Tag Archives: Apple

Keep Calm…

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… And try not to lose your shit over the potential partnership between two of your favorite things: Apple and U2.

Or so I’m telling myself in the wee hours of the night before 1) I teach three classes, and 2) a big iPhone announcement that maybe-possibly-hopefully-prettypleasewithsugarontopI’lldoalmostanythingtomaketheserumorstrue involves U2. Much to my surprise, however, many U2 fans don’t share my enthusiasm. Here’s why this collaboration is good for both parties:

For Apple, it’s a product announcement involving the company’s cash cow: the iPhone. This event would get media coverage even if U2 wasn’t involved. But more than that, teaming up with U2 brings some added pizzazz to what promises to be an already big day for the tech goliath. Of late, Apple keynotes, while still the gold standard for tech announcements, have been a bit dry, due in no small part to the absence of Steve Jobs’ charisma and presence in front of an audience. Samsung (grr) paired up with Jay-Z last year. How much the hip hop mogul actually boosted sales numbers is irrelevant; what’s important is that it the event lent a bit of “cred” to Samsung’s image and created additional buzz for its newest flagship phone. No offense to Jay-Z, but U2 is in a whole other league when it comes to global visibility and marketability. Regardless of what anyone says about relevancy, the relatively “disappointing” sales figures of 2009’s No Line On The Horizon, or a lack of an album in more than five years, U2 is still the biggest band on the planet. I can tell you from firsthand experience that Apple doesn’t like to be outdone. Getting U2 involved with the new iPhone (and potentially the Beats music service) outdoes anyone, anywhere, for years to come.

For U2, it gets the band back into the public consciousness immediately. It’s an instant marketing campaign that will help promote the new album and (eventually) the accompanying tour. I can recall going to the an early 360 show and seeing the Blackberry ads all over the stadium and being sorely disappointed in that joint venture. Besides the signs at concerts and logos on merchandise, what did BlackBerry (then called RIM) do to help the band generate buzz? Nothing. In 2009, RIM was already on the verge of technological irrelevance, to say nothing of its social cache. A partnership with Apple would also assuage the second Bono’s two fears: U2 not making good music and not being culturally relevant. The first should have been allayed earlier this year when “Ordinary Love” was nominated for Oscar and “Invisible” launched on Super Bowl Sunday (which I think, despite lukewarm critical and chart success, is a great song; I wrote about the song for @U2). Not only is Apple technological relevant, but the company also occupies a front-and-center public profile thanks in large part to the ubiquity of iPhones and iPods.

Additionally, teaming with Apple shows that the band has (once again) embraced the latest trends in digital media. In the early 1990’s, that was the whole ethos behind the groundbreaking Zoo TV tour, albeit with an ironic twist. A decade ago, U2 and Apple worked together when the latter was the undisputed king of mobile digital music. Before the iPhone, the iPod was Apple’s moneymaker, and U2 was in on it. There were several iPod commercials and products featuring the band: silhouette campaign (here’s the extended version),  video iPod, and the special edition U2 iPod. Still need further proof that the Apple/U2 relationship is deep? Open up the Music app on in iOS and look at the “Artists” option at the bottom of the screen. Look familiar? Even through all the software updates and upgrades, it’s been Bono’s silhouette for years.

Bono:iTunes

 As for the issue of how the band will be involved tomorrow… well that’s a whole other discussion. In a nutshell, here’s what I envision for the partnership:

U2 is this announcement’s “one last thing.” Tim Cook announces a collaboration with U2 that includes a redemption code for the iTunes store. This code allows the new iPhone owner to download the band’s newest album (whenever that drops; I think October) that will feature digital content like music videos, interviews, and live performances. This would help boost sales figures, which would make both the band and the record company happy. Accompanying the new record be a new official U2 app that will be linked to a newly redesigned website that focuses on fan interaction. Behind the scenes footage, exclusive interviews and photos, unreleased tracks, digital wallpapers, along with a one-year subscription to the fan club, which will offer more goodies. The announcement ends with U2 playing a short set.

I’m trying not to get ahead of myself here, but the sheer excitement is making me thing crazy things. This is all “pie in the sky” speculation, of course, but it’s going on six years since the band’s last full-length studio record, so I think U2 fans will can be forgiven for getting a little giddy. All this conjecture does set us up for some massive disappointment, but such is the life of a die-hard fan.

This arrangement is a good thing, folks. It has the potential to be a game-changer. Odds are it won’t be the earth-shattering event my imagination has vividly outlined, but with these two global icons in cahoots, it’s not out of the realm of possibility. Both Apple and U2 have been game-changers for their respective fields. Who’s to say it can’t happen again tomorrow?

iPad (r)evolution

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The new iPad 2. (image from Apple.com)

So, the iPad 2 was announced yesterday, and the internet was (still is, really) abuzz with specs and opinions and galleries of the latest product coming out from Cupertino.  If you’re not an Apple fan, then there’s really nothing I or anyone else can say that’ll change your mind about the device.  Same goes for the fanboys, too.  But if you’re on the fence about the product, allow me to throw my two cents into the ring.

Many reviews out there are calling the iPad an “evolutionary” update rather than a “revolutionary” one, referring to the fact that, while the device got a spec upgrade (new processor, better graphics, cameras, thinner design), nothing major about the device is new.  And a lot of those evolutionary reviewers are disappointed at that fact, as they were expecting major changes.  Here’s the thing though: Apple didn’t have to overhaul the device because it’s the industry leader.  The original iPad is still the niche-defining device, with over 90% of the market share.  Competitors are coming out with their first wave of tablets (e.g. Motorola’s Xoom, Samsung’s Galaxy Tab) and they’re supposed to be pretty good.  But none has yet matched the usability, form, and design of the first iPad…and now the second generation iPad is hitting shelves in about a week.  What Apple has done has improved the already class-leading product, so the gap between the iPad and the other tablets out there just got even wider.  As Cult of Mac has pointed out here, “The iPad 2 is pure Apple: it proves that Apple is its own most ruthless competitor…Apple’s competitors are dead in the water.”  The iPad itself was a revolution, and according to the sales numbers and customer stories I hear at work, the revolution is just getting started.  iPad 2, which physically an “evolution,” will continue to revolutionize how we stay connected and share information and get things done.

I’ll admit it: I was skeptical when the original iPad debuted last year.  I wasn’t sure how it would fit into my life.  It is, by no means, an essential device.  That is, it’s a gap-fill product, meant to bridge the gulf between perhaps the two most important electronic devices in most people’s lives: their smartphone and their computer.  That being said, with more exposure to it at work, and with one at home, I can see that it’s an awesome device.  I want one for myself (the one we have at home is Xan’s).  There, I said it.

For those who are on the fence about the iPad, go to an Apple store and check one out for yourself.  Seeing it online and reading reviews is one thing, but the way I see it, actually holding one and using one is an entirely different thing altogether.  It’s a device that really needs to be experienced in person.  For the “haters” out there, despite my scoffing at Xoom and Galaxy Tab commercials on TV, I really do hope your devices are great ones, if only because that’ll make future generations of the iPad that much better.  But I’m not holding my breath for you: you’ve got a lot of catching up to do.

(Stiff) Competition

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Allow me to start by stating, for the record, that I’m an Apple fan.  I may even go so far as to say that I’m an Apple fanboy.  I like the products, the way they’re designed, and most of the ways the company conducts business.  My computers are great.  And I love my iPhone: I use it for everything, from emailing and texting to Facebook updates, from game playing to bill paying.  It’s the best phone on the market right now.  That being said…

WTF, Windows Phone 7?!?

I’m cheering for WP7 (and Android, for that matter) because good products from competitors only make Apple products better.  It’s like elite sports: good competition makes for better products.  Excellent WP7 and Android OSes will make iOS even better, just like the slew of really good smartphones released in the past 18 months has pushed the engineers at Apple to make the iPhone even better than it already is.

The same goes for the seemingly countless tablets being released this year.  I really do hope that several of them bring some heat to the iPad, in terms of both hardware and software.  Not that I mind seeing the iPad dominate the market, but the way I see it, healthy competition is good for everyone, challengers and champion alike.