Mar. 7 & 8, 2026 Show Notes
Time Change / Milano-Cortina Paralympics / Weekend Edition
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Team
Canada
Paralympians!
🎙️ Show airs live
Saturday: 10:05am-Noon PT
🔁 Rebroadcast
Sunday: 1:05pm-3pm on C-FAX
🎧 Podcast
Anytime
Your crew this weekend:
Charles Martin
Guest Co-host
Victoria Mac and iOS Users Group Program Director and London Drugs In-Home Tech
Phone +1-888-718-4598
Join Charles, Aitan and me for the March Victoria Mac and iOS Users Group meeting, on Zoom, at 7pm this coming Wednesday, March 11
If you're not a VMUG member, takje part as our guest using this link…
1) Apple has released bug-fixing 26.3.1 updates for iPhones, iPads, and Macs
The update also includes support for the new Studio Display monitors which Apple has released.
Apple has also released a special update — iOS 18.7.6 — to fix the bugs on three older models of unsupported iPhones: iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR.
2) Watch out for unsolicited text messages about a job involving the buying and selling of stock using cryptocurrency
Nanaimo RCMP are warning about a cryptocurrency scam that cost a victim $5,000, then escalated to a phony attempt to help recover the money.
It began with an unsolicited text message about a job involving the buying and selling of stock using cryptocurrency. The victim was persuaded to deposit $5,000, but then communication stopped.
The person then saw what appeared to be an RCMP‑branded public-service announcement online that encouraged victims to report similar frauds.
After clicking on the link and completing a form, the person received a call from a man who identified himself as “Sam Peterson” and said he was a lawyer with a Toronto firm called HelprPC.
The caller claimed he had located two cryptocurrency wallets in the victim’s name containing approximately $60,000 in supposed profits, and offered to assist in recovering the funds, police said.
The victim became suspicious and confirmed that the caller was not registered with the law society in either B.C. or Ontario.
Police were contacted and found the website provided by the caller to be non-functional.
RCMP do not contact individuals about cryptocurrency accounts, work with private firms to recover lost funds, or request any form of payment to investigate fraud.
3) Watch out for a new round of scam emails claiming you're about to lose photos because your cloud storage subscription has expired
The emails look like this screenshot, and have lots of red and exclamation marks — but don't even say which cloud provider (e.g. iCloud, OneDrive, Google Drive) they're talking about!
If you look closely, you'll see that the emails are coming from gibberish email addresses; this one came from vir20159312.onmicrosoft.com. And if you hold your finger on the "Update Payment Method" button on a ophone ot tablet, or hover your mouse over it on a computer, you'll get a pop-up showing that it'll take you to a fake page at 37-58-63-18.cloud.leaseweb.net where you'll be urged to give your email address. If you do, you'll end up on a fake renewal page 'offering' a three-year renewal for just $25 — a ploy to get your credit card info so they can make purshases on your tab!
NEVER click or tap on links in emails like this!
If your Apple account payment method actually has expired, you'll get a red (1) on the Settings app, and a pop-up which takes you to the Payment page within the Settings, where you can provide your new card #. You can check your payment method status at any time by going to Settings, (your name), Payment & Shipping, and confirm your identity with Face ID, Touch ID, or your Apple ID password.
Tech Deals This Weekend
Best phone plan ever: 250GB/month Canada/USA/Mexico + 50GB/month +120-country "Roam Beyond" for just $40/month
Out of the blue, Freedom Mobile, Canada's 4th national carrier, has launched an amazing flash sale running through the end of business on Monday: 50% off their best plan, and no more one-time international data bucket: the "Roam Beyond" data is now monthly.
For $40/month, you get unlimited Canada/USA/Mexico calling and data-roaming with a whopping 250GB/month of 5G data, plus 50GB/month of "Roam Beyond" calling and data in +120 countries.
The rate is guaranteed as long as you don't change your plan, and its contract-free so you can cancel anytime if your circumstances change.
Perhaps the best part: this offer is available to current Freedom customers too, not just new customers.
If you're a current Freedom Mobile customer, you can can call 611 or you can message them on iMessage or WhatsApp (find the links on their app or website under "Contact us") but be aware that they've been swamped with requests since this offer was released on Friday morning. You can also stop in at a Freedom Mobile store, but expect a lineup!
I visited the Freedom kiosk at Tsawwassen Mills on Friday on my way back from Vancouver, and switched to this plan for my myself, my wife, and our international homestay students, saving a total of $55/month and now we all have a huge amount of data plus "Roam Beyond".
Freedom is also offering 1000 minutes of calling per month to 14 overseas countries as part of this deal.
Telus-owned Koodo has responded to this offer by offering 250GB/month of Canada/USA/Mexico calling and data for $50/month, which is $10/month more, and the Koodo plan does not allow tethering/hotspotting, while the Freedom plan does.
Also, the coverage is better on Freedom, because Freedom customers get to roam seamlessly onto Rogers, Telus, and Bell networks at no cost when beyond the range of a Freedom tower.
The Koodo plan does include 1000 minutes/month of calling to China, Hong Kong, India, Pakistan, Philippines, Taiwan, and the UK.
This special, like Freedom's, is only good till end of business on Monday, March 9.
Loblaw's "PC Mobile" brand is offering 25GB/month for $25/month
Canadian supermarket chain Loblaws wholesales mobile phone service from Bell Mobility, and sells it under the PC Mobile brand at kiosks inside Real Canadian Superstore outlets and also in No Frills and Zehrs supermarkets.
To build some market share, they're offering a 25-for-25 promotion: $25/month gets you unlimited Canada-wide calling and international texting, and 25GB/month of 5G data.
They also have two cheaper plans which provide unlimited Canada-wide calling and texting and slower 4G data: $20/month with 1GB data per month, and $24/month with 4GB data per month.
As a member of the Loblaws family, PC Mobile continues to integrate with the PC Optimum program. Customers can earn up to 10% of their top-up value back in points and are currently eligible for a 20,000-point welcome bonus after two months of service.
Saturday update: Freedom Mobile is now matching, and beating this plan, offering unlimited Canada/USA/Mexico calling and 25GB/month data-roaming and unlimited international texting for $25 a month, when you prepay for six months.
Tech News Of The Week
Items start at #10, so the numbers don't get thrown-off if we add more security items above!
Tip: if an item in these Show Notes has the icon on the right in the upper-right corner, you can click/tap on it to make the additional info open in a new tab.
10) We're "Springing Forward" one hour to Daylight Saving Time — and finally, here BC, it'll be our last time change!
On Saturday night (technically at 2am on Sunday), our clocks will skip forward one hour as we change to Pacific Daylight Time…but after years of waiting for the US Congress to approve legislation ending time-changes, here in BC, that'll be the last time change. (Saskatchewan doesn't change.)
In the fall, when most other provinces and US states fall back to Standard time, here in BC we won't; we'll stay on what will now simply be called Pacific Time.
Smartphones, computers,TV's, and other internet-connected devices will also change automatically; you'll likely only have to manually change the time on ovens, clocks, and other devices not connected to the internet.
If you want to make sure they have the precise correct time, you can use the free Atomic Clock app, or go to Time.is.
If you have family or friends in other parts of the world, note that other countries change to Daylight time on different dates:
- most of Europe springs forward on the last Sunday in March, so March 29 this year
- Mexico stays on Standard time (has since 2022) except for Mexican states adjacent to the USA; Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, and Tamaulipas change this weekend.
- In New Zealand and Australia where seasons are reversed, they switch back to Standard time on the first Sunday in April, so April 5 this year. Australia has three time zones when they're on Standard time, but five time zones during DT, with two of them half-an-hour off! (More here)
- Chile switches back to Standard time one day earlier, on the first Saturday in April, so April 4.
- Israel switches to DT on the Friday before the last Sunday in March, so March 27 this year
- Egypt switches to DT on the last Friday in April, so April 24 this year
- Lebanon switches to DT on the last Sunday in March, so March 29 this year
- Iran switches to DT on Nowruz on the Persian calendar, so March 21 this year
Times Colonist
B.C.'s premier is celebrating the move to permanent daylight time. Others aren't so sure
Critics of the change argue that it’s not in sync with the Pacific states in the U.S., it’s bad for sleep patterns, and it will be more dangerous for kids walking and riding their bikes to school and pedestrians crossing roads in the dark.
11) Apple this week unveiled five new and updated products:
11a) Apple has released a new entry-level phone, the iPhone 17e
The successor to the iPhone 16e has a more-powerful processor which can run Apple Intelligence, twice the storage (256GB), and MagSafe charging — but will retain the same $899 CAD price.
The iPhone 17e sports the company’s A19 chipset and the new C1X cellular modem designed by Apple. The handset also features a 48MP Fusion camera with 2x optical-quality telephoto. The 17e records video in 4K with Dolby Vision up to 60fps and records video in Spatial Audio for immersive listening.
Pre-orders are available now; carriers and stores will have the iPhone 17e starting next Wednesday, March 11. So far, Freedom Mobile has the best price: $20/month for the phone on a $40/month plan that gives you $250GB/month of Canada/USA/Mexico calling and data-roaming plus 50GB/month of calling and dat-roaming in +120 countries…
11b) Apple has released a $799 CAD MacBook neo
In an effort to attract people unwilling to shell out big bucks for a traditional MacBook, Apple has released an entry-level MacBook neo, which cuts corners in ways that Apple is hoping most users won't notice.
To get it down to the $799 CAD starting price, Apple has powered the new 13" budget MacBook with an A18 Pro chip, the one found in last year's iPhone 16 Pro. The A18 Pro features an integrated five-core GPU, and the Neo is fanless for silent operation. Apple claims it’s 50% faster “for everyday tasks” than “the bestselling PC with the latest shipping Intel Core Ultra 5.” Apple has also swapped the high-tech haptic trackpad for a traditional physical trackpad to save on costs. You also won’t find a MagSafe charging port. Instead, the Neo has two USB-C ports for both power and accessories.
The MacBook neo comes with 8GB of RAM instead of the 16GB found in other MacBooks, and slower 256GB SSD's. (You can upgrade to a 512GB SSD and also get Touch ID for an extra $200). The MacBook neo also skips Apple's new N1 networking chip in favour of Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 6.
The MacBook Neo is available for pre-order now, with full availability starting March 11.
If you're a student or involved in education you can buy a MacBook Neo for just $679 CAD.
11c) Apple has released super-fast M5-family MacBook Pro models
At the other end of the performance scale,Apple has released new MacBook Pro's powered by Apple's new family of blazing-fast M5 processors — the M5, M5 Pro, And M5 Max.
Calling them their most advanced series of chips ever built for a pro laptop, Apple says each chip in the M5 family delivers phenomenal single- and multithreaded CPU performance and faster unified memory — giving you the kind of speed you’ve never thought possible. The SSD storage is up to twice as fast as before, and with powerful Neural Accelerators, Apple says ytou can expect to fly through AI tasks at mind-bending speeds…
The new MacBook Pro models come in both 14" and 16" screen sizes, and are not cheap; the 14" M5 model starts at $2399 CAD and top out at more than $4400 CAD. If you opt for the M5 Pro processor, prices range from $2789 CAD to $5441, while the M5 Max models start at $ 4579 CAD and range up to $9236. 16" models start at $3320 CAD and can be configured up to more than $12,000.
The new MacBook Pro models are available for pre-order now, with full availability starting March 11.
11d) Apple has new M5 MacBook Air models that start at $1499 CAD
In the middle in terms of performance and price, Apple has unveiled the powerful new M5-family of MacBook Air models, which come in both 13" and 15" sizes…
Apple says the new M5 MacBook Air models are noticably faster than ther predecessors…
MacBook AirM5 has up to 18 hours of battery life, and it supports fast charging, getting up to 50% in just 30 minutes. It's remarkably light at just 2.7 pounds, and less than half an inch thin.
Prices start at $1499 CAD for the 13" model and $1659 for the 15" model, which gets you 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SDD. If you want more processing cores, RAM, and storage, you can spend up to $3903.
The new M5 MacBook Air models are available for pre-order now, and should hit stores March 11.
11e) Apple skips updating its base-model iPad but releases new iPad Air models that start at $729
Apple's new iPad Air models are powered by last year's M4 MacBook chip, so they're amazingly-fast.
Apple says the M4 chip has 50% more unified system memory which elevates performance, making it an AI powerhouse, enabling the AI features and capabilities you use every day to get things done faster, effortlessly.
And the GPU architecture delivers even more fluid advanced graphics whether you’re working, streaming, creating or gaming.
All with amazing efficiency for all‑day battery life.
The ne iPad Air's come in two sizes, 11" and 13", and start at 128GB storage. The base 11" model is $729 CAD while the 13" model starts at $1029 CAD; you can spend up to $1669 for more storage.
12) "Nearby Glasses" Android app can let you know if anyone near you is using smart glasses to record you
One of the chief problems with “luxury surveillance” devices, like smart glasses with baked-in video recording cameras, is that they often look indistinguishable from regular eyewear, meaning you might be recorded without knowing it.
But now there's a free Android app that can detect and alert you when someone nearby is wearing smart glasses, or potentially other always-recording tech.
The app, aptly named Nearby Glasses, constantly scans for nearby signals that emit from Bluetooth-enabled tech, such as wearable devices made by Meta (and Oakley) and Snap.
Get the free "Nearby Glasses" Android app here
Yves Jeanrenaud, who made the app, says he was in part inspired to make Nearby Glasses after reading the independent publication’s reporting into wearable surveillance devices, including how Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses have been used in immigration raids and to film and harass sex workers.
13) Bell announces 5G+ Advanced, paving the way for 6G
Bell (our parent company) has announced 5G+ Advanced, the company’s fastest network yet, which the telecom says will pave the way for 6G.
Bell’s 5G+ Advanced delivers lower latency and sports theoretical speeds that can reach 4.3Gbps.
Bell says that its 5G+ Advanced network is already live across the Greater Toronto and Hamilton areas, using the 3,800MHz spectrum which Bell activated back in December.
This technology is only available on certain devices:
- Apple: iPhone 17e, iPhone 17 series, 16 series
- Samsung: Galaxy S25, S24 series; Flip and Fold 7, Flip and Fold 6
- Google: Pixel 9 and 10 series
Interestingly, the upcoming Galaxy S26 series isn’t on this list of devices.
Bell says it palns to expand the availability of 5G+ Advanced across Canada in the months ahead.
14) Telus is going to launch satellite-to-phone service this year via partnership with AST SpaceMobile
Telus and Texas-based AST SpaceMobile, a company that’s building a space-based cellular broadband network accessible by everyday smartphones, are working together to bring space-based cellular activity to its customers.
As part of the agreement, Telus has agreed to invest in ground-based satellite infrastructure and has become an equity shareholder in AST SpaceMobile. Starting later this year, Telus customers will be able to send texts, make calls, and use data in remote locations via satellite connectivity.
AST SpaceMobile is using a Low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation and offers the largest commercial phase arrays ever developed.
AST says it has made deals with 50+ mobile operators around the world (including Bell as well as Telus here in Canada) representing nearly three billion subscribers worldwide.
Rogers already uses satellite-to-mobile, in beta mode currently, but it uses SpaceX’s Starlink.
iPhone users can send texts free via satellite through an Apple partnership with GlobalStar.
16) Jump+ opens its "Apple Premium Partner" store at Mayfair Centre here in Victoria
Jump+ is a Canadian-owned company that is targeting cities that don't have an Apple store.
They are Canada's only "Apple Premium Partner", which is the highest tier of Apple‑authorized retail outside Apple’s own stores.
Their new store in Mayfair Centre (near SportsChek) is having its grand opening this weekend; the chain now has stores in Calgary and Edmonton, a bunch in Ontario, and in Fredricton & Moncton in New Brunswick, and in St. John's in Newfoundland & Labrador.
Jump+ offers one service that London Drugs and other Apple Authorized Service Centres do not: you can pay $90 extra to get same-day Express Service on a Mac computer…
Jump+ also sells the full line of Apple products, including iPhones with activations on all the major carriers. Their website is JumpPlus.com.
17) Apple Music now flags AI-generated music with new tags
Apple Music is set to start rolling out its new “Transparency Tag” system, a new metadata system that gives labels and distributors the ability to mark when AI was used in a release.
The new system covers four parts, including track, composition, artwork, and music video. This is not an automatic feature, and Apple is asking labels and distributors to declare the use of AI themselves. Meaning that, if a label does not tag it, it could very well appear as a normal human-made track that leaves room for content to slip through untagged.
Apple's approach contrasts with the route taken by competitors like Deezer, which has built its own detection infrastructure to independently identify AI-generated tracks, but it's not 100% accurate.
Deezer reports that it receives more than 60,000 fully AI-generated tracks per day, with synthetic content now accounting for roughly 39% of all music delivered to the platform. Up to 85% of streams on AI-generated music were fraudulent in 2025, according to Deezer's data.
With Apple's tags, there isn't a visible enforcement or cross-verification process in place. The system is completely voluntary, or at least it is for now. Whether labels and distributors will actually use it remains to be seen.
MacRumors
Apple Music Rolling Out Disclosure Tags for AI-Made Songs
Apple Music is rolling out a new metadata system called Transparency Tags, which indicates when AI has been used in the creation of music hosted on the platform. According to Music Business Worldwide, Apple sent a newsletter to industry partners on Wednesday to explain how it will roll out the new set of metadata. The system covers four categories including artwork, track, composition (lyrics), and music video. Labels and distributors can begin applying the tags immediately.
20) Bell announces 5G+ Advanced, paving the way for 6G
Bell (our parent company) has announced 5G+ Advanced, the company’s fastest network yet, which the telecom says will pave the way for 6G.
Bell’s 5G+ Advanced delivers lower latency and sports theoretical speeds that can reach 4.3Gbps.
Bell says that its 5G+ Advanced network is already live across the Greater Toronto and Hamilton areas, using the 3,800MHz spectrum which Bell activated back in December.
This technology is only available on certain devices:
- Apple: iPhone 17e, iPhone 17 series, 16 series
- Samsung: Galaxy S25, S24 series; Flip and Fold 7, Flip and Fold 6
- Google: Pixel 9 and 10 series
Interestingly, the upcoming Galaxy S26 series isn’t on this list of devices.
Bell says it palns to expand the availability of 5G+ Advanced across Canada in the months ahead.
23) We've also started compiling a list of our favourite phone apps
The "Our Favourite Apps" list — which will have a lot more added in the coming weeks — is on our home page, and you can also get to it by going to Tech-Talk.ca/apps.
24) Kathryn's Paleontology News Item of the Week: paleontologists have found a dinosaur ‘Rosetta Stone’ hidden for 90 million years
A 90-million-year-old fossil unearthed in Patagonia in Argentina is helping scientists rewrite the evolutionary history of a group of peculiar bird-like dinosaurs – and settle a long-running debate about how they spread across the ancient world.
The fossil, described in Nature, belongs to Alnashetri cerropoliciensis, a member of the alvarezsaurs: small dinosaurs notorious for their tiny teeth and stubby arms ending in a single large thumb claw.
Most well-preserved alvarezsaur fossils have been found in Asia, making their presence in South America difficult to explain, given the oceans separating the two landmasses.
The near-complete skeleton – recovered from the La Buitrera fossil area in northern Patagonia, a site also known for primitive snakes and tiny sabre-toothed mammals – has proven unusually revealing.
“Going from fragmentary skeletons that are hard to interpret, to having a near complete and articulated animal is like finding a paleontological Rosetta Stone,” said lead author Peter Makovicky, a professor at the University of Minnesota.
…and finally, our "Sign Of The Week"…
And so it goes…