The Economist have an interesting take on Apple boss Steve Jobs this week:
ONE morning, about a year ago, a doctor told Steve Jobs that a cancerous tumour in his pancreas would kill him within months, and that it was time to start saying his goodbyes. Later that night, an endoscopy revealed that the tumour could be cut out. But for one day Mr Jobs, the boss of Apple Computer, as well as Pixar, the world’s most successful animation studio, stared death in the face.
The experience seems to have invigorated him. Last week, gaunter but otherwise undiminished, he was on a stage in San Francisco, putting on a show (for that is what Apple product launches are) that was as flashy and dynamic as any as he has ever thrown. When businessmen try to rub shoulders with pop stars, the effect is usually embarrassing. But âSteveâ? had arranged to have his pal, Madonna, pop up on screen and kidded around with her with panache. Does she have an iPod? Of course she has! âThat’s so duh,â? said the superstar playfully. Then Mr Jobs segued into his announcementsâa new mobile phone from Motorola that has iTunes, Apple’s music software, pre-installed and that represents a beachhead into the world of phones; and the âiPod nanoâ?, a new digital music-player that is thinner than a pencil, but still holds 1,000 songs.
I, for one, bought an iPod nano. As the Register have often noted, the sweet spot for MP3 players has always been around the 1000 song mark. I never felt enthused by the iPod, even when friends had them way back in 2001, and the iPod mini never really got me excited. But finally a solid state MP3 player, at the right size and the right price.
Jobs is certainly an interesting character as the Economist article lays out, but I needed no convincing the buy an iPod nano – it does what it says on the tin.