Nate Lanxon

Tuesday 24 June 2008, 10:51am

Eight Apple questions Clarissa didn't explain

Hip TV teen Clarissa claimed to explain "it all" in the early 90s, but she failed to explain anything about our consumer electronics, 15 years ahead of the broadcast of her otherwise astute explanations.

To compensate for her miserable failure in this area, I shall pretend to be Clarissa, explaining some persistent questions about Apple she never got around to. Here goes.

1: Why hasn't Apple put radios in iPods?
Because selling it as an optional extra is far more lucrative.

2: Why can't I take my MacBook Air through customs?
Because some customs officials don't understand that technology advances faster than their knowledge of it. If you're going to fly, be sure to take a 'regular' laptop -- one with spinning disks and ports and stuff.

3: Why can't iPhones still use iTunes over-the-air?
It's a network congestion issue, or a royalty issue between Apple and the labels. I explained this in Clarissa's place here.

4: Why do iPhones get hot when iPod touches don't?
News flash: the iPod touch isn't a phoneless iPhone, it's a phoneless MP3 player. It doesn't need mobile chips (or 3G chips) and it doesn't need constant network connectivity. The iPhone does and that's why it gets hotter.

5: Why don't iTunes downloads work on other devices?
Because until recently the major record labels felt that if you were prepared to pay money for downloads, you're likely to want other people to steal them from you. Welcome to DRM. 

6: Why can't you disconnect MacBook Pros' screens for mounting?
It would be useful to unclip it, mount it to a wall or stand and use it as a regular Mac. After all, it's pretty powerful. But it would require messing around with wires, power cabling, clips, bolts and fastenings -- all the things Steve Jobs has nightmares about. But it'd be damn cool.

7: Why can't Phorm spy on Safari users?
Because it handles cookies differently from IE and Firefox. Fear being spied on? Perhaps get a Mac. Clarissa, perhaps in the guise of a Guardian reporter, covered this here.

8: Why won't Apple put decent earphones with iPods?
Because it'd cost them money, of course. Plus most people on the street (some seen here) don't care about sound quality, and others don't think money should be spent on earphones. Shame really, since iPods can sound a thousand times better than their stock earbuds allow.

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