Apple iPhone's Missing Pieces

Although the first reviews of the Apple (AAPL) iPhone were glowing (see links here and Josh Quittner's review of the reviewers here), all agreed that there were features that were either missing or not quite up to snuff.

Not to fear. If past behavior is any guide, Steve Jobs is likely to start filling in those missing pieces, one at a time, in a series of press releases and software updates carefully timed to garner maximum publicity and drive further sales. Look at the flurry of iPhone news in the weeks and days before the launch: YouTube videos, "improved" battery life, a 25 minute tutorial, the cheapest wireless plan on the market and generous reviews from hand-picked journalists timed for simultaneous release three days before the device goes on the market. Because he owns the whole box -- hardware and software -- and he can count on a few hundred reporters and bloggers to broadcast every minutia of iPhone news, Jobs can send new goodies down the pipeline whenever he feels his baby needs another jolt of media buzz.

So what's missing from the iPhone in its current configuration? Let's see...

1. No instant messaging
2. No way to IM pictures, videos, sounds (i.e. no MMS)
3. Can't cut and paste
4. Can't edit or save Word, Excel, PDF documents
5. Camera can't record video
6. Can't play Web pages with Flash
7. No access to iTunes Music Store
8. No games
9. No way to download contacts from old phones
10. Can't turn contact lists into e-mail distribution lists
11. Can't turn iPod songs into ring tones
12. No way to search phone book or song lists
13. No voice dialing
14. No quick way to move up or down pages
15. Not clear if there is support for Microsoft Exchange
16. No other carrier except AT&T Wireless
17. No AT&T Wireless insurance
18. No way to change SIM card or battery except through Apple
19. No GPS or real-time navigation system
20. No access to a fast, 3G network (for that you'll have to wait for iPhone 2.0)

That's all we've got for now. Feel free to add to the wish list. (With thanks to those who have already done so.)

Imaad Shah - Live Performance at anECHO.net

Imaad Shah - Live Performance Part I Imaad Shah - Live Performance Part 2 http://www.anecho.net Watch him perform live at the anECHO.net "PowerCut" unplugged series 1, in association with the Bombay Rock Association. June 29th, 2007 St. Andrew's Auditorium For tickets and other info : www.anecho.net For more dope on this , keep watching this space. Coming up > Interviews with Agnee, Imaad Shah, Aerosmiths(fingers crossed), Linkin Park, Shaair+Func, Vayu, Kailash Kher, Pentagram, Pralay, Themclones, Raghu Dixit. Later this month. Happy June & Monsoons to you.

India Today All India College Ranking 2007

Click here to read the full story, and other ratings (You need to have a subscription ID. But if you just keep typing random 4-digit numbers, it eventually lets you in.)

Try 4181. I did that and got through.

Linkin Park - Minutes to Midnight - Released

Linkin Park's third album, Minutes to Midnight, is their first in 4 years. The album is due out May 15th, but you can catch their first single, What I've Done, online now.

The album title is a reference to the Doomsday Clock, a clock created in 1947 by scientists from the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists at the University of Chicago. It's purpose is to portray how close (in imaginary "minutes") the world is to nuclear destruction ("midnight"). The clock's hand was originally set to seven minutes to midnight (11:53) at the start of the Cold War in 1947, and has been pushed forward or reversed several times since then. It currently stands at five minutes to midnight (11:55). History lessons aside, Mike Shinoda has commented about the title, saying "don't take that at face value. there are layers of meaning, most are metaphoric." and "It's definitely a reference to the doomsday clock 'the Apocalypse' metaphor for death and rebirth, but it could also be applied to the music industry, sort of tongue-in-cheek."

Tracklist:

01. Wake

02. Given Up

03. Leave Out All The Rest

04. Bleed It Out

05. Shadow Of The Day

06. What I've Done

07. Hands Held High

08. No More Sorrow

09. Valentine's Day

10. In Between

11. In Pieces

12. The Little Things Give You Away

Songs in bold are really worth the download.

http://rapidshare.com/files/29822056/LP_-_MTM.rar

password for the rar-file: PureLiquid

As for the rest of the songs in this album, i would say, its not such a welcome change, to hear the new LP. For me, I am back to listening my favourite "Hybrid Theory" all over again.

An interesting excerpt from the article has Chester saying

"We knew that we were gonna lose some fans with this record. It's not music you can work out to. There are people out there that only listen to Linkin Park because they love working out to our songs, but they don't even know what the songs are about. I mean, that's cool, thanks for your support. But this is not the record for you."

Heres a review of the album, of one of such fan, who begs to differ with the media hype, and an all good shining feeling that the media has cooked up for this album :

The problem here is that inorder to become the "new" Linkin Park, these guys just started copying U2, Nirvana, Coldplay, and yeah, oddly enough, the "old" Linkin Park minus the urgency and rage. I dig a change up but when it sacrifices your bands entire edge and nitche COMPLETELY, it may be time to scrap the project and give it a new name all together. Now, if you can get past the idea that Linkin Park are mearly actors playing all these other bands under the name Linkin Park, some of the songs are alright. Also, why marginalize Shinoda? He pretty much kept Linkin Park on peoples minds with Fort Minor? But his involvement in Linkin Park aided Fort Minor... to make it more clear it's like one hand washing the other, but not anymore. The trade off between Chester and Mike is gone, and so is the excitement, urgency, and edge. Finally, does the Asian DJ even do anything anymore? Nice try fella's but it just kinda comes down to: Why listen to Linkin Park anymore?

What your say on this?