iPhone 5: Is it enough?

Apple product announcements have become the Super Bowl of tech events in recent years. Today was no exception. The anticipation, leaks and speculation leading up to the event was pretty massive. 

The event had a lot of breadth. I wasn't particularly surprised at the iPod updates - well at least, not that it happened. I'm a little disappointed that the Nano has grown again as I am a huge fan of the current size. It would have been nice to see the same form factor but simply slimmer with bluetooth. THe new unit has a nice design, but I won't be looking to purchase a new one any time soon.

 

The iPod touch changes were unsurprising following the iPhone announcements other than perhaps the wrist strap which while functional isn't something Apple typically concerns itself with. Still, a nice feature for those on the go or for kids. Odd that they are keeping the old Touch around, but I guess that helps them hit another price point or get into an up sell situation.

 

The headphones were kind of an odd drop in. Though, when I think about it, given the volume of headphones that Apple distributes, it does make some sense to put some effort in there. It seems in line with Apple's approach to continually evolve and round out their platforms into the "total package."

 

Lastly, I am very thankful that iTunes got a redesign and face lift. I have found it harder and harder to use the application effectively to manage my media so I'm looking forward to that change a great deal.

 

And then of course was the main event. The new iPhone was announced and all the features touted. I was gratified to see the new A6 processor and was pretty much amazed at that it will be 20% lighter. For them to have taken out 1/5th of the weight between generations is pretty remarkable. I think the thinner design will also be appreciated as well.

 

The camera didn't seem to change much on paper - though without side by side photo comparisons it's hard to tell how much change it will bring. The new panoramic feature is nice - better than a manual stitching process with some of the apps that are out there. I saw that they did add the ability to take photos while shooting video, but I always thought that to be a bit of an odd feature. Perhaps it was a capability of the new lens? Glad to see that costs remained the same, though I still feel like the absence of the 128GB model remains odd. I wonder if it is a power issue?

 

The new connector was well leaked in advance so no surprises there. I wonder if they'll have a thunderbolt to lightning connector as well or if it will only be USB to lightning? They have to have something up their sleeve or else they'd just go with micro USB. I know a lot of people are irritated at the instant obsolescence of their accessories, but 9 years is a pretty good run stability wise.

 

LTE support was as expected as was the size of the display. It will be interesting to see just how different the new screen will look in person as well as how much more, if any, responsive it will be. The battery life looks pretty great overall, though it'll be interesting to see how well it holds up in real world usage.

 

Overall, it seems like the iPhone has enough going for it in combination with iOS 6 to justify an upgrade. Pre-orders start on Friday so get those credit cards warmed up!

 

Posted with Blogsy

One (Many) iDevices to Rule Them All

On the eve of the next iPhone announcement (or will it be the New iPhone?), I'm taking a step back to re-review my personal electronic inventory.

And, as I do, I've come to the realization that while I might be a PC in terms of what's on my desk, the rest of my media experience is ruled by Apple. I have the iPhone as my personal phone. The New iPad is my travel companion and TV watching companion. The Apple TV has become one of my prime media consumption devices, so much so that I've now purchased two of them. To a degree, just being able to throw video up on the two different TVs from the iPhone or iPad was worth the price of entry. But add in the iTunes store and the NetFlix application and it really becomes quite a compelling device.

Minty Fresh

I had never heard about the Mint family of devices before. If you haven't either the short version is that they are floor cleaning robots similar to the concept of a Roomba but for hard floors rather than carpet. I actually found out about it from woot.com which, in its typical style, had a one day sale on an older Mint model. I read the reviews and saw some issues with that model. However, when I looked into the newer model it seemed that most of those problems had been solved albeit at a higher price.