The iPhone App Store Should Let You Try Before You Buy

With only a few exceptions, it's been universally accepted that Apple's move to sell iPhone applications on its iTunes store is an unqualified success. In fact, it's widely believed that Microsoft will soon follow suit, offering a centralized place to acquire and download applications for Windows Mobile. But in speaking with other iPhone users, I've heard concerns voiced that there is no way to use an application on a trial basis. We know Apple has the capability to use DRM to limit the amount of time a customer can rent a movie, so why not use the same technology to let users try apps for days or weeks?

Software developers outside the world of the iPhone have a number of ways to try and gain compensation for their work. Some give it away via freeware. Others use what's called donationware, which essentially means the product is free, but they provide a way for you to donate money, should you want to. Even more popular is shareware, which has a listed price, but lets you download it for free, and pay later, often limited to a number of users, or through repeat annoyances that make you want to upgrade. And, of course, you have software that's only available at full price, or in retail packages.

But so far, Apple's iPhone App Store only offers two options - free, and paid. And if you've paid for a premium application, and it turns out you don't like it, tough luck.

Practically the only way an application developer can offer users a way to "try before they buy" is to offer a free "lite" version on the iTunes App Store in addition to a premium version. Customers who want the additional features of the paid application would try the lite version and then buy a second, parallel, application, and need to delete the old.

This inflexibility is unnecessary given Apple's experience with setting DRM to give users a limit to how many times they can burn playlists to CDs and how long they have to watch movies rented from iTunes. Given that a text description and small pictures displayed on the iTunes store isn't always a great representation of the user's experience with the software app, it makes sense for the company to work with developers to offer time or use-based limits to software, which would first be free and later prompt to be paid for. The ability to try applications before buying them wold reduce consumers' concerns and still offer developers a way to make a return on their investment. DRM doesn't always have to be bad - it can help both users and content creators.

iPod Touch As An Apple TV Remote? Cooler Than I Thought.

When Apple's iTunes application store opened up last week, I, at first, skipped over the free Remote application that offered the option to manage iTunes or the Apple TV from your iPhone or iPod Touch. It just seemed stupid at worst, or a proof of concept at best. Why would I want to duplicate the Apple Remote's capabilities with a much more functional device, I thought? But after checking the application out the last few days, I can attest to the fact I've been pleasantly surprised, and am now taking my iPod Touch with me around the house, acting as a DJ on the move.

As the screenshots included in this post show, the Remote application on the iPod Touch or iPhone does more than just meet the same capabilities offered by Apple's miniscule white remote. Benefitting from the wide touchscreen, I can browse thousands of songs, albums and artists quickly, and see a mirror image of what's playing on my Apple TV, letting me change the song with a single tap of my finger, anywhere in range of the Airport wireless network that both my device and the Apple TV share.


In contrast, the white remote has always been painstakingly slow to browse large libraries, practically forcing an indent into my thumb as I held the down key just to pass the letter "M". Given my library has almost 6,000 songs on it, and 23.6 days worth of music, that can be a frequent problem.

Once the Remote application is synched up with your Apple TV, using it is very simple. Choose "Playlists", "Albums", "Artists", or search for a song or any band. Unlike the white remote, you can actually type on your iPod Touch or iPhone, making this very quick.


Now, instead of relying on my iTunes on the laptop, and just turning up the sound to full blast, or resigning myself to not listening to my music as I move around the house, I can leverage the sound system on my TV set, and play DJ from room to room. I can even go to the "More" tab and select what the Apple TV was always intended to do - play movies and TV shows. But overnight, this little would-be useless application has become a must-have. I'm not leaving my iPod Touch laying around any more.

Think Apple Would Dare To Take On the Movie Theaters?

With the addition of movie rentals on iTunes, Apple has given my wife and me a new entertainment outlet, letting us essentially have video on demand from a wide library, for only 3 or 5 dollars, at any time we wish. Just recently, Apple made more headlines by signing a pact where new DVD releases would simultaneously debut on iTunes. But this still doesn't solve the issue that iTunes doesn't have new releases that are currently playing in the box office, and I think Apple should be strongly considering working with the movie studios to deliver movie rentals of films currently in the theater, at a premium price, if they aren't already.

While new movies and blockbusters hit the theaters each weekend, it's been a long time since we made the effort of going to the theater, paying $11 and up per ticket, stomaching high prices for food and drink, and even then not having first dibs on seating, lacking the ability to pause or rewind the film (like on TiVo or Apple TV), and being forced to sit through an incredible amount of previews and pre-feature ads.

Our living room TV and laptop are the new theater.

But this still means we're missing out on the experience of seeing a new movie in its opening weekend, and being part of the conversation with others who have caught up on the latest Hollywood mega hit. By the time these one-time hits have reached iTunes, and therefore, the Apple TV, months have likely passed by, and often, the interest I once had in seeing the film has passed, leaving me more likely to do something else.

The movie theater industry has already lost me as a customer, for the most part. But they can get some of my revenue back if they strike a deal with Apple, and make new releases available on iTunes the day they debut in the theater.

I propose the following pricing for a 24-hour new movie rental:

• $9.99 for viewing in the first two weeks.
• $7.99 for viewing in weeks three through six.
• $5.99 for viewing in weeks six through twelve.
• Standard iTunes pricing for all weeks afterward.

There's no question that getting this deal completed won't be easy. Theater owners would be rightly concerned as to losing customers and entertainment moguls aren't known for being flexible. Movie studios might even be concerned you'll rent from iTunes, and show a new feature on your huge flat-screen TV to a busload of your friends. And maybe you would. But if we see Apple's work so far, both with music, and later TV shows and now, feature-length films, it only makes sense that this day will soon come. As a consumer, I can't wait, and I hope I don't have to wait too long. My credit card is ready, and until these new releases show up on iTunes, I can find better things to spend my money on.

Previous Discussion:

March 22, 2007:
The Apple TV Debate Is Upside Down
April 11, 2007:
How Apple Could Crush Netflix Now
September 15, 2007:
Adding Movie Rentals to iTunes Would Save the Apple TV
October 29, 2007:
Eight Reasons the Apple TV is Failing, and How It Can be Saved

My Apple TV Still Wants Rentals, But Apple is Holding Out

Remember how pleased we were to learn that Apple finally introduced movie rentals via iTunes? I was stoked. In the midst of the writers' strike, the fact we could potentially gain access to new entertainment via the Apple TV and playing on our big screen was a home run. But weeks after the MacWorld Expo hubbub has died down, we're still left waiting, and the situation isn't getting better any time soon. For as the calendar turns from January to February, we got news today that Apple still needs a few more weeks to get it right. (See Also: TUAW)

Rats.

Since the introduction of movie rentals, we've already enjoyed a few films we hadn't seen in the theaters, including "The Hoax" and "A Guy Thing". Both were in the perfect spot for this - not good enough to see for $10, but of high enough quality where I'd feel bad if I snuck off to some Peer to Peer solution and grabbed it, sans paying. As you would expect, the viewing experience from Apple was simple. After the films downloaded, they were in a special section of iTunes for rented movies, and played just like a DVD would on my laptop. When done, I deleted them, and got that 1 GB or so back of free space on my drive, just as I would expect.

But, despite this wonderful innovation, my Apple TV still doesn't have access to it. I've checked the settings, and each time I look, I'm told I'm "Up to Date". What a shame. Hopefully, Apple's newfound transparency in terms of notifying customers there are delays doesn't turn into a repeat pattern as the weeks turn to months and so on...

Apple TV Movie Rentals Will Be Great During Writers' Strike

With pretty much all of prime-time TV on hiatus for the foreseeable future, we only have a few options as far as our TV watching goes. We could stop watching (not going to happen), we could lower our standards in regards to which shows we watch, pick up new shows, or start using our TiVo and Apple TV to pick up movies.

Luckily for us, Apple made that decision much more clear today - with the company finally announcing movie rentals on iTunes, months after we recognized the market opportunity for Apple to crush Netflix. Making the announcement even better yet, the update is free, even for us "Version 1.0" Apple TV owners.

Steve Jobs said Apple had failed in bringing Web video to the big screen. As we'd said many times before, he said customers wanted movie rentals. We didn't want to buy our films. We wanted to watch them once, and throw them away. Today's announcement offers exactly that - and we can make our selections via Apple TV, without ever needing to download directly onto our computers.

Now, we've gone from having no good new content on our TV to a seeming infinite, near-instant repository for quality films. While we haven't yet updated our Apple TV to get there, we already recognize the benefits. And while Apple made many other announcements today, covering the iPhone, the iPod and new laptops, it's the addition of movie rentals to iTunes that will have immediate impact on the way we take in media.

In one day, the Apple TV went from the endangered list to the must-watch list. Boom.

I Don't Care About Macworld This Year

It's January, and for most good Mac geeks like me, the initial post-holiday doldrums are immediately followed by anticipation of Apple's annual religious revival and trade show. Rumors typically fly fast and thick about what Steve Jobs will unveil. Live chats on multiple Web sites can slow servers and set traffic records. Spy photos are graded on their level of blurriness and new rumor sites can spring up on the strength of one good ruse.

But this year, I don't care.

You see, the story's changed. Apple used to make game-changing announcements at Macworld. Apple used to shock and surprise everybody at Macworld. And very often, I was left refreshing the Apple store online with credit card in hand.

But this year, I don't think that's going to happen.

You see, the story's changed. Apple is now making major game-changing announcements all year long. And they are no longer the underdog they once were - the little guy I could root for. Now, their market cap is three times that of Dell, and is just above that of Cisco. The big announcements, as far as I know, have already happened.

What could possibly take place to get me giddy? An iPhone update? Don't care. What about the second generation Apple TV? Don't care. The introduction of a new desktop application that runs Exchange? Maybe that would be interesting. An update to iPhoto that makes it go 20% faster. Please...

So... this year, I don't care.

The early comments about a tablet or a sub notebook or iTunes acting as a music label to sell its own songs aren't interesting. I already have a MacBook Pro. I already have an iPod Touch. I already have the first-gen Apple TV. And I already use iTunes for all my music downloads.

If they're finally getting around to movie rentals, then great. But that's in both the "obvious" and "about frickin' time" category. I won't be at Macworld this year, missing it for the 7th straight year, and while we'll be paying attention, we won't be expecting it to alter our life any.

Also See:
Macworld Expo Eve 2006
MacWorld San Francisco 2007 Eve

Apple Finally Getting Around to iTunes Movie Rentals

I'm hoping it's not in the "too little, too late" category for Apple TV, but it looks like Apple is finally making headway in negotiations with the major movie studios to offer customers the ability to rent films through iTunes, in addition to purchasing them outright. According to the Financial Times, Apple will likely announce a deal with 20th Century Fox at Macworld San Francisco next month kicking off a deal that would not only bring movie rentals to iTunes, but also DVDs rippable to iPods.

I've long said the Apple TV is on fumes without a rental option, and that if Apple could successfully roll out a movie rental service through iTunes, it could spell the death knell for services we enjoy today, from Netflix to Amazon Unbox and even Blockbuster.

While 20th Century Fox is said to be furthest along, the article also mentions Cupertino is working on also getting Sony Pictures Entertainment, Paramount and Warner Bros queued up. Here's to hoping Steve Jobs can pull out a big rabbit from his hat and make our early investment in the Apple TV a good one.

Also See:
Amazon Gets $11.97 of My Apple Money
Eight Reasons the Apple TV is Failing, and How It Can be Saved
Adding Movie Rentals to iTunes Would Save the Apple TV
Apple Entering Video Rental Download Market?
How Apple Could Crush Netflix Now

Google Dominates My 2007 Blog Statistics

In honor of Christmas, and wrapping up the end of the year, it's pretty easy to see that 2007 was a revolution for louisgray.com, as we worked to mature the blog from a self-focused journal to a resource for technology news, Web 2.0 insights and interaction with a focused community.

Using the Analog Web log analysis software, it's reported that more than 1.1 million Web pages were read, good for more than 3,000 per day, transferring more than 100 gigabytes of data.


We went from serving up nearly 25,000 pages in the month of January to more than 130,000 in the record-breaking month of October, which also served up 15 gigabytes of data.

But most interestingly, if we walk down the 12 most popular posts of the year, from January 1 through today, one name pops to the very top - Google. Take a look:

Rank	Blog Post	Page Views
1.	Soft-Core Porn, Sex Themes Power Google Video	10,400
2.	Google's Earth Day Logo Makes a Splash	6,700
3.	10 Suggestions to Improve Google Reader	5,400
4.	Facebook Google Reader App Rebrands As Feedheads	3,200
5.	Internal Linking On Some Tech Blogs Is Out of Control	3,100
6.	The Biggest Blogs Aren't Really Blogs Any More	2,800
7.	The Apple TV Debate Is Upside Down	2,100
8.	Hype It Up: Ballhype Is Here to Change the Game	1,700
9.	Google Video Still Peddling Soft-Core Porn Smut	1,700
10.	Eight Reasons the Apple TV is Failing, and How It Can be Saved	1,700
11.	BitTorrent Bails Me Out on TiVo's Simpsons Miss	1,700
12.	I Have Seen the Future of Social RSS Feed Readers	1,600

And where did they all come from? Google, Google and Google, of course. Google Images, Google Reader and Google Search dominated referrals to the site this year, with BlogLines following behind. Additional bumps came from the occasional mention on Scobleizer.com, Digg.com and TechMeme.


I don't have "hard" expectations for this blog, but I would hope 2008 sees at least a doubling of total page views, and it'd be great to at least double RSS subscribers as well. As we're approaching 200 now on Feedburner, I think 500 would be a nice goal for Christmas next year. If you're not yet subscribed, get your e-mail on the list!

Also, for more end of year summaries, check out Pro Blogger's What was your most popular post in 2007? and Webomatica's 2007 summary.

Amazon Gets $11.97 of My Apple Money

With the new TiVo HD installed, we have access to the Amazon unbox service, letting us rent popular movie titles directly through the TiVo box. For only $3.99, we can download everything from "The Simpsons Movie" to Jim Carrey's "The Number 23" or "Close Encounters of the Third Kind", and keep each show at home for a full 30 days.

So now, from one box, I can record multiple TV channels simultaneously, get recommendations for new shows I would like, stream my iTunes and iPhoto library via TiVo Desktop, and download movies from Amazon.

Meanwhile, my Apple TV just sits there. If Apple offered movie rentals through iTunes, I'd likely have bought them through iTunes, out of loyalty, and the company's typical leading interface and ease of use. But they don't... still. So tonight, I purchased three films for $3.99 apiece, totaling $11.97, sending my money to Seattle, Washington instead of nearby Cupertino.

The more I can do with my TiVo HD or my Wii, the less I see myself using the Apple TV. The Apple TV still offers the best way to get my full iTunes Library and access YouTube through the television, but that's it. And if I keep using the Amazon unbox service and find myself happy with it, then I just might become a fairly loyal customer for them instead, even if Apple eventually follows on with movie rentals.

Apple, your time for leadership with the Apple TV has passed. Now, just get your act together and stop forcing me to give my money to your competition.

Eight Reasons the Apple TV is Failing, and How It Can be Saved

I enthusiastically bought the Apple TV early this year, and was among the first to receive it when Apple started fulfilling orders. But what could have been the best conduit between the Internet and my Television has turned out to instead be a reminder of what even good technology companies can do when they don't make a product line a priority. Should Apple continue to neglect the Apple TV, it just might disappear altogether, and I'd be stuck using mine as an expensive conduit for playing iTunes, as I do now.

(See also: Jeremy Toeman: Why isn’t AppleTV an actual TV?)

Why the Apple TV is Failing

1. No Compelling Exclusive Content

Sometimes a killer application, game or content can drive a product from one of the crowd to a must-have. Witness how the X-Box, largely ignored in light of the Nintendo Wii's success, spiked in demand with the launch of Halo 3. The Apple TV, and its content provider, iTunes, don't offer any compelling television or film content that can't be found elsewhere. Bringing YouTube to the big screen isn't exactly innovative either.

2. No Flexibility In Displaying Content

Locking customers into iTunes and the iTunes Music store sold tens of millions of iPods. But the fact that I can't take downloaded .avi files, DiVx files, RealPlayer, Windows Media or anything else from my computer to the Apple TV, with the exception of QuickTime videos or iTunes downloads reduces my options to use it. Just like Apple once embraced the "Rip. Mix. Burn." slogan to attract downloaders, there's a mountain of people using BitTorrent and other services to get movies free. The Apple TV could become a must have box for those guys if they had an outlet. A simple tagline of "Don't Steal Movies" would give Apple enough cover, as the line "Don't Steal Music" once did.

3. TV is Free, Stupid

Let's see. I can either watch a show live for free with commercials, I could record it to my TiVo for free and skip commercials, or I could pay $1.99 to get commercial-free 22 minute episodes of my shows. I think I'll take the TiVo method. The iTunes package worked great for music because consumers were accustomed to paying for music, but we're not accustomed to paying for TV.

4. Purchasing Movies Makes Little Sense

How often do you watch movies more than once, even the classics? Not too often. There are many outlets to rent movies and return them, from NetFlix to BlockBuster and beyond. Why would I pay anywhere from $10 to $15 to wipe out a gigabyte of hard drive space and not enjoy it more than once? I haven't purchased a single movie from iTunes still, and can't think of why I would. (Also: See above for BitTorrent allowing for free downloads today or my post from April)

5. Apple Is Distracted

Apple only mentioned the Apple TV once during the last quarter's financial earnings call. They don't care, so why should we care? They don't even want to tell you how many they sold, and it's no secret that if a company won't break out one product line, but does for all the others, they're hiding something. With the iPhone, Leopard and Mac sales taking the headlines, the Apple TV is getting the short shrift. The recent ugly spat between NBC and Apple made it clear that nobody is winning the revenue game there when it comes to film and TV downloads through iTunes.

6. Apple Isn't Supporting Eager Developers

The Apple TV is a cleverly disguised cheap Macintosh, and the developer community was once excited enough to hack into the box to run native applications and get the Apple TV to act more like a Mac. With the right support, the Apple TV could be extended to be an excellent game machine, to add more video sources, and grab the eye of the geek community.

7. iTunes is Losing the Video Streaming War

One of today's biggest pieces of news was Hulu, NBC's attempt to take TV shows online, supported by commercials. ABC has long done the same thing. Joost has some extremely compelling software that lets me select shows on demand, run streaming from other computers, with minimal advertising. To even watch a single episode from iTunes, I have to download the whole thing and then sync it to the Apple TV.

8. iTunes and the Apple TV Have No Answer for Rentals

In my mind, it would be incredibly easy for Apple to offer movie rentals, with DRM, that would get me to download movies from iTunes. I would dump my NetFlix account if I could get films from iTunes to the Apple TV in an hour, rather than the days it takes to turn my NetFlix account around. But while there have been rumors about the service's debut now and again, we've got absolutely nothing to show for it.

How the Apple TV Can Be Saved

1. A Solution for Movie Rentals is Needed Now

Suck it up, Steve. Admit that people don't want to own their movies the way they own their music. Precedent has been set that movies are to be watched once or a few times, not many times (See my note from January). And as fast as networks are getting and as big as hard drives are getting, the concept of downloading movies of any quality is still a big deal. Let me download, watch, and delete. That's all I want. You work out the business model.

2. Cut Exclusive Deals With Movie Studios

Can you imagine if movies debuted in the theater at the same time as they did on iTunes? If I could see those films playing in the box office on my home screen instead of having to go to a theater, with its crowds, sticky floors and crying babies, I would do it. But if I have to wait 6-9 months to get it on iTunes, by that point I've either seen it already or stopped caring.

3. Make the Box Something New: A Game Device?

If it's really a Mac under that hood, Steve, then it's a lot more powerful than you're letting it be. See how the Nintendo Wii has captured the imagination of so many? What if you could make your one box the answer not only for music and videos and YouTube, but for video games? I don't care if you get Halo 3 on there tomorrow, as quite honestly I'd be content with Cribbage or Scrabble on the big screen, so long as you promised Tetris and sports games would eventually show up.

4. Open the Box Up to Developers and Support Them

Developers are not the enemy. In fact, they can be the best allies you have, doing the work your team isn't doing, and expanding your customer base, without much cost to you. You supply them the hardware and the network connections, and let them do the rest. Hold seminars on how to program for the Apple TV.

5. Act Like You Care About Apple TV

Don't call this box I purchased a hobby. I took it seriously, can't you? While I understand the iPhone is pretty cool, as is the iPod, and Leopard and Mac... don't you think this box, with so much potential, should get a little love? Don't tell me you shipped it to just give up on it.

6. Watch What the Industry Is Doing and Learn

Every few months or so, I read an article about how TiVo is dying. Really? Their box still kicks your ass. What about SlingBox? Couldn't figure out how to get me a way to watch my Apple TV when I was on the road, but some punk startup turned that idea into an acquisition worth hundreds of millions? What about Joost or Comcast OnDemand? How can you take this tremendous Apple TV and iTunes package and come up with an answer for real-time on demand? So far, you've got nothing.

Steve, and the Apple team, we're among your biggest supporters. That's obvious. I'm not the type of user who would complain if you dropped the price or added new features after I bought. I bought version 1 and I know the issues there. But for you to ship away and slip away makes no sense here. If you ever think iTunes will make it in the video world, you're holding on to the very best way to make that happen, the Apple TV. But if you don't do anything about it, it will be too late, and you will have failed.

Now please excuse me so I can go watch some Netflix DVD we rented. When I get back home, I also look forward to catching up on my TiVo shows. Will you have anything new for me?

Apple Analysis Analysis - Earnings Call Extra

Following today's earnings announcement from Apple, the company held a conference call with analysts, which is typical. Thanks to Seeking Alpha, we have the full transcript from the call, and can see how often analysts and the company talked about specific aspects of the company's business.

As you can see in the below chart, despite having revenue of more than 60% of the company's business, the Mac, by all accounts, growing in market share, played the poor second cousin to the continued buzz around iPhone and iPod.


Click to Enlarge Image

Using Safari 3's "find matches" tally, we see the call featured the following terms the following number of times:

iPhone: 51 times
iPod: 41 times
Mac: 25 times
AT&T: 12 times
iTunes: 8 times
Leopard: 7 times
Macbook: 4 times
iMac: 4 times
Macintosh: 3 times
iPod Touch: 2 times
iLife: 2 times
Apple TV: 1 time
iWork: 1 time

** The two iPod Touch mentions are also included in the larger iPod number.

While Apple reported that Mac products and services were 62% of total revenue, in contrast to 36% for Music products and services, iPod and iPhone total mentions outpaced Mac mentions by a combined 92 to 36. Throw in AT&T and iTunes, and Music outpaces Mac by a whopping 112 to 36. Who cares about actual revenue when you've got buzz?

Also, the laggards in Apple's portfolio, iWork and Apple TV, got just about the amount of attention I would have expected - one mention apiece. It's not as fun to talk about those aspects of the business that aren't gracing magazine covers and becoming the must-have items of 2007.

To listen to the call yourself, check out Apple's archive on their Web site.

Adding Movie Rentals to iTunes Would Save the Apple TV

Sometimes, being an early adopter really bites. After years of drooling anticipation from fans, myself included, Apple delivered on their set top box strategy, with the debut of the Apple TV, acting as the conduit between video on my iTunes and my wide-screen TV. While I recognized the first box would have issues, I had to get one. I also trusted that the box's feature set could be updated on the fly, putting my faith in Apple to deliver additional functionality as the box gained in maturity.

And in the six months or so that I've had my Apple TV, the only real news is that I gained the ability to browse YouTube in June. I still don't have Apple's blessing to play .avi files from other sources on my widescreen TV. I still don't have anything like games on the Apple TV, and worst of all, iTunes still hasn't debuted movie rentals - what I believe to be the missing link between potential product obsolescence and product success.

Today, my Apple TV largely plays my music on the TV's speakers, acting as an overpowered stereo, with some cool graphics. But the price barrier to download films - at $10 for anything from the iTunes store, is a fallacy in the face of Netflix pricing, and the ability to set up my TiVo to proactively find films for free.

With this background, we now see Forbes lustily calling the Apple TV "The iFlop", saying while the iPhone has soared in the global consciousness, the Apple TV has been dissed as a hobby and hidden in the backs of stores. Apple won't even discuss the product's sales success, or lack thereof, as an individual line.

I have faith Apple can get their act together on the Apple TV, but very little faith in the media owners of today (i.e. the movie studios) to do what's best for consumers instead of what's best for their own pockets. If they do not deliver reasonable download terms for movie rentals via iTunes, it could both spell the death of Apple TV and even worse, send us to BitTorrent and other less-desired means to get our digital entertainment fix.

Let's get this done, Apple. I've been begging since April for you to crush Netflix, have seen rumors you'll pull this off at least since July and I have no interest in seeing Forbes' dire prediction come true.

New TAB Post: Apple Remote Could Slow Apple TV Gaming

With the Nintendo Wii on board, I've been thinking a lot about how intuitive and fun it is to play the console, and how, in contrast, my Apple TV has found a lot of idle time. I think Apple's hobby has a lot of potential as a game platform, but Steve Jobs is being quiet, and I think the focus on minimalism, from the box to the remote, offers up challenges to developers and potential game players.

After all... the Apple Remote simply doesn't even have enough buttons to play Tetris, let alone Mario Brothers. Would it be a major impediment to Apple expanding the platform? I think it would.

That's the background behind my most recent contribution to The Apple Blog, titled Would Apple's Remote Deny Proper Gaming?. Per agreement with them, I will not be cross-posting the piece, but instead, have provided a link. Enjoy.

New TAB Post: Living One Mac Generation Behind

Being an early adopter in the tech world has its perks and its drawbacks. So can being a late follower.

For all the times I've sprung early on new Apple products, like iPod, Apple TV, iLife, etc., I've similarly lagged on the hardware side. My first computer I didn't share with the rest of the family was quickly lapped by Apple's 68k to PowerPC chip line transition. Now, I'm sitting here with a G4 laptop, without Intel Inside. While the machine works great, I'm already seeing interesting apps, like VMWare Fusion and Joost, just outside my reach. It can be quite frustrating!

That's the background behind my most recent contributions to The Apple Blog, titled Living One Mac Generation Behind. Per agreement with them, I will not be cross-posting the piece, but instead, have provided a link. Enjoy.

New TAB Post: Let Your Apple TV in on iPhone Mania

Think the Apple TV is getting the short shrift in comparison to the seemingly unending iPhone hype? It's bad enough Steve Jobs called the set top box a hobby, but now the iPhone is being trotted out as the solution for all that ails mankind.

So, in an effort to make our Apple TV feel more welcome and part of the process, we've been watching Apple's new iPhone tutorial videos through the Apple TV, and not on our laptop. After all, who wouldn't like guides on activation for products they may not purchase on a 42-inch widescreen TV?

That's the background behind my most recent contribution to The Apple Blog, titled Let Your Apple TV in on iPhone Mania. Per agreement with them, I will not be cross-posting the piece, but instead, have provided a link. Enjoy.

TiVo Upgrade Offer Just Might Work On Me

Forget about the iPhone for a second, if possible. TiVo sent me an e-mail earlier today, practically begging me to upgrade my old Series 1 DVR with lifetime service to a new 80-hour Series 2 DVR model, for $299, taking my lifetime service contract with me. While TiVo's Series 2 model has been out for some time, and has already been lapped by the company's Series 3 boxes, the second generation boxes offer enough advantages over the first generation that I'm seriously tempted to take the plunge.


Click for full invite or visit the offer page

My wife and I just might be the cheapest TiVo customers in history. We didn't pay a dime for our 180 Gigabyte (140 hour) Series 1 box, which came to us from a friend as an extremely generous wedding present in April of 2003. Four-plus years later, the only money I've ever given TiVo was my initial lifetime service fee of less than $300, and I've never looked back or given TiVo a dime for new service or hardware, even finagling a free remote from the company's headquarters just last month.

But as we held steady with our TiVo, the company continued to innovate, adding the ability to record from multiple channels, and the ability to serve up home music and pictures through the device. Still, we were stymied by TiVo's doing away with the lifetime service option in a push toward more consistent monthly subscriber revenues. We were happy to stay with series one, thank you. Later, this was made even more solid when the Apple TV came into our lives, bringing photos and music to the screen on its own.

Today's e-mail has me thinking again. Is it worth $299 to pick up an 80-hour Series 2 device for dual channel recording and an improved form factor? It just might be. TiVo has done well by us for almost five years, and I'm beginning to think it's our turn to do well by TiVo and take the next step in this relationship. We'll keep you posted if we move forward.

Everybody but Me Thinks I'm Getting the iPhone

I started to get the e-mails last week. From one former colleague: "R U camping out to get your iPhone? Will you be on the Apple store’s doorstep at 6 PM sharp?" and then another came. "Have U ordered your iPhone?" they asked. Then I started getting text messages. My little sister hit me up... "Are you excited about the iPhone? Getting one?" And this doesn't even take into account the many repeated questions I've received in person and on the phone.

It's as if everybody expects me to be walking out of an Apple Store on day one with an iPhone in tow. I've even had to make a standard response to the inquiries, either by saying I can wait until version two, or explaining that I really don't need a new phone all that badly, that my Blackberry works great, and doesn't cost me a dime. One person, thinking along the same lines, wrote me, saying, "I am actually holding out. It is tempting, but I bet they release a higher capacity model come Christmas time." And maybe he's right? Who knows?

It's no secret that Apple, despite all the interest in the current iPhone models, will continue to innovate. It's no secret that hard disk capacities and flash memory capacities are increasing. And it's no secret that software or firmware updates will be upcoming to the iPhone, just like they have for the iPod and Apple TV. One could arguably wait around forever for the next version of anything. Any time I make a purchase, I run the risk of finding myself left with the previous generation shortly thereafter, and there's something to be said for not having buyer's remorse for products, so long as they're working.

With that said, I'll spell it out here, and look forward to any debates in the comments. I do not, at this time, plan to buy the iPhone tomorrow or next week, or for the foreseeable near future. I am extremely intrigued by its capabilities and how it could impact not only Apple but the entire mobile phone industry, but I don't need one. I will more quickly buy a next-generation iPod before I buy the iPhone. My Blackberry is paid for by the office and comes with a company number. Buying an iPhone would require a new number, a second phone to carry, and a new rate plan from AT&T, who is nobody's favorite. I may be an Apple fan. I may have a solid track record for early adoption of the company's products. But I'm trying to let logic win out over emotion in this case, and I will let this initial wave pass me by. And if I do give in, like a fool, and buy an iPhone at any point in the next six months, please do refer back to this post and mock me. I know I would.

iPhone Guided Tour Not on iTunes

Apple is certainly doing a lot of things right in their breakneck promotion of the iPhone's release later this week. As people are already getting in line in anticipation of Cupertino's latest offering, with days to go, the company has turned over their home page to a detailed tour of the iPhone and its features.

But oddly enough, Apple hasn't found a way to get the iPhone video into iTunes. For a company usually so good about connecting each of its wares, that seems strange.

Apple's "iPhone - A Guided Tour" page offers three ways to stream the video, and one "Large" way to download the video. And that's it. Searching for "iPhone" in iTunes doesn't uncover anything of the sort.

I'd think downloading the iPhone's guided tour from iTunes would be logical. Even weirder, Apple advertises the file as 175 megabytes, yet the download actually appears to be almost twice that size, weighing in at 318 megabytes, even though Apple so very nicely wrapped it in a .zip casing to reduce file size. (See the disparity on the left)

So what's the deal? Is Apple saving bandwidth costs by not putting the iPhone tour in iTunes? It doesn't seem to make much sense.

Comcast Cable Out Again - 7 Hours and Counting

For the second time in a fortnight, our Comcast Cable access to the Web and television has been completely knocked out, without any rhyme, reason, warning or apologies.

The first sign came at work, when I got an e-mail from Kristine, containing the note, "P.S. TV and (Wifi network) are down. Thank goodness for neighbors wifi." That was nearly seven hours ago, and so far as I can tell, our cable TV and Web access are still out, sending us scrapping for alternative entertainment, and new ways to get online. So far, we've determined which open WiFi networks in our apartment complex utilize Comcast, and therefore aren't working, and those that are working, and therefore, must be using an alternative vendor. The good news is that one works well enough for me to get the basic Internet readings done and let me contribute my whining here.

One line's outage has significant impact, setting off a chain of events. Our TiVo is recording gibberish. Our Apple TV isn't showing anything from YouTube or the iTunes Store. Our PowerBook isn't connecting at all, and I'm stuck on the Dell trying to eke out something resembling bandwidth. The only real technology item unaffected so far appears to be the Blackberry. With time, I'm sure Comcast's evil ways will take it down too somehow.

Our Apple TV Gets an Upgrade, With YouTube

Since the initial euphoria over getting the Apple TV set top box into our home, we haven't exactly been using it every day. While it's a great backup for missed shows that can be downloaded from iTunes, and also a fun way to play iTunes music through my TV's speakers, the inflexibility of iTunes in terms of not having movies for rent, or the ability to play .AVI files natively, has limited our use. Today, Apple debuted a new software update for the Apple TV that delivered a new source of entertainment: YouTube, directly to the Apple TV.

As I noted in my writeup for The Apple Blog (see: YouTube Comes to My Apple TV), the installation process was simple, taking about 10 minutes, and adds YouTube as a dedicated channel on the Apple TV, alongside TV Shows, Movies, Music, etc. Now, instead of looking at thumbnail-like video clips from the laptop, I can search and view this primarily amateur-created entertainment on the big 42-inch screen. As with my initial experience with the Apple TV, I expect this to be a fun amusement in the near term, and used sporadically longer term, but it is a good proof point for the coming marriage of television, entertainment and the Web.

The lines for where content is obtained are increasingly blurred, and whether it be my laptop, my iPod, the TV screen or, maybe, someday, the iPhone, I am getting a similarly increasing array of choices of how to enjoy this entertainment, either on the big screen or the little one. The YouTube deployment is also another proof point of continued closeness between Apple and Google, two of the "good guys" in technology, who haven't been sullied by decades of Microsoft-like behavior. While I don't anticipate any closer of a business relationship, like the one insinuated by New York Magazine this week, saying Google could acquire Apple, that these two are working together can only mean good things for consumers everywhere.

I can only hope that the previously rumored movie rentals from iTunes are next to debut from Apple. We'll be sitting with popcorn and remote in hand, waiting.

Apple Entering Video Rental Download Market?

The Financial Times confirmed today what many of us have already suspected, that Apple is working with movie studios to finally offer video rentals from iTunes for the low, low price of $2.99 for 30 days worth of access, including the ability to watch the film via iPod or iPhone.

If this comes to bear this fall, it will be the ultimate video on demand solution, and will help the Apple TV reach its full potential. If Apple has enough relationships with leading studios to deliver an impressive on demand video library, we will be canceling our Netflix account, and will start spending our money in $2.99 increments. Forget going to the theater for $10 or more per person. We'll wait for iTunes.

More of my previous comments on Apple and the dramatic effect the company could have on the video rental market can be found in the below links.

The Apple Blog: How Will Apple Compete With “On Demand”?
louisgray.com: How Apple Could Crush Netflix Now
louisgray.com: The Apple TV Debate is Upside Down
louisgray.com: What is the True Value of an Entertainment Download?

More discussion of the Financial Times news can be found on Ars Technica, Paidcontent.org, Business 2.0, Mashable! and the Wall Street Journal.