unbibium

So how come when I don't own Apple stock, he announces the iPhone, but when I do own Apple stock, he announces a laptop that's twice as expensive but slower and has no CD-ROM drive, and you can't buy your own battery for it, even if it is really thin.

But if Steve Jobs says that people will pay a $700 premium for a super-thin laptop, maybe they will.

Late this year, Apple changed the color scheme on their clip-on iPod Shuffles, opting for a more muted, wintery color scheme.

But if you want a purple-pink or orange Shuffle, there are some refurbished ones available today for only $50. In fact, I think all the old colors are available, even plain ol' grey.

I have an orange one, and I wear it on my lapel every day. It's still a conversation-starter sometimes, but usually I forget I'm wearing it. Every other MP3 player I've owned has either had to go into a pocket or a delicate belt clip or a smelly arm band, and if I'm sitting at a desk, I'll want to take it off. So I'd leave it at work a lot.

I stumbled upon what appears to be the home page for something called IKEA PS.  Now, I've been in IKEA lots of times, and noticed a lot of products named IKEA PS; usually they're storage boxes made of sheet metal, and I always wondered what that meant.  I still wonder, but now I know it's not just for sheet metal storage.

Unfortunately, it's got a Flash interface, so I can't link to the really interesting stuff.  I'll try and link to the products in the real catalog...

IKEA PS ELLAN was essentially stolen from Homer Simpson; it's a chair that can be leaned back safely, but its solution doesn't lie in the addition of extra legs, thus IKEA dodges Simpson's patent.

IKEA PS FÅRÖ (no longer in the master product list) was an easy chair that has many advantages over the POÄNG chair I bought.  For one, it's got more diacritical marks in its name.  Also, since it has a net instead of fabric, it'd breathe better in summer.  For all I know, it's even easier to take a nap in.  I wish I'd had a chance to try it.  Likewise, IKEA PS BOASTAD might have made a better living room table than the nested POÄNG tables I bought, since it can act as a TV tray for multiple guests.  I've had guests over before, but they've never eaten in my dining room.

IKEA PS HOFORS are made of diapers.  Pre-consumer waste diapers, of course, as not even Japan has a separate recycle bin for diapers.  They're paper cones you attach to the wall and can throw your gloves and stuff in.  I really need a few of those.  I wish I could replace that awkward radial hat rack with an IKEA PS DUVHULT, which is a shelf with six giant bamboo skewers shooting out the top, but they stopped making it.

IKEA PS JORDBRO looks like an old-school Cylon's head when it's wide-side down.

My favorite one, however, is another discontinued item called IKEA PS ENKÖPING.  It's a kitchen table for lonely people in tiny apartments.  It folds down from the wall, revealing a little shelf-table big enough for your single serving, and a poster frame containing one of four pictures, one of which is an imaginary dinner companion.  I'm not making that up, there's even a video explanation by the designer if you can find it.