My "Dumb Ass Award-4-the-Week" Goes To?

Today, I am instituting a new feature for you, my dear two or three readers. I call it: "The Dumb Ass Award-4-the-Week." Yes, I know that's rather a dumb ass title, but the title reflects exactly how I feel about some of the dumb ass moves made by some people out there.

Of course, we all make dumb ass moves, from time to time, and that especially goes for little old dumb ass me, since I'm personally responsible for making about half of all the dumb ass moves committed in the world today. However, I will limited my 'Dumb Ass Award-4-the-Week' to the other half of the world to avoid any one claiming that I used any unfair advantages to award myself the award, even though I must admit, I am probably the most deserving.

So, exactly who is my very first recipient for this most prestigious award, and my reason for giving it?

Well, first let me say that my first award goes to a company that is anything but dumb, and is a company that just happens to be run by some of the smartest folks out there anywhere, but, who, from time to time, have also been known for doing some pretty dumb ass things none-the-less.

So, tah-tah-tah...... my very first Dumb Ass-Award-4-the- Week goes to:

Apple and it's App Store.

Yes, this powerhouse of all things cool - Apple!

The reason is plain and simple:

Their dumb ass App Store app rejection policy!

Of course, I admit that Apple has a legitimate right to reject apps, and, in some cases, even a duty to do so. These would include rejecting any or all apps that promote hatred based on religion, race, nationality, or sexual preferences, etc. Sometimes, however, Apple's rejection policies are just plain dumb ass and leave me scratching my head and wondering why they would reject certain apps, including certain apps that could potentially really help advance the overall appeal of the iPhone / iPod Touch ecosystem.

Apple gets my first award for it's recent rejection of just such an app, the very cool C64 emulation app that could have opened up the Commodore's vast gaming library to iPhone and Touch users everywhere. Opening up the gaming library of the biggest selling computer of all time, believe me, would have thus increased one of the App Stores biggest selling features - gaming! Despite the big role that games have had in the over success of the App Store, for some reason - some strange dumb ass reason, Apple in their 'Infinite Loop' reasoning have decided to reject this amazing app!

As you can see, in the beginning YouTube video, this cool Commodore 64 app runs very well and would have been a big hit with users and I bet yah, I just bet yah, that Palm's new Pre would have killed to get their hands on something like this, so why in hell and for what dumb ass reason Apple would ever reject this amazing app in the first place is totally beyond me.

iPhoneFreak, a few days ago, reported that Apple gave the following dumb ass reason:

"Thank you for submitting C64 to the App Store. We've reviewed C64 1.0 and determined that we cannot post this version of your iPhone application to the App Store because it violates the SDK Agreement, "3.3.2 An Application may not itself install or launch other executable code by any means, including without limitation through the use of a plug-in architecture, calling other frameworks, other API's or otherwise. No Interpreted code may be downloaded and used in Application except for the code that is interpreted and run by Apple's Published API's and built-in interpreter(s)."

Well, I, for one, interpret that as one dumb ass move on the part of Apple! Come on, are you telling me that there is no flexibility within Apple's SDK, no room for compromise that could allow this amazing piece of code to see the light of day? Hopefully no, but apparently yes, according to Apple. How dumb do the come anyway?

Of course, then again, I suppose that there are some out there who might think that the developers of C64 should get the 'Dumb Ass Award" for first not being smart enough to check with Apple's SDK before they spent all their time, hard earned money and effort to license Commodore's code and create the app in the first place. Personally, however, I think that the fault lies entirely with Apple's much too inflexible app acceptance policy. It's too black and white, it should focus more on the needs and wants of it's customers rather than it's own fuzzy guide lines. After all, if the programmers went to all the time and trouble to legally license the code for C64, then I can see no reason, technically or legally, why this killer app should not be in the App Store, but then again, I'm no lawyer.

Of course, this certainly isn't the first app that Apple has ever rejected and like some of the other rejected apps, I can only hope that Apple will get off their dumb ass and reconsider C64 and allow it to be placed into the hands of eager iPhone/Touch users everywhere where it rightfully belongs. Flak over some of Apple's previous rejections has resulted in such reconsideration's, and, again, I can only hope this will be the case too with the C64.

Besides making some dumb ass moves in the past, Apple has also made a lot of smart ass moves as well, but this clearly isn't one of them, therefore I'm really not too pleased to present my very first, "Dumb Ass-Award-4-the Week" to Apple and their dumb ass App Store app acceptance and rejection policy. I am hoping, in the meantime, that they get off their dumb ass and reconsider this amazingly cool app, C64, before the developers decide to kick Apple's ass by porting it over to the Pre or to somebody's else device?

Are you listening Apple?

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Acer About To Topple Dell?: Can Apple Do the Same?

Gizmodo posted a story today on how Acer is on the verge of toppling Dell in market share standings and on route to becoming, after HP, the world's second largest computer.

The question that naturally comes to my mind is: can Apple learn a few tricks from Acer in order to increase it's marketing position as well?

As the 'Giz' points out, it's largely because of it's recent acquisitions such as eMachines, GateWay, Packard Bell, that have contributed to Acers rise. Of course, they also point out that it's also due to it's high sense of vision and it's high sales, in a low economy, of cheap netbooks, that have now enabled the Asian giant to be able to seriously threaten Dell's second place standing.

But what about Apple?

Can it too repeat Acer's success and begin to also threaten Dell, HP and even Acer itself for market position? Certainly, but another question would be at what price to Apple's image and it's bottom line? With it's various priced brands, Acer is going after the low, middle and the high ends, where Apple, on the other hand, is clearly known as a high end company, and one with high end quality products. I personally fear that, by going the same route that Acer has taken, it would also seriously threaten to dilute not only Apple's image, but also what is the very envy of the whole industry - it's wildly successful profitibilty.

As far as lower pricing goes, Apple has already begun a move in that direction by recently slashing prices on it's new and improved MacBook line of laptops and signs point that it will soon do the same for it's desktop lines. Maybe Apple will never stoop to the level of Acer and begin producing and selling, for next to nothing, those ever popular netbooks, but the trend is obvious - cheaper Mac's are a must in this dreary economy of ours.

On the acquisition side, if Apple ever where to decide to go that route, then it's not only in great shape, it's in absolutely fantastic shape. Apple just happens to have one of the world's largest pile of cash just sitting in the bank. With close to some $30 billion dollars in it's war chest, and virtually no debt, Apple is in the enviable position of being able to do what most other companies, including Acer, could only hope and dream of doing when it comes to acquisitions.

Apple, of course, has gone the acquisition route before, with acquisitions such as PA Semiconductor and FingerWorks. Apple, however, is a very conservative company and that includes it's approach on acquisitions. It's very picky when it comes to spending it's money as it should be. After all, it's been rumored, in the past, that Apple was about to gobble up Disney, Sony, Universal music, Tweeter, Nintendo and seemingly a million other different companies, both big and small, but nothing ever did happen in regards to any of them, so I don't take much salt in any rumor of any possible Apple take over. Still, with that huge pile of cash, well, it's certainly a very intriguing and interesting possibility to consider.

When it comes to Acer's vision, well Apple already has that in spades, so the question really is, does Apple really need to try to become the third, second, or even the number one seller of pc's? After all, just look at the reality of these companies - they all sell far more computers than Apple, yet none of them make anywhere near the kind of profits that Apple does ! In fact, most of them make little or any money at all. Dell, for instance, sells far more computers per quarter than Apple does all year, and yet, in spite of that, Apple still manages to bring in more than twice the profits of Dell does over all!

So, in conclusion, can Apple really learn a trick or two from Acer? Of course, they can,just as Acer and others can and have already learned from Apple itself. I'm just not sure, however, if it's all that important or necessary for Apple to be seen as one of the top three of four computer companies in the market, and that goes especially if getting there means that Apple has to lower it's standards and it's profitability in order to do so.

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Monday, June 29, 2009

Move Over iMac: Here Comes The All-In-One PCs!

For years Apple's Mac has stood alone as the only all-in-one computer that you could buy. Even though Apple didn't invent the concept any more than it did the mpeg music player, or the smart phone, none-the-less, Apple's success with the concept has now gotten other PC OEMs all fired up, as they too try to cash in on the iMac's success by flooding the market with an every increasing array of new all-in-ones.

Even though I still think that the iMac is still, by far, the best looking of them all, the ever increasing flavors of PC all-in-one's are certainly getting to look pretty spiffy themselves, such as Dell's Studio 19 One, shown above. Dell's beauty is inexpensive and it also comes with the added option of a touch-screen. Great if your planning to upgrade to Windows 7. Photo via: Engadget

Above we find another great looking all-in-one PC, the HP TouchSmart. The TouchSmart, as their name implies, comes pre-installed with a touch-screen as standard fare. Currently it's limited to just touch, not multi-touch as with the iPhone. However, that should change once it's updated with a copy of Vista's renamed Windows 7.

Below, we not only find another all-in-one PC, but one that was directly inspired by the iMac even more so than than the others - the Fujitsu FMV F/A50. As you can see, this all-in-one looks incredibly like the original G5 iMac with it's white plastic housing. Photo via: ZDNet.

Next we find Cybernet's iOne-GX31 , shown above . Cybernet builds PC's mostly for the medical profession, unlike the Asus all-in-one seen directly below. This computer comes with an Atom processor, so it would never do it for me, even if it was running OS X. Still, it's a nice little computer with it's 15.6 inch screen and all. Photo via: Endgadget

Below we find another black beauty, the 25 inch Averatec D1200. What's really impressive about this model is that it comes for the low, low price of $999 dollars US! With true 1080p playback and a built-in digital/analog TV tuner, it can easily double as a bedroom TV as well. Not sure about the quality that they can pack into such a low price product, but, hopefully, if it's anything as good as it looks than it's a winner. Photo via: PCLaunches

Asus also offers another black beauty, the Asus Eee Monitor. Seen below this small, simple, yet elegant PC goes for around $500 US, and is built around an Atom processor. Again, it's not for me, but if all you want out of a computer is to use it for occasional net surfing, music and what have you, then this little all-in-one might just make a big impression on you with it's low price and small foot print. Chalk another one up for the Asian colossus. Eee Monitor PC photo via: PCAdvisor

Next we find what Tom Reestman calls a 'Netbook Desktop', the new ViewSonic VPC 100. This is the first time that the monitor maker has ever built a computer, and, like Tom, even though I think it looks hot - it's probaly not! As Tom astutely pointed out, "... I think buyers are going to be disappointed when they find out that their desktop PC is a cheap netbook in more expensive clothes." For a 18 inch, all-in-one, it's really underpowered and you would probably be better off looking elsewhere, but did I mention that it looks great? Photo via: The Small Wave

Last, but certainly not the least, is the sleek looking MSI Wind Top AE1900 below. Clearly, this particular model good looks were inspired not only by Apple's iMac, but even more so by Apple's old Cinema display. With a $529 US price tag, this computer features yet another Atom processor, which again automatically rules me out. I've played with this particular model and I think it's cool, economical and that it runs pretty well, just as long, that is, you limited it for simple chores such as surfing the net, playing music and simple games. Trust me on this, this isn't the type of computer that you'll want to try playing Crysis on. Still, as a kitchen unit, or as a backup computer, it's a sweet little thing indeed, even though it comes pre-bundled with big, bad, old and blah.... Windows XP! Photo via: I4U News

There you go, a few snaps of a host of interesting PC versions of the all-in-one PC that Apple pioneered for years with it's Mac and iMac. I still prefer the iMac, and not only for it's great looks either, but also for it's ease of use and all round performance. The PC, all-in-ones, are certainly getting better and better in all regards, as they increasingly crowd a market that was once owned exclusively by Apple.

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Friday, June 26, 2009

What Is The Prettiest Mac Clone?

With Apple successfully having Psystar's lawsuit lifted, it's probaly just a matter of time before this illegal Mac clone maker is no more.

However, Psystar isn't the only one crazy enough to think that they can get away with making unauthorized Mac clones. There are those sexy German's (Die Deutcherin esponder!) and their rather unsexy-styled PearPC's , and the new comer on the block, a cloner with a difference, Quo computers. The difference is that, like Apple, they also run a brick-and-mortar store, where one can come in and walk out with a perfectly running hackintosh for a mere fraction of the cost of an Apple one. Also, don't forget that the Russians 'are coming' with their own illegal Mac clones from a company called RussianMac .

Thus far, anyway, none of the clone makers, in my humble opinion, have succeeded in producing anything so compelling or as aesthetically as pleasing as anything from Apple itself. Hell, none of the big guys from the PC world have been able to do that, though admit-tingly they are getting closer by the day, and thanks in part to Apple's influence.

Even though the Mac clone makers have been able to build some pretty interesting Mac clones from a performance and price point of view, they still have yet come out with what I would call a sexy looking Mac clone, and especially when compared to an original Mac. Most Mac clones are basically modified PC's and look just as ugly as the rest. However, as PC ugly as most of these Mac clones are themselves, some are better looking than others and it got me to thinking, which of these Mac clones came the closest to looking like a genuine Mac, or at lest half decent looking.

Well, it's just my personal opinion, but when it comes to what I think is the best looking Mac clone out there, well, for my 2 cents, I would have to go with the MiniBook from RussianMac! The MiniBook is probably the first Mac cloned 'netbook' that you can buy pre-assembled and, according to liliputing.com, it looks like the MiniBook may be a modified Asus Eee PC 1000H, or possibly an Eee PC 901.

The MiniBook may be pretty, but it's still somewhat pretty ugly when compared to a genuine MacBook Pro, or MacBook Air. But still, at least to me, it's the prettiest of the crop of Mac clones

However, if I were to actually go out and buy a Mac clone (which I certainly wouldn't do!), I would pick, for it's over all reliability and workmanship, one of the German built-machines. For convenience I would pick one of the Quo computers, and especially if I lived in Southern California. However, when it comes to sheer and unadulterated sex appeal, well, I would have no choice but to go for that RussianMac MiniBook!

However, in the end, and long before I would ever buy myself a Mac clone, I would tend to think that I would much prefer to try and build my very own generic PC and then hack it myself.

In that case, it would end up, becoming the most inferior, most inconvenient, and down right the most ugly Mac clone of all time!

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Thursday, June 25, 2009

An iPod Fit 4 Woody WoodPecker!

Some people like to knock on wood for good luck, while still others like to spiffy up their iPod's in order to make them that 'one-of-a-kind item,' as you can see from the above pic of this amazing wooden iPod.

Yuppers - its a real, honest-to-goodness wooden iPod, or wPod if you will. But why would anyone want a wood iPod? Because they could - thats why!

Thats right, for all you folks who are simply not satisfied with having an ordinary, every day, run-of-the-mill, iPod, well you have got to admit that this baby will probably do the trick and set you apart from the tens of millions of 'regular' other iPod users out there, or as I like to call them, iPodders.

Yes, it only takes a simple glance at this modified old iPod Mini to see how different, how cool and how totally awesome this particular iPod is. After all, on a daily basis I get to see untold numbers of people jogging, running, walking and what have you, while listening to their iPod's, but, I must admit, that I have never seen an iPod quite like this one, and after reading these two posts from Inhabitat and this one from Designboom.com.

You can check out even more pics of this amazing wooden iPod for yourself at josh d Flickr's page. Even though I'm not too sure I would take any wooden nickels from this guy, I sure wouldn't mind taking this wooden iPod off his hands, because I just happen to think it's just so dang-tooting cool. Even Woody Woodpecker would agree and approve of this one, I'm sure!

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Steve Jobs: He's ...... BACK!

He's..... back!

Steve Jobs that is. Well at least he's back working for Apple via email according to USA Today.

However, others have gone so far as to report that he's been officially seen in person on Apple's Cupertino headquarters.

Despite reports by several employees, who wish to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal, they have reported seeing the iconic leader walking around the Apple campus in the flesh. However, after repeated phone calls for confirmation, Apple has thus far refused to confirm or deny the reports.

Of course, that fact that Jobs was seen yesterday doesn't necessarily mean that he's back, or that he will be working there today, or for that matter tomorrow. Apple simply promised that he would be back at the end of June, which is still a full week hence, so if it is true that he's back, then he would have returned considerably earlier than promised.

Ever since Jobs' public statement concerning the phenomenal success of the iPhone 3G S launch, people have been speculating on just what it could mean. Could this indeed be the second-coming of Jobs? He returned the first time to rescue the then struggling computer maker by introducing a whole range of trend setting devices such as the iMac, iPod, iPhone and it's wildly popular App Store. Could his second-coming also promise to do the same all over again? I, for one, surely hope so, but that at this point it's debatable.

Regardless of when, or if ever, Jobs does returns, his return is no longer seen as being as important or as vital as it once was. Tim Cook, in Jobs absence, has proven to be more than capable of filling Jobs shoes and it's expected that even if Jobs were not to come back, any downside on Apple's stock would only be minimal and temporary.

With Tim Cook's impressive performance, some are even questioning on whether or not Apple really any longer needs Steve in the first place? Truly, Jobs can be credited with saving Apple in the past, but whether or not he is still indispensable for it's future success is now being seriously questioned. In fact, the Wall Street Journal reported that Tim Cook has not only emerged as being key to Apple's core, but even quoted Piper Jaffray analyst, Gene Munster, as saying that:

"At this point, losing Tim Cook would be a bigger deal to investors than if Steve Jobs stepped aside," and.... "Just that thought makes my stomach tighten up."

I certainly agree that Tim Cook has emerged, and for good reasons, as one of Apple's biggest and brightest stars, but none-the less, I still believe and hope that Jobs will be playing a very important part in Apple's future success, and for some considerable time yet. However, the question is for how long and in what capacity?

Naturally, I don't know any more than anyone else on what role Steve will continue to play at Apple, but I'm certainly hoping for the best for him personally, and for the company as a whole.

Fortunately, for Apple, Steve has successfully injected many of the qualities that he has personally brought to the company and has firmly instilled them in Apple's top management, including, of course, Tim Cook, so what ever happens to Jobs personally, whether he returns or for how long or in what capacity, one thing is certain - Steve's spirit and vision will continue to live on and help to guide and shape Apple's future, just as surely as it has successfully guided and molded it in the past.

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Photo via: Flickr via: dfarber's photostream

The iPhone 3G S's Opening Sales Clobbers the Pre !

One big shot and obnoxious promoter of the Pre boldly predicted that one once it hit the market it would make every iPhone customer switch over to the Pre at the end of their contracts! Even though proudly declaring that the Pre broke all previous sales records, both Palm and Sprint strangely refused to declare just how many Pre units were actually sold in it's first two or three day opening weekend. Others, however, have estimated that it was anywhere from 50,000 to 150,000 units.

Nice going Palm.

Well, to all you Pre loving, iPhone hating fanatics out there, well, Apple has just released some important news that probably isn't going to sit too well with you. That's because it's now being reported that rather than iPhone customers ditching the iPhone in droves for the Pre, it has actually gone on to sell a staggering million plus units in it's first three-day weekend debut, clobbering, in the process, the Pre's sale records to smithereens!

Take that Roger!

Wow, had the analysts been correct in their first assertions that the new iPhone 3G S would sell only 500,000 units, it still would have been fantastic news, but by actually beating the analysts estimates by a factor of two, Apple has really gone on to prove that it, and the iPhone, are still very much a force to be reckoned with!

This, hopefully, should also help put a damper on all those bragging and boasting, like that particular and obnoxious Pre invester, about the Pre's superiority, while, they at the same time, hatefully dice everything about the iPhone and Apple. It should, in addition, also strike considerable fear into all of the other iPhone killer wannabe's out there, including Palm and it's Pre.

What is also amazing is the fact that this million-plus sales figure only includes the 3G S model - it doesnt' take into account sales of the older, and considerably now cheaper iPhone 3G at all! How many of them were also sold over the three-day weekend period, that I don't know, but I'm sure that it will eventually boost the overall numbers quite a bit. We will just have to wait until either Apple or AT&T reveal them, I guess, but, in the meantime, what ever they are, they really make me wish, all the more, that I could see the face of that certain Pre big shot promoter, and his reaction to the 3G S's stunning launch numbers. Now the look on his face truly would be priceless!

As AppleInsider brought out, the news of the overwhelming weekend success of the 3G S were so significant that it even brought out the following statement from the big man himself, Steve Jobs, who went on to say that:

"Customers are voting and the iPhone is winning,"and "With over 50,000 applications available from Apple's revolutionary App Store, iPhone momentum is stronger than ever."

Apparently, that is clearly the case. However, I just cant' help but wonder how much more that would be if Apple also introduced a more business friendly model of the 3G S, namely one with a built-in, or add-on, physical keyboard and Pre-like multi-tasking? Not only do I believe that these features are important to the future and continual success of the iPhone, but I also believe that they are inevitable! After all, Apple stalled for a time on whether they would even allow 3rd. party developers to write apps for the iPhone in the first place! Even when they did, at first it only allowed developers to develop web-based apps, apps much like those on the Pre's.

All-in-all, the official acknowledgment of the 3G S's initial and stunning sales figures have got to be not only very welcome news for Apple and all of it's legends of developers, but also one that will, as I have said, install considerable fear and panic in the competition, and especially so for Palm and the Pre, and particularly so for that obnoxious big-time Pre investor and promoter.

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Monday, June 22, 2009

iPhone 4G S photo via: Apple

New High-Tech OLED Passports Coming Soon?

It's amazing how the world of technology keeps moving us towards a world similar to something that you would find in a Star Trek or Flash Gordon movie. Today, thanks to the great site Gizmodo, I was reminded of that fact with a post on an exciting development on an otherwise boring subject - passports.

Yuppers, it now seems that we all may soon be treated to a new type of futuristic passport, namely the OLED high-tech kind! Yes, even though it was announced about a year ago, as you can see in the above YouTube video clip, good old Samsung has just recently demoed an actual working animated, super thin, flexible electronic-passport, and one, that to me anyway, seems just about as futuristic as anything that you would see in a good science fiction flick!

Another cool thing about this futuristic OLED wonder e-passport, is that it requires virtually no batteries what-so-ever! Thats because this amazing passport apparently works wirelessly! Like is that cool, or what?

You betcha it's cool and not only that, I would also tend to think that it's the type of passport that would be very, very hard to fake. So, make that one for the good guys, and a strike against the bad guys, and that especially includes you Bin Ladden!

Also, I would think that this type of high-tech e-passport would be also able to have imbedded in it's chip all sorts of other useful information as well, such as your medical history. That's great in the event of an emergency, as any hospital or medical staff would be easily able to access if your diabetic, or allergic to something, or what have you? Knowing what, if any, medications that you took could also be, as MasterCard would say - priceless.

Of course, some are always going to complain about possible privacy issues, but to me, if I was in a medical crisis I really don't think I would care if that information meant the difference between life and death. Also, I would also tend to think that such an e-passport would be so much easier to update. Imagine just walking into the passport office and having your photo and personal information wirelessly updated. No doubt, and most likely too, you wouldn't even need to go to any office, but could have it all done, at home, simply and electronically via the net! Now that would be convenient.

So, are these high-tech OLED wonder passports coming soon?

Hell if I know, but I sure think that its safe to say that Samsung and others are not working on these conceptual passports simply because their bored. Of course, as exciting as these concepts are, at this point, their just that, concepts. Even though these animated OLED passports are not quite as cool as an animated holographic passport would be or anything, but they are pretty dang-tooting close, and I only hope that we not only see them, but see them soon.

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Friday, June 19, 2009

Windows 7: Will It Put Snow Leopard On the Endangered List?

Mitchell Ashley wrote that, "Apple's Window To Gain PC Market Share Is Narrowing." Unfortunately, I have to agree with him. In his post for NetWorkWorld, he sites that Windows 7's stability, and UI improvements, etc., will be more than enough to compel more Windows users, both private and business, to upgrade than Vista ever did.

One clear indication, that he is right on the money, can be found simply by glancing at the number of positive reviews on the various Windows 7 public betas. These reviews, many absolutely glowing, have been the complete opposite of what we have seen for Vista. Just as Vista was drowning in a sea of negative press, Windows 7 seems to be happily swimming along as it continues to attract even more positive press the closer it gets to it's release date in October. Quite the contrast I say.

However, even though Mitchell correctly points out that OS X's market numbers have fallen somewhat lately as compared to Windows, I believe that he is wrong as to why. The real reasons are clearly, I believe, because of the recession and the sudden rise of low cost netbooks and certainly not because Windows has suddenly become a better OS than OS X, or that OS X is somehow suddenly loosing it's appeal. Trust me, when the recession is over, things will begin to change in OS X's favor, because just like Mitchell, I too believe that OS X is here to stay.

None-the-less, even though Windows 7 won't be anywhere near as cool, as stable, as fast, as secure, or even as fun as OS X Snow Leopard, I'm afraid that I have to agree that the preception of it being "good enough" will be that indeed - good enough for most Window users to upgrade to Windows 7. This, in turn, will also impact on OS X ability to really grab significant market share at Windows expense. However, I don't necessarily think it will be as big as Mitchell and others may predict it will be. In fact, even though future OS X growth might be a little slower than it otherwise might be, thanks to Windows 7, OS X will still grow and continue to grab market share away from Windows, albeit in smaller numbers and at a slower pace. But grow it will, trust me.

One of the reasons for this is simple - Windows users are discovering and are now demanding more choice! Gone are the days when people will simply be content on having only one source for an OS, and a source that, more-or-less, can get away with jamming anything down their throats the way Microsoft has traditionally been known to do in the past. Windows users have grown so accustomed to so much crap from Microsoft that they have simply and passively learned to accept it as a part of normal life. Thankfully, however, growing numbers of Windows users are beginning to wake up to the idea that they do, in fact, have not only alternatives, but even superior alternatives to Microsoft's inferior products, be it in the form of OS X or Linux.

Still another reason is that Apple's mighty PR machine has and will continue to educate people on that fact, that Windows isn't the only game in town. With more money in the bank than Microsoft itself, Apple now has the means, as long as it doesn't get to cocky, too complacent and lets it's guard down, to take on anything that Microsoft can throw at it. Microsoft has been learning a lot from Apple lately and its beginning to show in their products, and thus making it harder, but not impossible, for Apple to educate people by poking fun at Windows. Joking about Microsoft, of course, is serious business as far as Apple is concerned. It's a lot easier, after all, and much more effective to educate people if you can do it in a humorous way, as Apple has done with it's famous "I'm a PC, I'm a Mac" ads. Vista was an easy target in this regard, but Windows 7 will be a lot harder, but still doable. Since Windows 7 addresses so many of Vista's faults, it will be interesting to see just how they will effect Apple's "I'm a PC, I'm a Mac" ads. Could it even force Apple to take a different approach in it's advertising, by doing away with it's "I'm a PC, I'm a Mac" ads altogether?

So, in the end, will Windows 7 put Snow Leopard on the endangered List?

No, not at all - not by a long shot!

Further more, it won't even stop OS X from grabbing more market share from Windows. It could, however, slow it down and lessen it's impact, unless, of course, Apple does something really radical like license it's OS to all comers. I don't expect that at least in my life time, but, if it ever did, it would be a completely different ball game, and who knows - it might just be game over for Windows 7! Not really, but if Apple ever did license OS X Snow Leopard to the likes of Dell, HP, Sony, Lenovo, etc., well, it would surely shake the market up big time! Unfortunately, for Apple, the best time to have done so would have been just after Vista came out and not before or just after Windows 7 comes out. I'm not sure about licensing, but without it Apple's chances for grabbing some really, really significant market share from Windows may have just, well - flown out the window!

Of course, I could be dead wrong on that, and, quite frankly, I really hope I am.

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Thursday, June 18, 2009

Windows 7 logo via: Techslant.com

The iPhone's AT&T Exclusivity: Will The Government Set It Free!

Senators John Kerry, Roger Wicker, Byron Dorgan and Amy Klobuchar have all expressed concerns to the acting chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Michael J. Copps, that could, if successful, spell some bad news for AT&T's iPhone exclusivity.

On the other hand, however, it could spell great news for AT&T's competitors such as Verizon, Sprint, etc., and, as well, what I believe could be even better news for Apple and for lovers of it's iPhone.

PCWorld recently reported and asked the question, " Will the Feds Force Apple To Break Up With AT&T?" Thats a good question, as they go on to further report that the senators main concerns were based on:

• The increasing prevalance of exclusivity arrangements between cell phone manufacturers and carriers
• How exclusivity agreements may be restricting consumer choice, particularly for consumers living in rural areas;
• How exclusivity agreements may place limitations on a consumer's ability to take full advantage of handset technologies, such as the ability to send multimedia messages or the ability to "tether" a device to a computer for Internet use;
• How exclusivity agreements may be inhibiting the ability of smaller, more regional carriers to compete;
• How exclusivity agreements may play a role in encouraging or discouraging innovation within the handset marketplace.

I agree with some of these concerns and I believe that, if necessary, it would indeed be a good move to break up the current AT&T/ iPhone exclusivity for the simple reason that it clearly impedes consumers choice, and limits the potential market for the iPhone. Any gains that Apple may receive directly from it's AT&T exclusivity are far less then those that it would make from having a broader range of iPhone carriers. Limiting consumers choice is bad enough, but why should any exclusivity be allowed to limit the iPhone's market potential as well? After all, as many customers as AT&T may have, it's still only a fraction of the combined market share that Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, etc. share as a whole. I'm all for AT&T carrying the iPhone - I just don't like the idea of giving them any iPhone exclusively! It's not good for Apple, the iPhone, the other carriers, or consumers in general.

So will the Feds actually move to break up Apple's and AT&T iPhone exclusivity, among others such as with Sprint and the Pre? That I don't know, of course, but I sure do hope thats the case here. I believe such action would not only end up being a good thing for Apple and the iPhone, but, as well, it could be good for the other carriers involved (regardless of what AT&T might think otherwise) and lastly, and most importantly, I believe that it would be really good for consumers as a whole.

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Wednesday, June 17, 2009

AT&T/Apple copyright image via: PCWorld

What's Wrong With This Pic of OS X?

What's wrong with the above OS X screen shot? There's something out of place, but can you spot it? Look carefully, because it's hard to see, and if your like myself and you can't spot it, the difference is simply this:

It's not OS X - it's Mac4Lin!

Mac4Lin is a Linux hack that gives your Gnome based Ubuntu distro a complete Mac OS X make over. In fact, Mac4Lin does such and excellent job of giving your Linux OS the OS X treatment that it has been nominated and is now in the finalists for the SourceForge Community Awards. Now thats impressive indeed!

Well, they say that copying is the sincerest form of flattery, and well, if thats the case then OS X must be one of the most flattered OS's in history. Just about everyone these days seems to copy or borrow from it in one way or the other, from the new SuperTask Bar in Windows 7, to the use of transparency and animated desktop effects, etc., OS X has influenced not only computer OS's, but other product interfaces as well, such as in mobile phones, mpg players, TV's, etc.

As you can also see in the above screenshot, you would have a very hard time distinguishing between Mac4Lin from the real deal. It's not perfect of course, as Nanci Barthelmess's blog, I'm Just an Avatar, clearly points out:

• There is an issue with how the installation script installs the Emerald themes. You will have to install them manually until we can get that fixed.
• The wallpapers aren’t showing up due to a permissions issue. It should be an easy fix for us and we’ll include them in the update already being planned. Until then you can always add them by hand from the Wallpapers folder where you extracted the .tar.gz.
• Usplash is still buggy (I hope to have that fixed today)
• Thunderbird theme is still buggy
• GDM theme is not automatically set by the script (this seems to be a GNOME limitation rather than a Mac4Lin issue)

Still, Mac4Lin is impressive, and probably the best of the bunch, but it's not the only source for Linux fans wanting an OS X like experience. There are other OS X themes out there, and yes, there's even a whole Linux distro inspired around OS X called, DreamLinux . DreamLinux hails from Brazil and it's dream is to create, more or less, an open source version of OS X! You can read more about DreamLinux and three other OS X inspired Linux distros here.

Linux is a great OS, and is very similar in many ways to OS X itself. However, as great as many of the Linux OS X inspired themes and OS's are, they are still not the real deal - they are still not OS X! I have always thought how funny it was that people would complain about OS X all the while they are bending over backwards trying to copy it in one form or the other! I never could quite understand that, but the very fact that so many do so is a testament to just how great OS X really is. After all, nobody that I know of, anyway, goes out of their way to copy junk now would they?

So, again, what's wrong with the those OS X pics, one's that are not really OS X? Nothing, absolutely nothing! They, as I have stated, are a real testament to the overall impact and greatness of OS X!

However, in conclusion, as flattering as Mac4Lin and other OS X themes are, and as flattering as the OS X inspired OS's also are, they are in the end, still not the real deal. For that you'll need a genuine copy of OS X, and running on a genuine Apple built Mac. Nothing else will do!

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Mac4Lin Photos via: Mac4Lin and Life-Hacker

Is This The World's Largest iPhone?

If King David's ancient foe, Goliath, were still alive and he was looking for an iPhone that would fit his style, well, as you can see above, YouTuber, drmfld might just have what he was looking for - the world's largest working iPhone!

And when I say large, I mean large as in super, duper large, or rather as in this case - a 24-inch monitor converted into one! This isn't your father's iPod no siree, nor is it one that anyone is going to conceal in their pockets anytime soon, unless, of course, you just happen to be Goliath.

Since, as the iPodObserver points out, this video comes from a production company that is more than capable of producing fake videos, well, it's probably just that - a fake. However, what an interesting fake it is, if indeed that is the case. Apart from Goliath, his friends or family, I really can't see much need for this overblown sized iPhone, but I have to admit that it does look rather cool, don't you think?

Certainly, if you had one, it would be really fun and interesting to watch the reactions on people's faces as you walked down the street holding one next to your ear - provided, of course, if you could even managed to pick it up and hold it!

The iPodObserver states:

"The Swedish video production company DRMFLD has apparently been working to push the iPhone OS envelope by hacking the operating system to install and run on a MacPro, complete with functioning touchscreen interface."

Sounds interesting, but I have always wondered why Apple, or anyone else, couldn't actually incorporate an iPhone or other mobile phone within a laptop or tablet. It would be interesting to be able to make direct calls via your laptop, and especially combined with all of the other additional functionality that a smartphone offers. Could this be what Apple is contemplating for it's much rumored media device? I don't know, but I kind of hope so. I would love to see a laptop or tablet with a built-in phone, especially an iPhone.

So, could this really be the world's largest working iPhone? Well, if it's not a fake, then most likely it is. Fake or not, all I know is that it certainly looks really cool, if not a little bit on the impractical side.

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Monday, the 15 th. of June, 2009

Can Safari 4.0 Take On Firefox and Explorer and Win?

As much as I liked the Safari beta 4.0, I must say that I love the officially released version all the more. Mind you, it's not perfect, but over all it's very fast, polished, secure and has in addition some really wonderful and unique features, such as Top Sites.

Some claim, like Adrian Kingsley-Hughes, that it's not really the world's fastest, and he takes Apple to task for promoting it as such. Adrian gives that speed claim to Google's Chrome, which, by the way, is built on Apple's Safari's open-source project WebKit.

So far, according to AppleInsider, more than 11 million copies of Safari 4.0 final have been downloaded in the past few days, and mostly by Window users. Those are respectable numbers, but when compared with the numbers for Firefox and I.E., well, it's just a drop in the bucket, but still it's a start and a good one at that.

Also, from AppleInsider, they report:

"Safari 4 is an incredible success on Mac and Windows with more than 11 million downloads in the first three days," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "Safari users love the incredible speed and innovative features like Top Sites, Full History Search and Cover Flow."

I agree, Cover Flow, as used by Full History Search, is especially cool for viewing your history and is by far the best of the bunch. It's so much easier to find something that you were looking for instead of reading a long list of sites, which all look pretty much the same as one another. By comparison, I find that all other browsers history searches can be a real pain in the you-know-what? Visually, being able to see what your looking for it fantastic, absolutely fantastic, as Susan Boyle would say.

As great as Safari 4.0 is, and as far as it has come, can it do better - can it become the next Firefox or even the next I.E?

Well, that depends on who you ask, simply because of the fact that when it comes to Apple, there are a lot of people out there who will automatically reject anything that comes from Apple in the first place! In other words, they are bias! Personally, I never could really understand rejecting something simply because of it's source, be it from Apple, Microsoft, Google, or whom ever. The fact that Vista was crap doesn't necessarily mean that Vista 2, or Windows 7, will be crap, but unfortunately, thats the way many people view things, and it's perceptions like those that Safari has to fight against.

So, how can Apple over come such bias's; and how can Apple make Safari more of threat to other browsers? First of all, Apple has to copy and improve upon what people really like on the other browsers. And, for a lot of people, that means matching Firefox's huge library of extensions and it's high perceptions of security. As far as extensions go, they certainly can bring a lot of functionality to a browser. In the case of Firefox, so many, that if you can name it - there's probally a Firefox extension to cover it. However, as great as extensions are, one of the main reasons why I have personally switched back to Safari 4.0 from Firefox, as my main browser, was because of those very same extensions. Just as they can bring functionality, it's also true, on the other hand, that they can also bring a big performance hit, slowing down the browser and making it more buggy in the process!

Most websites are naturally created to better work with the biggest browser of them all, Microsoft's Explorer. This means that the better Safari can handle and accommodate such sites and those standards, then the better and easier it will be for Safari to convince people to switch from Explorer to itself.

Safari is fast, but it also must do everything that it can to keep on top of the speed heap. If Chrome is faster, then Apple must ensure that Safari is faster still, even it's it only a little bit faster. People love speed and because of this, the more people who have the perception that Safari is indeed the fastest, then the more inclined they will be to switch.

Features and more features! You can never have enough of them, provided that said features are also simple, easy to use and serve a real and practical purpose, and ones that really help the user to get the most from their browsing experience. CoverFlow, as used for Full History Search, is a prime example. Features, no matter how cool, of course, won't mean much if they slow down your computer, or make it less stable or more buggy. One has to be really careful here, as I found out with Firefox's seemingly unlimited number of extensions.

However, above all else, what Apple really needs to do, in my opinion, in order for Safari to gain significantly more market share would be for it's mighty PR machine to ramp up Safari's advertising. This means coughing up some pretty big bucks. A big push, however, in advertising is a rather iffy proposition for Apple. After all, spending big bucks for a product that it gives away gratis seems rather questionable at best. On the other hand, besides gaining the boasting rights to any greater market share resulting from such a massive ad campaign, Apple would also, at the same time, be exposing more and more people to everything Apple, and thus creating more mind share and generally more interest in it's hardware and software offerings.

So, can Safari really take on Explorer and Firefox and win? Can it really grab more significant market share from these two top browsers? Not only would I really love to see them do so - I also think it's entirely doable! Provided, that is, of course, as long as Apple is willing to invest not only in advancing Safari technically, but by also investing some serious bucks in a major advertising blitz. The question is, will Apple commit both the necessary funds and efforts in doing so? That's is something that I really can't answer, but I am hoping that it will do so eventually.

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Friday, June 12, 2009

iPhone and Pre Keyboards to be Replaced by Air Writing?

For all those people who complain about having to use the iPhone's on-screen keyboard, or for those who complain about having to use the Pre's dinky-winky, itty-bitty and cramped keyboard, well there's hope that you may not have to complain for much longer.

That's all because of some very, very clever Duke university students - students that have developed, what they believe is a much better way of writing down something on your iPhone or your Pre's master piece, something called - air writing! Yes, you read that right - air writing.

The actual program is called PhonePoint Pen, and by using the built in accelerometers, as found in both the iPhone and the Pre, these big-brained students have devised a way of actually writing down things on your mobile by simply wiggling your little bitty finger or phone in the air!

Cool, way, way - cool! Way to go guys.

Unfortunately, for now at least, even though as cool as it sounds, the system is still in it's infancy and requires that you pause between gestures. But don't worry, I'm sure that these, ten-million times smarter than I, genius's will improve upon their fantastic concept in the near future, and thereby making writing on tiny devices as natural as breathing.

As you can see from the YouTube video above, this system, once perfected, should make using mobile inputting so much more natural, so much faster, easy and pleasant, that maybe both on-screen and physical keyboards may be finally put out to pasture, or at least relegated just as a back up system.

So could air writing really replace keyboards, or even speech recognition? That I don't know, of course, but it certainly sounds very interesting and promising, so here's hoping.


And that's my 2 cents 4 this Thursday, June 11, 2009

Thanks to Engadget and Yahoo

WWDC Highlights for 2009

Apple's annual WWDC kick-off has come and gone, leaving behind some pretty interesting things to consider. For me, some of the biggest and most interesting things to emerge, thus far at least, are the following:

One is that the 3G iPhone will still be selling, but this time with the much smaller price of only $99! Thats quite an amazing price for such an amazing device, but still, as great as it is, a lot of people will be even more interested in the newer whiz-bang model, the 3GS and for many valid reasons, such as it's video recording, 3.0 megapixel camera, compass, in addition to other great features. I personally love the new 'Find My Phone' feature, one that will locate your phone where ever it may be hiding.

However, some people, like Dan Turner, are even more excited and impressed about Snow Leopard. Writing for ComputerWorld, he is especially excited about the unbelievablly low cost of upgrading from Leopard - a measly $29 bucks! Thats the lowest price for an upgrade that I can remember - ever! Personally, I honestly thought that I was hearing things, that it was some kind of mistake or something, but it's all true - yippee! This is in addition, of course, to Snow Leopard's impressive new features such as Open CL, Grand Central and Expose on the Dock, all of which should really help to make Snow Leopard the fastest, most secure and most stable version yet.

Then again, another highlight from this year's WWDC was the announcement that the App Store has now hit the amazing 50,000 applications level! Wow, what can I say? For Apple, or anyone period, to actually accomplish such a feat in barely a year or less, well, that has just got to be some kind of Guiness Book of Record or something?

Still, one other big thing to come out was the introduction of new MacBook Pro upgrades, including a new 13 inch MacBook Pro. And just like Snow Leopard, these new laptop upgrades now come deeply discounted in their price. In fact, in once case up to $700. Now that' a pretty big reduction for anyone, let alone for Apple. I personally love the new longer-life Apple batteries too, but I still wish that they were not built-in as they are, but rather were replaceable by the user as where the previous models.

However, one of the more significant developments to emerge this year, and as noted by David Morgenstern of ZDNet, was the information regarding the 'incredible' growth of OS X during the past two years, all thanks in part from the iPhone and iPod Touch phenomenon. Because of this new platform, or what some like to refer to as the 'Pocket Mac', the number of people now using OS X has skyrocketed from approximately 25 million to now well over 75 million users! Thats an incredible figure indeed, and especially more so when you consider that it took OS X some five whole years to hit it's first 25 million. Since then, in a mere two years, the numbers have now tripled! Now that too has got to be another one for the Guiness Book of Records.

It's also impressive to note, as Phil Schiller stated, "It shows great, steady growth of adoption of Mac OS X - this isnt' shipments, it's actual active users..." Wow, to think of Mac OS X tripling in a scant two years is, frankly, to be quite honest, something that I never would have thought possible, yet that is exactly what happened!

Well, the keynote is over, but the WWDC still goes on for the remainder of the week. What else might emerge from this year's annual developer love feast, I don't know. For for one thing, I'm still trying to digest what has already been reported. It's not everything that we might have wished for, but, then again, it never is. So far, however, it's turning out to be a very good WWDC, as WWDC's go.

I'm still looking forward to what may yet come out of the rest of theWWDC, but I'm looking even more so to what may be coming out during the rest of this year and, of course, what comes out by this time next year, when Apple will once again hold it's next WWDC. Something tells me that from here on out, we may all be in for an exciting ride. At least I hope so?

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Who Made the Bigger Impact? - The Pre, or the iPhone?

The Pre is a success according to some - after all it sold out didn't it?

Yes and no.

That would depend largely on how you look at it. After all, I have always said that I rather make a one percent return on a million dollars, then lets say, oh, 1,000 % on $10. Mind you, 1,000 % on a dollar would give you astounding $100 in return, but compared to a measly one percent on a million dollars, well that would net you $10,000, and I really don't think I have to ask which you would prefer, now would I?

So is the case with the Palm Pre. Yes, Palm needed and wanted for us to believe that the Pre sold out as it makes for some good press. It generates a lot of buzz, which in the PR industry is just what you want it to do. But was it enough to guarantee the future success of Palm and that of the Pre?

The harsh reality, however, is a little different. Sure the Pre was a success, but compared to what? Even though I agree that the Pre is a great phone, and better than most others out there, I still don't think it's any where near the success that Palm would have us all believe it is, or that it's going to be. As in my illustration above, the same thing applies to the Pre's introductory sales. It sold out for sure, but when you consider that most stores each only had a few of them in the first place, well that's to be expected. If they only had one phone and sold it, then technically, I guess, anyone honestly could say that it was a sell out! It all sounds nice and all, but it doesn't necessarily mean anything, or give you a really honest grasp of the situation.

Yesterday, for instance, Gizmodo did a reality check and one which helps to highlight the fact that even though the Pre might be a success as compared to some other past phone introductions, when compared to the introduction of the original iPhone, well let's just say that the Pre's success comes out looking a little short.

As they say, "one picture is worth a thousands words", but in this case, lets make it two pictures. As you can see, the first photo at the beginning of my post, shows the line up for the Pre. Now compare that with the photo below of the line up for the original iPhone.

Striking is it not?

Of course, I don't happen to agree, like Gizmodo's Jesus Diaz, that the iPhone's success is due simply because of Apple's so-called mighty PR machine. Sure, I grant you that it probably played it's part in the iPhone's success, but only a part. Overall, the real reason for the iPhone's incredible success is simply that it's an incredible phone to begin with.

It just happened to be a phone that was truly different then any other phone that went before it, and a phone that dared to break the mold by approaching things differently - and thus making it down-right revolutionary in the process. The only thing that the Palm did that was revolutionary, was that it dared to copy the iPhone much more closely than many others have, including companies that mocked the iPhone while hypocritically scrambling to copy and kill it off in the process! The Pre doesn't bring anything new or revolutionary to the table. Rather it just brings it's own unique spin on things, and things that the iPhone had already pioneered. I don't' see anything in the Pre that changes anything or adds anything radically new or different as did the original iPhone.

The Pre isn't a complete copy of the iPhone, of course, because they do, after all, include some things that the iPhone doesn't have or do, things like having a real (real small) keyboard. I say big fat hairy deal! These are things that Apple could apply to the iPhone , in a heart beat, if they so desired.

So is there any guarantee that the Pre can survive and save Palm in the process? Maybe it will? Maybe it won't, but personally, I doubt it.

The Pre might be a great phone, but after yesterday's announcement of the new iPhone G3S and the lowering of the current G3 to that of that magical price point of $99, well, the Pre just doesn't cut the mustard for me. Still, a nice phone, a nice phone indeed, but with iPhone G3S's speed and video capabilities, among other things, such as it's enormous library of over 50,000 apps, well, the Pre is just so yesterday!

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Monday, June 08, 2009

Pre and iPhone line-up photos via: Gizmodo

Should Microsoft, Dell, Or Nokia Buy Palm? How About Apple?

TechRadar, among others, have written to suggest that Microsoft should buy Palm.

The reasons are simple, namely that Palm has a rich history of owning some pretty important mobile patent portfolios and, lets not forget - the much praised Palm Pre itself. Such people reason that Microsoft's possible acquisition of Palm would help to energize it's not so elegant Windows Mobile platform, and who knows, maybe it would?

TechRadar wrote that:

"Andrew Kitson, senior analyst with Juniper Research, suggests that a Microsoft smartphone would be a nice thing to sell in Microsoft's forthcoming retail stores." and they further reported that, "If the Pre doesn't sell truckloads, Palm's days may be numbered. "Somebody's going to buy it before it goes under, or they might wait until Palm expires, stroll in and buy the assets they really want at a knock down price," Kitson says. "But it could take a couple of years [for that]. Can Microsoft wait that long? Not with Acer, Dell et al piling into the market."

Well, I certainly agree that getting their hands on Palm's patent portfolio, and it's engineering talent, and the Pre would be of great value to Microsoft and, as well, to many other company's out there. In fact, Dell's name has come up numerous times as a company that would benefit greatly from any Palm acquisition.

Palm's stock, as of this writing, though up considerably thanks to the Pre, is still only trading for around $11.74, giving it a market cap of barely $1.59 billion. To you or me, well that's a hefty chunk of nickels and quarters, but to Microsoft, Dell, HP and others enormous companies, well that's nothing more than pocket change and that brings up something, that as least as far as I know of, no one has ever mention before - the possibility of Apple buying Palm!

Thats right, my dear two or three readers - Apple! Think about it, not only would Apple be able to kill off any competition from the Pre, but it would also acquire in the process all of those patents that Palm threatened it would use against Apple if it ever decided to take legal action against it for violating it's iPhone's multi-touch patents, patents that Palm has arrogantly thumbed it's nose at in such a brazen manner!

Not only would Apple pick up all of Palm's previous patents, but it would automatically acquire the newer ones, you know the ones that give the Pre it's few and unique advantages over that of the iPhone! Apple could take apart anything that they saw or liked about Palm's new WebOS, for instance, and then easily incorporate it into the iPhone's OS! Yes, even though the Pre isn't as capable or as desirable as the iPhone itself, it none-the-less does have some unique assets, and assets that Apple might possibly be able to use to it's advantage and better the iPhone overall in the process.

It also can't be discounted that it would also be sweet revenge for what some see as John Rubenstein's betrayal of Steve Jobs. Steve's old pal would be history in any Apple take over of Palm! Whether or not Apple would dismiss the other some 250 other engineers that John Rubenstein help to poach from Apple, I'm not sure? After all, after John is dismissed, one thing that we can't dismiss is that he may try and do the same thing all over again with another of Apple's competitors like he did at Palm, therefore, I tend to think that Apple might just be better off keeping a lot of these smaller fish in it's own tank.

Remember too, that Apple has NO Debts and a mountain of cash - approximately some $3o BILLION of it in the bank, and thus making it easy as apple pie for Apple to pay for any acquisition of Palm. Inc. Personally, I'm not sure if Apple would even want Palm in the first place, but frankly I would much rather see Palm's assets in it's hands rather than lets say one of it's competitors such as Microsoft, RIM, Nokia, or whom have you? Keeping Palm from it's main competitors, and especially Microsoft, is something that I think Apple would surely need and want to do.

So, might Steve's next "Oh, one last thing" be that of Apple buying it's much smaller foe, Palm Inc.? I don't know, but I do tend to think that it makes a lot of sense and for several good reasons, and I personally would love to see it happen; how about you?

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Monday, June 08, 2009

Palm Pre and Apple iPhone pic via: Pre Central

$99 Budget iPhone In July?

If reports are correct, than the next iPhone killer won't be coming from RIM, Nokia, or even from the new Palm Pre, but rather the next iPhone killer will be coming from the iPhone itself!

According to AppleInsider:

"Citing only "people familiar with the initiative," the Financial Times claims that Apple plans to release an iPhone model with a substantially lower retail price in order to boost sales, and that the introduction could happen as soon as the opening day of WWDC."

Now the idea of a low-cost iPhone model makes a lot of sense, and especially since we all just happen to be in the midst of one of the worst recessions in history. The idea of people being able to get their hands on the most talked about, most lusted after phone in history, and at bargain prices, is a very big deal indeed. True, it wouldn't have all the bells-and-whistles of the regular and more expensive and traditional iPhone, but that's were the real genius comes in and it's called - upgrades!

Seriously, Apple's not dumb, and they know perfectly well that if people can get their hands on a low cost budget iPhone and one that gives them, over all, a terrific experience, then all of those same happy customers are going to be more than happy to consider upgrading to a richer featured and more expensive iPhone in the future, after the economy begins to improve.

As far as pricing is concerned, it's also reported that Kathryn Huberty, an analyst at Morgan Stanely, stated that:

"it's either a $50 or a $100 cut" based on a survey of consumers that indicated a $50 drop "could increase demand by 50 per cent and a $100 cut by 100 per cent."

Wow, that is a hugh increase and it would go a long way in increasing the iPhone's market share, which curently stands around 10.7 %. If that is indeed the case, then Apple could suddenly see it's share of the smart phone increase to 15 to 20 % or even more!

Of course, one of the biggest disadvantages of a low priced iPhone would be would be it's memory - only 4 gigs! That's a bummer if you ever were to get addicted to the App Store and it's 40,000 or so applications. That's the beauty of a low-cost iPhone, because, once again, Apple knows that once a person is hooked on those apps, then their eventually going to want to upgrade in order to access more and more of these delicious apps and, and as well, the other features of a more expensive and capable iPhone!

Then again, there are always those people who don't necessarily need or want all of the features of the more traditional iPhone. For many, 4 gigs is not only fine, but, in some cases, it's actually more than they will ever need. By offering a lower priced and less capable phone, Apple still gets to please and snag a much larger piece of over all phone market then they would have done otherwise. A budget iPhone is not only good for those people not needing the more traditional iPhone, but it's also good for the iPhone's over all market share and not to mention, Apple's bottom line.

By offering different iPhone models, at different price points, then suddenly Apple will have not only have happier customers, but a lot more of them. This will be even more so the sooner Apple ends it's exclusivity with AT&T and allows other carriers besides it to sell and promote the iPhone.

An inexpensive iPhone is not a big deal for me, but for many, many others, it's not only a big deal, it's the only deal that they will bite into.

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Friday, June 05, 2009

iPhone pic via: Apple

Older White MacBook Beats Newer Unibody MacBook In Benchmark Scores!

Pay less and get more, we have all heard such promises on TV, radio and in the press before, but apparently that is indeed the case with the newer and recently updated version of the older white MacBook!

Several sites, including Engadget, are now reporting that the older $999 (U.S) white MacBook, repetitively out performs the newer and much pricier $1,299 unibody MacBook in new bench mark tests.

On average MacWorld, who conducted the tests, says that the cheaper Mac is now some 5 per cent faster than it's more expensive unibody cousin! The faster CPU of the recently beefed up white MacBook apparently helps to give it an overall score of 198, as compared to a core of 186 for the newer and more expensive unibody MacBook. In fact, even the MacBook Pro scored only slightly higher with an overall score of 219!

Who would have ever thunked it?

So, if you can only afford the cheaper MacBook, not the more expensive version, then take heart, because even if you don't get quite the same build quality, the sexier look, or the cooler giant multi-touch track pad of the unibody MacBook, then at least you'll have the bragging rights to owning the faster machine.

The newer unibody MacBook may be the sexier of the two, but the older white MacBook is now clearly the better value and will give you the most bang-for-the-buck that your money can buy, provided, of course, you can live with the older styling, less rigid construction and giant multi-touch track pad.

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Thursday, June 04, 2009

White MacBook pic via: WhiteMacBook.com

3D Motion Gaming Controllers and An Apple Gaming Console?

Why, it seems like only yesterday (it was!) that I mentioned Microsoft's new and amazing XBox motion game controller, known as the Natal Project, and now Sony comes along and ups the ante with it's own equally amazing (if not more so) PS3 motion game controller.

Just like yesterday, the above YouTube video highlights it's amazing abilities, but unlike Microsoft's motion controller which frees your hands of any physical device, the Sony system requires one. As much as I like Microsoft's hands free approach, I have to agree with Sony assertions that sometimes you really got to have clickable buttons at times to simulate, for instance, the cocking and firing of a gun. I'm really not sure how you would do that with Microsoft's Natal system, but obviously having something with buttons could be handy to have in ones hands. For me, being the clumsy and absent minded guy that I am, Sony's device is just one more thing for me to forget, misplace and lose!

As Engadget pointed out, the Sony PS3 motion controller sort of takes the middle ground between that of Microsoft's Natal Project and that of the Wii's Motion Plus. At least as Engadget also notes, Sony's motion controller offers "sub-millimeter" precise accuracy.

With the massive success of gaming on it's iPhone and iPod Touch, some people are now seriously asking if Apple could also be considering building it's own gaming console as well. Truly, it would be a formable task for anyone to enter the console space now and especially with the likes of the XBox, PS3 and Wii, but surely it wouldn't be any more formable than if one entered the smart phone arena, and we all know how Apple did in that space. I see no reason why Apple also couldn't repeat that success if it really wanted to. With the massive catalogue of games already available for the iPhone/Touch, I see no reason why they couldn't also be enhanced and updated to run on any new Apple gaming console.

Some speculate that Apple may even enhance it's Apple TV by turning it into a gaming console of sorts. There certainly have been hints in that direction. Others might, of course, disagree and point out that Apple already tried and failed miserably at producing a gaming console called the Pippin, and, by the way, it did that a long way back, even long before the XBox ever came along.

One of the biggest reasons that Apple's Pippin failed, after it's release in 1996, as pointed out in the above YouTube video, was simply because of it's lack of gaming titles. Fortunately, Apple now has thousands of gaming titles via it's App Store that could be modified to run on any future gaming console, but it will still be a lot tougher for Apple to enter the market now with the likes of the new motion controlled consoles such as the PS3, PlayStation 3 and Microsoft's XBot. But hey, if the iPhone proves anything, it's that if any one can come in and shake things up - it's got to be Apple, so bring it on Apple!

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Wednesday, June 03, 2009

Microsoft's Amazing New Game Controller: Project Natal

With many positive reviews of Windows 7, such as this one from veteran tech columnist, Walter S. Mossberg, Microsoft seems to be on a roll these days, which is a far cry from where it was this time last year.

With Windows 7 already seemingly a hit, Microsoft can now add it's new Zune HD, it's new highly praised search engine, Bing, and it's newly announced Project Natal gaming controller, an amazing device if ever there was one. This new controller does away with the traditional game controller by turning the player themselves into the controller, as you can see demonstrated in the above YouTube video.

All I will say is: "Watch out Nintendo, because your WII is about to get some big competition - really big!"

For one thing, this is the kind of controller that I have always dreamed about, and if you ask me, it can and will be easily adapted to uses other than just gaming per say. By using it's built-in biometric and facial recognition abilities, it would seem natural that Microsoft will adapt this system further by including it in future versions of Windows, along with that of multi-touch. One could simply, for example, move objects around on the screen simply by your body movements, without any need to actually touch and smudge up screen.

Also, with a little work, unless the screen or system recognized your face, or your fingerprint, it could easily enable the OS to disallow hackers from accessing your PC directly, or allowing it to transfer information from it, such as your personal banking passwords, etc. This not only would make your computer more secure, of course, but much easier to use and more worry free as well. I feel that Microsoft, with this new controller system, could have something really big on it's hands here, and by judging from the press's reaction thus far, I'm not alone in my thinking.

This could give Microsoft a big leg up on it's competitor's, including Apple. What does Apple have up it's sleeve that could go up against such a system? That I don't know, but like Microsoft, you can bet your last Tootsie Roll that Apple is working on several such projects as we speak. Hopefully, a little more of which should be revealed next week at Apple's annual developers conference. It's here that more information is expected to be released on Snow Leopard that could give it some significant and major advantages over Windows 7, and especially under the hood, by making it more secure, faster and considerably more stable than any OS that went before it.

However, from what we know about Snow Leopard, whether there will be anything quite like Microsoft's new controller that will amaze and intrigue people, well, that I don't yet, but I'm expecting such will be the case, if not now, then certainly in the near future. I'm just not sure of exactly what that will entail, but clearly with Apple's acquisition of PA Semiconductor it's now believed that Apple is hard at work on several new and unique chips that could give it special advantages that neither Windows or Linux OS's will be able to match for some considerable time. The question is when will we see and get our hands on them? Again, that I don't know, but, like others, I know that they are coming and I can barely wait for them to get here.

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Tuesday, June 02, 2009

Mac Clones: Quo Enters the Ring - Will They Be the Last?

Well, here we go again, another day and another Mac clone maker decides to go head-to-head with the behemoth from Cupertino.

This time it's a company called Quo based in Los Angeles that thinks it can do what Apple doesn't want them to - build cheaper priced Mac clones.

Quo goes farther than any other Mac would be cloner however. That's because Quo, unlike the rest, is planning on opening a real honest-to-goodness brick and mortar store, a store in Los Angeles in which anyone can simply come in, and then walk out with a perfectly working Hackintosh, OS X installed with the works. Quo also claims that they are going to be following Apple closely, matching them in customer sussport and in the build quality of their machines. That remains to be seen however, especially if Apple legal gets ahold of them.

Now that Psystar has declared bankruptcy, you would think that this is the last thing that anyone in their right mind would want to do, but strangely enough, Quo isn't alone as it comes on the heel of yet another would be Mac cloner, RussiaMac. Obviously this company is based in Russia, and it is already building and shipping Mac portable clones. They join HyperMegaNet, a Germany company which entered the ring earlier in the year.

The question is: is the cat out of the bag and can Apple stop it if it is?

Surely Apple knew that once they went Intel there was no going back, and that cloners were going to do everything in their power to make a buck off of Apple's elegant OS. In fact, according to Apple, it has evidence that makes it believes that there are indeed some deep pockets behind Psystar, and that it isn't acting alone. Personally, I'm beginning to believe them.

For one thing, it's strange, really strange that Psystar, altough in bankruptcy, is still happily selling Mac clones on their web site to anyone foolish enough to buy one. Psystar, naturally, claims that their is no such conspiracy to steal Apple's intellectual property. Also strange is the fact that Psystar offered such a weak response to Apple's discovery motion and the fact that they also bizarrely claimed that Apple didn't even own the copyright for Mac OS X. Now, for one thing, that has got to get one's suspicions up somewhat, doesn't it?

I'm beginning to suspect that Psystar's bankruptcy fillings were more to do with protecting it's 'deep pockets' then that of protecting itself. I could be wrong of course, but the more I think about it, the more convinced that Apple's assertion that there are others behind Psystar rings true.

The question is: who is really behind Psystar, Quo and the others? Are they all related in some way to each other and those very same deep pockets that Apple allegedly believes is behind Psystar? That I don't know, but I do know that something is beginning to smell a little fishy here.

Some believe that Dell, for one reason or other, may be the deep pocket behind Psystar, or maybe HP, or Lenovo, and maybe even their all in cahoots together - who knows? One thing that I do know, is that I sincerely doubt if it is, as some believe, Microsoft. The reason is simple: they would never promote the idea of OS X on generic Intel computers because it would drastically diminish Windows presence on those very same machines! I think that Microsoft would prefer to do what they have always done in the past - simply copy Apple ideas and features and then claim them as their own. Windows 7 is a prime example of that, from it's reinforced Taskbar, to the idea of running legacy apps, like Mac OS Classic apps in OS X, within a virtual copy of XP.

I don't have a bloody clue as to who is behind Psystar, Quo, HyperMegaNet, etc., or if they are all connected in some way. All I do know is that Steve Jobs claimed that the five biggest PC makers all begged him, several times in the past, to license OS X to them, but as we all know that is something that he simply refused to do and, no doubt, something he would never do unless it was over his dead body! Whoever this deep pocket is, be it a single source or a combination of several, I wish I knew. The mystery is killing me. To me, this is beginning to read like a soap opera, only one that has a lot more potential bucks behind it than any of the television variety.

So, now that Quo has entered the ring to eventually do battle against Apple in it's fight to fend off Mac clones, can we reasonably expect them to be the last? No way - and not by a long shot. I have the sneaky feeling that Apple's war on Mac cloners is far from over, and that in actual fact - it may only be beginning.

And that's my 2 cents 4 this Monday, June 01, 2009

Quo logo via: Quo computers