Media 2014: Back to a MacBook

Shortly after we moved house in December I wrote about my new media setup.

It was an experiment; effectively we were betting that a Mac Mini would:

• Replace a Sky TV box for watching Formula 1 via sky go
• Increase the amount I watched items in my media library.
• Act as a backup hub

Here’s how it turned out:

7 Months later I am selling the Mac Mini to fund a retina MacBook Pro.

Here’s why.

Software

The Mac Mini had to run an odd hodgepodge of software to do its many tasks. None of that software turned out to be reliable or easy to use:

EyeTV – when used daily the interface got annoying. It was hard to record a series of TV shows and the remote control support was poor. I never got volume control working and slowly we stopped using it.

Sky Go – sky go is too limited for the money. We have gone back to a regular sky subscription. If Sky Go had been more reliable, then perhaps we would have kept the Mac Mini around longer. The inconsistent nature of which shows arrived on Sky go and the inability to watch entire F1 races in HD on demand was just to frustrating. Also when driven with a mouse and keyboard the website bordered on unusable.

Handbrake etc – this part did work well. I cooked up some scripts to get everything going and it ate through my library in a few days. However, it didn’t get used for long.

iTunes Library – I have had an always on media server for the last 7 months and used it less than 10 times. Most of my media consumption is via iPlayer, Amazon instant video or iCloud. My own media collection rarely gets a look in.

Backup – 3 months after buying the Mac Mini I sold my MacBook. So I didn’t need to back anything up. My Partner just uses Dropbox as his data is quite small.

I’m going to be sad to see the Mac mini go, it’s a great piece of hardware, it’s just a poor fit for my current use case given the software available.

Published: 8 September 2014 | Categories: Reviews , Mac Permalink

Apple Event Wishlist (9/9/2014)

I always enjoy speculating on what Apple have hidden up their sleeves. With an event early next week, its time to get speculating.

So here goes, my wish for the 9th.

iPhone 6.

The iPhone 6 is pretty much an open secret by now I have avoided watching any of the videos, but there are videos floating around off a fully assembled and booting iPhone 6 with a 4.7 inch new screen.

This is likely to be my next phone, so hopefully it’s going to be something pretty special.

iWatch.

It’s been rumoured to high heaven so it feel likes something wearable from Apple is coming along. I’m not sure if I want one (I’ve never been good with watches), but it will be fun to see what they have invented.

Hopefully it will come with an App store. Perhaps there is something neat I could do with Swift.

Apple TV App Store.

Even if they don’t upgrade the hardware, it’s about time for the Apple TV to get a shiny app store of its own. Perhaps it will come in October, but as this is an iOS focused event now seems the time.

New Mac Hardware

A bit of a long-shot, but as I purchased a new MacBook this week it would be about time for Apple to update the range in time for the holiday buying season.

A ‘Core M’ based Retina MacBook could be interesting. Something with less performance than the Pro but a cheaper entry price.

I think this would also place pressure on the Air. As it stands, the Air is very hard to recommend due to the low res TN panel.

If Apple were to update the Airs with a new screen (non retina) and introduce a mid-spec retina MacBook that would be very interesting.

Something unexpected.

Apple are hyping the event heavily, they have built a giant 3 story structure and gone to a historic venue. Perhaps they are going to introduce something completely new and unexpected.

I think its possible Apple could introduce any of the following:

• Smart home products (lighting, thermals, energy monitor, security)
• Smart earphones / headsets
• New 4K or 5K ‘Cinema’ displays
• Something relating to fitness or health
• A Car, or Bike

It should be a fun one, roll on Tuesday.

Published: 7 September 2014 | Categories: Opinion , Apple Permalink

2014 Italian Grand Prix

I really enjoyed the Italian Grand Prix at Monza this weekend. It was great to see Lewis win, due too errors by Nico. It was also fun to see other battles through the field. Lots of wheel to wheel racing is exciting.

While Lewis did a great job, I think Bottas drove better. Bottas had an alarming start behind Hamilton but his recovery drive impressed as he didn’t have the pace advantage of the Mercedes to see him thought.

The season as a whole has been interesting. The new regulations have unseated Red Bull’s dominance which was getting boring.

The reliability issues have kept the season alive. It’s enjoyable to see the cars sliding around. It makes the skill of the drivers more visible.

Going into Singapore I am looking forward to seeing how the championship battle proceeds.

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Published: 7 September 2014 | Categories: Forumla 1 Permalink