The lion will not touch the true prince - Shakespeare, Henry IV, Pt I
|
|
|
Apple's announcements are underwhelming
NOT EVEN Apple messiah Steve Jobs could be bothered to get out of bed for the fruit-themed company's announcements at its World Wide Developers Conference yesterday.
Perhaps it was not his hormones playing up but he has developed an allergy to hype and a healthy contempt for the Apple cheerleading press that prints it without question. We can but hope that Steve's brush with death might have led him to see what is really important.
The fact that he did not show up is telling. All he needed to do was take the stage and sit there. It would have made Apple's fanbois and shareholders happy. One would think that if there were anything really new, or even something of substance, something Jobs wanted to personally unveil to the Apple faithful and be associated with, then he would have been there.
Nothing in the stories that have been printed so far reveals anything earthshaking. One would think that reporters were covering a Tory party conference, where a leader breaking wind will get a standing ovation.
Going by the list, Apple has cut the prices of its Iphones and Macs, bought in a super-fast version of the Iphone OS and gewgawed it up with shedloads more functions. It claims that its Snow Leopard is better than Windows 7 will ever be and therefore Apple Mac OS X users should go home and prepare for the pastel company's imminent takeover of the entire computer market.
But lets look closer at what has happened. Apple has dropped the price of its Iphone to $99. However the price cut only applies if you are signed up to AT&T's two year contract. This means that if you bought it, say only six months ago, then you will be royally annoyed.
Besides, we reckon that few punters will want the $99 phone. Most of them will pay for the new Iphone 3GS model which has double the storage space and better battery life. It will be sold for the same price as the old Iphone.
What you are seeing here is not a price cut, but an outfit releasing a new phone whilst still attempting to flog off its inventory of obsolescent models. The dark satanic rumour mill says that Apple will not actually pay much for price reductions on the old Iphones but instead will saddle its US telco partner AT&T with the bill.
And what of this new Iphone 3GS? Apple says that the S stands for "speed" yet everyone knows that speed on a phone has more often to do with the network connection. The only way Apple is actually going to get any real speed increase is if it dumps AT&T, which is something it cannot easily and will not want to do.
And what of the new features on the Iphone 3GS? Well, there is a slight problem with most of these - they will not work on AT&T's network.
Technology like tethering is not on AT&T's agenda, MMS which has been around for donkey's years might be around later this summer. If you queue for your new 3GS you will not be able to send videos using the new 3GS technology.
Not Apple's fault? Yes it is. It locks in its users to oppressive contracts with suppliers who can't really support it. Apple's insistance that it must control every aspect of supply is entirely Apple's fault.
Now to these price cuts. It generally looks as if they will be about $300 off a 15-inch Macbook and $100 off a lower price 13-inch unibody model. The Macbook Air dropped to $1,500. Trivial price cuts like these in the middle of a recession are not really going to do anyone any good.
Anyone who can afford $1,700 for a top of the range Macbook is still going to be a high-end market buyer and while the Air looks jolly nice it is still too expensive for what you get. Most people are going to be buying at the lower end of the market and they will probably walk away from just $100 worth of savings. That is nothing in today's market and hardly qualify as the "drastic cuts" reported by Fox News.
Of course Apple and its tame press called this aggressive pricing. Most people would call it a token cut in the face of an overwhelmingly bad economic outlook.
Likewise the claim that Apple was showing "no mercy" with its low price tag for Snow Leopard. Leopard users will only have to pay $30 for the upgrade.
This is good news given the price tag that Vista users will have to pay for their upgrade to Windows 7. But Snow Leopard offers few new features for most Apple users. The new version is being released mostly to cover up for the spotty performance Leopard brought on for its users - much like Windows 7 is to Vista. Most of the 'improvements' Snow Leopard is offering would be done for free by a Windows service pack.
Apple chunked out its usual snide comment about Windows 7. It said that Windows 7 was just another version of Vista. One of the things about insulting people is you often reveal your own weaknesses, it's called projection. Most people also recognize that Snow Leopard is just another version of Leopard, too.
So why didn't Jobs show up? He is supposed to be going back to work in about a week so he should have been there. Perhaps there was nothing going to be announced that he was proud of. µ
Share this:
Share
My 2cents: Every time any site criticizes apple you get a long line of responses and indignations. Shouldn’t you be doing something else, that is perhaps better for you? (Im projecting, because its 5am and I cant sleep, or for that matter do anything else useful)
I love it, its great.
The Inq criticizes Microsoft and Apple both ALL THE TIME. When The Inq criticizes Microsoft, it's obviously completely warranted and deserved; yet whenever The Inq criticizes Apple, it's obviously a travesty, biased and blatant targeting?
Get over yourselves already
The iPhone's performance doesn't come down entirely--or even mostly--to its cell network connection. Even over wifi, the iPhone is pretty pokey at rendering web pages. And it takes a while to launch apps. (All the more important because it doesn't multitask.) I'm not complaining--I have one and I love it, but holy crap, a processor upgrade would be awesome.
I hope you spend a little more time researching your future articles. You're really off-base here.
"One of the things about insulting people is you often reveal your own weaknesses, it's called projection"
Funny how you write things about others that apply to you as well. Too blind to see maybe ?
Much like ElReg (your big brother) you can't seem to see beyond your own mediocre articles and bias comments.
Maybe you should lecture your own objectivity before embarking in putting together "stuff" that represents your obvious weakness on the subject matter.
too scare to publish this? I'm not surprised one bit.
I'm no fan of Apple's stuff, but this statement:
"One of the things about insulting people is you often reveal your own weaknesses, it's called projection."
in the context of the tone of this article, makes me think this is just the pot calling the kettle black.
Remember Chekhov's «Ванька»? I am writing almost like this boy "на деревню дедушке" without a clue if you are reading....
Dear Mike, sorry, i'm not English speaking, i'm just learning. I would definitely tell all that in Russian 100 times shorter :-)))
If you still owe or influence this in one word "absurd" i will try to describe you how awful your new gen folks look like.
This is what some day they will write about you, their own parents or anyone, seems they have no limits:
"NOT EVEN TheInquirer messiah Mike Magee could be bothered to get out of bed for the red-themed rant on one of our most hatred company's (could be Apple, Sun and Microsoft) announcements at its World Wide Developers Conference yesterday.
Perhaps it was not his hart bypass surgery playing up but he has developed an allergy to hype and a healthy contempt for the TheInq bashing press that prints it without question. We can but hope that Mike's brush with death might have led him to see what is really important.
The fact that he did not show up to kick us out here into the face, me Nick Fartel and sometimes some others, is telling. Crazy mad Mike may afraid we, the new TheInq team, will kick this old foolish antics drinkard through the window...."
Damn, Mike, please, come here and barbeque some a$$es
Grand Central, Open CL, an a completely rewritten finder? That's not a service pack, that's an upgrade.
Arpple Fan boys must have fished on Kraken.
Begone already and allow an entertaining and talented hack to his muckery. I've been reading the INQ for a fistful of years, and is whimpy scrybabies like the Apple-hearted that seeks to drag everything down to their peon level. You want it with Apples, fine you can shove them but to your heart's content.
Just keep your Mac Air to yourself. Nobody gets it like you, eh?
Yeah, these Apple folks only do boring stuff, like execution. You know,
making products that customers really like, developers can build real
businesses around, making tons of money. Yawn.
You post underscores a core part of my analysis on WWDC; namely that Apple
has so totally treated us to wizardry and wow over the years that when they
merely execute, it's a disappointment (to some), something that I blogged
about in:
Apple WWDC Keynote Analysis: Punishing the Wizard, Part Two
http://bit.ly/2lC3yC
Check it out if interested.
Cheers,
Mark
I was worried about my 15 2.4 Oct. 2008 MBP would be totally obsolete but I will take my ExpressCard slot over a SD slot any day. 2.66 vs 2.4 - please even with a larger cache that ExpressCard is far better.
And only when you spend the cash on a 17 - a large device, do you get the the ExpressCard - Apple Giveth and Apple Taketh away.
they are bonkers.
Here in Canada the 15" MBP with 9600 video card went UP $100!
You may need to check your facts man:
Quote: "Windows XP 64-Bit Edition for Itanium systems, Version 2002 — Based on Windows XP codebase, which was released in 2001." From - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_xp_tablet_pc_edition#Windows_XP_64-Bit_Edition
Quote: "Microsoft has cracked the seal into the 64-bit computing world with the release Wednesday of Windows 2000 Advanced Server Limited Edition." From - http://www.pcworld.com/article/60024/microsoft_ships_64bit_windows_for_itanium.html
Date: Aug 29, 2001 4:00 pm
MS has had 64bit support for a long time.
Nowhere do see any specifics, so heres as good link as any, each line item busted down to what it does & why its now better.
Occasionally crew at zd write here, as Naathan Brockwood, Maybe Nathanize theINQ? Anyway here:
http://blogs.zdnet.com/Apple/?p=4084
Writer Claims 10X More Gruesome Details & Updated Hour Ago.
Apple and Microsoft aren't the same, get over it
Apple does predictable releases, offering incremental improvements, and charges for them. They quickly make it frustrating for you to not upgrade and basically expect you to keep up or get left behind. Compatibility and longevity have never been on apple's roadmap, they always look to the future and create advertising and hype, inflate their strong points, deny their shortcomings, and mock their opposition.
Microsoft tries to be everything to everybody. They try to support everybody's hardware and software, try to keep up with the latest trends while not alienating their user base, improve security but not break compatibility etc. It's monumental in scope and probably more than they should do. They release a new os every few years offering major changes and offer several service packs to improve performance, security, and stability without breaking compatibility. They do ok at it, but windows is definately a victim of their own size and user base. As a result they end up pleasing and annoying all of their customers at the same time.
Linux is sort of both. Red Hat Enterprise is more like microsoft, incremental changes, compatiblity is important, periodic major releases, while stuff like ubuntu and fedora are more like mac os to the extreme, very frequent upgrades, upgrade or get left behind, always hyping the future, but generally more honest about what works, what doesn't, and what needs improvement.
just shows different people want different things and one package can't be everything to everybody.
If you read the inq for content you're doing it wrong. The inq provides perspective, if you don't like it then you need to get a grip and stop by your local fanbois anonymous on your way home from work. Inqbias is well know and easy to spot which means it should be easy for you to pick out the relevant facts without having to sift through the hype.
Nick, you really are butthurt. I mean it must be bleeding so hard that it's a waterfall. It has gotta be really bad.
This site used to be full of quality news, now it is an unbelievably biased site dedicated to attacking Apple regardless of fact or merit.
I work with Windows, own Windows machines and have no reason to love Apple but this is a complete hatchet job.
I'll check back in a couple of years to see if the content has improved. With rubbish like this I can only assume your visitor stats are tanking....
i fix laptops for my coffee customers. so, 8 out of 10 owners of macbooks install win7, using bootcamp, only to have msn messenger working completely so that they can chat with their loved ones while far away from homes, but then they install the rest of essential .exes. windows 7 works like a charm on apple notebook, much better than the OS X. i don't mean that one is good or bad, and i love unix command line not leo gui though; tiger was far better os. just let you know what i know.
The person who wrote this article is obviously biased.
Once again the Vole's Mouthpiece has spoken long live the Vole.
To be fair the $:£ fx-rate has varied hugely recently, in the last month it's ranged from 1.5 through 1.7 to 1.
Also, UK price includes VAT whereas US price is quoted without sales tax.
But still, even taking into account these two points there is still some price disparity. :(
An OLED screen Iphone, with flash for the camera and multitasking OS and Tegra graphics. Now they dump this 3GS... Really disappointing! Iphone users have absolutely no reason to get the "new" Iphone.
By the way, Apple partner nVidia missed the bus with Iphone? That makes one wonder if Tegra is really ready to hit the market...
Check your facts, the x64 version arrived "on April 25, 2005" according to wikipedia.
But Microsoft didn't get 64bit right before Vista, witch is the only usable version of vista btw..
O2 want £274 for a 32GB model, which is $443! It's only $299 in the US which means they want an extra £90 ($145) more over here! Rip-off Britain or the Apple Tax?
"Was Microsoft able to offer a 64-bit kernel as a Service Pack to an existing version of Windows? If not, than the 64-bit kernel in Snow Leopard alone justifies the new OS." if you own a 32 bit vista the 64bit version is free
but on a somewhat basis note, why would people compare windows 7/vista and or osx?
1 is a general os that runs on cpu's from 3 diffent company's using different architectures produced in the last 5 years. It also deals with a large number of chipsets and a mindbogeling number of expansions
the other is a fully owned specialist os that runs on 2 cpu's from 1 company, 3 chipsets oh and apart from 1 line (the pro) all models are all in ones or laptops which have no expansion. Basicaly apple kan just include a list with all possible configs on the dvd.
it's like buying a suit, only in one case a blindfolded salesman has to find matching parts in a warehouse and in the other they sell only one suit
the fact that osx installs faster is not remarkable, that it is only a few minutes faster now that is remarkable
I use to read this site religiously about 3 or 4 times a day. I recommended this site to many people. But in the last year or so its just gone from bad to absolutely fucking awful. From the redesign of the site to the quality (!?!) of the authors that write on it, everything has gone down hill rapidly. I find the news is always late and the jokes made against Apple, Microsoft, etc. old and terribly boring. Its totally pathetic.
The Inquirer brings nothing new to the table anymore.
... all this complaining.
It's the same old all over again.
Facts:
- Leopard-Kernel is 64bit, some layers above are not. Snow Leopard changes this, hence the "64bit top to bottom".
- Leopard has protected memory and all the other bells and whistles (like XD-bits, Snow Leopard just applies it to more Apps).
- Apple has no advantage because of less different components. You can run OSX on any kind of hardware (look at iPods and iPhones for portability), as long as there are drivers. Those are provided by vendors, similar to Windows. The days when Apple used to write their own drivers is long gone.
I'm looking forward to Snow Leopard and I'll definetly buy the update. Should be ~$20 with student rebate.
"Most people also recognize that Snow Leopard is just another version of Leopard, too."
Actually, snow leopards are quite unlike their snowless namesake. One naturalist described one as having "a tail so long and furry that it looks as if a fuzzy python is following it." Think a long line of fanboys following Steve as he tosses them a few upgrades - and charges $30 for them ;o)
Windows didn't need to offer 64 bit in a service pack because they aren't playing catch up to OSX like Apple is trying to do with Windows. History repeats itself, Apple's OS is behind the curve. Windows had protected mode memory and other advanced features well before Mas OS did.
Microsoft never made fundamental changes to a kernel in a service pack because they didn't want to break compatibility with anything. See, in Windowsland, everything is compatible with software (e.g. XP), not hardware (e.g. G5). Hence such beasts as XP x64.
Maybe some day you'll grow up and realize you can call things whatever you want and that a justification requirement is burdensome and often absurd. I won't hold my breath though.
Microsoft don't need to offer a 64-bit kernel in a service pack, because they've been offering you the choice since Windows XP 64-Bit Edition (IA64). Long before AMD64 and EM64T (x86-64) support. Back in 2001.
Why do people always try to refer to Snow Leopard as a Service Pack from Microsoft? Was Microsoft able to offer a 64-bit kernel as a Service Pack to an existing version of Windows? If not, than the 64-bit kernel in Snow Leopard alone justifies the new OS.
Apple's version incrementing of OS X by 0.1, ie 10.5 to 10.6, is often made fun of as overhyped, but Windows XP was 5.1 to Windows 2000's 5.0 and Windows 7 is 6.1 to Windows Vista's 6.0. For servers kernel 6.1 is called Windows 2008 R2, but I don't see many people saying calling Windows 7 Windows Vista R2 would show the lineage better and put things in perspective.