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Comments
Edmunds has asked me to help out on the Straightline blog, which is essentially reporting automotive "Net news," and commenting a bit on it. A lot of the kind of non-Subaru news I used to post on the Cafe is now being posted over there. So if anyone is wondering why I haven't posted much lately in this thread, that's the answer. As with any blog, you can add your comments.
I'm not abandoning the Cafe (or any Subaru-related thread), I've just been rather busy with this, as well as my own business-related projects.
Bob
I'm definitely not interested in Blizzaks or studs (dealt w/ those for too long w/ my old Jetta :lemon: ). I'm looking for an all-weather tire that rallies both in a downpour on the highway and in a blizzard on the pass.
Straightline Blog
Bob
-juice
Hope this helps,
Owen
This should help bring some cashflow to FHI. Let the rumors fly!
NAGOYA (Nikkei)--Toyota Motor Corp. (7203) plans to contract out to Subaru maker Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. (7270) the full redesign of an existing model, possibly a sporty subcompact, with the aim of rolling out the remodeled version in two to three years, The Nihon Keizai Shimbun learned Tuesday.
Here's a link, but you need a subscription (which I don't have) to view more.
http://www.nni.nikkei.co.jp/CF/FR/TNKS/nikkeinews.cfm?GenreID=3&PageSet=1
The AWD Matrix makes just 123hp, the Impreza makes 173hp. A 50hp upgrade is certainly sporty. They could even use a WRX clone for the Matrix XRS, and still offer AWD.
But I wonder if they would also offer a FWD model?
Another comment - SIA builds no subcompacts, so this does not use up the extra capacity. That means the partnership might go deeper than we first thought.
-juice
I'm spending about half my time in Sydney at present. There's something mildly schizophrenic about getting up in Melbourne, driving to the airport in the cool with warnings of snow on nearby ranges and then finding myself a little over an hour later, 500 miles away in steamy Sydney. The temperature is warmer, the humidity greater, and as all Australian men notice, the girls wear filmier dresses.
Whilst there, I borrowed a colleagues 99 Impreza hatch. After nine months with my auto Kluger (Highlander to you), driving a manual took a moment to recall. Sydney is very hilly, formed of eroded sandstone falling to the harbour around many fingers of land, so you remember delicate clutch use very quickly. The traffic is heavy with aggressive driving (like the temperament of the residents). The scars on the impreza's sides testify to the parking and driving practises - think New york with an Aussie accent and you get the flavour.
Even after almost seven years and 60,000 hard miles, the Impreza was a good drive. My colleague is lazy about maintenance and had not noticed that the brake discs are severely warped. Given that Sydney city traffic is mostly stop start traffic light queues, it might be possible to miss this. My trip took me about 70km down a fast motorway to a satellite city of Sydney and the first chance to really try the brakes at speed was an adventure, the brake pedal and steering wheel juddering excitingly. I left a healthy braking margin from then on.
Despite its age, the suspension was still taught and handling crisp. The clutch is on its way out (as you would expect given the constant stop start traffic. The hardest thing to sort out was the sensation of being radically closer to the ground than my now familiar Kluger. You seem awfully low in traffic.
Oddly, Imprezas sold here in Melbourne are almost universally the four door sedan but Sydney, sees mostly the sportshatch.
It felt a bit strange leaping back into my Kluger when i got home last night. The really big difference I did notice was the silence. The Kluger shows developments in NVH control at its best. Its not as engaging to drive as a Subaru, but a lot more relaxed
Cheers
Graham
Anyone know where I might be able to find good indepth reading about their pros and cons vs. similar PCs?
Any opinions out there on the updated iMacs? Is the 20" model worth stretching for?
Ken
As far as 20" - I think screen real estate is always worth it if you can afford it. The product is top-notch, but my only qualm about purchasing an Apple right now relates to the fact that they're switching from Motorola to Intel chips very soon. Software that runs on the current chips (including the iMac's) probably won't be able to run on the new Intel chips. So I'd be a little wary of purchasing a product that will be behind the times and less likely to be updatable, at least as far as software goes, within a year or two. My Powerbook's about four years old, but I won't consider replacing it until the Intel-powered Powerbooks are out. Just depends on how long you plan on keeping it, how up-to-date it needs to be for you, and how soon you need to buy.
I also think the extended AppleCare warranty is worth the somewhat steep cost.
As far as comparison sights, I like cnet, which rated the new iMac an "editors' choice".
Having said that, I don't know much about the iMAC. My feeling is if it's a MAC, it will be good. Maybe Craig can lend his opinion here, as he's also a MAC guy.
One good thing about MACs, as a "breed," is that they seem to be far less susceptible to viruses.
Bob
Only because hackers aren't interested in infected all 73 of the MAC's in use around the world. Baawaaahaaaa!!! I kill me.
Psst - just a little MAC jab. I've used them a few times and found them interesting. But there weren't enough buttons on the mouse.
Bob
I love the right click. Then again, you'll never know what you're missing until you try it.
Incidentally, I use a 2-button Microsoft mouse with my PowerBook once in a while, and those multi-button features are there. Don't like the Apple mouse? Easy fix - spend a few bucks for whatever mouse you want!
While I've read that all SW going forward will support both architectures, I can only imagine that at some point, having a PPC-based Mac will be a tangible disadvantage.
If I spring for a iMac, I would like to get 4-5 years out of it without having to worry about compatibility issues. Then again, I don't want to be the first wave of people to buy an Intel Mac either.
Ken
In cases where developers do not update their apps to support Intel, OS X has a technology called Rosetta that will run PowerPC code on Intel at near native speeds. So that's the fallback.
I do not anticipate any issues running newer (post-Intel) software on older PowerPC systems for many many years. Apple has publically committed to having OS X be multi-architecture for the long term. They have a huge established PowerPC base to support.
As far as hardware, any current G5 products are performance-competitive with Intel, so I would not hesitate to buy G5 for that reason. G4 systems, however, are lagging in performance. If performance is important, I would definitely wait to buy any current product that is G4-based until after the product is re-released with an Intel CPU.
One final thing to consider is that Intel-based Macs will likely be able to run Windows software at native speeds at some point. Doing that on PowerPC requires an emulator (a la Virtual PC) which hurts performance. There are already hacks to run Windows software on the Intel version of OS X, and many rumors about products that will make this a reality. So, if access to Windows software is important, that's another good reason to wait for an Intel Mac. Just keep in mind it's a big unknown at this point.
Craig
P.S. I played with a new iMac recently, and it was pretty sweet. I believe it comes standard with the fancy multi-button mouse.
I have a titanium powerbook- no problems. I also have several PCs- always dealing with Windows updates and viruses (I just laugh at them on my powerbook!) I also have no problems passing documents, photos, and music back and forth from the 2 platforms. Video is a little harder, but easy enough.
One nice thing about Macs- it's harder to accidently screw them up. I'm definitely getting my wife a Mac once her laptop dies!
My laypersons review
tom
Ken
so new name is sadillac?
Swampy: LWB Vue, eek. That's not a very good base to start with. Sadillac, indeed!
-juice
As to the 73 of us who own Macs, our stock price hit $65 a share today. That is 6.5X what I paid for it in 2000.
Pffftttt - you're just lucky that Jobs had the foresight to OK the iPod. To think there would be so many folks willing to pony up $200+ for the privilege of paying $0.99 to buy a song!! And then getting a better one 6 months later.
Not a dig - I just don't get it. But I wish I thought of it.
I would not pay $1.99 for a video I'd have to watch on a tiny 2" screen, but I'm sure some people will. Let's see if it takes off.
I like the Nano better. No moving parts so no problem if you drop it.
-juice
Jim
Yes, that nano's one sexy little gadget. Don't know how they manage to create so much visual and tactile appeal. Subaru needs to hire those guys. Subaru'd have to change the spelling to make it an iMpreza, though. I know, they can use all those lowercase letter "i"s they have sitting around in the warehouse now that it's "STI" instead of "STi". The only problem would be finding a source for all those capital "M"s. Hmm... perhaps if GM files for bankruptcy Subaru could buy their "M"... leaving GM with just a "G", which is considerably more profit than they're making now. Get it, a "G"? :P
Juice - you don't have to play that $1.99 video on your iPod, you can play it wherever you want... TV, laptop, etc. The coolness is the ability to take it with you without a laptop. Plus, you can port over pretty much anything you want to the video iPod. Home movies, your favorite music videos, whatever, so long as it's been converted to the right format.
I got a BlackBerry for work, and support devices like this. The reason for the BBerry's success is that it is very no-nonsense and business-like. We use it for e-mail, calendar, and texting, mostly. Plus it's a phone for those that get that service.
It's easy to use and most important there are no frivilous add-ons, so the costs are kept under control and the users aren't goofing around with games and cameras (things that break), instead they use it for work. For us that works.
For individual users, especially young ones, that's not enough. They want camera, video playing, video recording, gaming, GPS, tooth brush, chain saw, all that good stuff.
For now I'll hang on to my BlackBerry.
-juice
Has the state of VA heard the request for the injunction against RIM yet that'll shut down Blackberry service in DC yet?
-juice
But the widow of NTP founder feels the justice department isn't backing them because of the government's reliance on Blackberries.
It has enough storage capacity to last a trans-continental flight as well as plenty of battery life to boot.
Ken
I looked into the nano, but heard of two cases of broken screens from excessive flexing. Maybe I will just put an inexpensive little thumb drive MP3 player on my holiday list and see if it is for me.
Steve
Need a case to protect from scratches, otherwise it's pretty solid. These guys did a fun "stress test" to study the nano's durability. Check it out.
http://arstechnica.com/reviews/hardware/nano.ars/3
As Jeff mentioned, the screen cracking was limited to an early production run. The one I've been using has been fine.
The Nano is great since it's tiny and would take up virtually no space relative to your Bose QC2. The 4G gives you plenty of music to take and the battery life on the Nano is phenomenal. It's also convenient to recharge since it can draw enough current from a USB2 port. I will never take my full sized 20G iPod on a trip again.
Ken
I've been content with making CD mixes with a 6-disc CD changer in the Subaru so far. Last cross-country trip was a 6-disc in the trunk, and that was a pain...
Hopefully I will be content for a while longer. Already ripped off plenty of trim, removed the radio, and unbolted the driver's seat to add the OEM subwoofer... Would like to at least wait another year before fiddling with the trim again, hehe.
There are some okay thumb drives on the market
-B
Steve
Craig
Sorry to hear about Burnsie, I didn't even know he was in a coma.
-juice
It's interesting that you picked the Haaretz article; That's the newspaper I used to read when I lived in Israel.
here is the burnsie website http://www.richardburns.com/ ...you can also find more on SWRT, WRC, Rally-Live, and the other place.
Serge
-juice
I didn't know you lived in Israel. Are you familiar with The Koby Mandell Foundation? I've done a lot of design work for them, and know several key people there. Here's the link to their site:
www.kobymandell.org
Bob
I don't have any UMD movies but I'll be looking for them as they hit the used market. $25-29 each, nah, but $10 each? Hmm maybe!
~Colin
Another time, I took a trip to Europe and came back on a ferry from Brindisi Italy to Haifa. The ferry docked in the middle of Haifa harbor and was boarded by passport control and security, as weel as having frogmen check the hull for explosives. Pretty scary.
My aunt and only first cousins are there, some in Tel-Aviv, and the rest in Jerusalem ( acity where you really feel the weight of history past and present). I left in 1981, went to Italy, and haven't been back since. We wanted to have Michael's Bar-Mitzvah at Masada, but it wasn't a good time and he was afriad . A couple of months ago, he said he wants to go there, so it's back on the agenda, maybe for next year.
Serge