MICROSOFT SURFACE STORAGE
One sticky issue that has recently come to light regarding the Microsoft Surface line of tablets is just how much of the devices' internal storage is consumed by the OS and pre-loaded apps. Pre-loaded content takes up 50% of the 32 GB RT model's storage while the 64 GB Surface Pro leaves less than 36% free. The silver lining in this cloud is that unlike most tablets, all models in the Surface line-up have both USB ports and microSD slots that can make use of external storage.
END OF THE MACBOOK AIR?
Cnet posits that the new 128 GB iPad offering will mean either the end of the 11" MacBook Air or a storage bump from 64 GB to 128 GB on the $999 base model Air.
What I think will happen:
Apple will double the storage on the Air, add a retina display to make OS X nearly usable (my personal opinion is that OS X is garbage on such a small screen), and raise the starting price to at least $1,200.
What I hope will happen:
Apple gives the 11" Air a retina display and replaces OS X with iOS.
Think about it for a second. Knowing that the first thing many of your tablet's buyers do is shell out another $100-$200 for third party cases, stands and bluetooth keyboards to make those tablets more laptop-like, it only makes sense to give them a version of iOS in the laptop form factor. Speaking from personal experience, trying to adapt an iPad to function somewhat like a laptop is similar to using a Leatherman or Gerber multi-tool: it works in a pinch but isn't ideal.
RESTORING TO iOS 6.1
iOS 6.1 was finally released the other day, and since my iPhone has been sluggish for months now (and hackers like MuscleNerd have promised an untethered jailbreak by Feb 3), I finally gave in and updated/restored my phone. Aside from the slow response of the brightness sensor and a perceived slight decrease in battery life, this new *crippled* version of iOS works as well as can be expected on a 2.5 year-old device.
I say *crippled* because technically, the iPhone 4 stopped receiving full OS updates in Oct 2011 when Apple chose to reserve Siri for iPhone 4S and newer devices. In my opinion, the iPhone 4 has never received a full OS update - at least none of any significance. The real 'fly in this ointment' is that Apple chose to screw iPhone 4 owners this way at about the same time it was publicly ragging on HTC, Motorola and Samsung for releasing brand new devices running older versions of Android and keeping customers waiting in limbo for an OS update. People in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
The update/restore to iOS 6.1 was interesting to say the least. iTunes automatically reinstalled all of my audio and video files but forced me to manually transfer all of my third party apps. One more final, desperate click of the 'restore from backup' button put most everything back the way it was, though the transfer of apps and data moved at a snail's pace.
I chose to take my chances on the 6.1 tethered jailbreak, following the instructions laid out at the RedmondPie blog. Unfortunately, they forgot to mention the critical step to re-select your 6.0 ipsw file before beginning the final 'just boot' step. Always watch a video tutorial of the process before relying on the written instructions. All told, this restore/jailbreak took four hours!
