Tag: Apple

Categories
Opinion

On the Fence About Lion


Okay, so I know OS X 10.7 Lion won’t be out for another month or so, but I’m already wondering if I’ll buy it or not.

What’s to like about Lion? Well, aside from the obvious fact that it will antiquate Leopard and make Snow Leopard look like yesterday’s news, the main attraction seems to be giving your Mac an iPad-like feel. Apps are all full screen, multi-touch gestures will be more robust, and Resume will save your work as you go. Now mind you, I haven’t played with any of the developer releases. If I got my hands on it, this article might be a different story.

At the moment, the main detractor is going to be price. If it’s more than $100 I think I’ll pass. Leopard was $129 when it came out, but it offered 300+ more features than Tiger, its predecessor. Upgrading from Leopard to Snow Leopard only cost $30 (the price was the same for upgrading from Tiger to Snow Leopard, but shhh). Considering that Lion is a full step up from Snow Leopard, rather than a half-step, it will most likely sell for over $129 or higher.

Then the question becomes is this update more about form or function? AirDrop is pretty cool, though DropCopy, a third-party app, can do the same thing. Some of the other features, such as the Mac App Store and FaceTime are already available in Snow Leopard. From near as I can tell, the main difference between Lion and Snow Leopard is mimicking the feel of the iPad (ie. form).

Getting a new OS mostly comes with getting a new computer. If I were to buy a Mac this summer, then yeah, I’d love Lion. Having to buy an upgrade for my current MacBook Pro? Again, price will be the main determination. I think I’d also like to see how well it tests with the first adopters. If I see whizz-bang-drooling-over-how-cool-Lion-is reports, then I might jump on sooner. On an side-note, it will be interesting to see how Lion is rolled out. Do you just download it from the Mac App Store like the developers have? Will it be a USB drive like the one for the MacBook Air?

No matter what, I’m sure Lion will prove to be the king of Mac OS X. But I guess I’ll let everyone else decide that for me before buying it.

You can read a previous in-depth article about Lion’s features here.

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Categories
Reviews

Time to Change That Wallpaper

“Either that wallpaper goes, or I do.” -Oscar Wilde

Customization goes hand-in-hand with the iPad. One of the easiest changes to make is your wallpaper. The iPad ships with 30 wallpaper images. Your photo library can also act as a wallpaper library, but unless your library is full of abstract art or fancy nature photos, your pictures wouldn’t come close to the packaged wallpapers.

Lucky for you that there are a host of websites available for downloading iPad wallpaper. For free. Even luckier for you, I took a gander at five of them to help you find that perfect wallpaper.

1. iPad Wallpapers HD By far this site has the largest selection. They have a huge bank of Apple logo images, illustrations, and photography. They also have a large selection of “women wallpapers.” You can register with the site if you want to give your own hand at making wallpapers.

2. iPad Wallpapers This site has a good selection of pictures to choose from, though the  page looks cluttered with its wallpaper selection jumbled in with ads. They even have a link to some apps, though none of them have anything to do with wallpaper, nor do they look interesting. Make sure to click the link on the left menu for the wallpapers, and not on the top (more ads).

2. iPad Wallpaper.org The categories here range from 3D to Sports. The site has some Apple logo wallpapers, as well as some cool nature pictures.

4. noupe This site had a blog entry that included the “55 Beautiful Apple iPad Wallpapers.” Certainly a tall claim, but they seem to live up to it. They have awesome pics of Iron Man and Thor.

5. Designrfix You thought the best 55 wallpapers was great? How about the top 70+? Kind of makes you wonder why they can’t just do the top 100, but meh. Anyways, the majority of the graphics will blow your eyes away.

Once you’ve downloaded that perfect picture to your iPad, setting it as your wallpaper is simple:

  1. Click on the Settings app, and select Brightness and Wallpaper.
  2. Select Wallpaper and then choose Saved Photos.
  3. Once you choose your picture, it will show as a full screen preview.
  4. Finally, select whether you would like the wallpaper to be for the Lock Screen, the Home Screen, or both.

Whether you want to pay homage to Apple with a cool logo design, admire a picturesque nature scene, or stare at a bikini model, there are many options out there for you.

Of course, if you’re as much a fanboy as I am, you’ll most likely drift back to the packaged wallpapers once the novelty wears off.

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Categories
Opinion

iFad?

There seems to be some questioning about whether or not tablets (not just the iPad1) are here to stay. Katherine Noyes compains that they don’t offer enough functionality, and pans the iPad directly2. Even Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak didn’t seem too impressed with the future of tablets by remarking that they were only for “normal people” (whatever that means).

And certainly with the waxing and waning of the netbook still fresh in our minds, it’s easy to see that the latest gadgets aren’t necessarily the greatest3.

However, I think the reason for the netbook’s demise (other than the iPad) was that it didn’t represent a paradigm shift. Sure, it was kind of cool to see them out in public for the first time (“That’s your computer? How is it so small?”), but in the end it didn’t have anything new to offer. I think the poor economy was the main reason for its popularity.

Now tablets do come to the table with something new. Instead of install disks there are app stores, they are all solid state, and no mouse is required. Paradigm shift.

So what does this all mean for the future? Moore’s Law states that technology gets faster and smaller4. I think in the end, it will shrink to the point of not even being physical anymore. Movies, such as Iron Man 2, Minority Report, and Final Fantasy: Spirits Within5 depict computing as manipulating holograms, which is the way I too imagine computers going. But in the interim, that means that people will demand smaller technology. And that means tablets.

With Motorolla Xoom sales not even topping 100,000 units sold and different tablet projects getting killed before they even hit the streets, that means it’s the iPad for now. You can also read a previous article, comparing the iPad to the Galaxy Tab.

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1Please don’t read into this article that I’m trying to say iPads are the coolest ever, and they’ll always dominate. In fact, I hope the purported “iPad killer” does come along. Competition between developers leads to choices for the customer. It’s not like Apple has exactly gotten lazy about developing the iPad, but just imagine what could happen if push came to shove.

2Of course, in the same breath, she says smartphones have more functionality than the iPad.

3I would love to see a VH1 “Behind the Music” for the netbook

4Try comparing ENIAC to the iPad 2.

5Yeah, I went there. Sorry.

Categories
Average Joe's Tips

Heat to Head: iPad 2 vs. Samsung Galaxy Tab

As the tablet wars are just beginning, what device will you choose? Samsung has been doing relatively well with their success on mobile touch screen devices, but Apple has proven their dominancy throughout the past years. Samsung has recently refreshed their beloved Galaxy Tab and has many attributes where it trumps the iPad 2. But overall, which device will fit your lifestyle better. What will your iPad be used for and the price differences that should be considered. Also, don’t forget the cost of 3G service can start to add up.

Remember, that this is only a comparison of hardware. The user experience will differ, the iOS tends to be more user friendly than the Android; however, the Android boasts more of a “geeky” experience. Don’t forget the apps, the App Store has a plethora of apps in contrast to the Marketplace.

Device Apple iPad 2 Samsung Galaxy Tab
OS iOS 4.3 Android 3.0 Honeycomb
Display & Resolution 9.7 inches IPS LCD 1024×768 pixels 10.1 inches WXGA
1280 x 800 pixels
Processor 1GHz Dual-Core A5
9x GPU Performance		 1GHz Nvidia Tegra 2 Dual-Core
RAM 512MB 1GB
Memory Storage 16GB / 32GB / 64GB 16GB / 32GB / 64GB
Micro-SD Card Slot/Expandable No Yes
Micro SD Up to 32GB
Rear-Camera 720p HD Video Recording Capable 3 MP with LED Flash 1080p, 720p HD Video Recording Capable
Front-Camera VGA 2 MP
Connecting Ports 30 pin connector (limited) USB 2.0
Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n 802.11 b/g/n
3G Quadband HSPA
CDMA / EV-DO Rev. A		 UMTS/GSM/HSDPA
4G Support No HSPA+ 4G
App Market Apple App Store Android Marketplace
Amazon Appstore
Barometer No No
Gyroscope Yes Yes
Accelerometer Yes Yes
Adobe Flash No Yes
Battery Life (Running) 10 Hours 10 Hours
Dimensions & Weight 241.2 x 185.7 x 8.8
613g (AT&T), 607g(Verizon)
601g (Wi-Fi)		 256.6 x 172.9 x 8.6 mm
595 grams
Carrier AT&T, Verizon AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile
Price (3G Models) $629(16GB), $729(32GB), $829(64GB), $499(16GB), $599(32GB)
TestFreaks Average 10/10 n/a
Categories
Reviews

App Review: AppStart

Recently got an iPad 2? Been to the game for a while with the first gen iPad and thought you’ve exhausted every HD app out there? To quote Bachman-Turner Overdrive, “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet!”

AppStart by the folks at AppAdvice is an in-depth look at every kind of iPad app for use by power users or casual users.

With over 350,000 apps out there, finding the right one for your needs can be stymying. AppStart sets you in the right direction with its review of apps in different categories from turning your iPad into a laptop, to their game recommendations (gamers and non-gamers). Each category lists cherry-picked apps, along with a blurb describing them and even more importantly, their price. You’re given a good spread of free and paid apps to choose from. There is even a hardware review to help find the right iPad accessories.

The app’s layout alone is a marvel. Four pages long, each one is packed with the different categories and visually appealing clip art to go with them. Swiping down will scroll from page to page, and horizontal swiping will return you from the articles. The pages are so chocked-full of information that I find something new every time. AppStart truly takes advantage of how a digital magazine should be.

AppStart is free, but if you become smitten with it and want to get more (and why wouldn’t you), the AppAdvice app ($1.99) is updated every day.

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