Topic: So, Macworld was today

[gpw11]

I've come across two announcements that I've read up on so far:

-Apple TV v2.  Basically a software update allowing the Apple TV to download directly from the iTunes store instead of having to go through another source first.  Great, but it's still lame considering it doesn't support a lot of codecs and doesn't have any PVR functions at all.  In short, it's feature bare compared to the competition, but probably really easy to use for my parents and other people who still can't figure out DVD players properly.

-MacBook Air. This had been rumored for a while - basically an ultra-portable Macbook.  I've been looking forward to this because I'm looking at buying an ultra-portable for school and all that, and I have no problem using OSX for something like this.  The problem is that they dropped the ball.  It's really light and thin, which is good, but it's no smaller in any other way when compared to most modern laptops.  So essentially what we have here is a 13.5 inch notebook, with quite a few features missing.  Gross onboard intel graphics instead of nvidia, a small HDD, and no optical drive (I also think it's impossible to upgrade the RAM but could be wrong on that).  This would be fine if it actually was an ultra-portable, but it's not - it's just thin. 

Beyond that, the price point is fucking ludicrous.  I believe it's $1800 base.  So you pay quite a bit more for a laptop that's missing some key components.  Why not save a few hundred bucks and a lot of headaches by buying a faster Macbook.  Does the extra 2.5lbs or whatever really break your back.

Possibly the only thing I've found interesting about this is the option for a 64GB solid-state drive.  Sadly, that bumps the price up to over $3000....

I don't doubt some people will buy it, but it's certainly no contender to the EEE PC or OQO, which is kind of a shame.

[Quemaqua]

I was a little curious to see what might be offered for the latter item.  So much for real competition, I guess.

[idolminds]

I still want an Eee PC. I wanted to see what Apple did, but they didnt bother competing on price so...pass.

[shock]

My friend was telling me about the Macbook Air.  I can't figure out why in the hell they went with a 13.3" screen!  My 12.1" Dell is thicker than that thing, but still smaller and more "ultraportable".  Oh, and it has a graphics card, bigger hard drive, optical drive, etc.

[idolminds]

Thats the thing I dont understand. Every mac fanboy freaking out. Its not really "smaller", just thinner. So it is lighter, which is nice (though any laptop now I wouldnt exactly call heavy). But is it really worth that cost just to be that thin? What is it really saving you?

Oh, and it fits in an envelope. Well unless you're going to mail me one, who fucking cares?

[gpw11]

Having something that thin is more of a hassle then anything.  I don't know about you, but I've never had an issue with my laptop being too thick or heavy.  Fits in my bags with my books and I pick it up.  Good, it does the job.  One that was really small would be cool because then I wouldn't even really need the bag and could just palm that bitch to school or put it in my hoodie pocket.  Hell, I could fit an OQO or possibly an EEE in my glove box.  Great. 

But with the macbook air I now have to worry about snapping the thing in half.

[scottws]

My Linux laptop is a Dell D600.  I like the size, but the thing is a beast in terms of weight.  I feel like it must be six or seven lbs.  I wish I got a D400.

After a quick Google search, it turns out the D600 is around 5.5 lbs.  I guess I'm just used to Jennie's Toshiba tablet.

I thought about the EEE PC, but I just saw too many people wishing the screen was larger.  At 7 in., it is pretty damn small.  Plus the life of the flash disk drive concerned me.

[Quemaqua]

Weight never mattered much to me.  I had a desktop replacement laptop, so the thing was about as heavy as current laptops get.  I had it in a bag and I carried it with me to work.  I never balked at the weight, much less the size.  Frankly, I don't see what the fuss over everything being small and lightweight is all about.  My backpack is probably 30 pounds, too.  I carry a ton of notebooks and stuff in there every day, plus my DS, PSP, and a bunch of CDs.  So if I'm not worried about it, who else is?

[gpw11]

http://regmedia.co.uk/2008/01/19/macbookcommodorecompare.jpg

[Ghandi]

Haha, that pic is great.

[Quemaqua]

Heh, that's pretty great.

[WindAndConfusion]

Basically a software update allowing the Apple TV to download directly from the iTunes store instead of having to go through another source first. 

There's also a video rental service, but it's completely retarded. A movie costs $2-4, I think, but you have to watch it within 24 hours. Nevermind that there's no physical movie for you to return to the store: you have to watch it within 24 hours. Also nevermind that few people have big enough tubes to stream a 720p movie.

It's the most mind-fuckingly stupid thing I've ever heard from the movie studios or Apple, and the movie studios and Apple have mind-fucked me stupid plenty of times before.

Great, but it's still lame considering it doesn't support a lot of codecs and doesn't have any PVR functions at all. 

You can install third-party codecs, y'know.

[gpw11]

I was under the impression that you couldn't install third party codecs onto the AppleTV.  From wikipedia:

Content has to be in certain formats to play on the Apple TV.[6] It supports video encoded with either the H.264 video codec for a maximum resolution of 720p (up to 1280x720 pixels) at 24 fps or the MPEG-4 video codec for a maximum resolution of 720x432 (432p) or 640x480 pixels at 30 fps. Audio can be encoded with AAC (16-320 kbit/s), MP3 (16-320 kbit/s, with VBR), Apple Lossless, AIFF, or WAV audio codecs. It also has support for files encrypted with the FairPlay Digital Rights Management technology. For photos it supports the JPEG, BMP, GIF, TIFF, and PNG image file formats.[1] Attempts to sync unsupported content to Apple TV will result in iTunes error message(s) because iTunes supports more formats than Apple TV.[23]

[WindAndConfusion]

I was under the impression that you couldn't install third party codecs onto the AppleTV.  From wikipedia:

From the same wiki:

Modifications and hacks

As soon as the Apple TV was released, users began examining it to see if it could be modified. Hacks were available for Apple TV within days of the release. Apple is not currently preventing users from installing Apple TV hacks, but users are warned that applying hacks will void the product's warranty.[37]

News sites were reporting that some users had worked out how to upgrade the hard drive on their Apple TVs,[38] add AC-3 (Dolby Digital) 5.1 channel support,[39] add support for other codecs,[40] and create Front Row plugins.[41]

Doesn't the Apple TV just use Front Row? Can't you just install a Front Row plugin?

[gpw11]

Oh, that's interesting.  Now, if only it had PVR.

[scottws]

Do people really use laptops as PVRs?  Who are these people?  Why would you do this?

[gpw11]

No no no.  We've moved on and are now talking about the AppleTV.