Hello everybody and welcome to another edition of AppleTalk Thursday. Last Friday the iPad 2 went on sale and quickly sold out as expected. Let’s see what is going on this week in the world of Apple!
Adobe Finds Backdoor for Flash into iOS Devices
Adobe has released a Flash to HTML5 conversion tool called Wallaby. What it does is convert Flash-based artwork and animation files (.fla) into HTML5 when viewed via mobile Safari on iOS devices. Some might say that Adobe found a way to get Flash into iOS devices but I see it as an admission by Adobe that HTML5 is clearly the standard going forward.
iOS In-App Purchasing Requiring Password Now
Last week I discussed new features in iOS 4.3, one of the minor changes is when you make an in-app purchase now, it will require your account password. This is great news for parents who’s children had apps with in-app purchasing that were ringing up mom and dad’s charge card (Smurfs).
More Evidence of Possible Bigger iPhone 5 Screen
A new image has leaked out showing an iPhone 5 design diagram that hints at a larger display screen for the next generation iPhone. Seems to match up with other speculation as well. We shall find out in June or July I guess.
How to get the iMovie iPad app on First Gen iPad
Last week Apple released an updated iMove iOS app. Of course the biggest update to it is the ability to run on an iPad or more specifically, an iPad 2. But never fear fellow iPad generation 1 owners, there actually is a way to run iMove on your iPad. So if your feeling daring, give it a try.
iPad Continues to Crush the Tablet Competition
This report came out prior to Friday’s iPad 2 release, but as you can tell the iPad commands a huge lead in tablet market-share and based on the numbers on iPad 2 sales, those numbers will grow even bigger. Another interesting bit of information comes from Piper Jaffray which says that according to their survey, about 70% of iPad buyers are new customers to the tablet device. One Wall Street analyst has gone so far to state that the iPad now has an “insurmountable lead”.
GarageBand for the iPad
With the new iPad 2 came a release of GarageBand for both the first and new iPad models. I played around with it myself and put together an awful hard rock tune. The folks at TUAW have a nice review on it as well. It is definitely for musicians and lacks the podcast feature found in the desktop version. But playing the drums is quite fun I must admit.
White iPhone coming in the Spring
With the released of a White iPad 2, many are wondering if this is the year we will finally see the long promised white iPhone 4. Well according to Phil Schiller via Twitter, it is indeed coming in the Spring and Phil goes on to state that “it is a beauty.”
Jon Bon Jovi hates iTunes
How many times have we heard this one, burned out rocker complaining how (fill in new technology) is killing music. We heard it before when the cassette and later the CD came out, we heard it from Garth Brooks who is too stubborn to put his music in any digital store, and now Jon Bon Jovi is saying that Steve Jobs is the antiChrist..Ok he didn’t say that, but he did say that Steve is personally responsible for killing music. Jon, go blow it out your *bleep*!!! Ok first off iTunes came about 2003 about 4 years after Napster. Maybe do your homework next time about digital downloads and how they came about Jersey boy!
Archive your email in Apple Mail
If you use Gmail then no doubt you are familiar with the feature to just archive your email messages and not have to worry about which folder they are in. Well, thanks to a little plugin, you can now do the same with your Apple Mail. Now me personally, I use Gmail via the web but if you use Mail then this may be a handy thing for you to try. MacWorld has an article of its own on how to better integrate your Gmail into Mail
Time Warner brings TV watching to the iPad...sort of
Time Warner has rolled out a new app for the iPad that allows you to watch a limited number of channels IF you are at home and using their internet. It will also allow you to change the channels on the TV as a remote and set DVR recordings which is similar to other TV provider services.
The Zune is Dead...Long Live the iPod!
Microsoft this week pulled the plug on the underperforming Zune media player and wannabe iPod. Although it does sound like they will maintain the Zune Marketplace for the Windows Phone 7 devices so if you have a Zune then the 2 of you will still be able to get your music that you have to pay a monthly subscription for to listen to...ownership beats rent people!
MacBundle Deal
Finally, check out this great bundle deal! Parallels itself would be worth $49 alone but there is over $300 in software here!
Well, that is going to do it for this week’s AppleTalk Thursday. Be back next week for more exciting Apple news!
Showing posts with label iOS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label iOS. Show all posts
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Friday, February 11, 2011
Googling Friday #20
Howdy folks and welcome to another edition of Googling Friday. I realize it has been a couple of weeks but family medical issues and a snow storm got in the way, thankfully both have resolved themselves. So lets get down to business!
Google to make changes to spur sales in Android Market
Google struggling with lacking sales compared to the iOS app store, are looking at ways to increase sales in the Android Market through methods such as in-app purchases something popular in the iOS apps already. Course this also re-enforces my belief that iPhone users on average have more of a disposable income compared to Android users. But we will see if these changes help.
Android 3.0 Honeycomb
Google recently previewed its Android 3.0 Honeycomb tablet OS. At first look it is nice looking but tends to be more of a tablet PC look than an iPad killer. It focuses on running widget apps across several screens something Mac OS X and Windows 7 can do already. It seems more of a competition to Netbooks instead of the iPad at first look.
Gmail brings Priority Inbox to the iPhone
Google’s web-based Gmail on the iPhone now supports Priority Inbox. As discussed earlier, Priority Inbox uses an algorithm to determine messages that are of more importance to a user and keeps them separate from other emails in a users inbox.
Google Translate to iPhone Review
In addition to Priority Inbox, Google has also released an app for the iPhone based on their popular Google Translate app. Very handy if you are visiting a foreign country and not that familiar with the language of the locals. It has a record button to say a phrase you want to translate which is really cool if you just want to avoid typing words while on the go. It works with about 50 languages but audio wise only works with about half of them. But it is a free app and can be found here.
Well, that is going to do it for this edition of Googling Friday. See you all next week for another edition.
Google to make changes to spur sales in Android Market
Google struggling with lacking sales compared to the iOS app store, are looking at ways to increase sales in the Android Market through methods such as in-app purchases something popular in the iOS apps already. Course this also re-enforces my belief that iPhone users on average have more of a disposable income compared to Android users. But we will see if these changes help.
Android 3.0 Honeycomb
Google recently previewed its Android 3.0 Honeycomb tablet OS. At first look it is nice looking but tends to be more of a tablet PC look than an iPad killer. It focuses on running widget apps across several screens something Mac OS X and Windows 7 can do already. It seems more of a competition to Netbooks instead of the iPad at first look.
Gmail brings Priority Inbox to the iPhone
Google’s web-based Gmail on the iPhone now supports Priority Inbox. As discussed earlier, Priority Inbox uses an algorithm to determine messages that are of more importance to a user and keeps them separate from other emails in a users inbox.
Google Translate to iPhone Review
In addition to Priority Inbox, Google has also released an app for the iPhone based on their popular Google Translate app. Very handy if you are visiting a foreign country and not that familiar with the language of the locals. It has a record button to say a phrase you want to translate which is really cool if you just want to avoid typing words while on the go. It works with about 50 languages but audio wise only works with about half of them. But it is a free app and can be found here.
Well, that is going to do it for this edition of Googling Friday. See you all next week for another edition.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Googling Friday #19
Howdy folks and welcome to another edition of Googling Friday! This is a blog for all things Google news related. Let’s see what is happening in their world this week!
Google brings mobile number porting to Google Voice
Google is now allowing you to port your mobile phone number to Google Voice. But it will cost $20 and may cost you an early termination fee with your cell phone carrier as it is the same as moving your cell phone number from say AT&T to Verizon for example. One user has stated it has been a nightmare for him with regards to his wireless carrier.
Google removes Flash-based app from Android Market
What? I thought only the “big bad Apple” did this? But apparently this is what Google did to an app called Kongregate which is based on a popular website featuring Adobe Flash based games. It was in the Android Market for less than 24 hours before being pulled by Google citing a violation of the Android Market Developer Distribution Agreement. Hmm, that sounds familiar, I guess Google can’t claim the moral high ground with regard to Apple on being an open marketplace after all.
Google unhappy with slow Android app sales
Despite healthy sales of Android devices, that has not resulted in app sales within the Android Market as opposed to the highly successful iTunes App Store for Apple’s iOS devices. Google is working on a plan to help that along.
Google brings cloud-based printing to iOS devices...sort of
Google announced this week that iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad users can now print to the cloud...providing they have a Windows-based computer...WHAT!...TechFAIL! Google does say they are working on Mac and Linux-based printing that will be “available soon”. Hey Google, how about when you announce something like this you have it ready for ALL clients? This is not 1999 for crying out loud!
Need a job? Google is hiring
Google announced on Wednesday that it is hiring for many positions not just at its Mountain View, CA HQ but also worldwide. So if you have a college degree particular in Computer Information Systems, then you might be in luck. For us folks that learn as we go without having that nice piece of paper from a university, no need to apply apparently...bigots!
Well, that is going to do it for this edition of Googling Friday. I apologize if I was a bit harsh on Google this week, but I do offer my opinion on these matters. No Google product review this week, but I will have one for you all next week. See you then!
Google brings mobile number porting to Google Voice
Google is now allowing you to port your mobile phone number to Google Voice. But it will cost $20 and may cost you an early termination fee with your cell phone carrier as it is the same as moving your cell phone number from say AT&T to Verizon for example. One user has stated it has been a nightmare for him with regards to his wireless carrier.
Google removes Flash-based app from Android Market
What? I thought only the “big bad Apple” did this? But apparently this is what Google did to an app called Kongregate which is based on a popular website featuring Adobe Flash based games. It was in the Android Market for less than 24 hours before being pulled by Google citing a violation of the Android Market Developer Distribution Agreement. Hmm, that sounds familiar, I guess Google can’t claim the moral high ground with regard to Apple on being an open marketplace after all.
Google unhappy with slow Android app sales
Despite healthy sales of Android devices, that has not resulted in app sales within the Android Market as opposed to the highly successful iTunes App Store for Apple’s iOS devices. Google is working on a plan to help that along.
Google brings cloud-based printing to iOS devices...sort of
Google announced this week that iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad users can now print to the cloud...providing they have a Windows-based computer...WHAT!...TechFAIL! Google does say they are working on Mac and Linux-based printing that will be “available soon”. Hey Google, how about when you announce something like this you have it ready for ALL clients? This is not 1999 for crying out loud!
Need a job? Google is hiring
Google announced on Wednesday that it is hiring for many positions not just at its Mountain View, CA HQ but also worldwide. So if you have a college degree particular in Computer Information Systems, then you might be in luck. For us folks that learn as we go without having that nice piece of paper from a university, no need to apply apparently...bigots!
Well, that is going to do it for this edition of Googling Friday. I apologize if I was a bit harsh on Google this week, but I do offer my opinion on these matters. No Google product review this week, but I will have one for you all next week. See you then!
Thursday, January 6, 2011
AppleTalk Thursday #3
Hello all and welcome to the first AppleTalk Thursday of 2011! Got a lot to get into over the last 2 weeks so let’s dive into it!
McAfee warns Apple users of viruses in 2009...2010...2011
Yeah, we have heard this before, a company who makes money by selling antivirus software warns of how the Mac will be targeted for viruses, yet the threat never materializes as compared to a company in the Pacific Northwest that makes an inferior OS. I have never bought an antivirus program for my Mac and don’t intend to start now. Go scare someone else McAfee!
iPhone maintains lead over Android and BlackBerry in the US
Despite what Apple haters and Andorra fanboys say, the iPhone is still king in America over the Android and BlackBerry smart phones. Yeah all that talk about the iPhone 4 antenna issue was overrated too. A recent story said it was the biggest tech disaster of 2010, I disagree...that belongs to GoogleTV IMHO.
Mac and iOS alternatives to Delicious
Concerned about Yahoo’s long term prospects? Yeah, you are not alone. MacWorld recently wrote a great article about alternatives to Yahoo’s Delicious service. I really don’t use Delicious, but I know many of you might so it might be worth checking out.
Skype brings video chat to iOS devices on WiFi AND 3G
To quote VP Biden, this is a pretty big @#$% deal! Skype has a lot of users and now if you are out and about with your iPhone, you can now Skype video chat with friends on other iOS devices or desktop clients of Skype and you can do it on 3G as well. Which begs the question, when will FaceTime support 3G? Yahoo also supports video over 3G and WiFi as well with its Messenger app. But Skype is a bigger deal as it is based on audio and video communication. If you have an iPod touch and in a WiFi zone you can also join the party, The iPad can view video but until it has a camera (which is rumored in the iPad 2), then you can only watch one way on it.
Verizon iPhone by Valentine’s Day
Yes, another rumor regarding the iPhone for Verizon, but again it is coming from a reliable source. The timeline makes sense too and this will only help Apple maintain the iPhone lead over the Android and BB throughout 2011 in the US.
Well, that is going to do it for this edition of AppleTalk Thursday. The rumored Mac App Store may arrive in time for next week so I will have a review about it. See you next week!
McAfee warns Apple users of viruses in 2009...2010...2011
Yeah, we have heard this before, a company who makes money by selling antivirus software warns of how the Mac will be targeted for viruses, yet the threat never materializes as compared to a company in the Pacific Northwest that makes an inferior OS. I have never bought an antivirus program for my Mac and don’t intend to start now. Go scare someone else McAfee!
iPhone maintains lead over Android and BlackBerry in the US
Despite what Apple haters and Andorra fanboys say, the iPhone is still king in America over the Android and BlackBerry smart phones. Yeah all that talk about the iPhone 4 antenna issue was overrated too. A recent story said it was the biggest tech disaster of 2010, I disagree...that belongs to GoogleTV IMHO.
Mac and iOS alternatives to Delicious
Concerned about Yahoo’s long term prospects? Yeah, you are not alone. MacWorld recently wrote a great article about alternatives to Yahoo’s Delicious service. I really don’t use Delicious, but I know many of you might so it might be worth checking out.
Skype brings video chat to iOS devices on WiFi AND 3G
To quote VP Biden, this is a pretty big @#$% deal! Skype has a lot of users and now if you are out and about with your iPhone, you can now Skype video chat with friends on other iOS devices or desktop clients of Skype and you can do it on 3G as well. Which begs the question, when will FaceTime support 3G? Yahoo also supports video over 3G and WiFi as well with its Messenger app. But Skype is a bigger deal as it is based on audio and video communication. If you have an iPod touch and in a WiFi zone you can also join the party, The iPad can view video but until it has a camera (which is rumored in the iPad 2), then you can only watch one way on it.
Verizon iPhone by Valentine’s Day
Yes, another rumor regarding the iPhone for Verizon, but again it is coming from a reliable source. The timeline makes sense too and this will only help Apple maintain the iPhone lead over the Android and BB throughout 2011 in the US.
Well, that is going to do it for this edition of AppleTalk Thursday. The rumored Mac App Store may arrive in time for next week so I will have a review about it. See you next week!
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Tuesday Tech Talk #71
Hello folks and welcome to a late edition of Tuesday Tech Talk. A lot of news since last week so let’s dive right in.
iOS 4.2 has Arrived!
The big news for iPad users is iOS 4.2 is here! What that means is if you have an iPad, you can now arrange apps into folders saving you lots of screens to slide through to find your favorite app (I reduced my screen from 6 to 1) and you can also multitask on it as well. It is awesome to run Pandora in the background on the iPad now especially when you consider the speakers on the iPad are much better than the speaker on the iPhone (on my 3GS anyway). In addition the update is also for the iPhone and iPod touch, it allows all of the devices to perform AirPlay and AirPrint operations. With AirPlay, if you start to watch say a YouTube or iTunes video on your iOS device, you can choose to switch it over to your AppleTV device. It works pretty awesome as I like to browse YouTube videos on my iPad and play them to my TV. Also it works for music as well. With AirPrint, if you have a supported printer (currently 11 HP printers with ePrint), then you can print documents and photos from your iOS devices. However, if you don’t have one of those 11 printers, there is a sweet workaround from Printopia. For $9.95, it will allow you to print to any printer that is shared on a local WiFI network. They also offer a demo version so you can try before you buy, but it is worth the $10! It also allows you to send files right to your DropBox or directly to the desktop of your computer, so it does more than just print.
Netflix offers streaming only plan
On the same day as the iOS 4.2 release, Netflix revealed a $7.99 streaming only plan for US customers. They also raised prices on the disc plans as well, but with more and more content available via streaming, we decided to drop our plan down from 3 discs to 2 and save about $3 a month.
Stuck at JFK on Delta, play with an iPad
Some eateries at the Delta terminal at JFK airport now have iPad’s at booths where you can order food and drinks from it and use it for general browsing. The good news is you don’t have to order food to use the devices. Course with 10 million iPad’s sold now, chances are you probably already have one.
Microsoft stores not matching Apple Store success
To the surprise of well nobody, Microsoft’s retail stores are not coming close to matching the success of Apple retail locations. Could it be that people know a rip off when they see one and will visit the genuine article? I mean what will Microsoft offer at its stores that is Microsoft made beyond Windows and Office? The computers they sell are third party brands you can find at Best Buy.
Windows Phone 7 a Flop?
Developers are quite concerned about building apps for a phone that despite much publicity, has not had the sales impact it had hoped for. Quite frankly, they are fighting an uphill battle, you have the iOS, Android, and Blackberry fighting for market share and that is not including HP’s PalmOS, all fighting for market share, it is hard to carve out your own with that much competition. Not to mention the interface on the phone is not appealing at all as compared to an iPhone or Android device. Only time will tell but as of right now, they are slow out of the gate.
Well, that is going to do it for this week’s Tuesday Tech Talk. See you all next week back on the normal time frame.
iOS 4.2 has Arrived!
The big news for iPad users is iOS 4.2 is here! What that means is if you have an iPad, you can now arrange apps into folders saving you lots of screens to slide through to find your favorite app (I reduced my screen from 6 to 1) and you can also multitask on it as well. It is awesome to run Pandora in the background on the iPad now especially when you consider the speakers on the iPad are much better than the speaker on the iPhone (on my 3GS anyway). In addition the update is also for the iPhone and iPod touch, it allows all of the devices to perform AirPlay and AirPrint operations. With AirPlay, if you start to watch say a YouTube or iTunes video on your iOS device, you can choose to switch it over to your AppleTV device. It works pretty awesome as I like to browse YouTube videos on my iPad and play them to my TV. Also it works for music as well. With AirPrint, if you have a supported printer (currently 11 HP printers with ePrint), then you can print documents and photos from your iOS devices. However, if you don’t have one of those 11 printers, there is a sweet workaround from Printopia. For $9.95, it will allow you to print to any printer that is shared on a local WiFI network. They also offer a demo version so you can try before you buy, but it is worth the $10! It also allows you to send files right to your DropBox or directly to the desktop of your computer, so it does more than just print.
Netflix offers streaming only plan
On the same day as the iOS 4.2 release, Netflix revealed a $7.99 streaming only plan for US customers. They also raised prices on the disc plans as well, but with more and more content available via streaming, we decided to drop our plan down from 3 discs to 2 and save about $3 a month.
Stuck at JFK on Delta, play with an iPad
Some eateries at the Delta terminal at JFK airport now have iPad’s at booths where you can order food and drinks from it and use it for general browsing. The good news is you don’t have to order food to use the devices. Course with 10 million iPad’s sold now, chances are you probably already have one.
Microsoft stores not matching Apple Store success
To the surprise of well nobody, Microsoft’s retail stores are not coming close to matching the success of Apple retail locations. Could it be that people know a rip off when they see one and will visit the genuine article? I mean what will Microsoft offer at its stores that is Microsoft made beyond Windows and Office? The computers they sell are third party brands you can find at Best Buy.
Windows Phone 7 a Flop?
Developers are quite concerned about building apps for a phone that despite much publicity, has not had the sales impact it had hoped for. Quite frankly, they are fighting an uphill battle, you have the iOS, Android, and Blackberry fighting for market share and that is not including HP’s PalmOS, all fighting for market share, it is hard to carve out your own with that much competition. Not to mention the interface on the phone is not appealing at all as compared to an iPhone or Android device. Only time will tell but as of right now, they are slow out of the gate.
Well, that is going to do it for this week’s Tuesday Tech Talk. See you all next week back on the normal time frame.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)