A while back, I wrote a post about Apple's rumored netbook with touchscreen. I said it would be much cooler if it was just a straight up tablet like out of Star Trek: TNG. It looks like I was right. More news today comes out that the tablet may actually come in multiple sizes. Also, very cool.
 
Now here's my new prediction. There's been reports that the new Apple Tablet will be a multimedia device capable of playing music (with some new album content) and also HD video. But what I think the new wrinkle will be is that the device will replace the Apple TV which hasn't been making much headway in our hearts and minds. All the tablet would really need is just an HDMI out port to hook up to your TV. BAM! You have a portable video/music device that you can plug into any output source (TV, stereo, etc). I won't use it for that purpose (got my sweet rig already) but I could definitely see it being a great kids in the back seat device or being able to watch your library of content in bed. My wife already transcodes shows to the iPhone I gave her to watch before bedtime. Just think if all she had to do was just stream it via her shared iTunes library on the desktop...

Had lunch in SOMA today. Took some shots from the garden patio of Crossroads Cafe. I can tell a noticeable difference when taking photos after upgrading to the iPhone 3.0 software. Can't wait to see how the photos look on the 3GS.

(download)

Click here to download:

I_am_digging_the_improved_came.zip (3.53 MB)

So the 3.0 upgrade did not brick my iPhone. I'm testing out some new features, one of which is multiple photo attachments. The first photo was taken after 3.0 and the second before. Can you tell the difference? Supposedly there were enhancements to the camera in this upgrade.  There seems to be slightly better light adjustments and the new photo looks much crisper. Woohoo!

(download)

Click here to download:

Finally_Able_to_attach_multipl.zip (236 KB)

So the new iPhone 3.0 Software upgrade set for next week has already leaked out onto the torrents. I cross my fingers as I attempt to do a manual upgrade...

Jesus Diaz writes a rant over at Gizmodo re: iPhone 3G owners (currently in contract) who are pissed about not being able to get the new iPhone 3GS at the fully subsidized price. To summarize, he's calling us whiners and that we should suck it up. Here's why he's wrong.
 
To his point - Yes, we are in a contract we freely agreed to. Yes, the cost of the iPhone 3G was subsidized by AT&T so that we could get it at the lower price. Yes, businesses like AT&T need to make money, too. But "whining" is the market's way of telling companies like AT&T and Apple that we demand better. It's how innovation is born and how we are able to enjoy things like iPhones. AT&T should listen to its highly profitable and highly engaged customers who stick with its service despite it being subpar. Apple should listen to its loyal customers who line up to buy its products by putting pressure on AT&T or better yet, by NOT renewing its contract with AT&T and allowing all major GSM based service providers (T-Mobile and Verizon) to have access to the iPhone and thus force competition on price and service quality. Don't hate on the whiners because without us, you'd probably have to pay full price for the iPhone 3GS AND have a 2 year contract like when the original iPhone came out. Or worse still, we'd probably all be using Windows Mobile phones because no one "whined" enough and demanded a better solution.

My last post about Apple today ... saved the best for last. The coup de grace of today's Apple announcements is the new iPhone 3GS. Faster processor, more memory (RAM and Flash), better camera, video recording, voice control, etc. There are a ton of great online reviews so I won't launch into one of my own. Suffice it to say, it's a welcome upgrade to a great device that had some shortcomings. $199 for 16GB and $299 for 32GB.
 
Of more important note is the fact that current iPhone 3G owners will be screwed. Unlike the upgrade from the original iPhone to the iPhone 3G (could upgrade at the same price as new customers), current iPhone 3G owners who are only 1 year into their 2 year contract will NOT be able to buy the new iPhone 3GS at the subsidized prices I listed above. AT&T has graciously allowed these customer to pay an extra $200 (plus $18 upgrade fee) for their iPhone 3GS and then will renew their contracts for another 2 years. I've never seen a wireless company that cared so little about its customers. Don't they realize that people are willing to take their subpar wireless service in order to get the latest doodad? And on top of that, iPhone users outside of the US (non-AT&T carriers) will be getting MMS and tethering support immediately versus waiting another few months while AT&T gets its act together. The Apple-AT&T exclusivity contract is set to end in 2010 and there are talks of extending it till 2011. My hope is that this extension does not happen and we can finally regain the ability to choose our wireless carriers based on service. I guarantee a fair number of iPhone users will jump ship, myself included.

New iPhone 3GS was released today. But that's not the reason that Palm and Sprint are screwed. The iPhone 3G 8GB model is now $99 - a full $100 less than the Pre. When both phones were still $199, I could see a fair amount of people giving the Pre a try. Now, I just don't see many people paying an additional $100 to get a phone that hasn't blown the iPhone out of the water, as many pundits predicted.