This is just my opinion, but…

The biggest wow at MacWorld had to be the “Air” - that new, tragically slim laptop that Apple unveiled. It could be argued that it’s the only other product out there that gives as good as the MoGo in the low-profile department.

But Air’s critics have been mounting. Primarily that it doesn’t come with a CD/DVD Drive (external one costs $99).

It was a bigger issue that Slate’s Harry McCracken came up with that has been ringing around in my head for a couple of weeks.

Now I’m going to put it in front of you.

Why is the Air a step backward from the iPhone?

No, Seriously.

The reason the iPhone (And its non-Apple cousins) blew us all off our feet was because that little device gets it.

The Future is Less Stuff that Does More.

We, the People, do not want to keep marching to the future wearing a superhero utility belt holding our 2 dozen gadgets.

This is why the MoGo rocks - because it is not only cool AND functional, but it stores in the device it augments. One fewer thing to worry about.

The plain truth is that phones and laptops (and computers and televisions) are converging. The iPhone was the standard-bearer of that reality. Internet + MP3 + Phone. That was 3 devices plucked from the utility belt and tossed in the bin, replaced by a single wicked multi-tasker.

The next tick in the evolution should not only have been a thin big dog laptop, but one that does more.  For example, when MoGo rolled out the next gen of its product, it had more functionality.

The Air should have, too. It should be touchscreen, it should have cell-hookup capabilities, it should act like -in fact - an iPhone with a whole lot more memory and display and applications. After all, this is Apple. If they don’t get it, then who will?

So, what do YOU think?

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Well, this post should appropriately round out my trifecta of posts this week all about just how immersed in the future we truly are.  In a way, Elizabeth inspired me last week with her post on the future that is Bluetooth lawnmowers and these 3 posts for me this week have all been about other ways you can futurize your life with the gadgets you carry.

Today’s very simple, very cool and very helpful way to futurize yourself, is to once and for all get a cell phone that won’t break if you get it wet.  How important is that for you, I do not know, but for me, it’d be pretty darn huge seeing as though I’ve gone through More than my share of phones due to rain, tea, and the sink.  Yikes.

According to the article I just read,

“The handset is only 13.7 mm thick and is being marketed as the thinnest waterproof phone ever made. A lot of technology went into making this phone to meet IPX5 and IPX7 waterproof standards. This wonder will work even after being sprayed or submersed in water for 30 minutes.” 

Sounds awesome to me.

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Following on Tyler’s post from yesterday - there’s a lot of noise about that iPhone update.

According to the BBC, the Scobleizer, and a host of others, Apple’s v. 1.1.1, which was coded to render altered iPhones inoperable, may be causing a lot of problems for the unaltered ones as well.

The alterations they were targeting make the iPhones compatible with any mobile carrier.

Originally, the gadgets came hard-wired to work only on the AT&T mobile network as part of an exclusive deal.

But not everyone who wanted an iPhone wanted to get in bed with AT&T. Some, including a lot of techies (who, despite the bureaucratization of the field, still hang onto a cowboy mentality) were just plain outraged at being told what mobile carrier they had to use.

So the moment the iPhone went into distribution, software wizards around the world began ripping them apart to find a way to make iPhones compatible with any mobile carrier.

This, by the way, was perfectly legal. Farhad Manjoo at Salon wrote clearly on the particulars, which boil down to this: Apple does not have the right, once you legally purchase their gadget, to force you to use it with AT&T.

Soon, dozens of ‘SIM unlocks’ were available - for free and purchase. And thousands took advantage of them.

Apple reacted by voiding the warranties of anyone who used one of the unlocks. This move opened them up to lawsuits, because the laws around a company’s right to void their warranties pretty much says Apple can’t do that.

But then Apple went a step farther and announced that a planned update (”v 1.1.1″) would leave unlocked iPhones “permanently inoperable” in other words, ‘Bricked‘. Or, forever turned into pretty-looking paperweights.

The update was pushed last week, and true enough - thousands of iPhones immediately died.

This included many that were never altered - both Scoble and the New York Times are carrying accounts of customers whose pristine iPhones were also bricked in the recent update. Which is what many are pointing to as the big deal.

But the heart of the matter is really how these actions have revealed Apple to be both retaliatory and uncompromising against their own customers.From a brand that made its reputation as being counter-culture and ‘Not Microsoft’, the trail of decisions has been a blow to their loyal fans and their image.

Incubated in the days when they cheekily named one of their error noises ‘So-Su-Mi’ because it sounded something like a competitor’s ding, Apple has worked hard to be round in a world of square and organic in a world of finite choices.

This was shattered with the launch of the iPhone. The gadget itself is everything Apple - sleek, bright, and intuitive. The marketing and management, however, has been practically Orwellian.

The long-term will tell us if this is just a cultural mis-step in the corporation’s growth or a more enduring change in attitude.

Back in the immediate future, Apple is working to put out the fires of bricked unaltered phones. The legality of update v 1.1.1 and subsequent bricking is still being debated, leaving many mainstream techno-sites sitting uncomfortably on the fence. And hackers are hard at work at polishing a counter agent software, some versions of which are already available.

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Q. I looked at the 54x & the 54x Pro. They physically look exactly the same. I wonder why you create 2 products where instead you could create a product for all the following functions. Maybe add a small switch to the Mouse or the Software on the machine to change modes… You can kill every other Presentation / Media Remote control out there.

A. This is a great suggestion. We’ve heard from several other customers that they would like to see more features in one mouse, as well.

Since I don’t build ‘em, I don’t know what it would take to keep the product as small as possible while packing in even more features.

So I asked a VP, who tells me that, indeed - MoGo’s R&D is hard at work at the next generation of gadget. These engineers like to bust the envelope when it comes to what can be done, as evidenced by all the added features in this latest release.

Q. Is there is a MoGo Mouse BT (PC Card type) with scroll capability coming out any time soon? I would buy it immediately. Please let me know.

A. Unfortunately, no. Right now, MoGo has no plans to offer a standard PC Card type mouse with additional features from the original.

BTW, if you’re interested - I posted how you can get a non-scroll mouse to scroll back in May, based on instructions from Carlton Bale.

Q. …Additionally, regarding the x54 Pro: What is being sent to the computer?(leftarrow, right arrow, B, ., +, etc.) Are the commands sent if powerpoint is not running or not in the foreground?

A. A great question. I am wondering if any of our readers has tried this with their new MoGo’s - trying to use presentation mode if PowerPoint isn’t the active window?

I’ll see what answers I can get this week.

Elizabeth is a professional writer & geek with most of the last decade spent in senior management at a leading global IT provider. Thousands have attended her seminars in the US & Canada on subjects ranging from basic TCP/IP networking to high-end data storage solutions.

Got a question? Ask Elizabeth.

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Q. I started to order an X54 Pro from TigerDirect, but it said the product would arrive January, 2008!

A. First of all, thank you for letting us know when you have a problem with ordering a MoGo product. MoGo has been in conversations with TigerDirect to identify the issues as we hear about them and respond ASAP with the customers.

When ordering in the next week or so, expect a response of about a 30-day wait time (sometimes the computer will default to reporting 6-8 weeks). This is because the MoGo x54’s are not in stock yet, as production is still filling pre-orders.

Ordering from TigerDirect is your opportunity to be some of the first in line to receive these products!

Q. I have a MacBook and it only has USB. How do I make it work with PC Card stuff like the MoGo mouse and my mobile wireless card?

A. First of all, MoGo doesn’t recommend using adapters.

That said, there are ARE adapters. This is incredibly critical for Mac adherents like you (and me!). Until last year, though, these gadgets would run us $500- $750. Eek, indeed.

But last summer the price finally came down and there are some really good ones available . Although there isn’t one out there that I would personally endorse as standing out from the crowd, . Endgagdet did a review of one I’ve seen used by some of my colleagues.

Q. Ricky asked us a bunch of great questions in a comment on Aug. 14. One of them was when the regular (media) version of the mouse is in the media mode and you press the buttons, does it send the standard global keypresses for mute, vol up/down, play/pause, stop, forward/back or is there special software that just targets certain programs?

A. Ricky, NO special software is required as X54 transforms into true media remote.

BTW, Ricky, you also asked us to add the following applications to the chart at http://www.newtonperipherals.com/mogo_mouseX54.html or at least inform us of the compatibility of them, or as many of them as you can test: Winamp, Foobar2000, VLC, Media Player Classic, Windows Media Center - I’ve asked the guys at MoGo to let me know which ones they will test/add.

Elizabeth is a professional writer & geek with most of the last decade spent in senior management at a leading global IT provider. Thousands have attended her seminars in the US & Canada on subjects ranging from basic TCP/IP networking to high-end data storage solutions.

Got a question? Ask Elizabeth.

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Q. Hi, I was wondering if there is a 3 button version of the mogo mouse due for release ? Will it have some kind of scroll wheel too ? Can you give me some idea of the release time for this product? - Paul

A. Hi Paul. MoGo hasn’t released news of a 3-button mouse (yet) but the X54 mouse that is rolling out DOES have a scroll wheel as well as some other mighty fine new features Please, take a look and let me know what you think!

Q. My laptop didn’t come with BlueTooth in it but I think that the MoGo mouse would be really usefull for me. I just got a new Kodak Camera that uses BlueTooth, too and I would prefer that to the cables. Do I have to buy a new laptop with Bluetooth in it? Or is there a way to put Bluetooth in an older laptop?

A. Excellent news. If Bluetooth didn’t come bundled with your laptop, then you can buy an adapter.

MoGo is rolling one out in a few months that will make your laptop compatible with their mouse and your camera, too. Some of the currently available adapters are bulky and stick out from the profile of your laptop. This was the problem MoGo wanted to solve with their own version (being the slim, slick gadget compan). Their “Dapter” is the size of a fingernail and will connect into the USB port.

Good luck!

Elizabeth is a professional writer & geek with most of the last decade spent in senior management at a leading global IT provider. Thousands have attended her seminars in the US & Canada on subjects ranging from basic TCP/IP networking to high-end data storage solutions.

Got a question? Ask Elizabeth.

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1) A few weeks ago, I took my son to a large water park for a short vacation. I was forced to leave my smart phone, etc, in a locker and then, later, an unsecured cubby as we took advantage of all the attractions.

Just like our many weekend trips to the pool, I just have never trusted the zip-locking freezer bags to keep my technology safe.

Of course there’s got to be cheap and waterproof PDA and cell phone carriers, I thought to myself. And as soon as we returned home, I began researching them.  The one that suited my lifestyle best is ry Pak, and I wish I’d  found it before our trip.

Cost: $12-15 + tax, online at REI.com and other outlets.  

2) Backing up your cell phone’s SIM (memory) should be part of your regular tech maintenance by now.  Gadgets that will do this for you are popping up everywhere.  There is a kiosk at a nearby mall that sells nothing but cell phone accessories and they have SIM backup gadgets in every color of the rainbow,.

If you like convenience over  style, the  Clipper Gear’s SIM Saver Backup and Copy Unit actually walks you through the steps.

Cost: $19.95 (and varying), online at SIM Saver.  

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Talk about news man, this is like Apple and Microsoft joining forces and combining their technology for all the world to use.  Oh wait, I guess they kind of already are doing that, Mac’s running Windows and all.  Well, we really don’t need to get into a Mac vs. Windows debate on here, so I’m going to do the right thing and TOTALLY change the subject back to the purpose of this blog post!

So, the story is, Bluetooth and rival tech Wibree are going to join forces to bring the wireless technology to devices that, up to this point, were far too small for it.  With this joining of proverbial hands, gadgets like “watches, heart rate monitors, pedometers and pill boxes,” will be able to wirelessly communicate with other Bluetooth devices and everything will be all happy and in-sync. The possibilities, dear friends, are endless.

The idea that our Bluetooth devices are going to continue to get smaller, use less power and require less charging is, well, exciting.  What’s even better is, I am writing for a company that is at the forefront of Bluetooth innovation, and to be honest I could not be happier.  Come check out MoGo, you won’t be sad you did.

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Tesla, somewhere, is absolutely spinning in his grave.  You think you’re a mobile warrior now?  Ha.  Just wait until the day comes (and folks it could be a lot sooner than any of us think) when you never have to carry another charger again.  Think of the day you never have to find another electrical outlet to plug in one of your 30 gadgets…when that day comes, all that will be possible because the electricity will be sent to that device Wirelessly.

That day actually came recently as a 60watt light bulb was lit wirelessly from a distance of about 2 meters.  That’s right, no wires, no cords or cables, just some magnetic fields and boom, let there be light.

So what does this have to do with Bluetooth, well, everything.   Think of the implications this could have when no cords, cables, wires or outlets are ever needed again.  Bluetooth is one technology that is helping to show us how that life Might be.

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Fresh on the heels of Elizabeth’s genius post on the TomTom yesterday, I found this little gem, and thought to myself, “Self, She really could have used one of these on her trip!”  What is it, you ask?  It’s a Bluetooth GPS receiver that literally fits on your keychain.  Wow.

My favorite part about this new product is the fact that it only runs $99.  So, if you’re the lucky type that has a SmartPhone, BlackBerry, or any other type of gadget that for some reason does not have a GPS chip, you simply grab this little device, and voila, your phone now has GPS capability.  What’s also pretty darn sweet about this little guy is the fact that on a single charge, the battery will last well into 10 hours.  Ten hours folks, is a lot of time off the charger, so don’t worry about this dying on your workday commute.

The device uses Bluetooth 2.0 and you can “connect simultaneously to up to 20 satellite channels, operate for ten hours on a single charge, sports a tracking sensitivity of 159 dBm, supports an external antenna, and purportedly plays nice with your BT-enabled device from up to ten meters away.”  Not bad friends, not bad at all.

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