Tag iPad

Entries 12 Total Description

The hottest new device in the marketplace. iPads have shaken up the whole computer industry and spawned countless imitators and competitors, some good, others not so much.

Apple iPad Mini? Why the heck not?

Jul 6, ’12 5:36 PM

Google’s recent announcement around Google’s new Nexus 7 Android tablet may have been the motivation forcing Apple to take their arms from behind their back  to respond to Google’s direct challenge. Now we have much greater faith that the rumored ‘iPad Mini’ a smaller version of Apple’s enormously popular iPad might indeed get made.

If an an iPad Mini comes our way just how might it stack up? Steve Jobs expressed his personal disinterest in a 7″ iPad, and ruled out speculation that Apple was working on one or would realease one. Apple’s new CEO Tim Cook in the wake of Mr. Jobs paasing now seems to have modified Apple’s stance saying that “things have changed”. That probably due to the appearance of the Nexus 7.

Google’s Nexus 7 has staked out a range of new vertical market opportunities as well launch an assault zeroing in on Apple’s weakest point, price. The Nexus 7 tablet is no shabby pretender it is a powerful little device priced at $199 for a quad-core 7-inch tablet with 1 GB of RAM, 8 GB of storage, and Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean). Reviewers claim it to be the best 7-inch tablet available.

An iPad Mini if it actually happens would go up against the Nexus 7, the second gen. Kindle Fire models, Samsung’s Galaxy Note and what we can supposed will be a whole host of many new tablets from major manufactuers like Microsoft, Dell, HP, LG, Lenovo and others.

The latest rumors suggest that the iPad Mini will have a touchscreen between 7 and 8 inches diagonally. Very little else is being revealed about the hardware front except that the iPad Mini would not feature the same Retina Display that differentiates the new iPad from everything else in the tablet marketplace.

Important questions also remain: Price; hardware configuration.

The battle ground is being marked out for a blood-in-the-streets battle between these two tech giants and their highly desired products.

Comments Off

New iPad “Giveaway” by TechCrunch

Mar 16, ’12 7:02 PM

TechCrunch Giveaway: A New iPad! #TechCrunch | TechCrunch.

A new iPad giveaway opportunity is in front of you if you find it worth jumping through the requisite hoops for the chance and they deliver on their promise. It might be hard for their staff to do if they don’t have one of their own.

Visit the TechCrunch site for guidelines and details.

Comments Off

Recording Studio in your Pocket

Nov 22, ’11 2:16 PM
Tascam im2 on iphone

Tascam im2 on iphone

TASCAM’s iM2 turns your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch into a high-quality stereo recorder. It is in its essence a pair of condenser microphones, delivering the same high quality as TASCAM’s best-selling DR-series recorders. iM2 plugs directly into the dock connector of Apple devices.

The microphones are adjustable over 180 degrees for the best sound placement. The uni-directional elements are arranged in an AB pattern for detailed stereo imaging while capturing the ambience of your room.

Best of all the iM2 contains its own microphone preamp and analog-to-digital converter for low noise and great audio quality.

Other mics generally use the built-in iPhone preamp, whereas the iM2 can handle up to 125dB sound levels to capture the loudest concerts and instruments without distortion.

Full-featured recording

What makes it a studio? The iM2 has a stereo limiter to control sudden loud sounds and audio. Microphone levels are also adjustable from a knob on the side, so it it quick and easy to adjust.

iM2 is powered through the dock connector so thankfully no battery is required. A USB input is provided to charge your Apple iOS device for overly long recordings, either through a computer or TASCAM’s PS-P515U power adapter.

The iM2 works great with just about any recording app, including a built-in video camera. You can record stereo sound while you capturing hi-def video on your iPhone.

iM2 is a must for all levels of musicians who want to capture their world on iPhone or iPad without sacrifices in quality.

I have been a professional radio announcer, musician, voice-over talent, and studio engineer for many years and in my carefully considered opinion the iM2 is just about the perfect recording accessory for musicians at all skill levels coming in at a nice affordable price. Plus, you just known we all love our iPods, iPhones and iPads, not to mention Apple’s Garage Band and many of the great available apps.

Comments Off

Apple’s Infrastructure Strategy

Oct 16, ’11 11:56 AM

Apple has in essense quietly built a system of infrastructures and support systems around all of the devices and products it produces.

This to me is exactly what I think Apple’s competitors have failed to either notice or respond to. These are also important and essential elements that engender the tremendous customer loyalty and confidence Apple now enjoys, and why other companies have such a hard time going up against Apple.

It is like a football team with the best training facilities, coaches, stadium and fans. They win games they should on paper lose and pack their stadium year after year with adoring fans that spring for season tickets. The city wins wins, as do the players and their agents, area vendors and businesses all profit as a result.

Examples:

  1. ITunes is the Infrastructure for iPods, iPhones, iPads and media on Macs.
  2. iCloud is set to become the infrastructure for itunes and those same devices.
  3. Apple stores are the retail infrastucture and consumer interface supporting everything Apple.
  4. Apple’s Developer network is the infrastructure supporting the many developers building great apps and software solutions.
  5. MacWorld though not an Apple production also supported the juncture of customers, developers and media.

Its all interconnected and self-supporting. Competitors can’t easily rally to pick off and compete against one disconnected part. It is almost as if Apple has circled their wagons and geared up for what is to come.

 

 

Comments Off

First Day iOS 5 Update Issues

Oct 13, ’11 9:44 AM

Some users seem to be seeing problems in upgrading to the latest version of  Apple’s iOS.

Some users are reporting issues with downloading the new version of the iOS software. Some are getting a “3200 error”, including a message stating that an “internal error” has occurred, and the upgrade process was canceled.

Other users see related problems after successfully downloading the update, iTunes brings an error message as the file was extracted and is downloading slowly.

Again, this is another warning sign to would-be first-day upgraders to be patient and tread carefully before diving in. This was the lesson I learned by moving to OS X Lion on the first day and experiencing over 250 crashes and freezes that I had to do a hard restart from. This is getting to be a statement for better testing prior to release.

On the issue of iOS 5 below are some direct links you can use to make it happen hopefully successfully.

Hold Alt (Windows) /Option (Mac) and click the “restore” button in the iTunes iOS device summary screen, then point to the file matching your device. This will wipe your iOS device back to factory settings, so be sure to back up your device in iTunes first.

Comments Off

iOS 5 is Alive and Ready to Download

Oct 12, ’11 9:09 AM

iOS 5

Even though you won’t have a brand spanking new iPhone 5 to show off as soon as you might have expected, Apple’s next level mobile OS, iOS 5 is now live and the download is available for eligible iPhones, iPads and iPad Touches.

This might be a very good time to do some prep:

Apple has just released their latest version of their mobile OS, iOS 5 and it is now available via download for the iPhone, iPod Touch and the iPad, and it is said to bring over 200 new features to those Apple iOS devices.

iOS 5 is compatible with the iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 and the new iPhone 4S which will go on sale this Friday, plus the 3rd and 4th generation iPod Touch and the original iPad plus the new iPad 2.

iOS5 will dramatically impact the world of things Apple. Namely: iPhones, iPods and iPads by the addition of as many as 200 new and reworked features.

The iOS 5 update should allow us to update no matter which iOS version we are on or which apps or music we have on our devices- that is if our hardware device is among those certified to be eligible.

iOS5 Update Eligible devices:

  • Third generation iPod Touch
  • fourth generation iPod Touch
  • iPhone 3GS
  • iPhone 4S
  • iPad
  • iPad 2

Prep steps to consider:

  • Get rid of years of accumulated crap and clutter
  • Sync or otherwise back up your data
  • Organize and make space
  • Dump apps you don’t use or need anymore
  • Trash or transfer music you don’t like or listen to
  • Trash or transfer photos no longer needed
  • Sort out Audiobooks, ebooks, video, audio and unused media

Our thanks to cnet’s Jason Parker and Kent German for the reminder and tips to prepare.

Comments Off

HP WebOS runs faster on iPad

Aug 19, ’11 2:08 PM

According to sources at The Next Web HP’S WebOS Ran Twice as Fast on an iPad, so It wasn’t poor performance of the software that killed the TouchPad.  HP’s webOS team hacked an iPad 2 to run the software — and it ended up. Even before the TouchPad tablet or Pre smartphone were officially released, the webOS developer team was so fed up with HP’s lackluster hardware that they “wanted them gone.”

HP rocked the tech world yesterday when it announced the company would no longer be producing webOS hardware, including the TouchPad tablet and Pre smartphones, after acquiring Palm last year for $1.2 billion.

The webOS software could still be licensed to third-party manufacturers. HP CEO Leo Apotheker cited lack of traction in the marketplace as a major reason for abandoning the mobile operation. The team of developers also deployed webOS within the iPad’s Mobile Safari browser and got similarly speedy results.

The TouchPad features a dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor with A8 architecture, while the iPad 2 houses a dual-core A5 chip based on the faster Cortex-A9 architecture.

According to The Next Web it was the hardware that reportedly stopped the team from innovating beyond certain points because it was slow and imposed constraints, which was highlighted when webOS was loaded on to Apple’s iPad device and found to run the platform significantly faster than the device for which it was originally developed.

So, this may not necessarily be the demise of WebOS, or the last word. It will take a real sharp innovative mind to figure out how to make it happen. But WebOS is a great starting point to build on.

Comments Off

Best Buy Sours on HP TouchPads

Aug 17, ’11 3:04 PM

Best Buy

In what can be nothing but a tremendous bad sign for HP, Computer Retailer Best Buy has said that they want to Return HP TouchPads supposedly due to poor demand.

It is probably an understatement, but the HP TouchPad tablet doesn’t seem to be doing so well on the market. It  shocks no one but Apple’s iPad 2 and various Android devices such as Samsung’s Galaxy Tab dominate the tablet market so completely that even many Android tablets are not selling particularly well either.

HP believes it still has a chance with its WebOS tablets but consumers site that the premium prices of TouchPads has dampened their enthusiasm.

This latest declaration by Best Buy could have a serious ripple effect that might cascade down through the whole tablet marketplace and in effect stifle HP’s high hopes.

Comments (1)

PROBLEM: Competing against the iPad

Jul 8, ’11 9:06 AM

Tablet

The marketplace is not exactly beating down the doors to get to Android tablets or HP’s TouchPad, and sales are at best lackluster for most other available tablet offerings, mainly of the Android variety.

All of this certainly must be very welcome news to the market leader, Apple, and must cause deep fear and trembling among numerous other would-be tablet competitors.

They are all scratching their worried little heads wondering what’s happening and why this is a nut too hard to crank or why this situation is so hard to analyze.

They really need to understand the reasons things are not going as well or easy as planned.

QUESTIONS they are asking:

  • Is Apple so far ahead they are unassailable?
  • Is the tablet market soft or fleeting?
  • Could this simply be marketing or promotion issues?
  • Are current price points too high?
  • Are tablet features to thin
  • Are available apps too few?

The early reviews of most tablets have been decent for the most part, but definitely not raving nor outright disappointing either. Point-by-point product comparisons do not really tell much of a cogent story to anyone making serious purchase decisions.

Tablet device after tablet device has failed to live anywhere near up to potential or hype. There are numerous issues with most of these devices, including poor battery life, buggy software, poor selections of apps,  or problems with weight,  size, thickness, pricing, ease of use, OS, UI, device specs, or capacity.

Major players cannot afford to loose in this game and risk becoming also-rans in the emerging mobile space race. If their leading tablets don’t succeed and only sell in limited frustrating quanities they may be looking at the end of their run.

So, here are a few things competitors might consider:

  1. Cut their losses and get out of the tablet market.
  2. Cut prices and offer significant discount options
  3. Increase features, and apps
  4. Come up with a device thats that’s as good or better than the iPad.
  5. Go all out to attract developers and talent.
  6. Partner with other major players.
  7. Focus on specific sizeable market segments (enterprise, education, healthcare)
  8. Increase hardware power and capacity.
The struggle for tablet dominance is not a done deal. The doors to tremendous opportunity are still wide open. The true test and gauge of efforts will come over the holidays and into the coming new year.
It will be very interesting to see who is still in the game, and exactly what they will come up with or do to succeed.
I believe in competition and wish them all well.
Comments Off

TABLET MAGS: Not Today!

May 7, ’11 8:09 AM

There is absolutely no way today that I am going to pay $5 for an electronic magazine I have to read on iPads and eReaders.

I don’t know who thought this would be an idea that would fly but it seems to be stillborn out the blocks. Publishers are quickly rethinking their plans due to flops of the early efforts. They probably hoped they could abandon the exorbitant production and distribution costs of print editions and launch themselves into the emerging digital ecosystem. In the light of early consumer negative reactions it looks like that won’t happen any time soon, if ever. For it to have worked they would have to have brought something totally new and innovative to the game that we couldn’t live without. Just running on our cool  iPads is just not good enough. This harkens back to some of the original arguments we used to have about how new forms of interaction on websites could and should be enhanced in view of all the new tools and capabilities made possible in the new era. They would have to seriously reinvent the magazine reading and enjoyment experience. That just didn’t happen.  They thought that simply repurposing their popular publications and attaching a fee would be enough. It wasn’t, isn’t, and won’t ever be!

So, What to do? Publishers could have shared the print production savings with readers by dramatically lowering per-magazine or subscription costs. They could have brought new highy-interactive levels of articles content by adding great  video, audio and bacground information. They could have even developed new innovative ways of organizing and presenting that content . Lastly the most practical idea. They could have invested savings in hiring grat writers to create more and better content and features. All these “could haves” were only half-heartedly considered or attempted. I am still looking for the brilliant publisher that actually “gets it”. He, she, or they would have to be a dyslexic believer in non-linear information presentation with a penchant for reinventing publishing. Mashing up video and creative writing could possibly the bait to lure a harsh critic like me in to take a look or spend my money. But I have very little faith that even if they got it right that they could sustain it over the long haul without diluting it with ads and junk and killing it in attempts to monetize and reap profit.

Either way, some hard choices will have to be made before the print industry implodes or the online industry finds its way.

One of the above ideas is actually going to happen.

Single iPad issues will drop from $3.99 to $4.99 an issue down to $1.99. Yearly subscriptions will cost $19.99. Current print subscribers, will be able to access iPad editions for free.

When this happens, in the near future, I will be one of the first ones to jump on board that train! That could go a long way develop the emerging market and bring the savings that publishers are planning and hoping for. It will be a new day for the imperiled publishing industry.

Comments Off

COOL APP: Bento 4 (Mac/iPad/iPhone)

Apr 14, ’11 10:58 AM
Bento

Bento

Although it is not really just an app in the latest sense but is actually more a full-blooded Application, Bento by Filemaker has found its way into my heart and into my core of essential applications for my journalism duties and general business productivity. I have been a Filemaker user about as long as I have used Macs, and since the very first versions I always thought Filemaker had potential and was very useful for building quick powerful (if not necessarily universal relational) database solutions. The power of Filemaker development and use is the rationale and business model that has lead to Filemaker’s launching of Bento now in its forh version. There is a very extensive depository of free templates available in the Bento Exchange allowing users to select from among a number of bite-sized business, organizational, education and productivity solutions to add to one’s Bento solution platform. This is actually a very creative approach that places the exceptional work of many filemaker developers in front of tons of new users.

Filemaker provides a program trial so you can see if you like it prior to purchase. Then if you do, the purchace price is reasonable enough to compel you to dive right in. Then you can begin explorign the Template Exchange to discover and download solutions that fit your workflow or needs. Once you start using Bento you will be surprised just how truly useful it can actually be and it will be hard to imagine how you got along without it.

I strongly applaud the Filemaker team for thinking outside the Bento Box and coming up with this approach. I only wish that other companies (especially in Cupertino) could be as creative and forward thinking.

The fact that you can go in and continue to customise and modify the templates by adding or deleting fields as you chose I think puts Bento into the realm of The Best.  On a scale of 1 to 10, I give Bento a firm 10, and a big “Right On” to the whole team that made it happen. Good Job!

Comments Off

iPad 3 Speculation Begins

Mar 7, ’11 11:06 AM

Of course, there is always room for improvement so what does Apple need to deliver in an iPad 3 of the future?

The iPad 2 is hardly fresh from of the mouths of Apple and yet wild speculation from media pundits such as that recently voiced in an article by Jason Perlow Sr. Technology Editor at ZDNet has already begun on the iPad 3. Jason writes that the iPad 2 was “a strong but incremental second act”. And brought a number of surprises and some disappointments”.

Well I ask you, my readers, was the iPad 2 such a disappointment, or have we just gotten impatient and possibly spoiled rotten? In reality, we can’t really expect anything like an iPad 3 until sometime in 2012 unless something dramatic spurs Apple to rush one to market to stifle competition or to respond to mounting competition with more significant advances. However, for the moment, Apple competitors have tons of time and information in hand to ready new products for the next big event, CES 2012. So let’s talk!

Comments Off
Performance Optimization WordPress Plugins by W3 EDGE