Rohit Aggarwala, Sidewalk Lab's head of urban systems, who discussed the company's intentions and plans behind Sidewalk Labs.

This past week news broke that Cambridge Analytica, a major analytics firm in London, U.K., exploited the data of 50 million Facebook profiles through third-party applications. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has since come out and apologized for the breach, stating that Facebook plans do better in the future when it comes to privacy. The team digs into the story and debates if regulating tech companies like Facebook should be the norm.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 30:32 Sidewalk Labs: 1:20 Facebook's Data Breach: 12:30 Shoutouts: 24:30

Igor shouts out his new cat Liam. Rose gives her shoutout to Hot Ones. Patrick shouts out the podcast Blink 155 #GetPatrickonBlink155.

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The CRTC is in the process of putting together its program distribution report, of which streaming services will be an important part. Since foreign streaming platforms like Netflix aren't likely to divulge public information about subscribers and revenue, the regulatory body bent the rules and has decided to allow private companies to report confidentially, versus the usual public reporting.

This means that even if Netflix does reveal numbers to the CRTC, Canadians still won't get to see that information. The crew talks about whether or not the CRTC made the right call, and gets into some Civics 101.

Beyond Netflix, the CRTC has also been busy working on a decision regarding Wi-Fi-first MVNOs. If the decision goes through, the wireless market in Canada may be disrupted by low-budget providers.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 27:27 CRTC & Netflix: 2:00 CRTC MVNOs: 19:30 Shoutouts: 23:30

Igor shouts out John Chen. Rose gives her shoutout to Qualcomm. Sameer shouts out Innisfil, Ontario.

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Very sleep deprived Patrick and Rose are finally back on the ground in Canada after a whirlwind trip to Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. The team discusses what MWC is, as well as what some of the biggest stories from this year's show are. Following up on last week's talk about the Samsung Galaxy keynote, the team dives into Patrick's recently published review of the Galaxy S9.

The SyrupCast crew then switches gears and talks about the recently released developer-version of Android P.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 30:27 MWC: 1:37 S9: 9:00 Android P: 20:00 Shoutouts: 25:30

Igor shouts out Jon Hopkins. Rose gives her shoutout to her 5G for dummies. Patrick brings the Switch minute back after a hiatus and shouts out Donkey Kongas. 

We'd also like to thank Frontstream for providing us with a podcast recording space this week. 

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At MWC this year, Samsung's spotlight moment was overshadowed by the company's attempt to once again poke fun at Apple and the iPhone X notch. The joke not only fell flat, but also leaves us wondering how Samsung intends to brings its S Series design in to the future.

Also at MWC were numerous discussions related to the feasibility of 5G. The discussions centred around the cost of equipment and how the spectrum will be deployed in different regions around the world.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode! Total runtime: 28:20 Not about the Notch: 1:05 Samsung does ARmoji: 15:00 Shoutouts: 25:00

Sameer gives his shoutout to the Lite Phone 2. Igor shouts out Into The Breach.

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After a week off, the SyrupCast is back with predictions for Mobile World Congress 2018 (MWC). Rose and Patrick will both be headed to cover MWC 2018 for MobileSyrup.

Leading into this year's MWC, we've already seen leaks for the Samsung's Galaxy S9, but new phones are also expected from ZTE, Asus, Lenovo, Sony, and more.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 22:49 Mobile World Congress predictions: 2:00 Shoutouts: 18:56

Sameer gives his shoutout to Rose and Patrick, who are headed to MWC. Ash throws a shoutout to the SyrupCast. Matt gives a shout out to all of the amazing tech journos and youtubers. Finally, this week Igor shouts out Team Canada.

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The team discusses the great games that have made their way to the system, including The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Mario Kart Deluxe, and Splatoon 2.

In the home console-portable hybrid system's second year on the market, the SyrupCast squad wants to see full-fledged online services, a solid line-up of first-party games -- we're hoping to learn more at this year's E3 -- and most importantly, a downloadable game blast from Nintendo's nostalgic past that spans systems ranging from the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) all the way up to the Wii.

For more on the Nintendo Switch, check out my recently published editorial about the spectacular first year the system has had.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 37:37

Patrick shouts out Rose and Sameer for their hard work covering the Canadian and telecom industry this week; Josh hypes up his favourite day of the year, which is, of course, National Pizza Day; and finally, Igor, bringing things back to a more serious topic, shouts out the movie Call Me By Your Name.

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A group, known as FairPlay Canada, is lobbying the CRTC to begin blocking specific websites known for facilitating piracy. The group is backed by some of Canada's largest carriers, such as Rogers and Bell, leaving some to wonder about the long-term net neutrality implications a shift like this could cause.

This week news also came out that Shaw is attempting to buy out almost half of the company's employees. Nearly 6,500 employees are being offered severance packages, with Shaw claiming that the move is because the telecom giant is moving towards automating customer service. The jobs being bought out however, tell a different story -- it's still unclear what's really going on at Shaw.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 37:37 Fair play: 1:30 Shaw buyouts: 18:45 Shoutouts: 31:00

Rose gives her shoutout to Netflix purchasing their first French Canadian film. Patrick throws a shoutout to Mario Kart coming to mobile. Simon gives a shout out to Nicolas Cage being inserted into other movies. Finally, this week Igor shouts out roam like home price increases.

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Reports about Rogers' sales practices have resurfaced as multiple employees have come forward with stories about their managers and supervisors pressuring them to “hit sales targets or risk termination.” These reports went further to expose the expectations that employees must up-sell products to unsuspecting customers. Rogers has vehemently denied this portrayal of the company's sales strategies.

Also this week, Josh McConnell -- friend of the podcast and freelance tech journalist -- had the opportunity to interview Apple's CEO Tim Cook during his short (but sweet) visit to Toronto. The team is curious about what the famed CEO is like in person and whether he lives up to the hype.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 32:48 Roger's up-selling has gotten out of hand: 1:30 Tim Cook is ripped: 15:30 Shoutouts: 28:34

Josh gives his shoutout to Justin Timberlake's surprise album, dropping song by song. Patrick throws a shoutout to Sea of Thieves. Rose's shoutout is to Call Me By Your Name. Finally, this week Igor shouts out the Toronto Public Library for getting Kanopy.

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This year's CES kicked off the voice-activated assistant war, as well as exciting new developments in the infotainment side of the automotive industry. When the weather was behaving, CES attendees got to see Samsung show off a 146-inch modular TV, Google Assistant made the jump to vehicles, and a wide range of other devices were shown off.

Finally, the team talks also about LG recently discussing the possibility of rebranding G series of smartphones.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 37:30 CES: 2:00 Shoutouts: 32:45

Ted gives his shoutout to the Vegas Golden Knights. Patrick throws a shoutout to Nintendo for the Switch being named the fastest selling gaming console in Canada. Finally, this week Igor shouts out All The Money In The World.

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Just before the holidays, Apple confirmed that the company does indeed slow down older iPhone models in order to conserve battery quality. Apple fans are especially frustrated that they were not made aware of this feature and that the Cupertino, California based tech giant was forced to reveal that it throttles batteries only after it was uncovered.

Apple has since apologized for its lack of transparency. As a result of the public outcry in response to the revelation, Apple has marked the price of replacement batteries down considerably.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 27:52 Apple Battery Scandal: 2:00 Shoutouts: 20:25

Rose gives his shoutout to the first concept phone with a in-screen fingerprint scanner. Josh's shoutout goes to Google Play Music. Patrick throws a shoutout to Mario Tennis Aces. Finally, this week Igor shouts out The Hospital Suite.

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Patrick goes first and talks about -- I'm sure you're surprised -- the Nintendo Switch; Rose's pick is the rise of Freedom Mobile;  Sameer's selection is the CRTC's precedent setting zero rating decision related to Vidéotron. Last, but not least, Igor's pick is the general ambivalence surrounding Samsung's Galaxy Note 8. 

Tune in to hear the team ring in the New Year!

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 25:37 Shoutouts: 20:25

Sameer gives his shoutout to MobileSyrup for giving him his first job as a journalist. Rose's shoutout goes to Nancy Drew and HeR Interactive's game update. Patrick throws a shoutout to Nintendo Power coming back as a podcast. Finally, this week Igor shouts out Robyn, the SyrupCast's producer.

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A lot has changed over the course of 2017 in terms of Canada's telecom ecosystem. One of the most significant shifts in the space involves Canadian carrier unlocking fees being stopped by the CRTC. Freedom Mobile also underwent significant changes this year, with the carrier rebranding from Wind Mobile to Freedom Mobile, following Shaw's acquisition of the company back in 2015.

With the CRTC unlocking fee ban recently going into effect, Freedom jumped at the opportunity to acquire new customers from the larger competitors in the Canadian telecom space. Freedom introduced a new, highly competitive plan that offered 10GB of data for $50, and in an unprecedented move, other major carriers and flanker brands responded with similar offers. The ensuing deal madness saw Canadians trying to take advantage of the offers being stuck in long lineups and customer service reps being overwhelmed with calls.

Finally, and this may be the most important news of all, the Freedom Bear has officially retired.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 33:13

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Rose, back at the MobileSyrup office fresh from her trip to the Snapdragon Technology Summit in Hawaii, gives the team a run down of all Qualcomm's major announcements from the event. The smartphone hardware manufacturer's new Snapdragon 845 mobile processor is set to include new features, including camera and AI improvements.

The team also takes a look at some recently submitted listener questions. Will Freedom Mobile market the fact that all devices in Canada are unlocked? Is the Note 8 better than the iPhone X.? Listen to find out.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Hosts: Patrick O'Rourke, Rose Behar, and Sameer Chhabra

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 31:36 Qualcomm: 2:00 Listener Questions: 13:30 Shoutouts: 26:30

Sameer discusses recent political developments in the U.S. in his shoutout. Patrick throws a shoutout to Player Unknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG) glitchy, but still fun Xbox One version. Finally, this week Rose shouts out Commisioner Mignon Clyburn and her speech about Net Neutrality.

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Fair warning though dear listeners, this week's episode contains Spoilers. 

Patrick goes first and selects The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild, Destiny 2 and Splatoon 2. Dean picks Hellblade Senua's Sacrifice, Horizon Zero Dawn, and Nioh. Brad's selections are Persona 5, Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, and Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. Last, but not least, Igor picks Hollow Knight and Prey.

The team also dives into their most surprising and most disappoint games of the year.

Tune in to find out which games the SyrupCast team picked.

Hosts: Igor Bonifacic, Rose Behar, Brad Shankar and Patrick O'Rourke 

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 42:58 Favourite games of 2017 discussion: 1:43 Shoutouts: 35:17

Brad gives his shoutout to Significant Zero. Dean's shoutout goes to PlayStation. Patrick throws a shoutout to Reigns: Her Majesty. Finally, this week Igor shouts out

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It's now December 1st and this means that in Canada, carriers are no longer able to charge a fee to unlock customer's phones. The CRTC ruling to ban unlocking fees was initial revealed back in June, but the actual start date wasn't immediate.

Now, however, carriers are required to assist customers when it comes to unlocking their phones, free of charge; regardless of whether the phone is newly purchased, or if it's a device you've had for years.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Hosts: Igor Bonifacic, Rose Behar, Sameer Chhabra and Patrick O'Rourke 

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 45:40 Unlocking fees: 1:20 Listener questions: 26:00 Shoutouts: 38:30

Sameer's shoutout goes to InstaRyde. Rose is talking about the Jim Beam smart decanter. Patrick's shoutout is dedicated to Super Mario cereal. Finally, Igor's shoutout goes to the books of Kazuo Ishiguro.

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Starting on November 24th, Freedom Mobile will begin taking preorders for the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and the iPhone X, all of which are now compatible with their networks. The team breaks down what the plans look like and what that could mean for the Canadian carrier market.

In the United States this week, Turkey was being served with a side of FCC proposals that would do away with net neutrality. Luckily, Canada is still steadfast in it's support of keeping the internet fair for all.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 31:51 iPhone goes free: 1:40 Net Neutrality in the States: 15:48 Shoutouts: 27:43

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The team is not exactly over-the-moon with the One Plus 5T, but they were even less enthused about the device's reveal presentation. Reflecting on the 5T's various features also brought the Pixel 2 back into the conversation. The team dives into the latest reports related to the smartphone's display issues.

This week, Sameer conducted an interview with the CRTC's new chair Ian Scott following his first public speech. Among other things, the new chair said he is "neither pro-business nor pro-consumer."

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Hosts: Sameer Chhabra, Igor Bonifacic, Rose Behar, and Patrick O'Rourke

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 39:48 One Plus 5T: 1:40 CRTC Ian Scott interview: 20:00 Shoutouts: 33:09

Sameer's shoutout goes to the TrudeauMeter. Rose is talking about Bell and their roaming package. Patrick gives a shoutout to Amazon for launching the Echo in Canada. Finally, Igor's shoutout goes to his hair dresser and her book shelf for recommending The Underwater Welder.

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Igor spent the last two weeks in Japan and had the Pixel 2 along with him along for the ride. While he was traveling he had the chance to use the state of the art smartphone camera to take snap some photos. He was especially impressed with the Pixel 2's ability to take night photos. You can find some of those images

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Patrick, in an impressive feat of journalism, flew to New York this week to pick up the iPhone X for an initial impressions review he completed in less than 24 hours. The team discusses what it is like to use an Apple interface with no home button and the intricacies of Face ID, Apple's new facial recognition authentication system. 

Moving on the the other X product that dropped this week. Microsoft's Xbox One X has officially hit the shelves. The console, which boasts true 4K capabilities, is also capable of running previous Xbox One games, which ensures that consumers won't be left scrambling to buy all new games.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Hosts: Brad Shankar,Rose Behar,Sameer Chhabra and Patrick O'Rourke

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 43:33 iPhone X: 1:25 Xbox One X: 18:40 Shoutouts: 36:40

Brad's shoutout is dedicated to the MobileSyrup team for pulling extra weight while Igor is getting big in Japan. Patrick shouts out the original Xbox games that are compatible with the new console. Sameer sends a shoutout to all of the Canadian agencies that helped with his recent story (and his Mom). Finally, Rose's shoutout goes to Razer phone.

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Earlier this week was saw reports that the Pixel 2 XL's POLED screen is suffering from display burn-in issues. Problems like this usually pop up following years of usage, but the issues with the Pixel 2 XL's display are appearing just days after purchasing the device.

Note: This weeks' SyrupCast was recorded prior to Google stating that the company plans to release a software update that will mitigate the screen burn-in problem the Pixel 2 XL suffers from.

Speaking of manufacturing issues -- Google isn't the only company with supply chain problems. Apple is reportedly having difficulty sourcing specific parts for the upcoming iPhone X. The phone makes use of new Face ID authentication technology that is difficult to manufacture to the accuracy necessary for reliable functionality.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 31:48 Pixel 2XL screens: 1:30 iPhone X is extra exclusive: 13:40 Shoutouts: 26:00

Rose's shoutout is to Freedom Mobile's expansion to other devices. Patrick, during the #SwitchMinute, shouts out Super Mario Odyssey being released. Ian gives a shoutout to Ted Rogers. Finally, Dean's shoutout goes to Sameer for getting his Masters degree.

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Rose and Patrick both had the opportunity to review the brand new Pixel phones this week. The two chime in to give the team a well-rounded perspective on the updates to Google's new flagship smartphone.

Toronto is putting a bid in to bring the city into the future. Not only is Alphabet staking a claim to making Toronto a smart city, the #6ix is also doing its best to attract Amazon's HQ2. Unfortunately, not everyone thinks getting a new Amazon headquarters is what Toronto needs.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Hosts: Igor Bonifacic, Rose Behar, Patrick O'Rourke

Total runtime: 37:33 Pixel 2: 1:45 To Amazon or not to Amazon?: 17:00 Shoutouts: 31:47

Rose's shoutout is dedicated to Sameer since it is his birthday. Patrick, during the #SwitchMinute, shouts out some new Switch updates. Sameer sends a shoutout to Tony Lacavera and Bruce Croxon for their help with quotes in recent stories. Finally, Igor's shoutout goes to Moto X4.

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Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team discuss their favourite roaming options, what services might cost you a surprising amount, and their thoughts on how roaming could be made better.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Hosts: Igor Bonifacic, Rose Behar, Patrick O'Rourke

Total runtime: 34:47 Shoutouts: 28:24

Rose is talking about The Swift Life. Patrick, during the #SwitchMinute, shouts out Nintendo creating a Gameboy mini. Finally, Igor's shoutout goes to Blade Runner 2049

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The team does a deep dive into Google's recently revealed Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL. Among the other announcements at the Google event were

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Canadian heritage minister Mélanie Joly revealed the new deal with the American streaming giant that will see Netflix develop a Canadian production 'presence' and contribute $500 million to Canadian content over the next five years.

It has yet to be revealed if the deal will entail a Canadian office and whether it will affect the tax status for the service in Canada. Reactions from Canada's media providers are mixed, but more details about Netflix's deal with the Canadian government still needs to be revealed.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Hosts: Igor Bonifacic, Rose Behar and Patrick O'Rourke 

Total runtime: 35:28 Netflix commits to CanCon: 1:30 Shoutouts: 28:20

Rose is talking about Bell Canada's suggestion at the NAFTA meeting. Patrick is shouting out the Sphero mini. Finally, Igor's shoutout goes to Sony for their decision to abandon OmniBalance design.

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Patrick was at the Apple keynote recently and had the chance to check out all of Apple's new devices: the iPhone 8, the iPhone 8 Plus, the Apple Watch Series 3 and the Apple TV 4K. He sits down with the team to discuss his thoughts on the new devices and where Apple may be headed.

Two young entrepreneurs in Ottawa found themselves in a bit of hot water recently after taking credit for designing a phone that was actually just a rebranded device purchase from Alibaba. Rose brings us a story about the Frank phone and sheds some light on both sides of the controversy. 

Finally, everyone's favourite part of phone announcements -- the leaks that tend to preempt them. The Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL designs have hit the web in advance of their official unveiling. The Syrupcast crew weighs in on the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL's rumoured new look

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Hosts: Igor Bonifacic, Rose Behar, Patrick O'Rourke and Sameer Chhabra.

Total runtime: 39:59 Apple reviews: 2:40 Frank phone: 9:10 Pixel 2 and Pixel 2XL: 26:55 Shoutouts: 36:04

Sameer's shoutout goes to Daniel Therrien. Rose is talking about the release of the LG V30. Patrick, during the #SwitchMinute, gives a shoutout to golfing on the Switch. Finally, Igor's shoutout goes to Wes Anderson!

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The Apple presentation this week showed off a variety of new devices, including the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, the iPhone X, the Apple watch 3 and a the Apple TV 4K. Both Patrick and Josh were in attendance at the much anticipated event and have plenty of takeaways to share with the SyrupCast crew.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Hosts: Igor Bonifacic, Rose Behar, Patrick O'Rourke and Josh McConnell

Total runtime: 41:16 Apple fall event: 2:00 Shoutouts: 36:46

Josh's shoutout goes to Patxi's Pizza. Rose is talking about Navdeep Bains defending his spectrum advantage for smaller competitors. Patrick, during the #SwitchMinute, gives a shoutout to the Super Mario Odyssey Edition for the Switch. Finally, Igor's shoutout goes to The Current War!

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Apple's iPhone 8 keynote is coming up soon on September 12th, so the team sits down and does their best to predict all the announcements they expect to see at the keynote. It's anticipated that there will be a few new iPhones, a 4K Apple TV set-top box, and possibly a new LTE Apple Watch as well.

This week also marks a SyrupCast milestone -- our first audio listener question! Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Hosts: Igor Bonifacic, Rose Behar, Sameer Chhabra, and Patrick O'Rourke

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 45:00 Apple predictions: 1:30 Listener questions: 27:30 Shoutouts: 40:10

Sameer's shoutout goes to Sabarish Gnanamoorthy. Rose is talking about Harman's CEO throwing shade. Patrick, during the #SwitchMinute, gives a shoutout to his brand new neon yellow joy-cons. Finally, Igor's shoutout goes to Rose because this week is her birthday!

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WWDC this year brought us ARKit from Apple, but there is now another option for developers -- ARCore from Google. As the consumer version of iOS 11 is hitting phones in a few weeks, this arms race is bound to continue heating up.

With the Samsung Note series back in action and the LG V30 recently revealed, the SyrupCast is comparing and contrasting flagship phones. Ted and Patrick were both at the release events and give their thoughts on what both phones have to offer.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Hosts: Igor Bonifacic, Rose Behar, Ted Kritsonis, and Patrick O'Rourke

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 38:48 ARcode vs ARKit: 2:00 V30 vs Note 8: 19:00 Shoutouts: 32:52

Ted's shoutout goes to Houston and all of the efforts going to disaster relief. Rose is talking about Sony and their flagship phone. Patrick, during the #SwitchMinute, gives a shoutout to Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle. Finally, Igor's shoutout goes to Wind River.

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Last year's Note 7 issues are behind us now, but the reminders of Samsung's problems can still be found at airports. The SyrupCast crew is wondering if the release of the Note 8 will be enough to overcome the Note 7's errors.

Additionally, they're pondering how the Note 8 stacks up in comparison to the other smartphone options now. With the Essential phone, Samsung's own Galaxy S8 and S8+ phones, and the pending iPhone 8 launch - competition is fierce.

In other mobile news this week, Roger's has increased the price of their Roam Like Home deal. The option has increased to $6 per day.

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Hosts: Igor Bonifacic, Rose Behar, Ian Hardy and Sameer Chhabra

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 35:38 Note 8: 1:40 Roam like home: 24:47

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Igor recently got his hands on the Essential phone and outlines his first impressions of the device on the podcast. Is it possible for Andy Rubin to break into the already crowded Android market space?

Sameer leads the back half of the podcast with a deep dive discussion on the direction streaming seems to be going. Disney announced last week that it will be pulling content from Netflix to start it's own streaming platform. It isn't the only company with sights set on getting into the streaming game, which has the team wondering -- how many services will we need to buy into to see the content we want to see?

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Total runtime: 31:31 Essential phone, hands on: 2:18 The future of streaming: 19:24 Shoutouts: 29:30

Sameer shouts out Andy Rubin. Dean gives his shoutout to Rose. Rose's shoutout goes to Freedom's super cheap phone plans. Finally, this week Brad shouts out his review of Uncharted: The Lost Legacy.

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Last week, major leaks about the much anticipated iPhone 8 surfaced thanks to Apple's release of HomePod firmware. Contained within the software update were references that gave away some of the secret sauce about updates to the soon-to-come iPhone. Among the biggest spoilers: face unlock using BiometricKit, no more home button, a wrap-around display design, and a tap-to-wake function.

In other smart device news, Fitbit seems to be leaning into the smart watch market. The team discusses what this might look like and wonders, does the world need another smartwatch?

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Today’s podcast is brought to you by Aviva Canada, a leading property and casualty insurance group providing home, automobile, leisure/lifestyle and business insurance to 2.9 million customers. 

Severe weather and natural disasters are on the rise, and Aviva’s Plan & Protect app will help your family prepare for earthquakes, severe wind, winter storms, wildfires, and floods. It tells you what to do before, during and after these events, stores your insurance info and works without Wi-Fi. Download it free from the App Store or Google Play, and Aviva will donate $5 to the Canadian Red Cross.

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This past week, Rose jetted off to the west coast to learn about the ZenFone AR. This ASUS phone is Tengo-enabled and even Google Daydream VR certified. Discussing this new phone gets the team thinking about the future of mobile tech and AR/VR. What does the future hold?

Tune in to hear the SyrupCast team's thoughts.

Do you have questions, comments, thoughts, or anything you would like addressed on the podcast? Send us an email to podcast@mobilesyrup.com. If you're feeling extra adventurous, send us a voice recording of your question or comment and you may end up featured in a future episode!

Hosts: Igor Bonifacic, Rose Behar, Patrick O'Rourke, andTom Emrich

Total runtime: 34:23 Shoutouts: 29:10

Patrick, on the #SwitchMinute, shouts out a long-wanted battery-monitoring fix from Nintendo. Tom gives his shoutout to Neurable and their brain-controlled VR. Rose's shoutout goes to La Machine and their mechanical beasts. Finally, this week Igor shouts out David S and his books on photography.​

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Jessica, news editor at BetaKit, goes first and chooses The Last of Us, Bioshock and Catherine. Dean gives his top three picks to Skyrim, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, and Dishonoured. Brad's selections are Uncharted 2, Mass Effect 2, and Batman: Arkham City. Last, but not least, Igor picks Red Dead Redemption, Dead Space 2, and Assassin's Creed 2.