iPhone
iPhone OS 3.0 = good news, good news
04/April/2009 17:05 Filed in: Technology
Well, a week or so ago Apple had their special event
(sans-steve) to announce iPhone 3.0 OS. The good news
is that this software release bring the iPhone up to
speed, where it should have been on launch day!
Yes, some of these features like copy/paste, MMS, and push notifications have been asked for by the community, but others like GPS, peer-to-peer connectivity landscape keyboard and voice-memos seem like a "d'uh" to me.
So the good news is that we are now where we should have been to begin with (with the exception of full bluetooth, but anyway). Some people may bemoan that fact that as a platform the iPhone is behind other platforms. I personally don't think so - and that's the other set of good news.
Windows Mobile is aging. It's going to be a while before Windows Mobile 7 comes out to blow us all away.
WebOS and the Palm Pre are still being developed, nothing is on the market yet.
Blackberry is trying to figure out where it's going on the consumer front. Applications aren't completely there, and the Storm is a bit of a flop
The Symbian foundation has yet to launch their OS, and Nokia is trying to figure out S60 Touch.
Microsoft with Sidekick...well, I am not sure where that's going (I am wishing for some interesting developments though).
So that leaves us with a level playing field. Right now it's a mad dash to the next big thing with integrated mobile chat and unified messengers, and integration with the could (see the iphone blog link).
Keep your eyes peeled, this should be an interesting race to watch.
For more commentary, if you haven't seen it yet:
TUAW: http://www.tuaw.com/2009/03/17/iphone-3-0-feature-roundup/
The iPhone Blog: http://www.theiphoneblog.com/2009/03/17/iphone-os-30/
Yes, some of these features like copy/paste, MMS, and push notifications have been asked for by the community, but others like GPS, peer-to-peer connectivity landscape keyboard and voice-memos seem like a "d'uh" to me.
So the good news is that we are now where we should have been to begin with (with the exception of full bluetooth, but anyway). Some people may bemoan that fact that as a platform the iPhone is behind other platforms. I personally don't think so - and that's the other set of good news.
Windows Mobile is aging. It's going to be a while before Windows Mobile 7 comes out to blow us all away.
WebOS and the Palm Pre are still being developed, nothing is on the market yet.
Blackberry is trying to figure out where it's going on the consumer front. Applications aren't completely there, and the Storm is a bit of a flop
The Symbian foundation has yet to launch their OS, and Nokia is trying to figure out S60 Touch.
Microsoft with Sidekick...well, I am not sure where that's going (I am wishing for some interesting developments though).
So that leaves us with a level playing field. Right now it's a mad dash to the next big thing with integrated mobile chat and unified messengers, and integration with the could (see the iphone blog link).
Keep your eyes peeled, this should be an interesting race to watch.
For more commentary, if you haven't seen it yet:
TUAW: http://www.tuaw.com/2009/03/17/iphone-3-0-feature-roundup/
The iPhone Blog: http://www.theiphoneblog.com/2009/03/17/iphone-os-30/
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Please stop it with the 'FREE' apps!
16/March/2009 04:23 Filed in: Technology
Apple claims that there are a gazzilion apps on the app store. OK smartypants, how many of those apps are "FREE" or "LITE"...in other words DEMO versions of full apps? How many of them are useless fart apps?
When I see "FREE" next to an app, I ASSUME that it is free, as in "a free, fully featured app" not "a free demo".
I would seriously like to see *real* free apps, not just a boatload of //free demos//
Thus ends my rant for today
The 3G iPhone
02/March/2009 06:47 Filed in: Technology
The iPhone Pro
12/January/2009 15:04 Filed in: Technology
I saw the following mockup recently on a number of
websites.
Of course it's a fake, but it's rather interesting.
What I like about it is the front facing camera for video conferencing, the keyboard and joypad buttons, and what looks to be a higher resolution camera with good optiocs on in.
Would I buy one of these? Well, if I didn't have to buy a data plan, sure!
As I've said before I agree that the iphone needs some game controls (a pad and buttons) because the touch screen + tilt control aren't always convenient (anyone try playing Cube?)
Of course it's a fake, but it's rather interesting.
What I like about it is the front facing camera for video conferencing, the keyboard and joypad buttons, and what looks to be a higher resolution camera with good optiocs on in.
Would I buy one of these? Well, if I didn't have to buy a data plan, sure!
As I've said before I agree that the iphone needs some game controls (a pad and buttons) because the touch screen + tilt control aren't always convenient (anyone try playing Cube?)
System 6.0.8 on an iPhone
29/December/2008 12:13 Filed in: Technology
I gotta say, this is pretty cool (although
possibly useless).
The first MacOS that I used, on an iPhone is pretty cool.
On the the desktop I can play games of yesteryear.
On the iPhone...I don't know...
This feat is compliments of vMac Mini
The first MacOS that I used, on an iPhone is pretty cool.
On the the desktop I can play games of yesteryear.
On the iPhone...I don't know...
This feat is compliments of vMac Mini
Linux on the iPhone!
10/December/2008 07:23 Filed in: Technology
Well Linux is now on the iPhone (woohoo!)
I am not a crazy linux fan, but I think this is cool!
Now I wonder how long it will take to port android to the iPhone
iPhone Linux Demonstration Video from planetbeing on Vimeo.
I am not a crazy linux fan, but I think this is cool!
Now I wonder how long it will take to port android to the iPhone
iPhone Linux Demonstration Video from planetbeing on Vimeo.
Still waiting for that Greek keyboard
04/December/2008 05:40 Filed in: Humor
I found this graphic on wewantapplegreece.com, and
it's quite funny (but I am sure it's all Greek
to you)
The iPhone was released in Greece last August, but there is neither an OS localization available nor a Greek keyboard for people to input text in Greek. This image makes fun of that.
The Mac asks What's going on here guys?
The PC responds: This guy had the bright idea of buying an iPhone 3G because he saw somewhere that "really soon" there will be an update of the firmware to enable support of the Greek character set, and we've been waiting for three months now...
I am warming up to the iPhone, but no Greek means no purchase for me
The iPhone was released in Greece last August, but there is neither an OS localization available nor a Greek keyboard for people to input text in Greek. This image makes fun of that.
The Mac asks What's going on here guys?
The PC responds: This guy had the bright idea of buying an iPhone 3G because he saw somewhere that "really soon" there will be an update of the firmware to enable support of the Greek character set, and we've been waiting for three months now...
I am warming up to the iPhone, but no Greek means no purchase for me
AppStore Rejection Timeline
10/November/2008 06:46 Filed in: Technology
What if the AppStore was a reality on the Mac?
30/October/2008 06:41 Filed in: Technology
I've been reading recently of all the apps that are getting the axe from apple, and I've been reading all the commentaries on sites like Engadget and I can say with certainty that this is yet one more reason why I stay away from the iPhone.
Many defenders of Apple's actions either use incorrect logic or write off apple's action as something normal for a phone. People who use incorrect facts claim that it's apple's prerogative to protect their source of revenue because they created xyz - in the case of the podcaster application it was that Apple created and hosts all podcasts. What? really? Is this what you believe? Apple neither created podcasts, nor hosts them!
In the case of 'the iPhone is just a phone and you can't run whatever you like on your Moto RAZR"...well, no. Apple is positing the iPhone as a smartphone for the rest of us. Smartphones, no matter what brand - symbian, palm, windows, blackberry, have a wealth of apps and their distribution is not controlled by the maker of the device.
I can get a lot of apps for my Nokia N80, just as I could for my HTC Blue Angel. Neither Nokia nor Microsoft could tell me what to run on my device, and they could not tell their devs what not to make for those phones.
Now what IF apple took the same stance with the MacOS as they do with the iPhone? Well - quite simple, we would all pretty much give Apple the finger and tell them off. Application of value would be few and far between.
We would not have great applications like Rapidweaver because those would "replicate" the features of iWeb.
We would not have MailPlane because those features "replicate" the features of Mail.
We would not have Textmate because textmate "replicates" the features of SimpleText.
We would not have Transmission because that would be a bandwidth hog.
We wouldn't have open source apps, or apps ported over from Linux because those would violate the NDA agreements.
In other words, what we love about the Mac would cease to exist.
It's time for Apple to stop stifling the iPhone and the iPod Touch and it's time to let the Mac community do what they do best - support the platform!
MMS is so much more!
22/October/2008 00:38 Filed in: Technology
One of my problems with the iPhone is that it lacks
an MMS client. Now I don't send
MMS messages often, and I don't receive them
often. Having unlimited data on the iPhone would
encourage me to send out more MMS messages.
Sadly, the iPhone does not support this feature.
Many fanboys will says that MMS is antiquated, we not have email so we can send photos over email - hooray for email! What these fanboys are failing to see if that MMS is so much more than just a simple photo sending application. The applications of email and MMS are different and are aimed at a different demographic.
To claim that you can do with email what you do with MMS, and you can do it better is to claim that can do with a mallet what you can do with a jewel's hammer. I suppose you can, but the end result is not the same.
An email is built for text, and attachments come second. There is no presentation layer with email, and there is no streamlining of the data for mobile phones. If you send a 5MP photo over email, it's going to be 5MP - overkill. In addition, there is no notification of whether you have email unless you constantly poll your email server, and even today not all phones come with email clients.
MMS on the other hand is available on all handsets, from the cheap handset you get for free when you sign a contract, to the most advanced smartphones (with the exception of the iPhone of course), so there is a layer of compatibility there.
MMS messages allow you to create slides with content, almost like powerpoint, but as a message platform. The MMS application takes that huge picture you took and scales it down for you to make sending and receiving faster and easier. When you send a picture message (MMS) to someone, the point is not that you want them to have the photo, you just want to show them something.
Finally, with MMS messages you get a notification that you have a new MMS, over the network. You don't have to poll a server to do this - it's just pushed to you.
I wish the fanboys would quiet down already about the superiority of email because they obviously don't get the difference.
Many fanboys will says that MMS is antiquated, we not have email so we can send photos over email - hooray for email! What these fanboys are failing to see if that MMS is so much more than just a simple photo sending application. The applications of email and MMS are different and are aimed at a different demographic.
To claim that you can do with email what you do with MMS, and you can do it better is to claim that can do with a mallet what you can do with a jewel's hammer. I suppose you can, but the end result is not the same.
An email is built for text, and attachments come second. There is no presentation layer with email, and there is no streamlining of the data for mobile phones. If you send a 5MP photo over email, it's going to be 5MP - overkill. In addition, there is no notification of whether you have email unless you constantly poll your email server, and even today not all phones come with email clients.
MMS on the other hand is available on all handsets, from the cheap handset you get for free when you sign a contract, to the most advanced smartphones (with the exception of the iPhone of course), so there is a layer of compatibility there.
MMS messages allow you to create slides with content, almost like powerpoint, but as a message platform. The MMS application takes that huge picture you took and scales it down for you to make sending and receiving faster and easier. When you send a picture message (MMS) to someone, the point is not that you want them to have the photo, you just want to show them something.
Finally, with MMS messages you get a notification that you have a new MMS, over the network. You don't have to poll a server to do this - it's just pushed to you.
I wish the fanboys would quiet down already about the superiority of email because they obviously don't get the difference.
Really bummed about the new iPhone…
14/July/2008 08:31 Filed in: Technology
I was recently reading some commentary about the new
iPhone. Some users (or perspective buyers) were
commenting that they were really bummed about the new
iPhone. Now granted, this is probably a figure of
speech and it doesn’t really reflect their mental
state, but when I read things like these I have to
take a step back.
There are people out there that are genuinely bummed about ford not having X in their cars, or Dell not throwing in Y in their laptops, or Apple not including features A, B, C in the new iPhone, but my response to them is “get a grip!” Seriously! Think about it, it’s just a consumer product! If it doesn’t do what you want it to do, then don’t buy it! Wait for version x.x when they will incorporate what you want it to have!
If you want to be bummed about the financial crisis, food shortage, health crises around the world, the by all means be bummed, but don’t be bummed about something as insignificant as “no MMS on the iPhone!” Jeez!
There are people out there that are genuinely bummed about ford not having X in their cars, or Dell not throwing in Y in their laptops, or Apple not including features A, B, C in the new iPhone, but my response to them is “get a grip!” Seriously! Think about it, it’s just a consumer product! If it doesn’t do what you want it to do, then don’t buy it! Wait for version x.x when they will incorporate what you want it to have!
If you want to be bummed about the financial crisis, food shortage, health crises around the world, the by all means be bummed, but don’t be bummed about something as insignificant as “no MMS on the iPhone!” Jeez!
Are you getting an iPhone?
05/July/2008 08:28 Filed in: Technology
Many of my friends know I am a technology geek, and
of course their first question to me, after Jobs’
announcement of the iPhone 3G is to ask me whether or
not I am getting a 3G iPhone. The answer at this
point is ‘no’ and this perplexes very many people who
consider me an Apple fanboy. There is quite a logical
reason to my denial of the “jesusphone 2.0” and it
has (almost) nothing to do with features.
Does the lack of a front facing camera, lack of copy/paste and lack of MMS bug me? Well to some extent yes, but not enough to deter me from buying the phone. What deters me is cold hard pragmatism.
My iPod (20GB click wheel) still works! I’ve never had any problems with it, never replaced the battery, it’s all original issue, it works, and I am still not using the entire capacity (I’ve got 6GB available). My Nokia N80 still works and it has a kickass camera on it, when compared to the iPhone’s camera anyway. I do take the train to work, but I still have schoolwork to do, so I read on the train, I don’t need the iPhone to keep me company. On top of that at&t’s $30/month data plans are too expensive for my tastes. I know that business folk pay that much for their windows mobile, palmos and blackberry plans, but they can also write it off, or their company pays for the device. $20/month for data+ SMS with the iPhone 1.0 was something that would entice me to get the iPhone and the data package but $30 and no SMS, gimme a break.
So when would I buy an iPhone? Probably around the third generation of iPhone when they add more features, if my current phone is busted, if my iPod is busted, if I have no other readings to do while commuting and if I am still commuting (although with gasoline going up up up, this is probably a given)
Does the lack of a front facing camera, lack of copy/paste and lack of MMS bug me? Well to some extent yes, but not enough to deter me from buying the phone. What deters me is cold hard pragmatism.
My iPod (20GB click wheel) still works! I’ve never had any problems with it, never replaced the battery, it’s all original issue, it works, and I am still not using the entire capacity (I’ve got 6GB available). My Nokia N80 still works and it has a kickass camera on it, when compared to the iPhone’s camera anyway. I do take the train to work, but I still have schoolwork to do, so I read on the train, I don’t need the iPhone to keep me company. On top of that at&t’s $30/month data plans are too expensive for my tastes. I know that business folk pay that much for their windows mobile, palmos and blackberry plans, but they can also write it off, or their company pays for the device. $20/month for data+ SMS with the iPhone 1.0 was something that would entice me to get the iPhone and the data package but $30 and no SMS, gimme a break.
So when would I buy an iPhone? Probably around the third generation of iPhone when they add more features, if my current phone is busted, if my iPod is busted, if I have no other readings to do while commuting and if I am still commuting (although with gasoline going up up up, this is probably a given)
Mylo 3 should be a phone
28/May/2008 20:10 Filed in: Technology
Just for kicks I was looking at the Sony Mylo 2 the
other day.
Don't ask me why, I don't know why. I was just looking.
Anyway, I was looking at the specs, and at the video demonstration bellow, and the device did impress me, even though it still lacks a lot of features.
I started thinking that this device might make a great SonyEricsson Phone. The OS seems to be refined at every iteration, it had widgets, it has an RSS reader and podcatcher (which need improvement), and it has skype (therefore it has a microphone and a speaker). This device would make a great phone, and a good competitor to the Danger Sidekick, the Helio Ocean and possibly to the Nokia N8xx and iPhone devices.
If you added Quadband HSPA, Quadband EDGE, opened up development so that people could write apps (such as games) for the device, included a good PIm suite, and tidied up the existing collection of apps that the device comes with. It could make SonyEricsson money.
Don't ask me why, I don't know why. I was just looking.
Anyway, I was looking at the specs, and at the video demonstration bellow, and the device did impress me, even though it still lacks a lot of features.
I started thinking that this device might make a great SonyEricsson Phone. The OS seems to be refined at every iteration, it had widgets, it has an RSS reader and podcatcher (which need improvement), and it has skype (therefore it has a microphone and a speaker). This device would make a great phone, and a good competitor to the Danger Sidekick, the Helio Ocean and possibly to the Nokia N8xx and iPhone devices.
If you added Quadband HSPA, Quadband EDGE, opened up development so that people could write apps (such as games) for the device, included a good PIm suite, and tidied up the existing collection of apps that the device comes with. It could make SonyEricsson money.
iWish
08/May/2008 20:54 Filed in: Technology
The best of the Sidekick, iPhone, Sony Cybershot, and
PSP, all rolled into one!
I don’t quite know how I would call someone with this big boy – maybe a hand’s free device like those old Tungsten W’s from Palm, but I think it is a pretty cool concept. It doesn’t really fit the pocketability test though…
Now if they could run OpenEinstein on that puppy…
I don’t quite know how I would call someone with this big boy – maybe a hand’s free device like those old Tungsten W’s from Palm, but I think it is a pretty cool concept. It doesn’t really fit the pocketability test though…
Now if they could run OpenEinstein on that puppy…
New iPhone ads...something left to be desired
20/October/2007 10:27 Filed in: Technology
Lately Apple has been showing ads on television for
their iPhone product. I really like the iPhone, even
though I don't own one, but I really dislike the ads.
The ads are reminiscent of the 'switcher' ads that
ran in the 90's, with one major difference. The
switcher ads were funny, and in some cases the
stories they told were real stories of frustration
with using Windows (even if they were exaggerated a
tiny bit sometimes).
The iPhone ads lack that wit that the switcher ads have, and sometimes, dare I say, they are even dumb!
Take this for example: you see a guy showcasing his iPhone and he says that it replaced four devices. Before he used to carry his iPod, a digital camera, a cell phone, and a communications device to send email and text messages. The iPhone took care of all of that! My first reaction to this was 'huh?' what are you smoking? OK you can indeed have your iPod and your phone in one device, this is a valid observation, however
1. If you REALLY want a good camera, you won't settle for what is available on the iPhone.
2. Most cell phones already have a 1.3 or 2.0 megapixel camera on them, so if you don't really care about the photo quality (as is evident from point 1), why carry a camera?
3. You carried a 'communicator' device with you for email and text messages? Why? Why not get a blackberry, windows mobile, palmOS or symbian device that has a built in keyboard, and camera and is also a phone? Where have you been living?
The premise of the switcher ads in the 90's was that the Macintosh 'just worked', it didn't eat your homework, it didn't give you cryptic error messages, you didn't have to worry about dip switches. While the iPhone is revolutionary in it's own terms, there are cell phones out there that do what the iPhone did before the iPhone did it, and they worked!
The one ad that is an exception to my disapproval of this new batch of iPhone ads is the 'visual voicemail' one. This one I really like.
This ad is the one I dislike the most:
The iPhone ads lack that wit that the switcher ads have, and sometimes, dare I say, they are even dumb!
Take this for example: you see a guy showcasing his iPhone and he says that it replaced four devices. Before he used to carry his iPod, a digital camera, a cell phone, and a communications device to send email and text messages. The iPhone took care of all of that! My first reaction to this was 'huh?' what are you smoking? OK you can indeed have your iPod and your phone in one device, this is a valid observation, however
1. If you REALLY want a good camera, you won't settle for what is available on the iPhone.
2. Most cell phones already have a 1.3 or 2.0 megapixel camera on them, so if you don't really care about the photo quality (as is evident from point 1), why carry a camera?
3. You carried a 'communicator' device with you for email and text messages? Why? Why not get a blackberry, windows mobile, palmOS or symbian device that has a built in keyboard, and camera and is also a phone? Where have you been living?
The premise of the switcher ads in the 90's was that the Macintosh 'just worked', it didn't eat your homework, it didn't give you cryptic error messages, you didn't have to worry about dip switches. While the iPhone is revolutionary in it's own terms, there are cell phones out there that do what the iPhone did before the iPhone did it, and they worked!
The one ad that is an exception to my disapproval of this new batch of iPhone ads is the 'visual voicemail' one. This one I really like.
This ad is the one I dislike the most: