Posts Tagged: emerging tech

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19
Aug 10

iPad + iPhone 4

A friend asked my opinions on the iPad and iPhone 4. Somehow, I thought I had posted something about this, and while I posted plenty of other opinions about the iPad, I had only officially put out my initial reaction, and haven’t said boo about the iPhone 4.

Let me rectify this.

iPad:

  • The iPad will not replace a laptop. But it will replace more of your laptop than you think. Pick up the keyboard that goes with it, and it’ll be closer still.
  • Not having a traditional desktop with files and folders is an asset to the iPad. It makes it easier to use, and easier to understand. If you don’t believe me, walk around your office and see how many people “file” things into their desktop.
  • Reading books with iBooks works fine, and is a pleasure. The highlighting and notes abilities are very nice. I’ve read a few books on it now.
  • The screen is not useable outside. I tried it on a cloudy day, and the reflection was too much.
  • It is far better for consumption than creation. However there are some creative bits that work well on it (drawing, short emails, etc). As such, I haven’t quite found a good fit for using it at work.
  • The iWork apps (I have Pages and Keynote) are great, but are not compatible with last-years desktop version of iWork. This is really disappointing, and worse: the iPad Keynote app reads my ancient PowerPoint files just fine.
  • There are some really fun, addictive, and innovative games available for only a dollar or 2 each.
  • I didn’t get the 3G version, but will next time The ability to pay for 3G access a month here or there would be perfect for vacations.
  • Overall: if you have room in your budget for another device, you’ll love the iPad for surfing, social networking, sharing photos, and playing games.

iPhone 4:

I still have a 3GS, and will likely get the new phone (iPhone 5?) next summer.

First, lets talk about the antenna: From what I understand, the antenna thing might be an issue in certain situations, for some people, but for other people, they get reception where they never previously were able to. If you are concerned, get one of the bumpers – it fixes the death-grip problem. If you are really concerned, wait till January. The rumors are stronger than usual, and suggest that January is when there will be an iPhone on the Verizon network.

Other than that, I hear the screen is amazing and the camera is as good as many dedicated cameras. FaceTime is great, and I’m waiting to hear if this latest incarnation of video conferencing will be one that the public actually adopts.

If you’re concerned about an “open” platform and are thinking of picking up an Android phone, I’d highly suggest reading this, this, this, this, or this.

Overall: Apple is still making the best smart phone, at a competitive price. Other phones are at least a year behind in technical capabilities, and if you look at their usability, I have yet to see a report of a new phone that is better than (or as good as) the original iPhone that was released 3 years ago.

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28
Jul 10

The Mobile Internet

Fascinating report about The Mobile Internet:

“History suggests the mobile Internet has potential to create / destroy more wealth than prior computing cycles based on 10x user multiplier effect (from cycle to cycle, the number of users / units increases tenfold). Regarding pace of change, more users will likely connect to the Internet via mobile devices than desktop PCs within 5 years.”

You don’t have to read between the lines to get that mobile is a *big* thing, and coming fast. Good read.

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16
Jul 10

Future Promises vs That Which Is Today

Marco’s buying advice:

“I never make technology-buying decisions based on future promises, rumors, or potential. I let other people be the bleeding-edge extremely early adopters, and I stick with what I know will work and stay out of my way. I don’t buy things that are “getting better”, because they usually don’t. Whatever caused them to be lacking in their current release will usually prevent them from being great in future releases.

I buy things that are great today. They’re usually things that have been great since day one. And, more often than not, they’re Apple products.”

So much could be said about the promises of the future vs the realities of today. You have to make your decisions based on todays reality, because tomorrow’s promise may never come.

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22
Jun 10

Hyperconnected Health

I’ve been reading the human network and there is some fascinating things there. In Mark Pesce’s latest post, Hyperconnected Health he talks about his “cloud” — all the people he follows, and all the people that follow him on the various social networks and how it helps him make better decisions:

“My cloud extends my reach, my experience and my intelligence, making me much more effective as some sort of weird ‘colony individual’ than I could be on my own.   I have no doubt that within a few years, as the tools improve, nearly every decision I make will be observed and improved upon by my cloud.  Which is wonderful, incredible, and – to quote Tony Abbott – very confronting.”

He talks about a few specific incidents where he’s gotten some very useful and timely advice while traveling, and then notes that some industries have seen major shifts due to the ability for people to be hyper-connected. Specifically:

“There’s a direct correlation between the speed at which a motion picture bombs and the rise in the number of users of Twitter.  It used to take a few days for word-of-mouth to kill a movie’s box office:  now it takes a few minutes.  As the first showing ends, friends text friends, people post to Twitter and Facebook, and the news spreads.  After the second or third showing, the crowds have dropped off: word has gotten out that the film stinks.  Where just a few years ago a film could coast for an entire weekend, now the Friday matinee has become a make-or-break affair.  An opinion, multiplied by hundreds or thousands of connections, carries a lot of weight.”

3 days of movie sales down to one … all because we can get recommendations from each other that much faster. I wonder what other industries Twitter is altering?

I only have 167 followers on twitter (Mark has 6800), so I’m not sure that I qualify for the “hyper” prefix. But I’ve posted a few questions and gotten some  select responses. Nothing big, and certainly nothing that has changed my daily use. I can see the potential if I were to expand my social graph.

So then.

I find the technology-enabled social connections interesting, but not yet vital. What concerns me is that what happens when they *become* vital?

I’ve read about kids getting (accidently) left out of birthday parties because the invite went out over SMS and they didn’t have a cell phone. It’s stupid, unintentional, and yet a real problem. Staying plugged in takes time, but it takes cash too. Cell phones have a hefty cash commitment. I guess what I’m wondering: will “hyper” connectivity (and all of it’s advantages) become a class differentiator? Will there be the hyper-connected-have’s and the hyper-connected-have-not’s? The latter of who will be doomed to spend too much money on bad movies the 2nd day of it’s release?

Mark says:

“We can choose to be entirely connected, or entirely disconnected.  We can let the batteries run flat on our mobile, or simply turn it off and put it away.  But there’s a price to be paid.  Absence from connection incurs a cost.  To be disconnected is to cede your ability to participate in the flow of affairs. Thus, the modern condition is a dilemma, where we balance the demands of our connectedness against the desire to be free from its constraints.”

[emphasis added]

I have no conclusions yet, just interest, and perhaps some questions. Hyperconnected Health was a good read.

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6
Jun 10

The Center of Computing is the Smartphone, not the PC

Monday Note did a little digging and discovered that the center of money in the computing world has less to do with the PC, and more to do with the smartphone market:

“Apple makes $3B of profit from its iPhone while HP takes in a mere $500M on its PCs—that’s a 6x difference. The Center of Money has shifted.”

HP is one of the leaders in computer manufacturing, yet for all their expertise, they have to be pretty surprised how fast the center shifted.

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