just an asterisk

I’ve heard a few people say that the iPad is for consumption rather than creation.  Something about this phrase both disgusts and intrigues me. It feels like the cheesy catchphrase of a generation, something that would be used on a VH1 special. When I was younger, I don’t remember us being so focused on hoarding content. There were collectors (comic books, baseball cards, etc) but these people were … well strange.  In the past few years though, products have emerged to satisfy a constantly connected and informed clientele.  We’re so design conscious and hip aren’t we?  We shouldn’t have to select the gems – give us everything…

Anyway, pushing my soapbox back under the bed, I have an iPhone and looking back at my activities for the last few weeks, I am struck by how little I’ve created with my new toy – it’s as if someone crammed every form of media into an all powerful demon in my front right pocket (the left pocket just doesn’t feel right after years of carrying my blackberry in my right).  I figure that, rather than fighting these forces, I should embrace them.  In that vein, here are my favorite apps on the iPhone, purposely split into groups, consumption and creation. Read more »

I discovered something interesting this past weekend.  I had convinced my wife to allow me the upgrade from my old diehard Blackberry to the new iPhone 4.  Trust me when I tell you that it was a process.  You see, I had argued that by carrying a blackberry and an iPod touch, I was wasting space, buying and keeping track of extra cables and so on… When I travelled, this tedium slowed me down… It’s true – none of this was brilliant rhetoric, but I guess she gave in mostly to shut me up.  I was allowed to buy the iPhone…

After all that, I was utterly stupefied to learn that I had missed the biggest, humdinger of an argument for the upgrade.  I went on Gazelle.com to try to sell my old Blackberry and iPod and discovered that  Blackberry + iPod really does equal an iPhone.  I had known this would be true functionally (phone + music player = iPhone), but I had never really thought that selling my old hardware would cover the cost of my new stuff!  As a thank you to Gazelle, I thought I’d give them a bit of a shout out.  You will get more money if you try to sell your stuff with Craigslist, but the added convenience of this service is worth checking out. Read more »

When I tell someone I have an iPhone and after the unavoidable “antenna” questions, the second line of questioning is about battery life.  In the hopes that it might help someone, here is what I did yesterday on my iPhone:

6am ( 5am CST) – woke up in NYC and unplugged
1 hr music on the plane – anti-screaming baby white noise.
2 hrs in Airplane mode – reducing consumption I suppose.
1 hr talking on arrival – conference call.
20 min facetime – interactive utilities repairman visit with my wife at our apartment on her phone.
30 read emails – over the course of the morning
10 sent emails
2 photos – whiteboarding session capture
1 video (<20 sec) – simply goofing off
1 youtube clip – again, goofing off
Google Reader push all day – I read the odd article while I walk between meetings.
Exchange push all day – email is set to PUSH.
50 + text messages – Wifey and I like the chat feature.
4:30pm CST – Check point: 48% battery life.
3 app downloads – I’m still learning what is good out there…
Chatted another hour – Calls for work + personal
20 more text messages – Wifey and rental car arrangements with the team.
more emails – they just keep on comin’
9PM CST – Checkpoint: 18% battery remaining… plug in phone to sleep.

That’s not bad.  My blackberry had slightly better battery life, but I couldn’t do a few of those things… Also, it’s not like I really need to facetime every single day… Anyway, hope this helps someone decide if this is the right phone for them.  I was using it for 16 hours and still had 1/5th left to go.

Good luck in your mobile decisions.

~ab

This isn’t news, but I’ve been having fun with it (and I’m a bit strapped for time these days).  My new TV came with streaming Netflix built in (as I mentioned in my last post).  But what does this really mean???  Well I’ll tell you – I can watch Netflix from my television, streaming it over the web on my home network.  The network setup was a pain in the butt, but once I got it working, I couldn’t believe that I’d lived without for so long.  To think of all the times I ordered pay-per-view when I could have just watched something for free!

Read more »

Recently, my wife and I purchased a new television.  It was fun to browse and explore all the new acronyms, but in truth my knowledge of televisions is a bit sub-par.  The thing was, I was pretty happy with my CRT (cathode ray tube – the technology behind the pervious generation of TVs and those big clunky monitors).  The problem, as is always the case with technology, was that I wanted more than my old box could deliver – HDTV (High Definition Television) was calling… I am not qualified (even after my shopping research) to give you the full scoop on HDTV.  All I can tell you is that HD TVs use a connector called HDMI and that each of these cables runs about $40 – which is just stupid as you need one for each device you want to attach… (editorial, yes, but does that mean it’s untrue?)

This is an error message I received today when trying to copy a game from one drive to another.  At first, it seems quite normal.  I just don’t have enough space on my drive.  Or do I?  Check a little closer at the highlighted text:

What?  Almost 6PB?  I have that much data on my external hard-drive? Read more »

If you’re trying to decide between the hot new Nexus One vs. the iPhone 3Gs, here’s the skinny on what sets them apart. Both phones sport the aesthetic appeal of that sleek “wow” factor sheen, but there are a few differences you should know about which may make one a better fit for your needs than the other. Read more »

I think the most common question that hits my inbox goes something like this – I’m shopping for a new laptop.  Are there any brands I should look out for?  Any that I should avoid?  What do you suggest?  I’ve written before about what you should look for, but never really about how to choose between brands.

Although this data is going to be old as soon as I post about it (for reference, the current date is Tuesday, November 17, 2009), a great study was just released by Square Trade.

Here is the link

For those unwilling to wade through it, here are some highlights:

Read more »

This could will happen to you at some point.  Perhaps you won’t get the jet engine hard drive like I did last night, but there are many variations: the blank screen, the system freezing every 10 minutes (ironically due to overheating), USB ports failing, rather important keys like the letter “a” just refusing to work… The list of possible hardware faults is endless.  So if it’s inevitable, what can you do to be prepared?  Although there’s probably no way to prepare you for everything, here is a list of things that I recommend.

Read more »