Macworld Roundup

For those of you who didn’t watch it live, a roundup of today’s Macworld announcements.

Time Capsule

Apple’s the only company in existence that can draw rock concert like crowds for a hard drive. Seriously, though, it’s a pretty cool hard drive, and it serves as an Airport base station. The idea of having a dedicated network backup server appeals to my organizational fixation, and Time Machine is definitely the slickest backup software I’ve ever used.

Apple TV

This looks like a great update to an originally lackluster product. I have no use for it as I watch all of my television and movies on the computer, but the ability to use it without a computer is a big deal, and it fits very nicely with the rental announcement.

iTunes Rentals

Now here is something I might actually use. I the big win here is that Apple got all of the major studios onboard. Even if I were willing to pay the $9.99 to buy a DRM-encumbered movie, there existing selection was so small that there wasn’t much I wanted to see. I agree that 24 hours is too short, but I might live with it if it saves me a trip to the video store.

MacBook Air

Like Gruber I would rather have seen something like the oft-mourned 12 inch PowerBooks, but I think that this is an important product for its engineering. The multitouch trackpad is a big deal, and I’m really excited to see where the technology goes. I also wonder whether we won’t see the new smaller Intel chips in a new product before too long (a new Newton anyone?) Who knows whether the MacBook air will meet with much success, but it will certainly keep Apple’s competitors on their toes, and that’s what Steve does best.

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