We're broadcasting Ellen Feiss' film on Monday!

We're excited to announce TheDigitalLifestyle.tv will have a one-time only airing of the film "Bed & Breakfast," starring Ellen Feiss. Feiss became an internet hit after appearing in one of the first commercials from Apple's "Switch" campaign.

This will be our first fictional programming on the network, and we'll be giving everyone the ability to chat in real time while watching the film. So tell your friends and family! And here's and even better idea.. Join us a half hour early, and you can enjoy TDL Live too! The full press release is below, but I hope you'll join us Monday, April 21 at 9:30 PM ET (TDL Live starts at 9:00) 6:30PM PT.

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Ellen Feiss Film to Air Online, with viewer chat

Ellen Feiss, one of the stars of Apple's "Switch" ad campaign will appear in the film "Bed & Breakfast" on TheDigitalLifestyle.tv.

The film, shot in France in 2006, follows a young American couple on vacation in France look for an old friend who has inherited a castle. The film marks the screen debut for Feiss, who became an internet celebrity following her appearance in one of the initial "Switch" campaign ads from Apple.

The film marks the first fictional programming for The Digital Lifestyle, which was founded in November 2007 by former Apple employees, and covers Apple-related news, rumors, and lifestyle information.

During the one-time only broadcast, viewers will be able to chat with each other in real time. The film will air at 9:30PM ET / 6:30 PM PT Monday, April 21, following TDL Live.

Dear Apple: Make the computer people want

There's been a bit of a stir in the Apple world this week, after Psystar announced they would be selling PCs capable of running Mac operating system, and would even have an option to buy the machine with the Leopard license pre-installed.

The computer, originally named OpenMac is now called Open Computer. Whether it ever ships is doubtful. Shipping the machine with Leopard pre-installed would seem to be a violation of Apple's licensing agreements. They could possibly pull off shipping machines that end users would install the OS on. Priced at $400, the base model offers a far better bargain, at least in terms of performance, compared to the mac mini that's $200 more.

There are three ways apple can deal with the controversy surrounding this machine: 1. Let it proceed un-abated (not going to happen). 2. Throw the lawyers at them, and sue the company into submission (most likely).3. Or, wait for it... Apple could make the computer people want. Looking at the product lineup, the only glaring empty spot (and it's probably been more or less empty since the Performa days) is an affordable, low-end tower.

If Apple has any interest in getting big business to switch, which is a whole other discussion, they need to offer such a box. Fortune 500 companies have tons of installed IT infrastructure, including computer monitors. Now that executives are toting iPhones, there's a stronger potential than any recent time for companies to consider switching. However, an iMac is far too expensive when a $400 PC box can be plugged into the existing monitor. Even the most devout Apple-loving CEO would have a tough time justifying three times that much to replace PCs with Macs. The Mac Mini was a good start, but until it is outfitted with the same RAM and hard drive as a comparable PC, the cost can be nearly double that of the competing computers.

Remember there was a time when the eMac was only for education? Demand, or at least Apple's experiment within that channel led to the model being available to all. Why not do the same with a no frills Apple box for business. We'll call it the bMac, and hope that Apple's marketing folks can come up with something better. Make a limited run of bMacs, and sell them, to businesses that simply couldn't consider other Apple alternatives. Next thing you know, new markets open up, higher margin xServes are going to those same companies, and another few percentage points of marketshare is gained.

UPDATE: Since this was posted, it appears Psystar has been outed as a fake. We have requested an interview, but have received no response. Engadget and Gizmodo have also had little luck verifying the company's existence. Regardless, the interest the story generated shows the interest in having a product fill this gap.

Tablet device... Why bother?

For years, there have been rumors of a mythical tablet, or "tablet-like" device from Apple. I hate to spoil everyone's fun, but the tablet device is already out there, and it's called the iPhone.

Yet many people think any day now, we'll see a device with perhaps a 7" screen that would pack the power of laptop, or in some speculation, the device would act as a companion device to a house of Macs. What good would this device be? If you want to sure from the couch, and find a laptop too bulky, there's already the iPhone and iPod Touch. If you're looking for a lightweight design, that comes along with its own drawbacks, there's the Macbook Air. A 7-inch screen isn't large enough to do much more than surf the web. For full computer capability, you would need a physical keyboard, and that of course means a bigger device or a smaller screen.

Maybe I'm missing something here, but I just don't see a place for this in the product lineups. If you want to talk about product gaps, we can talk about the gaping hole where a low-end tower should be, but as for portable devices, the choices are already there.

iPod Game Review: Zuma

We sure have seen some hit or miss games for the iPod, but this might be the first undisputed hit...

Quick reminder: TDL Live tonight 9PM ET / 6PM PT

Just a quick infomercial to remind you that we will be broadcasting TDL Live, well, live, tonight at 9PM ET. (That's 1:00 Tuesday GMT). We'll be taking a look at the past week in Apple news, and make our (potentially wrong) predictions for the week ahead, I hope you'll join us. And for our over 18, U.S. audience, we'll be giving away an iTunes gift card, but you'll have to watch to find out how to win.

Thanks, and we hope you'll join us tonight.