Thread: New Apple things

I want it so bad....

as long as you can add an external screen then it would be done.

Originally Posted by pepsibobby

as long as you can add an external screen then it would be done.

Well it uses an iPod dock connector, so that's a definite maybe... ****es me off that they went with Cingular only. I'll never see one up here. AppleTV is on order though. I'll finally get my laptop back.

I found the Apple TV to be oddly uncompelling. It only plays stuff you download through iTunes.

I happen to like iTunes, so I don't mind using it to manage TV content, but frankly, they could have enhanced the application so it operated in a Tivo-like fashion by downloading schedules and allowing you to use the Apple TV like a PVR. If you keep the show, it would send it back to your computer for safe-keeping.

Also, how do you watch a DVD on that thing?! You have to go put it in your computer, or what?

They also completely missed the opportunity to put your email on it so you can read it on the TV, offer web-browsing from your couch, let you use a bluetooth keyboard or phone so you can text while watching TV, picture in picture so you can text and watch TV at the same time, make phone calls from it, either using a bluetooth headset or your iPhone and on and on.

Also, did you see the new Airport Extreme? Why didn't they combine the Apple TV with the new Airport Extreme? Or, if it's not convenient to the broadband connection, at least make it a network extender for full house coverage?

And, why don't they offer the same functionality on the Mac Mini? That's got a higher price point plus a DVD player. You'd have one for people who just want to put stuff to the TV from their Mac and another with full OS and functionality for people who want even more.

There's not even any inputs on it. It's basically a video Airport Express for $300 with some remote control software on it. I mean, that's cool, but I would expect that from just about any vendor.

The iPhone, on the other hand, is really cool. Especially if you want to upgrade both your phone and your iPod. I didn't see whether it had GPS in it. Does anyone know?

it doesn't have GPS built in. It does have bluetooth so I can't see why it wouldnt' work. This could spell excellent news for the Mac GPS market, since the underlying system of the iPhone is also FreeBSD. I'm guessing TomTom will be amongst the first to release.

My only quib with the iPhone is that it does not support UMTS (EVDO in the US?). Admittedly, this technology guzzles battery juice, but it does provide 1.8MBs+, and I can swear by it as I use it on my laptop all the time. It's broadband on the train/road.

I guess it's early days for it, but I beleive the future of personal music devices to be streaming based. There's no need to have huge local storage, if you're always connected and there's infinite web storage over the air. Given a speedy connection, all that's needed is smart buffering strategy, and the idea of taking your music collection everywhere becomes obselete.

I personally welcome the iPhone and will probably buy it.

Originally Posted by Bugbyte

I found the Apple TV to be oddly uncompelling. It only plays stuff you download through iTunes.

I happen to like iTunes, so I don't mind using it to manage TV content, but frankly, they could have enhanced the application so it operated in a Tivo-like fashion by downloading schedules and allowing you to use the Apple TV like a PVR. If you keep the show, it would send it back to your computer for safe-keeping.

Also, how do you watch a DVD on that thing?! You have to go put it in your computer, or what?

They also completely missed the opportunity to put your email on it so you can read it on the TV, offer web-browsing from your couch, let you use a bluetooth keyboard or phone so you can text while watching TV, picture in picture so you can text and watch TV at the same time, make phone calls from it, either using a bluetooth headset or your iPhone and on and on.

Also, did you see the new Airport Extreme? Why didn't they combine the Apple TV with the new Airport Extreme? Or, if it's not convenient to the broadband connection, at least make it a network extender for full house coverage?

And, why don't they offer the same functionality on the Mac Mini? That's got a higher price point plus a DVD player. You'd have one for people who just want to put stuff to the TV from their Mac and another with full OS and functionality for people who want even more.

There's not even any inputs on it. It's basically a video Airport Express for $300 with some remote control software on it. I mean, that's cool, but I would expect that from just about any vendor.

The iPhone, on the other hand, is really cool. Especially if you want to upgrade both your phone and your iPod. I didn't see whether it had GPS in it. Does anyone know?

I've got quite a bit of movies in iTunes that I didn't buy through the store. If you've ever seen my dvd library, you'd know I have a few. I just rip them into iTunes. I figure I can rip them at better quality than what you download, and I like having them in case of a drive failure. I'm actually going to get one, so I can stop having to attach my laptop to the tv. It is basically a mini with no optical drive, so I'm sure it will have software updates that will add functionality.