The only (and reasonably significant) catch is that it needs a constant connection to the Internet to function.
I think that this is actualy a showstopper problem.
The whole point of a ultra-mobile device is that you can use the device anywhere. If it only works when you've got a signal, then it's useless in a lot of situations. For instance, you couldn't use it while travelling at all as you'd potentially keep losing your link.
Similarly, you couldn't rely on it to store information if you are going to a business meeting as you wouldn't know if you would have a signal in the meeting room.
That's what I thought. However, that's not what the bc site says.
According to the list of games, the compatibility with PS1 games is poor too. Select the PS1 tab above the games list for the compatibility details for PS1 games.
Looking through the list, the situation is nearly as bad as people had feared, but it doesn't seem to be a total disaster.
I count around 750 PS2 games (discounting duplicates) with no known issues, which is a reasonable first step.
However, there are a lot of notable omissions.
I've noticed:
The Final Fantasy series comes out really badly. FFX, FFX2 are only 1 dot, and the recent FFXII is only at 2. Most shockingly, the PS1 FFVII is missing completely, and this is a game people may well want to play.
Other games that people may want to play in bc include: Okami at only at 1 dot, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas at one dot and Gran Turismo 4 which is missing completely.
On the plus side, God of War I, God of War II, Shadow of the Colossus and Ico all are listed as three dots.
Also surprisingly, some of the flagship PS2 games are missing: for instance, none of the Ratchet and Clank games are playable, only Jak 2 and 3 are playable, and then only at one dot.
I'm sure there are plenty of other big-name titles missing I've not noticed.
The problem I have with this list is that it's sufficiently bad at backwards compatibility that it means that if you have a Euro PS3, you can't just pick up a cheap PS2 game at a games store, as it is likely not to work properly. This was annoying with the Xbox 360 compatibility as well.
It's a closed device, so pretty much by definition not a smartphone.
I'm in the UK, and yes, basic phones now do have a LOT of functionality. They may not have as good web browsing as the iPhone, but there are plenty of features that can be found on even fairly low end phones that the iPhone doesn't have. For example, video calling, video messaging, voice activation, gps, java midlets...
Probably the same kind of people who already spend $700+ on a so-called "smart phone" that does less, is harder to use, and looks less fashionable than the iPhone. And it doesn't really matter: if it makes a profit for Apple, then it's a good thing.
Yes, but the iPhone isn't a smartphone. It's really slick, but it's a fairly basic closed platform phone.
It terms of features and getting things done, pretty much any of the current "smart phones" blow it away. The iPhone is not for people who want smartphones for getting anything serious done.
It looks like a really nice phone, but competitor feature phones are much cheaper, smaller and probably easier to use for basic functions (it looks like the iPhone will be a real pain to use one handed, and it doesn't seem to have voice dialling).
For me, the only really compelling feature of the iPhone is the web browser. Current browsers on the market are almost all rubbish. Hopefully the release of the iPhone will give Microsoft the kick they need to finally upgrade the woefully limited mobile IE.
The iPhone is surely intriguing. Slap in a terminal, and get a bluetooth keyboard. It's been a while since I used Pine.
So far, all the indications are that the iPhone is a closed device. You are unlikely to be able to run a terminal.
In fact, I'm a bit baffled about all the comparisons between the iPhone and Newton and current smartphones. The iPhone isn't a PDA and it isn't a smartphone. It just a really slick fairly basic phone.
But that isn't what the EULA says. The EULA states that the Vista agreement invalidates the previous agreement. Thus, you don't have a legal right to install the previous version.
You bought Vista right, so does it matter that you used to be a pirate?
Yes, it does. The upgrade version is significantly cheaper that the full retail version solely because it is an upgrade. Thus, you still don't legally have a valid agreement for the use of Vista.
True, it is a rumour that the XP keys get invalidated.
However, the EULA does explicitly say:
13. UPGRADES. To use upgrade software, you must first be licensed for the software that is eligible for the upgrade. Upon upgrade, this agreement takes the place of the agreement for the software you upgraded from. After you upgrade, you may no longer use the software you upgraded from.
which does imply that you are not allowed to go back to XP.
And don't say that doesn't matter if the keys don't get invalidated. If you are going to completely ignore the EULA, why are you not just pirating it in the first place?
I've still not managed to get a clear answer to whether the EULA for Vista means you can never re-install it.
The problem is that the upgrade version invalidates the agreement for XP, which means you are not allowed to re-install XP, which is needed to re-install Vista...
I suppose this work-around does allow you to re-install Vista, but they may well remove this in the future.
I submitted a support request to Microsoft about this a few days ago, but they haven't responded.
Without the image contraint token, you can play HD-DVD in full resolution over analog vga. However, you still will not be able to display HD-DVD over DVI without HDCP at all.
Taking a strict reading of the licence agreement, doesn't this mean that if you have the upgrade version, you can't EVER reinstall it?
To use the upgrade, you need the previous version installed. However, the licence agreement for Vista says:
13. UPGRADES. To use upgrade software, you must first be licensed for the software that is eligible for the upgrade. Upon upgrade, this agreement takes the place of the agreement for the software you upgraded from. After you upgrade, you may no longer use the software you upgraded from.
The last part seems to indicate that you are not allowed to reinstall the previous version. Thus, if your hard disk gets trashed, you can't install the previous version in order to do the upgrade.
The windows based installer is an interesting idea, and the Ubuntu version looks pretty good.
However, the goodbye-microsoft.com front end site is a complete disaster.
It just contains a link to an executable file. The 'More details about it link' says NOTHING about what it does. It doesn't say what it will install, what it is for, or what it will do to your existing OS.
I really hope that few people would be stupid enough to run the executable. Getting people to run random files from sites with names that suggest that they will trash your OS is not something to be encouraged.
This issue was quite a big failure by the slashdot editors.
There have been lots of slashdot articles bashing the PS3 for minor issues. However, on this issue, which WAS a serious one, slashdot was pretty much the only site covering console games that DIDN'T report it.
And no, the article linked to in the 'related articles' section at the top isn't about the same issue.
Anyway, I'm in the UK, and this fix does at least mean that I can consider getting a PS3 when it is released. The issue was a deal-breaker for me.
This could be more of a problem in the EU, as PAL versions of games generally don't have progressive scan support (which is a work-around).
I called Playstation support in the UK yesterday about this, and they claimed that this would be fixed in a firmware update before the EU launch. I'm not sue I believe them though.
I know that this drive is supposed to be a server one, but I'm still disappointed that the SAS standard is not properly compatible with SATA.
SAS is pretty similar to SATA in physical connections, and most SAS cards support having SATA drives plugged into them. Sadly it doesn't work the other way around: you can't plug a SAS drive into a SATA connector.
It's a pity that they didn't sort this out, as drives like this would be nice for workstation users looking for a little speed boost.
Of course, it looks like these kind of low-capacity / high-speed drives are about to be overtaken by the even faster flash based drives coming out.
I've got several Apple products, but I now only buy things from Apple with the knowledge that they come with basically zero support.
Each time I've dealt with Apple support it has been an extremely frustrating experience.
I've complained to them a number of times about their customer service. Sadly, their complaints procedure is just as bad; they only take complaints in physical writing (no email or phone). I've never had a reply to any of my complaints.
I admit the price is stiff and also admit that as long as it has ssh, I'm in, and for the 8gb option at that.
That's the big problem: we just don't know at this point. There are a lot of unanswered questions over its capabilities.
The big one for me is whether it is a closed platform (like the iPod). If so, then (for instance) if it doesn't have SSH, then there will be no way to add it.
Similarly, as a 'smartphone', there are a huge number of features that have not been announced for the iPhone but most other smartphones do have. For instance, word processor and spreadsheet document view/edit, instant messaging and games playing.
My information comes from reading the AACS and HDCP licencing agreements.
Even having done that, I'm still not sure what the requirements actually are.
The current HD standards are a complete mess. For instance HD-DVD still hasn't sorted out whether it will have region-coding. This is despite HD-DVD devices already shipping.
Without the Image Constraint Token (which is not yet implemented), you can get full resolution output over analog (e.g. VGA or component).
However, even if the disc doesn't have this set, you still can't get unencrypted digital output (such as DVI without HDCP). Unencrypted digital output is simply not one of the allowed output formats of AACS encrypted media.
Thus, you will be able to currently play discs at full resolution over VGA, but (without new HDCP capable hardware) it simply won't work over DVI.
There is a lot of confusion about this still, but I don't think what the ars technica article says is what you think it means.
What the article says is that there is an agreement not to implement the Image Constraint Token (ICT) yet. This is a token that forces a downgrade of analog signals. This is why the Xbox 360 can have a HD-DVD add-on without a HDMI port.
This does not apply to digital output. Even if the discs don't have this set, you still need HDCP if you want to get a digital link to the monitor.
So, if you are using VGA to the monitor you are ok for the moment, but stuffed if you are using DVI or HDMI without HDCP.
Of course, this understanding comes from reading the AACS licence agreement (freely available from the aacsla website). Unfortunately, this agreement is as clear as mud, so I may be wrong.
Slashdot Mirror
The only (and reasonably significant) catch is that it needs a constant connection to the Internet to function.
I think that this is actualy a showstopper problem.
The whole point of a ultra-mobile device is that you can use the device anywhere. If it only works when you've got a signal, then it's useless in a lot of situations. For instance, you couldn't use it while travelling at all as you'd potentially keep losing your link.
Similarly, you couldn't rely on it to store information if you are going to a business meeting as you wouldn't know if you would have a signal in the meeting room.
That's what I thought. However, that's not what the bc site says.
According to the list of games, the compatibility with PS1 games is poor too. Select the PS1 tab above the games list for the compatibility details for PS1 games.
Just a quick note: the compatibility list IS now up. And yes, it's pretty poor.
Looking through the list, the situation is nearly as bad as people had feared, but it doesn't seem to be a total disaster.
I count around 750 PS2 games (discounting duplicates) with no known issues, which is a reasonable first step.
However, there are a lot of notable omissions.
I've noticed:
The Final Fantasy series comes out really badly. FFX, FFX2 are only 1 dot, and the recent FFXII is only at 2. Most shockingly, the PS1 FFVII is missing completely, and this is a game people may well want to play.
Other games that people may want to play in bc include: Okami at only at 1 dot, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas at one dot and Gran Turismo 4 which is missing completely.
On the plus side, God of War I, God of War II, Shadow of the Colossus and Ico all are listed as three dots.
Also surprisingly, some of the flagship PS2 games are missing: for instance, none of the Ratchet and Clank games are playable, only Jak 2 and 3 are playable, and then only at one dot.
I'm sure there are plenty of other big-name titles missing I've not noticed.
The problem I have with this list is that it's sufficiently bad at backwards compatibility that it means that if you have a Euro PS3, you can't just pick up a cheap PS2 game at a games store, as it is likely not to work properly. This was annoying with the Xbox 360 compatibility as well.
With email.
Plenty of basic phones can get email.
And Safari.
Plenty of basic phones can browse the web.
And iTunes.
Plenty of basic phones can play music.
And Google maps.
You can get phones with gps now.
And Wi-Fi.
There are wi-fi phones already available. Some coming soon will do voice over ip too.
And OS X.
Although nice, an OS isn't a feature.
It's a closed device, so pretty much by definition not a smartphone.
I'm in the UK, and yes, basic phones now do have a LOT of functionality. They may not have as good web browsing as the iPhone, but there are plenty of features that can be found on even fairly low end phones that the iPhone doesn't have. For example, video calling, video messaging, voice activation, gps, java midlets...
Probably the same kind of people who already spend $700+ on a so-called "smart phone" that does less, is harder to use, and looks less fashionable than the iPhone. And it doesn't really matter: if it makes a profit for Apple, then it's a good thing.
Yes, but the iPhone isn't a smartphone. It's really slick, but it's a fairly basic closed platform phone.
It terms of features and getting things done, pretty much any of the current "smart phones" blow it away. The iPhone is not for people who want smartphones for getting anything serious done.
It looks like a really nice phone, but competitor feature phones are much cheaper, smaller and probably easier to use for basic functions (it looks like the iPhone will be a real pain to use one handed, and it doesn't seem to have voice dialling).
For me, the only really compelling feature of the iPhone is the web browser. Current browsers on the market are almost all rubbish. Hopefully the release of the iPhone will give Microsoft the kick they need to finally upgrade the woefully limited mobile IE.
The iPhone is surely intriguing. Slap in a terminal, and get a bluetooth keyboard. It's been a while since I used Pine.
So far, all the indications are that the iPhone is a closed device. You are unlikely to be able to run a terminal.
In fact, I'm a bit baffled about all the comparisons between the iPhone and Newton and current smartphones. The iPhone isn't a PDA and it isn't a smartphone. It just a really slick fairly basic phone.
But that isn't what the EULA says. The EULA states that the Vista agreement invalidates the previous agreement. Thus, you don't have a legal right to install the previous version.
You bought Vista right, so does it matter that you used to be a pirate?
Yes, it does. The upgrade version is significantly cheaper that the full retail version solely because it is an upgrade. Thus, you still don't legally have a valid agreement for the use of Vista.
True, it is a rumour that the XP keys get invalidated.
However, the EULA does explicitly say:
13. UPGRADES. To use upgrade software, you must first be licensed for the software that is eligible
for the upgrade. Upon upgrade, this agreement takes the place of the agreement for the software
you upgraded from. After you upgrade, you may no longer use the software you upgraded from.
which does imply that you are not allowed to go back to XP.
And don't say that doesn't matter if the keys don't get invalidated. If you are going to
completely ignore the EULA, why are you not just pirating it in the first place?
I've still not managed to get a clear answer to whether the EULA for Vista means you can never re-install it.
The problem is that the upgrade version invalidates the agreement for XP, which means you are not allowed to re-install XP, which is needed to re-install Vista...
I suppose this work-around does allow you to re-install Vista, but they may well remove this in the future.
I submitted a support request to Microsoft about this a few days ago, but they haven't responded.
That's only half true.
Without the image contraint token, you can play HD-DVD in full resolution over analog vga. However, you still will not be able to display HD-DVD over DVI without HDCP at all.
Taking a strict reading of the licence agreement, doesn't this mean that if you have the upgrade version, you can't EVER reinstall it?
To use the upgrade, you need the previous version installed. However, the licence agreement for Vista says:
13. UPGRADES. To use upgrade software, you must first be licensed for the software that is eligible
for the upgrade. Upon upgrade, this agreement takes the place of the agreement for the software
you upgraded from. After you upgrade, you may no longer use the software you upgraded from.
The last part seems to indicate that you are not allowed to reinstall the previous version. Thus, if your hard disk gets trashed, you can't install the previous version in order to do the upgrade.
The windows based installer is an interesting idea, and the Ubuntu version looks pretty good.
However, the goodbye-microsoft.com front end site is a complete disaster.
It just contains a link to an executable file. The 'More details about it link' says NOTHING about what it does. It doesn't say what it will install, what it is for, or what it will do to your existing OS.
I really hope that few people would be stupid enough to run the executable. Getting people to run random files from sites with names that suggest that they will trash your OS is not something to be encouraged.
This issue was quite a big failure by the slashdot editors.
There have been lots of slashdot articles bashing the PS3 for minor issues. However, on this issue, which WAS a serious one, slashdot was pretty much the only site covering console games that DIDN'T report it.
And no, the article linked to in the 'related articles' section at the top isn't about the same issue.
Anyway, I'm in the UK, and this fix does at least mean that I can consider getting a PS3 when it is released. The issue was a deal-breaker for me.
What could be still an issue for Europe is the problems with graphics of some PS2 games (see http://boardsus.playstation.com/playstation/board/ message?board.id=ps3&thread.id=808212 for instance).
This could be more of a problem in the EU, as PAL versions of games generally don't have progressive scan support (which is a work-around).
I called Playstation support in the UK yesterday about this, and they claimed that this would be fixed in a firmware update before the EU launch. I'm not sue I believe them though.
I know that this drive is supposed to be a server one, but I'm still disappointed that the SAS standard is not properly compatible with SATA.
SAS is pretty similar to SATA in physical connections, and most SAS cards support having SATA drives plugged into them. Sadly it doesn't work the other way around: you can't plug a SAS drive into a SATA connector.
It's a pity that they didn't sort this out, as drives like this would be nice for workstation users looking for a little speed boost.
Of course, it looks like these kind of low-capacity / high-speed drives are about to be overtaken by the even faster flash based drives coming out.
Yeah, Apple UK support does seem to be dreadful.
I've got several Apple products, but I now only buy things from Apple with the knowledge that they come with basically zero support.
Each time I've dealt with Apple support it has been an extremely frustrating experience.
I've complained to them a number of times about their customer service. Sadly, their complaints procedure is just as bad; they only take complaints in physical writing (no email or phone). I've never had a reply to any of my complaints.
It does have a camera, but it's on the back.
Thus, you are not going to be able to make video calls with it, even if they do move to 3G.
I admit the price is stiff and also admit that as long as it has ssh, I'm in, and for the 8gb option at that.
That's the big problem: we just don't know at this point. There are a lot of unanswered questions over its capabilities.
The big one for me is whether it is a closed platform (like the iPod). If so, then (for instance) if it doesn't have SSH, then there will be no way to add it.
Similarly, as a 'smartphone', there are a huge number of features that have not been announced for the iPhone but most other smartphones do have. For instance, word processor and spreadsheet document view/edit, instant messaging and games playing.
My information comes from reading the AACS and HDCP licencing agreements.
Even having done that, I'm still not sure what the requirements actually are.
The current HD standards are a complete mess. For instance HD-DVD still hasn't sorted out whether it will have region-coding. This is despite HD-DVD devices already shipping.
Without the Image Constraint Token (which is not yet implemented), you can get full resolution output over analog (e.g. VGA or component).
However, even if the disc doesn't have this set, you still can't get unencrypted digital output (such as DVI without HDCP). Unencrypted digital output is simply not one of the allowed output formats of AACS encrypted media.
Thus, you will be able to currently play discs at full resolution over VGA, but (without new HDCP capable hardware) it simply won't work over DVI.
There is a lot of confusion about this still, but I don't think what the ars technica article says is what you think it means.
What the article says is that there is an agreement not to implement the Image Constraint Token (ICT) yet. This is a token that forces a downgrade of analog signals. This is why the Xbox 360 can have a HD-DVD add-on without a HDMI port.
This does not apply to digital output. Even if the discs don't have this set, you still need HDCP if you want to get a digital link to the monitor.
So, if you are using VGA to the monitor you are ok for the moment, but stuffed if you are using DVI or HDMI without HDCP.
Of course, this understanding comes from reading the AACS licence agreement (freely available from the aacsla website). Unfortunately, this agreement is as clear as mud, so I may be wrong.
I don't think that's true. If I recall correctly, the Image Constraint Token (which is what is not yet activated) affects only the analog outputs.
Even if the disc doesn't have this set, you'll still need HDCP if you want a digital link to the monitor.