REDESIGNED Apple Watch incoming, + new *cheaper* Apple TV (CultCast #544!)

This week: Apple Watch Series 8 getting the redesign we’ve ALL been waiting for, a cheaper smaller Apple TV is in the works, Apple’s mixed reality headset is ALMOST ready, and working from home vs the office — how much would YOU need to get paid to go back to the office full time? We reveal our numbers!

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This week's stories

Sound familiar? Apple Watch 8 display might be flat

• Remember last year when rumors were flying that Apple Watch Series 7 would feature a flat display and squared-off edges? DIDN'T HAPPEN. But a new rumor suggests those traits might define this year's Apple Watch Series 8.

More affordable Apple TV might launch soon

• A new Apple TV streamer will launch in the second half of 2022, according to a trusted analyst. And there’s a hint in the prediction that the device will cost less than its predecessors.

Apple shows off AR/VR headset to board of directors

• Although Apple's VR/AR headset is still supposed to be a secret project, the company's board of directors reportedly got a look at the device recently. This could be a sign the product is moving close to a release.

COVID-19 throws off Apple’s return-to-office plan yet again

• Apple reportedly slowed the pace at which it will require its corporate employees to return to the office. They were scheduled to be back at their desks three days a week starting later this month, but rising numbers of COVID-19 cases supposedly pushed that back.

Apple's Director of Machine Learning Resigns Due to Return to Office Work

• Apple's director of machine learning, Ian Goodfellow, has resigned from his role a little over four years after he joined the company after previously being one of Google's top AI employees, according to The Verge's Zoë Schiffer.