And it's a day of calm . . . oh I'm kidding. It's Big Apple Announcement day, and thus a massive progeeky news day! Let's dive on in!
Apple:
Apple unveils the iPhone 4S. OK so t's not the 5 everyone expected, but it's pretty powerful – and includes a kind of verbal-command personal assistant. Frankly it seems to be the "5" in all but name.
And my high points?
- The addition of Sprint further expands their audience
- There's a lot of improvements hardware and software-wise
- Siri, the assistant, is getting a lot of attention. That may interest – and distract – competitors
Economics/Geekonomics:
We're still getting all the data, but the greek mess appears to be winding down and it sounds like Greece will still be in trouble and some banks are hosed.
Music:
The Zune HD is dead. This is because Microsoft is moving towards Windows Phone devices – which is a bigger trend to follow actually. They're putting their eggs in two baskets – Phone and 8 (you are learning to develop in these I hope).
Adaptions and Remakes:
Fuel for our resident analyst Scott:
- Dante Harper is going to write the script for the adaption of Foundation. I'm really not sure he's the right guy, as to me the right out is JMS about 10 years ago, so color me cautious. As this could lead to a series, keep an eye on it, and it could in turn lead to more retro trends and adaptions (Skylark, anyone?)
- Fox bought the rights to a Mr. Ed film. I got nothing to say here except pending 'My Little Pony' jokes.
Comics:
A CG Batman series in 2013 on Cartoon Network that seems to be extra odd – unusual villains, a replacement for Robin, etc. Perhaps bigger is the "DC Nation" block which sounds like a near variety-show format of comicdom, and might provide room for innovators and newcomers (hint, hint). I also get the vibe DC's goal is to do multiple interpretations on everything possible.
Geek Law:
Amazon re-invites associates it shut out after the California out-of-state tax bill was repealed. I think it's actually good for them due to bad blood – but the taxes are coming one way or another.
Tablets:
Kindle Fire pre-orders sell like crazy. I'm sure you're surprised.
QUESTION OF THE DAY: OK, do you care about the iPhone 4S?