No Apple, That's Still Called Syncing

iCloud automatically downloads any new music purchase to all your devices over Wi-Fi — or over 3G if you choose. Which means you can buy a song from iTunes on your iPad at home, and find it waiting for you on your iPhone during your morning commute. All without having to sync

So you're still making me download files? Is this a joke? Look Apple, where I come from the act of downloading matching files from 1 device to another is called SYNCING. It doesn't matter if it's via a cable or WiFi. iTunes in the Cloud still forces us to sync files to our devices.

Un Freaking Real. All that hype...for this.

All I want to do is listen to my music library on my iPhone without having to push gigabytes of data around. iTunes Match should just scan you drive and allow you to stream your damn library online. Maybe I need an Android phone for that.

Say it Ain't So, Steve

The iCloud is expected to offer users a means to store their iTunes-purchased music on the company's servers and then access from Web-connected devices. Sources told CNET yesterday that streaming music won't immediately be made available on Monday and that Apple has plans to someday store songs users obtained outside of iTunes.

Well that's awesome. "Someday" I may be able to store the music I've purchased on CD and Amazon in the same place as music I purchased from iTunes. They're all MP3+AAC files, but for some reason where I bought them makes a difference.

This report had better be incorrect, Apple. You've already bilked me out of hundreds of dollars to "upgrade" my iTunes library - yes, I actually paid YOU to strip YOUR shitty DRM from files I own. Now your long-awaited cloud solution is only going to work for ~40% of my music library. Brilliant.

Maybe I should have known there's no way the labels would let iCloud be awesome. Not even the power of Apple can change that.

A Future Where Google IS The Internet

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The URL is dying. People don't type in www.facebook.com anymore. Some don't even use bookmarks. They type "Facebook" into their Google search bar, and Google gives them a link to click.

So it's no surprise that dev builds of Chrome have a "Compact" mode that hides the URL bar. This of course is exactly what Google wants. Every time you manually type in a URL, Google loses a monetization opportunity. Notice how in the Compact Mode the green "Search" box is NOT hidden? Yeah that's not a coincidence.

These guys are good. Soon it will be virtually impossible to do anything on the internet that doesn't drop cash or mine-able data into Google's pocket. This creeps me out.

Another Place To Get The Same Crap

On the PC, it ties back to the recently expanded YouTube rental service with similar restrictions (30 days to watch, 24 hour window once you start watching) and pricing, and makes that per-movie VOD price a bit easier to swallow with its cross-platform support and we even spied a few HD selections for $4.99

Google's movie service is good news for Android users. But it's pretty much a subset of stuff available elsewhere. iTunes, Amazon and now YouTube offer pretty much the same crap. Why? Because the studios hold all the cards and control what can be watched and when.

Well, at least Ghostbusters is free on YouTube.

Amazon Cloud Player - Strike One

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Did you know Amazon has a maximum number of browsers (8) you can use to access it's Cloud Player? Browsers. So loading it up in Chrome, IE and Firefox because you like to jump from browser to browser during the day? You've got 5 left. And there's no way for you to "unregister" browsers.

Oh and don't even think about deleting cookies, because apparently that will re-count any browsers that open the site.

This is not acceptible.

Adobe Wasted Their Time With Photoshop Touch

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I don't want Photoshop iPad apps that interact with Photoshop CS5 on the desktop. I want Photoshop ON the iPad.

I'll pay for a well-done, limited functionality iPad version of a desktop app. GarageBand and iMovie have set the bar. Adobe should focus their efforts on a version of Photoshop for the iPad that rivals these. People will still buy CS5.

While we're at it, how about an iPad version of Coda? :)

Again With The Flash

While the service is still in beta, users will be able to join by invitation only. Initially, to access the service, users will require a browser that supports Flash — that means no Apple devices — or on any Android device that's version 2.2 or higher, Levine said.

Of course it's Flash. Flash keeps users inside the browser, where Google makes money. When users pop out of the browser (like to an app), Google's monetization opportunities drop dramatically.

Ballmer Will Not Rest Until Microsoft is Dead

The Wall Street Journal reported earlier tonight that Microsoft–in what would be its most aggressive acquisition in the digital space–was zeroing in on buying Skype for $8.5 billion all in with an assumption of the Luxembourg-based company’s debt.

Sweet merciful crap, $8.5 billion. 4 times what the company was worth, all so you can plug video chat into 360 and Windows Live?
Video chat has been "the next bing thing" for 25 years now. It has never caught on because no one wants to video chat. It's a very small niche market for long-distance relationships and exhibitionists. I know exactly 0 people who have used FaceTime more than once. We have video kiosks at work that sit there totally unused. Many people today don't even like to talk on the phone and prefer email.

Summary: Video chat is lame, Skype is an unprofitable dying technology, and Ballmer continues to run Microsoft into the ground.

The Only One Who Can Save Android Tablets Is Google

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1. The words "7-inch" and "$499" cannot be in the same sentence.
2. Stylii (styluses?) are dead, especially $80 ones.

Tablet makers are doing crap like digital pens and 3D cameras because they're waiting for the software to catch up. Apple is guilty of it too - cameras on the iPad 2? You're really taking pictures with your 9.7" glass slate? The only reason the iPad2 got cameras was that iOS 5 wasn't ready, and normal people generally yawn at speed/power bumps. Not good for sales.

So here are HTC, LG, etc. trying desperately to differentiate themselves from the iPad. Lots of 7" sizes (that Apple doesn't have), beefed up specs (and prices), and gimmicks you can't find on the iPad. It's just a tap dance while they wait until Google makes Android awesome on tablets. Honeycomb is currently not awesome.