Here’s something that’s not specifically college media related, but it’s definitely a gadget that’s going to be a buzz with some students - the iPhone. The website macrumorslive has photos, and a running live stream of the keynote by Apple CEO Steve Jobs. Still no eyecandy at the Apple web site yet. The macrumorslive site is a good example of how breaking news can be covered via the web. I’m sure others are doing the same live blog exercise (Update: like Engadget). that’s just the place Rob Pongsajapan sent me.
UPDATE: You know the devil is in the details. From Paid Content: “4GB model for $499 and 8GB model for $599, with two year Cingular contract. Will ship in June, and will sell in Apple and Cingular stores.” I’m sorry, but the idea that I have to have a certain cell phone carrier in order to use an iPhone is wrong. I hope the phones will be usable with other services, but my inner cynic doubts it.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t necessarily have a problem switching cell phone carriers, but I despise being forced to do so for a phone which should work with any carrier (a la, landline phones).
UPDATE 2: Why am I so bored with this New York Times story? It’s old news! For anyone who’s been moderately hooked into the news flow on the Internet, the iPhone has been hashed apart by a myriad of bloggers and news outlets across the tech spectrum. Just look at the numerous articles on TechMeme. This NYT story adds NOTHING and stands as an example of how poorly traditional media can fare when they don’t use the platform.
on Jan 9th, 2007 at 2:08 pm
Very interesting, and a very attractive gadget.
Also mentioned by Jobs was the latest change to television-as-we-know-it with Apple TV, or iTV, which brings music, television programming and (”coming soon,” according to Jobs) downloaded movies to your television.
This part of Jobs’ talk was covered by mainstream media (it was mentioned on the Today Show this morning), but I couldn’t find the link to that news item. Much easier to find online were several stories like this one: http://www.pvrblog.com/pvr/2007/01/apple_announces.html (ahead of the news-coverage curve, like Engadget), which provided more depth to the story. For example, does Apple TV sound a lot like TiVo? This blog post sheds some light on the issue, whereas Today only scratched the surface of the Apple TV story.
Someday soon, maybe I’ll pull up these bloggers’ news on my TV instead of the Today Show, all via Apple TV of course.
on Jan 9th, 2007 at 3:28 pm
The *problem* is it is locked into a carrier, as you stated. And very doubtful that AT&T/Cingular will give us anything more then walled garden WiFi coverage (blogged here):
http://blog.nextblitz.com/blog/2007/01/apple_iphone.html
And agree on the engadget and other live coverage - certainly the future of media - and it is here now, at least at the leading edges.
on Jan 9th, 2007 at 4:30 pm
[…] (More on the Apple iPhone: PaidContent, Read/WriteWeb, Techdirt, IP Democracy, kottke.org, Publishing 2.0, Telegraph Blogs, Gizmodo, Dana Gardner’s BriefingsDirect, Business Filter, InsideMicrosoft, Joystiq, Pocket PC Thoughts, Monkey Bites, Mark Evans, The Tech Report, Between the Lines, Digital Life, Zatz Not Funny!, Engadget HD, Paul Kedrosky’s …, TechBlog, InsideGoogle, PalmAddicts, hypebot, biskero.org, Paul Colligan’s …, Seeking Alpha, Peer Pressure, Ogle Earth, Blogging Stocks, Rex Hammock’s weblog, Jarrett House North, Ken McGuire On The Web, Tech Trader Daily, Brandon Live!, brainwagon, Download Squad, Boing Boing, Lost Remote, Greg Galitzine’s VoIP …, Innovation in College Media, All About Symbian, Ryan Stewart, I4U News, Thoughts on VoIP, technology, Ben Metcalfe Blog and DealBook) […]
on Jan 9th, 2007 at 5:22 pm
I wouldn’t mind if it were locked into a carrier I like … but I don’t favor Cingular. So that bites.
Cool as it is, I don’t think it’s $500-$600 cool. Yeesh.
on Jan 9th, 2007 at 5:30 pm
Yeah, the price tag is steep, especially if you add in the 2-year commitment to Cingular. Of course, you’re supposed to be getting a lot more functionality than in a regular phone, but still… I certainly won’t be buying one. Now, gifts are another story.