Top 5 Products Steve Jobs' Apple Still Has to Unleash?
In the wake of Bloomberg's faux-pas to end all faux-pas' last week, Forbes gives their list of the top 5 things they'd still like to see from a Steve Jobs run Apple. Sure, they tack on an unnecessarily morbid title, but at its core it's an intriguing question: Macworld 2009 or 2010, what shiny new toys do we most want to see on the receiving end of a Jobsian "Boom!"?
Forbes includes, in ascending order, an iTablet, a TV, a remote control (not the tiny white one they already make -- they want a Harmony killer), an eBook reader (Kindle Killer), and another paradigm shift in computing to follow the Apple II and Mac.
My list? Well, it would start with a hyper-miniaturized communicator that's all but invisible, and makes whatever they used on the Berman-era Star Trek look old and lame. The Minority Report Cinema Displays and iMacs are high up there as well (though they'd need to keep the traditional inputs as well, lest my arms tire out before I finish blogging...) Location-based services that are truly useful would be nice: (Alert! You're approaching mom's house, she wanted help cleaning the gutters. Turn right to avoid...) Also, I'd like a real Apple TV, that does for the set-top what Apple's done for the desktop, laptop, and palmtop. Time to move past hobby on that one, Mr. Jobs. (And it already has the ultimate remote -- the iPhone/iPod Touch. C'mon!) But #1 on my list?
A truly integrated, location free computing experience. Bill Gates showed off the concept many years ago at CES, but I think only Apple could deliver it with any elegance or grace: I work on my iMac, pick up my iPhone (which has synced my entire environment, coordinated with the "cloud"), go to the office, and keep right on working on my MacBook as though it were the exact same machine. And more: stop over at a friend's house and jump on her Mac Mini as though it were the same machine as well. No more location-locked environments or data. Back to my Mac becomes My Mac Anywhere, a truly MobileMe. (Though hopefully -- for Jobs' sake -- with better branding...)
That's the top 5 things I want from Steve Jobs' Apple.
What's yours?
There are 8 comments. Add yours.
"...jump on her Mac Mini..."
Oh, my! Is that what kids are calling it today?
"[MobileMe]... with better branding…"
And better syncing kwalitee.
The iPod Touch will be turned into the universal iTunes library remote control and access point. The Nano will have an internal wifi antenna and have remote functions.
I'm totally speculating.
Top 5?
Top 5:
1. iBook with glass 200 dpi color touchscreen with hybrid Mac/iPhone interface, SIM card for 3G data and voice, priced around $500, with PDF eBooks using Fairplay DRM sold at iTunes store. This can replace textbooks and books in general.
I want and expect to see the next version of OS X 6.0 Snow Leopard (or whatever it will be called) become available for all PC's with an Intel dual core processor (the same as all modern Macs use). This would enable the Mac to become far more acceptable in business where large numbers of PCs are already installed, as well as personal PC users where this would help them migrate to the Mac OS. To make it easy for PC users to bridge the gap, there should be the ability to install a Windows OS on it as well, not as a dual boot, but more in the VMwise Fusion way. Microsoft makes millions making Windows Vista for PC users -- why not Apple tap that same market and reach unhappy Vista users who would be happy to get away from greedy Microsoft, who has really gone downhill since Bill Gates has not been running it.
let developers develop apps for the apple tv(games particularly), and then let people use their iPhones or iPod touch to control the Apps.
With all the wifi connectivity I can't see why this can't be done.
So yes iphone is the remote control - perfect.