Weeknote: 18 May 2025 – dumb phones, rubbish AI and really good Lego

You don’t need a dumb phone. My column for Stuff this week explores simplifying your smartphone setup, but not binning it in favour of a device that will just lead to regret. And I get to gripe about Photoshop sending me a notification for no good reason. Companies, please stop doing that!
Think different about Home Screens is a kind of companion piece, over at TapSmart. It looks at the specifics of how I changed my iPhone setup, and also how I’ve largely ditched the icon grid across all my Apple devices.
Netflix will start showing GenAI ads in 2026. That’ll teach me a lesson for saying nice things about the company’s AI plans (vs Meta’s slop) in last week’s Stuff column. I won’t make that mistake again, Netflix.
Speaking of AI, tech bro entitlement is infecting everything through their GenAI inventions. At least, that’s my current frame of mind in a blog post based on a thread I posted on social media this past week.
The best Photoshop alternatives for iPhone (and iPad)is my other TapSmart piece this week. I wrote last month about how oddly redundant Photoshop for iPhone feels. This round-up looks at what it does well, where it falls short, and other apps you might try instead.
My upcoming Lego round-up received updates, with spots for new Pixar Luxo Jr., Sherlock Holmes and Batman Forever sets, and more.