Recently in Apple Category

...at least on my end, has been that I have been without a functioning computer for the past 48 hours.

Because I followed the manufacturer's instructions.

I normally use a MacBook Pro, my third Apple laptop, purchased to replace a PowerBook G4, which replaced another PowerBook G4, which replaced a Linux desktop.

The MBP was purchased on January 9th. Five months to the day, I installed a firmware update that the Software Update application would not stop telling me to install. When I rebooted...it didn't reboot. No chime, nothing. When I called support, they had me burn a "Firmware Restoration CD" on my old Powerbook, which thankfully works fine with an external keyboard and monitor. Nothing.

I'll be trying to get my data off the machine, because Apple will deny the problem was caused by their update, attribute it to a bad logic board, and do a warranty replacement, which will take too long during a time when I need a laptop. So, I'll probably be going back to Linux.

Thanks, Apple.

Truemors reports (thanks to Guy Kawasaki) on some patents that Apple has applied for, namely transparent touch screens

 

Rumors of Apple's tablet-type notebook have circulated for a while, sparking interest, debate and discussion in Mac circles, but recent patent applications take the tablet idea in a different direction. Avoiding the whole twisting screen concept used in other previous tablet notebook products, Apple instead implements a transparent touch display in place of keyboard (or a customized interface for different applications) when open. When "closed," the computer lays like a flat tablet without the weight or bulk of a hidden keyboard. Needless to day, the MacBook Touch could make the MacBook Air look bulky.

In the "ok, ok, we admit we should have done this last year" department, Apple announced that not only will they release the SDK, but that they've licensed Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync for iPhone. Interestingly enough, Steve, who just over a year ago announced that there would be no SDK and that the only push option for iPhone would be Yahoo!, passed the buck to Phil Schiller to make this announcement.

I just finished re-watching 2001: A Space Odyssey and found this absolutely hilarious. Also, the iSight camera on my MacBook Pro is starting to make me a little frightened...does my Robot Insurance policy cover this, too?

A little behind schedule, Apple is ready to release its SDK (Software Developer Kit) for the iPhone.

 

Here are the details, from Reuters

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Apple Inc (AAPL.O: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Wednesday it will reveal its software plans for its iPhone device on March 6, including tools for outside developers and features aimed at businesses.

"Please join us to learn about the iPhone software roadmap, including the iPhone SDK and some exciting new enterprise features," Apple said in an invitation sent to reporters.

(Reporting by Scott Hillis)

 

So the iPhone will finally be able to use a few gigs of its memory for on-board application as opposed to the entirely web-based shenanigans that are currently offered.  On-board applications make a lot of sense because they are so much faster.  Even though some of them access the web in order to perform searches or update information a lot of time is saved when as much as possible id done by or on the phone.  Take TwitterBerry, for example.  Even though you access the web to see friends' updates or to submit your own, you type in your text directly on the handset.  You don't have to wait for the page to load just to enter your text and then wait again to submit it.  Also, there are plenty of apps that don't require any web interaction at all.  There are applications that will let you scour your handset for information.  I think that the usefulness of an application like that would be nullified if you had to wait around for the internet everytime you tried to search your handset for something.  And let's not forget that the internet on the iPhone isn't all that fast.  It's decent, but when it's being relied upon so heavily any inadequacies will get exposed over and over again.

 

While I think it's great that Apple is opening up the iPhone I have to wonder why they waited.  If they were worried about third-party applications drawing people away from Apple software, why release it at all?  If I had to guess, I'd say that they wanted to get people to try the preloaded Apple offerings and decided to gurantee that they would by not allowing effective access to any alternatives. 

 

Who knows.  If enough applications become available and the enterprise solutions are truly "exciting" Andrew may have to take the iPhone out of mothballs.

 

I'm not holding my breath.

The NPD group, a market research firm, reports that not only did legal downloads increase in 2007, they grew to the point where Apple is now only second fiddle to Wal-Mart in the distribution of music.

Legal music downloads now account for 10 percent of the music acquired in the US. Reflecting the growth in that sector of the market, Apple's iTunes Music Store became the second-largest music retailer in the U.S. after Wal-Mart, based on the amount of music sold during 2007 (based on a 12-track CD equivalency for music track downloads).

Twenty-nine million consumers acquired digital music legally, via pay-to-download sites last year, which is an increase of 5 million over the previous year. Sales growth was largely driven by consumers age 36 to 50 - a segment that was aggressively acquiring digital music-players in 2007.

"The continued growth in legal download sites is encouraging, yet the industry struggles to improve the value of each digital customer," said Russ Crupnick, entertainment industry analyst for The NPD Group.  "With so many baby boomers and gen-Xers entering the market, there are certainly opportunities to sell more digital albums, promote older catalog titles, or create bundles that will raise revenues. In the near term that's going to be the best means available to narrow the gap on dwindling CD revenues."

Seeing as their success as a retailer rests entirely on the goodwill of those who operate the network infrastructure, you really have to wonder why Apple is keeping their mouths shut on Net Neutrality. 

For their sake, I hope that no broadband provider wants to partner with Wal-Mart to deliver a music library via set top box. iTunes traffic might suddenly take up too much bandwidth and need to be "managed."

Here's the Wikipedia entry on Icarus, if you're not up on your Greek mythology:

Latin: ?karos, Etruscan: Vicare) is a character in Greek Mythology. Icarus' father, Daedalus attempted to escape his prison, the Labyrinth, in which he was imprisoned at the hands of King Minos, the king for whom he had built the Labyrinth (Labyrinth is derived from the Minoans word for a ceremonial axe). The Labyrinth's original purpose was intended to hold the horrible creature, the Minotaur, a beast that was a product of one of the King's mistress's affairs with a bull. The Minotaur was born to King Minos and his wife instead of a son because the Gods were angry at them. Daedalus was imprisoned on the island with his son Icarus. Daedalus, the master craftsman, was imprisoned because it was he who built the faux cow for the queen to climb into such that she could copulate with the bull. As the Minotaur grew up it became violent and dangerous, so they had to imprison it in the Labyrinth. Daedalus fashioned a pair of wings for himself and his son, made of feathers and wax. Before they took off from the prison, Daedalus warned his son not to fly too close to the sun, as the wax would melt, nor too close to the sea, as the feathers would become sodden. Overcome by the sublime feeling that flying gave him, Icarus soared through the sky joyfully, but in the process he came too close to the sun, which melted his wings. Icarus kept flapping his wings but soon realized that he had no feathers left and that he was only flapping his bare arms. And so, Icarus fell into the sea in the area which bears his name, the Icarian Sea near Icaria, an island southwest of Samos.^[1]

Think of Wal-Mart and any single telco as the sun...

Apple invests $782,000,000 per year  into Research and Development, according to their annual report for 2007. This didn't include $75,000,000 for iPhone software development.

They also spent $467,000,000 on advertising in 2007.

What's missing?

Apple also understands that they need to deal with regulations. Quoth their Annual Report:

The Company is subject to risks associated with laws, regulations and industry-imposed standards related to mobile communications devices.

Laws and regulations related to mobile communications devices in the many jurisdictions in which the Company operates are extensive and subject to change. Such changes, which could include but are not limited to restrictions on production, manufacture, distribution, and use of the device, locking the device to a carrier's network, or mandating the use of the device on more than one carrier's network, may have a material adverse effect on the Company's financial condition and operating results.

Mobile communication devices, such as iPhone, are subject to certification and regulation by governmental and standardization bodies, as well as by cellular network carriers for use on their networks. These certification processes are extensive and time consuming, and could result in additional testing requirements, product modifications or delays in product shipment dates, which may have a material adverse effect on the Company's financial condition and operating results.

They also get the whole "DRM" thing:

The Company relies on third-party digital content, which may not be available to the Company on commercially reasonable terms or at all.

The Company contracts with third parties to offer their digital content through the Company's iTunes Store. The Company pays substantial fees to obtain the rights to this content. The Company's licensing arrangements with these third parties are short-term and do not guarantee the continuation or renewal of these arrangements on reasonable terms, if at all. Some third-party content providers currently or may in the future offer competing products and services, and could take action to make it more difficult or impossible for the Company to license their content in the future. Other content owners, providers or distributors may seek to limit the Company's access to, or increase the total cost of, such content. If the Company is unable to continue to offer a wide variety of content at reasonable prices with acceptable usage rules, or continue to expand its geographic reach, the Company's financial condition and operating results may be materially adversely affected.

Many third-party content providers require that the Company provide certain digital rights management ("DRM") and other security solutions. If these requirements change, the Company may have to develop or license new technology to provide these solutions. There is no assurance the Company will be able to develop or license such solutions at a reasonable cost and in a timely manner. In addition, certain countries have passed or may propose legislation that would force the Company to license its DRM, which could lessen the protection of content and subject it to piracy and could also affect arrangements with the Company's content providers.

Notice something missing here? Apple operates the largest music and video download service in the world. Their ability to provide that service is dependent on the willingness of network operators to not interfere with Apple's customers who rent their movies on their AppleTV instead of say, using their Digital Cable or Satellite Set Top Box. 

In other words, while they admit they're dependent on third-party content, they refuse to acknowledge their reliance on "third-party bandwidth."

Meanwhile, tomorrow the FCC will meet to hear about net neutrality issues, again. Apple, and in particular Steve Jobs, has shown an ability to move entire industries to make more consumer-friendly choices. You can get most TV shows and movies on iTunes now. Who would have imagined that even 4 years ago?

Yet, Apple's continued ability to innovate is completely tied to the goodwill of say, Verizon, who may want to save more bandwidth for their own VoD "rental" service, or another network operator using some kind of "reasonable management" when iTunes downloads reach a critical mass, especially once more people start renting or buying HD content.

Which brings me to the most shocking number of all:

$20,000.

That's how little Apple has spent on lobbyists in Washington during the 2nd half of 2007. What's more shocking, is despite launching iPhone, and making preparations to launch the improved AppleTV last month, here's what they spent their $20k on:

H.R. 1908/S.1145, The Patent Reform Act of 2007; Section 115 of the U.S. Copyright Act: Compulsory Licensing of EU Copyright Directive.

That's from their year-end 2007 Lobbying Disclosure Act report. They didn't so much as make a single contact with the FCC during the last half of 2007.

Last January, Apple Computer became just "Apple," because they were starting to sell more than computers. You would think they would be interested in protecting their new revenue streams, and the networks that allow them to be such innovators in content distribution to all consumers.

Time to ante up, Steve.

...as I look through the various petitions and briefs in the Vuze proceeding which the FCC is set to consider tomorrow (but not vote on) in Cambridge, MA. 

...by announcing upgrades just over a month after the holiday shopping season ended.

Courtesy of the AP:

CUPERTINO, Calif. ? Apple Inc. updated its iPhone and iPod Touch lineup Tuesday, doubling the memory and setting a new premium price for its high-end models. The latest iPhone features 16 gigabytes of memory and retails for $499. The previously released 8 GB version of the hybrid cell phone, multimedia player and wireless Internet device costs $399. The new iPod Touch comes with 32 GB of memory and retails for $499. The older 16 GB and 8 GB versions of the combination multimedia player wireless Internet gadget cost $399 and $299, respectively. The new devices are available through Apple's online and retail stores. The updated iPhone is also available through AT&T Inc.'s online and retail stores. Apple said that all iPhone and iPod Touch models come with updated software that the company announced in January. It includes a new maps application and the ability to watch movies from the iTunes movie rental service. Apple shares fell 34 cents to $130.31 in pre-market trading.

I understand products get upgraded and updated as time goes on. What I cannot fathom, however, is what kind of idiot releases upgraded versions of one of their company's most distinctive, sought after and well-marketed products (did anyone notice the past two episodes of House, in which we see Wilson with an iPhone and both House and Wilson using their MacBook Pros to diagnose a patient stuck at the South Pole?) only weeks after many people (first time buyers?) spent their holiday bonuses on what was then the latest and greatest? What better way to piss off your new customers than to piss on them by making their new products obsolete-ish. I understand it's been over six months since iPhone's release, and only a bit less for iPod Touch. But seriously, Apple! Every time you do this you make people who buy your products, and subsequently fall in love with them, really, really mad. You also have not delivered on that SDK you promised. No third party apps? Bye-bye power users. At least RIM's upgrade cycle is predictable and they're not afraid to let people expand their product's functionality. My iPhone is going on Craigslist soon, and I couldn't care less.

A few more things to think about while we're pondering the earth-shattering consequences of a MSFT-YHOO shotgun wedding...

• The consent decree that was extended for two (of the requested five) extra years by U.S. District Judge Coleen Kollar-Kotelly (who, interestingly enough has served as chief judge of the FISA Court, the secret tribunal that approves special warrants to spy on suspected spies) only addresses how Microsoft's operating system software interacts with its' competitors application products, and how much documentation of things like APIs and file formats Microsoft is required to publicly disclose. It doesn't cover anything like search engines, advertising, web applications, or anything that has become important since 2001. In fact, one could probably (successfully) argue that Microsoft's inability to expand successfully after winning the browser war is because in a world where the browser and open standards are king, they haven't been able to leverage their desktop market share anymore. Even their browser has been to some extent rendered an avoidable annoyance by a Mozilla Firefox, ironically the descendant of Microsoft's most famous victim, and the reason for the whole antitrust suit in the first place...Netscape Navigator. 
• When Microsoft won the browser war, they shoved ActiveX down our collective throats. Not only did it turn out to be a non-starter for what could arguably be called the first generation (the beta?) of Web 2.0 (albeit a proprietary, slow version), but it turned the browser (and Word, and Outlook, and the entire Windows platform) into a security nightmare. ActiveX is the DNA of most modern worms, spiders, viruses and other things with names that evoke yucky creatures you'd rather not have on you.  Of course, since ActiveX sucked so badly, a whole host of companies were able to capitalize on the relative security and openness of AJAX, Flash and what have become the various browser-independent building blocks of Web 2.0. Google has been able to capitalize on this by building good Web applications that happen to feature tiny little contextual, even helpful ads. Not by being flashy and putting their name everywhere on your mailbox, messages or applications unless you paid up (like a few of their competitors do with their respective email services), but by trying to be useful, giving you a product and letting them make a buck. 
• I'll spell it out for you. Google Mail (Gmail) users don't have advertisements appended to their outgoing messages, but Yahoo! Mail and Hotmail users who don't pay a fee do.Speaking of Yahoo! mail...remember that this is an unsolicited bid. Also remember just over a year ago when Apple's iPhone was announced, the exclusive partner for iPhone's (relatively weak) push email service (which is far from BlackBerry quality, but I've said that before) was, and still is...Yahoo! 
• So, does anyone think Apple is going to keep going steady with Yahoo! when they're being acquired by Microsoft, when Microsoft, after years of sad efforts to make inroads in the handheld/smartphone/music player market just to  see Apple dazzle the world with iPod and iPhone would like nothing more than to throw a wrench into the works? All that talk about Apple and Google being the new rivals (thanks to Google's Android project) is over and done with. Apple will keep selling iPhone, but I'll bet that all those future iPhone (and current, since iPhone updates are made available to all) owners will soon be able to get some new functionality with Google apps pretty soon, especially with Apple releasing the iPhone SDK in the coming weeks.

Think about it: Microsoft and Yahoo versus Apple and Google. Anyone taking wagers?