Everyone seems to be talking about the MacBook Air, although you will not see me parting from my 160HDD GB MacBookPro. Incidentally, why do some of Apple’s new devices feel like a downgrade? The 16GB iPod Touch has nothing on my 60GB iPod. Anyway I digress.
One of the less publicised items from last night’s Stevenote has been the iTunes Movie Rental (which incidentally, we’re not getting this side of the Atlantic yet, what gives?). While this move was widely predicted by tech pundits around the world (which leads me to ask, am I a tech pundit now as well?), the real surprise for me is that it will be possible to download and watch movies directly to a TV using special software and an HDMI connection. This seems to me to be the true herald to the age of convergence, and seems to make a clear indication of intentions about Apple’s future strategy.
The industry has to do something, after all, the Pirate Bay and similar sites are their direct competitors, even if they have been served with fresh legal documents from Sweden’s prosecuting services.
5 Comments
Alex · January 16, 2008 at 4:28 am
But your ipod has nothing on my ipod Touch's web surfing and video playing capabilities! But on the iPod Touch front, I am very annoyed about Apple charging £13 for what should be a free upgrade. This sort of behavious seems rife at the moment with the big consumer technology suppliers… I can feel a blog post coming on.
Andres Guadamuz · January 16, 2008 at 5:30 am
Pah! Whoo needs web surfing on the iPod? (can you sense the shrill tone of denial in my post?).
Alex · January 16, 2008 at 8:25 am
Denial sensed! Did I manage to hide the annoyance at having just 16gb to play with? My (entirely purchased) CD collection is twice that! But it's just so worth it for having such a fantastic touch screen interface… 😉
Laurence · January 16, 2008 at 10:42 am
Hmm what about Sky pay-per-view, already in HD and available for years, through the existing box at no extra cost? Not to mention the Xbox 360, which also allows the renting of HD movies.Apple aren't breaking any new ground here.
Andres Guadamuz · January 16, 2008 at 10:47 am
I agree that it's not new ground as such (I have BT Vision at home). However, I think that bringing iTunes to the TV is a big step towards convergence. iTunes for the telly? I like the idea.