Views on Apple and iPods

Nine September 2009

Technically it is 10 September as I write this, but give me some artistic leeway, right? Right. Nine September it is. Nine September is also the day when everyone had been awaiting the Apple Keynote for 2009. Steve Jobs is back on stage after a liver transplant and there are new Nanos on offer with new features.

The geek division of the internet is going to be joyous and highly cynical about the things that Apple has done to their whole product line. The much awaited Apple Tablet wasn't unveiled at the Keynote. The iPod Nano with a camera was indeed unveiled. The disappointment is also that the camera is ONLY with iPod Nano, not with iPod Touch.

And, in case you failed to catch it, the camera is VIDEO ONLY. So, no you can’t go clickety clickety with your shiney new iPod. Yea, you can shoot a video at 30FPS. The price drop comes as a welcome surprise. But then again, Apple is the NAME which sells. Because, come on, let’s face the bitter truth, in terms of sound quality the devices from SONY fair much better than Apple. Most people do not use the included Apple earphones anyway.

And above all anything that Apple brings in the iPods, MOST of the features have been in the phones that were available say, 2-3 years back too. A camera and a radio, are pretty basic function in a cellphone and who’d need an MP3 player for that? Plus, a phone can be used to make calls too.

Yes, there is lot of fancy-shamcny stuff included in the iPods, but frankly, at the end of the day, all you want to do is listen to some music. The Apple iPhone/iPods/iTouch all have the backing of a brand and the Apple Apps store. But come on people, wake up a little. These devices are not something that is breaking new ground and showing some innovative features. It is the brand which is selling and the brand is what the people are buying. For being a fanboy or a fashion geek, but I do not see myself buying an Apple product anytime in near future. Because I can do 80% of things on my old W550i that an Apple iPhone can do. I’d stick with Sony any day.

I just don’t get the hype. Apple is just releasing a wide range of products (I love this phrase) with almost similar functions (that are outdated), different memory capacities and price that is low. Something is fishy here. I do not know what, but I DO know that time will tell.