Last week's Macworld fete in San Francisco was a departure from times past. Just like times past are waiting for something new from Apple (the iPhone, the Macbook Air, etc.). But for the first time unlike Apple itself was itself departed. And, from what I could tell, excitement for the next "something new" - the iPad - was muted apart from the accessory makers salivating of course.
Instead of a keynote from Applerati we got the sine qua non of Apple fanboys: David Pogue. Funny, prepared and entertaining he pushed his book on Twitter, hosted the Gregory Brothers of YouTube fame and even had LeVar Burton from Star Trek TNG on. Pogus' finale featured another rendition of his "I want an iPhone" song, which rang a bit hollow this year. The iPhone is passe, right? With millions sold how could it not be? The anachronism turned into downright irony if you changed "I Want an iPhone" to "I Want an iPad." Just as he screeched and reached beyond his vocal range, it seemed like we are reaching as well to like the iPad so that it becomes something we need rather than something we want.
Even if Geordi La Forge (Levar Burton) doesn't want one right away and would rather focus on the next iteration of an online Reading Rainbow in late 2010 maybe we'll find our enthusiasm by then or else Apple's books will suffer.
