iSurface Microphone

Loads of hype. Nothing new over any release from the big 2. Apple just released the iPhone. Of course every Apple freak has to have one to add to the collection of apple products. I sit here with my iPod syncing on the Mac mini while I wax typographical on the G4 (because the wife said I was hogging the G5and she is sick of the Powerbook ::rolls eyes::) and i'm jonesin like a crack addict to get one. This despite the fact I cant stand the idea of what is going on here. I mean if you look at the 20 minute sell by sexy video that they put up it combines all your needs into one sleek package. That is a wonder of modern technology. Or so you would think.

My buddy Brian lined up for his. He marvelled and oohed and ahhhed while it synced up but then came the first complaint. "I have to keep wiping fingerprints off the screen." Steve told me they are working on a Matrix style iTelepathophone for version 2. No touching necessary. Be patient my pretties. Others have brought up "If it has no buttons how do I dial while I drive?" 1. YOU DON'T. Calling your next client to tell him you will be arriving in 5 minutes is dumb. Reps that used to do this when coming to see me found that I suddenly had emergency meetings to attend. You are close enough to arriving to save the excitement of saying hello for when you get there. 2. Ever heard of voice dialling? Nokia perfected it back when you had to have a strongman to carry your phone's battery pack.

Problems I have with the "all in one" concept.
1. If it breaks down you lose multiple devices in one sitting. If my iPod breaks I can still use my phone and my laptop.
2. the more you have in one product the less likely it is you need all of the features. My current phone can do magical mystical things. I use it to call people. When I'm out. If I bother to take it.
3. It is one step closer to being lojacked. I like being uncontactable when I choose to be.

All in all though my friends with shares are happy. Ride the boom, sell at peak, buy back in on the afterglow low and ride up again on the V2 release. As usual I think Apple have taken the right direction with this. Like any Beta from apple it will improve and become part of the culture.

On the other end of the scale Microsoft are off on a tangent again. Microsoft Surface is Pretty. For a technophile like myself it is a wet dream. But really what is it? Simple answer it's a $10K coffee table (Magnificent parody on YouTube) that few people are going to bother with. Yes it has great potential for education and marketing. it has the wow factor. The problem is Government have enough of a problem coughing up a few bucks to buy basic textbooks for classrooms. They even scrimp on the computers they choose to supply if they supply them at all. It will be one of those have to have items for the rich and trendy as well as upper end boutique stores. That isnt going to do much for mass marketability. Basically Microsoft have defeatured an iPhone and built it to government specifications. Turning a mouse into an elephant is frankly not the way technology is supposed to go. Although I have to admit that if the price dropped to $5K I would start to think up reasons (read excuses) to convince the minister of war and finace (read wife) with.

Technology is so smart and so dumb at the same time. I tend to be a bit of a rabbit with it. I sit staring at the pretty lights until I get shot in the credit card. I think it is the same for many of us. That is why regardless of any opinion stated by anyone these giants will never broke. They know how to make us ignore the faults and focus on the pretty lights.