Greetings everyone and welcome to another edition of Tuesday Tech Talk. Quite a bit of news this week I want to share so lets get right into it!
I have an iPhone 4!
Out of the blue, I upgraded to an iPhone 4. Thanks to a week long promotion going on at Radio Shack, I was able to trade in my iPhone 3GS for a $125 credit toward an iPhone 4 which was also sold for $50 off the regular price. What this meant was I was able to walk out of the store with a brand new 32GB iPhone 4 for $125 instead of the regular $300 price, a $175 savings! But it gets even better, my wife who has had a flip phone for a few years now, purchased an 8GB 3GS for $49. Now the catch is obviously you have to be eligible for an upgrade with AT&T and you agree to a new 2 year contract.
So, how is the iPhone 4? It is great! I can FaceTime now with it, take HDR photos, and the Retina display is awesome! You really have to see an iPhone 4 in person to grasp just how rich the display is. A good test is to visit the New York Times website and close in on the “New York Times” banner and the detail of the font is spectacular! My wife really likes her first iPhone and loves that her Yahoo email comes right to her email now instead of having to login on the Yahoo website. It has been a bit of a learning curve for her, but she likes it a lot! Here is an HDR photo I took last night at Oby’s of our bread pudding dessert.
Yum!! So, if you are eligible for an upgrade from AT&T, you might want to check in at your local Radio Shack before Saturday.
Facebook Profile Facelift
So I watched 60 Minutes on Sunday night which I never do but Mark Zuckerberg was interviewed by Lesley Stahl and they hinted something new Facebook was working on, would be shown on 60 Minutes. Sure enough, they have given a whole new look to the Facebook profile page. To give you an idea, here is what mine looks like now.
So basically you enter in your key information and it spells out a nice summary of who you are. It also offers an expanded family tree for connections. Now in addition to spouse, brother, sister, mom and dad connections, it also offers uncle, aunt, cousins, niece and nephews. Interesting enough in-laws is still not an option so if you have a brother-in-law for example and want to add the family connection, you will just have to label them as a brother for now. So check it out, I happen to like it but your mileage may vary.
Google offers e-Books
Also announced yesterday, Google is now an e-book seller and offering reader apps for iOS and Android devices. Stay tuned for this Friday’s Googling Friday where I talk a lot more about the pros and cons of Google’s e-book reader app.
Mac App Store to launch Monday?
Apple may be preparing to launch their Mac App Store as early as this coming Monday. Apple did state during the OS X 10.7 Lion preview that they would launch a beta version of the Mac App Store within 90 days so this seems to fit into that timeline. If it does then we will have something to discuss here next week.
AirPlay coming to Safari and Third-party apps in 2011
Once again Steve Jobs fired off an email reply from his iPhone to someone that asked about AirPlay limitations on video from iOS devices to AppleTV. Jobs states that Apple hopes to add video features to third-party apps and Safari. This is great news for folks that use Netflix and Hulu Plus on their iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad as they can then stream video to the AppleTV.
This Week’s iOS app Reviews
iMove ($4.99) - IF you have an iPhone 4 then you really should get this app. What it does is allow you to edit video shot on your iPhone 4, on your iPhone 4. I was able to put together a video overview of the Google Books reader app using my iPhone 4 and iMovie. You can find the video here!
Loopt (FREE) - Yes, another location based social networking app. I try them all folks and what I like about this one is it integrates with Facebook’s Places. So you tie your Facebook account into Loopt and whenever you check into a location using the Facebook app, Loopt will also show you at such place. You can also connect your Twitter account to Loopt as well.
Words with Friends (FREE) - Ok so there is also an iPad version as well. They also offer a paid version without advertising. Basically Words with Friends is Scrabble that you can play with friends and family. You will have to setup a username, but it is fairly easy to setup a game quickly with a friend. I have learned words I didn’t know existed and you can also chat with each other as well. It is a lot of fun.
Google Books (FREE) - As I mentioned earlier, Google is offering their own e-book reader app now (iPad version). The look and feel is similar to that of the Apple iBooks and Amazon Kindle app. On Friday, I will have more about it.
Well, that is going to do it for this edition of Tuesday Tech Talk. See you all next week for another fixin’!
Showing posts with label e-Books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label e-Books. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Tuesday Tech Talk #69
Hello folks and welcome to another edition of Tuesday Tech Talk. I apologize for the later posting but the Fab Four is always worth waiting for I believe. So lets dive into the news.
Ladies and Gentlemen...THE BEATLES!!!!
Yes, earlier today The Beatles catalog became available in the iTunes Music Store. The long wait for the Fab Four has finally arrived! Now based on Apple’s homepage yesterday, a lot of people were expecting something big like maybe a cloud based iTunes. But considering the announcement went up yesterday on the Apple.com site and wasn’t a scheduled press event based invite a week or so ahead of time, I wasn’t thinking cloud and had a suspicion it was The Beatles based on them having 4 clocks one of which was London time. My first download was Hey Jude followed by Let it Be and The Long and Winding Road with more tracks and albums to follow I’m sure.
Facebook rethinks Messaging
Yesterday Mark Zuckerberg announced a new messaging system for Facebook that will be rolled out over the next couple of months. It basically adds IM, texting, and email into a single communication model. You will get a @facebook.com style email address as part of it but it is more of an informal communication model with no subject line like in email. Once I get an invite, I will play around with it and write more about it later.
iOS 4.2, where art thou?
There was much speculation last week that iOS 4.2 would arrive on Friday but then news broke of the iPad having WiFi issues with the developer gold master which a updated version was seeded to developers but this will probably push back the release date to hopefully sometime this week. Apple has officially stated 4.2 will be released sometime in November so they really have 2 weeks left to stay within their promise, but I think iPhone and iPad users will be using AirPlay on Thanksgiving Day myself.
New York Times to rank E-Book bestsellers
With more and more people buying their books on Kindle, Nook, iPad, and other electronic devices, the New York Times early next year will rank E-Book fiction and non-fiction bestsellers. This is long overdue considering the Kindle has been around for quite sometime. I myself use the Kindle app on my iPad and looking to get the new Kindle itself early next year for my reading in long sessions.
Next generation iPhone and iPad may support glove use
Hitachi is developing a new touch screen that recognizes insulator based touching (gloves or stylus), this technology could then be based in the iPhone 5 next summer. Not really a big problem down in these parts, but for people in the Midwest or Northeast, this might be welcome news during those harsh winter months.
This Week’s iPhone/iPod touch/iPad apps
Talking Tom Cat (FREE) - This cute basic app is really fun! My friend Dave alerted me to this app. Basically you can speak things to it and it will repeat what you say in a cute high pitched voice. You can also pet it, “stomp” on its paw or just slap it around a bit...yeah it’s weird and would offend PETA, but it is free.
Facebook (FREE) - I may have discussed the Facebook app before but it has been updated since. One of the new features is Places, similar to FourSquare you can check into places but Facebook has used its popularity to partner with business to have special offers at places. For example, my wife and I were in Nashville this past weekend and when we checked into Chipotle, there was a Post-it icon next to Chipotle in the list of locations. Upon clicking on Chipotle, it described the offer which was when you buy a burrito, burrito bowl, salad, or taco, you get a second entree free. Being that it was my wife and myself, it was perfect as we saved about $6 on the second entree. It was a weekend offer only but it looks like Chipotle will be offering it again this weekend. This is how location checkin will take off in the mainstream. FourSquare is nice but it is just a competition to become mayor of places.
Nightstand Central for iPad (FREE) - This is a handy app for anyone staying at a hotel or with family. Just load up the app before heading to bed and set your alarm if you want. It has several alarm options, my favorite is Church Bells. It will also display the current city or town you are in and the temperature outside. Another nice feature is sliding your finger up and down the display will brighten or dim the screen so it isn’t glaring as you try and sleep. There is also an iPhone version as well. But the iPad version gives you more of a standard alarm clock feel.
Windowshop by Amazon (FREE) - This is how browsing the Amazon Store should look like on an iPad! It is like browsing the Amazon Store on a desktop or laptop computer but fully customized to the iPad. Trust me, wants you try it, there is no other way to browse Amazon. I actually use it anytime I want to look at Amazon.
Well, that is going to do it for this edition of Tuesday Tech Talk, see you all next week for #70! Wow, I had no idea when I first started to write Triple T over a year ago, it would reach 70 posts. Just proves how much I love to blog and how much I love technology.
Ladies and Gentlemen...THE BEATLES!!!!
Yes, earlier today The Beatles catalog became available in the iTunes Music Store. The long wait for the Fab Four has finally arrived! Now based on Apple’s homepage yesterday, a lot of people were expecting something big like maybe a cloud based iTunes. But considering the announcement went up yesterday on the Apple.com site and wasn’t a scheduled press event based invite a week or so ahead of time, I wasn’t thinking cloud and had a suspicion it was The Beatles based on them having 4 clocks one of which was London time. My first download was Hey Jude followed by Let it Be and The Long and Winding Road with more tracks and albums to follow I’m sure.
Facebook rethinks Messaging
Yesterday Mark Zuckerberg announced a new messaging system for Facebook that will be rolled out over the next couple of months. It basically adds IM, texting, and email into a single communication model. You will get a @facebook.com style email address as part of it but it is more of an informal communication model with no subject line like in email. Once I get an invite, I will play around with it and write more about it later.
iOS 4.2, where art thou?
There was much speculation last week that iOS 4.2 would arrive on Friday but then news broke of the iPad having WiFi issues with the developer gold master which a updated version was seeded to developers but this will probably push back the release date to hopefully sometime this week. Apple has officially stated 4.2 will be released sometime in November so they really have 2 weeks left to stay within their promise, but I think iPhone and iPad users will be using AirPlay on Thanksgiving Day myself.
New York Times to rank E-Book bestsellers
With more and more people buying their books on Kindle, Nook, iPad, and other electronic devices, the New York Times early next year will rank E-Book fiction and non-fiction bestsellers. This is long overdue considering the Kindle has been around for quite sometime. I myself use the Kindle app on my iPad and looking to get the new Kindle itself early next year for my reading in long sessions.
Next generation iPhone and iPad may support glove use
Hitachi is developing a new touch screen that recognizes insulator based touching (gloves or stylus), this technology could then be based in the iPhone 5 next summer. Not really a big problem down in these parts, but for people in the Midwest or Northeast, this might be welcome news during those harsh winter months.
This Week’s iPhone/iPod touch/iPad apps
Talking Tom Cat (FREE) - This cute basic app is really fun! My friend Dave alerted me to this app. Basically you can speak things to it and it will repeat what you say in a cute high pitched voice. You can also pet it, “stomp” on its paw or just slap it around a bit...yeah it’s weird and would offend PETA, but it is free.
Facebook (FREE) - I may have discussed the Facebook app before but it has been updated since. One of the new features is Places, similar to FourSquare you can check into places but Facebook has used its popularity to partner with business to have special offers at places. For example, my wife and I were in Nashville this past weekend and when we checked into Chipotle, there was a Post-it icon next to Chipotle in the list of locations. Upon clicking on Chipotle, it described the offer which was when you buy a burrito, burrito bowl, salad, or taco, you get a second entree free. Being that it was my wife and myself, it was perfect as we saved about $6 on the second entree. It was a weekend offer only but it looks like Chipotle will be offering it again this weekend. This is how location checkin will take off in the mainstream. FourSquare is nice but it is just a competition to become mayor of places.
Nightstand Central for iPad (FREE) - This is a handy app for anyone staying at a hotel or with family. Just load up the app before heading to bed and set your alarm if you want. It has several alarm options, my favorite is Church Bells. It will also display the current city or town you are in and the temperature outside. Another nice feature is sliding your finger up and down the display will brighten or dim the screen so it isn’t glaring as you try and sleep. There is also an iPhone version as well. But the iPad version gives you more of a standard alarm clock feel.
Windowshop by Amazon (FREE) - This is how browsing the Amazon Store should look like on an iPad! It is like browsing the Amazon Store on a desktop or laptop computer but fully customized to the iPad. Trust me, wants you try it, there is no other way to browse Amazon. I actually use it anytime I want to look at Amazon.
Well, that is going to do it for this edition of Tuesday Tech Talk, see you all next week for #70! Wow, I had no idea when I first started to write Triple T over a year ago, it would reach 70 posts. Just proves how much I love to blog and how much I love technology.
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