Xoom Versus Iconia Versus iPad 2 Versus Stuff Not Even On the Market Yet

You might know by now that Acer will be selling its new Iconia tablet, 10" running Android 3, Honeycomb, exclusively through Best Buy.  It's basically the same specs as the Xoom except for the looks.  What would you get?  Sticking with iPad 2 or waiting on the Playbook or Touchpad?

Let's focus on the WiFi versions of the tablets here since the Iconia is WiFi only.  The WiFi-only Xoom comes in at $600 on sale now at Staples while the Iconia won't be available until later in the month.  And Acer has priced it at a low low $450 with 16GB of storage.  That is $50 lower than the base iPad 2.  But the iPad 2 is the iPad 2, the standard bearer of the tablet market.  

Of the three, which should you get?  Or wait?

Well, as I mobile fan, I'm gonna be getting a Honeycomb device for sure but when the Xoom came out at $800 with the 3G version, it was priced out of the amount I was willing to spend.  And the $600 WiFi only certainly had me thinking, my hands-on with the Xoom make me wait a bit longer.  Honeycomb felt rushed and beta-ish and running Android apps on it was kind of icky.  There are hardly any apps but what I did see showed promise.  Just hoping Google will hurry it up and release an update already.

Back to the pricing issue a bit. Iconia will cost $450.  See, I would have jumped all over the Xoom at $500.  So, here's what I'm thinking at the moment.

Acer gears tend to reliable to a point.  You really have to take your chances with their laptops. You love it or you hate it.  My experience with their gears is that they can make decent laptops but they feel cheap.  Very plasticky.  But at a good price  Motorola's Xoom feels sturdier and, without testing the Iconia, I'm very worried about how cheap it'll feel.  Let's face it, it comes in at $450 so expect it to feel plasticky.  And it does weigh more than Xoom and a lot more than the iPad 2.  

If it's value, I will just on a $500 Xoom in a heart beat. Come late April and the Iconia does somehow live up to my expectation, that's what I'm getting. And that's the Android part. 

Now, Apple's iPad 2. You certainly cannot go wrong with the iPad 2.  You're get a premium device for a very good price.  I see people going with Android only because they cannot stand Apple and its way of doing business.  Me?  I'm okay with that.  But that's me.  And as a mobile fan, I love what Google and Android represents.  Android, is and never was, "open".  But it's an alternative to the iOS dominion so that's good enough for me.

And with the iPad 2, you know you'll always get Apple's best.  Nothing like the perpetual beta feel you get from Google at times.  

As for Playbook and Touchpad, well, we'll figure out more about them as they come along but with Iconia coming in below everyone else, I think we are looking at a pricing pressure in the Android tablet market even before everyone else is out with theirs (HTC, Samsung, LG).  It won't impact the iPad at all.  But it might hurt HP and RIM big time if they don't adjust to the market quickly.

For us mobile warriors, the Iconia, whether you like Android or not, represents competition.  And you gotta love that.  

Having Problem With Sling App - iOS Being Used To Sell Other Goods And Services

When Sling Media made available an app for the iPhone and iPod touch it was a game changer as far as I am concerned. With the Sling Pro, I was able to watch television from just about anywhere I can and when I wanted. I know of someone who has hooked up a DVR, a sat TV setup, and some contraption to stream video.

And the iPhone app worked well with the iPad. Until recently. There is a separate iPad version of the Slingplayer that requires a newer version of the Slingbox hardware. I don't get why that is?

I think it's shameless that the Slingbox Pro that was out only a couple of years ago cannot work with today's iOS player.

To say that it is irritating is putting it mildly. And if I wanted to use the regular iPhone app on the iPad or, heck, just on the iPhone, I am forced to upgrade the firmware as well. And I get the feeling that Sling is trying in a very sneak manner to get me to update the Sling. Just a feeling but a feeling nontheless.

I think the iOS is a great platform for companies to sell services. And with the mobility being such an important part of our lives, companies can capitalize on selling us services or, in this case, hardware to use the service.

I'm fine with that. But at the same time, they have a responsibility to make it easier to use the apps. And i'm not alone. Just look at the ratings and comments on the App Store about the Sling app.

Pure Speculation: AT&T Want T-Mobile To Sell More iPhone? If So, Maybe Next iPhone Will Be Unlocked

Here's a post from Daily Wireless that question adding spectrum as the reason for AT&T buying T-Mobile.  Maybe it is.  Maybe it isn't.  Maybe it's related to why T-Mobile is where it is at today and it all goes back to the iPhone as some blogs have suggested when it failed to first acquire the iPhone 

Maybe.  I admit it's a little Glen Beck-ish but hear me out.  

If the DW post, which questioned (like I did) the reason behind why AT&T wants T-Mobile, is not true, then what is the reason AT&T buying T-Mobile be about?  After all, T-Mobile's 3G network operate on the AWS band, which is why a 3G device that runs on AT&T's network will not work with T-Mobile's 3G network.  The two just don't mesh.  And if AT&T wants to convert T-Mobile's current 3G network into a wider LTE one, that might make sense but it's a lot of work.  Very very messy.

So if it's not about spectrum, what's it about?  And after all, T-Mobile's HPSA+ network seems pretty competitive already.

Could be this be about the iPhone then?  Economy of scale?

There are about 40 million or so T-Mobile customers who like the service but would want the iPhone.  Like myself but don't want to go to AT&T or Verizon.  Earlier today, I tweeted that knowing AT&T will acquire T-Mobile, after it has satisfied competitors and regulatory agencies, could Apple then potentially sell an iPhone in the US, unlocked for use on any carrier because AT&T would not care if people buy the iPhone for use on its network or T-Mobile?

One pitfall is that there is no promise that the next iPhone will work on T-Mobile's HPSA+ network.  In fact, if one can buy an unlocked iPhone for use on T-Mobile, it'll likely get only EDGE speed.  

Regardless of whether the next iPhone runs over 3G on T-Mobile or not, it'll do something that the future 130 million+ subscriber AT&T company wants: keep potentially lucrative users at T-Mobile happy.  For today's AT&T, those T-Mobile users will be its subscribers anyway.  

And keeping a large number of these high-paying T-Mobile around is better than losing them to Verizon.  

Crazy?  Yes.  Like the title of this post said: Pure Speculation.  

And yet, don't be surprise that when Steve Jobs unveils the next iPhone, he tells us that it'll run either on either the CDMA or GSM network and that it's unlocked.  However, I would be surprised if it works on T-Mobile's 3G network.

More at Daily Wireless.

New Toshiba NAND Flash Memory Means Two Things - Good And Maybe Not So Good

It's been two cycles where the iPhone has not been upgraded to a higher capacity.  And with the just released iPad 2, the maximum storage capacity remains 64GB.  However, with the just released NAND flash memory, we could be looking at the next iPhone with increased capacity.  

If patterns hold, we could be looking at a low-end 8 GB iPhone 4 and a 32 GB and 64 GB iPhone 5 (I like iPhone 4G better).  And it also possible that we can see a midway upgrade with the iPad 2 in the fall or just before Holiday Season with the capacity of the iPad 2 increased.  

With the new memory, it affords Apple a greater flexibility than its competitors.  How would you like the  8GB iPhone 4 at $49 or $99?  Or with Apple possibly increasing the iPad 2 storage capacity while keeping the same price points, Apple can add a newer low end model with 16GB for $449 or even lower at $399.

And this, as a happy iPod touch owner, I do look forward to a 128GB model.  It'll go nicely with my iSpot should I decide against the next iPhone.

Those are the good news, albeit speculative on my part.  Now the possible bad news, depending on what you think.  

If the iPod touch does get an upgrade to 128 GB, we can be looking at the end of the iPod Classic.  The possibility is there because the Classic has not been updated since 2009.  After all, the iOS is the future.  The general target for the iPod touch are kids who want the iPhone and all the greatness of the iTunes ecosystem without paying for a hefty monthly fee.

My hope is that Apple will keep the Classic around with a higher storage capacity - there is a new 1.8" hard drive, also from Toshiba, with 220 GB.  Apple already pretty much owes the music player market and the Classic is important to make sure it continues to dominate the market.  But Apple does have a way of keeping off the old and obsolete.

Again, good news for the iOS devices and maybe bad news for the Classic.

More at MacNN.

Note:  I've set the future lower end iPhone at 8 GB because this will allow Apple to continue to differentiate the high-end iPhones and possible lower the price to $49 to attack its competitor at the low-end.  Perhaps, we'll see a 8GB iPhone 4 at $49 and a 16GB model at $99.

iPhone 5 Line May Continue To Be Long

Interest among kids, rather teens, could make the lines this summer, or fall, things to expect upon the release I'd the iPhone 5.

Currently at an all-time high, a survey by a Wall Street outfit has teens ready to march to Apple's mobile tune.

I guess the lines are pretty bad now for the iPad 2, I really don't want to see what the iPhone 5 lines are going to be in the US at Apple stores now that Verizon is expected to join AT&T in the iPhone rush (I still don't expect Sprint and T-Mobile have the iPhone this year).

Other than positive news about this survey, Apple should actively cater to this demographics. After all, the halo effect from the iPods and iPhones from the youth will mean sales for other Apple products and services.

Whether the future is the iPad or the Macbook, or a future MacPad someday, Apple should make sure iOS updates include youth-friendly functions. Twitter, Facebook, or double down on it's own social efforts.

Regardless, get ready to wait in lines once again.

More at Appleinsider.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPod touch

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.