Sep 03

FaceTime for iPad 2 brings us closer

By Brian Editorial, News 4 Comments »

Just like the touchy-feely, heartwarming Apple commercials touting the way that people can connect through video calls on their iPad 2 and iPhone 4 devices, I had my own experience tonight that was just like Apple’s advertising campaign. If you are unfamiliar with FaceTime, it is Apple’s video call application for their iMac, MacBook, iPad 2 and iPhone 4 devices that allow people to enjoy video and audio chat with each other over a WiFi connection. I used it tonight on my iPad 2 to bring my family closer for my son’s birthday.
My daughter just left for college and, although she’s a few hundred miles away, she joined us in singing “Happy  Birthday” to my son and watched him blow out the candles on his birthday cake, thanks to FaceTime on my iPad 2 and her MacBook Pro. Cozied up to her desk in her apartment while we gathered around the kitchen table, we used FaceTime to practically erase those hundreds of miles of separation and bring us closer for a family event. The only thing she really missed was a slice of cake.
This may seem a small thing to some, but for us, it was priceless. If I had any reservations before about buying my iPad 2 to replace my iPad 1, those reservations were completely erased tonight when we were brought together again as a family thanks to this amazing technology. Have you used your iPad 2 and FaceTime to bring you closer to the ones you love?
Tagged with: • • • • • •
Aug 25

Steve Jobs resigns, Tim Cook new CEO at Apple

By Brian Editorial, News 1 Comment »

As iconic as Steve Jobs is, you have likely heard already that he has abruptly resigned as Apple’s CEO and has taken the role as chairman of the board. Tim Cook, formerly the COO of Apple, is now the CEO moving forward. What will this mean for the future of Apple? It’s good to know that Steve Jobs is still very much a big part of Apple’s vision as the chairman, choosing to remove himself from the day-to-day responsibilities and pressures that the CEO must endure. His health should be his greatest concern right now and given what he has accomplished for Apple, no one can blame him for stepping away and tending to personal matters.
I can’t help but reflect on the Steve Jobs vs. Bill Gates story, depicted several years ago in “Pirates of Silicon Valley”. Indeed, Bill Gates won the battle at the time with the licensing of Windows for the PC platform, arguably an inferior product to the computing experience that Apple has offered, particularly with products like the classic MacIntosh computers. Now, given the epic turnaround of Apple starting in the late nineties under the guiding hand of Steve Jobs, it could be fair to say that he has won the war — Apple is the most valuable technology company due to revolutionary products like iPod, iPhone, iPad, and a complete remastering of their Mac and MacBook computer products.
Just as Disneyland has survived and flourished these many years after the departure of Walt Disney long ago, I’m sure that Apple will continue to amaze us with revolutionary products long after Steve Jobs has exited, stage left. Clearly he has shared a remarkable vision with the world and those of us who have bought and used anything Apple can attest to the magic. Thanks, Steve, for bringing so many amazing products to the market that have educated us, enriched us, made us more productive, entertained us, and quite frankly have just been a lot of fun. We most certainly will miss you now that you are no longer the captain at the wheel.
Tagged with: • • • • • • •
Aug 15

Blogging from my iPad 2

By Brian Editorial 4 Comments »

20110815-012340.jpg

I just picked up a keyboard folio for my iPad 2 from a Simply Mac store, a local chain of retail stores that sells Apple products. I had just recently given the ZAGGfolio a whirl and I really like the typing experience, but unfortunately there is an issue with the clasp holding the case shut and it won’t be for another week or so until ZAGG offers the new and improved unit. Also, I gave the iPad 2 folio with keyboard from Belkin a try and, although it has the best keyboard I’ve tried so far, the case itself is not my favorite. Note to Belkin: you’d have a real winner on your hands if you dispensed with the crappy gray synthetic material and splurge on some real leather!

This keyboard case from Simply Mac is fairly decent but the keyboard is a little more cramped and I’m struggling with the small “shift” key on the right-hand side. Given that it’s placed on the far outside of the keyboard and is the same size as one of the regular letter keys, it’s pretty much impossible to reach it by touch with my right pinky finger while typing. So far, both the Belkin and ZAGGfolio keyboards have been much easier to hit that right “shift” key accurately.

I’ll try to get a more complete review of the Simply Mac keyboard up soon and hopefully I’ll get a chance to revisit the ZAGGfolio keyboard case once the company fixes the clasp and ships the revised version. Also, if anyone can suggest the best iPad blogging app out there, I’ll be much obliged. I’m using WordPress for this post and, sadly, it STILL doesn’t appear to support links.

Tagged with: • • • • • • •
Aug 09

Stick with iPad, get iPad 2, or wait for iPad 2 HD or iPad 3?

By Brian Editorial 5 Comments »

There are rumors a’swirling about the next iPad, both about what it will be and when it will be available. There is rampant rumor-mongering on the internet about Apple breaking with their traditional annual release cycle and offering up a new iPad as soon as this September. Or, the next iPad may not hit the shelves until sometime in the first quarter of 2012. There’s also much speculation about what the next iPad will be — a more high-end iPad 2 HD with a “retina” display like the iPhone 4, or will it be an iPad 3 with numerous upgrades to display quality, processor speed and memory size?
With such important questions still unanswered, it’s hard to know what to do or when to do it as an original iPad owner. I love my iPad 3G 64GB slab of wonder, but I’m feeling a little left behind with some of the accessories now available that are geared for the iPad 2, like the ZAGGfolio for the iPad 2 that I’m lusting after — ZAGG doesn’t make it for the iPad 1. I have an itchy trigger-finger to pick up the iPad 2, but if an iPad 2 HD or iPad 3 is just around the bend, perhaps as early as next month, should I wait? Would I feel foolish buying the iPad 2 now only to have a new iPad arrive as soon as a month later, or even just a few months from now?
These are important questions for a gadget junkie like me, and since any iPad requires some serious payola to acquire, it’s not a decision to be made lightly. Or is it? Maybe the one true answer lies in the idea that whether or not you have the “latest and greatest”, if the product does what you need it to do, then why wait for the next one? Apple is quite reliable for releasing new generations of their products at least annually, so in the worst case, I could pick up an awesome iPad 2 and be “stuck” with it for a whole 13 months, right? Oh, the horror! Yet, on the other hand, I could have to go without the newest offering for a year and be in gadget geek purgatory.
This, my friends, is the conundrum I face. What would YOU do?
[Photo courtesy of NinoGadget]
Tagged with: • • • • • • • •
Jun 03

Size matters; or does it?

By Ivan Editorial 5 Comments »

Just like everything in the world, the iPad can be purchased with options for data storage size. Above is an image, courtesy of Apple, that shows the various sizes available.

What I’m really curious about, though, is why you bought the size you bought? I’ve always wondered why people buy a respective size. And the reason for this is, since one can sync as much or as little data via iTunes as they wish, and store all apps, music, videos, and more on their computer and then be selective on what syncs to the iPad or iPhone, ‘does size really matter’?

Let us know which size you went with and why in the comments…

 

Tagged with: • • •
Apr 25

iPad 2 saves the day

By Ivan Apps, Editorial 1 Comment »

As we all know, it is not a pleasant thing to visit the hospital, whether it be as a patient, or as a visitor. Typically, either way, you’re waiting in line for this, or that. During that time of waiting, one can ‘read’, ‘walk around’, or just simply ‘be bored’. Or…

I was in hospital for just over 24 hours, and had an inkling that I would be there much longer.  With that in mind, when the wife and I were leaving home, we made sure to pack the iPad 2, 3G 16GB, and a charger. Now, don’t get me wrong, I still had my iPhone 4 with me. But, you just never know when you’d need that extra screen space to navigate websites, watch movies, play games, etc. Keep reading for my personal experience with my iPad 2 at the hospital!

Continue reading »

Tagged with: • • • • • • • •
Apr 11

Do you use your iPad enough?

By Ivan Editorial, Rants 9 Comments »

I’m a bit curious about this. I have an iPad 2, a laptop (tiny one, HP 2510p), and a desktop (home office). But, I’m not sure I’m using my iPad enough to warrant even having one, thus the curiosity of other people with an iPad, 1 or 2, 3G or just plain ole Wi-Fi.

Last year, the Mrs. bought me an iPad 16GB, Wi-Fi model. I used it often while sitting on the sofa, browsing forums, replying to emails, general surfing of the web, and the like. Another main use for it was to read books, via the Amazon Kindle app.

Oddly enough, I felt that the sheer brightness of the iPad – despite how low I had the brightness set to – I just couldn’t keep on reading from it. It made me feel sleepy, quickly, and thus I wouldn’t read as much, or as long. I checked online, and it was nice to see that I wasn’t the only one experiencing this issue. I was beginning to feel weird for a moment.

I used to think I didn’t use my iPad 1 as much because it was only a Wi-Fi model, and thus had no ‘continuous connection’ once I left my house. Because of this, I typically left my iPad at home. Yes, I know I can watch movies, play games, listen to music, etc., without being connected to the ‘net, but what if I wanted to check or create email, or quickly research something online? I’d have to pull out my iPhone. So, hence, what was the point of me carrying my Wi-Fi iPad 1 with me?

I don’t recall the date that Apple & AT&T allowed us to pre-order the iPad 2. But, whenever that was, I did so, making sure to order the 3G model, thus giving me more ‘scope of use’, if you like. Albeit, I detest having to pay AT&T any more money. Seriously, with the Mrs. and I both using iPhone 4′s, and I even have a BlackBerry, too, all with unlimited data, AT&T gets a lot of money from us a month. Yep, true gadget nut here.

But, yet, here I am, again, leaving my iPad 2 at home. Why is that? Weird.

Hence I’m really curious with myself, and others for that matter, do I even need an iPad? From home to work, I have my iPhone – and sometimes even my BlackBerry BOLD 9700, too. Once I get to the office, I have my desktop; and the same thing in reverse, from work to home.

So, err, when exactly would I use my iPad 1 or 2, 3G or Wi-Fi? When do you use yours?

 

Tagged with: • • • • • • • •
Oct 18

Rant: Blogging on my iPad is a pain

By Brian Editorial, Rants 3 Comments »

When I first bought my iPad several months ago, I also bought an Apple Bluetooth keyboard and was extremely optimistic that I would be posting to this blog from my iPad on a daily basis. I use WordPress for Naked iPad,  so naturally I tried out the WordPress app — epic pain in the nethers. I found BlogPress to be slightly more usable and I use it on occassion to this day, but it’s still a poorly-devised tool for blogging from the iPad. I will only use my iPad and the BlogPress app if I have a very brief, single-page post with one picture and no font customization or links.

One of my friends and fellow blogging colleagues over at Just Another iPad Blog expressed my same frustration quite well in his post about the seeming inexplicability of no solid blogging apps being available for the iPad or iPhone. After a couple years of App Store presence, over 280,000 iOS apps and over 35,000 iPad apps later, there is STILL not a good blogging app that makes it easy to post multiple pictures, format text, create workable links, and so forth.

I would pay good money for a well-designed, fully-functioning blogging app for the iPad so that I wouldn’t have to use my desktop or laptop as my main go-to blogging device. I want a good blogging app for my iPad — any developers up to the challenge?

[Just Another iPad Blog, photo courtesy of Gizmodo]

Tagged with: • • •
Sep 20

Apple iPod touch + street = bad Monday

By Brian Editorial 5 Comments »

I found this iPod touch in the middle of the road, face down, and was very surprised that it even turned on — but as you can see, it fires right up and displays the “slide to unlock” prompt just below the shattered remnants of the once-pristine glass surface. I attempted to unlock the device so I could try and determine the owner, but unfortunately this touch display will never register a touch again in its current configuration.

The fact that the device turns on and I can read the display is a testament to the toughness of the iPod touch and iPhone form-factor. I may look into replacing the glass and digitizer, but only if it costs far less than buying a new one. Anyway, fair warning — your iPhone, iPad and iPod touch have GLASS surfaces and are not pavement-friendly. Never leave your device on the roof of your car, no matter what, because if you do, it’s easy to forget and you will end up with a smashed-up device and tears in your eyes. Just take an extra moment and slip your device in your pocket or purse.

Anyone have suggestions on a cheap iPod touch repair?

Tagged with: • • • • • •
Sep 03

Apple’s Ping already loaded with spammers

By Brian Editorial, News 4 Comments »

Caveat emptor. Let the buyer beware. Along with announcements of a new Apple TV and new iPods, Apple has unveiled their new music-based social network, Ping, which allows users to follow music artists and friends and integrates with iTunes so that a customized top 10 list of music will be created based on what those artists and friends are downloading. Ping also provides information about local concerts and will let your friends know if you are attending. I suppose there’s still room in the world for yet another social network, right?

So why do I issue a warning at the beginning of this post? Apparently Ping, even in its infancy, is already heavy-laden with spammers offering up all kinds of promised goodies and scams, with most of the spam focused on providing links claiming to offer up free iPhones and iPads and other Apple products in exchange for filling out surveys. According to Sophos security expert, Chester Wisniewski:

If half as many free iPads, iPhones and iPods were being given away as Ping comments might lead you to believe, there will be no reason to bother with going to an Apple Store. But if you actually want an Apple device, my advice is to go out and buy one, as filling out surveys will likely only end in tears.

Once again, there’s no free lunch. So why is all this spam saturating Ping already? There are a couple reasons why spammers are liking Ping. First of all, Ping does not feature any spam or URL filtering, so currently it’s a spamming paradise. Also, over 160 million iTunes account owners can access Ping — and these owners have active iTunes accounts and credit card numbers associated with these accounts. Ergo, they have buying power. If you decide to use Ping, just keep in mind you’ll have to do your own spam and scam filtering.

[AppleInsider]

Tagged with: • • • • • •
Previous Entries
preload preload preload