Productivity Suite iUpdate?

There may be a refresh for the very long-in-the-tooth iWork suite, Apple’s productivity software (courtesy MacRumors). iWork has remained relatively unchanged since its 2009 introduction, although there have been incremental improvements over time- most recently the addition of iCloud storage and iOS versions of Pages, Numbers, and Keynote. 

I’ve been a proponent of iWork from my first Mac. It offers a simpler, easer to navigate interface than the industry gold standard Microsoft Office equivalents. While not always as powerful, for a majority of the tasks I had in graduate school (and even more so in professional life) iWork has been a pleasant and productive experience. That being said, the software is long overdue for a refresh; time passes quickly in the tech world and with Apple focused on releasing iOS 7 on schedule, continuing the development of OSX, and the quick pace they release product hardware refreshes it seems only logical that such a small corner of the iWorld would go neglected. 

According to the MacRumors article, several new positions have been opened for engineers and developers on the iWork team. Until Microsoft recognizes the benefit of expanding Office to iOS, iWork is the best option for iOS productivity needs- and in my opinion the best cross-device solution as well 

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Hello from Key West

Even the hardest working people need a vacation eventually, and I’m no exception. The destination of choice this time was Key West (embarrassing to admit I’m a Florida native but had never been) and it’s everything you’d imagine. If you’re looking for a vacation destination they Keys should be on your list; if you go The Mermaid and Alligator bed and breakfast is highly recommended- the owners were very kind, the service was excellent, and the location was perfect- walking distance to every corner of Key West’s historic district.

While there I was surprised to see how much Apple has infiltrated what was a strictly Windows/analog world. A couple of vendors had iMacs instead of PCs behind their counter, and several were using iPads instead of registers entirely. When picking up some amazing Mexican chocolate from a small boutique the vendor took payment via his iPad encased in a custom swiveling plexiglass enclosure; he tapped on full color images to select what I had purchased, swiped my card via a headphone jack card scanner, then flipped the case over so I could use my finger to sign for my purchase on the iPad’s screen. The transaction was very quick and convenient: no paper receipt to sign, no fumbling around the register for a working pen, and the receipt was emailed to me immediately (also giving the merchant a chance to enroll me on his mailing list).

Another encounter with an iOS-using merchant was at the almost-too-good-to-be-real dessert restaurant Better Than Sex. The bed and breakfast concierge had made reservations that were entered into an iPad app, when I arrived the greeter dragged an icon for the reservation to an open table to mark the arrival and mark what waiter would be serving the table.

I understand better why Microsoft is rushing to market with their Surface line of tablets in the face of growing hardware partner displeasure. As iOS devices enter into markets and functions that had been the sole domain of Microsoft products important revenue streams are imperiled. I’ve seen many a small merchant using iOS devices to take card payments, keep inventory, make orders, and other productivity tasks that Apple was never known for in the past. The very nature of how businesses get tasks done is rapidly changing; I’d wager Steve Ballmer and company have seen one to many innovations pass them by.

UPDATE: I’m not the only one that’s noticed the expanding business use of iOS devices. TUAW (The Unofficial Apple Weblog) recently posted an image of a customer self-serve kiosk using an iPad. The concept is elegant in its simplicity- just pick what you’d like, swipe your card, and an associate brings your order to your table. I love technology.

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OSX on a tablet?

Microsoft’s yet-to-be-released Surface tablet has created buzz by having a model that offers users a complete desktop operating system in tablet form via a version sporting a laptop-style Intel processor (the other lower cost model will have an ARM chip common in Android tablets and a limited version of Windows 8 incapable of running desktop applications).

Someone might beat Microsoft to the punch, however- in a report from MacRumors a company by the name of Axiotron will be bringing a tablet-style device to market sporting a stylus-based touchscreen interface and a full version of Apple’s OSX operating system. The device has been dubbed the Modbook, and it skirts running afoul of Apple’s end user licensing that sunk Mac knockoff manufacturer  Psystar by modifying actual MacBooks (hence the Modbook name) into tablet form. The internal components of a 13 inch MacBook Pro are transferred to a new enclosure with a unique Forceglass screen that utilizes a special pressure-sensitive pen interface. The new components are connected to the MacBook internals via USB 3 inside the enclosure.

The Modbook sports some impressive specs- the Pro version has the internal components of the MacBook they were harvested from: Intel i5 or i7 processors, up to 16 gigabytes of RAM, up to 1 TB hard drive, Intel HD 4000 graphics, 802.11 N wifi and Bluetooth 4.0, and something no other tablet will sport- a x8 Superdrive optical drive. The tablet still sports a Gigabit Ethernet port, one Firewire 800, one free USB 3 port, and a Thunderbolt port. It still uses Apple’s Magsafe power adaptor, as well. Because it’s running a full version of OSX the Modbook can be loaded with Windows as well via Bootcamp or virtualization software like Parallels.

Before you ditch your iPad for a Modbook there will be some drawbacks to consider. While no physical specifications are listed, the Modbook will have to be significantly heavier and thicker than an iPad due to the extra components and size; making the Modbook more of a slate than a tablet. The screen isn’t billed as a full touchscreen as the iPad‘s capacitive screen is, interaction is only described via the included pressure-sensitive stylus. Heat and fan noise may be an issue; cooling will likely still be via the MacBook’s original internal fans but will lack the heat dissipating ability of the original’s aluminum case. Lastly, the MacBook that the Modbook is created from is significantly more expensive than an iPad and the Modbook is likely to add a noticeable premium onto that price.

If you’re craving a full operating system in tablet/slate form, the Modbook should definitely be considered. Apple may be slowly moving to consolidate iOS and OSX, but the complete convergence will be a long time from now (if it ever completely happens). The Modbook offers a slew of inputs and functionality that mobile users have sought, and with the built-in Bluetooth it could be paired with a keyboard and mouse/trackpad to create a 13″ mobile-capable iMac for adventurous users. The stylus is particularly interesting; the manufacturers describe as a battery-less digitizer pen with two programmable side buttons, and it is stowed away in a magnetic catch on the Modbook’s case. This truly fascinating device will be available fall of this year.

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Google’s Nexus Q- DOA?

One of the unspoken advantages that iOS devices have over Android is their product line ecosystem. While both have handsets and tablets, iOS also has a massively larger portfolio of accessories and companion devices as well as Apple’s Mac lineup. Even the upcoming Windows 8 phones have a comparable ecosystem considering the vast numbers of Windows computers and XBoxes already in consumer’s hands. Android hasn’t had much of an answer for this; Google does have Google TV boxes and sets, but there’s no real synergy between the devices as there is between Apple or Microsoft devices. 

Google is apparently making steps to change that with the announcement of the Nexus Q, a “social” media device designed specifically for Android handsets or tablets. The odd looking ball works over your home network, allowing Android users to create video and audio playlists for the media hub. The content isn’t pushed from your handset, the Nexus Q pulls it from cloud. Social interaction is afforded through the device’s reliance on Google Play- anyone can change or add to the device’s queue from their own Play libraries. For the uninitiated, Google Play is Google’s iTunes media store competitor, offering music, TV, movies, and reading material. Play also hosts your home computer’s music library similar to iTunes Match, but providing streaming access to the hosted files instead of Match’s download or streaming (as of iOS 6) capacity. The Nexus Q sports a 25 watt amplifier if you’d like to run speakers directly from it, as well as HDMI and Toslink outputs.

Whatever budding interest consumers may have had will likely wane when the Nexus Q is compared to other media devices. It doesn’t house the streaming media it plays, nor is it capable of accessing media on a PC or local network drive so if you want to hear/see something again it will have to re-access it from the cloud. The Q also isn’t a stand-alone device; there are no controls to use the unit without an Android handset of some kind. Want to use the device to catch up on Hulu or Netflix? Sorry, it’s apparently not capable of that either. There’s no capacity for display mirroring like iOS devices have with the Apple TV, so playing your Android games on a big screen is out as well.

The killing blow comes via the price- $299. While it has the rare marketing advantage of being built in the US (and I’m all for boosting domestic manufacturing), paying triple the price of an Apple TV for a device that offers a fraction of the functionality seems silly. If you would rather stay clear of Apple devices the Boxee or Roku offer more for less as well. Unless you’re a die-hard Android fan, I can’t see a compelling reason to even consider the Nexus Q. There are better (and cheaper) alternatives for both iOS and non-iOS users.

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Announcement comparison- Surface VS iPad

I hadn’t managed to watch any of the clips of Microsoft’s announcement of their new Surface tablets (I love tech, but making a living comes first) until this little gem came to me via one of my RSS feeds:

Coincidence? The comparison is more than a little damning, even if the clips are edited. It’s still too early to say what the Surface’s long term prospects are, but I do think it’s safe to say that Microsoft needs this tablet far more than consumers do. Android tablets still don’t offer enough value for many consumers to opt for one over Apple’s offering, but after three years the tablet market may be winding down its boom phase. Finding new uses for the devices is likely to fuel more sales than new users that haven’t owned a tablet, and Apple has a tremendous head start in app development, infrastructure, accessories, and institutional support. Microsoft really needs the Surface to at least be passable in order to keep from missing out on this genre entirely.

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Thoughts on the Windows 8 Tablets

Microsoft‘s big announcement is out- the long-awaited Windows 8 tablets have been teased, and the big surprise is that Microsoft is getting into the hardware manufacturing game in an attempt to spur innovation among third party hardware manufacturers and go head to head with Apple. For those of you that haven’t been inundated with the reports, the new Microsoft manufactured devices (dubbed the Surface) will come in two flavors: a unit sporting an ARM processor that will run a version of Windows 8 that will not run software compatible with other systems like desktops, and an X86 processor version running the full Windows 8 operating system.

Actual technicals specifications are somewhat thin. Both will have a magnesium alloy body and a 10.6 inch Gorilla Glass display (surprisingly larger than the iPad‘s 9.7 inch display). Unlike the iPad, the Microsoft tablets will have several ports: USB 2, HDMI, and microSD. Both models are heavier than the iPad (although the ARM version is only fractionally so). The form factor also deviates from the iPad’s as necessitated by the extra input ports; where the iPad is sleek and rounded the Surface tablets are more squared off with flat sides. Two clever and stylish covers have been featured as well; not only do they protect the unit they double as a keyboard and trackpad when opened. One version relies on an accelerometer and touch sensor to replicate a keyboard, the other has a more traditional construction (although pundits haven’t been allowed to use either yet). The Windows 8 Metro interface will immediately differentiate these tablets from competitors when powered up- while I’m very pessimistic of the Metro interface on traditional laptops and desktops, I expect it to shine on tablets (as it does on the latest generation of Windows phone).

With suggestions that the x86 tablet will be priced similarly to ultraportables I think Microsoft may be trying to create a new subcategory of device, between the tablet and ultraportable. The device’s keyboard has been stated to have a trackpad, a strange choice of input for a class of devices that focuses on touch screens as the primary source of interaction. While it’s pure speculation, it seems as though the x86 version is an attempt to make the best of both worlds- light, slim, set apart from other devices by the addition of touchscreen capability and being able to remove the keyboard but still offering the same full operating system of ultraportables instead of a pared down mobile OS.

The ARM version of the Surface tablet is the true tablet competitor. The ARM processor is the same as used by some Android tablets, and the version of Windows 8 it sports shares only the Metro interface with its more powerful sibling. The loss of functionality is a trade off for lower cost, better battery life and less heat byproduct, but there is bound to be some confusion among the Windows faithful as to why they can’t run their software on a Windows device. Other than the Metro interface there’s not a great deal to differentiate the ARM processor version of Microsoft’s tablet from its competitors.

So is Apple justifiably nervous? It’s too early to say if this new lineup is a legitimate competitor to the iPad; questions still abound over multiple factors: the battery life isn’t even hinted at, there’s a legitimate concern over how much heat the devices will generate (tablets have favored low powered mobile processors for both battery life and lower heat generation), confusion over what to expect from the Win8 app library (as the two devices aren’t fully software compatible), and most importantly the PRICE. Prices were hinted at, but to be truly competitive the devices must at least meet their primary competitor. Both versions of the new tablet have their own hurdles; the ARM version may operate as other tablets but it won’t meet the needs of those that have been waiting for a tablet running Windows, and the x86 may be short on battery life and RAM (most full OS systems need four gigabytes of RAM, but tablets to date have had a maximum of one).

Still, the limited exposure pundits have been allowed has resulted in some positive buzz. Windows 8 is at home on tablets, and Microsoft has the benefit of building off of Apple and Google’s experience in the tablet market. Microsoft has been building toward this release for some time, and after their failure with the Zune and Courier tablet I’d imagine they have put a great deal more focus on releasing a competitive product. It’s foolish to label the Surface tablet (or any of its third party Windows 8 tablet brethren) as iPad killers; the iPad effectively created the device genre and has a huge user base that is still expanding. That being said, there are still a large number of users that simply don’t like the Apple lineup and would flock to a viable competitor, especially if that competitor offered greater compatibility with an already-established Windows user base.

Going into the hardware market has risks; there is bound to be discontent among Microsoft’s manufacturing partners. To date Microsoft has made their place in the market as a software company, leaving the hardware form factor to its resellers. Those retailers likely don’t appreciate the extra competition from Microsoft as most resellers have dealt with raz0r-thin profits in an increasingly competitive market. While Microsoft has ventured into (successful) hardware manufacture before with the XBox, the Surface tablets blaze new ground as they will be listed alongside other tablets running the same operating system. Microsoft controlling both the software and hardware of a product line threatens to shunt them into the same ‘closed system’ category of Apple’s iOS, with all aspects of the device controlled by a (hopefully) benevolent dictator. Window’s ‘openness’ is a byproduct of Microsoft’s business strategy of focusing solely on being a software vendor and leaving hardware configuration to its resellers; without those resellers Microsoft is free to pursue the advantages that Apple has created by controlling their entire product line- but at the expense of losing one of the primary factors that advocates have touted.

I’m hoping for good things from Microsoft’s release of Windows 8; it’s been stated ad nauseum competition breed innovation. Without the pressure to innovate the market would become stagnant, and Android has offered only token resistance to the tidal wave of iOS devices. While I have no desire to leave the warm, comforting embrace of the Apple-verse, I look forward to what Microsoft is going to bring to the table- and what this will spur Apple to do in answer.

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Is the new Windows Metro look really new?

Microsoft has been lauded for being able to do what Google couldn’t with Android- create an interface that is fundamentally different from iOS. While I haven’t had the opportunity to use it, the Metro interface for the soon-to-be-released Windows 8 has been touted as a welcome evolution to the venerable Windows OS and the foundation for the merger of mobile and desktop systems much as Apple has begun to do with iOS and OSX.

One of the main talking points about the Metro interface is its originality, but after seeing some of the initial images and animations, I had the strange feeling I had seen it before. While my memory isn’t always the best, this feeling has been at least partially confirmed with a cursory image search.

Metro does away with the traditional Windows desktop and program shortcuts in favor of brightly colored tiles acting as both widgets and launch icons. The tiles can display some realtime information and a click on the tile launches the full app much like the traditional desktop shortcut icons Windows users have used since the days of Win95:

But this layout has graced Windows before. It wasn’t that long ago that I had been looking for the best option for building a Windows-based media center PC (before deciding the Mac Mini was the best option). My first attempt was to use the built-in Windows Media Center in Windows 7. At first glance the clean, nicely animated app looked like a good option- it did a better job than the updated Windows Media Center at organizing my music collection, had DVR functionality, could play DVDs, and touted access to streaming online video. Ultimately, I abandoned WMC because it didn’t live up to its billing; the streaming options didn’t offer the sources I wanted, the DVR never worked for me, and the process of playing a DVD through WMC was more cumbersome than either playing it in a dedicated DVD player or using VLC/Win DVD/Windows Media Player on the PC.

This is a sample of the interface that sparked my memory when I first saw Metro:

The album listing was even more similar:

although not as polished as Metro’s album selection:

From the perspective of functionality, Metro bears less in common with Windows 7′s Media Center but the legacy is still apparent. From the layout to the font and animation, the foundation of Metro had been with Microsoft for at least a couple of years before it was given center stage. This isn’t a bad thing; the polished look of the media center in Win7 was its best feature. It does make me wonder if Microsoft had bigger plans for the interface. Easing Windows users into this new interface would have been an easier effort that the more drastic Metro-with-a-hidden-Windows-emulator setup of Win8. Windows Media Center’s layout could have been a sign of an attempt to implement something that would have been more of a factor in touchscreen-based computing but Microsoft either lacked the vision to pursue it or had issues that limited its deployment. Like Google Wave, what seemed like a good idea withered from a lack of use, publicity, and development.

Regardless of its origins, Windows 8 and Metro stand to be the first real challenger to the combined offering of OSX and iOS. I for one think this is a very good thing; competition drives innovation, and even a company that has built it’s fortune through vision and innovation needs a push occasionally.

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Microsoft Making a Play to be Your Media Center

As the blog’s name would suggest I tend to focus on the Apple-verse, but when interesting tech news comes along I feel the need to share- especially when it concerns a competing product or service. While most wouldn’t consider Microsoft’s Xbox a competitor with any Apple product line, that may not be the case very soon.

There have been rumors about the next generation of Apple TV (or an actual Apple television) bolstered by iOS 6 as a possible gaming platform. Thanks to AirPlay iOS device users can already mirror their game to a TV via an Apple TV, but rumormongers have stated that gaming could be an internal function of the dedicated TV box.

In what coincidentally seems like a return salvo to Tim Cook’s musing that an Apple foray into gaming “could be interesting” MacRumors reports that Microsoft is readying a push to make the Xbox the focal point of your entertainment center. The SmartGlass wireless streaming technology would allow users to push content to their televisions from tablets or smartphones much like Apple’s AirPlay, while also adding two way functionality that would push content back to the screen of your mobile device. Such a service could provide information about the video being watched or provide controls on your device’s touchscreen.

At first glance this idea seems interesting but not very useful until you expand it to the Xbox’s primary function- gaming. Engadget illustrates the possibilities well- imagine playing Madden on the Xbox while using your iPad to scroll through plays, or playing one of many combat simulators with your iPhone’s display showing your vital stats or the view through your rifle’s scope.

In addition to this Microsoft is reportedly expanding on the Xbox’s media offerings by including Internet Explorer for full web access, the Xbox Music streaming service, and access to sports via WatchESPN. Voice control via Kinect will be added to Internet Explorer and Bing searches is also reported.

I tend to restrict my gaming to my iOS devices and iMac (the Nintendo Wii has sat in a closet now for some time), but my interest is definitely piqued by the Xbox’s reported expanded functionality.

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More Indications of an Upcoming Microsoft Office iOS Release

A post from BGR (formerly the Boy Genius Report) has reinforced the rumor of an upcoming release of an iOS version of Microsoft Office. The site references a “reliable source”, so I don’t accept the rumored release as concrete. That being said, Microsoft would be turning their back on a very large (and growing) demographic of iPad and iPhone users that have either been assigned an iOS device by their employer or those that joined the BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) crowd and are using their devices in a professional setting.

While some argue that Microsoft would be better served keeping Office to just Windows devices (especially the pending tablets running Windows 8), I’d wager the money to be had from iOS users will outweigh any benefit exclusivity might provide. Exclusivity has already been ignored thanks to the OSX version of Office, and considering that iOS is founded on OSX it would seem that transitioning it for Apple’s touchscreen devices would be a fairly straightforward affair. I’ve restricted all my productivity tasks to iWork apps (specifically Numbers and Pages) and have been very satisfied with the experience so far, but many businesses are heavily vested in Office, and Microsoft’s file types have become industry norms.

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Apple quietly retiring another computing mainstay?

Apple has been long known as an organization unafraid to discontinue technology they consider to be obsolete. Their moves have been almost prognostic; they were the first to retire the floppy drive, the first to discontinue providing wired accessories (keyboard and mouse) with their desktop systems, and now with the success of the MacBook Air it seems as though they will be the first to retire the optical drive (as I’ve previously argued).

When I opted to finally ditch my last home-brewed PC for an iMac (a decision I’ve been very happy with) I opted for Apple’s Magic Mouse instead of the just-released Magic Trackpad. At the time having a huge laptop trackpad instead of a mouse didn’t make much sense, and I’ve been conditioned to reach for a mouse not only by my prior PC experience but also because of my love for FPS gaming. I didn’t use the Magic Mouse long; I found it to be uncomfortable (too flat and unwieldy, even short use gave me cramps in my hand) and I switched back to my Microsoft Arc Mouse.

With the release of Snow Leopard Apple brought a slew of multitouch gestures to all OSX devices. Although handy, the new feature was limited by older hardware; some trackpads could sense multiple touch points but not enough additional information to make all of the new multitouch gestures possible. While the Magic Mouse was capable of performing multitouch gesture commands, using it in this manner was at best cumbersome as the mouse is designed to slide over a surface and must be held still with some fingers while others perform the gesture. Frustrated, I turned to Apple’s other control option: the Magic Trackpad. I was surprised to find just how useful the new trackpad is, especially when controlling my media center Mac Mini (usually done from an overstuffed leather couch, where there is little to no useable real estate for a mouse to roam). I use the trackpad almost exclusively with my iMac as well; the trusty Arc Mouse only comes out of it’s storage slot when I fire up Left 4 Dead or Half Life.

Apple upped the ante with OSX Lion, further integrating multitouch controls into the everyday use of the Mac lineup. As with the multitouch gestures in Snow Leopard some can be performed with the Magic Mouse, but it’s a clumsy alternative. Apple seems to have quietly decided to let the mouse slide into antiquity, focusing on developing a new control system centered on multitouch gestures and keyboard shortcuts that better mimics the environment offered by iOS. The newer gestures like the four fingered swipe to bring up the Launchpad or the host of three fingered swipes just aren’t doable on the small surface of the mobile Magic Mouse.

Unless a pundit points out the omission, Apple is happy to let their strategic decision to phase out a technology quietly ripple through their product line. While I think Apple with continue to support the mouse as an input device, I think it’s fairly obvious where they believe the future leads- to a decidedly non-mouse-centered user experience.

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