Now that the dust has settled, and the reality distortion field has worn off, let us take the opportunity to look back at Steve Job's MacWorld 2008 Keynote. Follow along as we break down each of the announcements and subject them to the ever rigorous elementary school style grading scale.
#1: Time Capsule
Steve's first objective on stage was to address an issue that has been around since the launch of Leopard. More particularly, the feature known as Time Machine. Before the launch of Leopard, we were promised the ability to utilize the usb port on an Airport Extreme Base Station to make wirelessly syncing our backups easier than ever. For some reason or other, that feature was pulled at the last second. Though there are ways to activate this feature, it involves a little too much hackory for the common man. In comes the product known as Time Capsule, combining an Airport Extreme Base Station, with a server grade hard drive. Weighing in at $299 for 500 GB, or $499 for 1 TB, the Time Capsule comes off as a bargain, as it also packs in 802.11n wireless networking, as well as a three port Gigabit Ethernet router. However, most of us consumers already own a wireless router and a hard drive of some fashion. Why can't we utilize what we already own? Was this feature pulled intentionally, so that Apple could make a quick buck further down the road? Until a patch is available to us, I must believe so.
Awesome product Steve, but don't force me to use it. Grade: B-
#2: The iPhone
Our second announcement comes in the form of a software upgrade for Apple's favorite hand-held, the iPhone. With this upgrade, Apples has blessed iPhone users with some great new additions. The first, comes in the form of a gps-like tracking feature built into Google Maps. Though this feature does not use satellites, our geographical position is determined by the combined usage of cell towers and wifi hotspots. Other features include the ability to customize the home screen(s) by adding web bookmarks and rearranging the icons. Apparently there was high demand for the ability to send sms text messages to multiple recipients; Apple has been kind enough to include this feature with the update. The movie watching experience on the iPhone has now been enhanced by allowing chapter selection, subtitles, as well as multiple language support. For those of you who like to use your iPhone as your personal karaoke machine, song lyrics are now displayed as you listen to your music.
With these new features, it grows apparent that Apple is listening to its customers. With such a high ratio of jailbreakers and unlockers, Apple is taking the time to improve its product and enhance its functionality. What an effective way to have your customers play nice with your product! In my personal experience, I have witnessed quite a few iPhone users unjailbreak their iPhones to experience this new upgrade. Those that did, were treated with a couple of unmentioned additions. Seemingly, if your unlocked iPhone has been previously bricked by Apple, update 1.1.3 will unbrick your iPhone and restore it back to working condition. 1.1.3 also brings with it, the ability to manually manage your media, thus allowing you to drag and drop content to your iPhone.
Bravo Steve, this is what firmware updates should be about. Now, how about some copy and paste? Grade: A
#2.5: The iPod Touch
Thanks Steve; take all the excitement I just expressed over your last announcement and stomp it into the mud. Sure, the iPod Touch gains all of the new functionality of its big brother, the iPhone. However, it also gets to play catch-up... at a price. Originally, the iPod Touch did not ship with the iPhone associated apps, such as, Mail, Stocks, Weather, etc. If we want to add those applications it will cost us $20. What??? Yes, I understand that this charge may be due to an accounting issue (screw you sarbanes-oxely) that also plagued them during the 802.11n upgrades. But Steve, how can you look us in the eye and ask us to pay for these features, when they now come pre-installed on the iPod Touch at no extra charge? Now, we are faced with the dilemma of keeping our device jailbroken, or upgrading and being forced to pay for these apps. I think I will stick with the former.
Thanks Steve, but no thanks. Grade: D
#3: Itunes Movie Rentals
I will admit I am a big advocate of downloadable content, video on demand, IPTV, and whatever else you want to call it. However, I will also admit that I have never purchased a movie from the iTMS. $14.99 for a standard quality movie plagued with DRM is a little too rich for my blood. I can purchase a DVD at Walmart for that price, and have a physical format with special features and the like. The ability to rent movies from the iTMS is a no brainer for Apple, and I am glad they are finally rolling it out. Prices range from 2.99 to 3.99 for standard def, and 3.99 to 4.99 for high def. You can keep the movie for 30 days, but once you start watching the movie, you have 24 hours to finish it. One thing that could have really hurt this announcement was lack of studio support. Fear not, Apple's movie rental system has support from pretty much every major movie studio.
Though it sounds like a great deal, unfortunately there is much detail to be discussed in the fine print. Though high definition movies are available, you can only purchase them on the appleTV. Mediaphiles may be disappointed that the high definition content caps out at 720p. Apples boasted the ability to transfer your movies to your hand-held devices, however this only applies to current generation iPods. Meaning, if you own any iPod over a year old, you are out of luck. Some of us may not want to be hampered by this 24 hour rule. Fortunately (as of now), there is a workaround.
Good improvement, guaranteed to be more successful than previous movie store attempts. A little heavy on the technicalities. Grade: B+
#3.5: appleTV
What was once called a hobby by Steve Jobs is now getting a second lease on life. No longer does the appleTV act as an iTunes extender. No longer do you need to sync or stream movies from your mac or PC. The appleTV can now act as a stand-alone set-top box for your high definition television. Hobbyists can now browse the iTunes store and purchase content from the comfort of their couches. As mentioned, you can now rent high definition movies on the appleTV, however, those movies cannot be synced back to your mac or PC. Photo fanatics can now connect to their .mac or flickr accounts and show off their photo collections. Podcasts can now be watched without having to download or subscribe. Best of all, it is a free upgrade (no accounting issues?) to all current appleTV owners. Expect me to do a full review when the update is rolled out.
Woo hoo, the appleTV is not dead yet! Let's keep the updates and innovations coming. Grade: A
#4: MacBook Air
This announcement perplexes me the most. Is it supposed to be a ultra-portable MacBook? Is it a light-weight MacBook Pro? Though it is incredibly thin, it has a wider footprint than other Apple notebooks. It is too underpowered to be taken serious by power users. What you do get, is the worlds thinnest computer, at a max thickness of 0.76 inches. You also get a 13.3" backlit LED display, full-size backlit keyboard, and a Multi-touch gesture trackpad, a first for Apple. The trackpad allows for iPhone-like touch controls. Expect it to be included in all future Apple notebooks. The display is backlit, so it is great for battery life and excellent for photography buffs. However, with only a 1.6 GHz Intel Core2Duo chip inside, and a max of 2 Gb of RAM, the machine is considerably underpowered. I can understand the push for everything wireless, but only one USB port? An analog only headphone jack? No firewire? The additional USB superdrive is reasonably priced, but is rumored to only work with the MacBook Air. However, the demoed ability to wirelessly borrow another mac or PC's superdrive is pretty cool and promising.
There is no denying that what Apple has unveiled is an engineering masterpiece. It should stand as the influence of many future technological innovations. However, I feel Apple missed the mark with this product. I would have been happy with a sufficiently powered, 12" MacBook Pro with a backlit display. The MacBook Air is too under powered, fragile, and limited for my tastes. Though, if you do decide to purchase one, be sure to pick up the essential hand crafted Manila Envelope Sleeve.
Good concept, but should have stayed just that, a concept. Let's work on improving our already existing line of consumer products. Grade: C-
After all is said and done, MacWorld 2008 has been an somewhat revolutionary, but mostly evolutionary step for Apple. We, as consumers, all left with mixed emotions towards the keynote. Love it or hate it, one thing remains guaranteed; we will be glued to our seats come MacWorld 2009.
#1: Time Capsule
Steve's first objective on stage was to address an issue that has been around since the launch of Leopard. More particularly, the feature known as Time Machine. Before the launch of Leopard, we were promised the ability to utilize the usb port on an Airport Extreme Base Station to make wirelessly syncing our backups easier than ever. For some reason or other, that feature was pulled at the last second. Though there are ways to activate this feature, it involves a little too much hackory for the common man. In comes the product known as Time Capsule, combining an Airport Extreme Base Station, with a server grade hard drive. Weighing in at $299 for 500 GB, or $499 for 1 TB, the Time Capsule comes off as a bargain, as it also packs in 802.11n wireless networking, as well as a three port Gigabit Ethernet router. However, most of us consumers already own a wireless router and a hard drive of some fashion. Why can't we utilize what we already own? Was this feature pulled intentionally, so that Apple could make a quick buck further down the road? Until a patch is available to us, I must believe so.
Awesome product Steve, but don't force me to use it. Grade: B-
#2: The iPhone
Our second announcement comes in the form of a software upgrade for Apple's favorite hand-held, the iPhone. With this upgrade, Apples has blessed iPhone users with some great new additions. The first, comes in the form of a gps-like tracking feature built into Google Maps. Though this feature does not use satellites, our geographical position is determined by the combined usage of cell towers and wifi hotspots. Other features include the ability to customize the home screen(s) by adding web bookmarks and rearranging the icons. Apparently there was high demand for the ability to send sms text messages to multiple recipients; Apple has been kind enough to include this feature with the update. The movie watching experience on the iPhone has now been enhanced by allowing chapter selection, subtitles, as well as multiple language support. For those of you who like to use your iPhone as your personal karaoke machine, song lyrics are now displayed as you listen to your music.
With these new features, it grows apparent that Apple is listening to its customers. With such a high ratio of jailbreakers and unlockers, Apple is taking the time to improve its product and enhance its functionality. What an effective way to have your customers play nice with your product! In my personal experience, I have witnessed quite a few iPhone users unjailbreak their iPhones to experience this new upgrade. Those that did, were treated with a couple of unmentioned additions. Seemingly, if your unlocked iPhone has been previously bricked by Apple, update 1.1.3 will unbrick your iPhone and restore it back to working condition. 1.1.3 also brings with it, the ability to manually manage your media, thus allowing you to drag and drop content to your iPhone.
Bravo Steve, this is what firmware updates should be about. Now, how about some copy and paste? Grade: A
#2.5: The iPod Touch
Thanks Steve; take all the excitement I just expressed over your last announcement and stomp it into the mud. Sure, the iPod Touch gains all of the new functionality of its big brother, the iPhone. However, it also gets to play catch-up... at a price. Originally, the iPod Touch did not ship with the iPhone associated apps, such as, Mail, Stocks, Weather, etc. If we want to add those applications it will cost us $20. What??? Yes, I understand that this charge may be due to an accounting issue (screw you sarbanes-oxely) that also plagued them during the 802.11n upgrades. But Steve, how can you look us in the eye and ask us to pay for these features, when they now come pre-installed on the iPod Touch at no extra charge? Now, we are faced with the dilemma of keeping our device jailbroken, or upgrading and being forced to pay for these apps. I think I will stick with the former.
Thanks Steve, but no thanks. Grade: D
#3: Itunes Movie Rentals
I will admit I am a big advocate of downloadable content, video on demand, IPTV, and whatever else you want to call it. However, I will also admit that I have never purchased a movie from the iTMS. $14.99 for a standard quality movie plagued with DRM is a little too rich for my blood. I can purchase a DVD at Walmart for that price, and have a physical format with special features and the like. The ability to rent movies from the iTMS is a no brainer for Apple, and I am glad they are finally rolling it out. Prices range from 2.99 to 3.99 for standard def, and 3.99 to 4.99 for high def. You can keep the movie for 30 days, but once you start watching the movie, you have 24 hours to finish it. One thing that could have really hurt this announcement was lack of studio support. Fear not, Apple's movie rental system has support from pretty much every major movie studio.
Though it sounds like a great deal, unfortunately there is much detail to be discussed in the fine print. Though high definition movies are available, you can only purchase them on the appleTV. Mediaphiles may be disappointed that the high definition content caps out at 720p. Apples boasted the ability to transfer your movies to your hand-held devices, however this only applies to current generation iPods. Meaning, if you own any iPod over a year old, you are out of luck. Some of us may not want to be hampered by this 24 hour rule. Fortunately (as of now), there is a workaround.
Good improvement, guaranteed to be more successful than previous movie store attempts. A little heavy on the technicalities. Grade: B+
#3.5: appleTV
What was once called a hobby by Steve Jobs is now getting a second lease on life. No longer does the appleTV act as an iTunes extender. No longer do you need to sync or stream movies from your mac or PC. The appleTV can now act as a stand-alone set-top box for your high definition television. Hobbyists can now browse the iTunes store and purchase content from the comfort of their couches. As mentioned, you can now rent high definition movies on the appleTV, however, those movies cannot be synced back to your mac or PC. Photo fanatics can now connect to their .mac or flickr accounts and show off their photo collections. Podcasts can now be watched without having to download or subscribe. Best of all, it is a free upgrade (no accounting issues?) to all current appleTV owners. Expect me to do a full review when the update is rolled out.
Woo hoo, the appleTV is not dead yet! Let's keep the updates and innovations coming. Grade: A
#4: MacBook Air
This announcement perplexes me the most. Is it supposed to be a ultra-portable MacBook? Is it a light-weight MacBook Pro? Though it is incredibly thin, it has a wider footprint than other Apple notebooks. It is too underpowered to be taken serious by power users. What you do get, is the worlds thinnest computer, at a max thickness of 0.76 inches. You also get a 13.3" backlit LED display, full-size backlit keyboard, and a Multi-touch gesture trackpad, a first for Apple. The trackpad allows for iPhone-like touch controls. Expect it to be included in all future Apple notebooks. The display is backlit, so it is great for battery life and excellent for photography buffs. However, with only a 1.6 GHz Intel Core2Duo chip inside, and a max of 2 Gb of RAM, the machine is considerably underpowered. I can understand the push for everything wireless, but only one USB port? An analog only headphone jack? No firewire? The additional USB superdrive is reasonably priced, but is rumored to only work with the MacBook Air. However, the demoed ability to wirelessly borrow another mac or PC's superdrive is pretty cool and promising.
There is no denying that what Apple has unveiled is an engineering masterpiece. It should stand as the influence of many future technological innovations. However, I feel Apple missed the mark with this product. I would have been happy with a sufficiently powered, 12" MacBook Pro with a backlit display. The MacBook Air is too under powered, fragile, and limited for my tastes. Though, if you do decide to purchase one, be sure to pick up the essential hand crafted Manila Envelope Sleeve.
Good concept, but should have stayed just that, a concept. Let's work on improving our already existing line of consumer products. Grade: C-After all is said and done, MacWorld 2008 has been an somewhat revolutionary, but mostly evolutionary step for Apple. We, as consumers, all left with mixed emotions towards the keynote. Love it or hate it, one thing remains guaranteed; we will be glued to our seats come MacWorld 2009.
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