Is'nt the SDK supposed to be resolution independent? The old apps should theoretically work just fine even with a high resolution screen.
In fact, a lot of the rationale for the size-drop in Snow Leopard is because Apple is migrating the technologies developed for the iPhone over to Mac OS X. Like vector based fonts, etc. These are essential to have resolution independence. All the graphics elements are resolution independent because Quartz is now completely resolution independent.
I think as long as the aspect ratio is maintained, apps need not be changed at all.
Maybe I am completely wrong on this one (maybe resolution independence is Apple's ultimate goal, but they havent got there yet?), but I think not. Why is it that Apple can support zoom on Safari on the iPhone, whereas on other browsers Zoom isnt anywhere as good - only zooms text, etc? I wonder if other browsers that use Webkit, but dont have access to Quartz support zoom-in/out as well as Safari does.
Perhaps it is. If so, that is a small hurdle already tackled. I sincerely hope that RI is in SL as these higher density Macs are hard on poor eyes, but so far I have seen no indication that Apple has made any progress on this front. Mac OS X does not allow for good scaling for poor vision the way Windows does.
You can turn on RI in Leopard via command line, but it doesn't work for everything. What it does work for looks great.
Speculations based on what Apple did with the iPod will not hold true for the iPhone (or iPod Touch). Music (the original concept of the iPod) is audio which would not be very dependent on the "display size". Thus, all the audio iPod variations, with varying prices are possible, without sacrifice in its primary function -- to play music.
In contrast, while the iPhone (and later the iPod Touch***) did indeed adapt the audio features of the iPod, it is the visual component -- and as a result its applications -- that differentiate the two devices from the iterations of the iPod, and of course, the phone component in the iPhone.
Any speculation that fail to address this key visual feature and resulting applications -- especially as a gaming device, visual internet browser and portable reader, image (photo) display, email, GPS and mapping applications, etc. -- of the iPhone and the iPod Touch would likely be off base.
Because of the popularity of its visual applications, including their use as a gaming device, Apple must heed that even those who buy low end iPhone expects their free or cheap "App Store" downloads to work well in their iPhone like it would on the high end iPhone or iPod Touch.
From the perspective of applications developer, it will also complicate their work if there are incompatibilities in the technologies used in the various iPhone and iPod Touch, even in its cheapest version. In a sense, one of the attractions why many developers have been enticed to create applications for the iPhone and iPod Touch, over that of other smart Phones, is that at present, the developers have to address only one set of compatible technologies for both the iPhone and the iPod Touch. It is no wonder therefore that there are more than 18,000 applications so far developed (with many more coming) for these Apple products and with many success stories, for even the individual or young developers with very limited funds.
If for any reason, Apple must remember that the success of the third party applications is key to the continued long term success of portable computing devices like the iPhone and iPod Touch. It must not compromise this synergy in an effort to grab more percentage of potential iPhone and iPod Touch consumer market.
I agree with the perspective here that existing technology normally advances and also usually get cheaper. With this as a given, Apple mindset also require to offer the "best" in available technology. As such, Apple may offer a cheaper iPhone but it is unlikely that Apple would resort to downgrading the technology used in its products.
The retention of the old MacBook, after the one-piece aluminum notebook seems to contradict my previous statement. But not really. The old MacBook has all the features and speed that the average computer user needs -- normally as an internet device for browsing and email, writing device -- plus more applications that a more advanced user may need, at a much much lower price (sometimes just under $900 after rebates).
More important, to go back to the application of the iPhone as a phone device, it is no longer the price of the phone itself that is a stumbling block. Rather, it is the current monthly cost ($70-100) of using the phone that becomes the main hindrance towards more widespread use of smart phones. Except for those who really need all the features of the iPhone (on the go email, browsing plus phone) and can afford the monthly cost, the average phone user would be content with the usual cell phone that would cost $30-50 monthly, or in some places, as needed basis.
Unlike in US, where there are incompatible cell phone technologies, the monthly cost of using a smart phone is likely to get lower, due to competition, in other countries where compatible phone technology is used by many different carriers.
***Moreover, I can envision a time when the iPod Touch can become a universally full-fledged phone too (it already functions partly as a telephone) -- without restriction from the variations of the phone technology -- once internet telephony becomes more advanced and "universal" when wireless internet becomes more widespread. When this happens, the use of smart phones are likely to be more widespread, more rich in functionality as a result of advances in technology while the monthly cost will become lower.
The aforementioned prediction is consistent with how landline phone are increasingly substituted by wireless phones. Thus, while the basic monthly cost of phone service might be higher gone also were the prohibitive cost of long distance calls.
Considering the "elitist" focus of Apple, my own bias in trying to predict the future of Apple would be to offer easy-to-use consumer oriented portable products that would address the attraction of people to Amazon's kindle and the greater portability of netbooks. With the advent in technologies, I would not be surprise if such portable devices would also integrate with the home entertainment system, on the road, and in our more serious pursuits (education and work).
Personally I wouldn't expect a massive change in the Autumn from the current models, probably higher capacity for less money, perhaps Bluetooth audio(?)
Remember the upgrades come in software updates costing a few dollars; so even if a new model does drop in a few months you'll probably be able to match the software if not the minor hardware changes.
I wouldn't mind having a scaled down iPhone. For these reasons:
1. I can't get 3G and don't want to be made to pay for something I can't get. So going with an EDGE phone would be fine with me.
2. I don't make a hell of a lot of calls with it, so not having to pay for 400-450 minutes when I'll only use less than 100 minutes...so obviously I could careless about rollover minutes.
Basically it would be an iPhone for people who will use it lightly for making calls and won't be punished because of that. I think it would be a great move as long as Apple's doesn't scale it down too much. I'd love for it to be 16GB though, but it wouldn't stop me from buying it if it wasn't. I'm one of those who bought the original iPhone and are due for an upgrade come July.
RBC is a major investor in RIM, in fact even a depression RBC cannot find any bad things to say about RIM. Meanwhile they bash apple every chance they get.
RBC CEO even sits on Rim's board of directors!!
Wasn't it RBC that downgraded AAPL not long ago and damaged the share price when Apple were in fact doing really well?
i think you're oversimplifying a whole bunch of things historically, and it's not clear to me how you arrive at the conclusion that history will repeat itself. apple is certainly a lot more assertive when it comes to their intellectual property and i don't think that jobs or his successor are going to give the 'crown jewels' away the way that sculley did to microsoft, when they 'settled' their legal spat.
'run apple like a business venture'?? are you serious? by that logic, microsoft should be shut down and the money given back to their shareholders...
How true. Why did you have to mention Sculley grrrr ... I was having a nice day till then ..
Perhaps it is. If so, that is a small hurdle already tackled. I sincerely hope that RI is in SL as these higher density Macs are hard on poor eyes, but so far I have seen no indication that Apple has made any progress on this front. Mac OS X does not allow for good scaling for poor vision the way Windows does.
You can turn on RI in Leopard via command line, but it doesn't work for everything. What it does work for looks great.
You must know how to do something in Windows I don't. When I compare my same web work between Mac and Windows I am always struck by how terrible the rendering is in Windows. What am I missing?
You must know how to do something in Windows I don't. When I compare my same web work between Mac and Windows I am always struck by how terrible the rendering is in Windows. What am I missing?
It's not that, it's just that enlarging everything for users with poor site works better in Windows. Getting my parents to switch back to Mac was an issue because of this.
Though, to be honest, part of the problem for my mother was not that things were actually smaller than before (as text was about the same physical size as before), but that going from a 15" monitor to a 20" iMac spread everything out on the screen.
In any case, in regards to screen resolution, I can't see the value of upping the resolution. Movies look marvelous on this device already. I for one couldn't see more detail even if it were there and I'm not getting any younger so if anything it will get worse.
The main value of bumping up the pixel density is not sharper images, it's sharper text. Pixelated text causes eyestrain and fatigue. The idea is that the size of the text remains the same, but it looks more like print.
RBC is a major investor in RIM, in fact even a depression RBC cannot find any bad things to say about RIM. Meanwhile they bash apple every chance they get.
RBC CEO even sits on Rim's board of directors!!
Few weeks ago, RBC upgraded RIMM from market perform to market outperform. Now, Apple stock is up and RIMM stock is nose diving on earning outlook. This tells you something about this bank.
BlackBerry Partners Fund (BBPF) is a $150 million fund focused on applications and services for the BlackBerry and other mobile platforms. The fund is anchored by capital commitments from RIM, RBCand Thomson Reuters along with participation from some of the country?s most successful mobile wireless and software entrepreneurs and corporations. BBPF will consider all stages of development and is co-managed by RBC Venture Partners and JLA Ventures.
RBC Venture Partners has $250 million under management and is investing out of a $150 million early-stage venture fund specializing in technology for the financial services industry and financial services enabled by technology. We consider investment opportunities throughout North America, often syndicating our investments with other high quality financial investors who will actively participate in the growth and development of the company. Typical initial investments range from $4 million to $6 million and we are active board participants.
RBC Venture Partners advisory board ? guess who sits on their board?
James (Jim) Balsillie Since 1992, Jim Balsillie has been co-CEO at Research In Motion (RIM) maker of the world reknowned BlackBerry wireless handheld system.
Barbara Stymiest (total compensation C$2,449,629)
RBC Group Head, Strategy, Treasury & Corporate Services
Director, Chairman of Audit Committee and Member of Oversight Committee
Research In Motion Ltd.
As I said at the start of this thread, this surely requires investigation. It has to breach numerous ethics laws. They damage AAPL with supposedly qualified analysis meant to guide investors and are almost RIM in disguise!.
As I said at the start of this thread, this surely requires investigation. It has to breach numerous ethics laws. They damage AAPL with supposedly qualified analysis meant to guide investors and are almost RIM in disguise!.
It breaches nothing because they are different companies and there are chinese walls around them. Besides they disclose the information in the actual analysis about potential conflicts.
As long as they disclose the potential conflicts --- real estate agents can work for both the house seller and the house buyer, lawyers can represent both the husband and the wife in a divorce...
Comments
Is'nt the SDK supposed to be resolution independent? The old apps should theoretically work just fine even with a high resolution screen.
In fact, a lot of the rationale for the size-drop in Snow Leopard is because Apple is migrating the technologies developed for the iPhone over to Mac OS X. Like vector based fonts, etc. These are essential to have resolution independence. All the graphics elements are resolution independent because Quartz is now completely resolution independent.
I think as long as the aspect ratio is maintained, apps need not be changed at all.
Maybe I am completely wrong on this one (maybe resolution independence is Apple's ultimate goal, but they havent got there yet?), but I think not. Why is it that Apple can support zoom on Safari on the iPhone, whereas on other browsers Zoom isnt anywhere as good - only zooms text, etc? I wonder if other browsers that use Webkit, but dont have access to Quartz support zoom-in/out as well as Safari does.
Perhaps it is. If so, that is a small hurdle already tackled. I sincerely hope that RI is in SL as these higher density Macs are hard on poor eyes, but so far I have seen no indication that Apple has made any progress on this front. Mac OS X does not allow for good scaling for poor vision the way Windows does.
You can turn on RI in Leopard via command line, but it doesn't work for everything. What it does work for looks great.
I'm deciding if I should pull the trigger now or wait a few months.
In contrast, while the iPhone (and later the iPod Touch***) did indeed adapt the audio features of the iPod, it is the visual component -- and as a result its applications -- that differentiate the two devices from the iterations of the iPod, and of course, the phone component in the iPhone.
Any speculation that fail to address this key visual feature and resulting applications -- especially as a gaming device, visual internet browser and portable reader, image (photo) display, email, GPS and mapping applications, etc. -- of the iPhone and the iPod Touch would likely be off base.
Because of the popularity of its visual applications, including their use as a gaming device, Apple must heed that even those who buy low end iPhone expects their free or cheap "App Store" downloads to work well in their iPhone like it would on the high end iPhone or iPod Touch.
From the perspective of applications developer, it will also complicate their work if there are incompatibilities in the technologies used in the various iPhone and iPod Touch, even in its cheapest version. In a sense, one of the attractions why many developers have been enticed to create applications for the iPhone and iPod Touch, over that of other smart Phones, is that at present, the developers have to address only one set of compatible technologies for both the iPhone and the iPod Touch. It is no wonder therefore that there are more than 18,000 applications so far developed (with many more coming) for these Apple products and with many success stories, for even the individual or young developers with very limited funds.
If for any reason, Apple must remember that the success of the third party applications is key to the continued long term success of portable computing devices like the iPhone and iPod Touch. It must not compromise this synergy in an effort to grab more percentage of potential iPhone and iPod Touch consumer market.
I agree with the perspective here that existing technology normally advances and also usually get cheaper. With this as a given, Apple mindset also require to offer the "best" in available technology. As such, Apple may offer a cheaper iPhone but it is unlikely that Apple would resort to downgrading the technology used in its products.
The retention of the old MacBook, after the one-piece aluminum notebook seems to contradict my previous statement. But not really. The old MacBook has all the features and speed that the average computer user needs -- normally as an internet device for browsing and email, writing device -- plus more applications that a more advanced user may need, at a much much lower price (sometimes just under $900 after rebates).
More important, to go back to the application of the iPhone as a phone device, it is no longer the price of the phone itself that is a stumbling block. Rather, it is the current monthly cost ($70-100) of using the phone that becomes the main hindrance towards more widespread use of smart phones. Except for those who really need all the features of the iPhone (on the go email, browsing plus phone) and can afford the monthly cost, the average phone user would be content with the usual cell phone that would cost $30-50 monthly, or in some places, as needed basis.
Unlike in US, where there are incompatible cell phone technologies, the monthly cost of using a smart phone is likely to get lower, due to competition, in other countries where compatible phone technology is used by many different carriers.
***Moreover, I can envision a time when the iPod Touch can become a universally full-fledged phone too (it already functions partly as a telephone) -- without restriction from the variations of the phone technology -- once internet telephony becomes more advanced and "universal" when wireless internet becomes more widespread. When this happens, the use of smart phones are likely to be more widespread, more rich in functionality as a result of advances in technology while the monthly cost will become lower.
The aforementioned prediction is consistent with how landline phone are increasingly substituted by wireless phones. Thus, while the basic monthly cost of phone service might be higher gone also were the prohibitive cost of long distance calls.
Considering the "elitist" focus of Apple, my own bias in trying to predict the future of Apple would be to offer easy-to-use consumer oriented portable products that would address the attraction of people to Amazon's kindle and the greater portability of netbooks. With the advent in technologies, I would not be surprise if such portable devices would also integrate with the home entertainment system, on the road, and in our more serious pursuits (education and work).
What's the likely hood of new iPodTouch before or in the summer?
I'm deciding if I should pull the trigger now or wait a few months.
Both iPod touch versions were released in September so don't expect one before the summer:
http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#iPod_touch
Personally I wouldn't expect a massive change in the Autumn from the current models, probably higher capacity for less money, perhaps Bluetooth audio(?)
Remember the upgrades come in software updates costing a few dollars; so even if a new model does drop in a few months you'll probably be able to match the software if not the minor hardware changes.
1. I can't get 3G and don't want to be made to pay for something I can't get. So going with an EDGE phone would be fine with me.
2. I don't make a hell of a lot of calls with it, so not having to pay for 400-450 minutes when I'll only use less than 100 minutes...so obviously I could careless about rollover minutes.
Basically it would be an iPhone for people who will use it lightly for making calls and won't be punished because of that. I think it would be a great move as long as Apple's doesn't scale it down too much. I'd love for it to be 16GB though, but it wouldn't stop me from buying it if it wasn't. I'm one of those who bought the original iPhone and are due for an upgrade come July.
RBC is a major investor in RIM, in fact even a depression RBC cannot find any bad things to say about RIM. Meanwhile they bash apple every chance they get.
RBC CEO even sits on Rim's board of directors!!
Wasn't it RBC that downgraded AAPL not long ago and damaged the share price when Apple were in fact doing really well?
i think you're oversimplifying a whole bunch of things historically, and it's not clear to me how you arrive at the conclusion that history will repeat itself. apple is certainly a lot more assertive when it comes to their intellectual property and i don't think that jobs or his successor are going to give the 'crown jewels' away the way that sculley did to microsoft, when they 'settled' their legal spat.
'run apple like a business venture'?? are you serious? by that logic, microsoft should be shut down and the money given back to their shareholders...
How true. Why did you have to mention Sculley grrrr ... I was having a nice day till then ..
Perhaps it is. If so, that is a small hurdle already tackled. I sincerely hope that RI is in SL as these higher density Macs are hard on poor eyes, but so far I have seen no indication that Apple has made any progress on this front. Mac OS X does not allow for good scaling for poor vision the way Windows does.
You can turn on RI in Leopard via command line, but it doesn't work for everything. What it does work for looks great.
You must know how to do something in Windows I don't. When I compare my same web work between Mac and Windows I am always struck by how terrible the rendering is in Windows. What am I missing?
You must know how to do something in Windows I don't. When I compare my same web work between Mac and Windows I am always struck by how terrible the rendering is in Windows. What am I missing?
It's not that, it's just that enlarging everything for users with poor site works better in Windows. Getting my parents to switch back to Mac was an issue because of this.
Though, to be honest, part of the problem for my mother was not that things were actually smaller than before (as text was about the same physical size as before), but that going from a 15" monitor to a 20" iMac spread everything out on the screen.
In any case, in regards to screen resolution, I can't see the value of upping the resolution. Movies look marvelous on this device already. I for one couldn't see more detail even if it were there and I'm not getting any younger so if anything it will get worse.
The main value of bumping up the pixel density is not sharper images, it's sharper text. Pixelated text causes eyestrain and fatigue. The idea is that the size of the text remains the same, but it looks more like print.
It's worth it just for the ergonomics.
RBC is a major investor in RIM, in fact even a depression RBC cannot find any bad things to say about RIM. Meanwhile they bash apple every chance they get.
RBC CEO even sits on Rim's board of directors!!
Few weeks ago, RBC upgraded RIMM from market perform to market outperform. Now, Apple stock is up and RIMM stock is nose diving on earning outlook. This tells you something about this bank.
It gets better .... Here are RBC?s known RIMM conflicts >
http://www.rbc.com/vp/
BlackBerry Partners Fund (BBPF) is a $150 million fund focused on applications and services for the BlackBerry and other mobile platforms. The fund is anchored by capital commitments from RIM, RBC
RBC Venture Partners has $250 million under management and is investing out of a $150 million early-stage venture fund specializing in technology for the financial services industry and financial services enabled by technology. We consider investment opportunities throughout North America, often syndicating our investments with other high quality financial investors who will actively participate in the growth and development of the company. Typical initial investments range from $4 million to $6 million and we are active board participants.
RBC Venture Partners advisory board ? guess who sits on their board?
James (Jim) Balsillie Since 1992, Jim Balsillie has been co-CEO at Research In Motion (RIM) maker of the world reknowned BlackBerry wireless handheld system.
Barbara Stymiest (total compensation C$2,449,629)
RBC Group Head, Strategy, Treasury & Corporate Services
http://www.rbc.com/newsroom/down2-stymiest.html
BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEMBERSHIPS*
2007-Present
Director, Chairman of Audit Committee and Member of Oversight Committee
Research In Motion Ltd.
As I said at the start of this thread, this surely requires investigation. It has to breach numerous ethics laws. They damage AAPL with supposedly qualified analysis meant to guide investors and are almost RIM in disguise!.
As I said at the start of this thread, this surely requires investigation. It has to breach numerous ethics laws. They damage AAPL with supposedly qualified analysis meant to guide investors and are almost RIM in disguise!.
It breaches nothing because they are different companies and there are chinese walls around them. Besides they disclose the information in the actual analysis about potential conflicts.
As long as they disclose the potential conflicts --- real estate agents can work for both the house seller and the house buyer, lawyers can represent both the husband and the wife in a divorce...