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Hardware microphone disconnect (2021)

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Re: Hardware microphone disconnect (2021)

#331

Post by sneak »

AlbertCory wrote: post #265

(this is about phones as well as laptops) Not only HW disconnect of the mic, but the speakers as well. I want a switch on the side that does the equivalent of taping over the camera. No software can use them when they're off, period. Take back your privacy.

What privacy is lost by someone using your front-facing camera when you don't want them to?

The microphone is far more important.

Pictures of your face are simple and easy to acquire; you give them up willingly every time you walk into a convenience store, airport, bank, or use an ATM. They're not secret and their compromise does not harm you.

Re: Hardware microphone disconnect (2021)

#332

Post by AlbertCory »

sneak wrote: post #331
AlbertCory wrote: post #265

(this is about phones as well as laptops) Not only HW disconnect of the mic, but the speakers as well. I want a switch on the side that does the equivalent of taping over the camera. No software can use them when they're off, period. Take back your privacy.

What privacy is lost by someone using your front-facing camera when you don't want them to? The microphone is far more important. Pictures of your face are simple and easy to acquire; you give them up willingly every time you walk into a convenience store, airport, bank, or use an ATM. They're not secret and their compromise does not harm you.

Is this a serious question? Who is "someone"?

Re: Hardware microphone disconnect (2021)

#333

Post by Gigachad »

notfed wrote: post #201
pulse7 wrote: post #176

Please, just add a physical switch to disconnect the microphone and camera and even battery! Why the hell do we need special chips to do this? Every chip can be hacked... internet hackers can't turn on physical switches...

Is closing the lid the only way to do this? I never use my camera or mic. I'd be happy opening my laptop and switching a dip switch. Does one exist? Does anyone know?

On macOS you could just never grant access to the mic when apps ask.

Re: Hardware microphone disconnect (2021)

#334

Post by makeitdouble »

taneq wrote: post #316
georgelyon wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've long desired form my AirPods to operate in a "play any sound from any of my devices" mode. This seems like a no-brainer and such phantom connections would as a result have no user-visible impact and you could do things like listen to music coming from your phone while hearing sounds from your MacBook.

Such an obvious feature… you would think! Apparently it’s not that easy, though, because nobody seems able to do it.

The more I think about it, the more complex it sounds to me ....

Let's say you're listening to a Youtube MV on your computer while cleaning the dishes. A Skype call comes on your phone, and you take it.

- Do you still hear the youtube sound in the background ?

- What does the play/pause button do on your earbuds ? Or the volume button ? Which source does it act on ?

- An alarm starts on your iPad somewhere in the house, how do you stop it ? Do you keep getting the sound until you physically find the device and act on it ?

And that's just 2 min of thinking about it. Not saying it can't be done, just that you'd need to deal with all the edge cases as well. Auto switching sources is annoying (I personally disabled it when I had airpods, and don't use it on any headset), but I think having all sources active at all time could be as annoying, or worse. If Apple couldn't solve auto-switching, I wouldn't be holding my breath for them to solve the all-devices at the same times edge cases.

Re: Hardware microphone disconnect (2021)

#335

Post by SamuelAdams »

zamnos wrote: post #123
rpledge wrote: post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apples clamshell mode support is super confusing IMHO. This is once thing Windows does better at least by default. Perhaps Macs can be configured to what I expect but I personally have struggled with getting it to work in a way that satisfies me.

For those of us without both in our lives, can you be more specific on the differences that makes Window's system better?

Sure, so I primarily use Macbook Pro's that companies provide me. I work from home and use USB-C docks to connect the Macs to external displays, keyboards, and networking.

In general, Windows 10 computers work on boot in clamshell mode. Drivers load, external USB devices are useful, displays work.

On Apple devices, corporations *must* enable FileVault, a full disk encryption utility, to meet some compliance standards. The problem is that Apple really locked this down, even to USB-C docks. My docks use the Display Link driver to load the screens, so as a result I need to physically open the laptop every day, use the laptop keyboard to enter my password, wait for the login process to complete, then close the laptop and connect the dock.

It would be very nice if they could allow some drivers to be whitelisted, or even make an "official" apple dock with full FileVault support.

I suppose I could use a Mac Studio or Mini, but corporations seem dead set on providing laptops to employees.

Other than that I would say Windows generally handles scaling better, but this is an area that the latest OS (Ventura) really improved. Macs today are much better at scaling and switching displays than in the past.

Re: Hardware microphone disconnect (2021)

#336

Post by SamuelAdams »

edgartaor wrote: post #294
Reptur wrote: post #144

Should just be a hardware switch you can flip. We should be able to decide whether the webcam or mic is physically connected.

Exactly. Its like companies are allergic to phisical switches.

Everything has a cost. Physical switches that are frequently used are among the first to fail. This is partly why iPhones got rid of the home button in lieu of Face ID. Now, macbooks automatically start up when the lid is opened - this saves an extra button press to the power button. Over the lifespan of the device this reduces wear and tear on common buttons significantly.

What would be nice is physical switches that are easily replaceable - but this also impacts a device's water-proofness and thinness. And the market prefers those two factors over switches, generally.

Re: Hardware microphone disconnect (2021)

#337

Post by madeofpalk »

SamuelAdams wrote: post #336
edgartaor wrote: post #294

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Exactly. Its like companies are allergic to phisical switches.

Everything has a cost. Physical switches that are frequently used are among the first to fail. This is partly why iPhones got rid of the home button in lieu of Face ID. Now, macbooks automatically start up when the lid is opened - this saves an extra button press to the power button. Over the lifespan of the device this reduces wear and tear on common buttons significantly. What would be nice is physical switches tha…

> This is partly why iPhones got rid of the home button in lieu of Face ID

Home button went non-mechanical the year before Face ID was introduced FWIW.

Re: Hardware microphone disconnect (2021)

#338

Post by zamnos »

hamburglar wrote: post #172
zamnos wrote: post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Umm, your children's accounts are on children accounts and not literally your account though, right? Because that could cause problems down the line. https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/set-up-a-childs-devic...

“Ummm” aside, this is not at all obvious. I have an iPad from before I had kids. When setting it up, I was asked to enter my Apple ID, so I did. Then came kids and a new use for this iPad, and a second iPad, which obviously needed the same apps, and a third. No, it never occurred to me to set up appleids specifically for toddlers. It did eventually prompt me to set up a new “iPads” appleid when I switched from androi…

"Umm aside" not-aside, I'm sorry for triggering you. it's too late for me to edit my comment and take that out but I would if I could. So this may not be obvious to you, but what's obvious to someone isn't necessarily obvious to other people, and vice versa. In any case, I can see why creating a separate account if you only have toddlers seems too onerous. Don't worry though, they'll become teenagers who want (and deserve) the autonomy and agency of having their own account before you know it, even if sharing your photos to their idevice wasn't enough to motivate you. Separate accounts seems the most reasonably way do implement a shared but-not-system to preserve privacy, a favorite reason Apple cites as their reason for doing things. I'm not sure how else Apple could do a shared system for teens.

I think there's a hack involving getting a cheap phone number for each toddler, adding that to iCloud, then disabling message delivery to that number but I haven't tested it.

Re: Hardware microphone disconnect (2021)

#339

Post by zamnos »

cortesoft wrote: post #174
zamnos wrote: post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Umm, your children's accounts are on children accounts and not literally your account though, right? Because that could cause problems down the line. https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/set-up-a-childs-devic...

Not sure if you have kids, but the devices didn’t start out as being theirs. It was my iPad, they started using it more as they got older, and eventually I got a new one for me. I should set it up properly, but it happened gradually and I have not gotten around to changing it… and now all the apps and accounts and settings are tied to my Apple ID.

The more important question is how old are yours? Toddlers can't read so much, so it's easier to understand not making them their own accounts it a priority. On the other hand, if they're teenagers, seeing private texts between their parents could be deleterious to their mental health. Still, they're not getting younger. The only way out involves some level of pain, but the sooner they get their own accounts, the less pain there will be.

Re: Hardware microphone disconnect (2021)

#340

Post by zamnos »

SamuelAdams wrote: post #335
zamnos wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For those of us without both in our lives, can you be more specific on the differences that makes Window's system better?

Sure, so I primarily use Macbook Pro's that companies provide me. I work from home and use USB-C docks to connect the Macs to external displays, keyboards, and networking. In general, Windows 10 computers work on boot in clamshell mode. Drivers load, external USB devices are useful, displays work. On Apple devices, corporations *must* enable FileVault, a full disk encryption utility, to meet some compliance standards…

Thanks for responding. Even if you don't deal with PII datasets, I sure hope your windows laptop is also encrypted at rest.

Just fyi, at least on my M1 MacBook, a regular, non-Displaylink (ie HDMI or Display Port connection) doesny require opening the laptop to login, even using an Bluetooth keyboard. I'm sure there's a usb-c hub that's your preferred form factor if you don't like the dongle-style breakout boxes.

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