jsk

iPhone vs. Android: History Repeating Itself

While I agree with the gist of your article, Excel was hardly a key product that made Apple. You're either thinking of VisiCalc on the Apple II or Aldus PageMaker/Adobe PostScript Laser Printers on the early Mac. Excel has always been a second rate, "good enough" spreadsheet app that was so bad at what it did that several companies made good money shipping apps to make up for Excel's shortcomings (do you remember CricketGraph, Igor, DeltaGraph, StatView?). The only reason Excel dominates today is because it was bundled with Word (the best of breed word processor at the time) in Office, killing the market/need for vastly superior spreadsheet programs like Trapeze, Wingz, and even Lotus 1-2-3 (programs that are still better at graphing than Excel is today). And don't even get me started on early Excel's pre-VB, migraine inducing, macro language (while everyone else was using human readable Pascal).

What Will the Next iPod Touch Offer?

Here's hoping it comes with more/better storage. 32GB is laughable for a device built around video. Especially at the premium price they charge for solid state memory (I'd go for HD storage in a heart beat - I can take of my toys TYVM).

Been waiting two years to replace my early 5G iPod. Hope I don't have to wait another year AGAIN.

The EU Stabs Apple in the Back

"First and foremost, this is part of an industrial policy in the EU. We are being told day in and day out that industrial policy is such a good thing, despite that it’s been proven to be one of the greatest disasters of mankind."

Really?!? Too bad the facts you present yourself in your own article prove the opposite. Thanks to this disastrous industrial policy in Europe, Europe has one, completely compatible standard for all cell phones. Europeans can buy any cell phone and use it on any cell system throughout Europe and not have to think twice about compatibility (and, oh yah, at cheaper rates, better service, and more open service agreements than are available in the US). Compare that to your "live free of die" "open market" in the US. Multiple, non-interoperable, completely incompatible systems; duplicating effort for higher costs and lower quality of service (GSM, CDMA, EVDO, 2G, 3G, etc. etc. etc. - do you want to get a PhD in acronyms or just make a phone call?).

Two years ago my extended family all bought new phones. Guess what, they all use MicroUSB for their computer interface and chargers. I've lost count of the number of times that convenience has been a life saver in a pinch. Not to mention that now we can do things like equip each car with only one charging cable (that stays in the car and is cheaper, because it's a universal standard that almost everyone uses) where we used to have to carry around three or four different cables where ever we went (we only had one complete set because of the expense - which also meant we were constantly leaving them behind).

Sometimes too much choice is stupid.

Microsoft May Be Able to Halt Apple's Music Monopoly

@jack dee:

iTunes store lets each purchase be used on 5 computers (Mac AND Windows - Zune is Windows and Windows ONLY - now who's being monopolistic) and an unlimited number of iPods.

@the article's author:

So, what monopolistic behavior is Apple engaging in?!? Prices and usage terms are set buy the music industry, NOT Apple. DRM (for music) has been dropped. Other music stores are around and flourishing (perhaps you've never heard of a little company called Amazon?), without ANY interference from Apple. Mp3s and mp4s (aka AAC files) from other sources are perfectly playable in iTunes and on iPods. Apple does not censor or modify content. Access to free content (i.e. podcasts, playlists, promotional materials, etc.) requires no payments to Apple on either end. The only "interference" Apple engages in is NOT paying to license M$'s WM format (M$'s DRM access isn't available on any platform but Windows, Silverlight only allows access up to the now ancient version 9, "plays for sure" was Window ONLY, direct support for WM on platforms other than Windows has been dropped - again, look who's being monopolistic).

Again, just what monopolistic behavior is Apple engaging in?

How Big Will iPhone Gaming Be?

@Ird: What do Motorola cell phones have to do with iPhone/iPod Touch vs. DS/PSP web browsing/gaming? Yes, Motorola cell phone web browsers are terrible (I've tried it and wouldn't foist it on anyone). Have you tried the broswers on the PSP and the DS. They aren't THAT bad and are, in fact, quite usable.

I think people are taking their fanboyism to the extreme here. Yes, the iPhone is a superb first step towards a truly usable "smart" phone. But people are deluding themselves if they think people are going pick an iPhone over a PSP/DS for the gaming experience any more than they would NOT buy a PSP because of the web browser. Gamers are always going to put the gaming experience first. Puzzle games and tilt to steer racing games are cute (and quite fun for the casual, adult gamer), but they're going get old for everyone else. Not to mention that the PSP and DS are far more capable devices than you're giving them credit for.

How Big Will iPhone Gaming Be?

@ Ird - I guess you've never even picked up a PSP? Run Opera on a DS? The DS and the PSP have been on the net via WiFi for years. Is the interface (for web browsing) as good - no. Does it matter - no. Does the crippled game control interface for gaming on the iPhone matter - yes! (Kinda hard to play a game if you can't see it because your own fingers are in the way.)

@ the author - How big will iPhone gaming be?!? Are you serious? How about just a little bit bigger than "gaming" on the iPod (v5, v5.5, and Classic) - as in, not very. You do realise that Nintendo has sold a couple orders of magnitude (literally) more DSs than Apple has sold iPhones. Not to mention that an iPhone is a little pricey to give to your 8-10yo.