In Your House
In Part 1 of this post, I highlighted some of the news coming from Apple which I feel hold clues to the company's next moves. While CEO Steve Jobs and his cohorts always have plenty of surprises up their sleeves - fans and critics alike still relish in making (often wild) predictions on what their next trick will be. Continuing that time honored tradition of Apple speculation - here are my predictions on what they may have in store for us in 2011.
I invite you to share your own conclusions by submitting a comment below. Keeping in mind that everyone's speculations are as reliable as earthquake predictions - your odds of being right are as good as any. Here's a peak at the predictions I'll elaborate on after the jump...
- Steve Jobs will do some big ticket shopping
- Apple TV becomes an actual Apple TV
- iPad v2.0 in your hands for iPad's 1st birthday
- iPhone (finally) comes to Verizon
- Back to the Mac with Lion
- Rest of MacBooks join their little brother in dumping their hard drives
Plus...
- What do YOU think?
Love or hate them - and there seem to be fewer people in-between - Apple is hard to ignore. Sliding past Google this year, they
receive more news coverage than any other tech company. So, what better way to return from the real life events which prevented me from posting (sorry about that) than by continuing Apple's media dominance? Wait...well in any case, in this post I'll recap some of Apple's recent news headlines. In Part 2, I'll engage in an Apple fan's favorite pastime - speculating on what it all means. You'll also be invited to join me as a speculator - so whip out that ouija board.
Since we last checked on Steve Jobs and company - much has transpired at One Infinite Loop. Here is a rundown of some of the headlines I'll expand on after the jump:
- iPhone 4 survives "Antennagate" - Apple exec's job does not
- iOS 4.2.1 is coming today - and one day it might even print
- Apple TV gets a makeover - but it's not iTV...yet
- Mac's userbase grows as Apple's cash stockpile grows more
- Lion giving Mac OS X and iOS a civil union - new Mac App Store offers sneak peek
- MacBook Air sends a Dear John letter to the hard drive
- Please welcome to iTunes...The Beatles!
My home has a lot of natural light, and I'm thankful for it. However, I can't help but be intrigued by this idea from Rational Craft. I'm ultimately waiting until I can replace my conventional windows with something like this that also has the ability to be transparent and solar powered. How about that picture window in your living room transforming into an HD theater or displaying still and/or video art? See the videos after the jump.
Magic plasma screens are WAY better than real windows [DVICE]
Don't say I don't write for you Windows users out there: If you're looking to add a little PC to your living room, look no further than these CTRL-ALT-DEL pillows from Etsy.
The set will cost you $60, on Diffraction Edge's Etsy shop.
There's no better way to declare your allegiance in the PC/Mac wars to all who come into your living room than throw pillows designating your most oft-used key combination (ZING! What? You really thought I was going to write this whole article without jabbing at Windows? Hah!)
Gadget get!
With the latest incremental improvement for the PS3, Sony has given us Text Chat - the ability to chat with up to 15 badass gamers using an on- or off-screen keyboard, participate in up to three chat rooms at once, in-game and out.
In addition, 2.70 brings enhancements to two more PS3 features:
Friends list on the XMB (XrossMediaBar)
- Sort your friends via their online status
- Attach larger files to the messages you send to your friends (file size will increase from 1MB to 3MB)
Video delivery service on PlayStation Store
- Video files you've purchased from the PlayStation Store can be backed up to an external storage device and then restored to PS3's internal hard drive for playback - so you can clear up space on your hard drive and then restore the video anytime in the future
- Videos you've purchased for PSP (PlayStation Portable) system can now be transferred to PS3 for playback
Friend sorting is all nice and good if you're into people and sharing and all that bunk, but what I'm really pleased to see is improved storage options. Not just because I'm constantly running out of gigabytage, but because increasingly huge internal hard drives aren't a one-shot solution to the future of downloadable media that Sony and Microsoft are hell-bent on building. The ability to shuffle and reorganize media files to and from external drives, particularly large video files, is a necessary feature set on the product roadmap laid out before us.
I just received an email from Netflix that really pisses me off. After baiting users for a few months with a reasonable $1/month charge for the ability to rent Blu-ray discs, Netflix has just sent out an e-mail saying they're now quadrupling the monthly charge (for 3 disc at a time customers) to $4/month!
You are receiving this email because you added unlimited Blu-ray access to your account for $1 a month. The number of Blu-ray titles has increased significantly and will continue to do so. As we buy more, you are able to choose from a rapidly expanding selection of Blu-ray titles. And as you've probably heard, Blu-ray discs are substantially more expensive than standard definition DVDs.
As a result, the monthly charge for Blu-ray access is increasing for most plans and will now vary by plan. The charge for monthly Blu-ray access on your 3 DVDs at-a-time (Unlimited) plan will increase from $1 a month to $4 a month. The price of your 3 DVDs at-a-time (Unlimited) plan is not changing and remains at $16.99 a month.
The new charge for Blu-ray access will be automatically added to your next billing statement on or after April 27, 2009 and will be referenced in your Membership Terms and Details.
If you wish to continue unlimited Blu-ray access for $4 a month, you don't need to do anything. If not, you can remove Blu-ray access anytime by visiting Your Account.
$1 a month was reasonable, and they led us to believe that would be the charge for the foreseeable future. Now they pull a bait and switch on us after a few months and quadruple it?!
They say "well, if you don't like it, cancel your Blu-ray access." Yeah... you know what else is easy to cancel? My Netflix subscription. Back off on this or I'm jumping ship.
Ridiculous!
Amazon has a huge Blu-ray sale going on, with over 300 Blu-ray discs on sale, from $9.99 and up. (Yes, I know the link says $13.99 and up, but movies like Stargate are priced at $9.99)
Stand outs include Crash, Transformers, WALL*E, Iron Man, Enchanted, Stargate, and many more!
Go check it out, I'm sure there's something for everyone in the very lengthy list, and remember - if you click the link below and buy some Blu-rays, you'll be supporting Homotron so that we can continue bringing you the latest in gadget news with a pink twist!
Blu-ray Sale: Over 300 Blu-ray Discs as Low as $13.99, and up to 54% Off [Amazon]
Well, it seems that the Author's Guild didn't listen to the ranks of some of its own authors (like Wil Wheaton) and pressed Amazon enough to make Amazon acquiesce to their request: Kindle e-books will now only have the text-to-speech feature enabled if the publisher so wishes.
This is apparently *not* due to official legal pressure, but presumably because Amazon got tired of the Author's Guild's belly-aching.
The issue came about because the rights to publish a text version of a book and the audiobook version are sold separately. When Amazon gets the rights to sell a book on the Kindle 2, it only buys the text version rights. The Author's Guild objected to the Kindle 2's much advertised text-to-speech feature, saying that it amounted to an audiobook version, and would cut into audiobook sales.
Seriously, the thought that the Kindle 2's robotic voice would in any way cut into sales of audiobooks is absolutely ridiculous. Shame on you, Author's Guild.
Amazon Caves to Snippy Authors: Kindle's Text-to-Voice Feature Now Optional [Gizmodo]
It seems Amazon has jumped the gun a day early and has started sales on its new, thinner, less '80's looking Kindle 2.
For those of you hungry for the new e-book reader, I'd suggest getting your butts over to the order page and clicking "buy" before the masses decimate Amazon's stock.
Go on, gadget get!
Amazon Kindle 2 [Amazon]
While many (including myself) on the Internets have cried foul over the USB-stuffed Mac mini we saw last week, it seems the progenitor of the information is determined to prove to the world that it exists. This time, there's a video for proof of the "new Mac mini":
Either someone is being tracked by Apple's (probably white) secret helicopters, or they're really, really good at modding a Mac mini.
Video of 'Leaked' Next-Gen Mac Mini? [MacRumors]
According to MacRumors, the revered prognosticators of everything that will be descending from the shiny interior of Apple's mothership, that photo right there is quite possibly a spy shot of the new Mac mini that is due to be released soon.
From left to right, the ports pictured are: ethernet, FireWire 800, Mini DisplayPort, Mini DVI, 5x USB 2.0.
The FireWire 800 and Mini DVI/Mini DisplayPort I get, but 5 USB 2.0 ports? Really? Isn't that a bit... excessive for a machine of this type?
Don't get me wrong, I'd love 5 USB 2.0 ports on my iMac, but on a Mac mini it seems a tad overboard to me.
There's also some rumoured specs to go with that photo:
- 2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
- 3MB L2 Cache
- 2GB DDR3 1066MHz RAM
- SATA Superdrive
Time will tell if this info is right, so for now be content to slobber over these scraps (if you're a Mac mini lover, that is.)
Leaked Photo of the Next-Generation Mac Mini? [MacRumors]
As tiny dancer mentioned earlier, today was *supposed* to be the digital transition date, but unfortunately Congress has delayed the transition until June 12 of this year to allow people more time to get their DTV tuner coupons.
A lot of us; however, have been ready for the DTV transition for a while, and if you're a videophile, you've been ready with your antenna in tow.
Yes, I said antenna.
Why, you ask?
Antennas are the way to get the best, uncompressed, clear digital signal. That's right. If you want the best damn picture you can get for all your local stations, you're going to want an antenna.
The reason is simple: cable and satellite operators have a finite amount of bandwidth available to them, and in that bandwidth, they have to provide all the channels they offer, from HBO right down to QVC. This means that in order to fit everything into their pipes to your house, they're compressing channels as much as possible. That means that all those digital channels you're getting through cable and satellite? Compressed. It's like watching a YouTube version of your channel. Not pretty.
But if you've got yourself a handy dandy antenna, you can receive your local networks in full, uncompressed, beautiful HD! Best of all, if you've got a TiVo HD, it's easy to set it up to use the antenna for local stations, in addition to your cable line-up.
But here's the problem, what kind of antenna do you need, and where do you need to point it for the best reception? That's where AntennaWeb comes in.
Just plug your address into AntennaWeb, answer a few questions about the layout of the land around you, and in a few moments, AntennaWeb will tell you exactly what stations you can receive with what kind of antenna, and where to point that antenna for maximum reception. It'll even show you on a little map where to point it!
Remember that a lot of stations will be changing their coverage starting today as they begin to switch their transmitters to digital only, so make sure to pay attention to the notes regarding transition dates on the charts AntennaWeb gives you.
AntennaWeb: Maximize your television reception
And girls who like girls who like fembots!
Gadget of the Week
3D iPhone glasses. Why?
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