Apple iPad Press Conference Recap

Sadly, my bum knee and a DMV appointment has me stuck in Los Angeles instead of at the Apple press conference in San Francisco. The good news is that I’ll scour various web sites for presser information so that you don’t have to! Keep refreshing this page for current information on the iPad, iLife, iPhone 4.0, and other surprises Apple has in store.

– It’s nice to have Steve Jobs headlining the pressers again. Even reading second-hand reactions, I can tell that his followers are thrilled to have him back. He’s older and skinnier than before, but he looks pretty strong. Here’s a photo (above) from Engadget.

– Jobs goes over a bunch of retail and sales numbers. Guess what? Apple is making lots of money!

– Jobs wants to introduce a device that’s better than a laptop for somethings and better than a smartphone for other things. He disses netbooks as not being better than anything. Zing.

– It’s called the iPad! You can read/watch RPad in the iPad! Score!!! Check out the two photos below from Gizmodo.

– Things you can do on the iPad: web browse, look at photos, navigate maps, watch YouTube in HD, buy stuff from iTunes — so far it looks like the rumored “iPhone on steroids”.

– The aspect ratio looks kind of funky. From the photos, it doesn’t appear to be 16:9 or 4:3. It’s closer to the latter. I guess the designers thought the form factor was better. *shrug*

– When Jobs went to the NY Times web site, it appeared that the Flash was unavailable. Sorry N8R!

– I’m still waiting on the unique features of the iPad. So far it’s just a bigger iPhone/iPod Touch. It better have compelling original features to justify the (presumably high) price tag. (P.S. I’m sure it will have unique features. Steve is just warming it up.)

– A bunch of my friends at the event have reported that the WiFi at the venue is sucking big time. My other friends with Sprint and Verizon 3G cards are laughing at them.

– Specs! The iPad is .5 inches thin and weights 1.5 pounds. It sports a 9.7-inch IPS display with full multitouch support. It’s powered by Apple’s own silicon — a  1GHz A4 CPU. It will be available in 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB models.

– Other goodies include 802.11n WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, microphone (yay Skype!), and ten-hour battery.

– Scott Forstall has taken over the presser. He’s the VP of iPhone Software.

– Current iPhone and iPod Touch apps can be transferred to the iPad. The new SDK gives developers tools to take advantage of the iPad.

– Forstall showed off a bunch of apps, including a native Facebook app and a snowmobile game. The latter looked smooth, but rather generic. I guess it was fine for demo purposes.

– Gameloft dude shows of a native version of Nova. The larger screen and gesture controls could make for some interesting games.

– The NY Times is next. Can the iPad “save” newspapers in a way that Amazon’s Kindle couldn’t? The NY Times app looks pretty slick, but if I have to pay a subscription….

– Steve Sprang is about to show off Brushes, a popular drawing app for iPhone that’s getting the Mark McGwire treatment. I suck at art so this is  perfect time to pee.

– EA is showing off Need for Speed. It looks good, but I can’t imagine driving with finger gestures. Then again, I don’t have a license at the moment. Ha! Here’s a photo below from Gizmodo.

– Are people going to call the 64GB version of the iPad the “Maxi” Pad? Oh crap, people can refer to my longer PadCasts as MaxiPadCasts. Damn it.

– My friend Zak at 2K brought up an excellent point. Where does the virtual d-pad go?

– MLB is showing off its app. I dunno about this one. It looks kind of goofy and I love baseball.

– A-ha! Jobs has announced iBooks! This could be one of the iPad’s killer features.

– Here’s some info on IPS screens, for those of you that are interested. I’m still not sure about reading for an extended period on the iPad. E-ink is excellent for this.

– Book partners include Penguin, Harper Collins, Simon & Schuster, MacMillan, and Hachette. The iTunes Store will have a special book section. I wonder if Apple will suddenly block the Amazon Kindle app for iPhone. Ha!\

– The iPad will run iWork! Jobs asked the iWork team to develop an iPad compatible version a year ago (so he claims). A productivity suite is pretty huge.

– SVP Phil Schiller (aka Jobs’ understudy) is explaining iWorks for iPad. It must be kind of weird going from headliner to understudy…but he’s Phil, not Steve.

– So far iWork is pretty awesome, but it better be cheap for come free with the iPad. Otherwise I’d just stick to Google Apps. Btw, does anyone use Google Apps on Safari? Does it work well enough?

– Another question is how comfortable typing will be on the iPad. Wouldn’t excessive typing on a hard surface with no give lead to more repetitive-stress injuries?

– My Twitter friend Amanda just said, “If it doesn’t run flash, it can’t surf the web. It’s the iPadlock. Thanks Apple!” That cracked me up.

– Each iWork app will cost $9.99. That’s $29.97 for all three, unless there’s a bundle discount. I dunno….

– Data plans are through AT&T. It’s $29.99 for unlimited Internets and $14.99 for 250MB of Internets. You also get free AT&T WiFi for when the network craps out. The best news is that no contract is required.

– All iPad 3G models are unlocked and use microSIMs.

– Prices start at $499!!! That’s lower than most were predicting.

– If the 64GB model is priced reasonably, anyone want to buy my 32GB iPhone 3GS? Ha!!!

– Here’s the pricing chart from Engadget.

– For those of you that can’t see the chart, the 3G models cost more. For the WiFi-only models it’s $499, $599, and $699 for 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB, respectively. For the WiFi + 3G models it’s $629, $729, and $829. WiFi models are shipping in 60 days. 3G models are shipping in 90 days.

– There’s a dock/keyboard accessory. That looks incredibly useful.

– Did anyone else notice the lack of a camera? Or did I miss something? No special iChat functionality?

– I think Apple will do well with the 16GB models. They seem like great netbook alternatives (with the keyboard accessory). The 64GB model with 3G seems too expensive. At the point, just get a MacBook, no? Anyway, I’m going to give it more thought and write something about it all later. For now, I’m going to jump into the comments section with you guys!

JR Central Bringing Mag-Lev Train to America?

Japanese Railway Central is bidding to bring it’s awesome magnetic-levitation trains to America for a proposed route that would link California to Florida. The trains can reach speeds over 360 miles per hour. That’s frickin’ fast by any standard, but especially so when you consider the sorry-ass trains currently roaming the country. CrunchGear served up more details:

A major requirement for these funds is that the products be American made. JR Central worked up a plan that involves major parts of the $3.5 billion project would be made locally. This would included infrastructure such as the signals, and track, while just parts of the rolling stock would be built by U.S. companies.

I’m pretty big on public transportation (grew up in NY). I’ve also taken a lot of train rides in Japan and love JR’s products. I would love for America to get futuristic mag-lev trains that look like they should have a wave-motion cannon. Come on America! Modernize your railways!!!

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Coffee Talk #74: Apple iPad and the Return of Gaming Magazines

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Roger Federer’s chances at the Australian Open, the wonderful mic skills of The Miz (he’s awesome), or a possible mag-lev train from Florida to California, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

While most consumers are focused on the hardware aspects of the Apple iPad tablet, a lot of analysts are amped for what it can do for the book and magazine industries. Assuming the screen is readable for a long period of time, I can see the device killing in the book market. Considering Apple’s longtime outreach in the education market and a rumored deal with a major textbook company, I can see the iPad killing at universities. I’m fairly certain the Amazon Kindle and the Barnes & Noble Nook will get stomped.

What I’m not certain of is if the iPad can “save” newspapers and magazines. I’m sure the hardware and format will let designers use the best elements of print and online, but I don’t know that it matters. The Internet has changed the way people look for and absorb information. Consumers are no longer tied to once voice like they were with one magazine or one newspaper. The Internet allows readers to cheaply jump from voice to voice, picking the content they like best.

That said, I miss the days when EGM, GamePro, and (especially) Next-Gen were the top sources of gaming information. I hope devices like the iPad kick-start a print Renaissance. What do you guys and gals think? Will the iPad help bring gaming magazines back? Would you even be interested in subscribing to an iPad magazine? Or has the Internet changed your reading habits forever?

Haxxor: PlayStation 3 Hacked By Geohot?

Renowned iPhone hacker George Hotz (aka Geohot) has released a hack for the PS3 that will allegedly allow tinkerers to use the system for potentially fun, mischievous, and nefarious purposes. He stated:

This is the coveted PS3 exploit, gives full memory access and therefore ring 0 access from OtherOS. Enjoy your hypervisor dumps. This is known to work with version 2.4.2 only, but I imagine it works on all current versions.

Sony’s system has held up well for three years, but it was only a matter of time before hackers cracked it. It will be interesting to see if Sony launches a volley of firmware updates to counteract the hackery. For consumers, it will be interesting to see if the homebrew and emulation scenes become as big as they are on the PSP.

Some of you use old iPhone firmware or jailbroken iPhones to take advantage of…unofficial software. Would you do the same with your PS3?

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David Crane Receiving “Pioneer Award” From the AIAS

The legendary David Crane (Pitfall!, A Boy and His Blob) is being awarded the new “Pioneer Award” from the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences. Here are more specifics from Wired Game|Life’s Chris Kohler:

The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences, the industry group which puts on the prestigious DICE Summit each year, would choose Crane as the recipient of its first Pioneer Award, which recognizes videogaming visionaries who took the first steps in the early days of the industry. The academy will present Crane with the award at its 13th annual Interactive Achievement Awards ceremony Feb. 18 in Las Vegas.

Crane is a legend and absolutely deserves the award, though I am a bit confused as to why the AIAS needs this award and the hall of fame. That aside, Crane had a huge influence on the industry and it’s fantastic that he’s being recognized. The AIAS is one of my favorite organizations in the business and its DICE Summit is — by far — my favorite industry event of the year. A truly great game developer being lauded by an excellent organization? That is excellent news.

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Upcoming Xbox Live Marketplace Goodies

Microsoft marketing tool Major Nelson has posted a bunch of upcoming Xbox Live Marketplace goodies that are hitting the service between now and early February. Check ’em out:

Xbox Live Deal of the Week:
Feb. 1: Splosion Man, 400 Microsoft Points

Xbox Live Games on Demand:
Jan. 26: Dead Rising and Halo Wars
Feb. 2: Medal of Honor: Airborne

Xbox Live Arcade:
Jan. 27: KrissX, 800 Microsoft Points
Feb. 3: Chime, 400 Microsoft Points

Xbox Avatars Marketplace:
Jan. 28: Assassin’s Creed
Feb. 4 : Valentine’s Day and Carnival collections

Game Add-Ons:
Jan. 27: Pinball FX Excalibur Table, 240 Microsoft Points
Jan. 28: Assassin’s Creed II: Battle of Forli, 320 Microsoft Points
Feb. 2: Halo 3 Mythic 2 Map Pack, 800 Microsoft Points

Anything on the list interest you?

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Apple Tablet Most Important Thing Steve Jobs Ever Did?

“This will be the most important thing I’ve ever done.”

That’s (allegedly) what Steve Jobs has been telling senior Apple executives and colleagues in regards to the Apple Tablet. Those are bold words from a man that helped launch so many “insanely great” Apple products and helped Pixar become a movie powerhouse.

Is this more of Jobs’ Machiavellian marketing? Or does he really believe that the Apple tablet will change the world? Not to be morbid, but I think it’s a case of sentimentality caused by a near-death experience.

What do you think of Jobs’ words? Will the Apple tablet be the most important part of his storied career?

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Portal: Still Alive is the Xbox Live Deal of the Week

Microsoft’s Xbox Live Deal of the Week is Portal: Still Alive for 800 Microsoft Points. Originally part of The Orange Box, Portal received a ton of critical hype and all of it was deserved. Blending puzzles, action, and great storytelling, Portal wasn’t what I was expecting at all (and I mean that in the best way possible). If you haven’t played this game, I highly recommend it. It’s unique, fresh, and inventive — just an amazing experience.

The good news is that it’s on sale for $10. The bad news is that it might be a better deal to just buy The Orange Box for less than $20.

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Heavy Rain “Four Days” Online Game Details

Can’t wait for Heavy Rain for Sony PlayStation 3? I’m sure a lot of you are in that boat (me too!). To help market the game and add some hype, Sony has launched the Heavy Rain: Four Days online game to help tide you over until its release. Sony Computer Entertainment of America product marketing manager Jefferson Dong (aka “The Donger”) served up some details on Four Days Challenge:

You can experience “Four Days”: The Heavy Rain Online Experience, a live online mystery that plays out in real time across three weeks, drawing you into the mystery and lore of the Heavy Rain universe. Between Tuesday and Friday every week there will be daily tasks for you to complete (leaving you the weekend to catch up if you fall behind). Each task will lead you to the next part of the journey. At certain key stages you will be prompted, while on other occasions you will need to deduce the right thing to do.

I like that publishers are using online games to create excitement for console games. EA and BioWare did a fine job with Dragon Age: Journeys, though that title offered items that could be imported into the main game. With the wizardry of HTML 5, I’m sure these online games will get even cooler in the future.

Any of you going to give Four Days a spin?

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Today’s Poll: Tomorrow’s Apple Presser and You

Apple is holding a press conference tomorrow and it’s rumored to be unveiling quite a few new products. Some of the updates are expected (iLife), while others are like the Love Boat — exciting and new (iPad). I wanted to see which possible announcement has you the most excited. So please vote!

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