Jobs's Disappointing Macworld Keynote Address Makes Even Gates Look

Lost amid all the hubbub of CES was the start of Macworld Conference & Expo, which opened Tuesday with an unexciting Steve Jobs keynote. Jobs usually kills at these events, delivering a slew of exciting products to a friendly crowd eager to lap up whatever he has to offer. But even the most crazed Apple fan has to admit that this Macworld conference was the lamest since Jobs returned to the company, with few exciting new products. The new iPod minis are cute but predictable--and vastly overpriced. Garage Band, a music-mixing application, targets the smallest possible market. The new iLife application, although interesting, isn't shipping yet and won't be free. Apple didn't present any faster Power Mac G5s, cheaper PowerBooks or iPods, or Apple-branded office-productivity tools, as many rumor sites had hoped. All in all, Macworld was a rather boring affair.