What’s the deal with super shoes? Are CDs officially back? And why is Snoopy, everyone’s favorite cartoon beagle, always showing up on watches?

Come find out on Know Your Stuff, a new podcast miniseries from our team of product experts.

Over the course of eight episodes, our crew will unbox a wide range of trends changing the face of consumer culture through a series of informative, and deeply nerdy, conversations.

We hope you enjoy it and look forward to hearing about ways to improve or new topics to cover. As always, thanks for supporting our work.

Genuinely–we want to hear from you. Email us at podcast@gearpatrol.com with all your thoughts, questions, and suggestions, and we'll do our damndest to make it happen.

Google Home updates cause (figurative) nightmares, Lamborghini is making an off-road Huracan, and Microsoft buys Activision Blizzard for almost $70 billion.

Navigation:

05:24 – Google Home's White Noise Update Wreaks Havoc

16:54 – Lamborghini Takes the Huracan Off-Road

27:15 – Microsoft Buys Activision Blizzard

39:53 – Our Favorite New Gear Releases

Featured and Related:

• Google fixes issue with the Assistant's white noise sound that had sparked user outcry – The Verge
• Solved: Re: White Noise ambient sound has changed, is ther... - Google Nest Community
• People are losing sleep after Google replaced the 'white noise' sound on Nest speakers – Engadget
• Google Faces Backlash After Changing White Noise Ambient Sound – PCMAG
• Google Assistant Changed Its White Noise Sound and People Are Pissed [Update – Gizmodo
• Google Home, Nest Hub white noise ambient sound changes – 9to5Google
• Lamborghini's Wild Off-Road Huracan Seems Bound for Production – Gear Patrol
• Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato Spied As All-Terrain Supercar – Motor1
• Lamborghini Turned Its Best Sports Car Into an Off-Roader – Gear Patrol
• Now That We've Driven the Lamborghini Huracán Sterrato, Will It Be Built? – Motor Trend
• Lamborghini Huracan Tecnica and Sterrato trademarks hint at send-off specials – The Drive
• Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato Spied As All-Terrain Supercar – Motor1
• Is Porsche Secretly Working on an Off-Road 911? – Gear Patrol
• Microsoft is buying Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion – Engadget
• It’s Not Complicated. Microsoft Wants Activision for Its Games. – The New York Times
   
• Is Microsoft building a gaming monopoly? – The Verge
• Microsoft is buying one of the biggest names in games – Vox
• Japanese Internet Reacts To Microsoft's $70 Billion Proposal To Buy Activision – Kotaku
• A guide to Microsoft's Xbox game studios empire – The Verge
• Microsoft deal to deliver $390 million payday for Activision's embattled CEO – CNN
• GameStop stock sinks toward 11-month low as Microsoft-Activision merger poses 'walled garden' risk – MarketWatch

Which automakers produce the most vegan-friendly cars, a machine that projects aromas like speakers throw sound, and how COVID changed our shopping habits.

Navigation:

03:23 – Vegan-Friendly Cars: Which Brand Offers the Most Overall?
 

20:00 – What the Hell Is a Smell Speaker?
 

29:20 – COVID's Effect on Our Shopping Trends
 

Featured and Related:

• Study Finds Out Which Are The Most Vegan-Friendly Automakers – CarScoops
• Vegan Friendly Cars (original study post) – Dick Lovett
• Vegan cars: how veganism and sustainability shape the latest models – Auto Express
• Soft, warm and vegan-friendly, Volvo cars go leather-free – Reuters
• The Complete Vegan Guide to Buying a Car – LiveKindly
• Leather-Free Car Interiors Are Here, Thanks to PETA – PETA
• Cruelty-Free Cars: A Guide to Making Vegan Car Choices – VEGWORLD Magazine
• PETA and the Secret History of Vegan Leather Car Interiors – CleanTechnica
• Skoda Could Use Biological Raw Materials In Its Vehicles' Interiors – CarScoops
• Devon Turnbull: Old School Hi-fi Influencer - Resistor Magazine |
• Devon Turnbull talks Ojas speakers with Steve Guttenberg the Audiophiliac | In Sheeps Clothing
• The New Normal – Schema Design, Google Trends, and Axios
• Today in Gear: 5 Products to Know Every Day – Gear Patrol
• Garmin vívomove Hybrid Smartwatch ($180+)
• Diemme x Hiking Patrol: Roccia Vet Orange Cordura ($445)
• Hiking Patrol on Instagram
• The Leica M11: A Masterclass of Digital Photography — And Restraint – Gear Patrol
• Incense Holder – Craighill ($18)

It's no surprise that Gear Patrol fans have great taste and lofty product resolutions for 2022. Also in this episode: F-150 Lightning popularity and the Library of Pursuits.

Navigation:

Featured and Related:

• Ford's F-150 Lightning Electric Truck Is Shaping Up to Be Insanely Successful – Gear Patrol
• 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning Markups Surprising Some Reservation Holders – Ford Authority
• Meet the All-New, All-Electric 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV – Gear Patrol
• The Four Biggest Myths of the US Economy - Plain English with Derek Thompson – The Ringer
• Tesla Removes 2022 Cybertruck Production Date From Its Site – The Drive
• Four Fitness Myths You Should Avoid in 2022 – Gear Patrol
• Library of Pursuits: Sign up for GP Email Courses – Gear Patrol
• 5 Haircare Resolutions to Make in 2022 – Gear Patrol
• 5 Tech Resolutions to Tackle in 2022 – Gear Patrol
• 10 Watches We Hope to See in 2022 – Gear Patrol

Electrification, memeification and sustainability take top prize.

Featured and Related:

• This Year in Gear: the Most Notable Releases of 2021 – Gear Patrol
• Gear Patrol (@gearpatrol) Instagram – Gear Patrol Reels + Reviews of TikTok Products
• The 19 Coolest Electric Vehicles We Saw in 2021 – Gear Patrol
• All the Coolest Weed Gear That Came Out in 2021 – Gear Patrol
• Looking Back on 2020 and Forward to 2021 – Psychology Today
• COVID economy in the United States – McKinsey
• Sensibill's Barcode Report Recaps 2021 Spending Trends – Business Wire
• Powerful Consumer Trends To Watch In 2021 – Forbes
• Fairtrade America Reveals Top Consumer Trends for 2022 – Yahoo! Finance
• The 7 Biggest Consumer Technology Trends In 2022 – Forbes

Matter claims to weave together all your disparate smart home devices, Loro Piana is tracking wool origins, and John Mayer's second G-Shock collab drops.

Episode Navigation:

04:50 – Matter and the promise of a unified Smart Home

22:10 – Loro Piana customers can track its wool origins

34:49 – John Mayer x Hodinkee x Casio G-Shock = a very desirable, approachable collab

Featured and Related: 

• Gear Patrol's Best Gifts 2021 — Ideas for Christmas, Birthdays & More
• Apple, Google, and Amazon have teamed up to fix the smart home with a new standard called Matter – The Verge
• Here's how Amazon, Google, Apple, and Samsung plan to work with Matter (with podcast) – The Verge
• Situation: there are too many competing smart home standards – The Verge
• Matter homepage
• Apple, Google, and Amazon are teaming up to develop an open-source smart home standard (2019) – The Verge
• Do You Know Where Your Sweater Came From? – The New York Times
• Traceable Cashmere: Discover Which Mongolian Goat Your Sweater Came From – Forbes
• Nature Elevated – Sheep Inc ("naturally carbon negative knitwear") – Sheep Inc
• Blockchain-Powered App Helps Mongolian Herders Trace Cashmere – Cointelegraph
• John Mayer and G-Shock are Back at it with the Latest Hodinkee Limited Edition – Worn & Wound
• Introducing: The Casio G-SHOCK Ref. 6900-PT80 By John Mayer – HODINKEE
• John Mayer Is Back With Another G-Shock Collab – GQ
• G-SHOCK Limited Edition DW6900JM21-7 Men's Watch (sold out)

The winners of this year's GP100 include the 2021 Game Changers: products that represent a massive shift in their respective categories.

Episode Navigation:

00:00 – What Is a Game Changer?

06:41 – I/O MAG Imprint 3D Goggle from Smith

13:15 – Whoop Any-Wear

19:15 – KYX Sneaker Rental

27:46 – Bose SoundControl Hearing Aids

37:47 – Dyson V15 Detect

44:32 – Fellow Drops

51:55 – Apple MacBook Pros

57:50 – Syng Cell Alpha Speaker

1:04:11 – Rivian R1T

1:11:11 – Bremont ENG300 Movement

Featured and Related:

• The 2021 GP100
• The 10 Best New Tech Products of the Year
• The 10 Best New Audio Products of the Year
• The 10 Best New Home Products of the Year
• The 10 Best New Food & Drink Products of the Year
• The 10 Best New Wellness Products of the Year
• The 10 Best New Style Products of the Year
• The 10 Best Fitness Products of 2022
• The 10 Best Outdoor Products of 2022

Virgil Abloh's legacy, BMW's questionable new SUV, and LEGO makes.... wooden shelves?

Episode Navigation:

02:36 – Virgil Abloh's Legacy

20:14 – BMW's New XM Concept Design Is Questionable

33:52 – LEGO Makes Home Furnishings Now
 

Featured and Related:

• Virgil Abloh, Path-Blazing Designer, Is Dead at 41 – New York Times
• Virgil Abloh Fans Build Altar at Off-White Store – New York Times
• Virgil Abloh's Life Celebrated In Louis Vuitton Runway Show – Vulture
• Louis Vuitton Unveils Virgil Abloh Statue at SS22 Miami Presentation – Hypebeast
• Into the Sky Above: Virgil Abloh Stages His Last Show for Louis Vuitton – Vogue
• Remembering Virgil Abloh, Hip-Hop's Designer – Pitchfork
• Virgil Abloh's Death: Reactions From Kanye West, BTS, Gucci – HighSnobiety
• No One Loved Virgil Abloh More Than His Critics – Rolling Stone
• project MAYBACH with virgil abloh: mercedes-benz unveils electric car as tribute to late designer – Design Boom
• BMW Unveils the Insane-Looking XM Performance SUV – Gear Patrol
• M1 Successor? BMW Previews 750-Horsepower XM Hybrid Concept – The Truth About Cars
• BMW shows off its new XM hybrid concept vehicle – The Verge
• BMW combines M legacy and rock star aesthetic into a quick V8 hybrid SUV – TechCrunch
• BMW’s 750-HP Concept XM Revealed And It's Even Scarier Than We Imagined | Carscoops – discussion via r/cars
• "Did BMS's Newest Car Design Just Leak?" – GP Instagram
• LEGO Rolls Out a Collection of Wooden Home Accessories – Design Milk
• Fill Your Home With Stackable Life-Size LEGO Furniture – Nerdist
• LEGO Wooden Home Accessories Collection Launches - LEGO Bricks – House Beautiful
• Book the ‘Home Alone’ House for One Night — Tarantulas and Booby Traps Included – Rolling Stone
• This 3,955-Piece ‘Home Alone’ LEGO Set Doubles as an Advent Calendar – My Modern Met

Continuous Liquid Interface Production is the next generation of 3D printing, and is equal parts SciFi and magic.

Featured and Related:
 

• How 3D Printing Could Change the Future of Gear – Gear Patrol
• The Promise of 3D Printing Fulfilled | Carbon (Home Page)
• Joseph DeSimone: What if 3D printing was 100x faster? (video) – TED
• The Gear Patrol Magazine Subscription • Gear Patrol Store
• Today in Gear – GP's Daily Gear News Column
• Sign Up for the Gear Patrol Dispatch Newsletter and Never Miss a Story – Gear Patrol
• Fast Company's 2020 Innovation by Design Awards – Fast Company
• adidas 4DFWD 3D Printed Running Shoes ($200)
• NHL Will Now Use 3D Printed Helmets, Thanks to Carbon and CCM – 3dprint.com

Have we passed the "EV inflection point?" Will the coffee bean crisis kill your caffeine supply? Who is Netflix Games made for?

Episode Navigation:

03:06 – Ford F-150 Lightning: Are We Long-Last at an "EV Inflection Point"?

17:13 – The Coffee Bean Crisis: Why Cups of Joe Could Cost $20 Soon
 

37:08 – Netflix Games: Will Hardcore Gamers Go For It?
 

Featured and Related:

• Today In Gear – Gear Patrol
• Subscribe to the Gear Patrol Dispatch and Never Miss a Story
• Tudor's Pelagos FXD Marine Nationale ($3,900)
• Jack Daniel's Coy Hill High Proof
• ZipCharge EV Power Bank
• Consumer Reports Survey Shows Strong Interest in Electric Cars – Consumer Reports
• Most Ford F-150 Lightning Customers Will Be New To The Brand And EVs – CarScoops
• International Survey Measures Consumers’ EV Concerns – Wards Auto
• Today’s electric vehicle market: Slow growth in U.S., faster in China, Europe – Pew
• Driving toward an electric future – Business North
• New Research Shows Wireless Charging Could Accelerate Wide Scale Adoption of Electric Vehicles – Valdosta Daily Times
• Coffee as we know it is in danger. Can we breed a better cup? – Vox
• Rare Wild Coffee Species Has Arabica-Like Flavor, Greater Tolerance to Higher Temperatures – Sci News
• Heinz debuts 'Marz' Edition ketchup made with tomatoes grown in Mars conditions – Space
• New Heinz Marz Edition ketchup has implications that go far beyond flavor – CNN
• Here's why there's a coffee shortage around the world right now – Tom's Guide
• Your Coffee Is Getting More Expensive Due to Bad Weather in Brazil (video) – WSJ
• Why Brazil's Severe Weather May Lead to a Price Increase at Your Local Starbucks – Market Realist
• Climate change will impact food crops by end of the decade, NASA says – Space
• Arabica-like flavour in a heat-tolerant wild coffee species – Nature
• Global Climate Change Impact on Crops Expected Within 10 Years, NASA Study Finds – NASA
• Crops have a “drought memory” that prepares them for tough times – earth.com
• Netflix Games is available on your iPhone and iPad – The Verge
• All the news about Netflix’s gaming efforts – The Verge
• Let the Games Begin: A New Way to Experience Entertainment on Mobile – Netflix
• Fights, camera, action: the beginner's guide to streaming video games – The Guardian
• Twitch and Beyond: The Best Video Game Live Streaming Services for 2021 – PC Mag

• Men's Footwear Essentials
• Pants, Shorts and Sweats to Build Your Wardrobe
• The 8 Types of Tops You Should Own
• Accessories to Add Interest to Your Outfits

The Winter Gear Awards, Land Rover redesigns the Range Rover, Urwerk reveals a (strange) $275K watch.

Episode Navigation:

03:56 – The Winter Gear Awards

25:23 – The 2022 Range Rover Is Expensive and Not "Beautiful

43:11 – Uwerk UR-112 Aggregat, a Wildly Weird New Watch
 

Featured and Related:

• The 2021 Winter Gear Awards: Full List of Winners
• The 2022 Range Rover Continues Land Rover's Legacy, But Forges Its Own Design Path – Gear Patrol
• Range Rover home page – Land Rover
• 2022 Range Rover Offers a BMW V-8 and Up to 523 HP – Road & Track
• 2022 Land Rover Range Rover is sleeker than ever yet even more capable – Road Show
• 2022 Land Rover Range Rover Revealed: Smoother Looks, All-Wheel Steering (w/video) – Motor1
• Why the New Range Rover Should Be the Best Driving Yet – Road & Track
• 2022 Range Rover Adds Third-Row Option, with Plug-In Hybrid to Come – Car and Driver
• A fully electric Range Rover is coming in 2024 – Road Show
• New 2022 Range Rover revealed – the Rolls Royce Cullinan’s nightmare reloaded – EVO India
• The Most Unique Watch for Men? This New Sci-Fi Stunner – Gear Patrol
• UR-112 “AGGREGAT” homepage – Urwerk
• Introducing The New URWERK UR-112 Aggregat – Monochrome
• Urwerk Unveils Limited Edition UR-112 Aggregat Watch – A Blog to Watch
• Analysis: new Urwerk UR-112 Aggregat – technical virtuosity takes center stage – Deployant
• Hands-On The Urwerk UR-1001 “TITAN” – Hodinkee

Apple's huge new slate of products, the Porsche 718 Cayman RS melts the 'Ring, and Bremont *may* have a new in-house movement.

The 31-mph VanMoof V eBike, Sunglasses Made from Microorganism Poop, and Supply Chain Stress.

Episode Navigation:

• 02:45 – VanMoof V eBike
• 21:10 – Covalent AirCarbon Sunglasses
• 33:36 – Supply Chain Issues and Holiday Shopping Tips
   

Featured and Related:

• VanMoof V dual-motor ebike will have a top speed of over 30 mph – New Atlas
• VanMoof unveils 31 mph ‘hyperbike’ electric bicycle with two motors and full suspension – Electrek
• VanMoof's New eBike Is Its Fastest Ever – The Verge
• Believe it or not, this US-built fast e-bike hits 45 mph and 80 miles of range – Electrek
• Fastest Electric Bike: We Review the Fastest E-Bikes for 2021 – biking.com
• The future of biking might not be tandem – Morning Brew
• The 12 Best E-Bikes of 2021 – Gear Patrol
• Cake – Electric Motor Bikes
• Carbon-Capturing Sunglasses Offer a View of Fashion's Future – WIRED
• Covalent Fashion website
• Newlight Technologies
• AirCarbon on Twitter
• Green Packaging & Shipping (Video) – Dell
• Could this be the cure to our plastic problem? | Mission Ahead (Video) – CNN Business
• What the Tech? Microorganism-Harvested AirCarbon Will Make Your Next Pair of Nikes – HypeBeast
• INTERVIEW: Speculative capital offers growth opportunity for carbon market -- AirCarbon – S&P Global / Platts
• 'The amount of energy required by direct air carbon capture proves it is an exercise in futility' – Recharge
• Will Direct-Air Carbon Capture Be Viable? – Green Tech Media
• The war on fur: will other fashion industry giants follow Kering? – ScreenShot Media
• AirCarbon x Nike: Newlight and Nike Partner to Reduce Carbon Footprint – Cision
• These Companies Are Making Physical Goods Out of Thin Air – VICE
• Shake Shack tests AirCarbon carbon-negative straws and cutlery at 6 locations – Nation's Restaurant News
• Can a Running Shoe Made From Sugar, Wool and Tree Crush Trails? – Gear Patrol
• Store shortages could cause trouble for holiday shoppers: 4 steps to take now – TODAY
• You Need to Start Holiday Shopping Early This Year, Experts Say. Here’s Why, and How to Save – TIME
• Don't wait until Black Friday to start your holiday shopping. Here's why you need to shop now. – USA Today
• How to Find Deals Like a Gear Patrol Editor – Gear Patrol
• Military exchanges, battling supply chain issues, urge customers not to wait on holiday shopping – Military Times
• The global supply chain nightmare is about to get worse – CNN Business
• US bank chiefs confident supply chain disruptions are ‘transitory’ – Financial Times
• Target Launches Black Friday Sales Early Amid Supply-Chain Crunch – Barron's
• U.S. Retailers Deploy Creative Tactics In Battle To Win Global Supply Chain War – Forbes
• Biden, Battling Supply Chain Woes, to Announce Port Will Operate 24/7 – NYT
• Supply chain havoc is getting worse — just in time for holiday shopping – Recode / VOX
• Grocery store shelves aren't going back to normal this year – CNN Business
• Santa's Bag shopping/gift list and budgeting app – Apple App Store

Ferrari hires Jony Ive, livestream shopping's rising popularity, and a biometric security dongle.

Episode Navigation:

02:41 – Ferrari Hires Jony Ive and Marc Newson

17:45 – Is Livestream Shopping... a Thing?

30:08 – Yubico's New Biometric Security Dongles

Featured and Related:

• Former Apple design boss Jony Ive partners with Ferrari – Road Show
• Ex-Apple designer Jony Ive is now designing expensive things for Ferrari, too – The Verge
• Jony Ive and Marc Newson’s LoveFrom joins forces with Ferrari – Wallpaper
• Ferrari to partner with Jony Ive’s new design firm on its first electric car – Fast Company
• The Most Iconic Apple Products Designed by Jony Ive – Gear Patrol
• Ford 021C Concept Car by Marc Newson
• Is Live-Stream Shopping the Future of Retail? – WSJ
• Livestream shopping is the next big thing in retail – Fortune
• It’s showtime! How live commerce is transforming the shopping experience – McKinsey
• Whatnot raises another $150M for its livestream shopping platform, evolves into a unicorn – TechCrunch
• Op-ed: Live commerce’s secret sauce, decoded – Glossy
• This Live-Stream Entertainment Shopping Company Wants to Bring Live-Host Commerce to the World – Investorideas.com
• NTWRK - How Mobile Video Digital Shopping Is Shaping The Future Of Ecommerce – Forbes
• New Global Start up Shopstream Rolls Out B2C Live Social Marketplace – Business Wire
• New Yubico security keys let you use fingerprints instead of passwords – Ars Technica
• Eric Limer weighs in via Slack
• Best security key 2021: Protect your online accounts – ZDnet
• Titan Security Key – Google Cloud
• Fingerprint ID in YubiKey Bio security key helps banish passwords – CNET
• Yubico’s new hardware key features a fingerprint reader for passwordless logins – TechCrunch
• What are security keys, how do they work, and which is the best to buy? – Pocket-lint
• How to use a two-factor security key – The Verge
• The Best Security Key for Multi-Factor Authentication – Wirecutter

Casey Johnston's Substack newsletter, "She's a Beast," the merits of Amazon's new Halo View fitness tracker, and a discussion of the Rivian R1T.

Episode Navigation:

05:02 – Casey Johnston, author of She's a Beast
 

34:37 – Amazon Halo View, Halo Fitness, and Halo Nutrition
 

47:03 – Reactions to... Reviews of the Rivian R1T

Featured and Related:
 

• She's a Beast: a Swole Woman's Newsletter
• Casey Johnston on Twitter
• Casey Johnston on Instagram
• Archive of "Ask a Swole Woman" Column – VICE
• Recent She's a Beast newsletters:
  • The myths of bodyweight training, part 3
  • Instagram is essentially a weight-loss app, and Facebook is loving that for it
  • Protein Oatmeal v2.0: Mush Reloaded
  • Where to Even Begin With At-Home Workouts, and How to Keep Going
• Everything Amazon Announced at Today's Big Hardware Event – Gear Patrol
• Amazon reveals Halo Fitness and Halo Nutrition programs for Halo subscribers – Tech Crunch
• Amazon announces new wearable and services to try to make you fitter – The Verge
• Do Fitness Trackers Actually Help You Get Fit? What the Science Says – Men's Journal
• Science Says Fitness Trackers Don't Work. Wear One Anyway – WIRED
• Should I buy a fitness tracker? – Tech Radar
• Amazon's New Fitness Tracker Is Basically a Fitbit – Gizmodo
• Amazon Halo View vs. Fitbit Inspire 2: How the new fitness band stacks up against Fitbit's affordable tracker – CNET
• Amazon's Halo Fitness service could give Apple Fitness Plus some competition – CNET
• Amazon's biggest innovation is being cheap – Engadget
• Leaked Documents Show How Amazon’s Astro Robot Tracks Everything You Do – Motherboard/VICE
• The Rivian R1T Is Everything You Hoped It Would Be – Gear Patrol
• Rivian R1T Launch Edition driven: Full-electric pickup hits the trail (video) – Roadshow
• 2022 Rivian R1T first drive review: Electric pickup tackles the trail – Roadshow
• First drive: Rivian delivers the electric truck we’ve been waiting for – TechCrunch
• The Rivian R1T Proves That the Perfect Off-Roader Is Electric – Road & Track
• Rivian is coming. Here’s why it matters – E&E News
• Electric Pickup Trucks Are Coming: Who will buy them? – KBB
• Automakers Are Going All In on Electric Pickups. Will Anyone Buy Them? – TIME
• Automakers embrace electric vehicles. But what about buyers? – AP
• Rivian files to go public at up to a reported $80 billion valuation – The Verge

The future of mobility and "living rooms on wheels," plus: we ponder whether e-Readers are still relevant and discuss what to wear to the office these days.

Episode Navigation:

• 04:20 – Dalal Elsheik on Autonomous Vehicle UX and the Automotive Industry
• 35:03 – Are e-Readers Still Relevant?
• 42:50 – Lululemon Survey Indicates People Hope to Wear Comfy Clothes to the Office

Featured and Related:

• A Ford Engineer Reveals 10 Things You Need to Know About Self-Driving Cars – Gear Patrol
• Self-Driving Cars? They're Still Not Here Yet – Gear Patrol
• An Electric VW Bus Could Be Volkswagen's First Self-Driving Car – Gear Patrol
• Self-Driving Cars FAQ: How Far Away Is Far Away? – Motor Trend
• Opinion: You will not be traveling in a self-driving car anytime soon. Here’s what the future will look like – Market Watch
• The Costly Pursuit of Self-Driving Cars Continues On. And On. And On. – NYT
• Why we’re still years away from having self-driving cars – VOX, Recode
• Elon Musk’s problematic plan for “full self-driving” Teslas – Vox, Recode
• U.S. Safety Official Calls on Tesla To Fix 'Basic Safety Issues' Before Expanding its Full Self-Driving Mode – Hypebeast
• Amazon’s new Kindle Paperwhite adds a bigger screen, longer battery life, and USB-C – The Verge
• You can now preorder the new Kindle Paperwhite – The Verge
• Amazon Just Introduced Three New Kindle Paperwhites – WIRED
• Is it the end of the road for dedicated e-readers? – Good e-Reader
• Why Dedicated E-readers Are Still Popular – Lifewire
• Understanding the E-Reader Global Supply Chain – Good e-Reader
• Ebooks Are an Abomination – The Atlantic
• First Look at the Hisense Touch Music Reader – Good e-Reader
• Onyx Boox Mira and Mira Pro Now Available for Pre-Order – Good e-Reader
• lululemon global study shows how clothing impacts workplace performance, culture and experience in a new hybrid environment (Full Survey pdf) – Lululemon
• Comfort Still in Style, Lululemon Survey Says – WWD via AOL
• @bobby on twitter: "i have a question for people who wear cool outfits to work at home. what's your f**king problem"
• You’re Finally Going Back to the Office. What Are You Going to Wear? – WSJ
  • Redux of ^ WSJ article
  • Excerpts from ^ WSJ article
• 12 comfortable back-to-work clothes for your return to the office – Today
• Our WFH-Meets-Office Fashion Ideas For These Weird Hybrid Times – Refinery29
• You can now wear what you want to work – Financial Times
• Heading back to the office? Here’s how to dress for it – GQ UK
• The New Rules of Office Style (2018) – Esquire

The biggest announcements from this week's Apple Event; the Michelin Uptis airless tire; Taco Bell wants to recycle your used empty plastic sauce packets.

Episode Navigation:

• 03:20 – Deconstructing the September Apple Event
• 36:50 – Michelin Uptis Airless Tire
• 49:20 – Taco Bell's Sauce Packet Recycling Program

Featured and Related:

• Everything Apple Announced at Today's Big iPhone Event – Gear Patrol
• Smartphones May Be Too Good – NYT
• Michelin's airless passenger car tires get their first public outing – New Atlas
• The TWEEL - radical new wheel technology (UPDATED) (2005) – New Atlas
• Michelin homepage for airless tire concept – Michelin
• UPTIS unveiled to the public (airless tire) – Michelin
• UPTIS homepage – Michelin
• The MICHELIN X Tweel Airless Radial Tire Family – Michelin
• MICHELIN X Tweel Airless Radial Tire – John Deere
• Why Airless Tires Are a Bad Idea – Valley Chevy Dealers
• Look Ma, no air! Checking out Michelin's futuristic Uptis tires – Autoblog
• Airless Tires – Bridgestone
• Why GM and Michelin's airless Uptis is the future of car and truck tires (2019) – CNET Roadshow
• GM and Michelin will bring airless tires to passenger cars by 2024 (2019) – Engadget
• Taco Bell Wants Your Old Sauce Packets So They Can Be Recycled – NPR
• TerraCycle website – TerraCycle
• Taco Bell Recycling Homepage – Taco Bell
• Don’t Let This Love Go To Waste. Give New Life To Taco Bell® Hot Sauce Packets Via Terracycle – Taco Bell
• The Plastic Problem Isn't Your Fault, But You Can Be Part Of The Solution – NPR
• VIDEO: Is Recycling Worth It Anymore? People On The Front Lines Say Maybe Not – NPR

Government IDs on your phone; trucks are finally getting smaller; and after 18 months of COVID WFH, what products have endured, and what do we really need now?

Episode Navigation:

03:10 – Apple's Forthcoming Digital Driver's Licenses

16:00 – Compact Pickup Trucks: A Welcome Automotive Segment?

27:20 – The "Logi Dock" and Our Relationship with WFH Products 18 M0nths post-COVID

Featured and Related:

• The new digital driver’s licenses from Apple sound slightly creepy – VOX/Recode
• You’ll soon be able to use your iPhone as ID at the airport – The Verge
• New York’s Vaccine Passport Could Cost Taxpayers $17 Million – NYT
• Pandemic gives boost as more states move to digital IDs – AP
• How governments can deliver on the promise of digital ID – McKinsey & Company
• Digital IDs Might Sound Like a Good Idea, But They Could Be a Privacy Nightmare – ACLU
• Digital IDs Are More Dangerous Than You Think – WIRED
• How National Digital IDs Benefit Both Citizens And Businesses – Forbes
• Facebook admits "trust deficit" as it looks to launch digital wallet – Axios
• The Technology 202: Facebook's latest attempt to build a crypto empire meets familiar skepticism in Washington – The Washington Post
• The Mighty Pickup Slims Down – NYT
• The Ford Maverick Is a Whole New Kind of Pickup Truck – Gear Patrol
• Nissan Titan vs Ford F-150 vs Toyota Tundra vs Chevrolet Silverado – Nissan
• Alpha Motors Wolf Electric Pickup Truck – Alpha Motors
• 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz compact pickup is terrific, but who will buy it? – Detroit Free Press
• Compact 2022 Ford Maverick Pickup Shows Its Size Next to Ranger, F-150 – The Drive
• Stop Saying The Ford Maverick Is Small! It's Not – Jalopnik
• 2022 Hyundai Santa Cruz Second Drive: Truck-ish? – The Truth About Cars
• The Unlikely Return of the Compact Pickup – Edmunds
• The Comeback of the Compact Pickup Truck – Good Car Bad Car
• America Needs More Compact Pickup Trucks Like the Hyundai Santa Cruz – Motor Biscuit
• "Car Bloat" New Cars Are Heavier Than Ever, But Also More Powerful – The Drive
• Logitech’s new dock is designed for a work from home world – The Verge
• Discussion on the Logitech Logi Dock – Reddit
• Consumer Brands Bet Working From Home Is Here to Stay – WSJ
• All the WFH products that we now can’t live without – CNN
• The Essential Gear You Need to Stay Productive While Working From Home – Gear Patrol, 2021
• The Best Home Office Products of 2020 Made WFH Less Miserable – Gear Patrol
• Future Of Work: What The Post-Pandemic Workplace Holds For Remote Workers’ Careers – Forbes
• It’s time to reimagine where and how work will get done – PWC
• Companies' Post-COVID Dilemma: Will the Rise of Remote Work Become a Permanent Pandemic Legacy? – Cision

IKEA's new buy-back-for-store-credit program, Spotify's latest product and feature launches, and the impending reality of autonomous taxis.

Episode Navigation:

2:35 – IKEA Buy Back Program Being Piloted in Pennsylvania

22:05 – Spotify Adds a Ton of New Features, Expanding its Market Dominance

32:30 – Hyundai Debuts its Ioniq 5 Robo-Taxi, Due Out in 2023

Featured and Related:

• Ikea is launching a furniture buyback program – Fast Company
• Buy Back program – IKEA
• Inside Ikea’s plan to reinvent itself as a circular company – Fast Company
• How Ikea plans to be climate positive by 2030 – Fast Company
• Ikea’s Offering to Buy Back Your Old Furniture—If It Can Survive the Journey – Gizmodo
• IKEA Is Now Selling a Hot New Product: Renewable Energy – Architectural Digest
• IKEA Is Increasing Refunds on Returned and Unwanted Office Furniture by 50 Percent This Week – Concrete Playground
• New Spotify Feature Will Make You and Your BFF a Playlist of Songs You'll Both Like – Gizmodo
• Spotify is taking over Delta's entire in-flight audio section – Engadget
• Philips Hue partners with Spotify to turn all your lights into a music visualizer – The Verge
• How Spotify’s Newest Personalized Experience, Blend, Creates a Playlist for You and Your Bestie – Spotify
• Spotify’s Podcasts Subscriptions service is now open to all US creators – Tech Crunch
• In early 2020, Spotify accounted for 30% of global streaming service usage – Statista
• Hyundai reveals self-driving Ioniq 5 'robotaxi' – Autocar
• Autonomous Tech Developer Motional Unveils Hyundai Ioniq 5-Based Robotaxi – Forbes
• Hyundai reveals the robotaxi it built for Lyft, and a version for its very own metaverse – The Register
• Motional reveals its Hyundai Ioniq 5 electric robotaxi – Tech Crunch
• Motional website
• Waymo starts offering autonomous rides in San Francisco – The Verge
• Waymo Is 99% of the way to self-driving cars. The last 1% is the hardest – Autoblog
• Tesla Crashes Into Police Cruiser. Self-Driving Cars Have to Learn how to Drive. – Barron's
• Volvo invests in Israeli developer of testing platform for autonomous vehicles – The Times of Israel
• Rainbow road sign film would be easier for autonomous vehicles to read – New Atlas
• Toyota pauses Paralympics self-driving buses after one hits visually impaired athlete – The Guardian

Tesla Robot, Jack Daniel's Tennessee 10-Year, and How to Shop on Social Media (Intelligently).

Episode Navigation:

01:31 – Tesla Robot

18:20 – Jack Daniel's 10-Year Tennessee Whiskey

30:30 –  Navigating the World of Shopping on Social Media

Featured and Related:
 

• Don’t overthink it: Elon Musk’s Tesla Bot is a joke – CNET
• Elon Musk's 'Tesla Bot' Is a Shitpost – VICE
• Tesla Promised a Robot. Was It Just a Recruiting Pitch? – WIRED
• Elon Musk says Tesla’s latest beta self-driving software is ‘not great’ – Reddit/CNBC
   
• Service Robotics Market worth $103.3 billion by 2026 – PR Newswire
• The Robots Are Coming – Inc.
• Share of US households using specific technologies, 1915 to 2019 – via Inc article
• No More Mr. Nice Robot? – Slate
   
• ....Boston Dynamics' lifelike $75,000 Spot robot… – Business Insider
• Invasion of the Robot Umpires – New Yorker
• Is It Time to Take Jack Daniel's Whiskey Seriously? – Gear Patrol
• An Overlooked Bottle of Jack Daniel’s Is One of the Best Whiskeys Nobody Is Drinking Right Now – Gear Patrol
• Shelf Sleepers Archive: The best booze nobody is drinking right now – Gear Patrol
• The Story Behind Genesis, The New Global Luxury Car Brand – Forbes
• How MSCHF managed to dominate the internet — with fun! – The Verge
• Mood Board to Moneymaker: How Instagram Pages Turn Into Brands – Gear Patrol
• TikTok made me buy it – The Verge
• 25 TikTok Viral Products Available on Amazon During Prime Day – Teen Vogue
• TikTok adds in-app shopping, in a partnership with Shopify – The New York Times
• Will Everything On Social Media Be Shopping? – BuzzFeed News
• Instagram Tests Ads for Shops – Yahoo!
• The future of social media looks a lot like QVC – Quartz

Dive watches for kids, Acura brings back a cult-classic, and your houseplants have a carbon footprint.

Episode Navigation:

• 0:10 – Parchie, Watches for Kids
• 16:30 – 2022 Acura Integra
• 33:00 – The Carbon Impact of Houseplants

Featured and Related:
 

Cara Barrett’s New Watch Brand For Kids Hodinkee

Parchie – Watches for Kids

Should New Dads Buy Birth-Year Watches for Their Kids?

Seiko Designed Affordable New Back-to-School Watches for Kids, But Adults Will Love Them Too

This Perfect Summer Watch Comes in Adult and Kid-Sized Versions

The Acura Integra returns for 2022

Acura Integra Returns in 2022 Acura

Market Watch: Acura Integra Type R Motor Trend

Original Integra Type R Auction Results Bring a Trailer

Nissan Reveals the Next-Generation Z

Are your houseplants actually good for the planet? Vox

Carbon Footprint Fact Sheet by the University of Michigan Center for sustainable Systems University of Michigan

EPA carbon footprint calculator EPA.gov

Episode Navigation: 

1:17 — Samsung Z Flip & Fold 3

17:08 — Lamborghini Countach

27:03 — Sunspel & Buck Mason's Athletic Collections

Featured and Related: 

• Everything Samsung Just Announced At Its Big Unpacked Event — Gear Patrol

• Folding Phones Are the New 3D TV — Wired

• Lamborghini Countach LP1 800-4: This Looks Like It And It's Amazing — Jalopnik

• Lamborghini reports record profits in 2020, CEO teases electric future — CNBC

• The Trail Collection from Buck Mason

• Sunspel Activewear

• How did Athleisure Take Over American Fashion? — The Atlantic

Tyler explains what "influential" means in this context, how he selected the 50 cars and the top car of each decade, and why his list isn't of the 50 best cars.

Episode Navigation:

01:00 – Influential versus "Best"

08:15 – If You Change An Iconic Car, Is It Still The Same Car?

13:30 – The One Quality That Makes A Car "Influential"

16:30 – How Tyler Chose These 50 Cars

19:20 – Cars That Didn't Make The Cut

22:05 – The Most Influential Car On The List

Featured and Related:
 

The 50 Most Influential Cars 

These Are the 16 Best Cars to Buy in 2021

The Best New Cars, Trucks and SUVs We've Driven So Far in 2021

The Best Used Cars You Can Buy Right Now

These Are the 10 Best Cars to Buy Under $55,000

Episode Navigation

1:25  — Google's Pixel 6 & Pixel 6 Plus

18:17 — Levi's x New Balance 992

30:35 — Molson Coors Kills Off Its Cheap Beer

Featured:

• New Balance x Levi's Authorized Vintage

• Marketing Dive: Molson Coors to Sunset 11 Economy Brands

• The Verge: Google Pixel 6 & Pixel 6 Pro 

• CBC: Recording of discussion of the Ice Beer Wars of the 1990s

Will Price joins JD and Nick to discuss $99 AirPods Pro competitors, car "feature" subscriptions, and the Airstream x Pottery Barn collab.

Episode Navigation:

02:19 – Nothing Ear (1) ANC Earbuds

16:25 – Subscriptions to Unlock Car Features

32:58 – Airstream x Pottery Barn Special Edition Travel Trailer

Featured:

• Homepage: Nothing Tech
• From The Verge: "Nothing officially reveals its $99 Ear (1) true wireless earbuds"
• 5 Wireless Earbuds to Buy If You Don’t Want AirPods
• Apple's New AirPods Are Coming. Here's What to Expect
• A Day with the AirPods Pro: Here’s How They Stack Up Against Apple’s Standard AirPods
• BMW wants customers to pay a subscription fee to use features the car already has installed, like a heated steering wheel or adaptive cruise control
• From TechCrunch: "BMW wants to sell you subscriptions to your car’s features"
• From Elektrek: "Tesla is charging owners $1,500 for hardware they already paid for"
• From Tesla: "Full Self-Driving Capability Subscriptions"
• Airstream and Pottery Barn Designed Your Dream Glamping Trailer
• From Airstream: "Introducing the Pottery Barn Special Edition Travel Trailer"
• From Pottery Barn: Pottery Barn x Airstream Collection
• Airstream's New Camping Trailer Has the Perfect Invention for Modern Travel

Impossible Foods announces chicken nuggets, Peloton gets into the video game business, and Stone Brewing launches a "premium" hard seltzer that is anything but.

**In the initial version of this episode, it was incorrectly stated that Stone was fined by the TTB for trade practice violations. This is not true. Stone paid the TTB for tax violations as a compromise after making a mistake in their tax filings — not because of trade practice violations. We regret the mistake. — JD

Episode Navigation:

01:35 – Peloton Launches Video Games, Is Now a Full-Blown Media Company

19:00 – Impossible Foods Announces Chicken Nuggets, Coming This Fall

32:44 – Stone Brewing Buena Vida Hard Seltzer, and Why It's Shouldn't be Called "Premium"

Featured:
 

Via Hollywood Reporter: “The Netflix of Wellness”: Inside the Hollywoodization of Peloton
 

Via Engadget: Peloton launches its first exercise game for connected bike owners

Via ReviewGeek.com: Sigh… Peloton Wants to Gamify Exercise

Via Insider: People are hacking their Peloton bikes so they can watch Netflix and cheat the leaderboard ranking system

Via Bloomberg: Impossible Foods to Launch Nuggets Into Brewing Faux-Chicken Battle

Via The Beet: Impossible Foods Announces New Vegan Chicken Nuggets

Via Thrillist: What’s the Difference Between Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat?

Via Stone Brewing: Stone Brewing Announces Buenavida Hard Seltzer, Crafted for the Good Life

Upsides and downsides of Apple's battery pack, Hyundai swings for the fences with the Elantra N, and Houseplant releases yet another amazing smoking accessory.

Episode Navigation:

02:00 – Apple MagSafe Battery Pack

15:32 – Hyundai Elantra N

27:22 – Houseplant Gravity Glass

Featured:

The iPhone 12 is a Great Smartphone with Even Greater Promise

The Best MagSafe Cases for Your iPhone 12

The Best MagSafe Accessories for the iPhone 12

Should You Buy Apple's MagSafe Battery Pack for Your iPhone 12?

Seth Rogen's Weed Brand Made a Gravity Bong

The 2021 Hyundai Elantra Is One of the Best Values in New Cars

The 2021 Hyundai Veloster N: A Hot Hatch for Extroverts Who Love a Good Deal

As common as shorts are, there's still a lot to think about, like where they're appropriate to wear, and what length to buy.

Episode Navigation:

• 00:57 – What to Know Before You Buy Your Next Shorts
• 02:05 – Relying on Style Icons for Guidance
• 04:15 – What Styles Are Popular Right Now?
• 10:06 – Can I Wear Shorts to the Office?
• 12:15 – What About Length? What Inseam Do I Buy?
• 15:15 – What Sets Apart "Nicer" Shorts from "Normal" Shorts?
• 19:00 – Some Shorts Are Versatile, But Buy Single-Purpose Shorts
• 22:30 – Defining the "Standard" Men's Shorts
• 24:00 – Our Top Recommendations
   

Featured:
 

The Best Shorts to Wear This Summer

The 15 Best Gym Shorts of 2021 for Every Kind of Workout

The 10 Best Sweat Shorts to Wear All Summer Long

12 Great Board Shorts to Buy Now

The Best Swim Trunks for Summer Aren’t Just for Swimming

The Best Gym Shorts According to 6 Personal Trainers

An  exposé reveals Amazon UK destroys millions of goods  to meet their bottom line; Ochs & Junior's new perpetual calendar; Ford trademarks "Rattler."

Episode Navigation:

• 01:50 – Amazon's Latest Controversy
• 17:30 – Ochs & Junior's New Perpetual Calendar Watche
• 32:30 – Ford Trademarks "Rattler" for Some Reason
• 42:30 – Products and News We're Obsessed With

Featured:

From Fast Company: Amazon is destroying millions of unsold goods, from smart TVs to laptops

From ITV: Amazon Destroying Millions of Items of Unsold Stock in One of Its Uk Warehouses Every Year, Itv News Investigation Finds

"Innovative Sustainability" – You Might Already Own the Most Disruptive Piece of Outdoor Gear

This Might Be the Weirdest Perpetual Calendar Watch You've Ever Seen

This Is How Calendar Watches Work

These Perpetual Calendars Are Some of the Best Watches from Patek Philippe

Ford's 'Rattler' Trademark Suggests Another Off-Roader Is Coming

The Ford Maverick Is a Whole New Kind of Pickup Truck

Is Ford Already Testing the New, Super-Powerful Bronco?

The Ram 1500 TRX, Driven: King of the Tyrant Pickups

12 New Gadgets to Have on Your Radar (inc. Canon EOS R3)

From PetaPixel: Canon EOS R3 Expected in September, Nikon Z9 in November

The Ordinary Skin Care Regimen

Brickit: LEGO Building AR App

Episode Navigation:

• 01:00 – What You Need to Know Before Buying a Chef's Knife
• 05:45 – Is There One Perfect Chef's Knife?
• 09:17 – Utility Knives vs. Chef's Knives, and Why You Shouldn't Purchase Knife Sets
• 12:50 – The Elements of a Chef's Knife You Need to Know
• 18:45 – Blade Materials: Stainless Steel vs. Carbon Steel (and Others)
• 27:32 – What Is Knife "Tang" and Why Does it Matter?
• 31:43 – Chef's Knife Handle Types
• 33:45 – Japanese vs. German Styles
• 37:36 – What Determines the "Quality" of a Knife?
• 39:11 – Knife Maintenance, Storage and Sharpening
• 48:55 – Will's Top Three Chef's Knife Recommendations

Featured:

Check Out ChefsKnivestoGo.com

The Difference Between Japanese and German Knife Styles

Bob Kramer Has Spent 25 Years Trying to Forge a Better Chef’s Knife

What's Really the Difference Between a $35 and $150 Chef's Knife?

The Best Places to Buy Japanese Kitchen Knives Online

Please Stop Storing Your Kitchen Knives in a Big Wood Block

Every Serious Home Cook Needs a Japanese Chef’s Knife. Here Are the 8 Styles You Need to Know
 

This Is Our Place's Biggest Release Since Its Always Pan

Jacques Pépin's Classic Omelette
 

Where does the initial inspiration come from? What factors are there to consider? 

Navigation:

• 01:20 – How Does Burial Design a New Beer?
• 11:02 – How Alia Midoun's Latest Beer Came to Be
• 15:30 – How the Burial Team Decides What Works and What Doesn't
• 19:45 – Choosing Other Elements of a New Beer Recipe
• 22:45 – How Different Burial Staff Members Approach Beer
• 22:30 – How did Burial Navigate the Craft Beer Boom?
• 29:05 – How Alia Used the Craft Beer Boom to Inform Her Work
• 32:10 – Breaking Down the Burial x Gear Patrol Beer: "Pursuit" Lager
• 43:10 – Doug and Alia Recommend Their Favorite Burial Beers

Featured:

Burial Beer's Website

Visit Burial Beer's Forestry Camp in Asheville, NC

Burial Beer x Gear Patrol "Pursuit" Helles-Style Lager

Burial Beer x Gear Patrol "Pursuit" Beer Glass

14 Black-Owned and Black-Led Breweries You Should Know

The 22 Best Gifts to Get for a Beer Lover

The 6 Best Beers to Drink This Summer

10 of the Best Beers Brewed by Women

15 Delicious IPAs You Can Buy Almost Anywhere

The 25 Beers You Need to Try Before You Die

The 12 Best Non-Alcoholic Beers You Can Drink in 2021

The 10 Best Coolers of 2021