Credit where credit is due (Apple edition)

Apple TV?!? - Blech.. the 360 blows it away. Albeit the 360 is a wee bit noisy, it will basically play most any common format you throw at it. Once netflix instant watch hits the 360, it will really take the lead. You wonder what is wrong with people? I wonder why one would spend more money (it is conceivable to buy a 360 now for $199) for a set top box that is inferior to a 360. Oops gotta go play Halo

Thanks for the update Paul. Now this takes the argument out that Paul is some partisan hack, just here to bash Apple. I just personally believe that some Mac users need to grow tougher skin. I guess since Windows users are frequent targets of criticism and ridicule, we're used to it. I just got around to updating my Fujitsu notebook including iTunes 8. The improvements are nice but no "Wow" factor. I really could do without the Genius feature, that I turned that off. In my opinion, iTunes 8 has become Apple Media Player for Windows. At least they cut the download package down from 77 MB in version 7.71 to 64 MB in version 8. I still think it needs more work to trim it down further, but any trimming of the bloat is appreciated. I'm glad that the new iPhone update is apparently working. I really feel bad for those iPhone 3G customers going from two months with a glitch prone phone that frequently dropped calls. Personally, I would have requested a refund and canceled the contract. No phone is worth two months of dropped calls and mediocre service. I'm actually quite interested in the Apple TV, but I have higher priorities. Perhaps in 2009?

If the 2.1 update fixed the dropped calls, then the network isn't the sole problem. My bet is the Infineon chipset; the manufacturing process doesn't seem stable as some have no problems and others have lots. Just like MobileMe, someone at Infinite Loop didn't want to hear "No, the chip is not ready". Notice how cautious RIM has been with the launch of their 3G Blackberry Bold. The US launch has been delayed several times. It seems the our friends to the north became the default technical/market trial, as the Bold was launched this summer in Canada by Rogers.

"MixView" If I were just getting started in digital music that might be a factor, but it's nowhere close enough to get me to thinking about migrating from an ecosystem I'm invested in. I like what MS is doing with its music service. Paul, I'd like to hear more about your Apple TV thoughts.

"Apple TV?!? - Blech.. the 360 blows it away" You cant be serious? Take gaming out of the equation and focus on the media device. The 360 is LOUD, even the new 60gig model. Why do you think they are going to let you install a game on the HD? The Apple TV is silent. Heck the PS3 is silent compared to the 360 and Apple TV is more so than the PS3. Netflix, online service???? Have you tried it? Its OLD standard definition movies. Apple TV has 1000X the content that the 360 does. With NBC coming back its got every major broadcaster on board. It uses real money not points, so when you buy something on iTunes, you use money and you get what you want. On the 360 you must buy points to buy what you want. Apple TV probably use half the power or less than the 360. Apple TV has wireless N included. 360 wireless G at extra cost. Ever try streaming a .mp4 DVD movie over wireless G on a 360? I have, dont try it if you love the 360. I am seriously considering dumping cable and using OTA HD into a Mac Mini with iTunes or an Apple TV. I watch maybe 3-5 shows on TV? All of which I can get a season pass for off of iTunes. Zero commercials to skip through. ever. The money I would save yearly on cable alone would pay for 3 Apple TV's if I needed them.

I do truly appreciate the use of the phrase "the rest of the world, including the tech and mainstream press" rather than the shorthand, iC****, well, never mind, the change is appreciated! Agree about the AppleTV. Despite all things it won't do (no Bluray player, and thing isn't even a DVR), what it does, it does very well. The interface for movies has the typical Apple simplicity, and to my eyeballs the "HD" (even though it isn't really HD) is still better than the faux HD that Verizon On Demand supplies. All these set top boxes are starting to seem the same in one way: They all have the same content, more or less, and that is constrained by the content providers. The battle is for HD content and the smoothest user interface. AppleTV is in a tie with all the others for content and wins handily on UI. An underrated gadget, although I still think Apple either hasn't told us or hasn't figured out what they plan to do with this thing eventually...

I really don't have any problems with the iPhone, but Contacts were slow before 2.1. An app that cost 2 bucks [MobileFinder] that allows sending many docs and media to the iPhone via FTP WiFi, was giving a low memory error with large files [movies,MP3, pdfs and Excel sheets], does not seem to give the error any more. I guess that the app wasn't the root of the problem. Still without Exchange I would not like it much. Now there's an app called SaiSuke Calender that syncs with Google Calender [but not iPhone calender!] and give a month with text view, like Datebk6. I will probably buy it for 10 bucks. Apple really needs Live or Hotmail support. Live Mesh may just solve many needs, like my FTP app [MobileFinder]. Still, for a one time fee of 12 bucks, I can do most of what MobileMe does for $99/yr. Live Mesh would be icing on the cake.

If Apple offered a movie subscription service with pricing like blockbuster or netflix, Apple TV would take off like crazy. Someone need a online subscription service that equals Blockbuster and Netflix with the same content. Maybe slightly higher priced because you can get it right now.

I see great utility in it.

I've always liked these cases: http://www.moneual.com

johnpapola All of which are very good uses for a storage site for video BUT virtually none of what you describe (Ripping DVDs, format conversion, editing out commercials) was done using Apple TV.

Mike: theoretically you could do it on the apple TV, if you *ahem* modify it... j/k (partly) ;-) OT: Nice post, Paul. 2.1 improved my iPhone too (and it is a 1st gen)... On The Record, I didn't have the iTunes 8 issue, I don't have an AppleTV and I use MobileMe... :) Cheers,

"incapable of giving Apple credit where credit is due, even when Paul does." ....as I said, according to Paul's assessment, Apple's credit now amounts to nothing, since they were already redlining. "Seriously. I've got all of my son's kid movies ripped and stripped of the 15 minutes of commercials. It's very empowering and time-saving, plus, I can load up those same files onto my iPod classic and take everything on the road for him." You do know that ripping copyrighted DVD's is illegal, right? You know, it's part of your own law - the DMCA. Frankly, I call bullsh*t that you're really the real John Papola or else you'd know that. Either that, or you're ignorant of the law, despite working in the media industry. Meh....either way....Good job painting a bullseye on yourself for the MPAA to come after you.

iPhone 2.1 is better, although none of the call dropping etc. ever happened in these parts, so maybe some aspects of the AT&T service had something to do with this bug. I don't see the speed-up really. The app crashing stuff for an app store heavy user was annoying, although it's impossible to say how many of the problems I've had were due to dropping my iPhone in the toilet bowl after only about 10 hours of ownership :) Despite what many people here think, I believe Apple gets a lot more crap for problems like these than some manufacturers - like Nokia, whose 9300 I owned since 2004 and it never worked nearly as well as iPhone 3G fw 2.0.1-2.0.2 did. (And, as Nokia themselves point out, they sell as many phones between lunch and dinner as Apple sells in a month. Or something like that.) The iTunes 8 Genius list feature seems very interesting indeed - in fact its selections feel scarily spot-on at times, especially if your playlist is large enough. Although in his review Paul mentioned that he didn't quite understand why iTunes thought Bon Jovi goes well with Duran Duran, but to me there's a level of campiness there that really makes sense, especially with limited playlists, under 5000 albums or so. "Of course Waethorn weighs in with a great reminder that Windows has blind fanboys incapable of giving Apple credit where credit is due, even when Paul does." It would be less embarrassing if one got the impression that he's ever once tried or even seen any of the products he's bashing.

"You do know that ripping copyrighted DVD's is illegal, right? You know, it's part of your own law - the DMCA." Not where I live.

Waethorn, Take off the tinfoil hat. What John Papola is doing is largely covered under fair use. I've yet to see anyone convicted or found liable for violating the dmca for the home use of ripping dvds to a hard drive for personal consumption. For those still bitching that Apple lacks a DVR or DVD player, you clearly don't understand what Apple TV is or why you should own one. It is essentially a media server. Your DVR is best provided by your cable or satellite provider. Since every TV already has a DVD player, the addition of one to Apple TV is superfluous. (If Apple were to pull a kaleidascape and allow the ripping of DVDs to the Apple TV than the DVD player would be a helpful additional feature, since Apple doesn't want to irritate Hollywood, I wouldn't hold your breath for this feature, though as John Papola has pointed out ripping DVDs is pretty easy.) Is the 360 a media server? Sure, but it also might red ring in the middle of playing AC/DC, in addition the sound of the fan may make your violin concerto sound more like a jet aircraft on final approach. Apple TV and for that matter 360 and PS3 are all vying for IP TV. That is using the internet as your cable/satellite company in which everything you watch is on demand. The business model is still rough, yet Apple appears to be a fairly consistent seller. The interface is excellent, and better than anything else so far. What would I like to see from Apple TV? A decent hard drive for starters. One Terabyte or at least 1/2 a Terabyte. This would encourage me to actually buy one and start an on demand movie collection. With over thirty gigs of music, the 160 GB is just too small. On a side note, has anyone noticed the magic that Paul can perform. He can irritate BOTH Apple fans and WinJihadists. I mean he says, hey Apple actually occasionally puts out a good product, and occasionally solves some of their software problems, and what is the thanks he gets? I mean, for a brief second I actually felt sorry for Paul. It was brief because I realized that he has to stir the Winjihadist pot once in a while, he has to throw some red meat so he can continue his belief that he is an unbiased observer of the technology universe. Anyways. Paul thanks for throwing Apple a bone. Regards Joe Dokes

"On a side note, has anyone noticed the magic that Paul can perform. He can irritate BOTH Apple fans and WinJihadists." Apple fans? Oh, you mean the iCab... never mind. Of course, you notice that no one is calling him names or making comments about him, don't you? "I mean he says, hey Apple actually occasionally puts out a good product, and occasionally solves some of their software problems, and what is the thanks he gets?" Yes, what? " I mean, for a brief second I actually felt sorry for Paul. It was brief because I realized that he has to stir the Winjihadist pot once in a while, he has to throw some red meat so he can continue his belief that he is an unbiased observer of the technology universe." It took you a few months, but you finally realized it. Good job! Sorry, but I call BS on that statement of yours. If people don't like Apple TV, that's their personal opinion. At least they're not calling Paul names because he likes it more than the XBox.

"In Canada, the iPhone 3G is a massive failure." I still didn't say that consumers didn't want it though - just Rogers. Claiming that my previous quote somehow equates to that is a lie. It's still a massive failure. It still is - just look at the bug reports and complaints. "There has not yet been a successful DCMA challenge to this in the courts yet, so the jury's still out on that one (no pun intended)." "I've yet to see anyone convicted or found liable for violating the dmca for the home use of ripping dvds to a hard drive for personal consumption." Tell that to the MPAA whose lawsuits have bankrupted many of your own citizens. "What John Papola is doing is largely covered under fair use." Actually, you're wrong. The DMCA supercedes wording of the Fair Use laws of the early 80's. In fact, the wording spells it out completely: it is illegal to break any digital content protection. There is no clause for "fair use" in the DMCA. Now tell me: Why is DVD X Copy no longer on the market again??? Ya, like I thought. "Your genius "comparison" is out of line (political remarks)." Really? She's THAT bad?? (That's a rhetorical question - we all know the state of US politics) ;) "MobileMe had a LARGE share of problems. For some lucky users (me included) it wasn't that bad, but I have to concede it was a HORRIBLE transition, but the part of "couldn't make it stick to their own software"... WTF are you talking about?" translation: It was so bad, that even the sadists already relegating themselves to using iTunes didn't want it. Apple actually got enough grief from the moaning and, for once, actually listened to their users and removed it. ....And to that, I applaud them for "doing the right thing". *sarcastic golf clap*

"The plural of anecdotal is not data." ....and quips come out better when you don't use "Copy" and "Paste".

"The plural of anecdotal is not data." MWAHAHAHA Perfect, "Dude". You just struck to the heart of Wae's arguments. Unlike "mikegalos", who usually backs up his WinJihadist tendencies with actual facts (even if combined with a dizzying amount of spin), Wae loves to tell stories about mythical customers he converts in Apple Stores, Best Buy, and folks that wander into his stores with broken Macs and leave with bargain FrankenWae systems. Great quote, and I don't care if you stole it or not. Brilliant.