Posts for Tag: apple

New MacBook Pro design should focus on bigger, better, faster - not thinner...

Apple's choice of processors may depend on how dramatically it redesigns the MacBook Pro next year. Rumors have persisted that Apple is working on ultra-thin models that may represent a complete overhaul of some of the MacBook Pro models, making them more Air-like in design.

There are lots of rumblings that Apple will kill the optical drive in its 13" and 15" MacBook Pro line. It seems the 17" will still keep the drive to satisfy the few hardcore production people who for some reason still work with DVDs (not Bluray, mind you). The question becomes, well what do you do with all that real estate now that an optical drive is no longer there. There have been rumors of an ultra-thin Air-like 15" MacBook (Pro or Air?).

If it were up to me, I'd stay away from thinner. Maybe a little thinner is ok but don't try to create a 15" MacBook Air. As a previous Air owner, I loved the sleek design and super light machine. However, I found myself growing tired of how under-powered it was and the constant high whirring of the fan when I did more CPU intensive activities. I eventually switched to a 13" MacBook Pro and thought it was a great compromise between power, performance and size. So I would hate for them to kill the 13" MacBook Pro in favor of sleeker underpowered (relatively speaking) machines. Instead, take the empty real estate and either add more storage, RAM, or better yet more batteries. At the very least, just take out the drive so it's slightly lighter but don't trade sleek for power when the 13" MacBook Pro is already pretty sleek.

Siri is pretty damn cool … Once you get over how foolish you look talking to yourself

I love the new iPhone 4S. Super fast and extremely responsive when navigating through apps, browsing, games, etc. Of course, Siri is the huge new feature on the phone and it pretty much works as advertised. I give it a B+ so far but know that it will get better over time. Having to connect to the network to use Siri is a little annoying but it's manageable. And certain voice commands don't work too well like asking it to play certain podcasts that have similar names to songs in your library will more often trigger the playing of the song. For things like setting reminders, calendar meetings, initiating phone calls and having it read/reply/send text messages, it's amazing - to the point where my preferred method of doing these tasks is now via voice. It actually is faster and more efficient. One place it is perfect for is when driving. I've carried on full text conversations with people without missing a beat. Of course, you have to deal with the "looking crazy talking to yourself" issue. Still haven't quite crossed that hurdle yet so when I'm in the office or a public place, I go back to finger inputs. But the dream of Star Trek computer will one day be realized...

iPhone 4S launch had no lines ... Good thing?

I picked up an iPhone 4S yesterday (launch date). It's a great phone that's broken a ton of sales records but that's not the interesting part. I dropped by the Emeryville Apple Store at around 2:45pm and there were only five people in line. Got my phone in 15 minutes. At last year's iPhone 4 launch I came at around the same time and waited in line for four hours. Don't get me wrong - I'm not complaining. It's just odd that a phone that obliterated sales records didn't have an accompanying crush of folks showing up at the stores. Could it be that most folks got it via preorder? Or maybe Apple got their act together and actually produced more phones at launch. Not sure but perhaps the Apple propaganda machine is running a little differently these days. Maybe Tim Cook is more interested in selling as many phones as possible and not how they are sold. I wonder if the mystique is wearing off and Apple will just make and market good products minus the buzz. If so, Apple may be falling back to just being any other consumer electronics company instead of the one people insanely love.

Steve Jobs and how he impacted me … RIP Steve

I was driving when my wife texted me... "RIP Steve Jobs".  I wasn't really prepared for the response I would have.  It kind of caught me off guard.  There was sadness but not the usual sadness associated with hearing about the death of a "celebrity".  I didn't know Steve Jobs personally.  I've never met him.  I've never seen him in person.  There will be many people who will celebrate his impact on Silicon Valley, the tech community, even the world of every day people.  All true and all well deserved  But that wasn't enough for me to feel sad about his passing.  Was it because I like using Apple products?  Shouldn't be.  I like using a lot of other products and it wouldn't matter much to me if the people involved with their creation pass on.  What was it specifically about Steve Jobs?  Was it the showmanship?  His vision of how products should affect our lives for the better?  His brilliance?   I realized it was none of those things.

Steve Jobs was afflicted with the same disease that took my father 7 years, 6 months and 27 days ago.  It's a disease that rarely sees people live beyond a few months after diagnosis - my father died a little over 8 months after his diagnosis.  A few months after that horrible day, Steve Jobs announced that he also had pancreatic cancer.  I remember sending off an email to steve@apple.com wishing him the best and hoping that he pulls through.  After the ordeal I had just been through, I had little hope that he would survive past 2005.  But when 2005 came and went, then 2006, then 2007, then 2008, and he was still with us, I saw it as something of a ray of hope for all people who have been affected by pancreatic cancer.  Every keynote he gave was like an affirmation of life to me.  Here was someone living and living well after being given a death sentence years earlier.  That was his impact on me.  More than the slick design or the neat gadgets.  So with his passing, I am forced to revisit in some small measure the feelings I had back in March of 2004.  Like my father, I hope he now has peace - free from the pills, the chemo sessions, the needle pricks, and the constant pain.  My thoughts go out to his family, especially his kids.  I know EXACTLY how you feel.