Notes from a Writer | Apple Spring Event

The first Apple event in 2021 and I'm already excited. But not so much about what they announced but what they didn't announce! But I will have a future post listing my predictions for what's coming next from Apple. For now, I just want to discuss what they announced and why I'm likely not going to get any of it...and if you're like me, why you should hold your horses as well...

APPLE AIR TAGS

We've only been waiting for the better part of two years, I think, for this? So, as delighted as I was to see it finally make an appearance I'm not in a rush to buy them as soon as they become available. However, I do already see the multitude of possibilities for these tags. The first one being for pets (ie dogs and cats). I mean, we have two dogs and both of them have chips in them but those are only useful if the person who finds them takes them to a vet so the vet can scan the chip and get our contact info. We also did take the extra step to get a little tag with their name and our number on them. Again, only helpful if the person who finds our dog uses the number. I hate to think how many bad people there are in the world who will take or find a dog and not return them. This tag will allow us to use Find My and not rely on the kindness of a stranger and that will pay dividends in the end. My only concern would be that it might not work if there is no signal? As someone who lives in an area where there is no way to use my cell phone unless I am in my house, this is important.

Then there are those other things they showed in their presentation, more practical uses than on a living thing, such as your keys. You could potentially stick one in your wallet (though it might seem a bit too bulky for that?), or on a remote you're always losing. The possibilities are endless, but so is the possibility for the next generation of their Air Tags.

Is an Air Tag Pro possible, where the design is flatter and thinner and has a similar aesthetic to the iPhones or iPads? But I digress...

At a starting price of just $29 for one or a pack of four for $99, Apple sure makes it tempting to at least want to buy one to try. Then I wonder, now that we are living in a world and time where travel is so limited and might remain that way, is four overkill? When I think of my life two years ago, getting four would've been a no-brainer. I'd have one in my backpack that I carry with me to work, my keys (that I swear I lost while on the bus cause they fell out), my wallet (that I know someone picked from my coat pocket once in my life), and the fourth for who knows what. But now, I'm not taking the bus. I couldn't even tell you where my backpack is that I used to use!

IMAC 24" W/M1 CHIP

Ah, the iMac. I used to own a 27" iMac. And it served me well for almost a decade. I participated in the Apple buy-back program and got several hundred for it that I think I used towards buying my wife a new pair of Air Pods. All this is to say that as excited as I am to see Apple is wasting no time in putting their new M1 chip in all of their products, I'm reminded that the 24" is intended to replace the 21.5" model they have. And it makes sense. You start experimenting and testing on the base model for all of your line-ups so when you unleash the "pro" models you go to the max with upgrades and special features, etc.

When it comes to Apple I am a "pro" kinda girl. I'm not interested in their base models. That's just the kind of person I am. That's not to say I couldn't get along just fine with a 24" M1 iMac! I mean, we all could. But once you go big it's hard to downsize. I've had a 27" and I'm currently working on a 32" monitor. There is no way I'm downsizing. But it leaves me very excited for their 27" replacement, I'll tell you that!

Touch ID on their keyboard? Hell yeah! Then there's gonna be the colors. These colors are a bit too base model for me. Similar to the look of the iPhone 12 or iPhone 12 mini colors. I'm looking for those sleek PRO colors! The fact that there is no Black or Space Gray tells me they are coming and they are going to be sick! With he matching track pad? I'm all in!

Personally, they can keep their Magic Mouse. I tried it when it came standard with my iMac but I also had the Magic Trackpad and I honestly don't know why you'd want to use a mouse after that? I'll keep my Logitech mouse and keyboard for now and get as much use out of them as I can cause something tells me I'm going to have a BIG decision to make come the end of 2021!

IPAD PRO W/M1 CHIP

As someone who is a passive user of my iPad Pro I was barely impressed with this announcement. I knew it was coming and I'm thrilled for those who use their iPads exclusively because this is the upgrade they've been waiting for. But the price tag leaves me with great pause on if it's worth it? I mean, you'd really need to be an exclusive iPad user to justify dropping MacBook Pro type money on any kind of iPad and looking at the highest possible iPad Pro w/M1 you can get (12.9" screen, 16GB RAM, 2TB Storage, HDR mini-LED display, w/5G) of $2,399?! That is...well...that is a tough pill to swallow. I don't even think the iMac 27" replacement is going to cost that much (at least I hope not!).

APPLE TV 4K + NEW SIRI REMOTE

Similar to the newly announced iPad Pros, I'm meh on the new Siri remote. I'm not big on talking to my devices. I have Alexa and Siri and I will say my wife communicates with them way more than I do. I love technology, but talking to it is a bit too extreme even for me. Then again, I haven't had an Apple TV upgrade in a LONG, LONG time. I mean, I think the one I have doesn't even allow to download apps the way the new one does. It's the one where it comes standard with apps and you can SHOW or HIDE the ones you want to see or don't want to see! Yeah, that's old, I know!

I've wanted to get a new Apple TV, but when I compare the $179 price tag with Roku or Amazon Fire that costs under $50! Yeah...I'm not sold just yet, Apple...

PURPLE IPHONE 12 + IPHONE 12 MINI

Why? The only thing I can think of here, is again, similar to the other announcements, their Fall event is going to be killer. They will likely unveil a "Amethyst Purple" or something for the iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max? Though that would be a bit late as their Fall event should be announcing the next generation iPhone line-up. And as they are advertising this color as the "spring" color...Whatever the reason, it's less purple and more fuchsia to my eye and like I said, I'm a "go big" kinda girl so I got the phone I want and the color I wanted (though I was tempted by that dark green, I'm not gonna lie and if the iPhone 13 of 2022 has a similar color I'm TOTALLY gonna get it!).