An Apple for Christmas

Once upon a time a teacher might be given an apple at the end of the year, but I don't imagine many teachers will be getting Apples this year. Not from their pupils, anyway.

What do you intend to buy for your geek? And what does the geek in you desire?

Apple's launch of iTunes vouchers from many shops and service stations across the country will probably mean there'll be lots of 'em in New Zealand stockings.

It's a luxury, for me, to get an iTunes voucher, because then I have to buy myself something (music or an app, usually). Most of the time I am much more adept at curbing my iTunes' desires. So I love having to buy something from the iTunes Store!

I'm not hinting people should send me vouchers, by the way. I'm just wondering what people's thoughts are on Xmas tech.

It's actually interesting to me that Apple was, a decade ago, widely perceived – well, that should be 'narrowly perceived' – as 'just' a seller of a maverick computers not used by many outside of education and the creative industries.

Apple's Mac computer presence hasn't really changed all that much, despite record sales and profits even in this recession.

But the Macintosh computer, in its consumer, laptop and tower forms, has been making inroads into homes and even, lately, into enterprise thanks to more standard networking protocols widely embraced in OS X, plus efforts to make the iPhone more business friendly.

Plus I suspect, bolshie execs saying to IT "I don't care what you say, I want a Mac!"

And it's good news that Apple has reclaimed the top spot in Rescuecom's computer-reliability ranking. The New York technical support franchise's CEO said netbook maker Asus' rating has plummeted.

Macs led Rescuecom's rankings during 2007 and 2008, but lost first place to Asustek Computer (better known as Asus) PCs in the first half of this year. Apple actually fell to third in the first quarter behind Asus and Lenovo.

But Apple's latest ranking was 374, while Asus has dropped dramatically to 166. This is all just a little weird, since Asustek is one of the MacBook builders.

But the Apple brand now is not just tied to the Mac, and so is much bigger than ten years ago. The Apple brand is so much more widely known thanks to the iPod, the iPhone and, in no small way, thanks to iTunes, the most-known legal music provider worldwide.

Amazon has compiled a list of the most wished-for electronics products by country for the period of November 15 to 30. So Christmas must have a bearing on that list. 'Yule' (ha ha) be curious to see where Apple appears in the top fives, as reported by the Independent.


In the US, where you'd imagine Apple's profile is highest, the Apple iPod touch 8GB came in at number 2, and the 32GB touch at number 3.
The Germans were keen on Samsung Smartphone and netbooks. Germany has always figured big in Apple use, like Japan, but Apple didn't get into Amazon's top 5 for Deutschland.

In the UK it was a different story – number one was the 8GB iPod touch, and number 2 the 32GB version. For the rest, flash cards and hard drives for the British. How sensible. Weatherproof, hopefully.

France, which has its own Mac magazines and produces some great Apple developers, by the way, had the iPod Nano 8GB in second place. Um, the purple one … And in third was the iPod Touch 8GB.

Japan, like Germany, also has a surprisingly high Macintosh use. But in the very land of consumer electronics madness, Epson and Canon took the first and second spots with a printer and a camera, respectively. No top five joy for Apple there.

I'm hoping NZ Apple vendors will let me know of any pre-Christmas deals so I can tell you about it, but do keep an eye open for deals out there.

Some people may be wishing for an Apple tablet for Christmas. I don't think so. I've been cynical of tablet rumours because it has to be the longest-standing Apple product rumour of all time, but it really does look like something is happening. But for early 2010 release, not Christmas.

For example, Apple needs content to make a new device work, and just to fuel tablet speculation, Condé Nast, Hearst, News Corporation, Time Inc, and Meredith all officially announced they are to agree on open standards for 'a new digital storefront'. Hopefully, this means magazines, newspapers and other content tailored for delivery to devices … like our favourite mythical potential Apple product.

The five publishers said the independent venture will "allow consumers to enjoy their favourite media content on portable digital devices," you see.

And it has been strongly hinted that Apple execs have been doing the rounds of the publishers in the last few months. A "new device category" needs something to do – it needs content.

For myself, I certainly can't afford to buy iPods for people at Christmas. I'd love to, but I'll more likely be checking the iTunes Store gift facility for both convenience and selection. Which brings me to the point: if you are likewise browsing the iTunes store and you see something somebody would like, you can 'gift' it to them.

This can sometimes be misguided in the case of music, but check out the audiobooks category. Audiobooks are perfect if you like fiction but can't be bothered making your eyes do the work.

I've found some real treasures in there, like sci-fi classic Ender's Game complete with a cameo by, and interview with, author Orson Scott Card. It's $35.99 but represents a great job of one of the best sci-fi books of all time. If only they had Tiger Tiger by Alfred Bester …

Another audiobook I've greatly appreciated was Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home and School.

This is by academic John J Medina, and at just $13.99 was a much appreciated and informative, easily-digestible mine of information after a friend of mine suffered a stroke. Good stuff. (Note that strokes are this book's focus.)

Of course, there are several audiobook readers for iPhones and the iPod touch, for those who like informative tones on the go, and audiobooks play in iTunes anyway, on the iPhone and touch, as regular songs do.
Teenagers I've spoken to seem to want iPod nanos.

Despite their 'small' capacities they seem to like the portability, and being able to shoot video on something you're likely to have in your pocket anyway is perceived as a good thing. Understandably.

I plan to keep Mac Planet running through the Christmas period. Keep reaching for that sunblock. Meanwhile, if you are a Mac user, don't forget the tips I post every Friday on my own mac-nz site.

- Mark Webster mac-nz.com