Slow News Day At CNN or Mention Of iPhone Is Good For Clicks

CNN has a post dedicated to the iPhone 5 rumors on its frontpage.  Maybe I'm nearly the end of my work day and I'm tired so I'm not thinking clearly but I don't think there's anything wrong with that.  Just wanted to note it.  Maybe the mention of "iPhone 5" is a click-bait and I want in on it. 

Well, that's what I think why CNN put the post and link front and center.  Seriously.  That or it's really really slow news day and that the impending shutdown of the federal government isn't big enough of a draw (pushed to the left of the website) or that CNN sources doesn't think it'll happen.

Whatever the reason, what is not amiss is the fact that Apple's mobile strategy is now mainstream.  Technology, especially mobile tech, is no longer the domain of geekdom but that it belongs to society as a whole.  It's why there are long lines a month after the iPad 2 was launched, why it's sold out everywhere in the countries Apple has launched it, and why its updated tablet is the most sought after device on the Asian tech black market.  

Android may command the largest market share and RIM just barely continues to be ahead of the iPhone, but make not mistake that it is Apple that commands the mobile revenue and it is Apple's mobile vision that is and will dictate where mobile is headed.

More at CNN.

Virtual And Multi-Touch Keyboard - I Can Get Used To That

I fully expect for the keyboard to go away one day when someone develops an even better input apparatus to replace it.  Obviously, I'm not that someone so I have no idea what it is.  Can a multi-touch platform capable of displaying a virtual keyboard be it?  I know a lot of people will hate it but I think I can get used to the idea.

If you have an iPad or a smartphone like the Droid X or the iPhone that does not have physical keyboard, you're already using it.  Some people like it. Others don't.  I'm okay either way.  I'm faster on a regular keyboard but I grew up using a typewriter.  Lots of kids today will only know about multi-touch, like my nephews.

And Apple has been granted patents just to create a virtual keyboard of sort.  And one that could change patterns and shapes to the needs of the user.

One of the strange things, years after the various newer generation Star Trek shows went off the air, the glass displays that gave the officer control stayed the same.  If Star Trek the Next Generation was on the air today, each control panel or pad would work like today's tablets like the iPad that allows display of control based on the needs of the user.

That's what Apple is trying to achieve and something similar could well be the next Holy Grail to data input.  That would make mobile computing, especially tablets, another advantage over laptops and netbooks.

More at Patently Apple.

Futurize Your Macbook By Replace Optical Drive With SSD

One of the things I expected from Apple's fresh of the Macbook Pro in March was the exclusion of the optical drive, the DVD reader/burner, with something else that is more aligned with Apple's mobile vision. That did not happen.

However, GIGAOM has a cool post for those good with tools and taking apart computers to mess around with. Replace the drive with an SSD.

Now, this isn't like the older Powerbooks that Apple used to make in the 90s when you can just swap out one expansion solution for another. It doesn't quite work that way. This solution presented, for someone like me, is like brain surgery.

But I am sure many of you can give this a go. The total cost is about $400. At the end of the day, you get extra storage space, speed, and, as the writer said, great for developers. Me, I just like having more room.

THE FUTURE. Repeating what I said at the top, I thought Apple would have and could have replaced the DVD drive and use the space for something else. A natural option would be another drive.

Me? I would have loved to see another battery in its place. Yeah, I'm a total battery life guy. Longer the better. You can never have enough battery power.

For this option, there is no DIY solution like the SSD solution presented here. For the battery option, well, we'll just have to wait and see if Apple thinks battery life is as important as I think it is.

I'm guess Apple's more likely to replace the optical drive, and they will one day (probably next year), with more storage than battery. Hey, I'll take that too.

Until then, this is a DIY SSD solution looks pretty good.

More at GIGAOM.

First Post From IPad 2 And Initial Impression - Awesome!

This is the very first post I've sent from from an iPad 2. Feels and looks the same as any old iPad. Well, except for the camera facing me from the right and the Smart Cover that is propping up the iPad 2 at an angle for easier typing.

It's overcast in Pasadena, city about 10 miles or so northeast of Los Angeles. You know, where those Rose Parade is held each and every single year.

While this isn't a review, I can say that the screen is very good despite sitting here in the outdoors where I am at at a coffee shop. The overall feel of the screen does seem to be brother than the original iPad with the setting at 50% brightness.

Since I've passed along my iPad to my nephew a couple of weeks ago, I thought I would need to get reacquainted with the layout of the virtual keyboard but it's all second nature to me at this point.

And I only was able to get my hands on the iPad 2 yesterday, I cannot say just how fast it really is. With the original iPad, it was loaded to the rim with apps, musics, and video. So it's possible that it might have had an influence on the performance a bit. I did notice that the iPad 2 felt more responsive than the original iPad. And I thought it had been plenty fast already. In fact, I think both models felt more responsive than the beta-ish Honeycomb on the Motorola Xoom that I played with over the weekend.

And, with the extra memory, I like the fact that Safari is able to load websites in the background, and fast. Unlike the iPad, there is no delays in waiting for some of the more complicated website to load.

All in all, the iPad 2 a worthy upgrade. The extra memory and speed is going to make a big diff once Apple and developers come out with more features and productivity apps in future iOS releases.

For original iPad owners, my short time with the iPad 2 is telling me that upgrading from the iPad might not make a lot of sense unless you want to do a lot of FaceTime chats. The extra speed is nice but I don't know much noticeable it'll be for day to day use.

If you can find someone to pass off the iPad, like a child or spouse, and have some extra money to burn, sure, why not.

And if you want to jump into the tablet market, this is the iPad to get. But aren't sure or is intimidated by the perpetual line at the Apple Stores that you keep hearing about, Go after 10am when most of the Apple Stores are opened and the lines will be gone by then. Check it out. Play with it and changes are, you'll either be joining the lines or going home to order and wait 3-4 weeks for yours.

I don't know what Apple is going to do to top this with iPad 3. Retina screen? You might have heard that Apple might release an updated iPad in the fall. Not a chance. The iPad 2 is just this good. There simply is no iPad competitor that will come onto the market and give users the same experience and dazzle you with the magic.

I am first a foremost mobile tech fan and I do like Android but 2011 is all iPad 2.

Sent from my iPad 2

iWeb For iPad: It Would Blow the Roof Of For Mobile Users And Open Up A New Front In Tablet Productivity

iWeb is the way to go for simple folks like myself who want to create our own sites and manage it ourselves.  Apple has made that such easy, albeit a bit more restrictive than I would like.  It's why I also use Rapidweaver.  Now, news come that Apple has patented iWeb for the iPad.  The question I'm sure many are asking is if such an app will ever see the light of day.  Heck, I'll settle for even a glimpse of it in the darkest of alley.  Okay, makes no sense but you know what I mean.

I'm hoping Apple will make this happen.  There are a few things Apple has to do to make sure it works on the iPad as well as on the Mac.

I've been using iWeb in conjunction with MobileMe to run my Greenjava website, a depository of relevant news on politics, economy, mobile, and coffee.  It works.  Not great but much better than anything that I've come across. But I cannot do that on the iPad.  The thing that is so robust about other web and blogging platforms are that they are so versatile.  You can update blogs from anywhere on just about any platform.  I hope Apple provides a means for iWeb to do just that.

I thought that would come with version 3 of iWeb but as many people who use it as their main tool for Web work, we were sorely disappointed.  Very disappointed.  

And Patently Apple's news about iWeb patent is a good sign.  These days, any news about the iWeb is good news.   I don't know how this is going to work for the iPad.  My hope is that all iWeb files will reside in the cloud and we will be able to work on the files and update it on the Mac, iPad, or any other iOS devices like the iPhone.  A lot of times, I just want to update and post blogs.  I think it would be a no-brainer function for Apple to add to the next version of iWeb, be it for the Mac or iPad.

iWeb would be a very important app for the iPad.  It would be an important productivity tool that so far does not exist anywhere in the app store, as far as I know.   One of the thing that Apple doesn't have to do that Google has to is to create a model device for others to follow.  Just as Google has created the Nexus One and Nexus, and probably a Nexus tablet, Apple should create model productivity tools for other developers to follow.  

The iWeb would be a very important step in that direction.  

I like to see Rapidweaver come to the iOS devices, particularly the iPad.  What other Mac OS tools would you like to see come to the iPad?  

More at Patently Apple.

iPad 2 Can Be Found In Stock But Selections Limited

I struck out again this morning at the Pasadena Apple Store. I take comfort in the fact that the iPad I ordered from AT&T is here. But given the demand among my family, I will probably relinquish it. I've got a favorite aunt who I want to surprise on Sunday.

Meanwhile, I checked around local area Apple stores in LA. Quite a few of them still have iPads in stock as of this writing. I don't want to give you hope because the quantities are limited and I encourage you to call around. For instance, the Glendale store has the 16GB White Verizon model but nothing else.

The Target on Colorado Blvd near Lake has the 64GB Black Verizon models.

None of them are the 16 GB white AT&T one that I want.

Still, if you're more open to other offerings, a little leg work and you should be able to get your hands on one. But you'll have to be quick.

Apple Employees Have A Certain Air About Them

Has anyone discussed this on the blog or anywhere else? Here I am at the Apple Store in Pasadena hope to even get a glimpse of the 16 GB ATT white iPad 2 that I have yet to be able to get for myself.

What is interesting about waiting in line today is that I have been seeing a stream of Apple employees walking by and into the store. And the sheer numbers is amazing.

I estimated about thirty people walking past us and into the store. I don't even pretend to know how many folks it takes to run a successful retail operation like an Apple storebut that is an awful lot of people.

Not only that, there is an air about them that is vastly different from the other employees just arriving at the other retail stores.

It's not arrogance. I've dealt with many of these Apple people in the past. And they are some of the nicest people who has not only a job to do but an strong desire to do their tasks well and provide the customers with the best help possible.

And it became pretty easy to tell who they were over time. They dressed differently even in their civilian clothes with the white earbuds as they walk by with the iced mocha or messenger bag.

I chalk this up to confidence that they were offering the line-up of products and for working with a very innovating company.

I cannot imagine such an atmosphere at other tech places like Frys or Best Buy. This is not a knock on the people working there but the smallness and more centralized set of products and services that Apple offers likely help foster this environment.

On another note, while we were waiting in line, we got some excitement when the a couple workers from a glass company were moving a glass display into H&M store next to Apple And shattered it.

Here's a pic of it. I'd show the line of people around me waiting foe the iPad 2 but that's probable getting old by now.



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