Real Kato Blog: Apple Watch: Apple Roundup

Here are a few recent newsworthy items about Apple.

iPods In Short Supply

The iPod is one of hottest Christmas gift items this year; many retailers are already sold out of most models. Some less-than-knowledgeable pundits have accused Apple of deliberately manufacturing a shortage to spike interest, but that's ridiculous... there are projects that Apple will sell four million units this season, a four-fold increase over last year. We knew the iPod was popular, but who could have guessed it was that popular? So no, it's not a trick. Apple really is doing that well.

Apple Stock Soars

On the strength of iPod sales, Apple stock has soared into the mid-60's, nearing an all-time high. At a P/E ratio of about 90, it's not exactly a bargain; but analysts seem to still be expecting more iPod growth... and, everyone expects Steve Jobs to pull another rabbit out of his hat next year.

Apple-Branded Phone Rumor

That rabbit might just come in the form of an Apple-branded cell phone. Unnamed insiders at Motorola have been quoted on Mac rumor web sites, indicating that they've seen prototypes of new phones with Apple logos and iTunes/iPhoto compatibility. It's not really much of a stretch to believe this, but as usual, we'll just have to wait and see, as Apple is being typically tight-lipped in advance of the MacWorld expo in January.

Mac OS X Updates

Yes, Apple still makes Macs, and they're still updating the finest operating system available on any platform. Mac OS X 10.3.7 was released recently, and all indications are that this is a worthwhile update. No significant problems have been reported. Meanwhile, we're all eagerly anticipating the release of Mac OS X 10.4 ("Tiger"), which should come out early next year.

There's been a lot of talk about the integrated search feature in Tiger, called Spotlight. Again, there are some less-than-knowledgeable pundits out there, and they've been saying that Apple ripped off Spotlight after seeing a marketing presentation about the upcoming Windows "Longhorn" release. But that's a bunch of nonsense, because Apple has had integrated search capabilities since the OS 9 days, in the form of Sherlock. They've got a patented search technology called V-Twin, and Spotlight is just the next evolution. Really, the only reason people are even talking about search is because of the success of Google.

Just what is it with pundits, anyway?

Oh wait... I guess I'm a pundit. But at least I try to be right at least some of the time, unlike Paul "I Write Ridiculous Anti-Mac Statements Just To Drive Traffic To My Lousy Web Site" Thurrott.

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