I have a Wallstreet Powerbook G3 and an Apple IIe. I ordered the updated cloth and will report back on compatibility issues with those old machines that aren't on the list or workarounds necessary to get the cloth to function.
I love to see the community putting in the work to keep these old machines working with new Apple products! Just wish Apple would be willing to step up their support; I suspect most Apple customers will simply buy a new machine to ensure compatibility with their Polishing Cloth rather than tinkering with community-supported workflows.
The Asahi folks have been making really impressive progress on Polishing Cloth drivers so I'm optimistic that we'll at least have a community solution for the E-waste in future decades.
This is actually the 4th Apple Polishing Cloth. Here are all the variants I know:
* Original one (reference size)
* New one (reference size; softer/thinner)
* Apple Vision Pro (slightly smaller, square, different colour)
* Nanotexture Display (much smaller, rectangular)
In the last thread someone contacted support and they said that it is compatible and the compatibility chart just bottoms out on the iPhone 5 :D https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49435364
This cloth was originally for Pro Display that needed to be only cleaned with care using a good microfiber to not ruin the antireflection coating. Apple then started including everything on their catalogue as compatible with it(is it compatible with itself?).
I clean my Apple mobile stuff daily with 70% Isopropyl Alcohol. A 1L bottle is pretty cheap and it lasts a long time. I just spray it on a cloth and wipe with that.
I use a glassware/window type Microfiber that I got from the Supermarket. For the Apple Watch, I use a cheap cotton handkerchief from eBay because a Microfiber snags too much on the metal mesh bracelet.
It’s been really effective. The IPA does mean the Oleophobic coating will wear off faster, but it doesn’t last that long anyway and the IPA stops dirt and smudges building up.
You'd think apple would be incentivised to sell it at as low a price as possible, perhaps even as a loss leader. More polishing cloths sold means more polished iDevices, which improves brand perception.
I always wonder what the rationale is inside Apple to sell a separate cleaning cloth.
There’s no way this is even a drop in the bucket for their business, and neither is this some strategic judo move where they can undercut a competitor’s business.
It’s specifically advised for use on the nano texture displays, where the wrong material could rub away the special surface etching they use to get the glare resistance.
They list it as compatible with everything, because, well why not.
As someone who actually has the nano texture display and has actually used Apple’s cloth and regular microfibers:
the main difference seems to be that the Apple cloth will clean finger grease out of the nano texture. With a normal microfiber you have to spend five times as long, spray windex, and rub really hard.
I have the nano texture on an iPad, and I wasn’t too concerned about scratches, but after years of using both I still don’t have any
IKEA recently changed their microfibers to be more like the special Apple one, and they work now too
As someone who actually has the nano texture display and has actually used Apple’s cloth and regular microfibers:
the main difference seems to be that the Apple cloth will clean finger grease out of the nano texture. With a normal microfiber you have to spend five times as long, spray windex, and rub really hard.
I don't use soap but I do put my phone under the tap if I dropped some sauce or something on it.
On a serious note, why not just use the lens polishing cloth you get with glasses? If it's good enough for glass that would sit right in front of your eyes constantly, it's good enough for your phone.
You can pick up polishing cloths at half the price and that are compatible with all computing devices, including all current, former, and future Apple devices. Not just those in the “compatible devices list” of this $9 polishigncloth.
Nothing beats KORG's muslin swaddling cloths that they were handing out at Superbooth a few years ago, for cleaning those knobs and hard to get at clavier keyboards.
It was such a great bit of Superbooth swag that I went down the rabbit hole on Japanese swaddling cloths, muslin, and the like[1], and am now a convert to the muslin clan. I don't use anything else for swims these days, its that great. The fact that I can slick off the water with the same towel I use to keep my synths shiny is just sweet.
FYI -- swaddling is the practice of binding up an infant's legs and arms, and other appendages, so that they can't flail around, or swat at adoring shepherds, or fall out of a manger where you've laid him. The "swaddles" they're selling start at 115cm square. You probably do not need such a large cloth to swaddle your KORG keyboard.
the korg kronos 88key is listed as 1457mm long, so you might need several in order to swaddle it. but at that size, it probably no longer needs swaddling
What is happening to HN? What is it about anymore? Posts and comments critical of any tech CEO doing shitty things or technologies that affect millions of lives are routinely flagged, while posts about a dumb piece of fabric with no special characteristics that almost no one will buy hit the front page multiple times.
Alright, I guess shitposting is not what I’ve come to expect from HN submissions. I also don‘t think it justifies multiple submissions for this one and the flagging of the others.
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