At least you're consistent, but I think you are quite incorrect. Both that it was a sucky keynote and that it wasn't intentionally non-Earthshattering.
It merely wasn't Earth-shattering, but was overall good to very good from a business perspective. No reason to get all riled up about that.
Apple did a sucky keynote because they had nothing mind-blowing ready. If they had something great ready they would have used the event, but they didn't. I think it really is that simple. I see your point, but I just thinking you are reading into things too much. I'm taking the situation at hand at face value. Sometimes a spade is just a spade.
Apple's simply not going to go Nehalem in their consumer lineup before the Mac Pro. I know that AI forum dwellers are enthusiasts but the reality is consumers are generally replacing computers that are 4 years old likely on the average. They read the buzz words but they don't understand. Core i7 means nothing to most of them. If Apple offers a Quad Core iMac model it won't matter if it's Core i7 or not it's going to be so much faster than the incumbent computer.
I see the iMac as going QC but not Core i7 with a Feb 09 update. The Mac Pro goes Nehalem Xeon and the next iMac refresh goes Core i7 with either desktop or mobile product.
There really is no rush. The economy should be healthier by summer going into the fall and Nehalem mobile product should be warming up nicely in the oven.
Apple has already taken the steps they need to prepare. Snow Leopard, getting rid of PPC support and standardizing on Cocoa.
Whenever consumers are shopping for a new computer in a store like Best Buy, Comp USA, etc., they see different brands side by side and listen to what the salespersons are saying about the benefits of a specific brand.
That's when price, CPU and features are compared before a buying decision is made. That's when and where Apple has to shine.
MacPros use 2 server class Xeon processors and server class error correcting RAM memory. Intel is selling Core i7 desktop CPUs right now, but won't sell Core i7 Xeons until March 2009, I believe.
Because an update to the iMac is already late, a Core i7 desktop CPU variant could be offered at the same time as brand new MacPros.
By the way, I look forward to and hope for a Core i7 iMac with a 20, 21 or 24 inch monitor, not a 28 inch monitor which would be an overkill (so typical of Apple). The goal is to offer a competitively priced computer, with a competitive CPU and features, not to offer the most expensive desktop computer on the market.
Apple did a sucky keynote because they had nothing mind-blowing ready. If they had something great ready they would have used the event, but they didn't. I think it really is that simple. I see your point, but I just thinking you are reading into things too much. I'm taking the situation at hand at face value. Sometimes a spade is just a spade.
This in my view is exactly why Apple is severing ties with the Macworld Expo. They want to be able to make product introductions on their schedule, not IDG's.
Apple did a sucky keynote because they had nothing mind-blowing ready. If they had something great ready they would have used the event, but they didn't. I think it really is that simple. I see your point, but I just thinking you are reading into things too much. I'm taking the situation at hand at face value. Sometimes a spade is just a spade.
I agree they didn't have anything Earth-shattering ready. But I think if they hadn't decided to cut the cord on MW they would have announced something which they would say would ship in late Feb or Early Mar as they have before. Then Apple would have been in full out panic mode when they face the inevitable 3-4 week glitch in production/shipping. Now they just announce a press event when they are 90% sure they will make a shipping target and then at the press event put out a shipping date they are 99%+ happy with at the event.
I'd rather have them present something for immediate release (or very near future, ie, within a month) than announce something that is still a couple of months down the road and then could still be delayed.
With the Box Set, they are also really trying to get people to go for Leopard.
Wish they would make an iApp Box set for both iLife and iWork... It's Leopard that's getting discounted.
I like Munster and Wu, but along with many they are missing the point.
Apple pushes the technology envelope, but not in the obvious places. When you make commodity hardware with no control over the OS, you have only one choice which is to be competitive by adopting the latest chips and gigaherz whether or not they make a material difference. We all know there is no real difference between a 1.8GHz and a 2.0GHz chip as the rest of the system (software included) dominates. Get more memory.
Apple's direction is different, and it's all there to see. They announced face recognition software in iPhoto. Computationally intensive and begging for 64 bit and OpenCL. That is their direction - make the applications do innovative things using technologies which can't be matched easily on other platforms. The second GPU in the MacBook Pro just as a low power option? What a thin disguise! It's obviously there to give a quantum jump in computationally expensive operations for new applications we are only starting to get a glimpse of.
Bravo and hope you are more on AppleInsider. That Venn diagram. I don't think it's ever been applied, ever, to an Apple Keynote. I'm linking it down here, because I think it's pretty good.
(Steve in blue, Phil in grey)
"With his demo of iMovie ‘09, Randy Ubillos struck me as the guy who needs to be Apple’s Chief Architect of Keynotes. I really wanted to use that application halfway through the demo.
Ubillos was natural, comfortable and appeared proud of the product he was using that he had a hand in created. Just compare Schiller’s distracting manner of looking back and talking at the audience during his demos vs. Ubillos’ (and Jobs’) natural way of narrating a user experience. Schiller is trying to convince you. Ubillos already has."
Agreed, even though Randy was talking mostly about video stuff, his demo feel was pretty good. Only at Apple, can you have some head developer (read: coder, project manager) step up to the f*king plate in front of thousands for the first time and give an excellent presentation and demo. He got the dress code down a bit better than Phil too. If Phil's armpits had been sweaty, shades of Ballmer could have crept in.
"If we put the vocabulary aside, you see Jobs is visibly delighted to let the products sell themselves. In the case of the iLife demos, Schiller wants to tell you what the software can do; Jobs tells you can do with the software. That’s a slight twist, but an important one. Jobs sells software as empowerment. You can do this. A typical Jobsian demo has the cadence of “you can click here” + “boom” + computer magic happens = you are the next Ansel Adams, Stanley Kubrick, etc."
That's very interesting. Jobs appears then to have more impact while using less superlatives. I think Phil did a good job but he needs to speak a little slower, and leave more spaces for dramatic pause.
Apple did a sucky keynote because they had nothing mind-blowing ready...
IMO, Apple didn't have anything mind-blowing ready because they didn't feel compelled to have anything mind-blowing ready. In the space of just one year, clearly Apple's stance towards IDG/Macworld has taken a dramatic turn. I don't think it's just the economy...
Then why not offer the i7 on the 'consumer' Macs? Oh. One is laptop on a stand. And the other is a portable hard drive. ie we don't have a consumer desktop line.
For Apple, the desktop is dead. Long live anything bigger than 24" or smaller than 13"...
Has anybody here besides myself has every seem the Mac Pro 8 Core in action?
For most, the entry level Mac Pro Quad-Core at @2299 is entry level for any graphic agency.
Connect a 3.2 Ghz Mac Pro 8-Core fully loaded (at $22,000 or more) to a couple of 30" Cinema displays, now that is something to experience in super high-end video editing.
And wait until Snow Leopard comes and software companies finally start developing applications to take advantage of the multi-core processors, these babies will really sing.
That's very interesting. Jobs appears then to have more impact while using less superlatives. I think Phil did a good job but he needs to speak a little slower, and leave more spaces for dramatic pause.
That's Phil's biggest weakness. He has a nervousness about presenting that is evident to many and he tends to rush along like he's rehearsed too much and is on a path that offers no flexibility. A Jobs keynote (at it's best) is so surreal it's as if Jobs left the local Starbucks and decided to hop on stage and talk about cool Apple products. It rarely feels rehearsed. Jobs knows how to setup his transitions as well. Go back and watch him "sell" the iPod shuffle after knowing that less than a year before he panned flash mp3 players. He's a master.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nvidia2008
IMO, Apple didn't have anything mind-blowing ready because they didn't feel compelled to have anything mind-blowing ready. In the space of just one year, clearly Apple's stance towards IDG/Macworld has taken a dramatic turn. I don't think it's just the economy...
Mind blowing stuff is for youngsters. If you're nigh 40 and your mind is getting blown by computer products Lord help you. If our imagination cannot easily outdo Apple on products then we've got no right to complain or be underwhelmed about anything. Like i'm supposed to get titillated over the announcement of a Mac mini or iMac lol.
Most thing are evolutionary to me. I only reserve revolutionary for the BIG things
Apple keynote: new apps, some already installed on my computers, money well spent, more coming soon.
Palm presentation: not interested in a sliding keyboard, and have more apps available for my iPhone. Some nice features like charging, and, and, well, and... Zzzz.
There is one more thing: yep, most of these posts are negative about Apple; add another to my Ignore List. Two in one day!
Comments
At least you're consistent, but I think you are quite incorrect. Both that it was a sucky keynote and that it wasn't intentionally non-Earthshattering.
It merely wasn't Earth-shattering, but was overall good to very good from a business perspective. No reason to get all riled up about that.
Apple did a sucky keynote because they had nothing mind-blowing ready. If they had something great ready they would have used the event, but they didn't. I think it really is that simple. I see your point, but I just thinking you are reading into things too much. I'm taking the situation at hand at face value. Sometimes a spade is just a spade.
Apple's simply not going to go Nehalem in their consumer lineup before the Mac Pro. I know that AI forum dwellers are enthusiasts but the reality is consumers are generally replacing computers that are 4 years old likely on the average. They read the buzz words but they don't understand. Core i7 means nothing to most of them. If Apple offers a Quad Core iMac model it won't matter if it's Core i7 or not it's going to be so much faster than the incumbent computer.
I see the iMac as going QC but not Core i7 with a Feb 09 update. The Mac Pro goes Nehalem Xeon and the next iMac refresh goes Core i7 with either desktop or mobile product.
There really is no rush. The economy should be healthier by summer going into the fall and Nehalem mobile product should be warming up nicely in the oven.
Apple has already taken the steps they need to prepare. Snow Leopard, getting rid of PPC support and standardizing on Cocoa.
Whenever consumers are shopping for a new computer in a store like Best Buy, Comp USA, etc., they see different brands side by side and listen to what the salespersons are saying about the benefits of a specific brand.
That's when price, CPU and features are compared before a buying decision is made. That's when and where Apple has to shine.
MacPros use 2 server class Xeon processors and server class error correcting RAM memory. Intel is selling Core i7 desktop CPUs right now, but won't sell Core i7 Xeons until March 2009, I believe.
Because an update to the iMac is already late, a Core i7 desktop CPU variant could be offered at the same time as brand new MacPros.
By the way, I look forward to and hope for a Core i7 iMac with a 20, 21 or 24 inch monitor, not a 28 inch monitor which would be an overkill (so typical of Apple). The goal is to offer a competitively priced computer, with a competitive CPU and features, not to offer the most expensive desktop computer on the market.
Apple did a sucky keynote because they had nothing mind-blowing ready. If they had something great ready they would have used the event, but they didn't. I think it really is that simple. I see your point, but I just thinking you are reading into things too much. I'm taking the situation at hand at face value. Sometimes a spade is just a spade.
This in my view is exactly why Apple is severing ties with the Macworld Expo. They want to be able to make product introductions on their schedule, not IDG's.
Apple did a sucky keynote because they had nothing mind-blowing ready. If they had something great ready they would have used the event, but they didn't. I think it really is that simple. I see your point, but I just thinking you are reading into things too much. I'm taking the situation at hand at face value. Sometimes a spade is just a spade.
I agree they didn't have anything Earth-shattering ready. But I think if they hadn't decided to cut the cord on MW they would have announced something which they would say would ship in late Feb or Early Mar as they have before. Then Apple would have been in full out panic mode when they face the inevitable 3-4 week glitch in production/shipping. Now they just announce a press event when they are 90% sure they will make a shipping target and then at the press event put out a shipping date they are 99%+ happy with at the event.
With the Box Set, they are also really trying to get people to go for Leopard.
Wish they would make an iApp Box set for both iLife and iWork... It's Leopard that's getting discounted.
Apple pushes the technology envelope, but not in the obvious places. When you make commodity hardware with no control over the OS, you have only one choice which is to be competitive by adopting the latest chips and gigaherz whether or not they make a material difference. We all know there is no real difference between a 1.8GHz and a 2.0GHz chip as the rest of the system (software included) dominates. Get more memory.
Apple's direction is different, and it's all there to see. They announced face recognition software in iPhoto. Computationally intensive and begging for 64 bit and OpenCL. That is their direction - make the applications do innovative things using technologies which can't be matched easily on other platforms. The second GPU in the MacBook Pro just as a low power option? What a thin disguise! It's obviously there to give a quantum jump in computationally expensive operations for new applications we are only starting to get a glimpse of.
I took a look a Schiller's keynote this year vs. a similar keynote by Jobs in 06, taking a look at the language they used.
To my surprise, Schiller uses more superlatives by a 2:1 ratio.
Bravo and hope you are more on AppleInsider. That Venn diagram. I don't think it's ever been applied, ever, to an Apple Keynote. I'm linking it down here, because I think it's pretty good.
(Steve in blue, Phil in grey)
"With his demo of iMovie ‘09, Randy Ubillos struck me as the guy who needs to be Apple’s Chief Architect of Keynotes. I really wanted to use that application halfway through the demo.
Ubillos was natural, comfortable and appeared proud of the product he was using that he had a hand in created. Just compare Schiller’s distracting manner of looking back and talking at the audience during his demos vs. Ubillos’ (and Jobs’) natural way of narrating a user experience. Schiller is trying to convince you. Ubillos already has."
Agreed, even though Randy was talking mostly about video stuff, his demo feel was pretty good. Only at Apple, can you have some head developer (read: coder, project manager) step up to the f*king plate in front of thousands for the first time and give an excellent presentation and demo. He got the dress code down a bit better than Phil too. If Phil's armpits had been sweaty, shades of Ballmer could have crept in.
"If we put the vocabulary aside, you see Jobs is visibly delighted to let the products sell themselves. In the case of the iLife demos, Schiller wants to tell you what the software can do; Jobs tells you can do with the software. That’s a slight twist, but an important one. Jobs sells software as empowerment. You can do this. A typical Jobsian demo has the cadence of “you can click here” + “boom” + computer magic happens = you are the next Ansel Adams, Stanley Kubrick, etc."
That's very interesting. Jobs appears then to have more impact while using less superlatives. I think Phil did a good job but he needs to speak a little slower, and leave more spaces for dramatic pause.
Apple did a sucky keynote because they had nothing mind-blowing ready...
IMO, Apple didn't have anything mind-blowing ready because they didn't feel compelled to have anything mind-blowing ready. In the space of just one year, clearly Apple's stance towards IDG/Macworld has taken a dramatic turn. I don't think it's just the economy...
Then why not offer the i7 on the 'consumer' Macs? Oh. One is laptop on a stand. And the other is a portable hard drive. ie we don't have a consumer desktop line.
second that
For Apple, the desktop is dead.
Don't forget the 15 and 17 inch MBPs...
For Apple, the desktop is dead.
Has anybody here besides myself has every seem the Mac Pro 8 Core in action?
For most, the entry level Mac Pro Quad-Core at @2299 is entry level for any graphic agency.
Connect a 3.2 Ghz Mac Pro 8-Core fully loaded (at $22,000 or more) to a couple of 30" Cinema displays, now that is something to experience in super high-end video editing.
And wait until Snow Leopard comes and software companies finally start developing applications to take advantage of the multi-core processors, these babies will really sing.
That's very interesting. Jobs appears then to have more impact while using less superlatives. I think Phil did a good job but he needs to speak a little slower, and leave more spaces for dramatic pause.
That's Phil's biggest weakness. He has a nervousness about presenting that is evident to many and he tends to rush along like he's rehearsed too much and is on a path that offers no flexibility. A Jobs keynote (at it's best) is so surreal it's as if Jobs left the local Starbucks and decided to hop on stage and talk about cool Apple products. It rarely feels rehearsed. Jobs knows how to setup his transitions as well. Go back and watch him "sell" the iPod shuffle after knowing that less than a year before he panned flash mp3 players. He's a master.
IMO, Apple didn't have anything mind-blowing ready because they didn't feel compelled to have anything mind-blowing ready. In the space of just one year, clearly Apple's stance towards IDG/Macworld has taken a dramatic turn. I don't think it's just the economy...
Mind blowing stuff is for youngsters. If you're nigh 40 and your mind is getting blown by computer products Lord help you. If our imagination cannot easily outdo Apple on products then we've got no right to complain or be underwhelmed about anything. Like i'm supposed to get titillated over the announcement of a Mac mini or iMac lol.
Most thing are evolutionary to me. I only reserve revolutionary for the BIG things
But as we get to see and try what the components of iWorks 09 and iLife 09 can do now, perhaps it is.
The only thing I'm going to remember out of all of them is the Palm Pre.
I hope this lights a fire under Jobs' behind and gets him into Apple headquarters so he and his team can get some work done.
Is the Christmas vacation over yet Steve?
Apple keynote: new apps, some already installed on my computers, money well spent, more coming soon.
Palm presentation: not interested in a sliding keyboard, and have more apps available for my iPhone. Some nice features like charging, and, and, well, and... Zzzz.
There is one more thing: yep, most of these posts are negative about Apple; add another to my Ignore List. Two in one day!