iPhone and iPod touch Update 2.2.1
The Mac Observer — Today TMO readers are talking about the recently released 2.2.1 firmware update for Apple's iPhone, iPhone 3G and iPod touch, and what features they are hoping will show up in future updates.

AT&T, Apple and the iPhone
The Mac Observer — Today TMO readers are talking about the impact Apple and the iPhone have had on AT&T's revenue.

Reader Reactions: Adobe’s iPhone Flash Plans
The Mac Observer — Flash video, heck Flash in general is a horrific resource hog. Lucky we have dual-core CPUs these days. Makes me wonder how Flash, being so poorly optimized for OS X, could possibly work on an iPhone, much less with video even approaching Wi-Fi YouTube-type quality. There’s also battery life issues. Heavy use of Safari + 3G is bad enough already, add in Flash and you might as well being playing some 3D game app. I’m not sure Flash will ever make it to the iPhone until you get a much better battery and considerably more powerful smartphone-type CPUs. I don’t have much faith in Adobe’s ability to code efficiently, I have even less faith if Adobe’s trying to do a port, not a ground-up rewrite.

Facebook, iPhoto and MobileMe
The Mac Observer — I wanted to ask the Apple experts their views on this subject. As of late Apple has made it easier to post pictures on Facebook and Flicker. MobileMe was initially designed to allow people to share their pictures and videos with the world in a very easy format. Now within iPhoto Apple is allowing people to post directly to Facebook. So now instead of pay $99 a year for a website with MobileMe, people just simply sign up with Facebook for free and get the same service with the help of iPhoto. Yes I know that MobileMe has lots of ther features, but Facebook is pretty good and gaining quite of bit of popularity. Does Apple not worry about people dumping MobileMe in favor of a free service? AppleTV is just a hobby and I ...

Should Apple Cozy Up with Comcast?
The Mac Observer — Apple needs to do a deal with Comcast for a jointly supported set-top box in exactly the same way Apple did a deal with AT&T for the iPhone. Before the iPhone, all the cellular networks, AT&T included, saw themselves not only as purveyors of pipe, but also content. They saw themselves as providers of music services, games, news, etc. The iPhone turned that model on its head. It divided the cellular world very neatly into the purveyor of pipe (AT&T) and the purveyor of equipment and all digital services (Apple). Now is the time to do the same thing in the cable world. Apple should use some of its cash and cache to induce Comcast to strike a similar deal. Comcast provides the pipe and gets to keep a steady subscription ...

Cheap, Data-free iPhones
The Mac Observer — For once, I think that what Toni Sacconaghi from Bernstein recently said makes a lot of sense. The reason I bought an iPod touch and I carry around a cheap prepay phone is that those $1000 a year just don’t make sense for what I do (I spend less than $200 a year on cell-phone costs). If Apple would make an iPod touch that can also be used with any SIM to make phone calls, that could be a total runaway hit. You could still surf the net when you are in range of a wireless signal, but you could also get that phone call, or make one. And if you don’t use the phone a whole lot, you can do that for less than $10 a month on a prepay service like Tracfone.

iTunes and Homemade CD Problems
The Mac Observer — Back Beat Media Powered by ServInt The Mac Observer, Inc. -- All rights reserved. All information presented on this site is copyrighted by The Mac Observer, Inc. except where otherwise noted. No portion of this site may be copied without express written consent. Other sites are invited to link to any aspect of this site provided that all content is presented in its original form and is not placed within another frame. The Mac Observer is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple, Inc.

iPhone Channel Inventory
The Mac Observer — After all the big numbers have set in, I like to review the conference call for interesting tidbits. One such tidbit was in the answer to “our pal” Toni’s question about channel inventory. Despite having to fill inventory for all those WalMart stores, and add a slew of new countries (albeit smaller ones), channel inventory actually dropped from 2 million to 1.75 million. What can explain this draw down? Given the sales numbers I think we can say that buyers were not sucking phones out of inventory faster than they could be replenished. Does it relate to a target ratio to real sales and is worldwide demand just less than was expected? Was it calibrated to be like here in North American and it just didn’t pan out? Is this ...

Apple, Amazon, and Ebook Readers
The Mac Observer — Oh, and for the FWIW department, as of right now, the multiples for the EPS valuations are: AMZN 44.7 APPL 18.8 Apparently, more readers are investors than iPod music drones. WHY DON’T WE OWN THIS MARKET? And don’t give me the iPone or iPod Touch can do this too, I have both, and a Kindle { actually just sold it yesterday USED for a dollar more than I paid for it to buy the new one } and there isn’t a real comparison for an avid reader. Apple should DOMINATE this market on the hardware end, and would, if Stevie hadn’t had a curse out on literate sorts.

Bluetooth Headaches
The Mac Observer — Hi all, I hope you can help. I’m goin’ outtta my ever lovin’ mind. I HAD my T|X paired up with my PowerBook G4 but, now my Mac will not pair with my T|X and vice versa. I’m not even sure what I did to trigger this. I’m beating myself up for monkeying things up. Anyway, I’ve tried the Bluetooth Setup Assistant a dozen times and each time it goes well although further in the setup, after the Passkey step finishes, I get the message, “There were no supported services found on your device.“ Also, when I look at my Bluetooth File Exchange device list, I see two items in the list with my same HotSync ID. So, I try to delete both and start from scratch with the Setup Assistant. I don’t know if that’s related to my glitch. When ...

Estimating Apple’s Q2 Earnings
The Mac Observer — Looking at the accelerating shrinkage of the overall consumer electronics market, it appears possible that Apple may struggle to meet analysts’ average estimate of FY09Q2 revenue (~$8.0B) and perhaps even its own conservative forecast ($7.6B - $8.0B). However, sharply dropping prices of Apple’s component costs and its unique ability to maintain product pricing control suggest that—in spite of a likely revenue crunch—Q2 earnings will beat the Street EPS estimate ($1.08) and significantly exceed its own forecast ($0.90 - $1.00) . If Apple can accomplish this, hopefully the market would reward Apple’s continuing ability to increase profits in such a disastrous worldwide economic decline, although recent history demonstrates ...

The iPhone and Gaming
The Mac Observer — The spanish newspaer El Mundo today publishes an (online) interview with Gonzague de Vallois, Vicepresident of Gameloft . Here is the iPhone relevant part translated by Google: Question: What has been the evolution of video games for mobile so far? Answer: Well, between 2002, when we really began to work and when the technology was developed WAP (mobile Internet), and 2006, there has been an explosion, with a market of nearly 1,000 billion dollars annually worldwide. Then, during the past two years, we have experienced an important period of transition, especially innovations in devices, platforms ... Q: What factors have marked the transition you are talking about? A: Well, especially two, the ...

The iPhone has changed everything
MacBytes.com — The spanish newspaer El Mundo today publishes an (online) interview with Gonzague de Vallois, Vicepresident of Gameloft . Here is the iPhone relevant part translated by Google: Question: What has been the evolution of video games for mobile so far? Answer: Well, between 2002, when we really began to work and when the technology was developed WAP (mobile Internet), and 2006, there has been an explosion, with a market of nearly 1,000 billion dollars annually worldwide. Then, during the past two years, we have experienced an important period of transition, especially innovations in devices, platforms ... Q: What factors have marked the transition you are talking about? A: Well, especially two, the ...

Should Apple License Mac OS X?
The Mac Observer — Apple may be ignoring it biggest opportunity ever, and it will ultimately pass. Microsoft has left themselves wide open with their Vista OS. The world want’s an alternative to MS at a low price point. Apple does not want to cater to this low margin crowd. If Apple licensed their OS, they could still cater to the high end as Sony does with windows, but also get Microsoft’s revenues. Imagine how their sales (and stock) would sky rocket! I bet MS fears this more than anything else. When, and if MS launches their next operating system OS7 the window (pun intended) may close. Why not own it all?

Tagging Tunes on the Mac
The Mac Observer — First, iTunes can manipulate tags. Right click (or control click in case of a one button mouse) on a song name in an iTunes playlist, select Get Info, and change to the Info tag. That will take you to the ID3 tag screen. You can maneuver though the playlist you started in using the forwards and backwards buttons. If you absolutely want to have something more linux like, it appears that both Fink ...

The Android Effect
The Mac Observer — MWC 2009: Android Forgets To Join The Party We’re only halfway through the first day at Mobile World Congress and already things are looking bleak for Android. Many of the major manufacturers have already announced their new products at the show, and not one Android handset has been seen. Wow. Mobile World Congress 2009 was thought to be the real coming out party for Google (NSDQ: GOOG)‘s Android mobile platform. So far, it’s a bust. Nokia (NYSE: NOK)‘s new phones don’t run Android. HTC also failed to announce any new Android gear. Instead it focused on announcing two new Windows Mobile 6.5 phones. Samsung said that it will announce a Samsung phone sometime “this year.“ It didn’t announce anything at this show. LG has ...

File Hunting with Spotlight and the Finder
The Mac Observer — That’s a little odd. I just checked this - a file that I know only exists on one of my thumb drives shows up fine, as long as I have selected “This Mac”, and not “Korimako” (the name of my boot drive). If I do click on Korimako, or Shared, the file disappears from view. I went into Spotlight preferences, and ensured that I had all the categories ticked, but since it was doing what I expected, I had assumed that was the case anyway. I have had problems in the past, especially with 10.4, where mds (the engine that runs Spotlight) got its knickers in a twist and couldn’t find files I knew existed. Because it puts a level of information on each drive (I don’t know the specifics - someone much geekier than me will put me ...

MacBooks: Out with the Old, In with the New
The Mac Observer — Hey, all! I’m actually an long-time member of TMO but I haven’t posted in several years now! I currently have the first-generation MacBook (the very first, low-end 1.83 GHz Core Duo model), and am considering replacing it with the *new* white/polycarbonate MacBook (the $999 one which was just given better graphics). My question is, does anyone know what the real-world performance improvements are if I do so? Here’s the relevant specs for comparison: Current MacBook:—1.83 GHz Core Duo—667 MHz Front Side Bus—2 MB L2 Cache—2 GB RAM @ 667 MHz—Intel GMA 950 (integrated)—64 MB VRAM (shared) NEW MacBook:—2.0 GHz Core 2 Duo—1066 MHz Front Side Buss—3 MB L2 Cache—4 GB RAM @ 667 MHz—NVIDIA GeForce 9400M video card—256 MB ...

Steve Jobs: Laying Low
The Mac Observer — Excerpt: A friend of mine has for years been one of Steve Jobs’ Internet chat buddies. And as such his chat client has – again for years – shown as Steve came online each day and remained there for hours and hours as you’d expect a Silicon Valley mogul to do. And it’s a trend that continued well past Jobs’ announcement that he was taking a six-month leave of absence to get well. But then Steve started logging-on less and less. And several weeks ago he stopped logging-on at all. Silence. Full article: Where is Steve? ...

Apple’s Annual Share Holder Meeting
The Mac Observer — I may have selectively skimmed the Bloomberg article (maybe it’s because the author is one of the three reporters who basically harassed Steve Jobs on the phone), but the only useful I thing I got out of it is that Steve Jobs’ birthday is tomorrow (well, it’s the 24th, so I guess it’s today in TMO forum time). So happy birthday, Steve, and keep focusing on your treatment. Being that he’s on medical leave, here’s hoping Steve doesn’t show up at the shareholder’s meeting. It’d hardly be unexpected although certain folks in the media will surely make hay out of it.

Reader Reactions: Safari 4 Beta
The Mac Observer — Also like Safari 4 - but not the tabs on top. You can move the tabs down below the toolbar where they resided before by entering this command in Terminal: defaults write com.apple.Safari DebugSafari4TabBarIsOnTop -bool NO ..and you can get the old blue progressline instead of the spinning wheel by entering these two commands in Terminal: defaults write com.apple.Safari DebugSafari4IncludeToolbarRedesign -bool NO defaults write com.apple.Safari DebugSafari4LoadProgressStyle -bool NO razz Thanks for that.

Working Around Browser Issues in the Office
The Mac Observer — I am using my MacBook Pro on a windows network at the office. It works flawlessly with one exception: If I use Safari as my browser, in inevitably stops loading pages after a few minutes. For example, I can go to http://www.macobserver.com and it will load fine. When I click on “forums” in then hangs up while trying to load the page. It does not give me an error message, it just continues to try loading the page. If I use Firefox, however, this behavior never happens and it works without problem. I only have this problem while on my office network. If I use my Macbook on another network, Safari works flawlessly. In fact, this behavior at my office started about 6 months ago, and prior to that Safari worked ...

Microsoft’s Business Model
The Mac Observer — Roughly Drafted is a great blog (or publication, or whatever). That guy’s articles are always very thorough and articulate - ALWAYS recommended reading. Anyway, I don’t know that I agree with the upsell theory, as much as I would that M$‘ multi-flavored OS biz model erodes consumer confidence… regardless of what shape & size, and platform it resides on. I would chalk up this latest move to M$ simply getting on the netbook bandwagon by any means necessary, even at the cost of a half-baked OS duct taped in there. Their business model has always seemingly depended on a heavy dose of paranoia. Rather than focus on excellent deployment of their key products, they spread themselves too thin by covering their bases in all ...

Reader Reactions: New mac mini
The Mac Observer — Where and for whom? The market has moved to small form netbooks, this crazy thing, will sell to those who already have one, and want an upgrade, but who on earth would do one of these that needs a monitor and keyboard and mouse, when you can get a Dell mini 9, for the same price and Hackintosh it to a Mac? Seriously? And the SAME FORM FACTORS FROM A FEW YEARS AGO, for the rest of the desktop line the iMacs? Sheesh, basically you are getting a new MOBO with VID, and that is about it. VERY unimpressed. Not even leading edge processors? Where is eSATA out? Even cheapos have that nowadays? From where I sit, that $28 billion rotting away, is money that is NOT being used, shoot, where IS ANY INNOVATIONS at all, stuff that ...

Reader Reactions: Kindle for the iPhone
The Mac Observer — That links seems to have expired. Here’s the NYT’s version of the story. Amazon to Sell E-Books for Apple Devices By BRAD STONE Published: March 4, 2009 Shaking up the nascent market for electronic books for the second time in two months, Amazon.com will begin selling e-books for reading on Apple’s popular iPhone and iPod Touch. Starting Wednesday, owners of these Apple devices can download a free application, Kindle for iPhone and iPod Touch, from Apple’s App Store. The software will give them full access to the 240,000 e-books for sale on Amazon.com, which include a majority of best sellers. The move comes a week after Amazon started shipping the updated version of its Kindle reading device. It signals that the ...

Mac OS X Server in the House
The Mac Observer — I have been thinking about this. I have a hard-wired network, with a router (home remodel). I have a Mac Pro, iMac and MacBook (plus an old G4 and PowerBook not currently in use). I have the Time Capsule/Airport base station combo. I want true calendar coordination with a high degree of control—eg, the ability to share certain calendars, but not all. I have an ethernet LaCie HDD, which serves up my iTunes music and iPhoto images. For under $1000, I could get a new Mac Mini and the

Reader Reaction: New iPod shuffle
The Mac Observer — Back Beat Media Powered by ServInt The Mac Observer, Inc. -- All rights reserved. All information presented on this site is copyrighted by The Mac Observer, Inc. except where otherwise noted. No portion of this site may be copied without express written consent. Other sites are invited to link to any aspect of this site provided that all content is presented in its original form and is not placed within another frame. The Mac Observer is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple, Inc.

iPhone Software 3.0 Predictions
The Mac Observer — At what pint does Apple stop getting a share of the monthly fee? It’s my understanding the recurring payments stop when an owner of an original iPhone handset upgrades their phone and commits to a subsidized contract on the new one. I have no idea what occurs when a legacy handset is activated by a new owner. The margin on 3G handsets is significantly higher than the original handsets. One way of looking at it is the increased handset revenue on the 3G iPhone is akin to an upfront payment from AT&T. Apple gets more cash upfront and defers recognition of the revenue over two years. It could be a case of six of this or one-half dozen of the other. Only Apple has the cash in hand on the 3G handset soon after time of sale.

Netbook vs Tablet
The Mac Observer — I’ll vote Tablet also. But I haven’t a clue to what degree Apple will make it more computer like or more iPhone like. While I don’t have one, I’ve always liked the Wacom tablet/monitors. Using a stylus one can draw/paint directly on the screen as if it were an digital sheet of paper. But it is also a monitor and can be taken from your lap and stood on the desktop for e-mail, word processing, etc. I’m hoping that Apple will create a product that is more along those lines a computer running OSX that also has full multi-touch controls, but also responds to keyboard, mouse, etc. I’d be disappointed it it were merely a larger form factor of the iPod Touch/iPhone. While the App Store has some really good values, very few apps ...

Reader Reaction: iPhone Software 3.0
The Mac Observer — Tethering wasn’t mentioned, but I suspect it will be an ATT plan (extra cost) rather than a free Apple added value. They claim video would weaken the memory chips due to excessive writing. Other phones seem to be able to do it. I’m expecting Apple to post a video of the event some time today—perhaps they already have. Tethering was mentioned in the Q&A as a feature to be available to the carriers so will probably cost. As far as video being able to do it and doing it well are two different things. The current Iphone hardware is capable of video but the quality is average if you Jailbreak here is a link to a review of the existing video app http://www.ismashphone.com/2008/08/cycorder-video.html ...

Keychain and Web Problems
The Mac Observer — Hey Mac Boyz: heres my problem. about yesterday i installed a program called MacFUSE 2.0 and i noticed that durring the instalation of this application when it asked me for my user password to authenticate it took roughly 1minute and 20 seconds between the time i entered my password and it accepted the password and proceeded. i think this may be related to my keychain as it houses all my passwords and authenticates them. how do i return the authentication process back to instant as it SHOULD be. (also i tried uninstalling and re-installing several other apps and every time the authentication process took about a minute and a half. next on the list when ever i ask safari or webkit to load a site it takes about 30seconds ...

The Economy and Apple Margins
The Mac Observer — Economists currently fear deflation, not inflation, so perhaps this would be interpreted as a positive development? But the fact that it’s mainly owing to higher energy prices would further pinch the consumer’s pocket and so threaten already weak spending, no? The rise in new car prices was a shock to me. Edited: here we go. Will we see 101-103 today? I wouldn’t bet against it. On the other hand, I wouldn’t bet on it either. So, I am in stasis . The challenge concerning a continuing rise in prices is an effective negative return on treasuries. It also binds the Fed’s hands and starts the clock ticking on an eventual tightening of the money supply. Unless we see a break in the consumer addiction to cheap credit ...

Forum Poll: Waiting for Snow Leopard, or Buying a New Mac Now?
The Mac Observer — Back Beat Media Powered by ServInt The Mac Observer, Inc. -- All rights reserved. All information presented on this site is copyrighted by The Mac Observer, Inc. except where otherwise noted. No portion of this site may be copied without express written consent. Other sites are invited to link to any aspect of this site provided that all content is presented in its original form and is not placed within another frame. The Mac Observer is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple, Inc.

Reader Reaction: Microsoft’s “Lauren” Ad
The Mac Observer — + When reading about the new Microsoft ad (which I’ve not yet seen), I kept thinking: When will Apple ever show off what all can be done on a Mac? You know, like a “Made on a Mac” ad campaign, or perhaps website, where real people showed off how they earn their livings and create wonderful things on a Mac? Apple’s Creative Pro section does this, but the stories there have a preaching-to-the-choir feel: Most people working at a agencies and in Hollywood (like those featured there) are already using Macs. I’m thinking about featuring stories from more “everyday” people. To use myself as an example, I recently created my first major 3D animated promotional video. It’s 90 seconds long, and can be seen on the Home page of the ...

iPod touch: The new Cell Phone
The Mac Observer — Ergo , the rumors of a mini iPhone or iPhone lite are pure speculation without a solid business model behind them. Heheheh, not really. I just don’t have that much use for mobile telephony, working as I do out of my home. And as a fairly large LONG AAPL investor, I’m continually investigating things that THREATEN my investments. Such as this one, the same thing for $10 that AAPL wants $80 for. When you leave that much “on the table” for others to shoot for, you give them openings that would not exist if pricing were more reasonable. 348kdjk.jpg 28irl1h.jpg

Changing iTunes Music Locations
The Mac Observer — Hi there, Long story but let me Inigo Montoya sum up: My backup of my Music folder is on another drive of another name. I’ve taken this drive with me on the road and added music, made playlists, downloaded podcasts onto this drive. When I get home, I duplicate the Music folder onto my MASTER drive at home. This is the drive and drive name I want to keep using for both my “on the road” and Home Master drive. So, I go through a rename of drives. When I’m on the road, I give the portable the same name as my Master drive. Thus, when I get home, I go through duplicating the portable onto the home drive and a name swap so that the Home drive goes back to its original name and the portable gets an arbitrary name. Lomg story ...

Reader Opinions: Microsoft’s New Ads
The Mac Observer — Apple 2.0 Mac news from outside the reality distortion field By Philip Elmer-DeWitt All about Microsoft’s “Lauren” laurendelong-6aHer hair is red, her eyes dark brown, her physique slim. She stands 5?2? in her stocking feet and weighs 113 lbs. in her birthday suit. laurendelong-6a.jpg?w=360&h=548 Her name is Lauren De Long, and she set a million geek hearts aflutter with her spunky performance in the now famous “you find it, you keep it” PC ad, in which she chose an HP (HPQ) Pavillion running Microsoft (MSFT) Windows Vista Home Edition over any computer in the Apple (AAPL) store. She also set off Apple 2.0’s hottest flame war — 402 comments and counting — with the line “I’m just not cool enough to be a Mac person.” ...

Reader Reactions: New Nehalem Xserve
The Mac Observer — Apple Updates Xserve with Twice the Performance CUPERTINO, Calif., April 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/—Apple® today announced an updated Xserve® that delivers up to twice the performance of the previous system.* Using Intel “Nehalem” Xeon processors and a next generation system architecture, the 1U rack-optimized Xserve delivers up to an 89 percent improvement in performance per watt.** Xserve is available with up to two 2.93 GHz Intel Xeon processors and industry-leading storage options that include a low-power solid state drive (SSD) and up to 3TB of internal storage. Starting at $2,999, Xserve includes an unlimited client license for Mac OS® X Server version 10.5 Leopard®.“The Xserve is the best workgroup server for our ...

Reader Reactions: iTunes Multi-tier Pricing
The Mac Observer — One problem as I see it is that the recording industry doesn’t accept a very simple but somewhat elusive fact - that when you release music, you are not just competing with whatever other music was released that week but every recording ever made. Such is the nature of iTunes and digital media - it creates a level playing field. Of course, the most popular and ‘latest, greatest’ are a bit more desirable because people are always hungry for something new. However, once the ‘newness’ wears off, so should prices. I guess what I’m rambling about is….I think any price increase is a mistake. If anything, I’d like to see prices come down, topping out at a buck. And I’d like to see lyrics, liner notes and full album art for ...

Speeding Up Thunderbird
The Mac Observer — Hallo, since some weeks my Mozilla Thunderbird 2.0.0.21 has become very slow visualizing some html mail (like paypal payment’s one). Before it wasn’t so slow but now it takes even one minute when I select one of them but only the first time: if i select it again is much faster. I think it is because it tries to show the remote images that are in the mail. I have done some things, even if maybe are not useful: I have zipped the mail, emptied the incremental filter of the undesidered mail, reinstalled the program and disabled the antivirus; I have checked too that in configuration editor was flagged the mailnews message display disable remote image but nothing has changed. Which can be the reason? Thank you ...

Reader Reactions: App Store Approaching 1B Apps Served
The Mac Observer — Apple has just open a page with the billion app countdown. Join the fun. As of today, nearly one billion apps have been downloaded around the globe. So we just want to say thanks — a billion. Download an app and you’ll automatically get the chance to win a $10,000 iTunes Gift Card, an iPod touch, a Time Capsule, and a MacBook Pro. Just go to the iTunes Store, browse the App Store, and download your best app yet. http://www.apple.com/itunes/billion-app-countdown/ ...

What will it Take for Apple to Overtake Microsoft?
The Mac Observer — As an investor I have struggled in the past five years with feeling confident that I truly understand Apple’s ambition when it comes to its computer business. I have been a fan of Steve Jobs for years, as a kid, I remember Apple IIs in my class room. I always marveled that this young, brash kid with ideas had invented an product in a garage, competing with the likes of IBM. Whether true or not, I believed then that Steve’s ambition in the 80’s with regard to the Apple computer was to beat IBM. To be the dominant player in the business. To own the majority of market share. It seems he made quotes about how he wanted market share and Scully wanted profits. Today it seems obvious that Apple and Steve Jobs are now much ...

Product Reviews: What Do You Want to See?
The Mac Observer — Back Beat Media Powered by ServInt The Mac Observer, Inc. -- All rights reserved. All information presented on this site is copyrighted by The Mac Observer, Inc. except where otherwise noted. No portion of this site may be copied without express written consent. Other sites are invited to link to any aspect of this site provided that all content is presented in its original form and is not placed within another frame. The Mac Observer is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple, Inc.

Apple and AT&T: Should the Exclusive Deal End?
The Mac Observer — First of all, ATT took a HUGE gamble when they agreed to assist a totally unknown entity with a totally unknown product to come to market. Secondly, given that the iPhone is about the ONLY gamechanger out there that has allowed ATT to grow at the expense of other commodity telco’s, this gives APPLE great leverage over them. And ATT is furiously now installing 4G or it’s equivalent knowing that in June APPLE is rolling out version 3 of the phone. Now without this leverage to more or less entice ONE FIRM, to totally revamp their entire EXPENSIVE network, now twice, for ONE PRODUCT, Apple would have to design the product to work on what is ALREADY out there instead of designing for the future and having a teleco, then make ...

Apple and AT&T: Should the Exclusive Deal End?
The Mac Observer — First of all, ATT took a HUGE gamble when they agreed to assist a totally unknown entity with a totally unknown product to come to market. Secondly, given that the iPhone is about the ONLY gamechanger out there that has allowed ATT to grow at the expense of other commodity telco’s, this gives APPLE great leverage over them. And ATT is furiously now installing 4G or it’s equivalent knowing that in June APPLE is rolling out version 3 of the phone. Now without this leverage to more or less entice ONE FIRM, to totally revamp their entire EXPENSIVE network, now twice, for ONE PRODUCT, Apple would have to design the product to work on what is ALREADY out there instead of designing for the future and having a teleco, then make ...

Covering Your Internet Tracks
The Mac Observer — I have a “friend” (we’ll call him Doug) who in a misguided bout of internet exploration stumbled onto some pretty awful sites, and instead of getting out, he decided to explore them somewhat extensively. Now Doug is feeling pretty guilty and regrets his actions, and most of all, he wants to eliminate the traces of his past as much as possible. Doug knows that data on computers can never truly be eliminated without shredding the hard drive, but he also knows that it can be eliminated fairly well. So far, Doug has run Cache-Out X and Onyx to clean up his caches, and he then overwrote the free space 7 times. The problem is, he cannot really tell if he has eliminated his past, because he could never find the files (ie his ...

Sun, Oracle and the Tech Market
The Mac Observer — Oracle is purchasing Sun Microsystems , giving the company control of Java and moving the company into the hardware business. What do you think? Not really a financial comment but I’m worried about mysql. Oracle has made a lot of money off of it’s database products, and so has mysql (off supporting it’s database products). I don’t know what the future holds. I have been looking in to transitioning our company (hundreds of servers) to postgre since Sun bought mysql, but it’s a lot of work, that now (stupid Oracle) seems all the more important.

The Problems with Microsoft’s TV Ads
The Mac Observer — There’s a challenge for PC OEMs. It’s called pricing control. The netbook craze continues to put pressure on OEM margins and lack of pricing control means the price/demand curve is quite elastic. Any effort by a Windows PC OEM to raise prices will be met with market resistance. Published reports indicate the global PC market contracted by a whopping 7% in the first calendar quarter with volume moving to lower-priced (and lesser-equipped PCs). This will plague MSFT and Windows PC OEMs before, during and after the release of Windows 7. If Microsoft insists on price comparisons to justify buying a PC v. a Mac, it becomes a slippery slope for OEMs. By pushing comparisons based on price it’s apt to work against any Windows PC ...

Apple “Say On Pay” Vote
The Mac Observer — Apple yesterday announced that a recount of the proxy votes has revealed that the Shareholder Proposal n.5 has passed and that for next year, the company will implement shareholder “Say on Pay”. I was surprised that this issue has not been picked up by AFB. For one, I am glad this proposal passed—I had voted for it prior to the last shareholders meeting. Apple has performed well and it’s executives ought to be well rewarded for their hard work; and I am unlikely to vote for a reduction in their reward. I do, however, want to reserve the right to keep in rein executive pay if I feel the compensation committee has run amok. Apple’s current management is talented and does their job well but I don’t know who may be ...

Is Windows Dragging Microsoft Down?
The Mac Observer — It guarantees legacy support, and a way for IT administrators to fall-back on something they know, in case Win7 is a flop. I understand that. THe problem is that the Wintel business model was built on forced obsolescence due to increasing Windows requirements that necessitated buying a faster computer. And Intel coming out with faster computers that enabled Windows to run more things. This move is bad for everyone since MSFT is acknowledging that there is no real need to upgrade. It can also be argued that it is falling directly into the hands of the Netbook makers since there is no real need to have a “full-fledged” computer since the netbooks of today are more powerful than the desktops of 2001, when XP was first ...

On the Prowl for a New MacBook
The Mac Observer — It’s time to retire the old G4 iBook. I’m looking at a 2.4Ghz MacBook with 250GB Hd, and aluminum case. I’m open to thoughts, experiences, and recommendations. BTW, my wife and I still have our G5 towers, so no need for a MacBook Pro. She’s still happy with her iBook. Sign up for a summer class at the local community college and wait for the back to school “Buy a Mac, Get an iPod” promotion. We have bought MacBooks the past two summers. Fortunately, my wife is a teacher and gets the same deal via educator discount.

New Apple Employee Roundup
The Mac Observer — Thu, 04/30/2009 - 05:21 — Seth Weintraub Richard Teversham, (former) senior director of business, insights and strategy for Microsoft’s Xbox, is now moving to Apple.  Teversham is just the latest in a string of high profile executives leaving established technology firms for Apple. This particular moves speaks volumes for the future of Apple’s gaming prospects. According to MCV, Teversham has accepted an education-related role at the iPod creator’s European office. Teversham had worked at Microsoft for over 15 years. He held the role of Xbox director for platform and marketing between 2005 and 2007 before becoming strategy boss.  A Microsoft spokesperson told MCV this week: “We can confirm that Richard Teversham, ...

Apple, Amazon and the Publishing World
The Mac Observer — I agree wtih you, Snipus, although I was recently surprised to learn that 82% of British people over 16 still list watching TV as their main spare time activity. I suppose they’ll die eventually! Apple and Amazon look as if they are working together to kick start the business (why else would Amazon buy Stanza?); Apple won’t force all content through the iTunes store. Apple will probably leave e-paper devices to Amazon, and Amazon leave more general purpose LCD/OLED devices for Apple. Both already offer content for sale. Publishers will make the same mistake the music labels made, of trying to force consumers to buy bundles (subscriptions/album sales) when the internet mandates individual article access even more than for ...

Apple, Google and the FTC
The Mac Observer — SAN FRANCISCO — The Federal Trade Commission has begun an inquiry into whether the close ties among the boards of two of technology’s most prominent companies, Apple and Google, amount to a violation of antitrust laws, according to several people briefed on the inquiry. Apple and Google share two directors, Eric E. Schmidt, chief executive of Google, and Arthur Levinson, former chief executive of Genentech. The Clayton Antitrust Act of 1914 prohibits a person’s presence on the board of two rival companies when it would reduce competition between them. The two companies increasingly compete in the cellphone and operating systems markets. Antitrust experts say the provision against “interlocking directorates,” known as ...