iPod Hi-Fi
This is a simple one. The Altec inMotion IM7 is $250, the Klipsh iGroove is $280 and the Bose sound dock is priced at $300. The Bose Wave Radio sells for $500. This is what people are willing to pay for these types of products. Apple priced theirs at $350. Seems fine. It will sell, but I do not like the way the iPod is just perched on top. Apple is going head to head in a product category that others have created. The iPod economy is quite large. The ultimate solution would be to use the iPod as the remote, but problems with battery consumption probably keep this just out of reach. Cost would not be a factor, because it would be so cool!
Mac mini
If it had a powerful 3D graphics card, it would be a better TV game console, but there is a real lack of game software for Macintosh anyhow. This probably keeps the cost down, but I think that a home entertainment solution will eventually need a game partner like Nintendo and fast 3D graphics. Problem is that if the price creeps much higher, the features will not matter. If you look at the specs, it packs a lot more features and performance for the slightly higher price, but the price went up and that hurts sales. It just does not go as far as I would have liked towards a home entertainment hub. I would hook this to my TV and get a bluetooth keyboard and mouse, but I wish it was a DVR right out of the box. The new Mac mini seems like an incremental step in the right direction but not good enough yet to be a blockbuster home entertainment solution. Its a great little computer and far better suited to a home entertainment environment than a Windows box in your living room. The package is perfect, the features are just not there yet.
iPod Hi-Fi
This is a simple one. The Altec inMotion IM7 is $250, the Klipsh iGroove is $280 and the Bose sound dock is priced at $300. The Bose Wave Radio sells for $500. This is what people are willing to pay for these types of products. Apple priced theirs at $350. Seems fine. It will sell, but I do not like the way the iPod is just perched on top. Apple is going head to head in a product category that others have created. The iPod economy is quite large. The ultimate solution would be to use the iPod as the remote, but problems with battery consumption probably keep this just out of reach. Cost would not be a factor, because it would be so cool!
Mac mini
If it had a powerful 3D graphics card, it would be a better TV game console, but there is a real lack of game software for Macintosh anyhow. This probably keeps the cost down, but I think that a home entertainment solution will eventually need a game partner like Nintendo and fast 3D graphics. Problem is that if the price creeps much higher, the features will not matter. If you look at the specs, it packs a lot more features and performance for the slightly higher price, but the price went up and that hurts sales. It just does not go as far as I would have liked towards a home entertainment hub. I would hook this to my TV and get a bluetooth keyboard and mouse, but I wish it was a DVR right out of the box. The new Mac mini seems like an incremental step in the right direction but not good enough yet to be a blockbuster home entertainment solution. Its a great little computer and far better suited to a home entertainment environment than a Windows box in your living room. The package is perfect, the features are just not there yet.