Of lemmings, rays, props, and capitals

The Great High Lemming says the Microsoft wrote the first Mac OS. I wonder what's he smoking this time?

Blu-ray strikes back.

Dell tries to make prop rejects for Battlestar Galactica with their XPS desktop and laptops.

Talking about Dell, here's a funny look on how Dell might try to copy Apple's marketing strategy after their XPS PCs.

BenQ, iRiver drops prices to compete with Apple. (WhAt's witH tHis puttiNg a capTalized letteR aftEr tHe fIrst leTter?)

It's all about the money

Warner CEO has been unjustly attributed to have said that they plan to decapitate Apple's iTune Music Store. Instead, this little news was attributed to a lawyer for the music labels. Warner = sharks = lawyers. I don't see any difference.

Though the record labels think that Apple is being unfair, Steve Jobs still think the $0.99 pricing is perfect. Some people have called these record exectives as "ungrateful wankers." Dvorak notes that the record companies are not fighting with Steve Jobs over the pricing out of pride but their ability to screw over artists. At least, other countries have iTMS. UK doesn't. UK record labels aren't helping, that bunch of ungrateful wankers.

And speaking of screwing, Ed "screw the nano but I mean it as a joke" Zander says that Apple will be building its own phone in the future. And not just any other phone, it will be a smartphone.

A blogger complains about how DRM doesn't let him play music on his $20,000 sound system. This high-end audiophile likes to listen to 128kbps music files. Wow.

Why won't Apple upcharge? Is it perhaps Jobs have solidified the iTunes Music Store's presence with all the iPods sold, and with that what Jobs wants, Jobs gets? Maybe the $0.99 pricing is a bit unfair to the music labels, but there might also be a bit of truth when Jobs said that increasing prices would drive away customers and this would mean back to piracy for most of them.

Windows's messed up; scare tactics from Symantec; Mad as Hell; buy an iMac now and; Mossberg says

Windows is broken. Microsoft admits it. Their Longhorn is so messed up that they turned to Linux for inspiration for their Vista OS.

Symantec tries to sell their anti-viruses to Mac users by scaring them. It's not working.

The "Mad as Hell" series was about a writer's sojourn into switching to a Mac. It was viewed as being widely popular. As his final word, the writer gives out his final Recommendations and Total Cost of Ownership Analysis. It comes in PDF and Excel files.

BusinessWeek gives the new iMac a 4 and 1/2 stars out of 5 and recommends that anyone interested should buy one now rather than waiting for the MacIntels in 2006.

Mossberg says that when switching to a Mac it doesn't mean you have to spend money for new progams all over again.

Nanonews featuring Brasso

Some say that dogs are an girl-magnets (the human kind). But Dan Pourhadi has a better alternative. One that doesn't need to be bathed, fed, groomed, or taken for a walk. More importantly, it fits into your pocket.

The iPod has become an instrument of transmutation; the transmutation of what Chris Howard of Apple Matters calls from external media. Though today, Apple is one on top, Howard warns that Apple should learn from the past in order to grow up to become the dominant player in everything not just in computers or digital music players.

Got scratches? Let Brasso fix it for you. (What's a Brasso?) The screen issue, according to The Washington Post, is much ballyhooed. Ballyhooed or not, Apple shares continue to slide. Pogue thinks that the scratchable body is not that of the nano's alone. He opined that all iPods have the same problem and wonders why 22 million people would even buy an iPod.

If you want to keep your precious iPod nano from scratches, you can try invisibleSHIELD, the full body protector.

The Motley Fool doffs its hat off to Apple by stepping up to the plate and offers nano customers outright replacement is they experience the LCD screen breakdown.

Nano users should thank the public avenger, fighting for the scratched and ruined.

The Wall Street Journal says that Apple has buckled under a 'barrage' of complaits. When they say 'barrage' they mean 'hundreds'. Wow. Americans sure know how to use English.

Those iPod-wannabees are whining that Samsung has done 'damage' by selling flash memories to Apple. Samsung denies this.

The "Cult of iPod" book is out.

Apple killed the iPod star

Apple has pulled the plug on the mini, the best selling iPod evar. Gone are the 4GB and 6GB minis. Why would Apple do this? They have killed their cash cow. But according to iPod Garage, with the death of the mini comes the rise of the nano. The writer surmises that Apple has researched an may have found out that most people carry about 500 songs in their digital music players. Not many people have 5,000 songs in their collection and hence the 4GB nano, as well as the 2GB version, will surely hit a sweet spot among consumers. The writer then proceeds to talk about the other products that were shown during the last keynote.

Apple has done the unthinkable, killing its cash cow and replacing it with something that fits the market even better. Apple is not going to be slipping from number one with this strategy anytime soon. iPod killers are going to have to do something drastically different to unseat Apple, and the big boys have no idea what to do.

Nano screen problems 'solved'

Less than a week after a website reported about the easily scratched screens and ruined LCD screens, Apple has released a response to these issues.

Regarding the ruined LCDs, Apple has said that there indeed is a problem but it only affects less than 1/10 of 1% of the total number of iPod nanos shipped and it is not due to a design flaw. Apple will replace units that are affected with this problem.

About the easily scratched screens, Apple says that the material used in the iPod nano is the same material used in the fourth-generation iPod of which Apple received no complaints. Apple also has received very few calls regarding scratched iPod nano screens.

I guess the scratched screen reports were indeed FUD.

Story in Macworld and MacWorld UK, quoted by iPodnn and MDN.

The author of the website www.flawedmusicplayer.com has removed the original content and is happy with Apple's response. His message to his visitors?

What are you waiting for? Go buy a Nano :-)

Sony, Symantec

Sony has it bad. Real bad. They are slashing 10,000 jobs, closing down 11 of 65 plants, eliminating 15 unprofitable operations, and gets a Moody downgrade to boot.

Symantec calls Firefox as worse than Internet Explorer but security experts say Symantec is wrong.

Of iPods and Phones and PDAs... and Google.

A Mac expert asks you, "Where's your nano?"

Apple iPod division head thinks it's better to keep the iPod and mobile phones away from each other. But CTIA I.T. Wireless and Entertainment Conference had the mobile iPod as one of the listed topics. However, there's doubt that Apple will even dare bring out another iPod update this year.

Consumers are offered iPods and iTunes as incentives

Embolden by the success(?) of the ROKR, Motorola announced that the RAZR2 will have the iTunes software in it.

Palm has decided that their own OS sucks. So they will use Windows Mobile 5.0 instead in their new Treo 700. Good luck, Palm.

It's Google's 7th.

Mac and Windows news

Mac mini update imminent. But Apple seems to have problems with getting Intel chips early.

UBS raises target price on Apple Computer and thinks that the nano could be the 2006 key product.

$500 reward for a Mac virus. But before that happens, a Computeractive writer thinks the Apple Mac is back and cites that Macs are safer than Windows when it comes to viruses, spywares, and other undesirables. The Boston Globe also has praises for the iBook, calling it 'a high-grade noteboook at a mid-range price.' The Grand-High Lemming announces that the features in Vista can be found in Tiger. So Windows users rejoice! You'll be able to enjoy the things that Mac users would have been enjoying 18 months from now.

In the news, BBC removes Apple from their show. Well, the Apple logo, that is. In the show Spooks, the BBC has decided to remove the logo as this may very well be against the company policy of not favoring one product over the another.

Screw the nano... or not.

Motorola CEO Ed Zander asks what does the nano do? Who needs 1000 songs in their pockets? So he says, "Screw the nano."

Some would also seem to agree. AppleXNet asks why Apple would even kill the mini? The writer feels that the iPod nano is a step back. Why couldn't Apple have imporved on the mini with new colors or a bigger memory? Some people are calling for new features not less features and more hype.

Motorola reacts.
Motorola says that Ed Zander was taken out of context by IDG News Service. Motorola said that the comment "Screw the nano," was said jokingly and that Zander was smiling when he said it. He also praised Apple and the iPod. MDN

iPod Nano woes

Aside from the screen and LCD problems, it would seem that the nano also has moisture issues according to a Microsoft's head of Windows division. The nano stopped a day after he bought it. The scratched surface and ruined screen has been reported by more users. Some people have been scared off by these problems that they have cancelled their orders.

I've mentioned before that flawedmusicplayer.comhas reported the easily scratched polycarbonate and ruined screens, but SteveJack doubts that these "problems" are real.

With all these hoopla, the SiliconValley editor thinks that the nano is fast becoming the next Cube and questions have arisen whether these problems will hurt Apple's sales.

My iPhone

Yesterday while daydreaming about what gadgets to get, my thoughts just wandered to what would be my next phone. I am wrestling between the SE K750i and the Nokia 6681. Both are almost the same in cost but even though the K750i has a 2MP camera, Nokia is a smartphone and I am imagining that I can do more with the phone. Besides, SE thinks that Asians can't spell. Idiots.

Anyhoo, my thoughts turned to the iPod nano and was wrestling with the idea of whether to get one. Then the images of a phone and the iPod merged. I wondered whether there will be an iPhone in the future, and I don't mean the ROKR. That phone is a C-R-A-P.

I started to think the nano would look nice as a phone but the click wheel's going to be a problem. But I also thought that the iPod's menu is structured nicely that it would be a great menu for a phone. Imagine using the click wheel to navigate thru your settings, games, songs, the address book... I then realized at that point that, yes, it would be difficult to type in names and numbers but then again you don't have to. All you need to do is to get your contacts from your Mac computer. There's the obvious problem of what if you want to add another contact or, worse yet sending an SMS. Well... I'll let them figure that out. As of the moment I'm thinking of how nice it would be for a phone just like an iPod... I wonder if the 6681 is a better deal... Where can I find a buyer for my shuffles and mini...

Hot wired nano; When's next, Apple?; 'Microsoft's got no heart'; To Mac and Linux users: Quit whining!!!

The New Zealand Herald calls the nano "insanely good looking". Firther discusses Coloware and Speck nano accessories.

Do you want to know when the next Apple product will be released? Then read the tips from OziMac from Appletalk. He lists suggestions such as watching when the Apple store goes down, or reading those speculations and rumors. OziMac also gives a schedule of important dates or events.

Adobe's boos, does not want to judge Microsoft, but cites the company's 'bigness' and that it's 'not caring enough for it's employees.'

A Finnish music exec tells Mac and Linux users to suck it up and quit whining. He then tells them to buy a regular CD player. He threw the shit into the fan and all hell broke loose. After Mac and Linux users heard about this tirade they went on a rampage. Hell hath no fury that the editors of the newsstie quickly deleted the more inflammatory statements in hopes that it will quell down the rage from the Fruit and the Penguin users. Nice job, Kyrrä, you dimwit.

Jobs news

MacWorld interviews Steve Jobs during Apple Expo Paris and talks about why Apple is so tightlipped when it comes to new products launching and on why the iPod seem to dominate the market. The interview also covers what Steve Jobs thinks about the Motorola ROKR and about the reports that Microsoft and Creative have beaten Apple in some patents (he calls those reports as 'lazy reporting', by the way.)


Will there ever be a video iPod? Not in the near future. Jobs says that even though videos are indeed avaible for download in iTMS, there is still little incentive for people to watch video on a very small screen. The idea is nice but it all goes back to user experience, one of the things Apple always takes into consideration when designing a product, hardware or software. It is also one of the things Apple's competitors always seem to forget.
So, who's afraid of Steve Jobs? The companies whom Jobs steamrolled over with the iPod. Even though he has denied that a video iPod is afoot, competitors are not taking any chances and are releasing their own video devices.


The Guardian Unlimited also interviews Steve Jobs during Apple Expo Paris and asks what other new things can the public expect from Apple.

Apart from nano - which, as a replacement for the best-selling iPod mini, is a major move for the company - Apple's cupboard is fairly bare. It is a low point in the product cycle, with much of the behind-the-scenes work focusing on the Intel-based computers due next summer. But new iPods are on the way, and Jobs promises "a lot of new things in the pipeline".

The drama that's unfolding between Jobs and the record labels and iPod competitors is likened to a high-stakes poker game, and Jobs is holding the royal flush for now. According to Jobs, real winners don't just enjoy the breaks but they exploit them as well. He admits that there are world-class competitors that are out trying to kill Apple but adds that so far they are not doing a great job.

In another article, Mr. Jobs is determined to repel what he calls 'greedy' record companies who want to charge more per song downloaded from the iTunes Music Store. Record labels say that not all songs are created equal. Some should cost more while some should cost less.

Jobs doesn't want to increase the price of songs available in iTMS because according to him once that happens people will turn back to pirack. But the music companies aren't buying it.
In response, a record label executive calls Jobs's stand as unfair and a 'double standard.' The executive said that Jobs wants to maintain the $0.99 per song pricing so that Apple can sell more iPods. So even if Apple isn't making that much money from iTMS it sure is making up for it in iPod sales. Some commented that the fixed priced scheme in iTMS is unique since nowhere else are different products priced the same. Some surmised that if record labels want to have variable pricing then why not sell old songs at $0.79 and the latest at the same $0.99. But that's not the way they want it. The latest and more popular songs should sell more than $0.99 according to some record labels. Rumors have it that prices for the latest releases to start at $1.49 and go as high as $2.49. It would seem the record companies would like to kill the goose that is laying the golden eggs. For now, Apple is the king of the hill, the top of the heap with the iPod + iTunes + iTMS seamlessly working together.

Other news

Opera is now offering its browser for free. Free as in no banner ads. I haven't put it through its paces yet but so far I like using it. Haven't gotten to tweaking it yet. One complain is that why are the tabs above the address bar and why can't I move it around?

Macologist reviews the Mighty Mouse and gives it a one and a half stars. Damn.

The Mac mini is touted to be the "Universal Network Appliance." Dr. I. Doctor (?) says, "the mini is a cunning combination of packaging and features made to order for networking chores. Whether it's DHCP and DNS, e-mail, Web hosting, or intrusion detection, the mini will meet your utility server needs faster than you can call Steve Jobs to make a lunch appointment."

Using iPodulator you can now use your iPod to read webpages on the go. I still don't find a use for it as of yet.

Microsoft decides to give their executives further "down the chain" to have direct decision-making capabilities. This is one of the things that will change in the reorg in the company. One target is to stop Apple from leveraging in the iPod's success.

iPod News; ditty, the shuffle slayer

An analyst predicts that Apple will be selling 31M iPods this year and 43M on 2006.

That's the good news, the bad news is that a UK advocacy group is looking into iPod battery problems and how Apple UK is dealing with it. From UK to Australia, The Herald Sun reports that the million iPod users in Australia could be breaking anti-piracy laws by converting songs from their audio CDS to digital format that can be loaded into the iPod.

The Guardian UK thinks that the ROKR isn't for those who already own iPods but instead is targetted to those curious group of people who are not keen in carrying around with them 1,000 songs. The reviewer cites several issues like the joystick, the difficult to find bluetooth function and the strangely missing radio. Other than that, the phone is recommended to those who just wants to have a 100 songs in their pocket without having to resort to having carrying another device.

Dell has decided to go after the shuffle by unleashing forth the Del DJ ditty. They even have a website for it. I damn hope this website is a spoof.

Nanonews

This is a spoof of the iPod nano.

Thurott thinks the iPod nano is "almost perfect." Wow. Can't believe he said that.

What are the lessons that can be learned from the nano? For one thing, the writer learned that drinking a bottle of Tabasco is not the same as drinking salsa.

Businessweek decides to find out how much the iPod nano really costs. By taking apart a 2GB iPod nano, it's found out that the total cost of putting it together is $90.18. However, this price doesn't not included shipping, promotional, and packging cost but this still shows that Apple has a healthy margin when it comes to the nano.

Don't look directly into the iPod nano, so warns iPodgarage. Abernethy tries to fend off the urge to get the nano by rationalizing that he shouldn't get it since he only has USB 1.1 in his 2003 Powerbook.

Nano screen problems

A website documents a problem that the iPod nano has been having lately. The flawedmusicplayer.com has gethered several stories of the nano's screen cracking or bleeding. This happened without any apparent trauma to the nano. According to the users, all they did was to put the nano in their pants pocket for an extended amount of time. Some people reports that the plastic over the screen is easily scratched and better to leave the plastic on. The company iPodResQ has temporarily increased their prices because of the overwhelming demand for the repair of the screen.

Apple News

Rumor: new hardware at Apple Expo Paris.

Steve Jobs says they are on track in shipping Intel-based Macs by June 2006. Jobs also vows to stand firm against greedy music companies (can you say 'Sony' and 'Warner'?). This is in light of the fact some music companies want Apple to raise the $0.99 price tag of songs sold in iTMS. These companies are already earning a profit especially since they barely have any cost when they release the songs through iTMS.

Bill Husted offers an advice to a reader whether to get a Mac or a Windows PC. Husted tries to sound unbiased and knowledgeable.

Mac OS 10.4 is reviewed by an experienced Windows user who switched two years ago. This the same Mac OS that Vista is going to trample over 18 months from now. Marcus kelmon gives the pros and cons of Tiger. A nice read.

More FUD from Windows lemmings

According to The Great Lemming Enderle, the Mac platform should be wary and afraid of the coming of Vista 18 months from now. This will be after they finish copying from Tiger. Of course, after they copy from Tiger and release Vista, Leopard will be out.

John Leyden says that Firefox users and Mac users should not be so smug when it comes to its security advantages. He thinks that even though there are no viruses for the Mac it doesn't mean that no one will make one soon. Speaking of viruses, Symantec says that there has been 10,866 new Windows viruses in the firt half of 2005. With that many new viruses, Mac users should be really afraid since it has to deal with, ummm... How many was that? Oh, yeah. Zero viruses.

Nanonews

USA Today (after calling Apple fans as blind lemmings) thinks that Apple is losing money with the iPod nano. This is because flash-drives are more expensive hard-drives. Apple is banking on making a profit with iTunes Music Store and sales on later iPod models.

Another article from USA "Apple-fans-are-blind-lemmings" Today predicts that Apple will sell 26 million iPod nanos in the next two quarters.

With the ongoing debacle of iTunes 5 with lost songs, lost podcasts, and other problems, Eric Convey of The Boston Herald says that iTunes 5 is more significant for Windows users with the ability to sync contacts and calendars with Microsoft Outlook.

Sad Wintel tales; why Windows is sad; Windows lemming strikes back; Apple's camera-in-a-lid

More sad tales from people whose schools have switched or gone to use Wintel machines.

Microsoft is so sad that its employees are moving to Google. They lament compensation cuts, stagnant stock price, and the bureaucracy inside the company as just some of the things that ails Microsoft as a company.

USA Today's Kantor calls some Apple fans as a 'cult of blind little lemmings.' This after he received some scathing comments about some of his articles where he misinforms, misleads, and just messes it up when talking about Apple and its products.

Apple files a patent for a camera built-in the laptop lid latch. Ummm... I think there already are some laptop manufacturers that have done this already.

Nanonews

According to CNet the iPod nano has "done it again, that Apple's not only has the latest digital music player but perhaps the glance into the future. CNet gives the iPod nano high marks.

USA Today in the meantime thinks that the competition has caught up with Apple with their offerings of FM tuners and voice recorders. What do they mean that they have caught up? They have put these features in almost all of their players and yet they couldn't keep up with the iPod.

Can't find a group that's wants to be second place so much. Apple's competitors in the online music service, Napster, Yahoo, MSN, and Real, are fighting to try to get the piece of the pie that Apple hasn't taken yet.

The iPod nano might just push flash-drives as a norm when it comes to storage for digital music players.

Playlist talks about whether the current iPod accessories available will work with the iPod nano or not. The article also mentions what the mysterious Dock Adapter really is.

Bye bye mini

First, it was my iBook. Now, it's my very first iPod, the first gen 4GB green iPod mini.

Have to sell it to have enough moolah to get the 4GB black iPod nano.

So, in a couple of hours, I will let go of my iPod mini and had her over to someone else. I hope she'll the new owner will care for her as good as I did.

*sigh*

I had lots of fun with my green mini, but time to move on...

I, fetish.

It's just funny the things people do when they get their hands on an Apple product. Just like what Pete Mortensen of Wired News writes,

"Legions of Mac users take pictures. Apple users have a particular fascination with online photo galleries of other users unwrapping the latest company products, often with a smiling model performing the geek striptease one USB cable at a time."

Who does such things anyway?


Whoops.

Ehem.

He goes on to add that some Apple pack rats use Apple product boxes as decorations in their shelves and one went further by displaying his boxes with Ikea lamps as backlights. Some take pictures of the process of opening their Macs or iPods (EHEM!) and then post them in the internet as a gallery. One such gallery remains popular two years after it was posted.

For some, the experience starts when you have held the machine and turned it on. But for Apple fans, the experience starts the very minute you look at the box.

Resurrected.

It must be a horrendous experience to be told that you have something in your belly that will kill you in months. The things that you think about. The regrets. The lost dreams. Then you are told later that the something can be removed and banished. You get to live.

How will that affect the way you think and live post-monster-in-your-belly scare?

In Steve Jobs's case, live and live with a vengeance. In The Economist's story "The Resurrection of Steve Jobs," the experience invigorated him. Staring death in the face several times has softened him according to those who knows him, and with the latest brush, it has made him more creative.

When I heard about Jobs's pancreatic cancer and how it was later diagnosed to be resectable, I knew that as Apple's CEO, Steve Jobs will turn the company on its head and drive it forward. Being told that he was dying, Jobs might have done a lot of thinking and along with that, had a lot of regrets. Then when given a second chance, I knew that Apple will be driven hard to achieve the dreams he has for the company. I knew that Apple employees was going to have their work cut out for them. They had to prepare to be streched to their limits because Steve Jobs has seen his own mortality. Everyone should be ready for bigger things in Apple with the resurrection of Steve Jobs.

Nanonews

CNN talks about the iPod nano, at the same timecuts out the part in an AP story that criticized Microsoft's WMA format. Why?

"Microsoft is in talks with Time Warner about taking a stake in the media giant's America Online unit, as part of a broader discussion about the two companies working together."

The iPod nano clock.

Not exactly about the iPod nano but still about Apple. CNet lists down the Top Ten Gadgets in the last ten years. Number one is Apple's iPod released in 2001 and Apple's iMac released on 1998 on the number 8 spot.

As it was mentioned before, hard-drive based digital music players are threatened by the iPod nano. According to Charles Arthur of The Register, Apple's iPod nano will cause a fall in the sales of their hard-drive based iPods. Gasp! This means Apple will lose in the hard-drive based DMP market! Not so, since that loss will be taken up by the iPod nano. I think that this is a correct assessment. How many people like to have a 20GB DMP and not be able to fill up the half of it? I want a 20GB iPod but it's only because my music collection plus all the podcasts that I've downloaded won't fit in my 4GB mini anymore. So, the only real reason why I want an 20GB iPod is I want the space, I really don't need it. Of course, there's only a 5,000 peso difference between the 4GB nano and the 20GB iPod. Whew! Tough decision.

In the wake of the iPod nano, "MP3 players" manufacturers are forced to reduced their prices to stay competitive.

Finally, if you really, really like your iPod nano, you can now dress up your baby like the nano. Why? Because.

In his last public appearance, Steve Jobs subtly said, "I quashed them all so quit messing with me!" Well, not exactly but sort of.

The iPods vs the others; the ROKR

It would seem that iPod owners carry the most songs among digital music player owners, with iPod owners having 504 songs on average.

Speculations about a video iPod abound but BusinessWorld doesn't think that it's about watching videos in your iPod. It will be about the iPod as a repository for movies and connecting it to a TV or monitor. Speculate as much as you want Steve Jobs and some don't see a need for a video iPod.

Update: September 16, 2005:
Not only are there buttons, it would seem that there alluding to the "video" in the iPod. Oh, type http://www.apple.com/windows/ and see what happens.

Sony is hellbent in beating the iPod. They plan to outsell the iPod by the end of the year. Yeah, right. Dell is also going after the iPod family by releasing their own version of the iPod photo and iPod shuffle. Yeahhhhh, riiiiight.

Oh, yeah. The ROKR still sucks according to Walt Mossberg.

The iPods vs the others

It would seem that iPod owners carry the most songs among digital music player owners, with iPod owners having 504 songs on average.

Speculations about a video iPod abound but BusinessWorld doesn't think that it's about watching videos in your iPod. It will be about the iPod as a repository for movies and connecting it to a TV or monitor. Speculate as much as you want Steve Jobs and some don't see a need for a video iPod.

Sony is hellbent in beating the iPod. They plan to outsell the iPod by the end of the year. Yeah, right. Dell is also going after the iPod family by releasing their own version of the iPod photo and iPod shuffle. Yeahhhhh, riiiiight.

Oh, yeah. The ROKR still sucks according to Walt Mossberg.

Liberate yourself from the oxymoronic company

Fasoldt writes that a reader recounted to him through email about his switch to Mac. Raymound Nourse, after setting up his Mac mini, says, "this is what computing is supposed to be, simple and seamless," and further , "I can say that I have been set free of the problems and fears I have experienced with the many PCs I have owned." A quote from Fasoldt sums it up:

'Windows users don't seem to understand that their problems are Windows problems, not computer problems.'

A PC World writes scoffs at the idea the Microsoft calls itself an innovative company. He thinks that Microsoft's definition of the word "innovate" is to steal other companies good ideas and retain the bad ideas that it actually came up with.

iTunes 5.0 gripes and hints

Some people aren't really happy with the latest iTunes. From the new interface to missing music files and podcasts.

Let's leave the bad and go to the good. There are hints of an iTunes Video Store on the horizon. According to a story in Ars Technica, someone has discovered buttons and images that alludes to plans by Apple to sell videos.

Update: September 15, 2005
Apple has admitted there are problems with iTunes 5.0 and promises to release an update early next week.

Nanonews

"The impossbile is possible." So states the iPod Law according to Pogue. "Apple's iPod music player and iTunes music store may have 75 and 80 percent of their worldwide markets." But according to one analyst no one can sustain an 80 per cent marketshare. Pogue says that it's correct. "Apple's market share won't stay at 80 percent. It's about to go up."

Associated Press likes the iPod nano but takes a swipe at Microsoft's DRM and doesn't even bother mentioning any of Apple's competitors. Ironically, the nano was the highlight of Microsoft's Professional Developers' Conference 2005. More earth-shattering is Gates praising Apple for doing a good job in the music industry.

News abound that the nano is selling well and demand is high. Australian IT calls it as the "little bar of techno-joy will be hard to beat for some time to come." Jupiter Research thinks the nano has redefined a category and it has succesfully created a loud buzz all around. It would seem people everywhere are talking about it. Ozi reviews the nano, too. Ozi's from Melbourne and participates in the AppleTalk forum.

It goes without saying that Apple's comeptitors in the digital music player market are having a tough time and the nano won't be helping them.

Will the popularity of the nano mean the end of hard-disk drive based players?

It's been a week since the iPod nano was launched and already there are a slew of iPod nano cases already. There's a couple from Speck, and... I gotta find more. Sorry.

Oh, yeah. The last but the not the least, ROKR still sucks.

Speakable; Cyrus blog; Apple roundtabe discussion

Bookmarked:

How to use Speakable.

Weblog about gadget rumors.

SiliconValley roundtable discussion about Apple.

Are Macs expensive?

Well? Are they really? Cost is personal opinion. It's not fact but it's about perception and experiences. Or so he says.

While you're trying to decide if Macs are indeed expensive, read about how Dell messed up a school.

Miscellanews

Is there a 16GB iPod nano in Apple's crystal ball? Maybe, since Samsung will be shipping 16GB flash memory on 2006. Will the nano take over?

Aside from clearly losing to Apple in the digital music player and online music services market, Sony also has other problems as well. So it has decided to implement a turnaround plan on September 22. It isn't a wonder for a company with a "co-president" to get into trouble these days. Too many cooks spoil the broth.

Apple tries to keep hackers from running Mac OS X on old intel machines. 'Nuff said.

A roundtable discussion about Apple. The talk covers Apple leaving IBM, the role of iPod, and what path will Apple take towards the future.

University of Oklahoma researchers made a robot with a Mac mini for a brain and iSight as an eye.

Videos might start selling videos soon with hints like buttons with the terms 'Gift Video,' 'Buy Video,' and 'Add Video'.

Griffin's new iTrip LCD is review by AppleXnet. It is given a 5 out of 5 rating.

Finally, about the Rokr. Here's a review and here're cool responses from the industry.

Steve's Little Wonder

Come on, guys. You know that I won't stop with the iPod nano news until a) I get one or, b) I get sick and tired of it. So whichever comes first, I'll keep churning out news, reviews, and sales details about the nano.

Time features Steve Jobs and the nano in their September 12 issue.

Playlist reviews the nano and gives it a 4 1/2 out of 5 rating. It has the usual complaints of lack of Firewire sync, viewing pictures in TV, and can't boot a Mac from it.

Ars Technica sat on, dropped, and tossed the iPod nano. Then as a finalé, ran it over with a car. After its demise, it was autopsied.

The iPod nano enters Amazon's top MP3 players list, and it's still on pre-order. About an hour later, all four nano variants go into the top ten flash-based MP3 players. On the top ten hard drive-based MP3 player, the iPod gets the top four spot.

Amazon's number one flash-based MP3 player is the black 4GB iPod nano. The black nano is outselling the white nano. I guess people are sick and tired of white.

With the nano comes the accessories for the nano. Accessory manufacturers respond to the latest iPod from Apple.

So, can anything or anyone stop Apple? Only time can tell.

Microsoft the thief

Microsoft can't seem to come up with anything new anymore. Their Vista (formerly known as Longhorn) will promise to be better than Tiger... 18 month from now, that is.

Microsoft wants to make sure the Vista's going to beat Tiger (18 months from now) by developing Microsoft Gadgets. Microsoft also gave a preview of the new Office suite with a brush metal look. I wonder where they get these cool ideas?

World of ends

Good read.

MacMods and Kensington

I'm getting tired and lazy so...

Results of The Great MacMod Challenge. People all around modify their Apple hardware.

Kensington releases new iPod accessories. From speakers to transmitters. From chargers to transporters.

That's it! I'm through! Time to waste my time reading useless information. Ciao!

Fitt's law here.

Virus FUD

People are spreading a lot of FUD (fear, uncertainity, doubt) about the Macs ability to ward off viruses, trojans, worms, malwares, and spywares. One of them is Kotadia of ZDNet Australia. Another is Borrie of New Zealand. What is it about people living below the equator?

Cargo magazine's review of laptops and considers the Apple iBook as the best in several categories and praises the relative immunity of the iBook against viruses and spyware. Read here on MDN's take on the word "relative"

New look of iTunes and Sony copies iTunes

The latest iTunes shows yet another evolution in the look and appearance of applications for the Mac. Sony shamelessly designs their Connect Player like iTunes. This of course, is in the wake of the fact Sony is getting murdered by Apple in the digital music arena. Sony retaliates by refusing to release songs thru iTMS Australia, and its co-president (co-president???) says they will accelerate their challenge to the iPod.

Get to know? iTunes 5.0 more.

Nano peeks and reviews. Oh, yeah, the ROKR, too.

Apple posts video and images of the special media event launching the iPod nano and Rokr (among other things).

Mossberg thinks the iPod nano combines beauty and function. PCWorld's first look, hands on, and random musings on the iPod nano. Who else reviewed the iPod nano? There's iPod Garage and reports that the black and 4GB are the favorites early it the nano's release. Playlist has its firt impression and review. Knight Ridder calls the nano as "the genuine iPod mini killer." With the release of the nano and iTunes 5.0, PC World asks how are Apple's competitors feeling?

Another first impressions from MacTeens but the New York Times is late in reporting.

What BusinessWorld thinks of Steve Jobs's tiny but sure bet.

Aside from reviews, there's also the dissected iPod nano and Jobs said it would have broken his heart if the debut of the nano was spoiled by rumor sites.

Important note: there's no Firewire support for the iPod nano. Death knell of Firewire, you think?

Not all are singing praises for the iPod nano. Korean digital music player manufacturers are gnashing their teeth and shaking their fists at Apple for their low-priced nano. Not only are they going to have to compete in design and ease of use, they now have to compete in pricing. With Creative's poor performance last quarter, it might just spell doom for them.

Experts are divided over the iPod phone hybrid. Apple Matters think that the Rokr falls flat but that the nano is going to be huge. However, USA Today and David Pogue seems to think that the ROKR is really nice.

MM review; Man-e-faces; Newton reincarnate?; iTunes 5.0; iPod people; iPod clothes

Here's a Mighty Mouse review (quite late if you ask me).

The many faces of OS X.

People are still crazy over the Newton.

Get to know iTunes 5.0.

Movies of people using iPods.

A clothing manufacturer designed jackets with controls on the the sleeve.

For the dearly departed iPods

Engadget has an interesting bit on evolution and death of the different iPods that came to be. It reads more like an obituary rather than a history. Good read though.

Nano, Rokr, yada-yada

Just like what was mentioned before, the Rokr is a bust even before it is even released. But surprise, surprise, the iPod nano is a hit even before people got their hands on it. Mossberg thinks that the nano is cool.

But the iPod nano comes at a cost for Apple. Even though some think that the nano is reasonably priced, but according to a report, the iPod nano cost more to make and hence, Apple won't be making as much as it did with the iPod mini.

Of course, Apple's competitors won't be taking this sitting down. Sony's response to the release of the iPod nano? Release five new DMPs. Gee, 5 versus 1. I wonder who'll win? Sony's co-president said that they will accelerate their challenge to the iPod.

Check out the random musings about the iPod. It covers things like where are the large-capacity iPods to when the iPod nano clones will arrive.

Here's a brief on the news about the iPod nano et al.

Other news about Apple

More car companies have announced integration with iPod. Acura, Audi, Honda & Volkswagen. Steve Jobs predicts 30% of all cars to be sold in the US will have iPod connectivity.

There are now over 1,000 accessories for the iPod.

The iTunes Music Store takes 80% of the market in UK.

The not-Apple news for the day is Microsoft reacting to the the news of Jobs's new products. They reiterate, reiterate I say, that they alreadt had phones with Windows in it and that iPods are proprietary.

Nano, nano!

No, no. It's not Mork.


It's the the latest iPod from Apple: the iPod nano.


The iPod nano will replace the iPod mini. Thinner than a No. 2 pencil, 80% smaller in volume than the original iPod, 62% smaller by volume of the iPod mini.



Other comparisons: 68%: iRiver, 69%: Creative Zen, 58%: Creative neon, 59%: Samsung player, and 67%: Sony player. 66% smaller than the Motorola RAZR. Weighs 82 grams, USB 2.0, and 13 hour battery life. Comes in two colours: white and black. 4GB at $249 and 2GB at $199. Dock ($29), lanyard headphone ($39), arm bands ($29), and nanotubes ($29 for five colours).



Same pin with the iPod connector. Coloured screen, photos, clocks, games, calendar, lap timer, and stop watch. Screen lock is available, too.

The iPod nano is said to be a home run or will be the highest volume iPod yet.

Some websites already are taking a closer look. EzGear has already released cases for the iPod nano.

There has been 22 miilion iPods sold, 6 milion in last quarter alone. On July, iPod has 74% of the digital music player market.

What are the other announcements from the San Francisco special music event?

Motorola ROKR is finally out!

There's no arguing that the iPod nano will rock but the ROKR probably won't. Some say that the ROKR doesn't have enough "Apple in it", and some question the battery life.

All of the Harry Potter audiobooks are available in iTMS. You can also buy al the Harry Potter books and a collector's iPod 20GB. The iPod has a laser engraving of Hogwarts' crest at the back.

Madonna has made available her 16 albums on iTMS.

Quicktime stream of the Apple Special Event.

Apple has released iTunes 5 and iPod updater 2005-09-06 which includes updates for the iPod nano.

China f*ck*d Gates; Apple's shine; the G5

AP reports "He (Lee Kai-Fu) testified that one of the lowest moments of his career with Microsoft was a conversation in which Gates yelled at him and said the company had been 'f-----' by the Chinese people and its government. Lee did not clarify the context of Gates' comments."

From constant reinvention to artistic flair, Apple's designs mixed with easy to use techonlogy makes it standout against other competitors. Competitors are waiting for a mis-step from the company and while waiting, they try to compete by "designing" better products. Apple's "Fairplay DRM" might make some to buy non-iPod products, Sony has threw in the towel and agreed to sell music from their Japanese artists on iTMS.

Anandtech takes apart a G5 while PCMag praises the Power Mac G5 as, "...fast, yet easy to support."

7-7-5

September 7, 2005 will be another date to watch for Apple enthusiast. Rumors are abound on what the master showman, Steve Jobs, will reveal. People say that it will definitely be the Motorola-iTunes mobile phone, Rockr. Some predicts further that Jobs will announce the shift from hard-drive to flash-based drive storage for the iPod mini, which will mean that Apple will take a much, much bigger chunk out of the flash-based DMP market.

One iPod that won't be seen on September 7 is the iPod video. Jobs doesn't think an iPod video is such a good idea. Perhaps he will release an iTablet or perhaps iPDA. Yeah, right.

How about a whack on the head?

Youll and a Forbes writer hail the ease of usability and great user experience when using a Mac. It's like getting whacked by a baseball bat of common sense. Another writer says that after 15 years of using Windows, switching to a Mac felt he is too stupid to use them.

These two user experience could have been multiplied a hundred-fold is only Apple would advertise more effectively.

On and on?

There is the question that affects all Mac users. The answer to this question will determine the future of these users and their Apple machines.

Crooner asks, "to leave on or shutdown?"

Overwhelmingly, 75% say that they leave their Macs on 24x7 instead of shutting them down. The electric bills these people are running...

Hack your iPod, iPod shuffle stomps 'em, iTrip, iTMS charts, WMP encryption hacked, first Mac app from Google, rollable display, and EFF on DRM.

Engadget features a how-to hack the iPod firmware and change the all the graphics in your iPod. Be warned though, doing this hack might invalidate your iPod's warranty.

The 512MB iPod shuffle takes 34.4% of the flash-based digital player market which puts it in first place. The 1GB iPod shuffle takes second place with 11.9%. This means Apple has taken 46.3% of the flash-based player stomping Sandisk, Rio (R.I.P.), and Creative Labs (leeches). With the news of a flash-based iPod Mini, Apple is making more difficult for its competitors. Unless, of course Creative finds a way to make Apple stop using "their" patent.

You got your self an iPod but it seems too... plain. Well, jazz it up with the different peripherals and add-ons. PCMag lists the top ten of itseditors iPod gear picks.

Griffin Technology has released an updated version of their iTrip. "The best iPod accessory" is reviewed by iLounge and given a "highly recommended." But iLounge offers a caveat: the iTrip they reviewed might not perform the same as those that will be sold soon. It means that the iTrip you buy might be worse or might be better. Needless to say, I've got this in my sights, to compliment the new 20GB coloured iPod I'm eyeing. MDN and iPodNN

Apple has published the iTunes Music Store Charts where you can find the top ten singles and albums being downloaded by users from 20 countries. From US to the UK. From Japan to Luxembourg. When you head down to the iTunes Music Store Charts page you can choose between the top 10 songs or the top 10 albums. After picking your choice, you wil be taken to a page where the charts from all the 20 countries are displayed. If you ask me, this is a bit unintuitive, a bit of a far cry from Apple's philosophy.

Not exactly news nor is it a good thing but a hacker has reversed engineered the encryption coding of Windows Media Player and a developer is going to port it to VLC so users won't have to be forced to use WMP in viewing and listening to streams online.

Google has released its first application, GMail Notifier for Mac OS X. This program will let Mac users view messages without opening a browser, open Gmail in your browser without forcing you to log in again, and make Gmail your default email program.

Philips shows the future of display for mobile digital devices. Philips Polymer Vision Readius demonstrates the concept of rollable-display for the devices of tomorrow. The Readius is a prototype and Philips doesn't plan to put it into production but it will be used to gauge the industry's and the public's reaction. This technology will make the gadgets smaller and more portable.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) says that the Digital Rights Management (DRM) in songs bought from iTune Music Store (iTMS) is unfair and distributing and using sotwares to beat it is against your End-user License Agreement (EULA). I'm aso running out of acronyms here. Beat DRM with JHymn.

More about the iPod and iTunes

David Pogue calls the attempt of the music industry in messing with Apple's iTMS pricing scheme as "idiotic." Pogue writes in The New York Times, "It's idiotic to suggest that what didn't work in 2002 would somehow work in 2006, after Apple demonstrated to the industry that a simple, unified, understandable pricing and rights structure was the only way to make music stores work."

The Cincinnati Enquirer gives readers the keys to choosing a digital music player. The factors in choosing an digital music player (DMP) are: physical size, storage space, price, software compatibility, supported formats, and number of accessories available. It writes, "ecause it dominates the market, Apple's iPod probably has the most accessories available at the moment. However, despite its awesome controls and sleek design, it is far and away more expensive than some other players with similar features." Greatness comes at a price.

A poor-spelling teenager writes about why the iPod is such a hit among teenagers and tries to give an insight on why the iPod has become a phenomenon that is different from stuffy shirted Wall Street analysts. Too bad the writer didn't check on how "iPod" and "iTunes" are spelled.

And finally... It's not remotely related to either iPod or iTunes but here are the answers to the question, "what are the things that Windows can better than Macs?" Or not. The article doesn't really answer it but read MDN's list of what Windows actually do "better."

More of the Mighty Mouse (updated)

There are more reviews about Apple's latest Mighty Mouse. Boston Globe's Mike Langberg calls the Mighty Mouse as the "world's most carefully crafted bar of soap." He lists all the goodness that the mouse has to offer but in the end he advises readers to choose a mouse based on comfort rather than on looks or functions. MDN

Boston Globe also has the story on the mouse that took 21 years to build, sold out almost immediately. The article talks about the design and features of the Mighty mouse and hopes that this device, so creatively and cleverly designed, will make Windows bigots take a liking to it. MDN

Bob "Dr. Mac" Levitus calls the 4-button mouse a winner. That is not to say that he doesn't have a few complaints. He laments that the mouse can't send a user-defined keystroke, the fourth button is awkward to use, and that the mouse was wireless. Nonetheless, he still calls the Mighty Mouse as the finest mouse Apple has ever produced.

And the last in the story about the Mighty Mouse...

A story said that Jobs does not even know about the Mighty Mouse. Strange. MDN

Update: August 15, 2005

I found more Mighty Mouse reviews if anybody's interested.

The latest comes from SteveJack writing for MacDailyNews (Yeah. Yeah. This is where I get most of my news from). What are his gripes? He's quite annoyed that Apple is quite stingy when it comes to the maximum tracking speed. But he found a way around it by using MouseZoom. He also wishes that the side buttons would require less squeeze, and that the volume in the mouse can be adjusted. But overall, SteveJack likes the mouse and says that third-party USB mouse makers should be afraid (personally, I don't think so.)

Another review comes from OS News written by Thom Holwerda. Holwerda chooses to focus on the flaws and doesn't have anything much nice to say about the mouse. I guess he is one of those "Apple bigots." He first points out that the cord is too short then goes into the design flaws which are as follows:

Design Flaw I: The Scrollball
Design Flaw II: The Squeeze Button
Design Flaw III: Touch Sensor Technology

He recommends the Mighty Mouse for "true Apple fans only."

CNN has also decided to get into the act by sort-of review. But I wouldn't trust a network that displays things like, "Beyonce doesn't want bootylicious anymore," or something like that in their ticker tape. August 12, 2005, 9:06PM

Update: September 1, 2005
ZDNet gives the Mighty Mouse a 6.6 out of 10. The reviewer didn't like the ergonomics of the mouse but scores points for being able to be used by both right- and left-handed users. The reviewer also wished that the side buttons can be configured individually.

Switched due to the halo!

The iPod halo effect has James Derk switching to a Mac and likes how his iBook worked out of the box. He adds, "Of course, a Windows laptop out of the box works too, but after 50 patches from Microsoft and 10 reboots."

The Mad as hell - switching to Mac series will end on September on its 17th installment. Interesting read for those who are still unconvinced in switching to a Mac.

To convince you further, a PCMag survey shows Apple desktops and portables topped the surveys. August 30, 2005 8:47PM

Update: September 1, 2005
It would seem Mac users are very enthusiastic when it comes to welcoming a switcher. MacDailyNews had posted the story of James Derk's switch. MDN readers lost no time and sent emails, lots and lots of emails, to welcome Derk to the Mac. He received so many emails that his Outlook Express (running on Windows) crashed and burned. In his own words, "...received so many e-mails that Outlook Express choked on its own lunch and died a horrible, flaming death."

OS X on an 'ordinary PC'

I think the writer meant "Windows-based PC." But then again he could be right; Windows is pretty ordinary.

A hacker's managed to make OS 10.4 run on a Sony Viao, months ahead of Apple's planned release of their Intel based PCs. Screenshots and instructions are available on UneasySilence.com. I guess deep down, Windows zealots secretly wish they can run Mac OS X on their "ordinary PCs." August 15, 2005, 7:49PM

Update: August 19, 2005
It would seem that Apple doesn't like the idea of the renegade OSx86 . Apple has sent a cease and desist order to various Apple/Mac newsites to stop them from posting links to the now famous non-Apple PC running OS 10.4. It might be bad news for Apple that Tiger can now run under Intel (and perhaps AMD) based chips way ahead of the official release of the the MacTel PCs in 2006. But it is even worse news for Microsoft. People now have an alternative OS for their PC (other than Linux) aside from Windows. The problem with this is that this will make pirated OS X more commonplace and that's not good for Apple. MDN

Update: September 1, 2005
Two weeks after the seeing Mac OSX on an Intel hardware comes Mac OSX on an AMD CPU. But this time, only two pictures and a short message was sent anonymously. This time Mac OSX was presumably a legit copy and it was not running on a VMWare hack. I wonder how Apple is reacting to this.