Can't Stop Geeking » Apple

Apple Launches Ping

Tony — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 15:52:48 +0000

As part of Apple’s grand unveiling of the new iPods, Steve Jobs announced a new version of iTunes. Not surprising in and of itself, but what it has is pretty surprising. Apple has included a new social network called Ping. Meant to compete with Facebook, Last.fm, MySpace, etc, Ping is a social network centered around music. You can follow artists you like and your friends. Good idea in theory, but I tried it and absolutely hated it. My biggest problem is that it can only be accessed in iTunes. Yeah, it can be used on your iOS device, but they really need a web interface for it. I don’t want to launch iTunes just to access Ping. I also don’t like how limited it is. It’s basically a ripoff of Facebook as far as functionality goes. You have songs and artists as pages and you can like them. Another big thing it’s missing is showing what you’re listening to. It can show what you buy on iTunes, but it doesn’t let you post the songs you’ve listened to recently like last.fm does.

So, I’m sticking with last.fm. It’s far more robust, and has a huge userbase that isn’t just tied to iTunes. I can install the scrobbler on my PC, Mac, or Linux machine, and it works with a huge variety media players on those operating systems. In addition, it will also scrobble from your mobile devices too. Again, Apple, open networks>closed. But I guess this is just another way for Steve to keep the walled garden alive.

Best Summary of the iPhone 4 issues ever

Tony — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 20:58:18 +0000

There’s not much that really needs to be said here, just watch the video:

iPhone 4 just came out, but DOES IT BLEND?!

Tony — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 21:32:43 +0000

As I’m sure many of you know, Apple’s iPhone 4 came out last week. It’s been reviewed to death, discussed so much, and has a pretty significant buzz around it. So, the awesome guys at Blendtec decided to capitalize on all the buzz by putting it in their famous blender as part of their wildly popular Will It Blend series on YouTube. The results are found below:

When in doubt blame the hackers

Patrick — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 17:44:17 +0000

For those iPad users who suffered a security breach of email addresses, AT&T is pointing the finger at a group of malicious hackers who found a loophole created by AT&T trying to speed up the process of logging in to the website. So, Apple, this is the company you place your exclusive trust in to carry your iPhone and provide service for your iPad.

AT&T to limit data consumption

Patrick — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 15:08:42 +0000

AT&T is rolling out some new plans regarding data consumption on their smart phones. Before, you paid $30 and could dowload as much data as you wanted. Now, you will have to choose. You can pay $25 for 2GB of data, or you can pay $15 for 200 megabytes. AT&T claims the 200 MB is enough for most customers, so the price of owning and using an iPhone should decrease for most people.

Your TV is about to become your computer

Patrick — Fri, 21 May 2010 17:47:45 +0000

Not exactly.

If you still need powerful computers for designing graphics or other coding issues, you’ll still one of those. But if you want to surf the internet, it appears that you will soon be doing that with your TV. Google is offering software to be integrated into certain TVs as well as some satellite TV services. This will help some people who want to surf the internet but have vision issues or can’t get really fast internet access. This should be an interesting development to watch. Google seems to be innovating to grab some of the market away from Apple. And you know what the best part is? We as consumers are going to benefit the most from this.

Fiddlesticks

Patrick — Wed, 12 May 2010 15:46:09 +0000

Well, you can cancel any dreams of having a Verizon iPhone anytime soon. It has been verified that the original contract for exclusive rights to the iPhone Apple had with AT&T was until 2012. Which absolutely stinks since AT&T’s has the lowest customer satisfaction rating of all the major carriers. Some are speculating that the recent iPad launch may have given Apple an opportunity to revisit this exclusive contract, but no details as to whether it will be shorter or longer has been divulged. If you know me and my attitude toward AT&T, I am definitely pulling for shorter.

Hands on with the iPad

Patrick — Mon, 03 May 2010 14:30:11 +0000

My wife and I went to Best Buy for fun this past weekend and I got my first chance to see and try an iPad for myself. They had a wi-fi connection so I could see how it did with connectivity. My first impressions when I walked up to it was that it look smaller than I’ve seen in the promotional pictures. It was only as bing as my hands side by side, and I have small hands for an adult. I picked it up and one thing the iPad has going for it is a very clear, bright screen. I could easily see what I was looking for and read without difficulty. Depending on the light, I do still have to wonder if glare would be an issue. The one thing I heard was an issue and I have to agree is the weight of the iPad. It’s surprisingly heavy for how thin it is. When surfing, I held it in one hand and use the other hand to navigate, and my arm started to tire after holding it up for a while. So, if you don’t want to get too fatigued, you’re going to need both hands to hold it. But you then negate the value of the touch screen. The only reason I would buy an iPad is for the e-reader. I like the idea of being able to read a variety of books from one device easily. But even the e-reader seems to be missing a crucial feature for me; the ability to highlight passages. There are bookmarks, but no highlight feature that I could see. That might be a deal breaker.

This would be kind of cool to to attend

Patrick — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 15:14:12 +0000

Apple has scheduled it Worldwide Developers Conference for June 7-11 this year, and everyone in attendance will receive a free slushee. Actually, while tickets are a whopping $1,600 dollars, this conference has been selling out pretty regularly. So, somebody must feel these are worth the money. If you’re wanting to go, you better make plans quickly. Topics covered will include Mac and iPhone operating systems. I wish I had the money to go.

Look out, Apple

Patrick — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 15:18:27 +0000

If you already have an iPad, you may kick yourself after reading this, and if you haven’t bought one, this may give you reason to hesitate slightly. There’s a German company that is developing a tablet computer similar to Apple’s. What makes this one more enticing is a larger screen, USB ports and a built in webcam. If this thing holds good on its promoted accessories and is compatible in the US, I think Apple may ahve a run for its money coming.