If you've been paying attention, you already know that Apple
released a number of upgrades and applications yesterday. While I'm
certain that some people were disappointed, I suspect that Apple hit
just the right balance between risk and safety.
Software
On the safe side we have iLife.
While the integration between the apps is certainly whizzy, this is
more of an evolutionary change. In fact, this kind of integration is
to be expected from Apple, and I suspect that many users have craved
these features without actually knowing it.
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Final Cut
Express also falls into the safer side of the announcements.
It's not exactly a groundbreaking product, but it fits tightly into
the product matrix. It's better than iMovie, but not as robust as the
full version of Final Cut Pro. It's right up the middle where the
risk is low.
Apple was a little more daring with Safari.
Writing a new Web browser is no mean feat, but do we really need one
more? Choice is nice, but Chimera
works great. In fact, unless Safari introduces tabbed browsing,
Chimera will remain my default browser. That's not to say that Safari
can't improve browsing significantly, but it does mean that Apple has
stepped into a world that, even for standards-based browsers, isn't
all that pretty.
Safari is also a bit of a slap to Microsoft. Internet Explorer
ships with OS X, but that didn't stop Jobs from pointing out how
slow it is. We might see sparks over this one if Apple decides to
drop Explorer from the install lineup. Might Microsoft complain that
Apple, a monopoly, is trying to shut it out of the market? We'll
see.
Keynote is also
a bit of a daring move. Actually, I prefer to think of it as a daring
first step. Keynote may be the first salvo in Apple's attempt to
supplant Microsoft Office on the Mac platform. With full PowerPoint
compatibility, there's no real reason not to use Keynote. And at $99,
it really knocks Microsoft hard on the price point. An individual
copy of PowerPoint runs $399, according to Microsoft's online
price list.
Now let's do the math. Microsoft Office is $499 for four
applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Entourage). If Apple were to
produce an equivalent to each of these products and sell each for
$99, it would cost users roughly $100 less to go with Apple. Factor
in a discount for buying them as a suite, and users could save even
more.
I find it unlikely that Apple will leave Keynote as a standalone
app. It's just begging for integration with other office
applications. I guess we'll find out over the next couple of
years.
Hardware
Which leaves us with the new PowerBooks. I think Apple is playing
it safe here. The two new PowerBooks are certainly appealing, but I
can't see millions lugging around a
17" laptop. I'm certain, however, that they will be reasonably
successful.
The odd one out appears to be the new 12"
PowerBook. I'm not really certain how this is going to go. To me,
it appears to try to please everyone and winds up pleasing no one.
For people who really need the PowerBooks power, 12" is just too
small. In addition, the 1024 x 768 resolution is, in my opinion, too
small to get serious multimedia work done. The 1024 x 768 resolution
of the iBook is the main reason I bought a PowerBook G4 instead. The
likely combination in a household, I feel, would be a 15" or 17"
PowerBook for production work and a 12" or 14" iBook for more basic
tasks. I just don't think the 12" PowerBook can find enough of a
niche between the high-end iBook and the low-end PowerBook.
Apple has done a good balancing act. With the right mix of risk
and safety, Apple is in a good position to weather the current
economic storm.
Stephen Van
Esch is the founder and president of
the
E-learning Foundry, an online training
resource for Mac users. Steve loves the Mac and is doubly bilingual,
since he's also fluent in Windows and French.
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