Apple Announces iPad Air 471
Today Apple held a press conference to unveil its updated software and hardware products. The biggest news was the announcement of the 'iPad Air,' which has a 9.7" Retina display. It's 7.5 mm thick, which is 20% thinner than the older iPad. The weight has dropped from 1.4 lbs to 1.0 lbs, and it runs on a 64-bit A7 chip with an M7 motion coprocessor. Apple claims performance has doubled over the previous-gen iPad. The iPad Air will be available on November 1st. The iPad Mini is getting a new revision as well. The display has been upgraded to 7.9" at 2048x1536, which is the same resolution as the iPad Air. The new Mini has an A7 chip as well.
Apple also announced that the new version of Mac OS X (10.9 Mavericks) is available now and is free to all Mac OS X users. It includes better multi-monitor support, tabs in Finder, and a number of performance optimizations. The Macbook Pro is getting updates to the 13" and 15" models, which are now running on Intel Haswell processors. They both have PCIe SSDs, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, and Thunderbolt 2 support. Apple also talked about the redesigned Mac Pro line. As you may recall from WWDC, the new model takes up about about 1/8th of the volume as the old one. It's cooled by a single fan, uses 70% less power than the earlier model, and puts out 12 dB of noise when idling. It'll be available in December. On the software side, Apple has been updating a lot of their software to add 64-bit support and mesh with the new iOS 7 style of design. This includes iPhoto, iMovie, and Garageband, as well as the iLife and iWork software suites. iWork is also getting collaborative work features, and it's now free with new Macs and iOS devices.
Apple also announced that the new version of Mac OS X (10.9 Mavericks) is available now and is free to all Mac OS X users. It includes better multi-monitor support, tabs in Finder, and a number of performance optimizations. The Macbook Pro is getting updates to the 13" and 15" models, which are now running on Intel Haswell processors. They both have PCIe SSDs, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, and Thunderbolt 2 support. Apple also talked about the redesigned Mac Pro line. As you may recall from WWDC, the new model takes up about about 1/8th of the volume as the old one. It's cooled by a single fan, uses 70% less power than the earlier model, and puts out 12 dB of noise when idling. It'll be available in December. On the software side, Apple has been updating a lot of their software to add 64-bit support and mesh with the new iOS 7 style of design. This includes iPhoto, iMovie, and Garageband, as well as the iLife and iWork software suites. iWork is also getting collaborative work features, and it's now free with new Macs and iOS devices.
Comment removed (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Major shot at Microsoft, too. (Score:4, Insightful)
MS is more worried about Google docs imo. Office already has collaborative features that work across platforms. For iWork to be interesting it would need to work on more than just Mac.
Re:Major shot at Microsoft, too. (Score:5, Informative)
It has been working on any device for a while now. It's similar to O365, it's browser based but free.
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
Which is why it does.
Re:Major shot at Microsoft, too. (Score:4, Informative)
http://www.icloud.com/ [icloud.com]
Re:Major shot at Microsoft, too. (Score:5, Informative)
I went here and tried to log in with my AppleID. It said:
Set up iCloud on a device to use iCloud.com.
Your Apple ID must be used to set up iCloud on an iOS or OS X device before you can use iCloud.com.
So for Linux and windows users, no, iWork doesn't work.
Re:Major shot at Microsoft, too. (Score:4, Insightful)
I can read. I don't own an iOS or OS X device. That's what I meant by "Linux or windows user" - one who uses these operating systems rather than apple ones.
Re:Major shot at Microsoft, too. (Score:4, Interesting)
Comment removed (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Major shot at Microsoft, too. (Score:5, Informative)
Office only has a native client on Windows,
I beg to differ [microsoft.com].
A shot at other OS, computer *and* device makers (Score:5, Interesting)
iWork is now free, and include collaboration features that MS Office will have a hell of a time trying to match.
-jcr
A major shot at other operating system, computer *and* mobile device makers. Free (as in beer) major OS update (computers) and free productivity apps (computers and mobile devices). Bundling the productivity apps with new computers and mobile devices will help Apple maintain their price points. Once again, Apple demonstrates that they are a hardware company at heart, that software is a tool to sell that hardware.
Re: (Score:3)
Ahem, I think you will find Google has been doing this for years. Free (as in beer and open source) OS upgrades for Nexus devices and free productivity apps for all platforms.
Re: install on any machine (Score:5, Informative)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Then you're an idiot and need to learn how pricing works....i5, 8gb ram, aluminum case pc laptop on newegg RIGHT NOW, $400. Comes with windows, and then add office for $140 more? Ohhh....soooo much more $ than a Mac!!
Nine-hour battery life with reasonable weight? A battery that lasts five years with only 30% decrease in capacity?
Reasonably well color-calibrated screen pretty much covering sRGB, with reasonable sharpness, viewing angles and brightness, which doesn't wobble or develop faults in a couple of years?
Accurate, pleasant-to-use trackpad?
Backlit keyboard, typing on which isn't uncomfortable, annoying, or error-prone? And which doesn't lose key caps when you sneeze or develop unresponsive keys?
Good durability? Go
Re:A shot at other OS, computer *and* device maker (Score:4, Insightful)
Okay, the cheap laptops are not in the same league, but there are comparable Windows ultrabooks with excellent calibrated displays, similar specs, battery life etc. NEC's LaVie series, some ASUS and Samsung models, and of course Sony.
Apple laptops are not magic, or particularly good value. They are similar to the competition, it's just that no-one else has the Reality Distortion Field that makes them seem so much better.
Re:A shot at other OS, computer *and* device maker (Score:5, Informative)
Apple laptops are not magic
but they are unix, and unlike linux, everything just works out of the box. for some of us, it's worth paying more to not have to dink around for hours on the weekend to hopefully get things running smoothly.
macs are overpriced, but not as much as some folks say. consider this MBP,
http://store.apple.com/us/buy-mac/macbook-pro [apple.com]
it's $1800 with no upgrades.
the most comparable thing i can find at dell.com is this,
http://www.dell.com/us/p/xps-12-9q33/pd?oc=dncwi16b&model_id=xps-12-9q33 [dell.com]
it's $600 less, but it has 1/2 the memory, worse graphics, a slightly smaller display and lesser res, and a 128GB SSD vs. a next-gen 512GB SSD. also, it runs windows, not a unix-based OS.
how about toshiba?
http://www.toshiba.com/us/computers/laptops/kira/kirabook13/KIRAbook13-i5-touch [toshiba.com]
$300 less, but has last-gen graphics, last-gen core processor, and a last-gen SSD that's 1/2 the size. it does have a touchscreen where the MPB does not.
Re: (Score:3)
how about toshiba?
http://www.toshiba.com/us/computers/laptops/kira/kirabook13/KIRAbook13-i5-touch [toshiba.com]
$300 less, but has last-gen graphics, last-gen core processor, and a last-gen SSD that's 1/2 the size. it does have a touchscreen where the MPB does not.
Kirabook reviews: Makes an annoying noise under load, fan grille on the bottom (which makes it a tabletop), and reproduces the main flaw in the MBP keyboard - half-height arrow keys. Apparently a very good screen, although I couldn't find any charts showing color accuracy or sharpness.
Still costs 20% more than the equivalent MBP, where I live. Well, that's down from 50% more. Perhaps PC manufacturers are starting to realise why their stuff isn't selling.
Thanks for drawing it to my attention, though.
Re:A shot at other OS, computer *and* device maker (Score:5, Insightful)
> R&D
It's simple. Were it not for Apple and a very few other companies that do research, who take chances, who bet their lives that you want to move ahead, we would be using DOS.
R&D costs money. Dell and HP won't invest there; their money goes for marketing. Apple does real R&D and I am happy to support that.
Additionally, some foreign companies are investing increasingly in R&D. Apple (and Qualcomm, a few others) may be the only viable American company that remains.
Give your money to those who innovate, not to mass junk producers.
Re:A shot at other OS, computer *and* device maker (Score:4, Insightful)
>> Apple laptops are not magic, or particularly good value.
Two things that I like about Apple laptops that are unmatched:
1. Trackpad is just first class. I have never seen any windows machine with a trackpad so smooth and accurate. Also the gestures in the OS are actually useful to the point where I prefer using the trackpad over a mouse for most applications (not image editing).
2. Magnetic power adapter. This is just killer compared to the stupid barrel connectors everyone else has. I would pay an extra $100 just for that feature.
Re:A shot at other OS, computer *and* device maker (Score:4, Insightful)
Yet another person who thinks throwing a bunch of substandard crap together in a box makes it equivalent to a nicely designed machine. When you show me a box that have similar hardware, thermal, weight, battery life, PCIe flash, screen resolution, etc characteristics for that price, then we can start talking.
A $400 laptop is essentially netbook territory with spinning rust. You expect that to have the same performance as a macbook pro?
*SERIOUSLY?!*
Re: (Score:3)
Amen to that... A small minitower between the Mini and the Pro is what's missing from their lineup.
Re:A shot at other OS, computer *and* device maker (Score:5, Insightful)
The vast bulk of the market has already turned it's back on this notion of "design". Once you take that away, Apple is nothing special at all.
I promised myself a long time ago to stop replying in Slashdot Apple fanboy/troll wars, but this one really got me.
Having used all modern OSes quite a bit, I can tell you plainly that if you think Apple is about fancy hardware cases and rounded corners, you don't get it. Please do not make comparisons to Windows commodity PCs solely based on hardware, because that's not what Apple is about on the desktop. Unlike almost anyone else in the industry, Apple is a software company that makes their money with hardware.
Their goal is to sell you a high-margin, high-end piece of hardware that may not be differentiated based on hardware, but is differentiated based on shipping with a UNIX-based OS that has a slick and efficient UI; integrated cloud sharing and automatic backups; bundled office apps that can match or beat MS Office/LibreOffice; iLife apps (iMovie, iPhoto, Garage Band) that have so serious free competition; and an integrated entertainment ecosystem (iTunes) that nobody else but Amazon comes close to (sorry, Google Play is nowhere near competitive for a desktop user). "I can get the equivalent hardware for cheaper with Windows or Ubuntu" is a false argument, because it's the software that makes a Mac special. I know there are "lots" of people who buy Macs and install a different OS on them, but I think that's a Slashdot-centric view of "lots" - a.k.a. "lots of people buy Raspberry Pis."
YMMV as to what that software differentiation is worth, but for those who buy Macs, the answer is clearly "it's worth a lot and still a bargain."
Re: (Score:3)
Fair enough, but the AC was calling someone an idiot for having the audacity to insist on a cost comparison based on similar hardware.
Re: (Score:3)
I guess its a good use of your time and really contributed to the thread.
Re:Major shot at Microsoft, too. (Score:5, Interesting)
iWork is surprisingly very functional on a Surface. Don't laugh. I've used iWork for iCloud on my Surface (no keyboard cover) and works much better than the built in MS Office that comes with the Surface since Office pretty much requires the keyboard cover.
Re:Major shot at Microsoft, too. (Score:4, Informative)
The collaboration features will work on any device that has reasonable HTML 5 support as it is entirely browser based...including Mac, iDevices, Windows (IE, Chrome, Firefox), and a fair number of non-apple tablets...including the Surface. No license or account is needed for the collaborators.
Re: (Score:3)
Okay, managed to get my AppleID password changed. I sign in to www.icloud.com and it says:
Set up ICloud on a device to use iCloud.com
Your Apple ID must be used to set up iCloud on an iOS or OS X device before you can use iCloud.com.
So I don't understand which collaboration features you're referring to. Where they "iCloud.com"? Or something else?
Re:Major shot at Microsoft, too. (Score:4, Interesting)
Actually I'm thinking of making a complaint under UK data protection laws. They are only allowed to keep personal information as long as they have a legitimate reason to do so, and since I no long have any relationship with them I can't see a reason why they should not delete my email address.
At most they should store a hash of it if their systems are so shitty that signing up with a previously deleted email address will break them, but that's the absolute limit.
Re: (Score:3)
I gotta admit (Score:5, Interesting)
That's pretty impressive engineering. Think it allows Android to be installed on it? :)
Re:I gotta admit (Score:5, Informative)
Except the bootloader probably isn't designed to boot 32-bit OSes, ARMv8 isn't terribly impressive in AArch32 mode, and Android isn't 64-bit native yet.
Most of the speed ups the A7 gets are from 64-bit code as it cleans up a lot of the architecture. 32-bit code works, but the speedup is minimal.
And yes, the bootloader has to be 64-bit and then switch the CPU to 32-bit mode in order to boot a 32-bit OS. Running a 32-bit OS means you can't run 64-bit code at all. When you go down the privilege levels (secure monitor, hypervisor (VM), kernel, user) you can go from 64 to 32 bit mode, but to go the other way requires going up the stack.
Re: I gotta admit (Score:5, Funny)
Re:I gotta admit (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:I gotta admit (Score:5, Insightful)
Why is it abusive? It's their hardware, their rules.
You just answered your own question: because once I pay for it, it's not their hardware anymore. It's mine, and I'll do whatever I damn well please with it.
And yes, I apply that logic to every single one of the greedy bastards who prevent consumers from having full control over their own property, not just Apple.
Abusive behavior? (Score:3)
You just answered your own question: because once I pay for it, it's not their hardware anymore. It's mine, and I'll do whatever I damn well please with it.
And yes, I apply that logic to every single one of the greedy bastards who prevent consumers from having full control over their own property, not just Apple.
Yeah, it's your hardware, and you are at liberty to do what you like - install Windows, Linux, Android, BSD, whatever. They don't try & do anything to you for that. What they do do is tell you upfront that if you do any of that, it voids the warranty. Simple reason - Apple doesn't hire people to do these other OSs on their toys, and has no reason to. It's just like when you buy anything else - it's yours, but there are certain things, which if you do, void the warranties.
iPads seem to overcome moore's law (Score:5, Funny)
unless apple's engineers are optimizing this infamous loop:
for(i=0;i1000000000;i++);
Re: (Score:2)
Moore's law is a lower limit. Chips have been increasing faster than Moore's law since the inception of the law.
Re:iPads seem to overcome moore's law (Score:5, Informative)
since every new version is twice as faster as the previous one, given the fact that we see new versions in less than 18 months.
Moore's Law [wikipedia.org] is an observation about transistor density, not CPU speed.
Why is iPad so much better than iPhone? (Score:4, Interesting)
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
Not to bash the iPhone, but how is it that Apple seems to be so much ahead of the pack when it comes to the iPad but the iPhone seems to be just another high-end smartphone? I mean the new full-size iPad seems so much better especially in size and weight than anything else out there, while the 5s is just a nice spec bump.
Ahead of the pack in technology or sales?
None of their devices are close to the head of the pack from a technology standpoint. They can hype things up well, and they sell well, but across the boards they're middle-of-the-road hardware with typically one or two "oh, but we've got this!" upgrades that can be heavily marketed for the brief interlude before Samsung or another company makes a call on its actual value and adds it.
And, frankly, its just fine that Apple works that way.
Re: (Score:2, Insightful)
In what way is the iPad "middle-of-the-road" hardware?
What tablets on the market now exist that greatly exceed the ipad in the highend spectrum?
Re:Why is iPad so much better than iPhone? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
So far ahead of the pack? iOS still can't do the stuff that Windows Pro can, including backward compatibility, keyboard, etc.
The reason the iPhone is "just another high end phone" is because they've been behind the curve for years now. Give the market more time, and just like everything else, Apple will fall behind by sheer force of numbers. 10's and 100's of companies can make more progress than a single company - any day, all day.
Apple makes a well polished item then gets stuck in it's own success while i
Re: (Score:2, Funny)
I'll eat my words if Apple remains as much of a cash cow as it is for munch longer.
Getting started early?
Re:Why is iPad so much better than iPhone? (Score:4, Informative)
Backward compatibility with what, exactly? Do you expect iOS to run Windows software?
Keyboards? You can use a bluetooth keyboard with any current iOS device and a lot of previous generations too.
Behind the curve? Only a small percentage of Android phones and tablets are using cutting-edge technology for both hardware and software. It doesn't matter if there's 10 times more Android hardware if 90% of it is brand new yet low-end stuff that cannot even run the latest software.
Re:Why is iPad so much better than iPhone? (Score:4, Insightful)
Is it "Welcome to Slashdot"?
Re:Why is iPad so much better than iPhone? (Score:5, Informative)
To be fair the Sony Xperia Tablet Z [sonymobile.com] is only 6.9mm thick and only 1.1 pounds... The rest of the specs are also about the same, and that's been out for a month or two now.
Re: (Score:3)
Re:Why is iPad so much better than iPhone? (Score:5, Insightful)
The SXTZ display: 10.1". iPad Air display: 9.7"
If you won't care about the extra 128x336 pixels, I won't care about the extra 0.4 inches... Or the likely $100 price difference...
Re:Why is iPad so much better than iPhone? (Score:5, Informative)
The issue is only mute if you broke the speaker and don't have headphones.
Re:Why is iPad so much better than iPhone? (Score:5, Funny)
Moving goalposts for the win!
Post a tablet priced cheaper, better specs, but 0.1 lbs heavier? The claim will be that the iPad is better because its more portable.
Post a tablet priced around the same, better weight / thickness, but not as good screen? iPad is better!
I will admit that when it comes to being exactly like an iPad, Apple does it best.
Re: (Score:3)
Re:Why is iPad so much better than iPhone? (Score:4, Interesting)
The OP said the iPad seem so much better then anything out there.
My point is both tablets are in the same class. Not arguing the new iPad edges out the competition. It should, it's the newest high end tablet, but it's not revolutionary or anything. It will quickly lose the spec crown when the next round of high end Android tablets come out.
iPad is ten hours+ (Score:3)
manufacturers always exaggerate battery life it's safe to assume 8 hours is reasonable for the iPad Air as well
That's not at all reasonable, since every iPad to date in every review has met the stated battery life under real conditions (browsing, movies, etc).
So the iPad Air gets 10 (or more) hours per charge.
Incompetent Press (Score:4, Insightful)
Not to bash the iPhone, but how is it that Apple seems to be so much ahead of the pack when it comes to the iPad but the iPhone seems to be just another high-end smartphone?
It seems that way because the press is incapable of understanding what it means that both iPad and iPhone now ship with a 64-bit processor, and full-time motion chip - as well as strong BTLE support, something Android has only recently begun to adopt.
The iPhone 5s is leading all of the other smartphones on the market today in terms of technology - just not in screen size.
Re:Incompetent Press (Score:5, Funny)
Not even a tiny bit irrelevant (Score:3, Interesting)
For consumer use, the advances in technology are largely irrelevant at this point.
Actually, the motion coprocessor alone is a huge boost for the millions of people that already use device like the Nike FuelBand, or FitBitâ¦
And the 64-bit advancement has very real performance gains in software which will also be noticed in many applications.
The next advance is going to be battery life that lasts for weeks or months, and no one has that yet.
It's going to be a long time before we see weeksâ
Ignoring reality (Score:3)
64 bit - better performance, but it's still fewer cores and lower performance than high end Android devices.
Yet in benchmarks the 5s does better than those systems.
Full-time motion chip - Lower power version of what we already have
Lower power version also of what the iPhone already had. Being able to be run 24x7 makes a huge difference in usability. Lower power is always an important factor.
On the other hand the screen is still SD, not even 720p.
Which is why they make iPads. Perhaps you have heard of the
Re:Why is iPad so much better than iPhone? (Score:4, Insightful)
did you really say that Android is on borrowed time??
that's just utterly ridiculous...even if Google stopped work on it today, the OS community and the huge worldwide installed userbase would keep it going forever, just like Linus did with unix.
Android is going to be with us forever.
Re:Why is iPad so much better than iPhone? (Score:5, Funny)
Android is going to be with us forever.
Like Herpes.
Re: (Score:3)
You missed that Google is putting more and more Android core apps into close source? The old (free) versions lack features and won't be used by regular users for long. I wouldn't bet on Android hanging around forever.
Basically, it's better than iOS in that regard, but not even near Linux.
Re:Why is iPad so much better than iPhone? (Score:4, Interesting)
that's just utterly ridiculous. Outside of slashdot, people don't root their phones and install a custom build of android.
No, but they do ask Slashdotters to do it for them.
At least, that's my experience.
"Hey, man, how do you keep that old Droid X running so smooth? Cyanogenmod, what's that? Can you put it on my phone for me?"
...in 1-2 years, they'll toss it and get another one... They'll play angry birds and dick around with wallpaper and ringtones and never give a shit...
That I cannot disagree with.
Unix Workstation (Score:5, Interesting)
Apple haters or not, the saddest thing to realize is that the only UNIX(R) Workstation on the market is now the Mac. As Apple is the only UNIX 03 certification holder who is still making desktops and laptops. All the other UNIX 03 hardware produced at the moment is Datacenter-only rackmounted servers.
So $2999 for a powerful UNIX(R) Workstation is a fair price.
Re: (Score:2)
Well, you could just take any just about any workstation and put Solaris on it.
Re:Unix Workstation (Score:5, Funny)
Well, you could just take any just about any workstation and put Solaris on it.
then you'd have 2 problems
Re:Unix Workstation (Score:5, Insightful)
What use do you have for a UNIX(R) Workstation when you can use Linux or Freebsd for some UNIX-like goodness? Are their compatibility issues with something you work with?
Re:Unix Workstation (Score:5, Funny)
What use do you have for a UNIX(R) Workstation when you can use Linux or Freebsd for some UNIX-like goodness?
Chicks dig Unix certification.
Re:Unix Workstation (Score:5, Funny)
Re: (Score:3)
Imagine a Beowulf cluster of THOSE [laurenslatest.com]! Especially on a sausage pizza...mmmm....
A $600 Mac mini is also UNIX(R) (Score:4)
Apple haters or not, the saddest thing to realize is that the only UNIX(R) Workstation on the market is now the Mac. As Apple is the only UNIX 03 certification holder who is still making desktops and laptops. All the other UNIX 03 hardware produced at the moment is Datacenter-only rackmounted servers.
So $2999 for a powerful UNIX(R) Workstation is a fair price.
A $600 Mac mini is also UNIX(R) and for many UNIX(R) users it is quite usable. Not all UNIX(R) users need a *high performance* workstation.
Looking forward to iPad nano (Score:2, Funny)
4K display, anyone? (Score:2)
thin thing (Score:4, Funny)
wouldn't a better name have been "ipod hair"
Re: (Score:3)
wouldn't a better name have been "ipod hair"
I really do not want an iPod, or even an iPad, that I have to shave.
Mac PRO starts at 3K only 256GB storage (Score:2)
Mac PRO starts at 3K only 256GB storage base.
Imac's at half the price have X4 storage base.
based on new laptop pricing looking at an $800.00 add on to get 1TB build in.
Re:Mac PRO starts at 3K only 256GB storage (Score:4, Informative)
The Mac Pro is intended to be a graphics/video workstation. You use external disks to hold your data because you have massive amount of data you need to deal with.
No internal drive is big enough for the workloads it is intended to be used for, you attach a external cage with a bunch of disks via thunderbolt or a SAN.
SSD is PCIe SSD, not SATA (Score:3)
Similarly priced machines are coming with 512GB of more now.
Is that for a SATA SSD drive? Or the faster PCIe SSD as the Mac Pro has?
$2600 to get a laptop with better then Intel video (Score:2)
$2600 to get a laptop with better then Intel video??
they used to have the $2000 ones with better video but now
why no Fusion Drive choice for latops? (Score:2)
1TB max is low and 256GB base is small.
Also roaming costs, low caps, speed caped wifi makes cloud use not that ideal way to work.
Getting to be too many models, again? (Score:4, Interesting)
Remember the mid-90s, when Apple had dozens upon dozens of Macintoshes, Power Macs, Quadras, and so on? And how one of the first things Jobs did when he returned was slash all of those, which put them back on the road to their current success?
Yeah, they're up to four different iPads now, all currently being sold. The iPad Mini, "iPad Mini with Retina", iPad 2, and iPad Air, and I'm sure they still have some "Fourth-Generation iPads" to sell off. Each of these has a few variants for WiFi/3G and storage. And they also have a trio of iPhones - the 4S, 5C and 5S - again with storage capacity variations.
On the desktop, a pair of laptops (the Macbook Air and Macbook Pro) with a few size options, and trio of desktops (Mini, iMac (two sizes) and Mac Pro) has worked pretty well for them. They really need to cut down on their other models - using the old iPhone as the "cheap" model worked, discontinuing the old one in favor of a low-cost second model would also have worked, but as it is I see little purpose to keeping both the 4S and 5C around. And for the iPad? A Mini and a Pro would have been fine. Google is actually being smarter than they are on this - they have a Nexus 7 and a Nexus 10, updated as needed. Clear product differentiation - you want a small, cheap tablet? Nexus 7. Larger and more powerful tablet? Nexus 10. Apple is less clear - their high-end "Mini" costs the same as their low-end "full-size". They could probably make the iPad models make sense (iPad Mini, iPad Pro Mini, iPad, iPad Pro), but the way they currently are is crap.
Re:Getting to be too many models, again? (Score:4, Insightful)
No, it's not the same, or even very confusing, because the differences are mostly binary. The Mac lineup in the mid-90s was indeed a mess. The models were randomly arranged and it was like "if you want the sunroof, you have to get the leather seats" with cars. Now, all the products are just the answer to a few questions:
Laptop: Super-thin, or powerful? Air: 11" or 13"? Pro: 13" or 15"? Retina or not? And then the typical speed/RAM/HD options.
iPad: they don't really expect people to buy the iPad 2. It's there for educational buyers, or the small handful of people who want a cheap 10" iPad. They aren't on the main iPad page, only on the "compare" page and in the store. (I don't even know if they actually have iPad 2s sitting out in the retail stores.)
Inventory of iPads that are, as of today, "old", will be cleared out quickly and never spoken of again. That leaves: 8" or 10"? Retina or not? 16/32/64 GB? 3G or WiFi-only? Four yes/no questions, the answer to each of which is pretty simple for most people, and in every case, "more costs more". Few people are so budget-constrained AND with such strong needs that they're really agonizing over "I want this capacity, but then I can't afford 3G..."
Phones: You want 2 tiers, Apple wants 3. For a while they had 2, at $199 and $99; now they have 3, at $199, $99, and $0. Not THAT confusing. The choices are: free and black, $99 fast and colorful and bigger screen, or $199, staid colors, and super powerful. Beyond that, you pick your carrier (duh) and capacity (if you're getting a non-$0 phone.)
Google isn't a big hardware maker. Neither is Amazon. It makes sense that they'd keep their lineups simple. Apple, on the other hand, makes all their money on hardware (note the free OS upgrade and free productivity apps, etc.) so naturally they want to appeal to as many people as possible, and give you the option to spend as much as you want. :-)
Re:Getting to be too many models, again? (Score:4, Insightful)
Yes, I agree that Apple isn't back at '95 levels yet. But the point is that they're sliding in that direction. They're gaining more and more models that don't seem to serve a strong purpose.
While the iPad line does boil down to a few simple choices, the *naming* of that line does not in any way indicate it. The Google comparison was just a demonstration that Google is managing a more Jobs-like naming convention than Apple is.
Re: (Score:3)
The models were randomly arranged and it was like "if you want the sunroof, you have to get the leather seats" with cars
Wat? To my "PC"- and desktop-byased eyes, Apple has those kinds of things all over the place:
iPad 2? Why? (Score:4, Interesting)
It's somewhat baffling that anyone these days would want an iPad 2. The Mini outstrips it in every area but screen size, at the same price. I would also imagine that continuing to support it is obnoxious for developers.
Anyway, I was planning on buying the iPad Air, but the Mini is looking a lot more tempting, given that the only difference anymore is screen size. I just wish one of them had Touch ID.
Re: (Score:3)
It's somewhat baffling that anyone these days would want an iPad 2. The Mini outstrips it in every area but screen size, at the same price. I would also imagine that continuing to support it is obnoxious for developers.
I'm guessing that they've got a niche market for it that needs the screen size but doesn't want to pay for retina displays - probably schools.
Re:iPad 2 because contracts, duh (Score:5, Insightful)
It's somewhat baffling that anyone these days would want an iPad 2.
It's not baffling and it's not about "want." Apple has signed a lot of contracts with school systems for large volume, fixed price delivery of iPads and most likely those contracts included qualifiers that Apple must deliver products which are "commercially available" at the time of delivery. Discontinuing the iPad 2 would probably require Apple to deliver the newer products which have a lower profit margin and a higher consumer demand.
Those are fairly common terms to put in when you're writing long term volume purchase agreements.
Re:iPad 2? Why? (Score:4, Funny)
Many people prefer a 7" tablet because it's about the right size to hold in one hand for long periods.
And now, without the marketing bollocks (Score:5, Funny)
which has a 9.7" Retina display
Let me just pass that through my "marketing bullshit" remover:
which has a 9.7" display
Re:Mini seems to go without M7 ... (Score:5, Informative)
Not true... http://www.apple.com/ipad-mini/specs/ specifically lists the chip as: "A7 chip with 64-bit architecture and M7 motion coprocessor"
Dev only needs mini to test 64-bit A7/M7 ... (Score:2)
Not true... http://www.apple.com/ipad-mini/specs/ [apple.com] specifically lists the chip as: "A7 chip with 64-bit architecture and M7 motion coprocessor"
Thank you. I am thrilled to be wrong. I only noticed the M7 being mentioned with respect to the iPad Air during the presentation, I read too much into that.
So a developer only needs to get a mini to test 64-bit code and A7/M7 functionality.
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
They are free with all new macs or iOS devices.
Re: (Score:2)
Exactly! Free stuff can't possibly be as good as stuff that costs $200.
Re: (Score:2)
They will just make it up in volume.
Re: (Score:2)
The new iPad Mini comes in 16, 32, 64, AND 128 GB models. Just like the full-sized ones.
Re:Only 16GB (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Only 16GB (Score:4, Interesting)
Psychology. A lot of people will stay on the base model and pat themselves on the back for $100 well saved. The people who want more space will by sold up to the 64/128 GB model and pat themselves on the back for getting so many more GB/$. I think the subset of people who are:
a) certain 16GB won't be enough
b) certain 32GB will be enough
c) willing to pay $100 extra for the privilege
is in an extreme minority. People have no idea what NAND prices are, they just need to feel good about their own choice and the easiest way is to give them a bad choice to make it look good against. So raise your hand everyone with a 32GB model ;)
Re: (Score:3)
Investigate an Air Stash [airstash.com] for unlimited storage on your iPad. My husband has one and they rock.
Re:Mavericks is free? Hmmm... (Score:4, Informative)
Re: (Score:3)
I've been staying on SL deliberately since Lion came along and broke my Rosetta. Now I don't have anything needing Rosetta but I am increasingly finding that new programs I want only work on Lion and above. So I'm going to upgrade to Mavericks in a few weeks when the first major bug release comes along and means we'll avoid bricking our machines. I'm spending the evening backing up my home directory, and my SL DVD is sitting nearby so I can get straight back to where I am if it all goes horribly wrong.