Apple Watch versions.
Apple sent out invitations for a "Spring Forward" event, which will take place at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco on March 9. Some sources are already reporting that a white structure is being built alongside the Center, similar to the one constructed at the Flint Center for the announcement of the Apple Watch last September.
The event will be streamed live at 10am, Pacific Standard Time. I dropped the data file (.ICS) from the announcement page onto the Calendar app and that shows a start time for Thailand on Monday at midnight, although looking at the time differences, Tuesday at 1am may be more accurate.
Many expect announcements to revolve around the Apple Watch, which is set to ship in April. There will probably be other products announced too: perhaps an updated MacBook Air. Last September, we were told that there are three Apple Watch versions with two screen sizes: 38mm and 42mm. The stainless steel watch was announced at US$349 (11,000 baht). Optional, interchangeable bracelets may cost extra.
The price of the aluminium Sport collection is unknown, while figures of between $5,000 to $6,000 (and higher) are being touted for the gold Apple Watch. I confidently predict that I will not be purchasing one of those, although I expect many will. Special diamond-encrusted versions of the Apple Watch will be available from Brikk for up to $70,000 or so. Brikk also produces other luxury items, such as an iPhone 6 (starting at $5,995) and a Nikon camera for $57,995. So someone must be buying these things.
There are of course already dismissive comments about the Apple Watch from the usual sources. Remember, some of these same pundits laughed at the Mac; they thought iPods were non-starters; the iPhone was insignificant; and with rumours that Apple is looking at automotive technology, carmakers have already belittled this idea, despite precedents of Apple's ability to disrupt industries — anyone remember CDs?
The iPad took off more quickly than many predicted because the app infrastructure was already in place. Apple developers have been working on apps for the Watch for the last few weeks using the WatchKit SDK. When the Apple Watch appears, there will already be several apps ready to go. Expect also an update to iOS.
Initially apps will have to interact with those like the Health app. Rumours suggest some features were found not to work as expected (arm hair, for example, affects conductivity). The heart monitor is expected to be included according to Apple CEO Tim Cook, who should know. He also hinted that, among other features, it may replace car keys.
I have been using iWork for a while: Keynote, Numbers and Pages. Initially only on the Mac, there were later apps for iOS devices and it was possible to synchronise data using iTunes. Later, cloud syncing appeared. It was handy to write a presentation at home on the Mac, then run it in class using the iPhone.
Last year a beta of iWork for the web was announced. Early demonstrations showed it would be possible to use a browser like Internet Explorer. Last week Apple announced its web-only access to iCloud, allowing those without a Mac or iOS device to use the service, which will also include 1GB of storage for new users.
Pages, Numbers, and Keynote for iCloud will work with Safari, Firefox, Chrome, and Internet Explorer. It will not work with Android — I tried. As my mother bought a Samsung phone recently and was having problems using it, I picked up the same model in Siam Paragon last week.
For just under 3,000 baht, the Samsung is not a bad little device. But I really do not understand how anyone manages to be productive with the installed OS. I thought I might use it as a second phone, but I ran screaming back to the iPhone. It will stay in my condo for when my mother makes calls for help. It hardly matters how good camera output is on the iPhone if photographs are only seen by the user. Many are shown these days on social media and on websites. There are also apps for specialised output. One I like to use occasionally is Snaptee. Users can have photographs turned into T-shirts, hoodies and parkas.
The printing technique is not silkscreen, so the $19.99 price (plus mailing from Hong Kong) gives me a wearable T-shirt that feels cool and is roomy enough for my taste.
I usually edit images first, although recent versions of the app allow some editing, as well as selection of shapes. Input can also be from apps that use the SDK, like Manga Camera.
Graham K. Rogers of Mahidol University's Engineering Faculty, has OS-X flavoured web pages at www.extensions.in.th/index4.html
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