4.25.2012

iPad as Another Took in System Administrators Toolbox

"John Welch over at Ars Technica wrote a wonderful post about using an iPad as a system administrator's tool, noting that Apple's tablet is "an addition, not a replacement" to the many tools that IT pros currently use to complete their daily tasks."


You can read the Ars Technica article here, but why not right? I mean it makes sense to me, since it has great battery life and easy to use, why shouldn't it be another tool in the toolbox? But whatever your opinion, it's still an interesting article about how one person uses it.

TWC TV App Adds Several Sports Options

"On Friday, Time Warner Cable added a number of national and regional sports networks to the free TWC TV app for iOS and the TWCTV.com Web portal."

If you are an Expanded Basic or higher customer with Time Warner Cable then you can access more things on your iOS device. Unfortunately, you have to be inside your home. I hate apps that restrict you to staying in your home, but if you are one of their customers it will give you mobility, with limits of course.

Get Your NFL Skin for Your iPhone

"When Apple announced they'd picked up Sprint as a carrier for the iPhone, my first though wasn't about data plans or download speeds or this G or that G, it was about the NFL. Finally, after a couple years as an iPhone owner, I'd be able to get a Seattle Seahawks skins for my iPhone 4."

The best thing about getting Sprint on board with the iPhone.

Skydrive Apps for iOS

"SkyDrive, Microsoft's online storage service, is one of the core elements of the company's cloud strategy."

And now, with these new apps for PCs, Windows Phone, Macs and iOS devices, Microsoft is making a play for Dropbox users. With these apps it adds a folder to your computer, and any changes to files in that folder are automatically sync'd to your iOS devices. But for new users it will cost you 18GB of storage since Microsoft is dropping the free storage amount from 25GB to 7GB. Microsoft says it's because less than 7GB is the amount most of their users have been utilizing. Another advantage for Windows users is the ability to stream or access files remotely via this app. I like the added functionality but not the decrease in storage. What are your thoughts, or do you even use Skydrive?

4.24.2012

Report Spam Text Messages With AT&Ts Mark The Spot App

"If you thought your iPhone was safe from the predations of spammers, think again. Because U.S. carriers know that unhappy customers will complain to state attorneys general, the FCC, and legislators about receiving and being charged for unsolicited commercial (and often totally fraudulent) cell phone calls and text messages, mobile companies have policed such activity quite closely."

Use the AT&T Mark The Spot app and you can report any spam texts you receive. Simple to do, with the message in your window, hit the edit button. Then click on the circle to the left of the message so that the red checkmark shows up. Then forward it to 7726, which spells SPAM on your keypad not so coincidentally. And that is that. Easy right?

This Custom iPad Case is Amazing

"Holy crap. Check out this amazing custom iPad cover Redditor 44 Oz. had made for him by Australian-based leatherworking firm High On Glue, made with premium leather, suede lining, a kangaroo leather spine and embossed with the original Apple logo designed by Ron Wayne back in 1976, featuring Sir Isaac Newton resting under an Apple tree."

I'm with the author, as I don't normally like folio cases either but this one is certainly amazing. Makes me wish I had continued on with my leatherwork practice from 4H. If you want to order one, you can go check it out on this page and get your email in, it might be awhile though.

iPhone at Work

"Apple is pushing the benefits of using an iPhone in business with the launch of a new webpage on its site."

"iPhone at Work" has a pretty extensive list of apps to help you in whatever business needs you may have, some of them of course the standard Apple ones. But there are also some other apps that you might find useful. Worth a look, it's well done as is everything Apple does, in my opinion of course.

4.22.2012

Google Drive to Offer 5GB Storage

"Sometimes we get lucky, and today is one of those days. I got a draft release from a partner of Google’s upcoming Google Drive service and it gives away a wealth of information about how Google plans to take on the incumbent Dropbox. The short story? 5 GB of storage, and it launches next week, likely on Tuesday at http://drive.google.com"

Cloud storage seems to be pretty hot these days. With long time storage providers like Dropbox and Box, it looks like Google is finally jumping into the fray. Is what they provide good? Time will tell. I think it will partly be a matter of how well integrated their offerings are and how it plays with other applications. I do wonder just what Google will do with the data you store though, as I suspect, much like most of their offerings, they will use it to data mine everything about you, but for 5GB of free storage, off the bat, instead of after referrals, it is tempting.
This does raise the question about cloud storage in general and where it is heading. It looks to become much more generic, and could pose a threat against more specialized storage providers such as imgur. If Google also better integrates its other services with it, it could also compete against companies like Evernote as well. The next few years will prove to be interesting to see who wins out.

Verizon WP8 Devices To Come Before Holiday Season Per CFO

"Shammo also told Reuters that Verizon plans to make its new Windows Phone 8 handsets available later this year, in time for the holiday season, which should see the devices on sale shortly after Microsoft publicly launches the new mobile OS in the fourth quarter."

During Verizon's quarterly earnings report, CFO Fran Shammo voiced strong support for the Windows Phone 8 platform and believes it to be the third ecosystem along with iOS and Android. Also stated was that devices will be available from Verizon before the holiday season. Unfortunately this means there will be no WP7.5 device to supplement the HTC Trophy on Verizon's shelves.

4.18.2012

A Speaker Dock for Your iPad From Scoshe

"Speaker docks are a tricky proposition. Build them big enough to boom, and they're hard to fit on your desk or kitchen counter. Build them small, and they usually lack the bass that helps us feel our favorite jams. Scoshe's BassDOCK manages to pack a punch, securely perching your iPad above a compact speaker that fits almost anywhere."


Simple design that works with all versions of iPad, and at $149.99 USD it won't break the bank. And, from the sounds of this review, it does the intended job very well.

Win an iPad From Gogo, Along With a Year's Worth of Service

"Here's one last opportunity for you to grab a new iPad for yourself, and Gogo's pulling out all the stops to ensure you're happy with your new treasure both on the ground and in the air."


Find out all the details right here.

Win a Souped Up Macbook Pro

"This is just totally sick. The guys over at Germany's Hardwrk have taken 16GB of DDR3 RAM and a 1TB Samsung 830 SATA III SSD bundled up in an SSD-RAID-0, slapped it into a 13-inch MacBook Pr running an Intel Core i7-2640M 2.8GHz chip."



This is sick, and in a good way. Leave a comment here to enter yourself in the contest to win this bad boy.

Flip Steady for iPad, Does This Solve Your Case Problem?

"Still haven't found the perfect iPad case for you? Consider the FlipSteady, now being considered at Kickstarter for the iPad 2 and new iPad."

I use a combo method on my iPad. For the front I use the smart cover from Apple and for the back I use hard shell cover from Scoshe. But I am always on the lookout for something better, and this might just be it. But I don't think I need to hurry over to the their Kickstarter page since they appear to be within $600.00 USD of their goal and they have 55 days left. Clever case indeed.

Apple to Partner With The Tribeca Film Festival

"In a rare event partnership, Apple will be participating in the upcoming Tribeca Film Festival in New York City by holding events and workshops at its West 14th St. and SoHo stores."

This will be going on from April 20th through April 28th, and sounds like lots of activities are planned including free workshops and events where you can meet the filmmakers. You can find out more by going here.

Ars Technica: Challenges Getting Windows Phones Updated

"If these rumors are true, buying a Lumia 900-or any other Windows Phone handset-is a risky proposition. If you buy subsidized, on-contract handsets, you'll typically be eligible for a new subsidized upgrade every two years. A reasonable expectation, then, would be two years of software support in the form of bugfixes and updates. But if current handsets can't run Windows Phone 8, they'll essentially be cut off from future support in about six months. Developers might still target the older handsets to some extent, but many more will be targeting Windows Phone 8's extended capabilities and richer APIs."

If you are contemplating buying a Windows Phone it will be of interest to you to understand the update strategy from both Microsoft and the carriers proving the phones. As is outlined in this article, it is clearly an uneven playing field and playing strategy from the participants. Ars Technica goes so far as to warn you that buying a Windows Phone like the Nokia Lumia 900 could lead you down a path where you cannot get your phone software updated, depending on which partners are involved. Note that the Android world also has some of these types of issues. It is an in-depth article, but well worth the read, and only takes one click to get there.

HTC One S Coming Soon to T-Mobile

"This new-ish page for the HTC One S has a terrific list of all the features available on the One S, still expected to hit store shelves a week from today on April 25th."


This may actually be my favorite phone from the One series. While it "only" has a 4.3 qHD screen (540x960) it still has the same high quality camera, 1GB of RAM, 1080p 60fps video recording, Beats Audio, and Snapdragon S4 processor as the One X. On top of that not everyone wants a huge phone with a 4.7" screen and the One S seems to get better battery life than the One X, possibly due to the One X having a larger and higher resolution display. Both the phones come with Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). The HTC One S should be available from T-Mobile for just under $600 on April 25th. Hopefully there will be a subsidized price option as well. Make sure you check the T-Mobile site for more information. My favorite feature of the One series is probably the Snapdragon S4 processor. It's the first 28 nm processor available in a smartphone and offers a "next generation" of speed and battery life.

Would you rather have the super-sized 4.7" 720p display or the 4.3 qHD display with better battery life?