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news of 2005-01-19
Mac mini compared...
I've read this article and others that try and compare the Mac mini to cheapo PCs. Well, I think that I'm better suited to do this than a lot of those PC-heads. Because I'm a PC-head, too - but I also am a Mac user.
So let's go. First: Style. The Mac mini is so small and inobstrusive, you basically can hide it behind a PostIt™ note. The cheapo PC is so big and ugly that you're going to put it under your desk, so usability lacks (put in a DVD for me, please?). But quite clearly, the Mac mini wins hands down in this area.
Second: Operating System. The Mac mini comes with Mac OS X. The cheapo PC either comes with nothing at all (barebones system) or Windows XP Home. Both aren't really an option. So you'll either go Linux or add some money for Windows XP Pro, but the latter will eat your computer by letting in worms, viri and script-kiddies (in this order). But then Linux doesn't let you use professional software like MS Office or Adobe and Macromedia products. So again, the Mac mini clearly wins.
Third: Multimedia. The Mac mini comes with iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie, iDVD and GarageBand. This point goes to the Mac mini, and no, I'm not forgetting what the PC comes with, it's just not worth mentioning.
Fourth: Office software. The Mac doesn't come with office software, but neither does the cheapo PC. So you'll end up buying MS Office (money!), using OpenOffice.org or buying iWork for 79 USD. iWork also gives you Keynote 2. Point goes to the Mac mini here.
Fifth: Games. The Mac's not good at it. For the PC, you'll need a better graphics card, because the on-board graphics system isn't up to the task, but that'll only set you back a little money, unless you go big. But at least you can. The PC hands down wins in games.
Sixth: Ease of use. The Mac wins.
Seventh: Troubleshooting. There's a lot more troubleshooting for the PC. So the PC wins.
That's 5:2 for the Mac, and I'm quite sure that the seventh point is somehow misinterpreted by my person. ;)
[ written by fryke™ on 2005-01-19 at 20:02 CET ]
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PowerBooks and eMac EOL
PowerBooks and eMac (SuperDrive version) have been called end-of-life'd by MacBidouille. Both a new PowerBook and a G5 eMac have been rumoured to be announced at MWSF or the month after - here on our site.
[ written by fryke™ on 2005-01-19 at 16:48 CET ]
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Voice controlled iPods?
You can read about a company's efforts to create voice controlled music players at TheRegister. However: I think different. ;)
All the voice control I'd need for my iPod could fit into a headphone or a remote control unit that goes between the iPod and the headphones. It'd need a microphone (small, inobstrusive) and a tiny chip. It'd only have to be able to do the very basic controls of 'play', 'pause', 'next' and 'previous'. So nothing really fancy is needed, I guess, to enable voice controlled iPods... Doable? Yes. Should Apple do it? No, we just need a third party developer to do it. I'm sure someone would buy it.
[ written by fryke™ on 2005-01-19 at 15:00 CET ]
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