Episode 218: Dial‑Up Farewells, Chip Tax Turbulence, Cybertruck Explosions, and a MacBook Whisper

Jay and Karl dive into the week’s most surprising, strange, and speculative tech headlines — from AOL finally ending dial‑up to the USAF eyeing Cybertruck blast tests, with a spicy chip‑tax twist and a very interesting MacBook rumour along the way.

Full show notes & links: techrant.online/weekly-tech-rant-episode-218/

Also available on:Apple Podcasts |YouTube

In This Episode

News

• AOL finally shuts down dial‑up — yes, it was still running in 2025.
• “Wild” chip‑tax idea — 15% levy on US firms’ China chip sales.
• Intel CEO pushback — turns the proposal around, but his role remains uncertain.
• Early iPhone 17 Pro clone — iOS 18 lookalike surfaces a month ahead of schedule.
• USAF vs Cybertruck — planned blast tests citing potential enemy use.
• Battlefield 6 pricing — not $80 at launch, but future flexibility hinted.

Rumours

• 12.9‑inch MacBook — could be the sleeper hit of the year.

Say hello — @WeeklyTechRant |@weeklytechrant.bs

Welcome to the WTR with your hosts, Jay and Karl, delving into the latest tech news, gadgets, games, and films!

Available On: • Listen on Apple Podcasts | Listen on Spotify | Listen on Youtube | All Major Platforms

In This Episode:

• • News
  • • Birthright citizenship ruling now part of Apple’s appeal argument against Epic Games
    • China claims Nvidia built backdoor into H20 chip designed for Chinese market
    • TSMC says employees tried to steal trade secrets on iPhone 18 chip process
    • JPMorgan doubles down on iPhone Fold predicted release date, pricing, more
  • Rumours
  • • Apple Glasses rumors signal that Apple thinks Mark Zuckerberg is right
    • Vision Pro 2 is coming soon, with three new upgrades expected
    • AMD's rumoured to be plotting a new ultra high-end gaming GPU

We love hearing from you! Drop us a line in the comments or tweet us at @WeeklyTechRant or @weeklytechrant.bs on Bluesky

Welcome to the WTR with your hosts, Jay and Karl, delving into the latest tech news, gadgets, games, and films!

Available On: • Listen on Apple Podcasts | Listen on Spotify | Listen on Youtube | All Major Platforms

In This Episode:

• • News
  • • NVIDIA's leaked N1x chip for ARM laptops has as many CUDA cores as an RTX 5070 — but don't expect the same performance
    • Anthropic is rate limiting Claude Code, blaming some users for never turning it off
    • Sony calls Tencent game ‘slavish clone’ of Horizon in new lawsuit
    • Trump, who promised to save TikTok, threatens to shut down TikTok
  • Games
  • • Cleared Hot
    • Gray Zone Warfare
    • Robocop Rogue City: Unfinished Business
    • Battlefield 6

We love hearing from you! Drop us a line in the comments or tweet us at @WeeklyTechRant or @weeklytechrant.bs on Bluesky