New Mac Mini - Jobs must be back on the hash pipe
The new mac mini will follow in the footsteps of a long line of Apple product missteps. Now don't get me wrong, I am an Apple LOVER. I bought my first, an HD-30 in 1987 and have been in love with their products ever since. My puritanical ways have been proven by the fact that I have never spent a dime on a pc based product EVER. So now back to the mac mini: the cube was a bad idea, why replicate it. The mac mini comes off looking affordable because of it's high profile $499 entry fee, but add on top of that a keyboard and mouse. Let's talk about those, anyone buying the mini for the design esthetic is going to 'have' to get the wireless mouse and keyboard, so you then also have to get the internal bluetooth in the mini. And this is all before a screen. Who is going to buy the gorgeous mini and plop it on a desk next to a horribly designed cheap screen by some unknown maker. Clearly the mini wants to live next to one of the awesome low profile screens by Apple - base cost for the 20 inch $999. And this is where we run into the real miscalculation by Jobs, he really should give his minions more credit. We're already up to at least $1500 for the mac mini, but it's running off the older G4. We can buy the smaller Imac running on a super fast G5, and save a connection between the computer and the actual cpu (which we're trying to do anyway because we love design) for less money. Naturally there will be folks who have to go out and get the mini anyway (that was actually my initial reaction) but the solid buyers, and the new players are not going to be flocking to this, while they may be getting a new ipod shuffle for their other jacket!
Children's High Chairs
Having two kids under two I found myself spending an inordinate amount of time cleaning high chairs. It quickly became my least favorite child rearing chore. It was important to keep my several hundred dollar investments clean (the high chairs not the kids)! Then I discovered the greatest high chair ever designed at Ikea - the antilop high chair ($14.99). http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=12&langId=-1&catalogId=10101&productId=33223 It is far and away the best designed high chair ever. Easy to clean, well balanced, sized so the little tykes can interact with the world around them rather than being swallowed in frillies and hard plastic. It has NO little crevices to catch and keep old food. It has NO frilly cushions containing week old mashed peas. Try it, you'll never go back, and your children's kitchen experiences will be forever enhanced.
Textbook Market
The market acted out a perfect rendition of 'buy on the rumour, sell on the news' today. Opening up strong mostly on premarket moves based on the 'good' surprise turnover in Iraq. Early on I watched amazed that the market might try and shrug off the handful of new hostages (1 being a US soldier) and plow onward and upward. But alas, reality took hold. I'm not a market sage. I just read what the market is telling me, right now its showing me confusion. Why isn't the market making new highs with all the 'great' economic news hitting the tape daily? Where has all the volume gone? How high will rates go, how fast? Who knows, but for certain the market will be telling us shortly.
Market Strength
With the geopolitical situation worsening, why would the US markets break out of the range to make new highs? On continuing anemic volumes what could create a sustainable breakout. It appears that the ultimate bear trap is forming right before our very eyes. Its like getting to witness an eclipse, a rare event which requires patience, lots of patience.
Quiet 7:30!
7:30 and both kids are asleep. Its hard to find sanity in childrearing, but this is close to nirvana.
Intro
This blog will contain my random ruminations on the state of the world. It's a starting point to some greater good which has yet to be discovered. It welcomes dialogue along the theme, but all rants shall be mine alone. It's backed by no guarantees, its opinions are those of a raving lunatic at times, and conversely a suburbanite father at others. It'll be insightful in its cutting edge short sightedness!
