Yesterday Apple announced the arrival of its iPad - a device that is perceived initially by many to simply be a really big iPod touch or iPhone. While that is no doubt my first reaction, after watching some video on the web about it I can’t wait to try this thing out and see what it can offer. If you watch the official iPad video here at Apple it looks like the goal of the iPad is to marry the conversely evolving worlds of print media and digital media/the Internet into a single new type of interaction unlike any that we’ve ever had. The jury is still out though.
At its best it might save magazines and publications in danger of going out of business. At its worst, well - it will be forever teased with feminine hygiene jokes for life. We’ll see what’s up when they ship in late March. See what Engadget’s experience was testing the iPad in their hands-on video below, and at their website here. iPads will start at $499 for the 16GB Wi-Fi model, with 32GB and 64GB Wi-Fi + 3G models available for more bread.
Mac lovers, techies and early adaptors-rejoice! Sure at this point it’s nothing but rumor and speculation but those on the inside are reporting that we could be seeing a MacBook Touch on the shelves as early as THIS October.
Our source, the very reliable and always on the cusp Trencentral newsletter, seems to believe the wonder creation will be smaller than a bread box consisting of a screen slight smaller than the conventional MacBook “cased in glass with iPhone touchscreen-like features”.
What’s next??? In the Minneapolis airport there are iPod vending machines… We’ve heard that these are in other airports too. I didn’t see them in MIA this past weekend. hmmm
Apple is purportedly in talks with the major record labels about allowing consumers unlimited access to their libraries through iTunes. Read a short article about it here.
So the talk of the town…apple and it’s Chief Executive “Air” Jobs had their big dog & pony show yesterday. Not sure how impressed I am by the Macbook Air, I have a Mac and I love it but I get why stock dropped yesterday. $1,800 for a machine that doesn’t have a built-in optical drive for reading CDs (way to support the iTunes store) and DVDs… “Air” Jobs doesn’t seem to think people will miss it and he may be right, after all you can download movies and music over the Internet and access the optical drives on other PCs and Macs to install new software. I guess I was just hoping for more as it seems so was the world…
Just 1 question Steve Jobs, where was Michael Jordan and did you get his approval to use “Air”…
Out comes the MacBook Air. It’s silver (aluminum?), has black keys, is super super thin, and Steve can hold it easily with his fingertips. “It’s the world’s thinnest notebook,” he reiterates. It has a 13.3-inch widescreen display. “And the display is gorgeous.” It’s an LED backlit display that’s instant-on. It also has a built-in iSight camera, and a full-sized keyboard. Backlit too, with a trackpad and multi-touch gesture support on the trackpad.
Record labels are remaining on the offensive when it comes to battling iPod maker Apple Inc. for revenue share in the digital music business, with word spreading that Sony BMG will soon join the ranks of other major labels in offering its catalog through some online retailers stripped of copy protection measures. Full article here
