Today I get back to work and the buzz is the iPhone 4 has reception problems. I am on day 5 with the iPhone 4 and have yet to have a problem.
This weekend we drove up and down the Columbia River Gorge on our way to Spokane. The iPhone 4 performed just as well as my old 3Gs (which is now my wife’s) and my brothers Verizon Droid.
So I do not believe rumors about reception issues.
I came away from yesterdays iPad news with mixed feelings. A giant iPod touch? Hmmm…. Not sure that’s something I want. After all it lacked some of the features I thought it should have. But when I thought about it, I was wanting more of a computer and what they released if much more of a reader.
With that in mind I set out to evaluate it against the Barns and Noble Nook and the Amazon Kindle.
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| Features | Nook | Kindle | iPad |
| Screen | 6″ E-inc/Color | 6″/9.7″ E-inc | 9.7″ of LED Backlit Apple Kick-ass-ness |
| Wireless | Wifi/3G | Wifi/3G | Wifi/3G |
| Wireless Plan | Free 3G | Free 3G | $15 |
| Books Cost | Around $9 | Around $9 | $15? |
| Book Store | Barns and Noble | Amazon | Apple, and Probably Amazon and BN via their Apps |
| Interface | Partial Touch Screen | Buttons | Multi-touch |
| Maybe | Extra | Oh Ya | |
| Expandability | SD Cards | None | None |
| Hackability | Its running Android/Linux… | I guess it can be done | Steve Jobs is watching you |
| Other Things it Does | Not Much | Not Much | Various other Multi-media, Games, Apps from the Apple App store. | Lowest Price Model | $259 | $259 | $499 |
Conclusion: The iPad, although lacking free 3G, is a reader +. If you are going to buy a reader you should strongly consider the iPad. If you are looking for a small computer you should consider the MacBook Air or any one of the unwashed masses of netbooks.
I think its important to remember that Apple Steve was not looking to reinvent the laptop.
Unless you actually live in a cave, or don’t have internet access (its really the same thing), you will have sensed that the intertubez are climaxing over the whole Apple tablet thing. Prepare for orgasm, unless there is no tablet in which case the internet will be seriously pissed off.
If I remember I will post where the best live blog is happening. Already a great bet will be FakeSteve.net.
I just descovered the WordPress app for iPhone. Look out blogosphere my goal of shorter, more frequent updates might become a reality.
Want to impress your friends and bore the crap out of your wife? I have got the app for you! Jaadu VNC allows you to remote control your home or office computer from your iPhone.
Warning: you need to have a little geek in you to a) want to do this b) understand the technology to get Jaadu VNC to work. If you feel like your home router is not that scary, this is easy.
» Read more: Jaadu VNC for iPhone. Remote Control Computer from Your iPhone.
A few weeks ago I posted about ordering the iPhone 3G S. Now that I have had some time playing with it I can give a bit of a review.
iPhone 3G S First Impressions
The first thing you notice, at least when upgrading, is a significant increase in speed. It seems like load times are significantly reduced. The iPhone does not multi-task, meaning it does not run multiple apps at the same time. On the S model switching apps feels like switching apps where on the original 3G it feels like closing one and opening another.
» Read more: iPhone 3G S Review
Just to prove how nerdy I actually am. I have pre-ordered a iPhone 3G S. To the average user the S upgrade might not seem like much, indeed if your are not an Apple geek the $99 iPhone will work great for you. However the new iPhone will offer a processor that is about twice as fast. It will also include a compass and the ability to record and edit video. The camera also receives a minor upgrade to 3 mega-pixles. I will post more once I have had a chance to play with it. The phone is released on Friday and my wife is very excited about lining up outside the store at 6:00 AM (note the extreme sarcasm).
