What kind of abuse can an iPhone take? If a construction company were to invest in iPhones for its workers or technicians, they would want to make sure that a year later, their investment is still intact.
I have owned my iPhone for nearly a year, and most of that time I have either had no protective case or very slim cases that just give the iPhone a little bounce, should it fall. My iPhone has survived countless falls and one total underwater submersion. It took a day for the speakerphone to start working again after my 18 month old threw it in a thankfully empty toilet. The iPhone can definitely take some serious abuse.
The following video demonstrates the strengths and weaknesses of iPhone durability.
The device is surprisingly robust. Below is a video of the iPhone being dropped 3 stories from a rooftop and although the case takes some serious scratching, the screen survives.
An impact that does not put a focused pressure point will generally not affect the iPhone. But dropping your phone from waist height can break your screen if it lands wrong or a small object hits the screen directly.
So what can be done to protect a company's investment?
Buy a screen protector.
There are many kinds of screen protectors including ones that will hold up to harsh environments. Below you'll see a demonstration of a product by zagg.
Buy a protective case.
I would recommend the Otterbox Defender for construction use. Below is a review so you can see how it works. It combines a hard plastic case, a silicone outer case, and a built in, hard plastic, transparent screen protector. With this your iPhone can take a beating. I have purposefully dropped my iPhone with this case hundreds of times without a scratch.
Replace the screen if it breaks.
iPhones can have their screens replaced if necessary. They are fairly inexpensive and easy to do in house. The glass digitizer can be replaced for about $40 and if the lcd is damaged beneath that, you can get it replaced for about $80. This is much more cost effective than replacing the device. Our construction company has had about 15 iPhones for about a year and has only had to replace 1 screen so far. The below video demonstrates the procedure and informs you where you can go to buy the parts (http://www.pdaparts.com).
Tell your people to be careful.
These devices are as robust or more so than other devices in their category. Just use common sense and take good care of the device and it will serve your construction company for years.
Showing posts with label iPhone. Show all posts
Showing posts with label iPhone. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
The Multitasking iPhone
The iPhone has dominated the smartphone market for quite some time. It has done so many things right that the only way to compete against it is to attempt to turn its strengths into perceived weaknesses. In effect, if you can't make a better device/platform, try using misleading marketing to muddy the water.
The iPhone OS, that runs on the iPhone, iPod Touch, and the upcoming iPad, was engineered to support multiple applications running concurrently. Apple does this with its own built-in software but prevents third party developers from doing so. It does this for performance, security, and usability reasons.
Apple has created a sleek and elegant platform where users can easily jump from one app to to another by returning to the home screen and launching another app. It is two taps on the device folks. Apple encourages developers to save the state of their apps so that users returning to the app can pick up where they left off. This method ensures the app that is currently open has access to the vast majority of the resources the device has to offer. This means better performing apps, the ability to execute much more complex software, and an extended battery life.
If multiple apps were allowed to run in the background, it would be more difficult to prevent malicious software from executing unwanted code or to capture the user's activities. The fact that the device shuts down the execution of software and frees up the memory that the application was using makes the system more secure from outside threats.
On an iPhone you really don't have that much screen real estate to begin with. So you can really only be working in one app at a time anyway. So the need for multitasking can really be divided into two camps: the need to switch apps quickly, and the need to have certain collaborative functions of your apps running constantly. For the first, its only two taps...enough said. Its in the developer's hands to make the app launch quickly and smoothly. The second need is legitimate. Apple has its innovative push notification service that partially solves this problem, but not in all circumstances.
Rumors abound as to what Apple will do in its subsequent iPhone OS releases. I expect Apple to add something akin to a windows service that will not allow full apps to run in the background, but will instead allow a "lite" version without an interface that will allow selected functions of the app to continue. I'm sure Apple will police what goes on in these "lite" services, but this will eliminate the technical hurdles developers face trying to develop collaborative apps that would otherwise require the app to be opened at all times (An app that reports a technicians GPS location perhaps).
What I know is that Apple will do, or not do, whatever it takes to protect the user experience. And Apple's 2.5 billion app downloads in 2009 demonstrates that it's user experience reigns supreme.
The iPhone OS, that runs on the iPhone, iPod Touch, and the upcoming iPad, was engineered to support multiple applications running concurrently. Apple does this with its own built-in software but prevents third party developers from doing so. It does this for performance, security, and usability reasons.
Apple has created a sleek and elegant platform where users can easily jump from one app to to another by returning to the home screen and launching another app. It is two taps on the device folks. Apple encourages developers to save the state of their apps so that users returning to the app can pick up where they left off. This method ensures the app that is currently open has access to the vast majority of the resources the device has to offer. This means better performing apps, the ability to execute much more complex software, and an extended battery life.
If multiple apps were allowed to run in the background, it would be more difficult to prevent malicious software from executing unwanted code or to capture the user's activities. The fact that the device shuts down the execution of software and frees up the memory that the application was using makes the system more secure from outside threats.
On an iPhone you really don't have that much screen real estate to begin with. So you can really only be working in one app at a time anyway. So the need for multitasking can really be divided into two camps: the need to switch apps quickly, and the need to have certain collaborative functions of your apps running constantly. For the first, its only two taps...enough said. Its in the developer's hands to make the app launch quickly and smoothly. The second need is legitimate. Apple has its innovative push notification service that partially solves this problem, but not in all circumstances.
Rumors abound as to what Apple will do in its subsequent iPhone OS releases. I expect Apple to add something akin to a windows service that will not allow full apps to run in the background, but will instead allow a "lite" version without an interface that will allow selected functions of the app to continue. I'm sure Apple will police what goes on in these "lite" services, but this will eliminate the technical hurdles developers face trying to develop collaborative apps that would otherwise require the app to be opened at all times (An app that reports a technicians GPS location perhaps).
What I know is that Apple will do, or not do, whatever it takes to protect the user experience. And Apple's 2.5 billion app downloads in 2009 demonstrates that it's user experience reigns supreme.
The iPad and the Flashless Web
One complaint that I have heard from iPad critics is that the iPad will lack Flash support. They make the claim that without Flash, the 80% of websites out there that use flash in one way or another will be useless. Critics who obviously do not understand the mass appeal of the iPad, try to categorize it as a tablet and then criticize it for not conforming.
The iPad is a mobile device that runs the iPhone OS but lacks the phone. It is essentially a oversized iPod Touch with an optional 3G data connection. As a result, the iPad is not a Tablet computer, nor is it a Netbook or Ultra Mobile PC.. It is not subject to boot up times, sleep, hibernate and does not run a full sized operating system such as Windows 7 or Mac OSX. It is the first of what is sure to be a new category of devices that is instantly on when you need it, runs games and multimedia like a champ, can access the web, email, social networking and all the software on Apple's App Store.
At the time of writing this post, there are no mobile phones out there that run Flash. Why? All the nice animations, sound effects and video have a cost. And that cost is the Central Processing Unit of the computer or mobile phone running it. For mobile phones, taxing the CPU means wasting battery life that you can literally feel as the waste product of the CPU, heat, turns your phone into a personal hand-warmer.
Although 80% of the websites out there have Flash on it, most of those sites utilize flash to do banner ads, or smaller home page animations meant to capture attention but only serves as "eye candy", and is not critical to the site content or navigation. Is this "eye candy" worth the price of a dramatically reduced battery life? Apple thinks it isn't. And the lack of Flash hasn't stopped all the millions of iPhone and iPod Touch users from spending several hours per week browsing the "Flashless" web.
Apple has publicly criticized Adobe, who makes Flash, for not making the software more efficient on both the full sized computer and on mobile devices. Apple has also made comments endorsing the emergence of HTML5, a new standard which would allow multimedia to be played in a browser without a plug-in. The emergence of this technology would allow Apple to render multimedia in its own Safari browser without Flash or Quicktime, Apples current multimedia plug-in.
With the popularity of Apples mobile devices, it has considerable clout. Many sites out there are beginning to rethink using Flash and are designing their sites to be more mobile device friendly so that they can provide a similar user experience as those tethered to their PC or Laptop. Apple has already proved its users can operate just fine in a "Flashless" web, the ball is now in Adobe's court to keep that from happening.
The iPad is a mobile device that runs the iPhone OS but lacks the phone. It is essentially a oversized iPod Touch with an optional 3G data connection. As a result, the iPad is not a Tablet computer, nor is it a Netbook or Ultra Mobile PC.. It is not subject to boot up times, sleep, hibernate and does not run a full sized operating system such as Windows 7 or Mac OSX. It is the first of what is sure to be a new category of devices that is instantly on when you need it, runs games and multimedia like a champ, can access the web, email, social networking and all the software on Apple's App Store.At the time of writing this post, there are no mobile phones out there that run Flash. Why? All the nice animations, sound effects and video have a cost. And that cost is the Central Processing Unit of the computer or mobile phone running it. For mobile phones, taxing the CPU means wasting battery life that you can literally feel as the waste product of the CPU, heat, turns your phone into a personal hand-warmer.
Although 80% of the websites out there have Flash on it, most of those sites utilize flash to do banner ads, or smaller home page animations meant to capture attention but only serves as "eye candy", and is not critical to the site content or navigation. Is this "eye candy" worth the price of a dramatically reduced battery life? Apple thinks it isn't. And the lack of Flash hasn't stopped all the millions of iPhone and iPod Touch users from spending several hours per week browsing the "Flashless" web.
Apple has publicly criticized Adobe, who makes Flash, for not making the software more efficient on both the full sized computer and on mobile devices. Apple has also made comments endorsing the emergence of HTML5, a new standard which would allow multimedia to be played in a browser without a plug-in. The emergence of this technology would allow Apple to render multimedia in its own Safari browser without Flash or Quicktime, Apples current multimedia plug-in.
With the popularity of Apples mobile devices, it has considerable clout. Many sites out there are beginning to rethink using Flash and are designing their sites to be more mobile device friendly so that they can provide a similar user experience as those tethered to their PC or Laptop. Apple has already proved its users can operate just fine in a "Flashless" web, the ball is now in Adobe's court to keep that from happening.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
The iPhone gets a Hardhat
In an earlier post, I spoke about how the iPhone can be used in business. But what about the construction industry? The people there know that they face unique challenges and chief among them is the environment thier phones are subjected to.
After managing the use of phones of many makes and manufacturers for a large commercial contractor, I can tell you that not only are they up to the task, but many characteristics make them uniquely qualified to do it.
iPhones have a very nice touch screen. It has crip colors and multitouch sensors and serves as the primary method of human interaction. It also serves as the number one way to ruin your iPhone. Even if the device is still functional after you crack your screen, its beauty is past and your enthusiasm for using a device with parts of the screen malfunctioning will wane.
For critics of the iPhone, it all stops there. There is no mention of what to do when this happens or how to prevent it from happening in the first place. They just want you to think that your investment is wasted and you must now purchase a new device without a contract...ouch, thats expensive.
Fortunately, the iPhone is more resilient than that.
For starters, you can get some very nice cases for the iPhone that can add a little protection and style on one end, or go all the way to military style ruggedized cases. Many of these cases are minimalistic in design and yet will provide considerable protection during an impact. Otterbox makes cases that are stylish but effective, and they even make a model that will make your iPhone survive running over it with a truck.
Now lets say you drop your naked iPhone. For starters, the screen isn't that fragile and the rest of the unit has no moving parts so the most likely thing to happen is that you might scratch the corner of the outer shell. But lets say it comes to the worst case scenario and you crack your screen.
Fortunately, the iPhone allows you to replace the screen. There are low cost kits you can buy that have a few small tools that enable you to revive your fallen iPhone. You simply use a suction cup to pull of whats left of your screen, disconnect three cables connecting the electronics, plug in the new screen and push it into place. There are videos on YouTube demonstrating the procedure.
For the quality of the device, ease of use, and availability of business software, the iPhone stands well ahead of the competition. With protective cases suited to the environment and the ease at which to can replace the screen in case of an impact, it is capable of holding up on job sites as well or better than other cell phones with far inferior feature sets. As more software pops up targeting the construction industry on the iPhone, there really isn't a compelling reason to not suit the iPhone up for work. Just make sure you (and your iPhone) don't forget your hardhat!
After managing the use of phones of many makes and manufacturers for a large commercial contractor, I can tell you that not only are they up to the task, but many characteristics make them uniquely qualified to do it.
iPhones have a very nice touch screen. It has crip colors and multitouch sensors and serves as the primary method of human interaction. It also serves as the number one way to ruin your iPhone. Even if the device is still functional after you crack your screen, its beauty is past and your enthusiasm for using a device with parts of the screen malfunctioning will wane.
For critics of the iPhone, it all stops there. There is no mention of what to do when this happens or how to prevent it from happening in the first place. They just want you to think that your investment is wasted and you must now purchase a new device without a contract...ouch, thats expensive.
Fortunately, the iPhone is more resilient than that.
For starters, you can get some very nice cases for the iPhone that can add a little protection and style on one end, or go all the way to military style ruggedized cases. Many of these cases are minimalistic in design and yet will provide considerable protection during an impact. Otterbox makes cases that are stylish but effective, and they even make a model that will make your iPhone survive running over it with a truck.
Now lets say you drop your naked iPhone. For starters, the screen isn't that fragile and the rest of the unit has no moving parts so the most likely thing to happen is that you might scratch the corner of the outer shell. But lets say it comes to the worst case scenario and you crack your screen.
Fortunately, the iPhone allows you to replace the screen. There are low cost kits you can buy that have a few small tools that enable you to revive your fallen iPhone. You simply use a suction cup to pull of whats left of your screen, disconnect three cables connecting the electronics, plug in the new screen and push it into place. There are videos on YouTube demonstrating the procedure.
For the quality of the device, ease of use, and availability of business software, the iPhone stands well ahead of the competition. With protective cases suited to the environment and the ease at which to can replace the screen in case of an impact, it is capable of holding up on job sites as well or better than other cell phones with far inferior feature sets. As more software pops up targeting the construction industry on the iPhone, there really isn't a compelling reason to not suit the iPhone up for work. Just make sure you (and your iPhone) don't forget your hardhat!
The iPhone Goes Corporate
I have heard iPhone critics say that although it is an outstanding consumer device, the iPhone is just not ready for business. They have implied that corporate email and software are best used on a Blackberry.
There are many aspects of the iPhone that not only make it suitable for corporate use, but superior.
First, it brings all the advantages of a well designed, user friendly, smartphone, including mobile access to email, web, IM, calendar and business applications. You might say that all the smartphones offer this, but some simple statistics show that the iPhone does it better. According to AdMob, the iPhone accounts for over 50% of mobile traffic, despite only having about 2% market share on mobile phones. This shows that iPhone users are much more likely to use their phones for use on the web.
Second, the iPhone has a well designed Software Development Kit or SDK. This refers to the the development environment and coding frameworks that allow a programmer to develop software for the iPhone. Although detractors quickly state that is done in Objective C, and its syntax is quite different from most modern programming languages, its primary strength is that once you learn it, you can develop highly interactive software with very few lines of code. This means businesses can build extremely intuitive and interactive mobile software that interacts with its corporate networks, for a fraction of the cost.
Next, the iPhone has an App Store that few rivals can dream of. More and more business oriented software crops up there every day. According to Forrester Research, Apples App Store had over 2.5 billion app downloads in 2009. The rest of the industry combined only did 16 million. This shows that iPhones users are much more likely to install and use mobile software on their phones. Thanks to the app store, mobile software is effortless to download, and the iPhone alerts you with a small red badge when apps you have installed have been updated. This means businesses have a way of deploying software accross their enterprise in record time.
Finally, lets talk email. I know many Blackberry users rave about their email, but I have failed to see someone not give Apple the win when seeing their features side by side. For one thing, the iPhone does not require a subscription or a special dedicated server for integrating with Microsoft Exchange. Like other smartphones, the iPhone ties into the web interface built in to Exchange and it takes seconds to set up. I have seen seasoned IT professionals take weeks setting up the link between Exchange and the Blackberry server.
The iPhone is affordable, user friendly, and opens up new avenues of software creation and deployment. If there is a downside, it is simply that they are too much fun to use. From an IT professional's point of view, if you tell your employees that they must use a complicated piece of software, but only provide them with a sub-par computer to do it on, you are not likely to have a successful adoption of the software. However, if you tell them they must use the software on a platform and device that is a pleasure to use, your chances of adopting the new technology and making a positive impact on the bottom line just went up.
Better dress your iPhone in a suit, because it about to take over your office.
Disclosure: Our construction company is rapidly deploying iPhones accross our Management Team and Jobsite Supervision because the devices are just so effective. We have started building software for the iPhone simply because it is easy to use, deploy, and it is always at our employee's side.
There are many aspects of the iPhone that not only make it suitable for corporate use, but superior.
First, it brings all the advantages of a well designed, user friendly, smartphone, including mobile access to email, web, IM, calendar and business applications. You might say that all the smartphones offer this, but some simple statistics show that the iPhone does it better. According to AdMob, the iPhone accounts for over 50% of mobile traffic, despite only having about 2% market share on mobile phones. This shows that iPhone users are much more likely to use their phones for use on the web.
Second, the iPhone has a well designed Software Development Kit or SDK. This refers to the the development environment and coding frameworks that allow a programmer to develop software for the iPhone. Although detractors quickly state that is done in Objective C, and its syntax is quite different from most modern programming languages, its primary strength is that once you learn it, you can develop highly interactive software with very few lines of code. This means businesses can build extremely intuitive and interactive mobile software that interacts with its corporate networks, for a fraction of the cost.
Next, the iPhone has an App Store that few rivals can dream of. More and more business oriented software crops up there every day. According to Forrester Research, Apples App Store had over 2.5 billion app downloads in 2009. The rest of the industry combined only did 16 million. This shows that iPhones users are much more likely to install and use mobile software on their phones. Thanks to the app store, mobile software is effortless to download, and the iPhone alerts you with a small red badge when apps you have installed have been updated. This means businesses have a way of deploying software accross their enterprise in record time.
Finally, lets talk email. I know many Blackberry users rave about their email, but I have failed to see someone not give Apple the win when seeing their features side by side. For one thing, the iPhone does not require a subscription or a special dedicated server for integrating with Microsoft Exchange. Like other smartphones, the iPhone ties into the web interface built in to Exchange and it takes seconds to set up. I have seen seasoned IT professionals take weeks setting up the link between Exchange and the Blackberry server.
The iPhone is affordable, user friendly, and opens up new avenues of software creation and deployment. If there is a downside, it is simply that they are too much fun to use. From an IT professional's point of view, if you tell your employees that they must use a complicated piece of software, but only provide them with a sub-par computer to do it on, you are not likely to have a successful adoption of the software. However, if you tell them they must use the software on a platform and device that is a pleasure to use, your chances of adopting the new technology and making a positive impact on the bottom line just went up.
Better dress your iPhone in a suit, because it about to take over your office.
Disclosure: Our construction company is rapidly deploying iPhones accross our Management Team and Jobsite Supervision because the devices are just so effective. We have started building software for the iPhone simply because it is easy to use, deploy, and it is always at our employee's side.
Friday, February 12, 2010
The iPad will rip it up!
The iPad has been much maligned since its announcement a few weeks ago. Everyone seems ready to second guess Apple on what critical features were left out. It seems that most professional analysts are afraid to endorse it because they’re worried what will happen if the iPad is not a success. I guess it is easier to find an excuse to why you were critical of a product that was successful then to explain why you endorsed a product that was a flop.
To me the question of whether or not the iPad is going to be a success comes down to a few simple questions: What would my family and I use it for and how is it different from other devices on the market today? I believe I am part of a large number of people uniquely qualified to answer this question because I own an iPhone, Kindle, and a really nice netbook.
Movies
We are probably not going to watch movies at home on this. We have a much larger hi definition television for that. However, I can definitely see us entertaining our children with this on Road trips. Our aftermarket DVD players in our vehicle are on their last leg and their seven inch screens are too hard to see from the back seat. Also, having the movies digitized and available on a device will save us the money of having to replace scratched DVD’s all the time. Although iPods can do the job as well, their screens are just not big enough to let multiple children share at the same time.
Web Browzing
If I am going to do some serious research, I will use a full size desktop computer. And when I say desktop, I mean my PC running Windows 7, the best OS on the planet. But when it comes to browzing the web during leisure times such as while relaxing in a chair or at night in bed, this device really makes sense. The instant on feature allows me to use it without waiting for it to boot, wake up, or log in like a netbook does. Also when not seated at a desk, netbooks are awkward and unweildy. The iPhone OS has proven itself on the iPhone as a very convenient tool for casual web browzing and now that the iPad has come around, it should be even better.
Reading
Both me and my wife were excited to get our Kindle (2nd Generation) a year ago. Its screen looks great in bright sunlight and its battery life is measured weeks instead of hours. So why did I quit using my Kindle when I got my iPhone? Because as much as I would like to claim otherwise, I don’t read my Kindle on the beach on bright sunny days. I usually find time to read at night. I use the Kindle app on my iPhone because it has a backlit screen and is just as easy to use. I can turn the light off and read while my wife gets some sleep or vice versa. The larger screen of the iPad will only make it better. However, I might continue using my Kindle app …we’ll see.
Music
iPods are the undisputed king of music. The iPad has full iPod functionality and if the speakers are good enough I could see my wife using it to do her irish dance when she is not at home. Otherwise we’ll stick with our iPhones.
Email
With email, I think this is a situation where the convenience and usuability of the iPad will allow us to use it in a more leisure way. We’ll be able to respond to email while sitting in a couch or in bed instead of seated at a desk. I expect my wife to use this as her primary email device while at home, and her iPhone while away. With the enhancements they have worked into the email application, this should be even better.
Gaming
I have discovered that the iPhone is a pretty decent gaming device. My kids and I are all addicted to Bloons TD, a tower defence game involving a never ending onslaught of balloons that must be popped. The flash PC version is more complicated and has more levels of strategy and so I cant wait until I see what kind of upgrade comes out with the iPad. The nice thing about gaming on the iPhone OS is that most games are very inexpensive. Since the iPhone OS has such an outstanding software distribution model (2.5 billion apps downloaded in 2009), it makes it a lot easier for game developers to charge less money to a larger audience. Also, we know that $.99 or $1.99 is so small an amount most people don’t think anything of it and are more likely to buy on an impulse. For me and my kids, it means spending less money on Wii and PC games.
Office Apps
My wife and I both write. Sometimes, you get the itch to write at night or during other leisure times, but you just don’t feel like sitting down at a desk. Since this device supports Apples new iWork platform, this provides a legitimate alternative to using a laptop in bed or on a couch. My wife thinks her words through carefully and doesn’t necessarily need to type fast while writing and so I don’t believe the virtual keyboard will be a problem. But the real advantage comes the next day when she can take the iPad to her desk and pick up where she left off with a dock and keyboard.
App Store
With access to the Apple App Store, there is no telling what other uses people will come up with for this device. I’m sure the best uses for this device are yet to be discovered. But with a device that is so portable, convenient and simple to operate, the potential is enormous.
When I think of all the ways that my family and I will use this device, I can’t think of a reason not to buy one. I don’t think I’m alone either.
Will the iPad kill the Netbook? Probably not, but it will do some major damage. Many people who own netbooks will need to execute software that requires a full version of Windows. But for the netbook people that just want to browse the web, send email and do social networking, most will eventually switch to the iPad. I personally spent almost $700 on my hp 2133, so I dont think price will hold them back.
Will the iPad kill the Kindle? No, but it will take a big chunk of its target market. People that read outdoors will stick to the Kindle. People who read mostly at night will probably switch to the iPad and take advantage of full color content.
For Apple, I’ll predict 8 million of these sell in the first 12 months. As for me, I’ll selling both my netbook and my Kindle on eBay.
To me the question of whether or not the iPad is going to be a success comes down to a few simple questions: What would my family and I use it for and how is it different from other devices on the market today? I believe I am part of a large number of people uniquely qualified to answer this question because I own an iPhone, Kindle, and a really nice netbook.
Movies
We are probably not going to watch movies at home on this. We have a much larger hi definition television for that. However, I can definitely see us entertaining our children with this on Road trips. Our aftermarket DVD players in our vehicle are on their last leg and their seven inch screens are too hard to see from the back seat. Also, having the movies digitized and available on a device will save us the money of having to replace scratched DVD’s all the time. Although iPods can do the job as well, their screens are just not big enough to let multiple children share at the same time.
Web Browzing
If I am going to do some serious research, I will use a full size desktop computer. And when I say desktop, I mean my PC running Windows 7, the best OS on the planet. But when it comes to browzing the web during leisure times such as while relaxing in a chair or at night in bed, this device really makes sense. The instant on feature allows me to use it without waiting for it to boot, wake up, or log in like a netbook does. Also when not seated at a desk, netbooks are awkward and unweildy. The iPhone OS has proven itself on the iPhone as a very convenient tool for casual web browzing and now that the iPad has come around, it should be even better.
Reading
Both me and my wife were excited to get our Kindle (2nd Generation) a year ago. Its screen looks great in bright sunlight and its battery life is measured weeks instead of hours. So why did I quit using my Kindle when I got my iPhone? Because as much as I would like to claim otherwise, I don’t read my Kindle on the beach on bright sunny days. I usually find time to read at night. I use the Kindle app on my iPhone because it has a backlit screen and is just as easy to use. I can turn the light off and read while my wife gets some sleep or vice versa. The larger screen of the iPad will only make it better. However, I might continue using my Kindle app …we’ll see.
Music
iPods are the undisputed king of music. The iPad has full iPod functionality and if the speakers are good enough I could see my wife using it to do her irish dance when she is not at home. Otherwise we’ll stick with our iPhones.
With email, I think this is a situation where the convenience and usuability of the iPad will allow us to use it in a more leisure way. We’ll be able to respond to email while sitting in a couch or in bed instead of seated at a desk. I expect my wife to use this as her primary email device while at home, and her iPhone while away. With the enhancements they have worked into the email application, this should be even better.
Gaming
I have discovered that the iPhone is a pretty decent gaming device. My kids and I are all addicted to Bloons TD, a tower defence game involving a never ending onslaught of balloons that must be popped. The flash PC version is more complicated and has more levels of strategy and so I cant wait until I see what kind of upgrade comes out with the iPad. The nice thing about gaming on the iPhone OS is that most games are very inexpensive. Since the iPhone OS has such an outstanding software distribution model (2.5 billion apps downloaded in 2009), it makes it a lot easier for game developers to charge less money to a larger audience. Also, we know that $.99 or $1.99 is so small an amount most people don’t think anything of it and are more likely to buy on an impulse. For me and my kids, it means spending less money on Wii and PC games.
Office Apps
My wife and I both write. Sometimes, you get the itch to write at night or during other leisure times, but you just don’t feel like sitting down at a desk. Since this device supports Apples new iWork platform, this provides a legitimate alternative to using a laptop in bed or on a couch. My wife thinks her words through carefully and doesn’t necessarily need to type fast while writing and so I don’t believe the virtual keyboard will be a problem. But the real advantage comes the next day when she can take the iPad to her desk and pick up where she left off with a dock and keyboard.
App Store
With access to the Apple App Store, there is no telling what other uses people will come up with for this device. I’m sure the best uses for this device are yet to be discovered. But with a device that is so portable, convenient and simple to operate, the potential is enormous.
When I think of all the ways that my family and I will use this device, I can’t think of a reason not to buy one. I don’t think I’m alone either.
Will the iPad kill the Netbook? Probably not, but it will do some major damage. Many people who own netbooks will need to execute software that requires a full version of Windows. But for the netbook people that just want to browse the web, send email and do social networking, most will eventually switch to the iPad. I personally spent almost $700 on my hp 2133, so I dont think price will hold them back.
Will the iPad kill the Kindle? No, but it will take a big chunk of its target market. People that read outdoors will stick to the Kindle. People who read mostly at night will probably switch to the iPad and take advantage of full color content.
For Apple, I’ll predict 8 million of these sell in the first 12 months. As for me, I’ll selling both my netbook and my Kindle on eBay.
Monday, February 8, 2010
iPhone Breakthrough
When you get your first cell phone, it is a life altering experience. You are now connected. You can reach anyone you want anytime you want…if you can remember to charge your battery. But now cell phones have become so common place that it is increasingly being viewed as a necessity. Now people have moved beyond the basic cellular service and are experiencing the increased feature set of smartphones. The ability to be connected, not only by voice, but by data and the plethora of data services hosted on the cloud is truely a breakthough in mobile technology.
When I bought my first PDA, the Dell Axim, but ended up leaving it in my desk drawer I discovered that mobile technology wasn’t yet meant for primetime. Although it had many cool features, it was a second device I had to carry with me and it was just too awkward to use effectively in everyday life. After that experience, I resisted moving to a SmartPhone because although I recognized that mobile technology was necessary, it just wasn’t worth the hassle for mainstream America.
When the iPhone was released, I noticed a significant amount of industry buzz that flared up and it seemed as though many businesses were really taking SmartPhones more seriously. I think much of it was due to the fact that Blackberry and other device manufacterers such as HTC stepped up their game and started producing much higher quality devices.
Since my Sales Director used a Motorola Q, I decided to give it a try. At first, I was impressed with the Motorola Q’s features and capabilities. Although web browsing was very painful, the ability to stay in sync with my email was very nice. But as time wore on, I found that I used it less and less for email and with the keys being so small, I had trouble dialing phone numbers without hitting a wrong key a larger percentage of the time. In short, I found the Motorola Q to be a decent PDA, but a terrible phone. I went back to using a clamshell flip-phone from Samsung.
Then HTC came out with the Touch Pro. By then I had started looking into the iPhone but since I was a Microsoft fan, I didn’t seriously consider buying one, I just wanted to know what features Microsoft was behind on. I was impressed with HTC’s touch screen and navigation. I thought it was a little sad that HTC had to build a UI abstraction to make Windows Mobile more usable, but I thought hey, Microsoft will get this figured out, there just a bit behind.
The HTC Touch Pro was the first truely usable smartphone that I had ever used. It’s web browsing was a little painful because the zoom feature was a bit clunky, but I did use it. The email was usable and the large keyboard was great. For a while, I was really happy with it. But once again, as time rolled on, I found myself rarely checking my email with it. Although texting worked well enough, the UI just wasn’t friendly enough. And sometimes the navigation froze for several seconds while I was switching from doing one thing to another.
About this time, one of my employees showed me his iPhone, and I was anxious to show him how my HTC Touch Pro was superior. Although my phone had better technical specifications, his phone seemed so much simpler and so much easier to do common things. And although I was a Microsoft fan when it comes to their desktop, enterprise, and development technologies, I came to the conclusion that they missed the boat entirely when it came to mobile, and although HTC did a great job in trying to make up for it, they just couldn’t.
A few weeks later, I realized that I left my HTC phone on the airplane as I was leaving security, and they wouldn’t let me back in without a boarding pass. The airline’s office was closed for the night and after calling all week to see if it turned up, I knew someone had walked off with it for good. I decided to try the iPhone. At that time the iPhone 3G was the current model, but everyone expected a new version, so I went back to the Samsung until the 3Gs was released and bought one.
The most I had ever used my cell phone for anything other than calling was probably 20 min per day. Right off the bat, I realized that emailing, texting and web browsing took on a whole new level of usability. Returning email was a piece of cake as was texting. But the web browsing was unbelievable. Here at hh2 Web Services, we build web sites and the iPhone’s easy multi-touch pinch zooming capabilties made it easy to view the full size website and then effortlessly zoon the section you wanted a better look at or to read the text. There were a few occasions right off the bat where I someone called and referenced an email while I was out of the office and I was able to pull the email up during the call and respond to their questions.
Lets also not beat around the bush. I don’t just use my iPhone for business use. The iPod functionality is oustanding. My three year old daughter loves watching movies on it, especially the short films Pixar puts on the end of its DVD’s. Also, there is a thriving gaming industry with the iPhone. By looking in the App Store one day while I was bored waiting for my wifes turn to dance at an Irish dance feis, I discovered tower defence games. They involve much strategy and are very addictive.
The iPhone is definitely the most impressive and useful peice of hardware released in the past 15 years. It has accomplished what many before, and after, have not. It has brought the majority of things that a person uses his or her desktop or laptop for to a personal device that is small enough to fit in your pocket and useful enough that you wouldn’t go anywhere without it. Now, I never forget to charge my cell phone. Its just too important to forget.
When I bought my first PDA, the Dell Axim, but ended up leaving it in my desk drawer I discovered that mobile technology wasn’t yet meant for primetime. Although it had many cool features, it was a second device I had to carry with me and it was just too awkward to use effectively in everyday life. After that experience, I resisted moving to a SmartPhone because although I recognized that mobile technology was necessary, it just wasn’t worth the hassle for mainstream America.
When the iPhone was released, I noticed a significant amount of industry buzz that flared up and it seemed as though many businesses were really taking SmartPhones more seriously. I think much of it was due to the fact that Blackberry and other device manufacterers such as HTC stepped up their game and started producing much higher quality devices.
Since my Sales Director used a Motorola Q, I decided to give it a try. At first, I was impressed with the Motorola Q’s features and capabilities. Although web browsing was very painful, the ability to stay in sync with my email was very nice. But as time wore on, I found that I used it less and less for email and with the keys being so small, I had trouble dialing phone numbers without hitting a wrong key a larger percentage of the time. In short, I found the Motorola Q to be a decent PDA, but a terrible phone. I went back to using a clamshell flip-phone from Samsung.
Then HTC came out with the Touch Pro. By then I had started looking into the iPhone but since I was a Microsoft fan, I didn’t seriously consider buying one, I just wanted to know what features Microsoft was behind on. I was impressed with HTC’s touch screen and navigation. I thought it was a little sad that HTC had to build a UI abstraction to make Windows Mobile more usable, but I thought hey, Microsoft will get this figured out, there just a bit behind.
The HTC Touch Pro was the first truely usable smartphone that I had ever used. It’s web browsing was a little painful because the zoom feature was a bit clunky, but I did use it. The email was usable and the large keyboard was great. For a while, I was really happy with it. But once again, as time rolled on, I found myself rarely checking my email with it. Although texting worked well enough, the UI just wasn’t friendly enough. And sometimes the navigation froze for several seconds while I was switching from doing one thing to another.
About this time, one of my employees showed me his iPhone, and I was anxious to show him how my HTC Touch Pro was superior. Although my phone had better technical specifications, his phone seemed so much simpler and so much easier to do common things. And although I was a Microsoft fan when it comes to their desktop, enterprise, and development technologies, I came to the conclusion that they missed the boat entirely when it came to mobile, and although HTC did a great job in trying to make up for it, they just couldn’t.
A few weeks later, I realized that I left my HTC phone on the airplane as I was leaving security, and they wouldn’t let me back in without a boarding pass. The airline’s office was closed for the night and after calling all week to see if it turned up, I knew someone had walked off with it for good. I decided to try the iPhone. At that time the iPhone 3G was the current model, but everyone expected a new version, so I went back to the Samsung until the 3Gs was released and bought one.
The most I had ever used my cell phone for anything other than calling was probably 20 min per day. Right off the bat, I realized that emailing, texting and web browsing took on a whole new level of usability. Returning email was a piece of cake as was texting. But the web browsing was unbelievable. Here at hh2 Web Services, we build web sites and the iPhone’s easy multi-touch pinch zooming capabilties made it easy to view the full size website and then effortlessly zoon the section you wanted a better look at or to read the text. There were a few occasions right off the bat where I someone called and referenced an email while I was out of the office and I was able to pull the email up during the call and respond to their questions.
Lets also not beat around the bush. I don’t just use my iPhone for business use. The iPod functionality is oustanding. My three year old daughter loves watching movies on it, especially the short films Pixar puts on the end of its DVD’s. Also, there is a thriving gaming industry with the iPhone. By looking in the App Store one day while I was bored waiting for my wifes turn to dance at an Irish dance feis, I discovered tower defence games. They involve much strategy and are very addictive.
The iPhone is definitely the most impressive and useful peice of hardware released in the past 15 years. It has accomplished what many before, and after, have not. It has brought the majority of things that a person uses his or her desktop or laptop for to a personal device that is small enough to fit in your pocket and useful enough that you wouldn’t go anywhere without it. Now, I never forget to charge my cell phone. Its just too important to forget.
Friday, November 13, 2009
Sage Summit Recap
We set up our booth at Sage Summit 2009 with fairly low expectations of any kind of turnout. As the doors opened for the Tradeshow we were surprised to have several visitors to our booth. But more than that, the people that were there, seemed to be there hungry to find solutions to better their business. And as the conference progressed, we received plenty of traffic to our booth.
Our iPhone App for hh2 Remote Payroll was a huge success there. Even though all we had was a poster and a live demo on my laptop and iPhone, we impressed everyone who stopped by. Some people asked us if we’re also going to build an interface for the Blackberry, but we had to tell them that it wasn’t in our immediate plans. Several others left excited because their company had already made the switch to iPhones and couldn’t wait until the final release. One lady asked if she could take home our poster because it was perfect to show her colleagues back at the home office.
It was fun to stand out and really be different from the rest of the solutions there. By adding the iPhone as a new client interface for our hh2 Remote Payroll software, we are boldly stating the claim that the iPhone is ready for the construction industry. And boy did we get some attention. The Otterbox cases allowed us to drop our phones on the hard floor and show the durability of the cases and the phone inside.
We also got the chance to demonstrate the software, including the iPhone App, to several key Sage Executives who stopped by our booth. We just couldn’t have bought that kind of face time. Strengthening our ties with Sage will help us accomplish our goals of developing outstanding web services for the construction industry and making them affordable for companies of all sizes.
While there we got to see some of the sites and restaurants of Atlanta Georgia. We ate one night at a small but very nice diner called Wysteria. The seafood there is excellent. I personally ate the Skate which is kind of like Stingray, but to me, it tasted like halibut. Another night we ate at another seafood place called Six Feet Under. It too had excellent food. We ate the Snow Crab Legs there. Very Good.
All in all is was a very productive trip. Made some friends, forged some partnerships, found several very intriguing prospects, and sure made some impressions on the people we met with.
Our iPhone App for hh2 Remote Payroll was a huge success there. Even though all we had was a poster and a live demo on my laptop and iPhone, we impressed everyone who stopped by. Some people asked us if we’re also going to build an interface for the Blackberry, but we had to tell them that it wasn’t in our immediate plans. Several others left excited because their company had already made the switch to iPhones and couldn’t wait until the final release. One lady asked if she could take home our poster because it was perfect to show her colleagues back at the home office.
It was fun to stand out and really be different from the rest of the solutions there. By adding the iPhone as a new client interface for our hh2 Remote Payroll software, we are boldly stating the claim that the iPhone is ready for the construction industry. And boy did we get some attention. The Otterbox cases allowed us to drop our phones on the hard floor and show the durability of the cases and the phone inside.
We also got the chance to demonstrate the software, including the iPhone App, to several key Sage Executives who stopped by our booth. We just couldn’t have bought that kind of face time. Strengthening our ties with Sage will help us accomplish our goals of developing outstanding web services for the construction industry and making them affordable for companies of all sizes.
While there we got to see some of the sites and restaurants of Atlanta Georgia. We ate one night at a small but very nice diner called Wysteria. The seafood there is excellent. I personally ate the Skate which is kind of like Stingray, but to me, it tasted like halibut. Another night we ate at another seafood place called Six Feet Under. It too had excellent food. We ate the Snow Crab Legs there. Very Good.
All in all is was a very productive trip. Made some friends, forged some partnerships, found several very intriguing prospects, and sure made some impressions on the people we met with.
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