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iTunes Movies... and New Media Device?

poppe said:
I've heard speculation of fricken october... So much for us all waiting if it doesnt come out next week...
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As good a guess as anything - I so wish I could run OS X and Mac applications on non Apple hardware. This vertical integration sure has some downside - we are captive to Apple's hardware whims.

I can not imagine what is taking them so long.........
 
Apple Corps said:
As good a guess as anything - I so wish I could run OS X and Mac applications on non Apple hardware. This vertical integration sure has some downside - we are captive to Apple's hardware whims.

I can not imagine what is taking them so long.........
Click to expand...

I can. Probably the same things that have kept PC companies from releasing merom laptops until now. We are captive to *intel's* hardware whims. The chips are just now shipping in quantity, PC's are just barely starting to trickle out. It's a bit silly to blame apple and wish you could run on PC hardware, when there's no merom PC hardware shipping either. Seriously, you can't wait a week or two?
 
Here's what I would do:

Video iPOD with a bigger screen.
I would also add WiFi so I can download Videos/Music from HotSpots.
I wouldn't do a browser at first.
I would do a touch screen.
I would make iTunes burn DVD's of those videos a limited amount of times.
I wouldn't announce a phone just yet.

However, I still like getting DVD's with the extra stuff, but I am undecided what I would do with that.

Mark my words, "This is what I would do."
 
halhiker said:
I don't really get the point of wireless video unless you can somehow incorporate a pause feature into it. What am I going to do with the video if I have to answer the door or phone or go to the can or get a snack? Do I have to go to my computer and reset the video and hope that when it streams to the TV or whatever it's at the right spot? For me it would be much easier to just move the movie to my iPod, put the iPod in a dock with a remote and watch it that way. Unless maybe the new airport device has it's own remote! Now that might be interesting. :D
Hal
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IMO, this is the $1 mil. question. Will there be a remote control? Apple would miss the boat without it.

A souped up Airport Express with video is sweet, the monumental[B/] link between your computer and your television, but how do you then interface with your computer. TiVo's success and brand loyalty can be attributed to two major usability elements:

1) A simple, highly ergonomic remote control

AND

2) A clean UI, with cool features like season passes and the ability to rate content.

This model isn't all that unlike Apple's iTunes/iPod model which relies on a clean and usable UI and highly ergonomic hardware, all woven together in a tight system.

The possibilities here are endless once Apple has the ability to connect the computer to the living room.

Streaming HD movies & television, television tuning, pausing live TV, photos, music, you name it. Just like iTunes offers the ability to rip a CD to your library, what if you had the ability to rip a DVD, catalog it, and stream it in HD (feasibly, once high definition DVDs catch on) to your living room TV. With what Apple has done for computer interfaces, just imagine what they could do for a television/media center interface.

With a sweet remote, a wireless HD connection from computer to living room, a TV tuner, and creative UI designers from Apple, the sky is truly the limit for a kick-butt media center, I own most of the pieces already (New Mac Pro, HD television). Here's one consumer, credit card ready and waiting.
 
bommai said:
Why require a computer (in the traditional sense) in the living room? I think that is the reason media center computers are not selling like hot cakes. There is no reason for a full blown computer in the living room. However, a stripped down hardware with a stripped down Mac OS X with a different UI and just a remote control could be the ticket. This box could still have Bonjour, ethernet, etc but you cannot type your email in this. Separate devices for separate job.

This is where Microsoft dropped the ball - Media centers are too complicated, blue screen of death, memory leaks, etc.

Do you know a Tivo is a computer? It has a microprocessor and runs Linux. However, they don't try to make it a computer. That is why their idea has caught on.
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You really don't need anything but communications hardware. Most people own computers already, let their processors and hard drives do the heavy lifting. A fast connection, response to control input, and streaming HD communication device is all that is relly needed.

Plus of course, a remote. WiFi remote anyone? What would the response time be on that? As fast as IR?
 
I assume just an IR remote that talks to the airport video, which passes the signals along via wifi.
 
dernhelm said:
Plan on being dissapointed. That's pretty much what they'll release. The device will front-end your television, and might (if you are lucky) support component video or DVI, but most likely just composite video...snip
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I daresay that you're underestimating Apple's ability to deliver streaming HD content digitally, via UDI (their proprietary HDMI, HDCP capable spec.). I did a quick dig around for Apple and HDMI and I stumbled across these two AppleInsider articles:

http://www.appleinsider.com/article.php?id=1426
http://www.appleinsider.com/article.php?id=1586

To summarize, Apple and Intel are part of a consortium to develop a unified digital interface (UDI) display connection, for the purpose of connecting HD-TVs to PCs, workstations, laptops, (Airport Express?), etc. The UDI connector/cable, is fully compatible with HDMI (used in 99% of HD-TVs these days). It will also be able to use High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP) technology widely deployed in HDMI-compatible products today.

This announcement feels big to me, Apple has the potential to leapfrog EVERYONE, now we'll just have to wait and see how much of that potential they live up to.
 
milo said:
Why would they do commercials? Commercials only make sense if they give you content for free. Has anyone done home viewing of movies for a fee and still included commercials (other than movie trailers)?
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You mean, like at the movie theaters these days, with all the stupid commercials :rolleyes:

Never put anything past the advertisers...
 
milo said:
I can. Probably the same things that have kept PC companies from releasing merom laptops until now. We are captive to *intel's* hardware whims. The chips are just now shipping in quantity, PC's are just barely starting to trickle out. It's a bit silly to blame apple and wish you could run on PC hardware, when there's no merom PC hardware shipping either. Seriously, you can't wait a week or two?
Click to expand...

milo - I think some Merom based portables are now shipping on the PC side. It would be nice to have some additional choice. Many of us have been waiting for the MBP update since WWDC, then every Tuesday since, than the BIG shipment from China on September 5, ..........

As I mentioned in some other post, it would be a big help if Apple would simply announce the specs, price and ship dates - then we could make an informed decision. I am in very serious need of a new notebook for business and we still do not know anything about those details. If they are not shipping until mid October - then I'd probably just order a Yonah based MBP and get on with it.

I keep saying we'll know soon - but have been saying that for too long.
 
Apple Corps said:
If they are not shipping until mid October - then I'd probably just order a Yonah based MBP and get on with it.
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You see Apple will wait until the very last moment to announce a new system. If they say, "On 1-11-07 we are going to introduce a new laptop." All Apple laptop sales will cease or reduce. So they will try and clear out the current inventory as much as possible and then announce. At least that would be the smart thing to do.
 
WillGonz said:
You see Apple will wait until the very last moment to announce a new system. If they say, "On 1-11-07 we are going to introduce a new laptop." All Apple laptop sales will cease or reduce. So they will try and clear out the current inventory as much as possible and then announce. At least that would be the smart thing to do.
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I think Steve probably remembers all too well what happened to Adam Osborne. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osborne_Effect

I don't think that pre-announcing systems that have yet to ship is a particularly good strategy for maintaining sales levels of current product.

B
 
WillGonz said:
You see Apple will wait until the very last moment to announce a new system. If they say, "On 1-11-07 we are going to introduce a new laptop." All Apple laptop sales will cease or reduce. So they will try and clear out the current inventory as much as possible and then announce. At least that would be the smart thing to do.
Click to expand...

That could be one response. OTOH - I would just go ahead and order a Yonah based MBP as I can not wait until January 2007. They would lose some sales and they would gain some sales - not as straightforward as one might think.
 
Apple Corps said:
That could be one response. OTOH - I would just go ahead and order a Yonah based MBP as I can not wait until January 2007. They would lose some sales and they would gain some sales - not as straightforward as one might think.
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Their current way of handling this makes much more sense, when you buy around an update, your order will often get upgraded for free. Or something like the quiet Mac mini upgrade for the 1.5 GHz G4.

B
 
I think Apple will bring out a new "video" airport express that can not only be accesssed by your computer but also buy your new "video" ipod so that if your at a friends house you can stream music or video through there entertainment system. The new airport will also have its own built in UI probably similar to frontrow that can be controlled with a remote. "At least I hope"
 
don't know about you guys, but if they release a wireless media center with tv tuner (so you can use a 30' ACD in your livingroom as a tv), dvd player/recorder, hd pvr, ipod dock (or wireless audio streming from wifi enbled 6G ipods and itunes libraries via airtunes), remote control, surround audio output all in the shape and size similar to the mac mini, i'll be the second happiest person in the world (no.1 being steve jobs for getting all of our disposable income :D).

this is my fantasy, as it would solve ALL my problems of smart-home design (apart from the climate control and stuff) :D

if only the remote could be programmed to operate window blinds :D :D
 
Dont Hurt Me said:
Business channel has had a lot of talk about a Apple Pod video phone but I would rather see a Cube redo. How about Cube squared.
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I had a customer yesterday convinced we did an "Apple Cube". Not sure what he was talking about, but I pointed towards the Mac Mini and explained the G4 Cube had been discontinued in 2001. He looked confused.

Perhaps he had had a vision. :rolleyes:
 
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