Posts by Chris D Rogers
66 posts • joined Friday 1st April 2011 10:00 GMT
The difference between Hong Kong and the UK is geography and distance, in HK, you have one centralised department that issues all ID cards in a single location and all inhabitants of HK live within one hours travel distance to the issuing centre.
This is certainly not the case in geographically dispersed UK, indeed, given recent cuts that have reduced Passport Offices, its now virtually impossible for the UK to embark on a national ID programme, unless all data is collected via mobile offices travelling the length of the UK.
Whilst Hong Kong's ID card scheme has been running for years - my first one issued on my arrival in 1996, the movement to a digital biometric system in the early 2000's was beset by quite a few problems, and indeed what actually to store on such cards given a lack of storage space - not so much the case today.
Is it intrusive, in short, the answer is yes - you are detailed each time you leave and enter the country, and despite the fact that businesses are not supposed to request your ID details, i.e.,, you must produce your card, they seem to believe this is part and parcel of the ID system.
That said, it certainly assists in entering HK, but not in departing, you still need to queue at a desk at you exit port.
Tomb Raider?
Was he playing the new edition of Tomb Raider by any chance?
Anyway, think I'd prefer looking at Lara Croft than Ms. Hayes - I also find the behaviour quite beastly, particularly given we have 7 billion souls on the planet already.
I suggest she take a cold shower or bromide, perhaps even get a Xbox paddle for herself!!!!!!!
Re: WTF?
Since when has Foxconn been a Chinese company, which would be news not only to its shareholders, but also Taiwan.
Foxconn is a Taiwanese company with assembly operations on the Chinese Mainland, whilst I concur its senior management are in the majority Han Chinese, the fact remains that Taiwan is a democratic Republic, whilst Mainland China is an Authoritarian supposed Communist state.
As for issues afflicting Japanese electronics businesses, I'm confident they will be able to re-invent themselves.
Taking the iPiss!
Apple's iToy's have been crippled on the storage-side for at least two years and given the fact that flash memory prices have reduced drastically since the launch of the groundbreaking iPod Touch one would have though Apple could actually install 128G of flash storage for the present cost of the 64G iPad - to say they are gouging consumers is an understatement, they are taking the piss out of the Apple idiots - next tablet I buy will be a Asus with hopefully 128G of storage and microUSB external storage capabilities.
Apple, you are having a laugh - hope your stock price collapses you greedy feckers.
Try Talk Talk
Given all the shit Talk Talk get, the fact is that their Essentials service is the cheapest, particularly if you pay your line rental 12 months in advance.
presently, the broadband/telephone service my folks have works out cheaper than the line rental on most of the competition. Indeed, having threatened to get my MAC from them and change vendor, my folks are now paying less than £11.00 per month for unlimited broadband and highly reduced international telephone rates - given for more than two years we have had zero technical issues with Talk Talk and download speeds are average to say the least, one is quite pleased - even demanded a new modem/wireless router before signing for a full 12 month contract.
whilst they do throttle at peak times, I've downloaded nearly 200gigs in less than two months, for what my parents need - iPlayer and Skype on the computer, it's really much better value than what I can usually get in Hong Kong - can't say that for mobile phone charges though.
So, forget BT, Virgin and Sky, pure rip off merchants and give someone else a chance!
Re: Not for me, thanks
I'm with you there brother.
If they actually put a decent discrete GPU into the Mac Mini it would be a great little machine - much better than the 'iPad on a Stick'.
Seems like they are having major issues with their October releases, seems the revised Mac Mini has HDMI problems - I could never understand why they dropped the optics from this, the 2010 model being a good little machine with crap CPU.
Anyway, as I advise anyone who purchases Apple products, best to buy AppleCare, this can be purchased at a discount on eBay - further, the new iMac really does seem compromised and basically behind the Intel Road map curve.
The reality is this, as with the late 2009 all aluminium move, this new iMac is bound to have loads of issues and will no doubt be upgraded by June/July, by which time I may have an interest in purchasing a 27in model, although, the full-out BTO price seems to be huge compared to the 2011 revision - which is a shame really as this was a cracking piece of kit at a reasonable price point if you are not based in Europe or Australia/New Zealand.
Charles Arthur's review of the iPad Mini was an advotorial at best and outright Apple advert at worst, myself and maybe another 50 posters had all our comments deleted when it was pointed out the close Guardian relationship with Apple and the fact Charles Arthur had a nice all expenses paid junket to go to the October Apple Fanbois Fest - I was not amused.
Whilst my household is an all Apple ecosystem, its pricing strategy is just now so out of whack with reality, particularly with regards the the iPad Mini and iMac - apart from dumping on all those who supported the business during its lean times, Apple is now just a business aimed at the aspiring middle class, regrettably, whilst its profits have been maintained, market share has been abandoned in favour of price gouging its loyal customer-base - my question is simple, what happens to Apple once it loses its 'designer label' appeal?
iPad on a stick
The new iMac, despite all the hype, is a glorified 'iPad on a Stick'.
The iMac, that's the May 2011 revision, was a barnstorming AIO with plenty of bells and whistles - I should know as purchased two of the 27in BTO models - instead of waiting for intel Haswell chips, Ive and co decided to re-imagine the iMac as a iOS device minus the touch interface - so while it may be aesthetically pleasing to those who actually just utilise it to show off to friends and colleagues, for your average day to day users its basically crippled, i.e., no optics, lack of user upgrades - RAM is soldered into 21in models - and basically it loses the utilitarian functionality it once had, at a higher price point.
Have said it before, but will say it again, why upgrade the look now, basically all it required was a upgrade to USB3, Ivy Bridge Processors and latest AMD or NVIDEA GPU.
So, here's the crack, in December you get a new 27in iMac based on a CPU that's been out six months already and that will be upgraded in May next year - Intel Haswell launch timeframe, you also don't get the latest wifi, its old 'N' stock - so come May/June next year, you'll have to upgrade again in all probability - this is known as customer price gouging - a sane business would have made big changes with Haswell, particularly given heat dissipation issues.
Still, I suppose if you like a 'iPad on a Stick', the new iMac is great, if you much prefer an OSX device that does not require you to add ad-dons such as a DVD drive, it sucks - I for one will not be upgrading, rather wait until second release with better CPU and better wifi options, i.e., future proofed more than the newly released and presently unavailable newer, thinner and more expensive iMac.
Posted in Ten... Apple iPad Mini alternatives
Re: What did 3G do to tablet designers that they hate it so much?
The Nexus 7 32G 3G launched last week is 3G capable and costs a lot more less than a iPad Mini.
Posted in Ten... Apple iPad Mini alternatives
Does anyone know if its possible to Root the RIM Playbook so it can actually run Android - basically want something for media consumption and playing games?
Posted in Ten... Apple iPad Mini alternatives
FWIW,
If I could purchase a 64G iPad Mini with 'Retina' screen, A6 chip, GPS, 1G RAM, wifi and 3g combined - 4LTE being way over the top - all for under £400 i probably would go that route, as it stands, in both specc's, performance and cost, the Nexus 7 holds the candle - tis a great shame it too is not offered with 64G with 3G and priced at £300 - I'd have one like a shot.
Now is not a good time to purchase the iPad Mini, it will be obsolete within 12 months - how else do you think Apple are going to gouge its customer-base - as for the App Store, never purchased anything from iTunes or their App Store and all my Apple mobile devices are jailbroken - I do like the iPod Touch, but like the iPad Mini, its way too expensive!
I hail from Torfaen, so can't say I'm too happy with this balls up.
Further, why give the money to HP, they'd have been better off investing in Apple products, be it the iPad2 or 13in Macbook Pro - who the hell wishes to be seen with a HP laptop - obviously, if LINUX was installed on them it may make a difference, but the reality is, HP probably stuffed who ever purchased this piece of trash.
No wonder our bloody Council Tax is more than £100 per month - at the same time whilst wasting money on this, the council laid off a large swathe of its workforce - the fool who worded out this bargain though probably still has a job.
Fecking idiots ia all I can say.
As someone who invested in a iPad 3 4LTE 64G in late June, i can't say I was too happy about the revised iPad - I knew a update was coming as far as Lighting was concerned, but a new CPU - THE HORROR.
Basically, the iPad 3 should have had its launch delayed for a month or two until the A6X was ready to launch - probably May 2012 - instead, Apple have managed to annoy quite a number of its 'user base' buy updating the iPad after only 7 months - as for performance, the CPU in the Nexus 10 - Samsung - wipes the floor with the A6X - me, I'm waiting for Tegra 4 and a new Asus Transformer based on the T4.
Re: I think I'll get one
If the promised revision to the much vaunted Mac Pro in 2013 is anything like to design changes and revisions announced Yesterday by Apple, you may be lucky to get a i7 top end quad core Haswell with Intel HD5000 in a new box the size of the present Mac Mini which you'll be asked to part with £5000 for - obviously it will be special in the design stakes and probably painted a 'gold' colour to differentiate it from all the glorious under spec'd consumer iToy's.
Shame really, Apple used to at least try and do its best for the prosumer - looks like we are all just consumers now willing to pay huge prices for pretty things that need disposing once Apple launches each new revision - no wonder they were keen on highlighting 'Green' credentials at yesterday's launch.
Posted in Apple unsheathes MacBook 13-incher
Re: Is Apple becoming Oracle?
Well, for Apple's share price to reach the magical US$1,000 mark they have to gouge their perceived rich client-base as much as they can - indeed, Apple now equates to "less for more" and all form over substance/ utility.
All their announcements Yesterday were a disappointment and an example of the above, it may look nice, but boy you have to pay for it, and any decent spec'd machine costs an arm and a leg - so effectively, rather than being a Computer company, or mass consumer business, Apple seems to be focusing on Ivy League students and the 1%'ers with more money than sense - particularly given the cult of Apple is all in vogue at the moment.
however, whilst this may be true today, I remember when MicroSoft was in vogue and could gouge to its hearts content - my money's with the Asian-manufacturers, specifically Samsung and Asus - its only a matter of time before Apple is brought down a peg or two - perhaps then they'll realise that its consumer-base is actually multi-faceted and not all who purchase its products are the kids of rich millionaires or catwalk models - this is a shame, because at the turn of the century Apple was a great company that actually used to listen to its hardcore consumers - not anymore I'm afraid - it resembles and behaves more like MicroSoft at its worse.
Massive Fail
Rik Sir,
No disrespect, but this region of the Mac Mini is as much as a joke as the 2011 revision, basically paying more for less, less function that is - I utilise my Mac Mini as a HTPC and for email/ webserfing - mine is the 2010 model with the Optical drive, low end discrete graphics and a C2D running at 2.4Ghz - it still performs just shall we say - has difficulties with large HD content files at 1080 and over 10G - that said its been a great little performer.
Now, in 2011 they dropped the optics - a big mistake given many used it as a Home Media centre - even if the optic was not BluRay - this year, in keeping with giving you less for more, they have removed the option of a discrete graphics chip, and lets be honest, Intel HD4000 is crap compared to a discrete low-end chip with 512VRAM.
Now the inclusion of i7 Ivy Bridge is good news, regrettably, the exclusion of the discrete graphic chip means the machine is a waste of time if you are using latest Adobe Creative Suite 6 - which for many of its programmes requires a minimum 1G of video graphics - the same applies to their iToy mobiles, be it the new 13in Retina or the MacBook Airs.
The fact is, a lot of creative people actually utilise the Mac Mini connected to a 27in Apple monitor or other reasonable monitor - further, the inclusion of Apple's hybrid HDD solution is bloody expensive.
In a nut shell, what could have been a brilliant machine has been crippled to save US$50 and maintain the Apple 305 price premium and thats before all very expensive BTO options.
My advice, don't bother investing in this and wait for the Haswell equipped model expected in Sept. 2013 knowing Apple - at least this will have HD5000 - which according to most rumour sites is a huge leap of performance over Ivy Bridge and HD4000 - the reality is, it requires a decent low end BTO graphics option offering 1G VRAM - IS THIS REALLY TOO MUCH TO ASK!!!!!!!!!!
Re: Speakers
The speakers in the 27in 2011 iMac and the 27in Apple Display are not that bad - I actually utilise a Mac Mini as a HTPC and plug HDMI into my AV Receiver so sound has never been an issue unless I want very latest HD sound formats.
That said, and as you have quite rightly pointed out, they actually have lower the quality of the speakers in the iMac this time around it would seem - indeed, and inline with LCD TV manufacturers things are so slim that you need to invest in a decent sound bar at the minimum - one of the reasons I liked Philip's high end LCD TV's was due to the decent speakers they used - decent for a TV that is, up to 40W output - now your lucky to get 10W output.
Re: Why I want my optical drive
Hate to break it to you, but Apple have never utilised BluRay in any of its products - not knocking your sentiment though as many a Apple Fanbois has been 'pissed' about this decision by Steve Job's.
However, and living in the real World, whilst I do utilise optical media, the majority of my music and movie collection is now in digital format on my external storage - currently using 11T - would invest in a Drobo5 FW or Thunderbolt, but can't afford to spend as much on a storage solution as it costs for the iMac itself.
Anyway, even though broadband speeds slow to a crawl where I live, I still now download 99% of my media consumption via Bittorrent, however HD rips can be substantial even in Xvid - a few HD movies I've got are 20G - nearly as big as the HD original copy.
Really!!!!!
Big Willie,
All I can say is you must be one of the lucky owners of the iMac.
FWIW, since the 2009 October Aluminium was launched, I've now owned 7 of them ranging from the low end C2D 3.09Ghz, i3,15 and i7 BTO 27in from 2011 - of these seven iMac's, 4 have had the LCD panel replaced and one is presently having its Seagate HDD replaced after a Apple recall. Further, of the two i5 27in iMac's I ordered in June 2011, both had to be replaced within 14 days because of screen yellow tint issues - and no, as Apple maintain, it was not the adhesive drying.
In the real world of iMac users, the 2009 -2011 revision iMac's suffered huge issues with greying/dusting screens - if you listened to the presentation, they spoke about laminating the glass panel with the LCD panel - this being one of the causes, the other being to do with thermals and airflow - a design blunder Apple failed to remedy.
So, whilst the new iMac may look aesthetically pleasing, at least to the much vaunted 1%er's, Apple's obsession with form over substance is getting beyond a joke - I actually do utilise the SuperDrive, don't utilise cloud storage due to the fact that my broadband connection is crap and i don't trust placing my data on other persons drives and certainly have never used the iTunes store to purchase anything - what I need I download and as a Xbox user, it will be bloody hard to rip/burn DVD's without cluttering up my desktop.
Given the AIO concept is to avoid clutter, basically with the new iMac you get more clutter, external DVD, USB Hub, Cameral card readers etc. etc.
And the cost of the latest BTO 27in, don't make me laugh - God you can't even swap out RAM in the 21.5in anymore, nevermind swap out a SSD/HDD.
A big Fail!!!!!!!
64G would guarantee success
Given Apple is launching its 'mini iPad' next week and MS are launching the Surface/Win8 during the same timeframe, if Google and Asus want a winner in the Nexus7 32G of storage really does not cut it, on the other hand, 64G of storage would be a winner for all concerned, including the consumer.
My own concern over the Nexus7, and indeed the iPad3/mini iPad, is the lack of storage - and really people let's forget the cloud nonsense, whilst it may seem a great idea on paper, costs are high and that's just one of numerous concerns.
Given the lack of SDcards in the Nexus and iPad, 64G would be a sweet spot and steal one hell of a march on the competition, particularly if it were priced at £224.99.
Anyway, at least we now have some real competition to Apple and that can only be a good thing for the sheeple.
Posted in Samsung Galaxy Note 2 review
This will upset the Jesus Phone fanbois - seems this Samsung device has not only copied all of Lord Job's ideas for the Jesus Phone, but added a few others of its own - shame its not got a decent amount of storage though - 64G is an insult to anyone - particularly those that wish to take advantage of the HD screen, a HD movie being some 2-10G depending on codex used.
Apple Slave Owners United
I hope all the twat's that stood inline for their Jesus Phone 5 or iPad relies that the product is manufactured using slave labour.
I'm now ashamed to say I own Apple products and would much prefer to own goods manufactured in countries where trades unions are recognised and the workers paid a living salary.
Here's hoping for more of the same at Foxconn and other slave owning manufacturing - that should be assembly plants - in Asia and South America.
Funny, how until Cook was employed that a great deal of Apple kit was manufactured in Ireland, Singapore and the USA!!!
What, no HD
What's the point of producing a tablet if it cannot display HD content - on that point alone its a big fail.
Thankfully, Asus seem to have it right with the TF700 and will probably get it right with its next Windows 8 tablet that can also boot into Android - now if only Apple could give us a choice!
PS
Yes, I have a iPad3 4G, but lack of expansion limits its appeal for me personally - my wife does not care though.
Posted in Sony: Walkman, meet Android
Re: Portable music player?
Evidently, you don't get on to Apple Fanbois sites all that often - its generically referred too as the 'iTouch' and not an iPod Touch - although in reality, its more like a stripped down version of the iPhone - hence, its actually a nice bit of kit, particularly for those who hate being tied to mobile networks, also, I JB mine, so not jailed in the Apple ecosystem either - a win win is all I can say and in reference to the Sony device, its 2012 and they can only manage 32G of space - the iTouch launched with 64G and all in all represents better value than a bloody iPad!!!!!!!!!!
Posted in Sony: Walkman, meet Android
Re: Portable music player?
Hold off your horses with slagging off the iTouch,
Its ten times better than any other device out there for playing music, games, viewing JPEGs and all sorts of other things - it will act as a phone as well if you have a personal wifi spot on you - much cheaper than the so called 'smartphones' that have seemed to have taken over the world.
As for lack of sales thereof, perhaps it has something to do with the fact Apple have note updated the iTouch since 2010, unless of course if you think adding White is a update.
I like it, my daughter prefers it to the iPad 3 and basically thats all that matters me.
eBay/PayPal Fees = Rip Off
Each year it seems eBay increases its fees for making a sale and force users to pay again via the utilisation of PayPal - given they are the same company in reality they charge you twice for the same service.
As for the 'supposed' buyer protection, another ripoff, if anything goes wrong either the buyer or seller have to wait weeks before anything is done and then pay more fees.
Best thing is to put a listing on eBay and remove it before the end of the listing period and arrange a private sale with one of the higher bidders if your actual required price has been achieved - indeed, by cutting out eBay both sides if its quite expensive can save about £100 between them - you can use PayPal in the UK to send a gift payment for zero, or better still, take cash only via a personal collection.
I. like many eBay users feel ripped off by their service, the fees are way too high - they and PayPal are money grabbing bastards full stop - I hope they fail in time!!!!
Nonsense
Oh the screen, the wonderful screen - never mind day-to-day activities, I'll just look at the screen all day and ask why no competitors can be bothered.
First, battery life - lets be honest battery technology is not there yet, hence, you get a miserly 5 hours max out of this beast, a beast of a price rather than a beast based on specc's.
As for AppleCare, not checked the cost out yet, but the Macbook Pro APP is more than £250 and only lasts two years - three years in total from date of purchase - so, you need to purchase all sorts of adaptors to plug into this machine to do work on this machine on the road and yet, without an ability to replace batteries - remember that option, you are screwed.
To me its a rip-off, cannot be upgraded, warranty cost is excessive, cost of machine is excessive - its a fashion item, a show off toy and not fit for purpose - its brilliant on the Cat Walk though, hence all the nonsense about the display.
My humble opinion, its too ahead of the curve and until a better battery solution is found, its actually a bit of a joke - ok for those travelling in Business and First Class though, the demographic its actually aimed at!!!!!
Posted in Retina Display detachment
F--K Apple
Here's another car analogy and one more suitable to the Macbook Pro 'Retina' - by removing the ethernet port and then charging you for the pleasure to utilise ethernet via the Thunderbolt Port with a special adaptor - having already paid over the odds to a under spec'ed laptop, is similar to purchasing a Bentley or Rolls Royce top of the shop with all bells and whistles - no bells and whistles in Apples minimalist craze - and then being asked by the car firm to hand over another £2000 for a set of gold keys to start the bloody thing up.
Get real everyone, the device is unsuitable for the corporate world, its a fashion item and the only people who will pay over the odds for such low tech devices are those who are in the 1% of societies richest - this is the demographic Apple is now after - hence, no Mac Pro update until next year, the Fanbois then blame this on Intel.
I'm really sick of people making excuses for Apple, they are cash rich and scrimp and save on everything they now produce, including paying the workers who assemble these rich mens toys peanuts - Apple are just like the bankers!!!!
Posted in Apple iMac refresh due Real Soon Now
Retina on iMac!!!!!
All this crap about Retina is getting to me - the iMac already has a near Retina display in the 27in model - also, whilst its possible to increase the pixel count, a 2X increase or 4X increase seems out of the question.
The ISP panel uses - LG I believe - is already quite a hi resolution display with hardly any manufacturers pushing out really super hidef LCD panels presently.
If we can move away from the Apple 'Retina' hype - all bloody marketing on large panel displays, we may have a better idea.
In my opinion, Apple would be better advised to incorporate Kinect-type and Leap Motion technology into a bigger format - 30in display - rather than incrementally update a panel to alleged 'RETINA' quality and charge an arm and a leg in doing so - for what its worth the LG panel Apple presently use in now in a few PC monitors offered by Korean vendors, you can buy them for US$300 on eBay, this suggests the actual panel is now costing Apple no more than US$150 - I don't think I want a US$1,000 panel in my iMac and large price increase to boot.
Re: us video editors...
Yes, Pro's actually utilise the Mac Pro - regrettably the word 'PROFESSIONAL' and 'APPLE" are not synonymous with each other anymore - epitomised by the 'piss poor' Mac Pro upgrade that is not a upgrade.
I'll not start on the iMac or Mac Mini, but its clear Apple no longer gain a toss about the desktop/professional user segment of the industry - they are more concerned with iOS toys that users upgrade on an annual basis to show-off to each other - not a great deal of creativity or design there.
Hackintosh looks more and more the way to go, unless Apple spins off its actual Macintosh component part of the business, the part that is now ignored in favour of fashionable toys with little real world use - well. unless you are blind and can happen to use Siri!!!!!
Nevermind about iTV, what about a decent iMac
Not interested in iTV - a 32in iMac maybe, in the meantime, I'd really like to upgrade my current 27in iMac and not even interested in Retina.
Posted in Vauxhall Ampera hybrid e-car
Not impressed
So the Kia Rio 1.1TD does more than 80mpg for less than half the price of this car and with similar emissions - not withstanding pollution from the battery pack system itself.
In a nutshell, from where I live I cannot do a return journey via battery alone to Cardiff, never mind Bristol and over the life of the vehicle I'll spend more on fuel than with the Kia.
Until we are able to see electric powered cars that can transverse a minimum of 100 miles before charging/ swapping to a conventional engine - what exactly is the point?
Posted in Sony outs 1080p skinny laptops
What about Retina
Sony and every notebook manufacturer are well behind the curve - if it does not sport a 'RETINA' display as proclaimed by the 'Lord' Jesus Jobs, then evidently its a pile of crud.
And why are they making laptops smaller - I want a 60in laptop with a 4K retina display - Apple rumour sites even suggest Apple iPad's may support up to a 10K resolution by next week - obviously there is no actual use for this super enhanced retina display, codenamed the iTV Retina Display 10K, but thats not the point - being ahead of the pack is all that counts.
Moles in Taiwan, Korea and China suggest the new designed battery pack to support this mighty beast weighs in at just under one metric ton, but suggest Apple will sell it with a small motor vehicle for ease of use and mobility - we're reliably informed that the ARM-based APU will be called the AX10,000 - it sports 200 cores and enhanced graphics capabilities in the form of a AMD6970 unit sporting 256K of VRAM - uses can upgrade to 2G of DDR5 VRAM for an additional US$10,000 upgrade option.
Apple shares closed at US$1 million a share valuing the company at 1,000 Trillion - Sony shares have collapsed on this news and the one time electronics and media giant is now trading at Y10, valuing the business at US$0.99
Blu-Ray anyone?
Re: FFS
It was the base October 15in with i7 and AppleCare - did not purchase as was aware of the upgrade and move to slimmer design - here in HK it means a load of low-end MacBook Pro's will be on the 'used market' shortly, some with APP.
Given we now know a little more, and don't want a laptop without FW800 means I'll be looking at the October 2011 model used as a laptop replacement for my old 2008 iBook - this still works well but is really now totally underpowered.
Most professional mac users have loads of FW800 enabled devices - Thunderbolt may be good, but cost point is prohibitive compared to USB 3 - all my WD storage (9T) is FW800/USB 2 enabled, so I'm on to a loser it seems - can stick with FW800 for three years though - just hope latest iMac does not lose its single FW port and that machine will be expected to last a minimum of three years.
Hope that's a clear response to you?
FFS
Here we go again with Apple - having only recently - try Christmas - upgraded all my External HDD Storage it Firewire 800, it seems Apple wish to push us to Thunderbolt - obviously, I adore paying a 50% premium for a Thunderbolt equipped external, compared to USB 3 - FW800 still carries about a 20-25% premium in prices.
Oh well, nearly picked up a October revision base 15in i7 Macbook Pro for an excellent price a few weeks ago - less than a 1000 with AppleCare - thought best to hold off until the upgrade - what do they do, try and move us to iOS nonsense and their bloody cloud.
Having used Apple products since my early 90's LCII its coming to the stage where I may be better building a Hackintosh for my desktop stuff and seeing what PC laptop competition can run OSX.
Dropping FW800 is a huge mistake - I hope they don't F---K around with the iMac on this revision as swapping my 2011 i7 for latest 27in if it retains FW800 - will be happy with a USB 3 port though!!!
To iTV or not iTV - That is the question
Whilst I'd like to get my hands on a bigger monitor than Apple's current 27in expensive beast, not too sure about a iTV and Apple's restricted ecosystem.
I already have a 42in LCD linked up to a mac mini - this is my media centre and a USB stick provides Freeview reception - using Front Row, you can do quite a lot with Apple's little remote, never mind £500 quid for a iPhone to use as a remote.
Actually, my existing set-up is far superior to what the iTV will be, and if its work related, I use my big iMac - I certainly do not like the cloud nonsense, so drawback is quite a few cables running around that are unobtrusive.
The only thing that would get me excited is a 32in Apple monitor linked up to a decent spec'd mac mini - that's if Apple can ever be arced to actually manufacture one.
Actually, a good 42in monitor without any guts would be perfect if it had good resolution for both working on and watching TV/Movies - so a Siri enabled iTV is not really for me - Warranty issues are also poor - Dell give a 5 year Warranty, Apple only three and that's expensive.
In a nutshell, people want LCD TV's to last a good five years - it would be utter madness to refresh every 12 months, so I'll give this a fail.
Posted in Battlefield Earth ruled worst film EVER
Sounds about right
I think I managed 10 mins of this at most before abandoning it - basically was saved by poor pirated copy I was watching.
I wonder if the new movie 'Battleship' will be as much of a dude?
Why not a 32in iMac
If an iMac came in 32in format or Apple Monitor - this would be a significant improvement - basically, you have both a reasonable PC to use at the heart of a media centre.
Now if only they'd add an HDMI connection to bang a Xbox or PS3 on it.
Moral of the tale
If one lesson is to be learned, never rush to be a early adopter, as with a major OS release, always give it three or four months before making a purchase - by that time any issues are usually sorted out.
Given I want one of these for my daughter for Christmas - I'll buy a used one - hopefully I won't get a dud, but if I do, no problem - its off to the Apple store for a new replacement - Brilliant, just brilliant!!!!
It's a iPod Touch
Well, absolutely great news, if it was not for the fact that my daughter already has a iPod Touch October 2011 revision I may have jumped for joy.
Really, you lot go on about Smartphones, tablets, iPads and iPhones and ignore the elephant in the room, the iTouch - its got good storage too at 64G and if jailbroken allows you do do all the Samsung does and more - obviously, its got cheap cameras, but apart from that its a good media player, games console and music player.
I want a used one!
Well,
The numbers are impressive, hopefully come November some of these initial fondleslabs will be on the used market - in which case I'll buy one.
I think the only thing I'll ever buy new from Apple is a low end iMac.
Here's to jailbreaking!!!!!!
I'm sooo excited. NOT!
Whatever I do, I cannot keep up with Apple releases/ refreshes.
Todate, I do not own a iPhone, iPad, Macbook, Apple TV or Mac Pro - however, given the Apple TV will now support 1080i resolution, and with iPad's with ground breaking displays up to 42in, can I actually link a new Apple TV to one of the new iPads and watch TV from iTunes - I'm told band of brothers only costs £10,000, so hopefully may have a little left from my annual salary.
On second thoughts I'll stick with my Mac Mini and dream of a 32in Apple Thunderbolt monitor - dream being the operative word.
May all your Apple orgasms come true.
Posted in Coming to a continent near you: America
Can we securitise potential Real Estate profits?
This is indeed wonderful news for property speculators, real estate agents and bankers.
Does anyone know if any of the above will be issuing investment brochures offering pristine beach front homes, hotels and the like in this new global landscape.
Whilst I'm risk averse, given the potential profits and timeframes I'm confident many will sign up for these more futuristic of investment opportunities.
Posted in Apple eyes ISPs to sell 'iTV'
My HDMI Mac Mini is linked to a 42in Philips LCD, all my TV viewing are the programmes and films I want to watch downloaded via Bittorrent, in Hong Kong I don't even have a ariel connected to the TV.
If Apple made a bigger monitor than current 27in at a cheaper price point - think Dell - they'd be on to a winner - I'm sure they can up the size easily to 32in and 37in and next gen. Mac Mini should have decent graphics capability, so a win win.
In the UK, currently utilise a iMac with TV USB, usually still download a lot, utilise iPlayer/TV Catch-up and watch some actual live TV - basically I watch what I want and already have good storage via 3T externals.
Apples plan, if it has one is to sell a high quality TV iOS enabled and keep all punters in its heavily walled ecosystem - can't wait till its jailbroken.
Whilst i like Apple products - they work and look pretty due to Mr. Ive, I've never been one for iTunes or anything thing else that costs me coin on top of hardware cost.
Hence, why bother, a Mac Mini connected to a high resolution screen is ideal and you can also add TV via a USB add on.
I certainly will not invest in one as much prefer the iMac/ Mac Mini combo, also will get a iPad3 when available and can watch TV/ content off that.
Still, if the thought of paying £2000 for a large iMac that's not actually a computer appeals to you, great, me, I've got better things to do with that amount of cash.
Too much anti TalkTalk
My folks became TalkTalk customers after it took over a few smaller players and were not on any contract, just making a monthly payment for a 8mb download speed, actual speed is just under 5mb and upload speed under 1mb.
At Christmas I rang customer services to make a complaint, it transpired I was in the wrong, the chap I was talking too, for all the shit I gave him was polite and helpful - indeed, not only did he sign us up for a 12 month contract lower than existing plan, he also helped considerably in changing email addresses .
I had no complaints, having looked at TalkTalk combined broadband and telephone services, it transpired they were the UK's cheapest, further, line rental that had actually increased under TalkTalk was reduced to a respectable £9.50 per month if a 12 month advance payment was made - actual cost saving to parents was more than £80.00 per annum.
For this, my folks get a reasonable service all for under £13.00 per month, this includes a capped download of 40G per month, this can be upped for a £5.00 pm additional charge.
As someone who actually knows what an awful service is, I live in Hong Kong in a remote area and local Telco Netvigator are possibly one of the worst in the world - my folks UK service is actually far better and costs less per month and the difference is stark.
Given I'm a big downloader, I'm glad to say, following 8 weeks in the UK and having fled more than 100G, utilised iPlayer in SD and HD, TalkTalk imposed no additional charges.
For what you pay, and what you get, they really are good - yes i could get a bit higher download speed, yes i could go unlimited, yes i could sign up for load of useless media options like Virgin - in reality, a telephone line, decent broadband link, and reasonable DL cap for average user is all people want, and on this account TalkTalk excel.
Apple Mac Mini Anyone?
Whilst all these streamers, IPTV and other such like items are great, would not your money be better invested in a Mac Mini connected to a AV Receiver or actual TV itself if speakers are of any quality - maybe even a sound bar.
I've been using my Mac Mini as the heart of my AV set-up for over five years and only recently upgraded to a HDMI enabled Mac Mini that still comes with a optical drive.
Not wishing to sound like a Apple Fanbois - I hate iTunes - this set-up has been great.
I'm sure their are other single box PC's out there similar to Apple's little wonder - shame about the price though, but here in Hong Kong our Apple costs are among the lowest in the World.
All Praise to Apple - NOT!!!!
So a company sitting on a cash pile nearing US$100 billion throws some peanuts to its staff, unlike the CEO who gets a wad of cash and Shares.
The least they could have offered to their actual employees is an iPad or iPhone free of charge and perhaps 10 shares each - so, this really is shite.
Also, why not ensure Foxconn and its other multiple suppliers pay at least a minimum salary to each of their contracted workers - say US$25 per day!!!
I may utilise their products, but their attitude to employees and sub-contractors alike sucks, obviously the 'FANBOIS" will flame me, but facts are facts.
Apple could do no better than return some employment back to the USA, instead, and if we follow their and their competitors business models, within a few years there will be no one left in the USA, and Europe to boot, to purchase their expensive products and their sub contractors at Foxconn et.al will hardly be in a position to take up this slack unless they are prepared to take out a mortgage to own a Jesus Phone and Fondleslab.
Is this good news?
I have a WD TV Live Hub and todate, no firmware upgrade is available - I do hope they release it soon for the WD Live with 1TB HDD, a great little machine if iPlayer attached and usually plays all media formats apart from one I know of.
Posted in Marantz NR1602 AV receiver with AirPlay
Way to Go
I like it.
A while back I was looking at one of its older siblings and was smitten by the design - believe it or not, I use my old bulky Marantz AV as a stand for my LCD now.
Cutting a long story short, I'd be pleased as punch to have this in my living room probably 10 times better than my high end LG 3D HTS, however, I'd have to invest in a decent woofer and good speakers again.
Nothing against the LG, it does all what its supposed to and came out of a single box - but this baby takes the biscuit for looks and what can be achieved - my only bug bear is I'm sick of wires everywhere, so really think we should be moving to a wireless environment and this includes all speakers - currently such a set up is both expensive and time consuming - obviously, a minimum 55in LCD Monitor or good projector is a must.
Where's the Apple lawsuit?
As usual, its digesting how these non-Apple cowboys rip off the Apple design.
Given this phone utilises 'APPLE WHITE" can we expect Apple to launch a lawsuit to protect its intellectual colour patent!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
