Download
1 / 3
30 likes | 41 Views
The most significant Apple story for 2007 is the incredible number of great products it launched. OK, maybe not every product was excellent. Nevertheless, they were all still exciting and generated significant buzz. What other company can state that?
E N D
The greatest Apple story for 2007 is the sensational variety of terrific items it released. OK, perhaps not every product was terrific. Nevertheless, they were all still exciting and created substantial buzz. What other company can state that? Here's my look back at Apple's year. I offer my brief evaluation of each brand-new item-- with the advantage of end-of-year hindsight. iPhone Calling iPhone. The innovation of the year. The device of the year. The you-name-it of the year. Could this item possibly live up to all this buzz? Yes. Absolutely. Naturally, it is not ideal. Where is voice dialing and integrated GPS, for beginners? I am already salivating over the expected 3G iPhone 2.0 being available in 2008. Nevertheless, the 1.0 variation is still as close to an out-of-the-park home run as anybody could want. For my money, it's the most cutting-edge item Apple has created because the initial Mac in 1984. It's already difficult for me to picture how I managed without one. Whether I am looking up a place in Maps, examining motion picture times in Safari, listening to my voicemail with the extraordinary ease of its visual interface, sending a quick e-mail message, taking pleasure in music (which I do more often now that I always have an iPod with me), or playing one of the video games I added after hacking the gadget, it appears that I am constantly utilizing my iPhone for something. Leapin' Leopards Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard. A variety. Yes, it has some interesting brand-new features. I am especially fond of screen sharing and Back to My Mac. Time Maker is also a plus. Nevertheless, the more I utilize Leopard, the more I discover that it in fact provides very little in the way of "needs to have" functions. Certainly, if I was required to go back to Tiger tomorrow, I would not object. In fact, I would invite a return to the Dock in Tiger (with its hierarchical folder menus) or the firewall software in Tiger (with its ability to turn specific ports on and off). Then there are the too-numerous startup and login problems in Leopard areography (see my recent MacFixIt column for exactly what I imply here). I have the sense that, with all the other stuff Apple had going on in 2007, Leopard was not provided the attention it needed. It might take till around version 10.5.3 prior to Leopard is really a "finished" product. More Needed for Apple TELEVISION Apple TELEVISION. I own one and I enjoy it. I have it connected to my house theater system in my living room. However, my significant use of it is for playing music, not video. For streaming music from iTunes, it is a far better choice than the AirTunes part of an AirPort Express-- since Apple TELEVISION uses a video interface and push- button control. Even much better, by syncing files to the Apple TV's hard disk drive, you can play music without having to be linked to a Mac at all. For Apple TV to live up to its name and be truly beneficial as a "TV," it needs a significant upgrade. An apparent starting point would be some sort of DVR-like capability. AirPort's Landing AirPort Extreme. If you are thinking about updating to a brand-new AirPort Extreme Base Station for the speed
boost of the 802.11 n network, you most likely should not bother. In specific, if you use your WiFi network simply for linking to the Internet, your Internet speed is a traffic jam that will avoid you from seeing any general speed gain as compared to 802.11 g. Actually, the speed result can be even worse than no gain at all (as I detailed in the MacFixIt column months ago), due to problems with signal strength particular to "n" networks. Still, the capability to include a networked hard disk drive to the Extreme is a plus. Obviously, if you have no wireless router at all, the AirPort Extreme would make a beneficial purchase. Touch: Maimed iPhone? iPod touch. I have actually done an almost 180 degree turn here given that the initial release of the iPod touch. My first response was: Great! Here is the iPhone-less iPhone that users have been clamoring for. Now you can have the iPhone's touchscreen interface without needing to spend for a two-year phone agreement. My more recent response, nevertheless, is closer to "What's the point?" I know I am revealing my iPhone bias here but ... the iPod touch does so much less than the iPhone that I keep feeling the touch is simply a crippled iPhone. For US$ 100 more in preliminary cost, you can have an iPhone with the very same 8 GB of memory, all of its added functions and save yourself needing to carry around a second gadget as an iPod. If you are willing to opt for AT&T (NYSE: T) as your mobile phone carrier, the iPhone is the way to go. New Nano, New Life iPod nano. The new nano is a deserving successor to the previous generation nano. I was specifically happy to see that it now plays video, despite the fact that I presume most users will not be viewing much video on it. On the disadvantage, I am not a fan of the revamped "fatter" shape. iLife '08. I still have actually mixed sensations about iMovie. It is absolutely simpler to make a fast movie now, however I miss out on the timeline manages that I now require to update to Final Cut Express to get. For iPhoto, its most significant brand-new function is Occasions. Personally, I don't have much usage for it. Certainly, it sometimes gets in my method, producing occasions automatically that I would prefer not be developed. The improvements in GarageBand are cool. I had fun with Magic GarageBand. The ability to quickly make numerous takes of a recording is absolutely handy. In general, iLife '08, a bit similar to Leopard, is a worthwhile but not necessary upgrade. Still, if you are updating to Leopard, you'll most likely wish to upgrade here too. Naturally, if you purchase a new Mac, you get the brand-new iLife included. A Better Workplace iWork '08. Numbers gives iWork a spreadsheet, and it's an excellent one, with Apple's expected attention to visual appearance and interface information. Pages and Keynote have been perfectly upgraded as well. The tracking feature in Pages is a particularly huge plus; animations in Keynote offer some enjoyable brand-new options. iWork '08 might not be all set to replace Office for a lot of users, but it keeps improving with each new version. If you do not definitely need Workplace, iWork '08 is a great alternative.
Those Mac advertisements. Finally, a word about those "I'm a Mac; I'm a PC" advertisements. Some might find them a bit annoying. Some might claim they overemphasize the advantages of a Mac. Some might feel they have actually started to wear their welcome. Not me. I still discover them to be one of Apple's best ever advertising campaign. I enjoy each new batch. I especially took pleasure in the unique one that opened the WWDC this year (you can still see it here). If absolutely nothing else, the ads are an enjoyable method to feel good about the Mac, and why not? It's been a great year for the Mac and all the rest of Apple. As I said at the beginning, even if not every item was a complete success, you still need to be impressed by the large variety of worthwhile products Apple put out. It's difficult to picture Apple topping itself in 2008, however we'll soon begin to see. Macworld Exposition is just around the corner.
