Technology pundit Andy Ihnatko talks about iChat AV in his new Work Tech column for the Chicago Sun-Times entitled Another quantum leap for Apple with flawless videoconferencing tool.
An unabashed Mac enthusiast, though no stranger to other operating systems, Ihnatko mirrors other tech journalists who have been called upon to explain their ongoing fascination with Apple given the company’s modest marketshare.
“… I put it to you that the Macintosh operating system accounts for at least 50 percent of the industry’s innovation,” he said, adding that Apple has “a consistent record” of showing other PC makers what to do.
“Let’s hope that iChat AV is the latest app to influence the way things are done on Windows,” said Ihnatko. “Normally, when you add features to a product, you just make it denser and more complicated. But instead, adding voice and video to iChat opens it up.”
Ihnatko calls iChat AV the first chat software to “flawlessly integrate multimedia.” He calls the quality of video “outstanding.” On the downside, Ihnatko notes that iChat AV is, for now, Mac-only, though there’s nothing that would prevent enterprising Windows or Linux developers from making compatible software.
He also writes fondly of the iSight, Apple’s companion videocam for iChat AV. Ihnatko noted that the iSight’s most important feature compared to others is the shutter that makes it certain that your visage isn’t Webcast or made available via iChat unless you want it to be.
At $149, the iSight is more expensive that its competitors, said Ihnatko. “But if getting the great stuff way before the other guy is one of the two fundamentals of the Mac Experience, then spending more for the privilege is the other one.”