iBook: The redheaded stepchild of the Macbook Pro

I haven’t done a throwback of the week for about 2 weeks now so I figured I should throw one on here. These were the iMac Laptops, also known as the iBook and one thing is for sure, they are FUGLY. You have to remember, this was back when Apple was reinventing the personal computer, not everyone had e-mail and was web savvy. These laptops look like they were designed for children because they were aimed at the younger generation they were growing up in a world with the world wide web. In conjunction with the iMac desktop computers, these laptops came in a similar color patter and even copied the commercial with the spinning computers.

This commercial makes me nostalgic for the late 90s and early 2000s when there was visible progress with the internet. It seems that now everything has changed so much in just a decade it is really incredible. So enjoy this Apple commercial, let it take you back to a time before the iPhone 4 and the iPad.

It is quite possibe that the new iPhone release will be announced at the WWDC Keynote in San Francisco.

The iPhone has been the subject of many blog posts, web rumors and millions of views for Gizmodo since the now infamous Gray Powell left his device at the bar after enjoying a few brew-dogs. What I really want to know after all of this titilation is what the 4th gen. iPhone will actually look like. Will the leaked photos actually hold water?

Honestly, it would be such a let down to see an iPhone release that even resembles the Gizmodo photos. It’s like finding all of your Christmas presents before they are wrapped. I hope that Steve and the boys at Apple surprise me and come out with something completely different than what we saw in the leaked photos. My gut tells me that you don’t serve a search warrant on Jason Chen (editor of Gizmodo) if he got a hold of a phone that looks nothing like the 4G release. But then again, it could all just be a big cover-up to keep the actual iPhone under wraps.

The iPhone 4G has yet another “exclusive” video

This video is in Portugese so it’s really better to just turn off the volume and watch. Oh look, another iPhone 4G video, the public has no idea when this phone is being released but the buzz has already been created for a release date. People want to see the new iPhone so badly, they can barely wait until June 7th when the WWDC Keynote will take place. It is thought that the iPhone will be released later this month due to the fact that At&T has blocked vacation time for employees.

Not since 2007 when the original iPhone was released, has Apple had an iPhone so eagarly awaited that the iPhone 4G. Steve Jobs and Apple have seen more leaks and sneak peeks for the iPhone than for any other device in the past. The square design of the prototype kind of reminds me of the original Nano. I think that Apple will eventually go back to the curved, sleek back design that the 3G and 3Gs sported. Granted, Apple may be trying to reinvent the wheel by taking design cues from the ipad and using the squared off edges.

Before Justin Long was a Mac, Jeff Goldblum was the voice of Apple and the iMac computer. I used to love these iMac commericals even though I thought the turquoise computer was completely made for girls. But this was the resurgence of Apple, there is some truth to these ads. Before the imac, computers came in one color…beige. And it was an ugly beige too! By adding some color to the personal computer, the Apple iMac became really popular with the younger generation of computer users. These were the first computers that were geared towards a younger generation that grew up using personal computers.

The imac was the new generation of cool computers. There were several of these ads and some were pretty humerous. Jeff Goldblum added a little bit of cool to the computer. These iMac computers came along around the time when everyone started to get their own e-mail addresses. For me, these iMac computers remind me of when the personal computer became realy mainstream and everyone had a computer. It became a new way to communicate with people all over the country. Now we don’t even think twice about sending e-mail. It almost seems outdated.

Apple Refuses to Take Cash for iPad

Diane Campbell was denied her iPad when she wanted to pay for the device in cash. After walking into the Apple store in Palo Alto, CA, Campbell was turned away due to the Apple Purchase Policy that states they will not accept cash for the purchase of iPad. The iPad must be purchased with a debit or credit card, Campbell has neither. Instead, she scraped and saved $600 to purchase her iPad not even thinking of the possibility that her legal tender would be denied.
The Apple Purchase Policy limits the sale of (2) iPad purchases per customer and iPad purchases must be made in debit or credit card only. No gift certificates and no cash. This no cash clause in the sales policy is probably due to the fact that if everyone paid in cash they would have serious piles of cash and be susceptible to robbery. These days who doesn’t have a debit card? Even if you can’t get a credit card, why can’t you get a bank debit card? If you keep all of your cash under your mattress, get with it. Put it in a checking account and get yourself some plastic.

To add to this story, it is rumored that Apple now accepts cash for ipads and has sent this women and free iPad.

After Gizmodo gave the iPhone 4G an early reveal, it is now thought that the new iPhone will be unveiled at the WWDC (World Wide Developers Conference) in San Francisco June 7-11. Also, At&T has blocked employee vacation time in June to prepare for the launch of the newest iPhone. I really can’t wait to see how close the actual iPhone looks compared to the prototype that was plastered all over Gizmodo.
I think it would really and bad ass of Steve Jobs and Apple to bring out a completely new iPhone that looks nothing like what was shown on Gizmodo. The best joke/burn ever if Apple could actually pull this off. When Gizmodo pulled back the curtain and showed the world what the Prototype looked like, it completely took the thrill out of waiting for the unveiling. Apple is in need of some new swagger, they are beginning to become the old, cantankerous guy who yells at the kids to get off his lawn. Hopefully, the unveil will show us that Apple still has it and Steve can still put on an original show.

This is a new segment that I will start doing on Mondays called the Throwback of the Week….
Will Ferrell in one of the more humerous iPod ads from the early 2000s before he was uber-famous, but still hillarious. In those days, believe it or not, Apple was not the top dog in the digitial music world and there were other contenders in the digital music game. People were primarily ripping their favorite cds on to their iPod so they could have several CDs worth of music all in one spot. In the early days of the iPod, super cool people like Moby and Smashmouth were all about the iPod, a far cry from the iPod commericals of present day. It seems so strange to think of 2001 as being a decade ago and to see how far the Apple technology has come. But I do remember this Will Ferrell commerical and thinking it was so hillarious. Hope you enjoy.

Adobe Hearts Apple

The slap fight going on between Apple and Adobe has reached another level. Adobe’s new ad campaign features a slogan, “We <3 Apple”.  Adobe took out full-page ads in the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal to let Steve Jobs know just how they feel. The ad comes off a little sarcastic but it really tries to make Jobs look like the bad-guy. It’s like Adobe is saying, “Hey, we love Apple, but they don’t love us back.” Adobe claims that Apple is not allowing inovation on the internet and that Adobe is all about creative freedom. This ad comes on the heels of a statement from Steve Jobs stating his position in the open platform issue.  Adobe isn’t trying to flatter Apple, what they are really saying is that they love developers and the developer community. After all, developers would like to be able to develop products that work on multiple platforms. Developers that know Flash now have to learn HTML 5. The Adobe campaign is set up to reiterate its position that it loves Flash developers, why doesn’t Apple? I think the last few lines of the ad says it all.

According to Walt Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal, the Adobe/Apple battle royal is not about Flash video. Basically, it is a platform war, Apple hasn’t just built great devices they have built a powerful iPhone and iPad platform that developers want to be on. Apple is taking over the future of the internet and Adobe wants to be included.

If nothing changes, in the end developers will just have to develop for different platforms. This can just be attributed to a natural part of the technology industry. New innovations require new development tactics.

Solid gold iPad and the world’s most expensive iPhone

Do you think your iPad could use more gold? Are you looking for a more  blinged out iPhone? Well look no further, check out this solid gold, diamond encrusted iPad and iPhone  from Stuart Hughes. 

iPad

Only 10 people will get their paws on the exclusive solid gold iPad SUPREME edition. The Apple logo  is  covered with 25.5 cts  of diamonds. The rear and screen surround are crafted from a single piece of solid 22ct gold and weighs 2,100 grams. The ipad is the Wi-Fi & 3G , 64GB version. All this and more can be yours for just a shade under $190,000.

iPhone 

The iPhone 3Gs Supreme is the world’s most expensive phone. The whole casing was created with 271 grams of 22ct solid gold . The front bezel houses 136 flawless diamonds,which total to a massive 68 cts . The rear logo in solid gold has 53 flawless diamonds amounting to 1ct and the front navigation button is home to a single cut very rare diamond at 7.1 cts. The chest which houses this unique handset is made from a single block of Granite , in Kashmir gold with the inner lined with Nubuck top grain leather.

Since I won’t be purchasing either of these devices anytime soon, my intial thought is that they are pretentious but I also think they are pretty sweet. I would definitely be rocking the gold iPad WITH the gold iPhone. But you can’t just get the gold iPhone and then have a regular iPad…that’s lame. If have the means to buy the most expensive phone in the world, open your wallet and go ahead and get the solid gold iPad to go along with it.

Clamcase can turn your iPad into a netbook

The Clamcase is an iPad case that holds your iPad like a netbook and a hinge holds your screen like a netbook. There is no Trackpad capability but that would defeat the Multi-touch capability. The case is rumored to be shipping later this year.
I think this is pretty cool but doesn’t it defeat the purpose of carrying an iPad? You want to carry around the ipad to replace your netbook but I still think that this is a great way to still have the portability of the iPad but also have the capability of a netbook and the ease of a full keyboard.
Also, the Clamcase can be used to prop the screen up to watch movies or showcase presentations. Clamshell is also rumored to be working on smaller versions for the iPhone and iPod Touch.