Random iThought of the Day 01FEB2010 – Since Everything’s Cooler when it’s “i”

Random iThought of the Day 01FEB2010 – Since Everything’s Cooler when it’s “i”

I make absolutely no attempt to hide my dislike of the companies Apple and Sony. They are for different reasons, Sony is because I’ve never had a Sony branded product last outside of its warranty period, and Apple because of the elitist, “I’m the best, mostly because I’m the most expensive” mindset. Nevermind that they don’t mind ripping off early adopters to the tune of hundreds, just to “give it back” in Apple store credit. Doesn’t matter that their functionality is based on the “Steve Jobs Approved” list, meaning if you pay Apple enough, and beg, and please, and do sexual favors for Jobs, he MIGHT let your hardware run on his system. Okay, maybe not the sexual favors part, but still. Finding parts for a Mac that are “Apple Approved” without going online or going to their “Genius Stations” can be about as painful as having your foot removed with a dulled and rusted hacksaw without anesthesia. Basically, Good f—in’ luck.

So, I’m sure that, knowing my opinion of Apple, you’d assume that I’m just going to rag on their “newest creation” simply because it’s Apple.

You’d be wrong.

I will admit that, because of their very specific system component specifications, their hardware can be very, very stable. So, no, I’m not knocking them on a hardware standpoint. And, because their OS isn’t really used all that much, it’s technically more secure, since what’s the point of hacking something when no one will see it. I give them their due, it makes for a more stable system. But, you’re paying an exorbitant fee for that stability, giving it an air of “Must Be Rich To Own Me.” When you’re broke and don‘t have cash loose to spend, you don’t care about pretty or streamlined or even specifically looking rich. You care about it working. ‘Nuff Said. And that’s not going anywhere near their over-aggressive non-competitive attitude towards software on their devices.

The big topic in the news as of late is the emergence of the iPad. This device, as most of you will have read by now, is Apple’s big entrance into the tablet PC market. (The Newton was just pretend, it’s okay.) Now, I’m gonna get my snipe out of the way quickly. Apple’s been promising this now for more than 25 years! Come on, took you guys long enough!

Alright, let’s get down to the brass tacks. This unit is supposed to be your all-in-one hand-held media device. Alright, great! I’m all for the moving forward of technology, but didn’t Microsoft make the concept popular back in ‘01? And, if you really want to get technical, they’ve been selling them for years now. A lot of them are “convertible laptops,” but the idea remains the same, pen and/or touch activated computer. So, Apple’s a little late to the party. We’ll forgive them that, it seems to be their way of doing things, be late, then be “the best at what it is.” We’ll see.

First thing you notice when you look at it is… It’s an iPod Touch Extra-Big Edition. Wait, what? So, you’re going to sell me something that I already own as a brand-new device? Apple’s answer? It’s new, so yes. I dunno about you, but I skipped it’s older brother, how’s this going to entice me to buy it?

That’s out of the way. Now, we’ll get down to functionality. Well, as would be expected, there is really no connection options for this thing. You’ve got their iPod connector, you’ve got A USB port, and you have what looks like a firewire connection. Okay, we’ll concede that it’s not supposed to replace your laptop– Wait, it is? iWork is included? So, you really want me to type documents and adjust spreadsheets on a multi-touch panel, without a keyboard or a mouse? I don’t know about you, but when I’m doing my work, I’d like to have the tactile feel of the keyboard to let me know where my damn fingers are! Oh, looky, you can by a dock unit that attaches to it a keyboard? Then… Why aren’t I just spending my $500+docking station costs on a laptop? Oh, because it’s Apple, right… :S

Now, the keynotes said that 75 million users already know how to use this thing. Well, uh, no kidding, IT’S AN IPOD TOUCH/IPHONE! Really, you’re just getting iPod Touch 3.5, the big version. And they didn’t even bother to fix any of the complaints about the iMalgam of prducts! (iMalgam, amalgam, get it?) No flash, no multitasking, no added capability. They were also so quick to point out the thousands of available apps that are available. Please re-read my statement about it being an iPod Touch. It’s not rocket science here. It is just a bigger version of what you already own, minus the ability to talk with it. And, with the wonders of that Apple Store built in, you can download any of those apps through your network, so long as you don’t mind having Job’s personal stamp on it saying that it does NOT compete with any of the iPhone’s, err, I mean iPad’s and/or Apple’s available-to-purchase software. Then, sure you can have what ever you want.

Next, if you want this thing to have internet capabilities, then you can also buy a monthly contract with AT&T, offering 250GB of download for $15, and unlimited for $30. Okay, that’s kind of cool in its own right… If you don’t already have it’s smaller brother. Then, you’re just tacking on yet another data plan that doesn’t include roll-over data. Pay for it, and if you don’t use it, buh-bye. And to even get this option, there’s another $130 you’ve just spent on hardware. And we still don’t know what the hell it actually does better!

Okay, now, to be serious, it does have its good points. It’s got a realistic price-point to introduce the table computer into most households. It’s pretty to look at. Oh, and the touch screen is fairly responsive. But if you’re planning on doing anything with it, you’d best hope that it doesn’t take up much space. Its maximum capacity is 64GB stored internally. I know people who have that much in music! Even my Zune holds more than that! You know, that OTHER MP3 player that works very nicely, made by some Micro company and generally does as much, if not more than that iPod you’re drooling over? Yeah, that thing.

Jobs made a point to say that it’s not a laptop, and it’s not a netbook, it’s something else. And I agree. It’s a TABLET COMPUTER! It’s nothing new. It’s nothing earth-shattering. It’s not even its own design. I can look at an iPhone and draw this thing. It lacks any kind of serious functionality, outside of a hand-held e-mail reader. And it doesn’t even do that very well. It’s a breeze to type on? Please. Let’s get a real typist on it and see their opinions.

So, another Apple product I’ll be happy to pass on. They still just don’t get it. They don’t seem to understand that their customers are going to be what’s going to buy this thing. And their customers don’t necessarily need another iPhone minus the Phone part. Does this mean it’s not going to sell? Unfortunately not. Too many Apple fan boys who eat, sleep, breathe, dream, and bleed Apple who have to have anything with an Apple logo on it. And too many brainless fools who really think that, because it’s Apple, it’s a must have.

Now, if you’re seriously wanting to get a tablet PC, MSI is releasing their own lineup that actually does everything the iPad does, and a bunch of stuff it don’t, like give you storage space, USB ports (more than one), and more. And, it’ll run Android, so if you want something that Apple doesn‘t like, you can use it, once it‘s out. Anyone Interested in a REAL tablet system?

Here’s the next big Apple thing: The iBreathe strips. It’ll be Apple’s version of the Breathe-Right strips. Doesn’t do anything new or better, just happens to come in silver, black, or white, with an Apple logo you can center on your nose, and pay $50 per strip. Who’s up for it?

RTOD 17MAY2008: PS3 (and all other) Fanboys Suck!

Random Thought of the Day: PS3 (and all other) Fanboys Suck!

REPRINT EDIT: Although I’m personally not a PlayStation fan, I don’t specifically stop people from picking the console of their choice.   I’m just a Wii60 fan, with PC tendancies.  Also, any and all comments are welcome, nice or otherwise. 

How many of you are gamers? I don’t mean the Club Pogo, Candystand, or the Xbox Live Arcade variety, but the hardcore, in-your-face gamers? The ones who get indignant when someone tries to tell you that your console sucks, or that your PC isn’t a worthy gaming platform. The ones who clean your games more than you bathe. The real gamers.

If you said “I am!,” then, odds are, you have a favorite. Either you prefer your Microsoft consoles, your Sony PS-Whatever, your Nintendo systems, or, you prefer your PC/Apple(Apple, yeah, okay…) for gaming. For me, I prefer a little of anything that doesn’t say Sony or Apple on it. Looking back, I miss Sega hardware, but, they are a gone species of gaming system, so I won’t include them. Sorry Sega-heads.

Now, having your personal favorite is great. Speaking up for your favorite is just as great. Going into tirades and bashing anyone who doesn’t agree with you, and you have fallen into FANBOYISM. Fanboys are the worst kind of “gamer” out there, and make all the rest of gamers look bad in general. Fanboys are the ones who get in line 3-4 days ahead of scheduled releases so they can be the FIRST ON THE BLOCK TO HAVE IT! I will openly admit that I have gone out and waited in line for no more than seven hours for a console (My Wii, 17DEC2006), but I wasn’t there days ahead of time! There was one guy there who had been there for thirty hours by the time he got his console. I can, to a degree, understand, he promised his little cousin he’d get one. You don’t just break that kind of promise. Fanboys are typically blind to their system(s)’ of choice’s faults, and scream about the faults of every other form of gaming. PC fanboys typically berate consolers because of a “lack of control” of the game that they have from having 100+ keys and a mouse with a scroll wheel, and infinite upgradability. Microsoft fanboys go off for days at how the PS-Whatever players usually have poorer graphics. PS-Whatever attack the XBox-ers for not having some huge collection of games, regardless of how good those games really are. Nintendo fans are hit from ALL sides, because their games are “for kids only.” That’s a lot of bias, and that’s not even counting older rivalries! Atari 7800 ROCKS!

Today, I’m mostly peeved with the PS3 fanboys. Why? Because they like to spew their “info” wherever they can, and act as though it is pure fact that their console of choice is the bestest thing in the whole world! It’s so great, it’s even better than sliced bread! Wow. Your typical PS3 fanboy sit there and screams about their system being so great because they have the best hardware, they have Wi-Fi, they have laptop-based hard drives that can be swapped with any SATA-based laptop hard drive. They also spout their BluRay “superiority,” how their graphics card has such a high color bit rate, and their “greatly advanced” cell processor technology. Wow, this system sounds great, right? I mean, you can rip movies on the hard drive, and connect it to networks. That’s good, right?

FANBOY BREAKER ALERT! Bad news is that most of this stuff is great, but that doesn’t make it a good game console. Let’s start with the loudest touted thing- – Xbox doesn’t have BluRay. You are right, they don’t. HOWEVER, that doesn’t mean that they can’t ADD a BluRay player. Think about it, they had an HD-DVD player that was USB-attachable. Why couldn’t they do that with BluRay? Sony ISN’T the sole proprietor of BluRay. Also, the 360 allows for Direct to Consumer Downloads of movies, TV shows, music videos, and it is all available in hi-def. Sony allows it too, but that’s never an arguing point. Next, the cell processor is a serious pain in the ass to program for. It requires an extremely singular programming stream for it to work correctly. Translated, sure, it can process up to six different things on one processor at a time, but if they don’t happen in a VERY SPECIFIC order, it screws up the whole thing. 360 has three separate processors that allows for processes to flow as needed, and not when Sony Tech says so. Even the Wii, with its single processor, can be easily programmed for, and have commands flow slightly out of sequence and not cause a game to fail. In fact, a prominent technology news magazine has already called Cell technology “Dead Technology” because of multi-cores becoming more prominent and far easier to program for. On to graphics. They support a 128-bit color bit rate. That’s great. WHAT USES IT? Nothing. Just because it can doesn’t mean it will EVER need to. At least, not in my lifetime. 32-bit color bit rate is considered “True Color.” What is better that that? Hard drive, and your ripping ability. Okay, now, you have this 40-, 60-, or 80-GB hard drive. Now, games will need save game space. To make them “faster,” games will install parts of themselves onto that hard drive. Plus, since most “games” are demos right now, I have to download them at around 1-2GB a pop. (Sorry, it’s an estimate, I don’t know for sure)  Movies will take up at least 3-5 GB per movie, and that rip is in STANDARD DEF! Oooh, and, I need to load my music collection onto my HDD so I can use it! And now, I’m out of …room… Okay, swap for another HDD. Now, all the stuff I just put on that drive is… not there… Hmmm… Okay, have it network to my PC. Wait, the 360 already does that, so we can’t use that anymore! You can stream your music and movies from your PC to your 360 just as easily, if not better, because the systems match up, they are both by Microsoft! NEXT! WiFi is the biggest JOKE for an online gamer. Online, when millisecond latency matters. I want you to try something. Take your laptop, or other WiFi device, and connect it to your network. Then, take a similar device that is hard-wired to your router or LAN. Now, I want you to load a multiplayer game online on both systems. Pogo works really well for this. Load up ANY bingo game. Go ahead, I’ll wait. Now, play on both systems in the same room. Watch carefully, and listen. You will notice that the system that is hard-wired is FASTER than the system that is WiFi. That, friends, is what we call Latency. Because of having additional protocols to go through, WiFi is SLOWER than a wired system. Most of you would not notice this otherwise, because you don’t normally have the same data flowing to separate locations. Normally, you look at it one at a time. Multiple systems reading burst communications will show you where your latency, or lag, is. PS3 has it. 360 won’t.  Lastly, for now, is the online gaming.  Okay, Playstation online is free.  Bad news, your servers are owned by the game maker, and that doesn’t guarantee quality.  XBox Live is payed for, but the servers are generally stable.  With PS Online, you can have a second life!  A version of the Sims 2 that’s online!  YAY!  Friends can come to my virtual home and play games!  Guess what?  I have real friends that can come to my REAL house and play games!  Oops, sorry, said that out loud.

This is the list I could think of today. I’m not going to pull out the standard, “Where’s the games that aren’t elsewhere?” or, my personal favorite, “Why buy ANOTHER Media PC?” They are accurate but they don’t address the people who don’t know.

Now, people know that I am harshly against the PS3. In fact, they know that I call it the PoS3. When it was first announced, I was actually really interested. It was the PS3. New and pretty cool controller design. Easy to program architecture. HD player optional if you wanted it. Then, they scrapped it. They made it the monstrosity that it is now, the PoS3. It became a Sony Tech Demo. And it’s great as a home entertainment system booster. But, it’s not a game console first anymore, unlike the Saturn, PSX, PS2, XBOX, and XBOX360. All these consoles are GAME SYSTEMS first and media players second.

This post will get me a lot of rips on being a fanboy myself for Microsoft. Not true. I know the flaws my system has. All two of them. Red Ring of Death. I, too, have suffered from it. Doesn’t make me hate the console. And all the costly add-ons. But hey, Microsoft is a company. They want to make money. Also, the Wii. It is the weakest of the systems. It is also the most innovative in this set. It isn’t a hardcore gamer system. It also isn’t HD ready. Oh well. It wasn’t aimed to be for that market. It’s the “Everyone” console.

PS3 fanboys can respond to me, and address anything they feel I should have. I think there might be one or two main ones left. I addressed the most of it. Anyone else can comment about it, since I always am intersted in opinion.