It’s Showtime

As I’ve said, I’m a big Apple fan. But, sometimes, even I weary of the hype. No one has a reality distortion field like Steve, but man oh man, yesterday’s special event left me wanting. Existing iPods got updated. OK, yawn. More storage, better screens, better batteries. At this point you have to do that both to get new components, and just to stay in the game. Smaller shuffle. Shuffle is cute, but only as a 2nd or third portable player. Nano becomes what it should have been, a smaller Mini, with pretty colors. Hopefully the screen and case won’t scratch as a result of fast moving dust or photons as mine did within 24 hours with very gentle handling. Guess I’ll continue to struggle along with my PSP as a mobile video platform.

Big news is movie downloads. New iTunes, but to be fair, that’s in support of movie downloads. Some of it is nice, some isn’t. You can now automatically download album art, but at a cost of telling Apple everything you own, which they’ll use ostensibly to get more album covers?

Guess I’m just not excited about the movie downloads. I like DVD’s with special features, and the ability to take it with me and watch it wherever I want. DRM downloads which offer no extra material, and will restrict viewing to authorized machines? Sigh. Just like iTunes TV shows, I can’t get excited about it for the cost and with the limitations. Oh, and Disney only. It must be good to be the majority stockholder of a major studio when no one else wants to play with you.

Speaking of, I just recently became aware that as a result of Steve, Disney canceled it’s long-standing merchandising deal with McDonalds for Happy Meal toys. Not for financial reasons, since it brought millions to Disney, but because Steve doesn’t support fast food lifestyles. Of course, one could argue many recent Disney movies are the equivalent of fast food for the brain, but I digress…

Now, how about Disney owned television portraying political posturing as “pseudo documentary”? Where’s the strong moral stance there? No to Big Mac, yes to right wing politics. Well, you’ve got to pick your battles.

I’d love an online movie library if I could get to it anywhere, if I’m on the road, on vacation, at a friends house. I can’t legally do that with my DVD collection, unless I build a system around a DVD jukebox, or do an “analog transfer” of the DVD. Guess I’ll continue moving along with my 100’s of Laser Discs and DVD’s imported through analog video out, and then have an online library of movies I paid good money for that I can get to without DRM restrictions, or breaking Federal laws, at reduced quality (but good enough for a small portable screen).

Now, if “iTV” allows me movies on demand for $1? That might be interesting.

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Sep 13 2006