Mickey Mouse - Jedi Knight!

So George Lucas has sold Star Wars (or more accurately Lucasfilm) to the house of mouse! I have to admit I didn't see this coming at all. As a lifelong Star Wars fanatic, I have to say that this news has excited me greatly, particularly the revelation that Disney will produce 3 new Star Wars feature films with Episode 7 due for release in 2015.

What has however disappointed me, is the general cynicism and snobbery from my own generation at this news. I'm referring of course to the purists, the prequel bashers, to whom Star Wars isn't Star Wars unless it's the original trilogy, and in its unaltered (non special edition) format. Now, everyone has a right to their own opinion of course, but the arguments of these protesters are starting to feel a little lazy, repetitive, tired, outdated, unimaginative, and quite frankly irrelevant!

Like it or not, time moves on, things change and it's not 1983 anymore and never will be. New generations have become Star Wars fans, and shock, horror, many of them love the prequels just as much as the originals. My eldest son George is one of them. It could be argued that he prefers the prequels actually as he asks to watch them more often than the original trilogy. Does this invalidate him as a Star Wars fan? I don't think so. I personally don't care too much for the computer generated Clone Wars series, but that is simply a reflection of my own preference of live action over any sort of animation. George quite enjoys the Clone Wars himself and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that in my opinion.

Now, I'm not about to start arguing specifics in terms of why the prequels have their rightful place in the saga. I'd be on all day if I tried to do that. The point I am trying to make is that my generation cannot claim exclusive ownership of the Star Wars franchise just because we were kids when it first came out. We have no sort of moral high ground to dictate what is Star Wars and what isn't. Ultimately, it was George Lucas' story and he delivered it in the way he saw fit. What I will say is that all six of the Star Wars films have examples of questionable acting and dialogue, but at the end of the day they are pure entertainment movies aimed toward children. Why not just try to enjoy them rather than pick them apart?

No single generation can claim ownership of Star Wars. It belongs to everyone, and will continue to do so for generations to come. That is why I think there is a place for new Star Wars feature films, and it is totally counter-productive to dismiss them out hand when no one knows yet what they are going to be like. So I say booooo to the cynics and naysayers. Embrace more Star Wars. Have a little faith, and remember that even if you don't enjoy it, your kids just might!

Peter

Tech Roundup

Thoughts on iPad Mini

When pre-orders for the iPad Mini opened up, the device quickly sold out as is normal with the latest and greatest Apple gadget. However, on the actual launch day, not many people turned up to Apple stores apparently.

I am always excited by an Apple keynote, but on this occasion once the dust settled, I didn't feel excited about this device. It boils down to this - £269.00 is expensive anyway, but £269.00 and no retina display? I think not! I'll wait until the next generation when they will figure out how to get the retina display into the device without making it thicker or compromising battery life.

Thoughts on the 4th Generation iPad

Why could they not either have released this model in April, or kept the iPad 2 as the current model until now? What they have done is not right!

I see what they are trying to do though. They want their iPad launches to be just before Christmas instead of in the Spring, and that makes total sense. So I don't expect to see another new iPad anytime before October 2013. As a 3rd generation iPad owner though, I'm still a little ticked off shall we say!

Thoughts on the Microsoft Surface

Apple timed their new iPad announcement and release date to perfection. No one is really talking much about the Surface that much as far as I can see.

I've not even seen one yet I must admit, but I know what to expect from a Windows 8 tablet experience as I've tried it on other devices. The price of the basic model itself seems reasonable at £399.00 for 32gb, but if you want the touch cover/keyboard, this is not included and you have to pay an unbelievable £79.00 for this.

Time will tell how well Windows 8 tablets do. This is an OS that seems to have a bit of an identity crisis however. I quite like it, but it does become boring quickly, and I think everyday consumers will find it confusing, whilst businesses will completely reject it and stay with Windows 7 for some time to come.

I sold my Google Nexus

I only got the Google Nexus 7 16gb in July, but after initially being very excited about this little device, it pretty much sat gathering dust in the sideboard for the next couple of months.

There was absolutely nothing wrong with this device other than the fact that it was an Android tablet, and this little experiment simply proved what I suspected all along - Android is not for me!

It's gone to a very good home though with someone who appreciates and enjoys Android devices, and who is already invested in their ecosystem as much as I am in Apples. I had thought I would spend the money on an iPad Mini, but as you already read above, those plans are on hold for now. You know me though, I'm fickle when it comes to technology. I may change my mind again next week!

Take care!
Peter