“We would be honored if you would join us.” – Darth Vader, Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
Time for an exciting round of Is the Hype Worth the Press? – The Apple Version (aka – wishful thinking about hot, new technology).
Because Dad Windu has to work pretty hard for each dollar he brings home, I do not part from our family’s cash easily. Something has to really blow my socks off to peel the dollar bills from my hands. Thus, I am not an early adopter of electronic gear – although as a card-carrying tech junkie I would l.o.v.e to be an early adopter. I’m the one who would come to your house and play with your electronic gadgets for hours on end, if only you’d let me.
The iPod Nano’s (and assorted docking accessories) that I bought for Dad Windu, Padawan Learner and myself last Christmas were the first Apple products that we’ve every owned. Shocking, I know. While I can’t say I’ve become a devotee, I have definitely caught of glimpse of the pixie dust flying around. But to really drink the Kool-Aid, I’d have to be bowled over by one or more of the following:
iPhone
I would love to get my hands on an iPhone. My current cell phone is little more than a step up from two tin cans and a string. Seriously. Welcome to 2001, Obi-Mom Kenobi! It can neither take nor receive pictures. Its keypad is far too small to text anything more than S.O.S. It has a battery life of approximately 15 seconds. It can’t even download ringtones. Theoretically it can – the manual says it can – but what actually happens is the phone freezes up and makes very, very, very bad sounds while it runs through the remaining 14 seconds of battery life. We bought it last summer when I did something very stupid. Yet it is the only mobile phone our family has. Because it is so pathetic, I rarely use it. While I find many of the apps available for the iPhone ridiculous, several appear to be potentially quite useful. I guess the biggest question I have is for that much money (in addition to a rather steep monthly service fee), would it really become an essential part of my daily life or just a source of short-term entertainment?
MacBook Air
I should admit right now that we Jedi don’t own a single laptop. I hang my head in shame. I am a tech geek without the must fundamental piece of tech. Oh, how I would love to change that fact! We’ve owned PC’s up to this point (they’re cheaper overall – if less reliable and more prone to viruses – and we can order them at a serious discount through Dad Windu’s office), but I used an older MacBook last year while traveling with a friend and found the Mac interface a pleasant experience. This same friend just got a MacBook Air. It’s a shame she lives on the complete opposite end of the continent because I’d love to put one through its paces.
iHome Stereo Mini Speakers
These little speakers are tiny, tiny, tiny which would make them perfect for traveling (and they come in my favorite color – bright red!), but can they deliver the sound? If they live up to the 4 and 5 star review on Apple.com, I could easily see Padawan Learner and I using these in our Roomette on an Amtrak train when we go out west to visit friends and family (this fall? next spring?). But at nearly $50 for something that there is a pretty good chance we’d be losing along the way (they’re the size of walnuts)… they’d have to prove themselves to be pretty darn amazing.
Mr. Jobs (or any of his people) can feel free to contact me with shipping info at their earliest convenience. I’ll be sure to give them an honest review.
[...] Excerpted from:We would be honored if you would join us. [...]
Well I have to agree with you on not being a earlier adapter of gadgets, but would love to. Sometimes it is cool to be on the “Bleeding” edge and sometimes it is not. I have 3 iProducts and I have found not being an early adapter has paid off. I have an iPod Video 30gb I bought from the apple store refurbished, a 512 mb shuffle the one that looks like a stick of gum and a 2gb nano that was donated to me by my kid brother when he bought an iPhone a few weeks ago. I would love an iPhone and the wife who hates cell phones is actually interested in it because of all the other abilities it has.
On the computer side I am a Mac stuck inside a PC…
Seriously tried very extremely hard to let everyone else have their say first. The iphone is worth every cent (ahem, penny). I used to have a mobile phone that came off the Ark as well so I appreciate where you are coming from. In fact, the whole phone part is entirely secondary to everything else I use it for. I found this interesting quote:
“However, one actually realises cost savings when the device is used in lieu of multiple digital devices and services, transforming the iPhone from a luxury item to a practical communication and entertainment tool.” http://tiny.cc/TNJlN
That is very true – I use it as a shopping list, an ebook reader, a camera at a pinch, maps and gps, entertainment for the kids in the car (no need for a dvd player), take notes, listen to music and it means on the go I’ve got net access, email access, IM if I need it. For travel I’ve got currency converters, packing lists, flight schedules, weather, local picks, language lessons. It’s got phonics, fractals and math on it. It’s got Chicktionary and Mad Libs on it. It is a wonder.
Here’s an example, yesterday we were driving to a friend’s house. My eldest son (who is dyslexic) found google maps and was tracking us on the map as we drove. I explained to him how he could click on the address book, and then on the friend’s details, and it would show him on the map where we needed to go. After that, he navigated for me from the back seat! He was so excited to be really navigating!
OMK – You know, you’re only making the techie-monster living inside me hungrier and hungrier to try one out.
Let me tell you. It’s so hard being the guy with the latest toys. I can never get my Apple BlueTooth headest to sync up with my in-Car OnStar system.
My iTunes bill is outrageous since I got arrested for downloading mashups from Poisioned.
My house is never dark because of all the little green, red, blue, and white LEDS flashing 24-7.
I have a box of random miscellaneous wires long enough to make a noose.
and
My universal remote doesn’t support the 17 other remotes on my coffee table.
OMK – Poor, E. I wish I could share your pain.
If the iPod Touch is any indication, I would say the iPhone would be definitely worth its salt. I’m not sure I’m completely ready to become a Mac person (after all, iTunes just raised their music prices from 99 cents to a buck twenty-nine), but they definitely know how to create interest!!
I’m so gadget impaired! Maybe one of these days I’ll understand all these iThings.
You do like the cool stuff, don’t ya?!
I can’t wait to get an iPhone – we actually bought one for our graduating daughter and it looks COOL!! But I can wait – my current service provides “fido dollars”, so if I wait I can actually get a free one. Then it’s just the monthlies… Once you have that, you don’t need an iPod anymore – AND it has it’s own speakers!
My next HAVE TO GET IT gadget is the Kindle. And I don’t even read books. But I want to, one day, have the time/energy to read! Hopefully by the time I save up they’ll be onto the Kindle 4 or s’thing, with all kinds of extra features
.
Oh, and was watching Episode 5 with my son last night.
Thought of you!
We’ve been an Apple family since before the Macintosh computers arrived on the scene.
The only downside I’ve seen is the price. The laptops we’ve had have been really sturdy. My ex managed to send one of them down the back stairs twice. It’s got a chip in the corner of the case. We did need to replace the cable between the body and the monitor along the way, but it had a LOT of heavy use in the years prior to that. That particular machine is still running happily at 8 years old though. We have a slightly older iMac that’s in use still too.
I probably wouldn’t invest in the speakers for the train. I’m thinking that the track noise is going to be an issue in listening to the speakers in the room.
If you’re looking for speakers in general, I highly recommend these speakers : http://www.atlanticego.com/
I have the Ice, which I found at TJ Maxx for a better deal. I can stick any of the current Ipods in the house into it (first gen shuffle through the first 80g.) The case is water resistant. I didn’t realize they made smaller units until I went looking for the link for you.
Re: the iPhone – don’t have one – the people I do generally seem to like it, though the phone aspect is their least favorite part. A headset seems to be necessary if you use it as a phone much.