Rotten Apple

Did anyone hear of the new iPods launched last week? No? Then you've missed out on some earth-shattering news.

I've become quite the Apple fanboy in recent years. Last week when I heard that Apple was due to announce a slew of new iPods, I almost pee'd my pants. I found a website (Gizmodo, you guys rock!!) that was doing a live blog from the event and stayed with them as they blogged about buying coffee and bagels on the way to the Moscone Centre (where the event was held) till they announced new new iPod line up. Boy was it an exciting morning. Here in Singapore, the event started at about 1 am and I tracked it till about 3 am. Then, I waited some more till the Apple online stores updated their webpages with the new devices. I eventually retired to bed close to 6 am, tired but smiling.

I am in love with the new iPod Touch. It looks exactly like the Jesus phone (which I got to play with a few weeks ago) but without the phone features. It has a full touch screen interface except the home button at the bottom of the device. To watch videos in landscape mode, just turn the device from portrait position to landscape and the screen switches automatically. It comes with wifi so that you can connect to the Internet at any public wifi hotspot. It also has iTunes built-in and from any wifi hotspot, you can buy your tunes then and there. And for the Java (coffee, not the programming languange) junkies, there is even a tie up with Starbucks such that a Starbucks icon pops up if you're in the vicinity of one. You can then check out what tracks Starbucks is playing, listen and buy them on the spot. But I believe this feature is available only in the States for the moment.

Here's where things go very wrong and I truly hate Apple for it. The iPod Touch has a built-in calender that allows you to enter your appointments and alarms via its virtual keyboard. But a recent report said that Apple has intentionally disabled this feature on the iPod Touch, even though it shares the same software architecture as the iPhone. I think this is what they call "artificial product segmentation". So, its there, it works, but Apple won't let you use it. Its like I go to work and my boss ties one of my arms to intentionally make my job harder.

My usually high opinion of the Cupertino-based company has dropped more than a couple of notches.

Nevertheless, the new line up of portable music / video players from Apple is still impressive. I've got the Apple store open in another window and I'm just itching to click "Buy Now".

What else is new, right?

Hand-Me-Downs

About two months ago, I got a fantastic new "toy" - The iPod Video. Since the time we got acquainted, the sexy svelt device, now immaculately dressed head to toe in high quality leather, has been my constant companion at work and at home - the only two places I can actually be found. That says a lot about my social life, doesn't it? I digress.

While I love my iPod to bits, it is beyond doubt that it will someday be replaced by another device (read : iPhone) and if that pans out, I'd hate to see a device that brought me days and nights of pleasure (minds out of the gutter please) to be laid to rest in my gadget tomb.

In comes the Tadpole - case that is. It is a case that turns any 5th generation iPod (iPod Video) into the perfect portable video player for kids. The handles are ideal for small little hands to grip the device and it comes in an array of cheery colours. Great for long road trips!

Guess who'll soon be inheriting my iPod in a year or two?

Happy V-Day!

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!!

V-Day doesn't just mean Valentine's Day this year. It also means V-ideo Day too - iPod Video, that is. That's what my lovely wife got me for Valentine's Day. That's a whole 80GB of love right there. By geek standards, that's more than a lifetime's worth. Mrs Prem loves Prem and she knows Prem loves gadget. How sweet is she??

In the less than 24 hours since I received this beauty, I've got it loaded with a whole bunch of videos, more than 2 days worth of music and even hooked it up to my widescreen TV.

My apologies for the blury picture. This was taken with my Treo. It usually takes great shots but today, it appears to be too jealous of the new "addition" to the family.

Note to Mrs Prem : Thank you for the absolutely amazing gift. Happy Valentine's Day, dear!

Vinyl Irony

I love vinyl records. Having been a freelance deejay from the mid-80s till the late 90s, I was frequently working with records. For those of you born after 1990, records are how we old fogeys listened to music before CDs were born. Vinyl records not only delivered great sound (yes, much better than CDs), they last a whole lot longer than CDs if well-maintained.

Many friends describe my music collection as "insane". I might have about 700 odd CDs (and growing - I've lost count) and a good 500 pieces of 12" vinyl records. I only switched to CDs because a lot of music is no longer pressed onto vinyl - which is a really sad thing. So, I constantly tell my wife that I need to shower lots of tender loving care upon my beloved record collection. And in case they get damaged, I am working out a schedule to "digitize" them. "Protecting the music by migrating them from the analogue to the digital world", I always say.

But THIS is not what I had in mind when I said "protecting the music"!!

A company in the US is taking old 45s (that's old-school slang for a 7" vinyl record) and turning them into iPod cases!! How cruel is that? Among the vinyls they are crucifying to protect iPods include gems like Band Aid's Do They Know Its Christmas?, Starship's Nothing Gonna Stop Us Know, Bananarama's Venus, Olivia Newton-John's Physical (this was once banned from airplay in Singapore for being "too suggestive"), Pet Shop Boys' Always On My Mind and the kicker - Revolution by The Beatles.

But what really upset me was the use of Sly Fox's Let's Go All The Way. I used to do a real killer live mix of this track together with Shout by Tears For Fears and Rock Me Amadeus by Falco. It was my signature mix so I take this very personally.

But personal issues aside, I applaud the guys for their ingenuity. I'd rather these gems of the past live on this way than to be cast aside or tossed into the incinerator like garbage. It is also a reminder to current and future iPod toting youngsters how music was enjoyed generations before.

Keen to get one? Pop on down to their website.

Wonder if they'll just send me the records intact if I request. *wink*

Anti-Climax

I visit Apple's website cum online store everyday - without fail. Healthy interest or serious obsession? You decide.

Over the last few months, I've had my eye on a MacBook. I've never been a huge fan of Macs but since they started rolling out Intel-based hardware, it became attractive because it would not only run Apple's own operating system (OS X) but Windows XP as well. However, it was a little pricey and out of my reach. So, I check the website everyday hoping for a special discount or promotion. If I were lucky, they might have a "Buy An iPod and get a Macbook free" promotion. I'd like that.

Today was no exception. I typed in the URL and found that their store was down! It only meant one thing... either a promotion or a new launch!! I almost pee'd my pants.

Could they be slashing their prices on Macbooks and finally, I'd be able to afford one? Perhaps, they may be adding cool new features to the Macbook but maintaining the same price? Wait a minute... could it be... a surprise launch of the iPhone... 6 months early?

I held my breath each time I hit the "refresh" button on my browser. And then, there it was...

Coloured iPod Shuffles?? That's what they took down the entire online store all around the world for?!?! What a let-down.

Anyway, if you're in the market for these microscopic music players, they now come in these attractive colours. No longer are you stuck with just bland matt silver.

Available at all Apple dealers and online stores. A great gift for your special someone on Valentine's Day.

Disclaimer : Links here are to Apple's online store in Singapore. Visit Apple's International site to take you to an online store near you.

iPhone - iMustHave

Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God! Its finally here!

After almost two years of speculation, rumours and hoax images, Apple's iPhone has been announced! Isn't she a beaut?

When I heard that it was launched about half an hour ago, I rushed to my desk and typed in Apple's URL and when it loaded completely, my colleagues found me transfixed with my mouth open. One had the nerve to ask "Porn site?"

This is a phone + iPod hybrid. There's hardly any buttons because it is touch-screen - just like the phones / communication devices found on the Starship Enterprise. It boasts of bluetooth, wi-fi (great for our recent islandwide free wireless internet access) and other goodies. This thing even plays videos. Short of waking up before you to cook breakfast and iron your clothes, it pretty much does everything!

So, I guess Zune's not being marketed in our parts was a blessing in disguise. And to think I was thinking of importing a Zune or even springing for an iPod a couple of days ago. Thank God!

So, here's my declaration :

"I, The Premster, owner of this blog hereby declare that I will hold off as many gadget purchases as possible till June 2007 when the iPhone becomes available. I will love, honour and cherish the iPhone for as long as it shall live - or till a better gadget is launched. I declare to have and to hold, till obseletion do us part."

I'll kiss the iPhone when it arrives.

Zune-less This Christmas

Alright... The Premster is MIFFED!!

Over the last 13 years as an IT professional, I have developed a certain level of disdain for Microsoft and their products. Their operating systems / software require to be patched every other day and troubleshooting problems are almost impossible because of the ridiculous / cryptic error messages. My life has been filled with "This program has performed an illegal operation and will be shutdown" or the infamous Blue Screen Of Death (BSOD). Here's the craziest - "Unable to detect keyboard. Press any key to continue".

On the bright side, it keeps me gainfully employed.

It was only recently that Bill Gates and his boys were getting into my good books with the introduction of better designed software (Windows 2003 and Windows Vista) as well as their entry into the multimedia portable player market with Zune. Then, I read this!

Back in the dog-house you go, Mr Gates. My dollars will be ending up in Mr Jobs' pockets this Christmas after all.

The iPod Killer

In about a week (14 November 2006, to be precise), Microsoft will unleash upon the world (well, to the US for now) what could possibly be the iPod killer. The Zune is Microsoft's first foray into the portable media player business and despite their very late entry into this saturated milieu, it looks like they're headed straight for worldwide success.

For all of you iPod fans out there (me included), here's a list of things that the Zune has / does that the iPod hasn't / doesn't.

Wi-Fi Compatibility (great for updating your firmware - anywhere a hotspot is available!)

WMA and WMV support

3 Inch Screen

Video viewable in portrait or landscape mode

13 hour battery life

Music sharing (via Wi-Fi) with other Zune users (you get to listen to shared songs for 3 days)

FM Radio

Custom background images

Wi-Fi transferring of photos or images.

XBox Streaming

I haven't had the opportunity to try one out myself but the reviews have all been glowing. And anticipating the success, many accessory manufacturers have already produced cases and add-ons for the Zune. So, you'll be able to accessorize your own Zune as soon as you unwrap it.

Considering my 15GB iPod is old and dying (excuses, excuses), I'll definitely be checking it out when it hits our shores. Hmmm.... Zune, it will be mine.... *evil cackle*

If my wife reads this, she'll probably slap her forehead and say "Good God, here we go again!"

Shop Till You...Smile!

Last weekend, my wife had a few of her friends over and needless to say, a house filled with women is really not a place for a guy like me to be. I had a couple of errands to run and took that opportunity to skip out to town.

While shopping at one of our gadget malls, I texted an old friend from school and coincidently, he was nearby. We met for a cup of tea to chat about the good ol' days as well as to talk about what we love most - gadgets. It was a pity he was rushing off to see his mom, who was not well, or we would have chatted till the cows came home. And just as he was leaving, I ran into a close relative of mine. Without going into details, the meeting saddened me a great deal even though I was glad to see him. Anyway, I wish him well even though the path he is on in life is very worrying.

I still had a lot of errands to run and one of which was to get a birthday gift for a former colleague / good friend. Shopping for him was tough. "What do you get for a man who has everything?", was the question of the day. On top of that, the chance meeting with my relative was weighing heavily on my mind. So, for a long while, I was roaming the malls aimlessly until I came across a small, thumb-drive looking device in the window. It was labelled "Sony" and that was enough to peak my curiousity. I walked in and was told that it was an MP3 player. I asked to see it. "No big deal. Apple has the iPod Shuffle so Sony is just a copy-cat", the smart-aleck voice in my head went - until it was demo'ed to me.

This little thing, no bigger than my thumb (disclaimer : I have a big thumb!) played MP3 and AAC files, stored data, had a built-in radio, a sports timer for running or cycling and even supported playlists. It had a OLED display which was crisp and showed you clearly what was playing or the radio station it was on. And if all this was not enough, a 3 minute charge on this baby allowed you to run it for a full 3 hours! My unwavering integrity was quickly relocating to a new camp. "Beat that, Apple!", went that voice in my head.

I suddenly found myself smiling at this little device. I knew that my friend would love it as much as I did. So, I got it - two of it, to be precise.

Well, it made me smile, didn't it?