Apple Thoughts - News & Reviews on all things Apple

"Ars got the official word from an Apple spokesperson: there will be no new software update for old AppleTVs. That means no sexy Netflix, though you'll be able to keep on buying movies and TV shows instead of renting."

It was kind of buried in the overview article at Ars Technica where they note "We confirmed with an Apple spokesperson that the maximum HD resolution of the Apple TV is 720p, consistent with recent rumors. Additionally, there will be no software update to bring the new features to older Apple TVs. Older Apple TVs will continue to work as they have been working up to this point, and they will continue to be able to purchase movies and TV shows even though the new Apple TV is rental-only." It was also something that I wondered about since I have one of the original Apple TVs and now I know, I can't update my Apple TV so I'll have to buy one of the new ones to get the enhanced features. Disappointing but not entirely unexpected with new devices, backward compatibility has to end at some point yes?

"It's billed as 'One More Hobby.' It hasn't been a big hit, but those who used the Apple TV have shown affection for the device and provided Apple with valued feedback. Apple took this feedback and retooled the Apple TV into a smaller form-factor that clocks in at 1/4th the size of its first-generation sibling."

Honestly, I was happier to see a new AppleTV than I was to see new iPods. The fact that Apple was able to reach the $99 price point is amazing. While I'd wish it had the ability to add apps for increased functionality, I was happy to see that Netflix was added. There aren't many of us who own AppleTVs, but we tend to be loyal to our little boxes. The lack of any storage means you can only rent streaming content on the new device, but you can stream any iTunes content on your computer to the new AppleTV as well. The AppleTV is available for pre-order now. Is anybody else as excited about this as I am?

"Perhaps more than any other device in Apple's electronics arsenal, the iPod nano has changed dramatically over the years. Birthed as the iPod Mini, the first generation nano rounded off and slightly shrank the design, while adding a color screen."

This was one change that I really didn't get from yesterday's event. But then again, I think that has been the problem with the Nano all along, just where does it fit in the iPod mix. As you can see from all the various changes, perhaps Apple has been wondering this same thing as it has taken on many forms over the years. What are your thoughts? Do you think the Nano change is good? Bad? Too close to the Shuffle?

"Too busy to read our liveblog coverage of Apple's September iPod Event? Everything you need to know about Apple's new products is below the fold, including details about the new iPod Shuffle, Nano, iPod Touch, AppleTV, iTunes and iOS update."

Pretty good summary of yesterday's Apple event, in case you weren't following along on any number of the live blogs or the live streaming by Apple. As you may have guessed, I was pretty excited about the Apple TV portion and I think they are on the right track with it. The price point is low enough, I think, that this will become more than just a "hobby" for Apple, and topping it off with the Netflix integration is icing on the cake. Definitely a big step in the right direction. The other high point for me was the update to iTunes with Ping. Seems like a logical way to keep track of your favorite artists and find out information on their next concert. The social aspect of it wasn't that big of a deal for me, but I can see how it might be for others. And of course the fixing of the proximity sensor was a big deal, especially since reports had it that it would not be fixed with this update. How about you? What were your highlights from yesterday's event?

"As expected, Apple refreshed its iPod lineup Wednesday, unveiling redesigned versions of its iPod touch, iPod nano, and iPod shuffle music players. But the company didn't stop there, using its annual fall music event to also announce an update to its iTunes software and an overhaul of its Apple TV set-top box."

Lots of new and improved products from Apple announced today. Almost everything available today, with the exception of the new $99 smaller Apple TV, shipping in about four weeks. Some additional welcomed news: iOS 4.1 will be available shortly and will include bug fixes and GameCenter; iOS 4.2 will be available in November, and will bring the iPad feature-set equivalence with the iPhone, and will also introduce iPad printing. Details can be found here [ link ].

"But Cupertino doesn't want to stop there: a new patent filing, Apple is now exploring ways to combine the headphone jack with the microphone on their iPhone and iPod Touch."

I'm not one to read Apple's patent filings as the future of Apple products, but I'm pretty sure this will actually end up being used in future versions of the iPhone and iPod Touch. It just makes sense. Apple embraces minimalism in design, and having the noise canceling microphone built into the headphone jack makes for a cleaner design. It also gives one less point of entry for dust and moisture. I doubt we'll see this at the September event, only because it makes no sense to put a feature like this on the iPod Touch before it goes into the next iPhone.

"Looks like Roku's going aggressive on price with its lineup of streamers in response to Sony's new $130 Netbox streamer, the upcoming Google TV launch, and rumors that we'll see that rumored $99 iOS-based Apple TV arrive on Wednesday."

The standard def box went down to $59.00 USD, the regular HD is $69.00 USD and the HD-XR box is at $99.00 USD, all dropping in price from $20-$30.00 USD. This is getting to the point to have one just for the UFC they offer, but if they would throw in some NFL RedZone, I'd buy it in a heartbeat and lose Dish Network all together. But I think I will first wait to see what Apple has in store for us on Wednesday.

"If you're an iPhone 4 user, you probably remember the proximity sensor problem we told you about way back when Apple's latest handset was released. Many iPhone users were reporting issues with their handset during calls, citing the proximity sensor as being a key problem. Apparently the sensor wasn't always detecting the users' faces, meaning many were accidentally interacting with their phone's screen while talking on the handset."

And even though Steve Jobs said it would be fixed in iOS 4.1, it appears this may not happen. The antenna issue was not an issue for me at all, but I have experienced this proximity problem several times, mostly by putting the phone call in mute status and talking like an idiot until I realized that the other half of the phone call couldn't hear me. No wonder they kept interrupting me and were off topic! I imagine this issue is a bit more difficult to fix than they first realized, which is a bit disappointing for those of us that have run into this annoyance. Let's hope the fix is in sooner rather than later.

"About a week ago, we reported that iPads ordered online shipped within 3 days. Today, Fortune noticed that iPad online orders are finally shipping within 24 hours, the shortest lead time since the launch of the tablet, about 5 months ago."

Excellent news! iPad supply seems to have caught up with demand, after five months. Funny (or maybe more ironic?) that now I'm seeing sites complaining about Apple 'only offering' the free shipping option (no for-fee expedited overnight delivery, for example). In my experience, Apple's shipping is already pretty fast, and since most products seem to come from China, why mess with something that already is working well? If you're in that much of a hurry, go to an Apple Store or a reseller!

"MPEG LA, the group that oversees licensing for a number of Internet media standards, today announced that Internet broadcast content using the H.264 video coding standard will remain royalty-free for the entire life of the license, quashing fears that the standard could suddenly become subject to royalty payments in 2016 after the current licensing term expires and is required to be renewed"

I'm sure this just about puts the nail in the coffin for HTML5 standardizing around an encoding scheme other than H.264. There's no reason not to use it. It's a codec that is supported by the major hardware makers, and browsers that support HTML5 all seem to have H.264 support. While I'd prefer an open source codec, a freely available codec is the next best alternative.

"CNET is reporting that Microsoft's Hotmail will finally gain support for... Microsoft's Exchange ActiveSync protocol. Sure, even Google's had that for a while now, but better embarrassingly late than embarrassingly never, right?"

It's about time, and yes, better late than never! I've been a Hotmail user since the very beginning, but I've been forwarding my Hotmail to my MobileMe mail for so long now that I've almost forgotten that it costs $20 per year for Microsoft Live Hotmail Plus (to enable forwarding). I get so much spam every week (around 100 items per day) in Hotmail that I may keep things as they are, let the filtering and junk stay on the server, and not be sent to my iPad and iPhone. Availability is rumored to be 30 August 2010. What do you think? Will this be useful for you?

"It has now been 100 days since my iPad 3G arrived. (And exactly four months since I first used an iPad in early April, and posted my thoughts about it.)"

And for the most part, Business Insider's Dan Frommer really likes his iPad. There are some things that annoy him, such as web sites that aren't designed for devices such as the iPad, but it has become his favorite computer. Speaking of annoyances, does it annoy anyone else about the Business Insider site that you have to click through each page? It really annoys me, but the article is worth the read to get his perspective on the iPad in my opinion.

"Boxee has been an awesome service to use if you want to get easy access to full length TV shows from networks across the web. Along with having a great interface, Boxee even has their own set top box and payment system. All that said, access to TV shows all that Boxee really offered...until now. This week, Boxee is adding a new feature to their platform called Movie Library."

Boxee now offers movies from EZTakes, Indie Movies Online, MUBI* and Openfilm. They plan to add new partners and make ongoing tweaks/improvements to the service in the near future. Interesting to see more and more competition to the 'traditional' content providers like cable and satellite. The Boxee Box by D-Link is pretty impressive - anyone have any comparisons with Apple TV? I especially like the remote control with the QWERTY keyboard on the back side!

"There's not a gadget under the sun that the chroma-crazy lads over at ColorWare won't slather in Pantone hues if you pay them enough money, alleviating the necessity of the Mac-loving hockey fan from trying to turn his iMac into as gaudy a display of team pride as his torso and face with the help of spray paint alone."

I love the idea of ColorWare, though I can never justify the expense. Still, this looks really cool. I'd love to have a Magic Trackpad painted in bright colors. If I was in the market for a Magic Trackpad (I'm not), then I'd consider buying one from ColorWare. Anybody else drooling over these?

"This just in from the "bragging about marginally useful skills" department. This week, Salford, UK-based Melissa Thompson set a "texting speed record" on her Samsung Galaxy S by typing two sentences in 25.94 seconds. The sentences in question were: "The razor-toothed piranhas of the genera Serrasalmus and Pygocentrus are the most ferocious freshwater fish in the world. In reality they seldom attack a human." Note that Melissa used a Swype keyboard on the Galaxy."

That record stood for a couple hours, and then <cue the music> came Brian and his iPhone 4. Who knows if it's official, and I really am not going to lose sleep wondering about it. However, congrats on the record Brian, I'm sure the skill will come in handy someday when you, um... Well, I'm sure that it will come in handy and let's leave it at that.

"Over a quarter of mobile employees plan to purchase or receive an iPad in the next 6 months, according to a new survey."

Gotta love it when the press reports on blanket statements like this, based on an iPass survey of a whopping "over 1,100" mobile enterprise employees from North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. Out of how many hundred million? In a related statement tucked-away in the small print, Citrix stated that "80% of its business users have plans to purchase and use an iPad for business." This to me is a more telling statement, despite not mentioning how many users were queried. So what is this all really saying? The iPad is getting a serious look inside enterprises and by remote workers. Please Microsoft, may we have a version of MS Office for iPad!?

"Earlier this year, DigiTimes reported Apple was working on a touch screen Mac, set to be released this year. Now we have patent filings showing how it could work"

I'm not convinced that I would ever use something like this, but I thought the same thing about the iPad, and I quickly became a believer once I got to play with one. Apple files a lot of patents, and not all of those ideas show up in products, so I'm skeptical that this in actually in the pipeline. It would be interesting, though, to have an iMac that booted into iOS rapidly in low power when you needed it, and then into OS X when you needed more processing power. Are you listening Apple?

"I have already seen the iPad used in home automation -- Savant is using an iPad app to hook up to some of their home automation systems, using Apple's tablet to control the TV, a whole entertainment system, or even do some remote control of house lights or HVAC, or even monitor cameras remotely with a video feed."

At roughly $500.00 USD, this is a bit steep, but it sure does look nice doesn't it? You can also get one for the iPod Touch if you prefer, although I'm not sure how much that one will cost.

"Do you sometimes struggle trying to find the perfect iPad position when on the couch or sitting in your favorite chair? Elite Home Theater Seating has a solution for you - the iPad Chair!"

It's a must have for the iPad owner don't you think? At $2,500.00 USD, I think I will pass.

"Apple has not had much of a history with respect to enterprise computing, but an analysis of second quarter sales shows Apple making big gains in business and government sectors. According to Needham analyst Charlie Wolf, sales of Macs to large businesses in particular grew far more than overall sales of PCs in the same timeframe. The specific reasons for the uptick aren't clear, but Apple could sustain the growth with a more proactive enterprise strategy."

This is exciting news for Apple. Chris Foresman over at Ars Technica discusses several reasons why Apple's sales are increasing in the business and government sectors. It is possibly due to lower priced iMacs and Mac Minis. He also mentions the halo effect that the iPhone might be making on business users who own the device. All in all, it's a good read, and it'll be interesting to see if Apple begins to shift some of their focus from the consumer market to the enterprise market.