Wednesday, March 7, has finally come and gone. Now, we can get down to kicking the tires.
Let’s start with a general overview. The main motivating force to behind everything has to do with 1080p. Both hardware and software were improved to take advantage of the upgraded resolution, which was first incorporated via iPhone4 into the Apple ecosystem.
First up, iOS 5.1. A very strange thing is that some AT&T customers now have 4G in their connection bar. This is a bit confusing as if you’re fortunate enough to live in a 4G area (I’m a happy boy!) you have access to faster speeds. However, some people are getting just the ‘4G’ designation, not the ‘4G’ connection. Chalk up another mystery that is the world of AT&T.
iLife has been completed with the addition of iPhone for the iPad. I won’t go into the features, but I will give a tip of the thumb drive to Apple for once again realizing that using these apps in a touch environment require an entirely different experience from using the app on their desktop. And once again, as with previous apps transformed for the iOS system, they take advantage of the touch screen’s ease of use.
ATV’s software was updated, as well with a new UI. But if you have an ATV2, you’re still in the land of 720p. If you want to step up to 1080p, you’ll have to fork out for an ATV3.
While we’re speaking of iOS software, let me thank Apple’s engineers for finally giving us the ability to delete single images from PhotoStream. (I’m a happier boy!)
On the desktop, iLife apps and iTunes have been upgraded to tie all of these changes together. Presumably, setting the stage for iTunes 1080p streaming later this year.
Then, of course, the star – iPad – 1080p, retina display, thanks to a quad-core graphics chip. But you can watch the keynote to learn about that the other specs.
But now, onto the op-ed part. Tim Cook, I feel, was a very good emcee. Interestingly, his body motion and speech inflections were those of Steve Jobs. Earlier this year, Scott Forestall also did his “Jobs” impersonation. Which brings me to the question – Did Steve Jobs develop his own style, or did somebody come up with it and coached him, Forestall, and Cook?
Steve’s been gone for half a year and still we hear, ‘We think it’s the greatest product out there’ and watch the hands placed together, fingers pointed to the face, and a moment of deep reflection before the next utterance. Too coincidental, IMHO.
Technically, many people seem to be primarily disappointed that electronic texture capabilities weren’t included in the iPad. And, I’m certain, that some were disappointed with Tim’s performance.
Which begs the question – have we become spoiled and jaded by Apple’s success? It seems to me that no matter what Apple delivers, there’s always the obligatory whining. Instead of seeing the benefits of what was just released, we sound like a small child complaining to their mother who brings home a toy, ‘But I wanted the blue one!’
Maybe we’ve seen too many episodes of Star Trek. The holo deck won’t be here for sometime, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to complain that we an only achieve Warp Factor 6!
Like Louis C.K. points out that while people complain about the price of almonds in coach, they tend to overlook the fact that they’re flying from coast to coast in a matter of hours, at 30,000 feet, in a multi-ton hunk of metal. So, be patient folks. Everything you want will inevitably be included. Just be patient.