IPhlop

Off Topic
41

The iPhone is going to be a huge hit. It’s an amazing piece of technology just because no other company has been able to combine all of that functionality into an actual functional device: Apple has done that.

Also, you’d better bet that the next iPod is going to get the same revolutionary user interface, as Apple would just have to chop out the mic, bluetooth, wifi, sensors, camera, and phone/internet software, which would undoubtedly lower the price to a reasonable $499 or $599 (remember, the Cingular plan subsidizes the true cost of this device).

I’m really excited about this product and I actually feel pretty bad for Palm and Windows Mobile, right now.

Apple just turned the industry upside down…again.

42

[quote]ill wrote:
As long as it uses iTunes and only plays mp4 I am not buying it. I want drag and drop. I want to play more codecs then mp4 files.[/quote]

iTunes plays mp3, mp4, aac, aiff, and more…

43

[quote]Sturat wrote:
Personally I’ll stick with my IPAQ, does everything that the IPhone does and they’re cheaper right now.

Personally I found that I needed the PDA functions for my job and the phone being integrated was a bonus. I’ve had the thing a year now and I’ll be buying another when this one dies, not that it’s showing any signs of that.

STU[/quote]
Your iPaq is not nearly as functional and does not have a comparable user interface.

44

[quote]analog_kid wrote:
Fuck Apple. I am so sick of all their “trendy”, clicky shit products they bring out so spoiled rich kids can look cool. Damn near everyone I know who has an ipod had the battery die on them to have Apple not cover it under warranty. Their computers would be great…if they didn’t run the world’s slowest operating system that puts them in the same class of performance as a PC from 1998.

Besides, the last thing I want is some fruity, hippie looking cell phone that everyone else on the planet has. I’ll take an Onyx. (If it ever gets made)

[/quote]This is an absurd post. You obviously lack any knowledge on the topic at hand.

OS X is the fastest operating system on the planet and dwarfs Vista and Windows XP, by comparison. You’re living backwards if you doubt that.

Also, Apple’s warranty on iPods is 1 year. If anything goes wrong in that time, they fix it. If people choose to buy the 3 year warranty, Apple covers it for 3 years.

Remember, the lithium ion battery in the iPod is the same lithium ion battery found in countless mobile devices. The iPod issue just gets blown out of proportion because Apple dominates the mp3 player market segment, with a ~70% share.

45

[quote]pookie wrote:
TShaw wrote:
It’s not a phone. It’s a hand-held computer with telephony.

Really? Or is that just a marketing bullet.

I’ve seen mentioned that it runs OS X. Can I install a VPN client and then connect to my office? Can I run an SSH terminal on it? That would be an interesting feature.

But if the only thing we can do with that “computer” is install Apple-approved Widgets, then it’s not a computer in the sense most people think. Can I write my own software for it?

If it can be used as a small laptop with a cellular internet link, that opens up interesting possibilities. Even more interesting would be a cellular plan that allows “always connected” behavior without incurring a killer bill every month. Of course, battery life then becomes the issue.

I also don’t understand why they insist on shaping it like a phone. With the bluetooth headsets these days, the shape of the phone is largely irrelevant. You could have a little module you attach to your belt, or keep on your keychain that does most of the processing and communications. You’d use the headset when you’re talking. All you’d need would be some way of dialing numbers and entering text. Either a small keyboard, preferable Bluetooth wireless too, or some kind of speech-to-text solution would do. You could finally offer a variety of screen sizes, depending on the needs of the user. Some might do without screens at all. Most could do with very small screens (who might be included in the base unit) and for film, picture or game addicts, you could get larger screens.

The problem with a one-size-fits-all, jack of all trade device is that it offers more features than most people need or want; and the ones they need are often better met by some other, more specialized device.

It could still work if the price was unbeatable; but they don’t seem to have that either.
[/quote]
People said the same thing about the original iPod too, and look how that turned out.

To be honest, for a lot of people, this could replace a laptop for travel purposes. It does email, music, and true internet browsing…and oh yeah, phone calls.

Its convenience factor is outrageous.

46

[quote]pookie wrote:
PGA wrote:
I have no problem with the screen size for the size of the phone. The resolution is much better than the PSP also.

PSP has 480x272.

iPhone has 480x320… a bit taller, but far from “much better.”

Most people were expecting at least 640x480 or somesuch for the iPhone. Nokia has a 800x480 screen. It’s an unfortunate 2.9 inches, but the resolution must be great if you happen to be an eagle.

[/quote]What about pixels per inch (ppi). The iPhone’s ppi is 160…

47

[quote]Kuz wrote:
Professor X wrote:
Kuz wrote:
I’m just not all that sold (as I can see others on this thread are not either). Jobs (of course) hyped it to the nth degree as something that would transform telecommunications as we know it, but I just don’t see it.

Sure, the touch interface is pretty cool and I’m sure there is some nice synergy of the hardware manufacturer also handling the software (same as with Apple and their computers).

However, while the features are cool, I really don’t see this as any kind of quantum leap. Other phones play music. Other phones do Internet and contacts and such. So maybe it does a bunch of those things in a more innovative way… which is nice… but this is not game changing technology.

Sooooo… someone tell me again why this is so revolutionary and worth that ridiculous price tag?

It would truly only be revolutionary if it cost no more than a PSP and that screen widened to at least 7".

But then how would all of the Mac-addicts feel smug and superior if that happened? Because you obviously need to pay a lot more for something to be any good…[/quote]
Yeah, like that REALLY expensive iPod nano ($199).

48

You know, I actually find Apple and Biotest to be similar in nature. Both places seem to put R&D and quality above all else and they both deliver products that live up to the marketing hype. That’s why I’m an Apple user and a T-Nation reader/Biotest product user.

There’s no reason to knock Apple for innovating. It’s not about being trendy…that’s just how they market things sometimes…it’s about truly making things work better.

Apple and Biotest both do that. Apple does it for technology, Biotest does it for the human body.

49

[quote]dhuge67 wrote:
analog_kid wrote:
Fuck Apple. I am so sick of all their “trendy”, clicky shit products they bring out so spoiled rich kids can look cool. Damn near everyone I know who has an ipod had the battery die on them to have Apple not cover it under warranty. Their computers would be great…if they didn’t run the world’s slowest operating system that puts them in the same class of performance as a PC from 1998.

Besides, the last thing I want is some fruity, hippie looking cell phone that everyone else on the planet has. I’ll take an Onyx. (If it ever gets made)

This is an absurd post. You obviously lack any knowledge on the topic at hand.

OS X is the fastest operating system on the planet and dwarfs Vista and Windows XP, by comparison. You’re living backwards if you doubt that.

Also, Apple’s warranty on iPods is 1 year. If anything goes wrong in that time, they fix it. If people choose to buy the 3 year warranty, Apple covers it for 3 years.

Remember, the lithium ion battery in the iPod is the same lithium ion battery found in countless mobile devices. The iPod issue just gets blown out of proportion because Apple dominates the mp3 player market segment, with a ~70% share.

[/quote]

OSX is the fastest operating system on the planet? Smoke crack much? You find me one benchmark that shows this is even remotely true and I will eat Professor X’s gym socks. If Apple can write such great, fast, and stable operating systems, where is Apple Server? Please, don’t tell me how “fast” OSX is. It’s not even made to be fast pal, it’s made to be pretty like all things Apple. And don’t even get me started on Apple hardware because if it was so great why do they use Intel processors now?

PS-The battery issues that plagued the initial iPod release were not covered under warranty. You sent it back to Apple and they charged you $100. Don’t believe me? Do a search on Youtube. You can probably find an episode of The Screensavers where they show you how to change the battery yourself so you can save some cash.

And as for lacking any knowledge on the topic at hand. I build computers for a living. What do you do?

50

It was delivered by Aliens … and I can’t wait to get one. The iPhone is insane … love my Treo 650 but the iPhone blows it out of the water! I wonder if it will cook me dinner too?

51

[quote]dhuge67 wrote:
Sturat wrote:
Personally I’ll stick with my IPAQ, does everything that the IPhone does and they’re cheaper right now.

Personally I found that I needed the PDA functions for my job and the phone being integrated was a bonus. I’ve had the thing a year now and I’ll be buying another when this one dies, not that it’s showing any signs of that.

STU
Your iPaq is not nearly as functional and does not have a comparable user interface.
[/quote]

Not nearly as functional?

The Wifi and Bluetooth I have aren’t as functional? The fully capable internet browser? The integrated media player? True, smaller storage I guess I have to make due with my 2gig memory cards.

The interface may not be as funky but my touchscreen works just fine and after a year of use is nice and pristine due to the $5 screen protector that’s on it. . .

STU

52

[quote]PGA wrote:
But they really missed the mark with the price point and the Cingular exclusive. Hopefully Apple has an out clause with Cingular that allows them to bounce if sales are lackluster. Then they funnel the iPhone out to all major carriers give it a price drop and rape the cellular world.[/quote]

Cingular was the only logical choice for the first release. If they had gone with Verizon or Sprint, they would have been using CDMA and would have had to build an entirely different handset for overseas. A quad band GSM phone can be sold as is anywhere but Japan. The other issue is that CDMA- and WCDMA- based phones chew through battery life faster which means a bigger battery is needed which kills some of the initial wow factor over sleakness. T-mobile is the other option for the US but they lack the muscle as well as the coverage in many markets to make sense (in the US at least). T-mobile USA is also slow as hell when it comes to rolling out new techonology on its network, so it’s understandable why apple didn’t want to deal with them straight off, considering that some system upgrades will be necessary to fully utilize this phone’s features.

That said, I hate cingular. Those who don’t want a contract can wait for the q4 European release and get an unlocked import model for probably about the same as you would pay with contract here.

53

[quote]analog_kid wrote:
dhuge67 wrote:
analog_kid wrote:
Fuck Apple. I am so sick of all their “trendy”, clicky shit products they bring out so spoiled rich kids can look cool. Damn near everyone I know who has an ipod had the battery die on them to have Apple not cover it under warranty. Their computers would be great…if they didn’t run the world’s slowest operating system that puts them in the same class of performance as a PC from 1998.

Besides, the last thing I want is some fruity, hippie looking cell phone that everyone else on the planet has. I’ll take an Onyx. (If it ever gets made)

This is an absurd post. You obviously lack any knowledge on the topic at hand.

OS X is the fastest operating system on the planet and dwarfs Vista and Windows XP, by comparison. You’re living backwards if you doubt that.

Also, Apple’s warranty on iPods is 1 year. If anything goes wrong in that time, they fix it. If people choose to buy the 3 year warranty, Apple covers it for 3 years.

Remember, the lithium ion battery in the iPod is the same lithium ion battery found in countless mobile devices. The iPod issue just gets blown out of proportion because Apple dominates the mp3 player market segment, with a ~70% share.

OSX is the fastest operating system on the planet? Smoke crack much? You find me one benchmark that shows this is even remotely true and I will eat Professor X’s gym socks. If Apple can write such great, fast, and stable operating systems, where is Apple Server? Please, don’t tell me how “fast” OSX is. It’s not even made to be fast pal, it’s made to be pretty like all things Apple. And don’t even get me started on Apple hardware because if it was so great why do they use Intel processors now?

PS-The battery issues that plagued the initial iPod release were not covered under warranty. You sent it back to Apple and they charged you $100. Don’t believe me? Do a search on Youtube. You can probably find an episode of The Screensavers where they show you how to change the battery yourself so you can save some cash.

And as for lacking any knowledge on the topic at hand. I build computers for a living. What do you do?
[/quote]

No, I don’t smoke crack or anything else. You, on the other hand, must be on something that’s detrimental to your health.

OS X 10.4 is 2 or 3 years ahead of Vista, and OS X 10.5 is going to be released soon…pushing Apple’s lead to maybe 5 years!? It’s insane. Also, Apple does make a server, it’s called the Xserve (a quad-xeon 64 bit server, which doesn’t require insane user licenses and such). It’s one of the best cost/performance servers on the low end server market.

Ask Genentech is OS X was made to be just “pretty.” Ask NASA, ask the CIA, or any University in the U.S. if OS X was purchased because of its beauty. It works as nicely as it looks, not the other way around. Of course, you wouldn’t see it that way while wearing those 78 year old sunglasses/blinders.

PS-That may have been true of the first generation of iPods…but the iPod was launched in October 2001, and a year later they remedied that warranty issue. So for the last 4 years, they’ve been getting it right.

54

[quote]Sturat wrote:
dhuge67 wrote:
Sturat wrote:
Personally I’ll stick with my IPAQ, does everything that the IPhone does and they’re cheaper right now.

Personally I found that I needed the PDA functions for my job and the phone being integrated was a bonus. I’ve had the thing a year now and I’ll be buying another when this one dies, not that it’s showing any signs of that.

STU
Your iPaq is not nearly as functional and does not have a comparable user interface.

Not nearly as functional?

The Wifi and Bluetooth I have aren’t as functional? The fully capable internet browser? The integrated media player? True, smaller storage I guess I have to make due with my 2gig memory cards.

The interface may not be as funky but my touchscreen works just fine and after a year of use is nice and pristine due to the $5 screen protector that’s on it. . .

STU

[/quote]
A “funky” interface or do you mean, functional? The iPhone’s software is above and beyond the iPaq. You don’t have an integrated media player like the iPod-software that’s built into the iPhone. Not even close. And scrolling through a music library or photos? It’d be laughable on the iPaq.

55

[quote]dhuge67 wrote:
Sturat wrote:
dhuge67 wrote:
Sturat wrote:
Personally I’ll stick with my IPAQ, does everything that the IPhone does and they’re cheaper right now.

Personally I found that I needed the PDA functions for my job and the phone being integrated was a bonus. I’ve had the thing a year now and I’ll be buying another when this one dies, not that it’s showing any signs of that.

STU
Your iPaq is not nearly as functional and does not have a comparable user interface.

Not nearly as functional?

The Wifi and Bluetooth I have aren’t as functional? The fully capable internet browser? The integrated media player? True, smaller storage I guess I have to make due with my 2gig memory cards.

The interface may not be as funky but my touchscreen works just fine and after a year of use is nice and pristine due to the $5 screen protector that’s on it. . .

STU

A “funky” interface or do you mean, functional? The iPhone’s software is above and beyond the iPaq. You don’t have an integrated media player like the iPod-software that’s built into the iPhone. Not even close. And scrolling through a music library or photos? It’d be laughable on the iPaq.
[/quote]

in other words your ipaq does not have a bunch of useless shit that still dosnt justify $600

56

[quote]blok wrote:
dhuge67 wrote:
Sturat wrote:
dhuge67 wrote:
Sturat wrote:
Personally I’ll stick with my IPAQ, does everything that the IPhone does and they’re cheaper right now.

Personally I found that I needed the PDA functions for my job and the phone being integrated was a bonus. I’ve had the thing a year now and I’ll be buying another when this one dies, not that it’s showing any signs of that.

STU
Your iPaq is not nearly as functional and does not have a comparable user interface.

Not nearly as functional?

The Wifi and Bluetooth I have aren’t as functional? The fully capable internet browser? The integrated media player? True, smaller storage I guess I have to make due with my 2gig memory cards.

The interface may not be as funky but my touchscreen works just fine and after a year of use is nice and pristine due to the $5 screen protector that’s on it. . .

STU

A “funky” interface or do you mean, functional? The iPhone’s software is above and beyond the iPaq. You don’t have an integrated media player like the iPod-software that’s built into the iPhone. Not even close. And scrolling through a music library or photos? It’d be laughable on the iPaq.

in other words your ipaq does not have a bunch of useless shit that still dosnt justify $600[/quote]

The iPhone is the most revolutionary device of our lifetime, if you don’t recognize that, you’re just not quite understanding the implications.

Never before has a well designed and compact device come along that combines the 3 functions of the iPod, the cell phone, and an internet communications device in a way that actually works seamlessly. The user interface is out of this world and it’s only the beginning.

And at least Apple innovates. Bill Gates’ CES speech was a complete joke. In fact, the digital hub strategy that Apple outlined in the mid 90’s is what Bill Gates was talking up on Monday.

At least Apple and Steve Jobs make good on their promises and deliver innovative products.

Alan Kay has been quoted a lot recently by Jobs and others and this one stands out to me: “There’s a hierarchy of elements, each of which is harder than the other. There’s the hardware and that’s easy - that’s just engineering (I don’t take that wrong - LF). Then there’s software, and that’s harder. Then user interface, and that’s even harder.”

Apple is one of the few companies left that makes the hardware, the software, and the operating system. And that’s the true difference between Apple and everyone else.

57

And don’t just take my word for it, here’s an overview from someone who got their hands on it: http://stuff.tv/blogs/future/archive/2007/01/10/hands-on-with-the-apple-iphone.aspx

[QUOTE]Tom Dunmore

Gadget rumours, tech hype and idle speculation

Hands on with the Apple iPhone

Apple has just one iPhone on its stand at Macworld Expo, and it?s behind glass on a podium, guarded by three Apple staff. Fortunately, I managed to get backstage and finally spend some quality hands-on time with the phone. I was expecting my initial fervour to be tempered by the glitches you often find on preproduction devices. But I was wrong.

The iPhone is nothing short of genius. It?s smaller than it looks, and so thin it hurts. It feels like science fiction: there doesn?t seem to be space within it for a battery and a display, let alone all the computing and wireless gubbins. But the 480x320pixel screen is incredibly clear and bright, with the graphic wizardry of OS X supplying amazing animations and zooms as you move between functions.

The first thing I checked out was Safari, which loaded the Stuff website in a few seconds, displaying the homepage in its entirety. Zooming to a readable level really is as simple as prodding with your finger, while pinching two fingers together zooms out. Hold the iPhone on its side and the browser immediate flips to landscape mode. It?s absolutely incredible.

Safari will come with a number of web plugins for multimedia content, but it?s unclear whether it?ll have Flash ? Apple is not opening the iPhone up to third party applications, preferring to be in total control of the user experience. This makes sense on UI level, although it?s a little frustrating when we live in an era of great homebrew and shareware apps.

According to Greg Josniak, Apple?s Vice-President of Product Maketing, the iPhone runs ?full-strength Mac OS X?, although I?m not sure how that can be possible without it taking up the iPhone?s entire 4GB capacity. But it certainly feels like Mac OS, especially when you use the Widgets ? small web apps that have specific functions. I checked the weather, flipping between cities with my forefinger like I was leafing through I book. I can?t express how cool this Minority Report-style Multi-touch UI is, and how revolutionary ? we really are talking about something as momentous as the first mouse.

I was concerned that the complexity of the technology could make it hard to use the device ? but the opposite is true: the iPhone is beautifully intuitive, and more fun to use than a computer. The same cannot be said for rival phones.

Google Maps works just like it does on a computer, except you can move around and zoom with your fingers. The music app works just like an iPod, except with more eye candy. I even took a photo with the 2megapixel camera, and despite the darkness of the room and the lack of a flash, the quality seemed pretty good.

So what can?t it do? Well, despite featuring 802.11g, the iPhone can?t sync via Wi-Fi or stream to Apple TV ? Josniak said that Apple wants to keep the computer as the hub for digital content. That?s why you can?t download music directly to the phone, either. But you can sync the iPhone with Windows computer, and it?s likely to work with Adobe Photoshop Elements and Outlook (although that?s not yet confirmed). Also unconfirmed was whether the iPhone featured Bluetooth Stereo for music streaming, but it?s hard to think that it won?t.

Other problems? Well, aside from the fact I won?t get one for another 9 months, I can?t see any problems. It?s possible that the iPhone will be expensive ? the US price of $499 (4GB) and $599 (8GB) requires signing up to a 2-year Cingular contract, and it?s not clear how much that contract will cost.

But I?ll pay, and so will you, if you have any passion for gadgetry. Because the iPhone is more exciting than the original iPod. It is, put simply, the Best Thing Ever.[/QUOTE]

58

[quote]dhuge67 wrote:
The iPhone is the most revolutionary device of our lifetime, if you don’t recognize that, you’re just not quite understanding the implications.

Never before has a well designed and compact device come along that combines the 3 functions of the iPod, the cell phone, and an internet communications device in a way that actually works seamlessly. The user interface is out of this world and it’s only the beginning.

And at least Apple innovates. Bill Gates’ CES speech was a complete joke. In fact, the digital hub strategy that Apple outlined in the mid 90’s is what Bill Gates was talking up on Monday.

At least Apple and Steve Jobs make good on their promises and deliver innovative products.

Alan Kay has been quoted a lot recently by Jobs and others and this one stands out to me: “There’s a hierarchy of elements, each of which is harder than the other. There’s the hardware and that’s easy - that’s just engineering (I don’t take that wrong - LF). Then there’s software, and that’s harder. Then user interface, and that’s even harder.”

Apple is one of the few companies left that makes the hardware, the software, and the operating system. And that’s the true difference between Apple and everyone else. [/quote]

Are you an Apple sales rep?

59

[quote]analog_kid wrote:
PS-The battery issues that plagued the initial iPod release were not covered under warranty. You sent it back to Apple and they charged you $100.
[/quote]

Years ago I had AppleCare for my iBook. My battery died. I got a free replacement. Very impressed by the customer service, I paid to have the warranty extended to 2 more years. One year after that, my battery died. I called Apple again. Those dicks told me that I’m limited to one replacement battery per computer!

I love Apple, its computers, its operating system, and what it stands for. But I’ll never buy a laptop from them again. I’m saving up for a Mac Mini. I’m keeping my Sidekick II, though…

60

[quote]tGunslinger wrote:
dhuge67 wrote:
The iPhone is the most revolutionary device of our lifetime, if you don’t recognize that, you’re just not quite understanding the implications.

Never before has a well designed and compact device come along that combines the 3 functions of the iPod, the cell phone, and an internet communications device in a way that actually works seamlessly. The user interface is out of this world and it’s only the beginning.

And at least Apple innovates. Bill Gates’ CES speech was a complete joke. In fact, the digital hub strategy that Apple outlined in the mid 90’s is what Bill Gates was talking up on Monday.

At least Apple and Steve Jobs make good on their promises and deliver innovative products.

Alan Kay has been quoted a lot recently by Jobs and others and this one stands out to me: “There’s a hierarchy of elements, each of which is harder than the other. There’s the hardware and that’s easy - that’s just engineering (I don’t take that wrong - LF). Then there’s software, and that’s harder. Then user interface, and that’s even harder.”

Apple is one of the few companies left that makes the hardware, the software, and the operating system. And that’s the true difference between Apple and everyone else.

Are you an Apple sales rep?[/quote]

haha thats the 1st thing that crossed my mind.