The Onion News Network has the goods on the latest story to hit the web. The MacBook Wheel, a revolutionary new Apple laptop that completely does away with the keyboard! Needless to say, we’ll be reviewing this beautiful piece of technology very soon at the Smoking Apples test labs. Till then, Jeff Tate from Onion News Network has the full story.

The video, after the jump, and highly recommended for pre-keynote stress release… Continue Reading »

Apple has posted another ad in the ‘make fun of vista problems’ series, also known as the ‘Get a Mac’ ads. This one, called ‘Bake Sale’, exaggerates the extent to which Microsoft is relying on an advertising blitz to fix Vista problems. An earlier ad (Bean Counter) also followed a similar theme but this one is not-so-subtle. This one will continue to rile Windows users but seems like a conscious strategy from Apple and its advertising agency to create even more dissonance about Vista and thereby urging the fence-sitters (not to be confused with the fence shitters) to make that switch.

Personally speaking, the earlier set of ads that focused on a specific feature or benefit of using a Mac (e.g Magsafe connector translated into the ‘Accident’ ad) or a specific drawback of the PC (trial software or bloatware translated into the ‘Stuffed’ ad) worked better for me. Nevertheless, Apple should continue with this strategy of creating a certain discomfiture about being a PC owner among potential Mac users. The executions may vary in the ‘likeability quotient’ but this strategy is likely to pay dividends, even if it means pissing off many PC users. Take a look at some of the usual ‘insult comments’ over at YouTube.

What do you make of the ‘Get a Mac’ ad series? Time for Apple to let go of this strategy or should they keep at it?

Looks like a new trend has started on the iTunes store, with free HD shows being offered of the season premiere episodes. Or maybe this is NBC having their way with iTunes. NBC has not only got variable pricing for their episodes ($2.99 for HD, $1.99 for SD, and $0.99 for old shows), they have also made available new episodes of their TV shows as free downloads. Everyone seems to be happy with this deal. 

The season two premier of Chuck [iTunes link] is being offered as a free download on the iTunes Store, pre-air. Hear that? Before even the rest of the world gets it, you can enjoy the episode right on your iPhone (and for free). And while Chuck gets the SD treatment, the episode of crime and drama TV show Life [iTunes link], again a pre-air season premiere, is given in crystal clear high definition.

So if these two shows mean anything to you, go grab ’em already. And if they don’t, then I’d highly recommend you check them out, because both shows are very entertaining in their own way. [Ed note: Of course, as is usual, you need a U.S. iTunes Store account to be able to enjoy these freebies.]

Whatever happened to Bill’s plans of retiring and dedicating his life to helping the world with his great schemes of philanthropy? I sure thought it was a damn good way to retire. However, from what I can see, all he is doing right now is helping Microsoft burn up cash on petty jokes and self-deprecating humour.

If you look at the latest ad, the second spot in their $300 million campaign, you cannot draw any other conclusion. In fact, this is even worse than the first one with Bill’s underwear joke. A full four and a half minutes long, it speaks of Microsoft for two seconds, and that too just in passing. Seriously guys, what’s happening here? Is the top brass at Microsoft playing the most expensive prank on us?

If, for some reason, you think I’m exaggerating, see for yourself. You have been warned that you will lose four and a half minutes of your life watching this, so don’t blame me later on.

Comedy Central has been broadcasting a lot of iPhone related stuff lately. The latest to come out of their funny factory (yes, it’s an actual factory that mass manufactures funny—sort of like Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory, only not for chocolate) is a discussion on why the iPhone is pure evil. They have even compiled a list of four reasons and all, so it must be true.

It’s all light hearted fun, of course, and none of them actually hate the iPhone. It’s a satire, in fact, on the people who claim to hate the iPhone and give some really lame reasons for doing so. Check it out in the embedded video below. If it doesn’t play, you’ll have to visit the Comedy Central website to spend three-and-a-half minutes of your time watching a useless video—totally worth it, I say.

There’s a little bit of foul language (nothing graphic though), so you might want to send the kids away before you hit the Play button. And don’t let them read this disclaimer. Oops, too late!

The watchful folks over at Engadget found that Dell was trying to make a dent in the Apple universe with a cheap shot video of their Latitude E4200. What Dell doesn’t realise is that the Apple universe is guarded right now by the moulded steel of the iPod Touch, liquid metal of the iPod nano, and the swirling planets of iTunes 8. Sorry Dell, bad timing, and more importantly, poor ad.

The ad sports the same manilla envelope that Apple uses, except that with the Dell in it, the envelope looks like its going to burst open. The ad then cleverly tries, but fails, to hide the sheer thickness of the Latitude as compared to the Air. Engadget notes that even the music is stolen from some Lenovo ads that aired a couple of months ago. What’s next Dell, gonna copy the iPod people as well?

Steve Jobs recently confirmed that there exists a “kill switch” mechanism that can remotely strip already installed apps off iPhones all across the globe if Apple ever feels the need to go to this extreme. Presumably, this has been put in place as a last resort to protect users from malicious applications in case any of them slip through the App Store vetting process.

But Stephen Colbert, the host of The Colbert Show on Comedy Central, has an entirely different interpretation of the kill switch. Apparently, Steve Jobs is misleading the legions of iPhone users out there and the “kill switch” actually does what it says. Your iPhone can kill you!

“Steve Jobs claims the kill switch is just programming code that lets Apple remotely remove undesirable software,” Colbert said, “but he doesn’t call it a Remote Undesirable Software Removal Switch. Why? ’Cause that’s not what it does; it kills you!” There’s also some light hearted Zune bashing thrown in for good measure. Check out the embedded video below. In case it doesn’t work, you can watch the clip on Comedy Central’s official website.

[Via The iPod Observer]

On the event of the iMac’s tenth anniversary, Scott McNulty, over at MacUser, posted ten of his most favourite iMac commercials since its inception. From the original bondi blue iMac to the latest aluminium and glass machine, he’s covered it all.

One of the videos he posted, though not really an advertisement, literally made me laugh. It’s quite old but still clearly relevant and true. Check out the three-and-a-half minute video below and marvel at the simplicity that’s associated with every Mac and is ingrained in Apple’s DNA even today.

[Full disclosure: The author of this post is also a freelance blogger for MacUser.]