One of the most overlooked features of the Mac ecosystem is
Airplay.
It allows me to use my iPhone or Mac to wirelessly mirror my
display,
Photos, music, etc, to my TV (via AppleTV) or to another Mac.
Very handy for presentations etc. but it's proprietary and requires all Apple hardware to be effective and of course Apple made the hardware requirements unnecessarily high when it comes to Macs. Yeah, yeah, Windows etc will do the same but on the Mac it's really easy and flawless.
Photos, music, etc, to my TV (via AppleTV) or to another Mac.
Very handy for presentations etc. but it's proprietary and requires all Apple hardware to be effective and of course Apple made the hardware requirements unnecessarily high when it comes to Macs. Yeah, yeah, Windows etc will do the same but on the Mac it's really easy and flawless.
But here is where things get interesting; Apple signed deals
with the big Automakers who matter both foreign and domestic (with the exception of Ford). In essence you
will have an LCD display that will be built into your new automobile that will
respond to touch and react to your voice and all powered by your iPhone. Nope, your Samsung phone won't connect to this as easily as your iPhone if at all.
Your iPhone will be able to connect using the following options:
Your iPhone will be able to connect using the following options:
But wait a minute I hate those LCD displays for changing
radio stations, changing volume etc. Well Apple is upgrading Siri to cater for
those in car voice instructions. They are upgrading their maps as well. Apple have also recently patented an LCD with a
tactile feel so you will be able to feel your way to the volume button. So in
essence Apple are doing what they have done since Job's came back. Wait for the
tech to catch up with the ideas and then lock in the ideas to Apples tech and
only Apples tech.
So if you want to listen to your music collection, access GPS or just keep the kids entertained well you better have an
iPhone. You will probably be able to do some sort of hacky or messy thing to get your
Android hooked up but lets face it not many will bother but many will complain.
There were 13 Million new cars sold in the USA last year. Apple currently hold 39%
of the USA cell phone market or 53 million subscribers. I expect that will
start to climb steadily every year.
Of course the automakers being automakers will put that LCD
panel in the worst possible place. Probably just under the cup holder but most
assuredly in the console just below your eye level so you have to take your eyes
off the road. Alternatively you can hurl insult after insult at Siri while she calmly explains "Well ... I'm still here for you".
3 comments:
Interesting stuff, LC. I've noticed AAPL is up something like 20% the past few months -- did this deal with automakers have anything to do with it?
In other AAPL news I found the new iOS to be very interesting. If I recall (browsed a few tech sites the day it was announced) they are getting rid of the verisimilitudinous icons for pastel-like stylized ones. That seems like an outside-the-box but correct move.
The "gold" iPhones are also interesting - seems to me that they tried a kind of barbell strategy for Asia: cheap plastic shit for the peasants and gold for the burgeoning bourgeoisie. Of course the commentary on the gold phones here ("gauche" etc) was clueless to its appeal there lol...
On the other hand, a lot of Apple stuff I find fairly useless. Siri for example. Does anyone use that? Talking takes energy too (phrasing shit correctly, for one thing), and then there's the lag and fairly frequent misunderstandings or cluelessness. E.g. this afternoon, Siri responded to my basic request for the per capita hot dog consumption in women aged 13-17 in Burkina Faso (related to a business venture I've embarked upon) by directing me to the police.
Also, you say
It allows me to use my iPhone or Mac to wirelessly mirror my display,
Photos, music, etc, to my TV (via AppleTV) or to another Mac.
Very handy for presentations etc.
That's another useless gizmo for me as I'd get fired pretty quickly...
I think AAPL is up because of the China Mobile deal anticipation.
Or if you look at the charts it's up because it was time to be up. Pick yer poison.
Boots on the ground in China a while back showed me most people using stupid phones as opposed to smart ones. There were iPhone knock offs selling on the street but I didn't
see anyone using a real iPhone or any smart phone for that matter.
No one seems to be paying much attention to the car story but this is Apple creating a new market/ taking over the market. It's disruptive as well as the car makers have been fleecing the public of a couple of thousand for an in dash GPS etc for years.
I tried the the new IOS7 and switched back to IOS6. It wasn't unstable or anything. The interface is just different but the clincher for me was when in Music and landscape mode was a mess.
I like to leave it in landscape mode when I am driving as I have it mounted on the dash and pick individual songs as opposed to whole albums. A little foresight on my part by making a playlist or Apples part on the interface would solve the problem but it was easier just to downgrade to 6 again for me.
Siri is an annoyance for me most of the time except for when driving. "Call Warren Buffett", "text Ronald Regan"and "Directions" followed by message and address is quicker than using the interface.
The airplay thing is the killer app for Apple for car use. Hopefully they will have a "car mode" button to simplify the transition from pocket to car.
It looks like the China Mobile deal is DOA
Probably because Apple were unwilling to provide cheap iPhones. They did provide cheap looking iPhones which is not the same. Ives doing his best to peddle a mediocre product (5C) as something new.
There was no mention of the China Mobile deal at the the Apple presentation. Buy the rumor, sell the news in full force.
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