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The FireWire's Gone Out (2/23/05)
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Is anyone else out there starting to get a little paranoid about Apple's commitment to FireWire? We know, we know, arguments about whether USB 2.0 is better or worse than FireWire, which technology would render the other obsolete, and whose dad can beat up the other's are so five years ago, but we can't help feeling a little nervous given what's been happening with Apple's own peripherals lately. After all, other than camcorders, what's the single biggest "digital spoke" product category shipping with FireWire connectivity? We can't say for sure, and we're way too lazy to bother doing the research, but we're guessing it's portable digital music players-- entirely because of the iPod. Think of it: over ten million of those things have shipped in the past few years, and every single one was a FireWire device.
But in recent years Apple's been shifting the iPod's focus from FireWire to USB. The original iPods were FireWire-only; by the time the third-gen model surfaced, the FireWire port had been replaced with a dock connector that could connect via USB 2.0, if a Windows user sans FireWire shelled out extra for a special USB cable. Then Apple started shipping iPods with both FireWire and USB cables in the box. The iPod shuffle is USB-only-- but that's an anomaly, since it's more or less a flash USB drive that happens to play music. But as far as the iPod is concerned, today USB indisputably pulled ahead of FireWire for the first time, as faithful viewer Mijkal points out that, according to Apple's specs page, both the new iPod minis and the revamped iPod photos retain the dock connector, but only ship with USB cables. Want to connect your iPod via FireWire? Now you're the one who has to cough up for a $19 cable.
Sadly, from a strictly economic standpoint, Apple's move makes perfect sense. Since the majority of iPods are selling to Wintel users and the majority of Wintels don't have FireWire ports, most iPods are being jacked in via USB 2.0. In other words, Apple is shipping literally millions of FireWire cables that will never get used, so why keep slapping a $19 cable (okay, they probably only cost about 14 cents to make, but still) in the box if it's just going to wind up in a drawer somewhere, especially since all new Macs ship with USB 2.0 as well? Indeed, the latest iPods show other signs of cost-cutting-- Mijkal notes that the minis don't even ship with an AC adapter anymore, and the iPod photo no longer includes a dock-- so FireWire as a technology probably shouldn't take it personally.
Still, the bottom line is that it's a dark day for FireWire now that all of the latest iPods default to USB-only. Not that we expect camcorders to switch to USB 2.0 overnight or anything, but the iPod used to be a showcase for FireWire, and now Apple charges extra to let you connect that way. Should we all wear black armbands and look somber to mark the occasion?
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 | | The above scene was taken from the 2/23/05 episode: February 23, 2005: The iPod mini gets a darn sight more attractive, with lower prices, higher capacities, and double the battery life-- but where'd the gold one go? Meanwhile, the iPod photo finally gets a price (and a feature set) that anyone can love, but what's with all these new iPods shipping only with USB cables?...
Other scenes from that episode: 5186: A Clean Slate Does Good (2/23/05) Say what you will about our spotty broadcast schedule of late, but we can tell you this: there are definite advantages to occasionally being completely out of the loop for days at a time. For one thing, there's the whole "sleeping more than 90 minutes a night" thing; for another, there's the "less time spent contemplating dark thoughts of grievous violence against oneself and others" factor-- which, come to think about it, might conceivably be linked to the sleep thing, but in any case, it makes for a refreshing change of routine... 5187: Suddenly The Smart Buy (2/23/05) Meanwhile, the mini isn't the only iPod that just got a whole lot more attractive today. To be perfectly honest, we've never been all that jazzed about the first-generation iPod photo; sure, it can display your whole digital photo collection both on its own teensy color screen and on a connected TV (complete with slideshow transitions and background music), but it's bigger, heavier, and a lot more expensive than its color-challenged counterparts...
Or view the entire episode as originally broadcast... | |  |
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