ImNoSuperMan
Sep 11, 06:51 AM
Apple has over 150 stores in US(or is it 250?). So is it possible if someone wants to Buy or rent a movie he just goes to any of these stores(which will have Optic fibre connectivity with the online store) and download the desired movie on his iPod/Laptop/mini taking no more than 10 minutes. Now this might not sound that great but it should definitely up the sales of iFlicks by atleast 10-15% IMO. All these stores are located in prime locations in big cities. There is a huge number of footfalls in and around these stores. I dont live in US. But if I did and had such a store nearby I`d definitely be renting/buying atleast thrice as much movies than I`d otherwise even if I had a 10 Mbps connection.
It`s just a thought and it might not really be possible. But if possible it can be one of those nice little extras which can help Apple gain on Amazon.
It`s just a thought and it might not really be possible. But if possible it can be one of those nice little extras which can help Apple gain on Amazon.
benpatient
Mar 29, 12:04 PM
Ownership of data is a concern. If I buy music through the cloud service does that affect my ownership of the music/data? Can I download the music to my hard drive and have unrestricted access to it after I cancel my cloud subscription?
You can log in to your cloud account at any time and download any music you've purchased from amazon.com.
If you have a paid account, and you use more than the 5GB of "free" data space, then you stop paying for it and your account reverts back to "free" mode, you can still download your data, but you can't add any new data to the account until you remove enough to get you back under the 5GB cap.
If you have stuff on the cloud that you don't already have stored on your own device somewhere, you're playing with fire to begin with.
You can log in to your cloud account at any time and download any music you've purchased from amazon.com.
If you have a paid account, and you use more than the 5GB of "free" data space, then you stop paying for it and your account reverts back to "free" mode, you can still download your data, but you can't add any new data to the account until you remove enough to get you back under the 5GB cap.
If you have stuff on the cloud that you don't already have stored on your own device somewhere, you're playing with fire to begin with.
Beezoo
May 7, 11:00 AM
Looks like I was quite wrong about being the only one remembering iTools.
Because Free always has better uptake as witnessed by the legions of people that let Google scrape their emails and other data to provide targeted ads. These people actually perceive this as being "Free" when in fact you're letting Google profit handsomely off your data.
Yep nuck, that has always bugged the hell outa me too.
Because Free always has better uptake as witnessed by the legions of people that let Google scrape their emails and other data to provide targeted ads. These people actually perceive this as being "Free" when in fact you're letting Google profit handsomely off your data.
Yep nuck, that has always bugged the hell outa me too.
ravenvii
Jul 29, 11:34 PM
The Apple iPhone would have to be better in functionality than a Blackberry to be considered useful, unless they can work out a better input device method or utilize Microsoft's Vista speech recognition program.
Hurray! Exactly what I'm thinking.
If Apple accomplishes this, I'll sell my Blackberry and buy Apple's phone in a flash.
But please, no speech recnogization... have you seen Microsoft's demo of their technology? Hilarious.
Hurray! Exactly what I'm thinking.
If Apple accomplishes this, I'll sell my Blackberry and buy Apple's phone in a flash.
But please, no speech recnogization... have you seen Microsoft's demo of their technology? Hilarious.
jholzner
Aug 4, 09:47 AM
Apple's marketing strategy has always been that the PowerBooks (MacBook Pro) have faster processers then any of the iMac offerings. The Conroe and Allendale (Desktop) chips run faster then the Merom (Mobile) chips.
I'm not sure that's true. They had the G5 in the iMac and it was never in the Powerbook. When the Intel iMac was released it was running the same CPUs as the 15" MacBook Pro that was released at the same time. They are very different products so the differentiation is built in.
I'm not sure that's true. They had the G5 in the iMac and it was never in the Powerbook. When the Intel iMac was released it was running the same CPUs as the 15" MacBook Pro that was released at the same time. They are very different products so the differentiation is built in.
Willis
Jul 24, 08:41 AM
hmm, just checked the Apple Edu Store (UK) and i noticed the 20" iMac was a 5-7 day. Checked the standard Store, same thing. Wonder if that means they may put the Merom/Conroe in a 20" and keep the yonah in the 17?
Most likely not, but no harm in having a shot in the dark.
Most likely not, but no harm in having a shot in the dark.
dosers
Aug 4, 02:48 PM
Unless I am wrong and haven't looked lately ;-) though, there are NO 64-bit branches for the Intel developer tools. In other words, if you look at branching, you have 32-bit PPC, 64-bit PPC and Intel. A 64-bit app for PPC is not equal to a 64-bit app on Intel, and it certainly seems XCODE at this point (in it's publicly released version anyway) does not include 64-bit for Intel.
Obviously that is changing, obviously Apple is working on it internally, but really, I don't see any widespread adoption of 64-bit anytime soon. No good reason - for trivial tasks, running in larger OP Code registers will take more time, not less than 32-bit.
A good 64-bit/32-bit hybrid system (i.e.. no emulation either way) is a great solution, and allows to have apps that truly are 64-bit IF they can take advantage of the additional flat memory addressing (which, as cool as 64-bit sound, is still by far the most practical advantage over 32-bit)....
my 2 cents
dan
sure we do. Developer Tools for example. also there are more 64 bit 3rd party apps out there, that I dont feel like looking up right now.
however, your right, consumer apps are primarily 32 bit, and os x apps like ical, mail etc, wont go 64 bit until leopard.
Obviously that is changing, obviously Apple is working on it internally, but really, I don't see any widespread adoption of 64-bit anytime soon. No good reason - for trivial tasks, running in larger OP Code registers will take more time, not less than 32-bit.
A good 64-bit/32-bit hybrid system (i.e.. no emulation either way) is a great solution, and allows to have apps that truly are 64-bit IF they can take advantage of the additional flat memory addressing (which, as cool as 64-bit sound, is still by far the most practical advantage over 32-bit)....
my 2 cents
dan
sure we do. Developer Tools for example. also there are more 64 bit 3rd party apps out there, that I dont feel like looking up right now.
however, your right, consumer apps are primarily 32 bit, and os x apps like ical, mail etc, wont go 64 bit until leopard.
Clive At Five
Nov 22, 12:31 PM
Okay, I've heard here a lot, that people want simple integration/syncronization with iTunes, iPhoto, iCal, & Address Book. These are all, (minus iTunes) 100% Mac-Centric. PC users would only get integration/syncronization with iTunes. What good is that to them? At that point you only have iPod + Phone.
So Apple has a choice: Mac-Centric or not.
Knowing Apple, their first choice is "not" (which doesn't mean it will start out that way, but we'll just have to wait to find out). Apple would then have to either write iCal et al. for Windows or build in support for Outlook, ...uh... photo viewer... whatever PCs use for photos.
Both are daunting tasks.
Conclusion: In order for Apple to make a phone as good and as universal as the iPod, it will have to accomplish one of the aforementioned daunting tasks.
Making a phone for Mac users would be a walk in the park, because 1) it's such a small microcosm, 2) It's an environment that they are familiar with.
Making a phone for everyone will not be as easy. HOWEVER, Apple is great at building OSes (the iPod OS is simple & intuitive and I have no doubt that they will do the same with a phone) and Apple is great at integration with software, so even though there will be hurdles to overcome, Apple will eventually churn out a phone that is simple and is loved by everyone.
I also think there won't be a single serious Mac-User who won't have one. It'll just be too handy to have a device that will sync easily with the awesome Mac software.
-Clive
So Apple has a choice: Mac-Centric or not.
Knowing Apple, their first choice is "not" (which doesn't mean it will start out that way, but we'll just have to wait to find out). Apple would then have to either write iCal et al. for Windows or build in support for Outlook, ...uh... photo viewer... whatever PCs use for photos.
Both are daunting tasks.
Conclusion: In order for Apple to make a phone as good and as universal as the iPod, it will have to accomplish one of the aforementioned daunting tasks.
Making a phone for Mac users would be a walk in the park, because 1) it's such a small microcosm, 2) It's an environment that they are familiar with.
Making a phone for everyone will not be as easy. HOWEVER, Apple is great at building OSes (the iPod OS is simple & intuitive and I have no doubt that they will do the same with a phone) and Apple is great at integration with software, so even though there will be hurdles to overcome, Apple will eventually churn out a phone that is simple and is loved by everyone.
I also think there won't be a single serious Mac-User who won't have one. It'll just be too handy to have a device that will sync easily with the awesome Mac software.
-Clive
twoodcc
Aug 3, 12:14 AM
Merom:
Twice the Battery life.
Twice the L2 cache - 4MB
20% more calculations at same speed.
Same price as Yonah.
Why not have these improvements ASAP? If you want to buy a Yonah Mac for less, just go to the refurb page. They are all there. If not, the one you want will come back soon. I monitor that page regularly and everything is in the refurb cycle now.
are you trying to tell me that with Merom a macbook will get 12 hours on the same battery?
maybe 20% better, but the real-world benchmarks show that 20% is not much at all, if anything.
i'm not saying i don't want Merom, but i just don't see the big thing that Apple needs to instantly put Merom in everything that it sells that use a mobile processor.
Twice the Battery life.
Twice the L2 cache - 4MB
20% more calculations at same speed.
Same price as Yonah.
Why not have these improvements ASAP? If you want to buy a Yonah Mac for less, just go to the refurb page. They are all there. If not, the one you want will come back soon. I monitor that page regularly and everything is in the refurb cycle now.
are you trying to tell me that with Merom a macbook will get 12 hours on the same battery?
maybe 20% better, but the real-world benchmarks show that 20% is not much at all, if anything.
i'm not saying i don't want Merom, but i just don't see the big thing that Apple needs to instantly put Merom in everything that it sells that use a mobile processor.
skunk
Jul 30, 06:56 AM
I guess the guy who told you that story can kiss his career (with apple) goodbye ;) There's not that many photographers who take pictures of upcoming Apple products ...
Anyway, I can't wait to see the phone...But what better leak could you have?"the sleekest, sexiest damn phone he's ever seen."
If they are making a phone, it's a pretty good teaser.
Anyway, I can't wait to see the phone...But what better leak could you have?"the sleekest, sexiest damn phone he's ever seen."
If they are making a phone, it's a pretty good teaser.
Frogurt
Sep 16, 12:53 PM
They released the C2D iMACS altogether. I would be really surprised if they didn't do AT LEAST the same to their pro line-ups.
Except that Apple has typically released only the 15 inch model before later introducing the 17 (and 12 when they existed) when they do major updates. Witness the introduction of the Al case and the Intel switch. Of course it matters whether this is a major update. If, like the iMacs, there is not a major case redesign and it is just a processor bump then expect them to be released simultaneously. But if there is a change in case, I would be surprised (pleasantly though) if the 17 came out at the same time.
Except that Apple has typically released only the 15 inch model before later introducing the 17 (and 12 when they existed) when they do major updates. Witness the introduction of the Al case and the Intel switch. Of course it matters whether this is a major update. If, like the iMacs, there is not a major case redesign and it is just a processor bump then expect them to be released simultaneously. But if there is a change in case, I would be surprised (pleasantly though) if the 17 came out at the same time.
Chundles
Sep 11, 08:21 AM
I told Rob about the event yesterday...
"Great, all we need is another iPod." :rolleyes:
Sounds like he's giving you the go-ahead. Go on Gary, call his bluff.
"Great, all we need is another iPod." :rolleyes:
Sounds like he's giving you the go-ahead. Go on Gary, call his bluff.
PeterQVenkman
Apr 18, 02:55 PM
Or what? You'll release the dogs? Or the bees? Or the dogs with bees in their mouth and when they bark they shoot bees at you?
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a2/Robotic_Richard_Simmons.png
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a2/Robotic_Richard_Simmons.png
nsayer
May 4, 04:03 PM
But what do you do if you need to reinstall, say, after replacing your hard disk? Without Lion restore media, you'd be forced to install Snow Leopard, then upgrade to the latest with SU, then log into the app store, then (presumably) re-download Lion, then (presumably) apply any Lion updates.
Seems quite cumbersome, plus then there's a disconnect between the machine and the OS license - if I sell my mac, I can't include with it media for the OS that's actually installed on it.
Seems quite cumbersome, plus then there's a disconnect between the machine and the OS license - if I sell my mac, I can't include with it media for the OS that's actually installed on it.
eenu
Aug 11, 03:02 PM
So it's definitely due for one. You don't really think they'll go a year before it's upgraded, do you?
I wouldn't say it would be anything noticable!
Probably make the low end one a 1.66 Duo and the top one a 1.8 or 2.0 Duo
I wouldn't say it would be anything noticable!
Probably make the low end one a 1.66 Duo and the top one a 1.8 or 2.0 Duo
Eolian
Mar 29, 01:31 PM
I'm not convinced it's as dire as people are making it out to be. Either way, both Apple and Amazon have full rights to access users files on both services for various reasons.
What are your fears on the Amazon terms that don't exist on the MobileMe ones? (Perhaps I'm being dense so some clarification is in need!) :D
Anyone storing remotely anywhere should be aware that they've signed away some rights, of course. FWIW I don't use MobilMe for storage, or for anything else presently.
Someday it would be nice to be able to wirelessly sync my devices through it for free, but that's a different topic :p
What I see is Amazon being explicit here in that they can retain, use and disclose your data in any way they see fit. Period. Apple at least spells out that their use etc is directly related to law enforcement, TOS violations, security/fraud/technical issues, and protection of rights and property.
Do you see this differently?
What are your fears on the Amazon terms that don't exist on the MobileMe ones? (Perhaps I'm being dense so some clarification is in need!) :D
Anyone storing remotely anywhere should be aware that they've signed away some rights, of course. FWIW I don't use MobilMe for storage, or for anything else presently.
Someday it would be nice to be able to wirelessly sync my devices through it for free, but that's a different topic :p
What I see is Amazon being explicit here in that they can retain, use and disclose your data in any way they see fit. Period. Apple at least spells out that their use etc is directly related to law enforcement, TOS violations, security/fraud/technical issues, and protection of rights and property.
Do you see this differently?
Dr Kevorkian94
Nov 2, 02:47 PM
when my mac gets a virus ill be shocked, il buy it when i do. (not that ill know when i have one anyway0
while typing this one of those 20 year animal adoption commercials, they make me want to punch the puppy more than help it. gosh they cant just make a short to the point video no they have to get in your face about it!:mad:
while typing this one of those 20 year animal adoption commercials, they make me want to punch the puppy more than help it. gosh they cant just make a short to the point video no they have to get in your face about it!:mad:
toddybody
Apr 25, 10:43 AM
The info circulating around is false.
Steve
PS shouldn't you be at your gym right now? It's Monday morning, after all.
Good one. Like anyone on MR goes to the gym! Pshh!
Steve
PS shouldn't you be at your gym right now? It's Monday morning, after all.
Good one. Like anyone on MR goes to the gym! Pshh!
roland.g
Aug 2, 11:16 AM
what is the date for MW Paris?
CIA
Apr 21, 10:19 PM
Yah CIA, I think you'd be surprised with what little you can get by on these days in smaller boxes and with Thunderbolt.
And I agree with you, I hate tapes...lol. I wish we would go to 1 damn standard but we know that is how people make their money...no standards. I'm so sick of all the formats and all the output formats. I just want 1080p and that's it. Burn the rest. ;)
Ya, you know what, it is OLD and Slow, and Legacy. Because that's what small (under 20) staff TV stations usually have. We're not WNBC, we are a small town TV station that is held together by ducktape and fishing wire. I would LOVE a brand new station with cutting edge equipment, but that's just not in the cards when we are fighting to stay above water. So we use what we have available and it works. I didn't buy that whole setup all at once. (yes, it's my PERSONAL setup, since when started I refused to use the PC based Avid system.) It was pieced together over the last few years as we slimmed staff over the recession and sold off Avid machines to buy new macs. Thunderbolt is awesome, but right now it's 1998 all over again, when my first DV deck and Premiere running B&W G3 system cost $10,000 put together. Is there a single SHIPPING thunderbolt device yet? No, and the first few that do ship will cost a zillion dollars that we don't have. I love the promise of thunderbolt, but I'm more excited for 2014 thunderbolt when devices are cheap and plentiful. Right now hard drives are cheap, tape is cheap, and legacy firewire cases are all over the place. It's old, legacy, but here and essentially free. If I was swimming in cash it would be a different story.
So for the moment I'd prefer a single big box that does the job of many less expensive boxes that add up in cost to more then the one box. I need a box that I can add to over the years since buying new $2,000 machines every year is out of the question. Our Edit bay is 2 Mac Pro's, and a pair of 27" 2.93 iMac i7's. A G4 for Cold Storage, and a G5 for when interns need to learn the basics of Final Cut. (also a few OLD HP Avid Workstations from 2003 or 2004.)
And I agree with you, I hate tapes...lol. I wish we would go to 1 damn standard but we know that is how people make their money...no standards. I'm so sick of all the formats and all the output formats. I just want 1080p and that's it. Burn the rest. ;)
Ya, you know what, it is OLD and Slow, and Legacy. Because that's what small (under 20) staff TV stations usually have. We're not WNBC, we are a small town TV station that is held together by ducktape and fishing wire. I would LOVE a brand new station with cutting edge equipment, but that's just not in the cards when we are fighting to stay above water. So we use what we have available and it works. I didn't buy that whole setup all at once. (yes, it's my PERSONAL setup, since when started I refused to use the PC based Avid system.) It was pieced together over the last few years as we slimmed staff over the recession and sold off Avid machines to buy new macs. Thunderbolt is awesome, but right now it's 1998 all over again, when my first DV deck and Premiere running B&W G3 system cost $10,000 put together. Is there a single SHIPPING thunderbolt device yet? No, and the first few that do ship will cost a zillion dollars that we don't have. I love the promise of thunderbolt, but I'm more excited for 2014 thunderbolt when devices are cheap and plentiful. Right now hard drives are cheap, tape is cheap, and legacy firewire cases are all over the place. It's old, legacy, but here and essentially free. If I was swimming in cash it would be a different story.
So for the moment I'd prefer a single big box that does the job of many less expensive boxes that add up in cost to more then the one box. I need a box that I can add to over the years since buying new $2,000 machines every year is out of the question. Our Edit bay is 2 Mac Pro's, and a pair of 27" 2.93 iMac i7's. A G4 for Cold Storage, and a G5 for when interns need to learn the basics of Final Cut. (also a few OLD HP Avid Workstations from 2003 or 2004.)
Piggie
Apr 24, 05:57 AM
That issue could have been largely solved if they had just faced a standard high end GPU with the intake facing towards the back and the exhaust on the side. But Apple is too vain to put a vent on the rear of the iMac to accomodate the intake of a high quality GPU, let alone a slim exhaust vent on the side.
If they had simply used a standard GPU like that it would have opened up quality gaming on the Mac and made it simple to upgrade to newer cards so that people didn't have to chuck the entire computer every time they wanted a new video card.
I'm sure you are right.
Given a bit of good design work on Apples part, when I say good design I mean, technically good as opposed to artistically good.
And in conjunction with Nvidea/ATI (personally I still like Nvidea as they seem more on the ball with Tessalation and Cuda programming for offloading CPU work onto the GPU)
A "Spread out" design, given the large rear metal surface are of an iMac and a few very neat vents to pull in cool air using a slow well designed fan, from the side or bottom and exhausting the warm air on the other side/top could be well within technical possibilities. And would address the weak spot Apple have had for a decade or two.
But, as has been said, Apple seem to fear this market as they seem to think they can't compete, and if you know you can't compete it's best not to enter the race. They want to go for poorer quality graphics, or we can use the term that sounds better than that.
The casual gamer.
Quite why this Apple created concept to cover their weak point should be happy with less quality/detail is unsure to me.
It's like saying people what watch films all the time and enjoy them should have the best picture quality we can deliver.
However, those who just watch the occasional movie should be happier with a lower quality image.
Kind of a strange concept when you think about it. and really we should all accept it's just a created excuse to excuse away a weak area as I said.
But, as you quite rightly said. Apple are too vein to spoil, in their mind the cosmetic look of an iMac by adding in cooling slits to allow for higher end graphics cards.
A shame really as if they had taken graphics a lot more seriously 15 or 20 years ago, they could be kings of this sector now.
If they had simply used a standard GPU like that it would have opened up quality gaming on the Mac and made it simple to upgrade to newer cards so that people didn't have to chuck the entire computer every time they wanted a new video card.
I'm sure you are right.
Given a bit of good design work on Apples part, when I say good design I mean, technically good as opposed to artistically good.
And in conjunction with Nvidea/ATI (personally I still like Nvidea as they seem more on the ball with Tessalation and Cuda programming for offloading CPU work onto the GPU)
A "Spread out" design, given the large rear metal surface are of an iMac and a few very neat vents to pull in cool air using a slow well designed fan, from the side or bottom and exhausting the warm air on the other side/top could be well within technical possibilities. And would address the weak spot Apple have had for a decade or two.
But, as has been said, Apple seem to fear this market as they seem to think they can't compete, and if you know you can't compete it's best not to enter the race. They want to go for poorer quality graphics, or we can use the term that sounds better than that.
The casual gamer.
Quite why this Apple created concept to cover their weak point should be happy with less quality/detail is unsure to me.
It's like saying people what watch films all the time and enjoy them should have the best picture quality we can deliver.
However, those who just watch the occasional movie should be happier with a lower quality image.
Kind of a strange concept when you think about it. and really we should all accept it's just a created excuse to excuse away a weak area as I said.
But, as you quite rightly said. Apple are too vein to spoil, in their mind the cosmetic look of an iMac by adding in cooling slits to allow for higher end graphics cards.
A shame really as if they had taken graphics a lot more seriously 15 or 20 years ago, they could be kings of this sector now.
Frogurt
Sep 16, 12:53 PM
They released the C2D iMACS altogether. I would be really surprised if they didn't do AT LEAST the same to their pro line-ups.
Except that Apple has typically released only the 15 inch model before later introducing the 17 (and 12 when they existed) when they do major updates. Witness the introduction of the Al case and the Intel switch. Of course it matters whether this is a major update. If, like the iMacs, there is not a major case redesign and it is just a processor bump then expect them to be released simultaneously. But if there is a change in case, I would be surprised (pleasantly though) if the 17 came out at the same time.
Except that Apple has typically released only the 15 inch model before later introducing the 17 (and 12 when they existed) when they do major updates. Witness the introduction of the Al case and the Intel switch. Of course it matters whether this is a major update. If, like the iMacs, there is not a major case redesign and it is just a processor bump then expect them to be released simultaneously. But if there is a change in case, I would be surprised (pleasantly though) if the 17 came out at the same time.
seand
Aug 11, 02:22 PM
it doesn't matter if you have a 64-bit processor and OS, you have to have 4Gb of RAM to run in 64-bit.
This is completely ridiculous. While one of the benefits of 64 bit chips is that it makes it easier to have >4 gig of RAM (and it's possible to get past that barrier with 32 bit chips as well), you are still "running in 64 bit" when using a 64 bit chip and OS.
This is completely ridiculous. While one of the benefits of 64 bit chips is that it makes it easier to have >4 gig of RAM (and it's possible to get past that barrier with 32 bit chips as well), you are still "running in 64 bit" when using a 64 bit chip and OS.
milozauckerman
Aug 7, 06:14 PM
I'm SO angry too! I'm seriously going to be PISSED OFF until Apple offers a 50 GHz workstation with 32 GB of RAM and a 4 TB hard drive for free!
Reductio ad absurdum only works if the original argument/request was absurd (hmmm...).
I, for one, am not asking for anything extraordinary or underpriced. I think the people looking for a $999 desktop are nuts, too. That's a market where Apple doesn't have a niche to get into.
But a sub-$2k desktop with a decent-to-good graphics card (and yes, the 7300 GT is completely useless - the x1600 in the iMac I'm using right now
I want something in competition with the mid-range PCs of the world - a tower with a 2.4GHz Conroe or a 2.0GHz single Xeon, with a graphics card at least capable of playing whatever games are out (once upon a time, I remember playing games now and then), two hard drive bays (four is nice, but two gives me a boot drive and a media drive, backups can go external), for $1599-2000 retail.
If Gateway can sell me a 2.4GHz Conroe with X1900 XT - more than adequate for my needs in photography and design, with the added benefit of games - for $1850, why the hell can't Apple sell me one for $2k? I'll happily pay the Apple Tax for something that genuinely fits my needs.
Reductio ad absurdum only works if the original argument/request was absurd (hmmm...).
I, for one, am not asking for anything extraordinary or underpriced. I think the people looking for a $999 desktop are nuts, too. That's a market where Apple doesn't have a niche to get into.
But a sub-$2k desktop with a decent-to-good graphics card (and yes, the 7300 GT is completely useless - the x1600 in the iMac I'm using right now
I want something in competition with the mid-range PCs of the world - a tower with a 2.4GHz Conroe or a 2.0GHz single Xeon, with a graphics card at least capable of playing whatever games are out (once upon a time, I remember playing games now and then), two hard drive bays (four is nice, but two gives me a boot drive and a media drive, backups can go external), for $1599-2000 retail.
If Gateway can sell me a 2.4GHz Conroe with X1900 XT - more than adequate for my needs in photography and design, with the added benefit of games - for $1850, why the hell can't Apple sell me one for $2k? I'll happily pay the Apple Tax for something that genuinely fits my needs.