Nick and Nanner on Tech

iGoogle Going Into the Google Labs Graveyard

2012-08-24T14:04:00.001-05:00

Alas, iGoogle, I used you well.
And work doesn't like me accessing you during the day.

I only came across this today because my latest gig has blocked access to Gmail and I needed to add something to Tasks (turns out gadgets are blocked too. CURSES!) This makes me sad. I actually switched from Yahoo as my homepage to iGoogle way back in 2005 and used it daily until about 2008 -- when I got my G1. Well, maybe a little after that but I know I haven't used iGoogle regularly since 2008/9 so I can understand their reasoning.

What's happening to iGoogle?

iGoogle will be retired in 16 months, on November 1, 2013. The mobile version will be retired on July 31, 2012.
How did you come to this decision?
We originally launched iGoogle in 2005 before anyone could fully imagine the ways that today's web and mobile apps would put personalized, real-time information at your fingertips. With modern apps that run on platforms like Chrome and Android, the need for something like iGoogle has eroded over time, so we’ll be winding down iGoogle on November 1, 2013, giving you a full 16 months to adjust or easily export your iGoogle data.

Read more here

Texting while walking is apparently a bad idea

2012-05-16T02:14:00.000-05:00

If you live in Fort Lee, NJ you might want to be weary of what is the new pandemic!

Not to be outdone by the likes of drugs sales, prostitution, racketeering, and other nefarious acts.....texting while walking is now a punishable offense and is subject to an $85 ticket for jaywalking.

"It's a big distraction. Pedestrians aren't watching where they are going and they are not aware," said Thomas Ripoli, chief of the Fort Lee Police Department. The borough of about 35,000 residents has already had 3 fatal pedestrian involved accidents this year.

Really, can't you people just stop, punch off a message, and resume what you were doing???? Jesus watch YouTube for plenty of videos with idiots walking into public fountains and off piers from this.

"When I walk I still look around. I'm not like constantly looking down the whole time," said resident Sue Choe.
Another woman complained about the tickets were "a lot of money."

117 people have already gotten tickets for this. Well, at least the city is making some extra cash.

Source: ABC News

Twitter wants to remind you weekly how much it annoys you

2012-05-16T01:58:00.002-05:00

At times I wonder if the guys who run Twitter have a small department assigned only the task of finding a way to annoy the shit out of their users just to see who will leave, and who won't. I think it's almost a sick game to them at times. The UI has been reworked so many times no one can stand it. They made app devs go in line with what they want as a "user experience" with an iron fist. They bought Tweetdeck, swore they wouldn't touch it, and then beat it like a red headed step child just because we love it.

Recently, they started forcing promoted topics on us and promoted tweets in our timeline.....

Now, we get a friendly weekly reminder of how annoying they can really be with "the best of Twitter in a weekly email digest delivered to your inbox. This summary features the most relevant Tweets and stories shared by the people you’re connected to on Twitter."

Really? As if having to read, and mostly ignore, so much of the stupidity in my timeline isn't bad enough. Now I get a digital reminder of how much I want to punch people in the face.

Stories feature a design similar to the recently updated Discover tab, emphasizing who shared each story beneath summaries to help you decide which ones matter most to you. Click any headline to finish reading the story, add your take by tweeting directly from the email, and see related Tweets from the people you follow.

This new email digest also features the most engaging Tweets seen by the people you follow, even if you don’t follow those who wrote them. You can see who from your network retweeted or favorited these Tweets and click “View details” to retweet, favorite, reply or view the conversation around them.

Or I can stare at my screen, call that user a dumb fuck like I did earlier in the week when they originally posted it, and flip them off.

This fabulous new feature is rolling out in the new few weeks or so. Once live, it's recommended you change your preferences in the Notification Settings.

Source: Twitter

Good news for Google Drive users with old Picasa storage plans!

2012-04-29T20:57:00.000-05:00

Since learning about the Google Drive service finally launching, I've been wondering what would happen to my old Picasa upgrade plan. That one gave me 20GB of storage for only $5 a year. Although I primarily used the storage space just for the photos I keep on Picasa, it also allocated that storage upgrade to Google Docs. Docs, which we know, is now Drive.

So being that I planned on using drive, I naturally wondered if this would roll over or if I'd be paying a separate fee for each. Unfortunately, information specific to this was rather limited. Now after digging around in the Drive settings from my desktop (I've been busy), I see that they grandfathered my old plan over and I keep it as long as I keep that subscription going. So yes, I get to pay $5/year for the same storage you normally pay $2.49/month for. Glad I finally found the info on this, and thank you Google for letting us keep our old plan.

Review: Acer Iconia A100 Tablet

2012-04-29T19:41:00.000-05:00

I've had myself on a little quest recently which lead to this review. I wanted to find a tablet that's more of a mid to high range, not over-sized, fair on price, and with ICS (or at least a stable ROM for ICS I could put on it).

The trick on the "fair on price" part for my was trying to stay around a $200-$250 price range, simply because I have no plans on replacing my laptop with it. However, I didn't want a huge loss in performance due to the price which would end up having my shelve it 3 months after getting it. That appeared to be the trade with most that I found. Most models around the price I wanted either had a huge dump in performance and quality, or the ROM and app support was limited due to it being a waste of time.

Honestly I thought I was going to end up having to buy a Nook or Kindle to find one under the qualifications. I lucked out by randomly running into Acer's Iconia A100 model.

Specifications:
OS: Launched with Android 3.2 Honeycomb (updates for Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich started 4/27/12)
Processor: Nvidia Tegra 2 1.0GHz dual core
Display: 7" LCD display, 600x1024 resolution 16M colors
Memory: 8 or 16 GB, 1GB RAM (up to 32GM MicroSD card)
Wireless: 802.11 b/g/n
Camera: 5MP primary, 2MP secondary

I've always heard good things about the Acer tablets. The price tag telling me it's only $260 definitely got my attention. The Nook and Kindle models both are right at $200, so paying a little more to get a full fledged tablet was definitely an option.

Right on the box it advertises the ICS upgrade which was essential for me. I bought this now about a month ago and Acer right around that time announced the expected launch date for the upgrades. They announced it to start on 4/27, and have all models finished by the first week of May. I'll give them credit, my upgrade pushed on the first day as soon as I turned it on.

The Good:
Battery life on this was pretty respectable. The Tegra processor does fairly well keeping me from having to plug it in constantly without having to sacrifice on performance. I honestly haven't clocked the full charge time or anything, and the usage has varied from basic ebook reading, streaming Google Music, and cursing at Angry Birds.

The performance on this one is solid. I keep pushing on, and it just keeps on going smoothly. No lag or skip issues at all. Apps open up and close quickly and no heat issues.

The screen looks great. Photos and video hold full quality on it. Outdoor use in the sunlight still holds up well. There's only a minor amount of loss due to sun glare, nothing that would cause any real issue. I have yet to test it on the HDMI connection to see how that goes. The touch is also very responsive without being twitchy. Everything so far with it has been very accurate.

I haven't found a lot of accessories from Acer directly for it, but the size and dimensions still keep it very compatible with most 3rd party options. And of course Amazon offers a ton that work and at a good price.

It has a dedicated screen lock button! Yes I know I'm excited over something simple, but I use this a lot. Most times I keep the tablet and even my phone in portrait mode. I'm personally not a fan of landscape, and the constant rotation drives me nuts. This makes it much more convenient than having to go 3 layers deep in the settings or waste space on a shortcut widget.

Kudos to Acer for not going crazy on the UI. Personally I'm not a fan of the Sense UI and others that overlay a lot of their own stuff on top of stock ICS. It tends to slow it down and use more battery for a lot of options I don't really ever utilize.

Thanks to the size, I can hold it in portrait mode and reach the full keyboard to type with my thumbs. No need to prop it up on something to be able to tweet, etc.

The Bad:
The weight is a bit of a concern. Most tablets now are pushing to get super thin and light weight. The A100 isn't a brick by any means, but it's got more bulk than a lot of the other options on shelves.

Personally I'm not a huge fan of Honeycomb. It's not a bad OS, it just lead a lot to be desired with some of the UI and support on apps. Anyone who has the tab needs to do the ICS update immediately.

Personally, I'm not a fan of proprietary charging cables. It does have the normal micro USB cable for data transfer, but it doesn't charge through USB. Luckily the charger cables can normally be found online between $16-$20 each.

If you're a fan of the overloaded UI, this tablet isn't for you. There's plenty of UI replacement apps you can use though to compensate at least. It won't be that super fancy UI experience though.

Overall Impressions:
I'm beyond happy with the choice to pick this one up. Keeping with the 7" display maintains the portability I wanted so I can take it around and not feel like I'm just carrying my laptop. After a month in with it, I really have no big complaints about it. If you're looking for a good tablet and not needing to go absolute top end, it's probably one of the best choices on the market and you can't beat the price.

Ok, time for the photo session. Yes, I know my ability to take good product pics is .....well ......lacking. But hey, they're not too bad.

Product box, with previously mentioned ICS upgrade in the corner.

Front view with the manufacturer sticker still on it.

More front view in box.

One of my own wallpapers with the stock UI widgets.

One of the third party cases I found locally.

A little superhero nerdgasm for the ladies

2012-03-08T11:44:00.000-06:00

Feeding my comic book nerd this morning: Try not to die laughing out loud.

When Did iTunes come to Google?

2012-03-06T14:53:00.004-06:00

When I logged into Google Music (on the web) this morning it looked normal, until I hit an album to play. Then I got this:

Um, where is my beloved Android Market and why does this look like a Google-fied version of iTunes?

Wait, let's hit that learn more button ....

Google is planning to move all of your content into Google Play.

Play Anywhere

All your entertainment in one place

Google Play is your one-stop shop for all your favorite entertainment. With over 450,000 apps, millions of songs and books, and thousands of movies, Google Play has something for everyone. Before you decide what you want, sample a free music or book, view app ratings, reviews, and screenshots, or watch a movie trailer. Google Play is a more connected, powerful experience.

There's more here detailing every aspect of the updated market -- books, apps, movies, games, and music. They really should have added some playground graphics as much as they mention the word "play".

For your phone and/or tablet:

Updating Android Market/Google Play
If your device can be updated, the Android Market app will automatically update to the Google Play Store app. Once you have it, the Google Play Store app automatically updates itself when new versions become available. This is a silent update, which means you will not see a notification and will not be prompted to update.

But you know what? I still can't uninstall apps!!!

or even a batch uninstall built into the Android OS .. like Titanium has @phatemokid @tyronem
— Annette(@daNanner) February 29, 2012

Want to know more? Here's the downlow:
Q: What is Google Play?
A: Google Play is a new digital content experience from Google where you can find your favorite music, movies, books, and Android apps and games. It’s your entertainment hub: you can access it from the web or from your Android device or even TV, and all your content is instantly available across all of these devices.

Q: What is your strategy with Google Play?
A: Our goal with Google Play is to bring together all your favorite content in one place that you can access across your devices. Specifically, digital content is fundamental to the mobile experience, so bringing all of this content together in one place for users makes the Android platform even more compelling. We’re also simplifying digital content for Google users - you can go to the Google Play website on your desktop and purchase and experience the latest movies, music and books. With Google Play, we’re giving you a simpler way to get your digital content.

Q: What will the experience be for users? What will happen to my existing account?
A: All content and apps in your existing account will remain in your account, but will transition to Google Play. On your device, the Android Market app icon will become the Google Play store icon. You’ll see "Play Store." For the movies, books and music apps, you’ll begin to see Play versions of these as well, such as "Play Music," and "Play Movies."

Q: When will I get Google Play? What markets is this available in?
A: We’ll be rolling out Google Play globally starting today. On the web, Google Play will be live today. On devices, it will take a few days for the Android Market app to update to the Google Play Store app. The music, books and movies apps will also receive an update today. Around the globe, Google Play will include Android apps and games. In countries where we have already launched music, books or movies, you will see those categories available in Google Play, too.

Q: I live outside the US. When will I get the books, music or movies verticals? I only see Android apps and games?
A: We want to bring different content categories to as many countries as possible. We’ve already launched movies and books in several countries outside the U.S. and will continue to do so overtime, but we don’t have a specific timeline to share.

Q: What types of content are available in my country?
Paid Apps: Available in these countries
Movies: Available in US, UK, Canada, and Japan
eBooks: Available in US, UK, Canada, and Australia
Music: Available in US

Q: Does this mean Google Music and the Google eBookstore will cease to exist? What about my account? A: Both Google Music and the Google eBookstore are now part of Google Play. Your music and your books, including anything you bought, are still there, available to you in Google Play and accessible through your Google account.

Q: Where did my Google eBooks books go? Will I still have access to them?
A: Your books are now part of Google Play. Your books are still there, available to you in your Google Play library and accessible through your Google account.

Q: I don’t use an Android phone, can I still use Google Play?
A: Yes. Google Play is available on any computer with a modern browser at play.google.com. On the web, you can browse and buy books, movies and music. You can read books on the Google Play web reader, listen to music on your computer or watch movies online. Your digital content is all stored in the cloud, so you can access from anywhere using your Google Account. We’ve also created ways to experience your music and books on other platforms such as the Google Books iOS app.

Q: Why do I not see Google Play yet on my device?
A: Please see our help center article on this here.

Q: How can I contact Google Play consumer support?
A: You can call or email our team here.

Pin It

NOOK Color™ - Gets 1.4. Who needs a tablet?

2011-12-12T16:15:00.000-06:00

I am so freaking stoked!!! Too bad I already took my lunch break. I never successfully dual-booted my Nook, for some reason CM7 and I don't get along (by the way, if you need something broken, send it my way).

I went into a B&N the day the tablet dropped and saw that new Nook Color's were shipping with 1.4. For the last 3 weeks I have been anxiously waiting my software update. And now it's here!!! I got the email less than an hour ago (about the only good reason to register your devices, people). So it's not as fast as the Nook Tablet .. I can live with that. Over the last few months I have realized that I am not the demo for a tablet user. I use my laptop for way more things than the casual tablet user. And my phone. But I read (and play Scrabble) a LOT on my Nook. And now I can watch Netflix (and other streaming content) while my boyfriend watches sports on the big screen :D

Image courtesy of Barnes & Noble

Among the new features, NOOK Color v1.4.1 now offers access to streaming popular movies and TV shows through Netflix, comics and graphic novels, new PagePerfect™ NOOK Books™, reading NOOK Books in portrait and landscape modes, and many other enhancements through-out the device.

To get the update manually, you can download the software update to your computer at any time and then copy it onto your NOOK Color. Simply follow the steps below. Manual Download Instructions:

1. From your computer, click here for the software update file. Select Save and select Desktop as the location. Do NOT modify or change the downloaded file's name in any way. Do NOT open the *.ZIP file.
2. Press the Home Button and then tap Settings on the Quick Nav Bar. Then tap Device Info and make sure your NOOK's battery charge is at 20% or more.
3. Connect your NOOK Color to your computer using the USB cable that came with your device. A new, removable drive should show up in My Computer (Mac users will see the NOOK drive appear on the desktop or in devices). You should also see a "USB Mode" message on your NOOK screen.
4. From your computer, drag and drop the downloaded *.ZIP file onto the main directory of the NOOK drive. Do NOT open or unzip the file. You should not create a new folder on the NOOK drive or add the file to any other existing folder.
5. Eject or Safely Remove the NOOK drive after the file transfer is complete.
6. Your NOOK will automatically recognize the file after a few minutes when it goes to sleep mode, and proceed to install the updates.
7. Please do not turn off your NOOK during the installation process.
8. Once the installation is completed, your NOOK will automatically restart and go to the unlock screen.
9. On the bottom left status bar a green "n" will appear. Tap on it for additional information; the software has been successfully updated.

NOOK Color must remain turned on while the update is being installed. Once the software is installed, your NOOK will automatically restart. To verify you have the latest update, tap Settings from the Quick Nav Bar, tap Device Info, then tap About Your NOOK, and check to see that your software version number matches the number at the top of this page.

Congratulations, your NOOK Color has been updated! If you need additional help, please call Digital Customer Service support at 1-800-843-2665.

I wonder if I can install the update via Dropbox....

No More Surprise Cellular Overages?

2011-10-18T02:36:00.002-05:00

For anyone who has gotten a heart attack when your cell phone bill showed up and said you owe $600 due to not being able to stop talking, your days of worry are over it appears. Under FCC recommendations, new policies from AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile will start effective October 17, 2012. I saw recommendations loosely, as the FCC is already working on new policies to force smaller regional carriers to follow along and play ball. The FCC also warned the big 4 that if they don't play ball under teh agreements, there would be "strict consequences." Awesome!

Under the new policies, carriers must send alerts to customers when they are close to their allocation of voice, text, or data. Yes, some of these people still have bucket plans for texting. It's amazing. It also requires notification when you're about to incur international roaming charges (because you obviously had no clue you mysteriously wondered outside the U.S.), and disclose tools where consumers can check their use themselves.

At this point, Verizon already offers the free alerts, as does AT&T. T-Mobile offers free alerts although I'm not sure if they're automatic, and Sprint has an option to text for usage info. All four carriers also provide self help tools online to check use.

Ok so there's all your happy info, and I'm sure millions of cellular customers will rejoice. It seems though that after conversing with some co workers (I work for a cell phone carrier) about the changes, I'm an odd man odd for not doing cartwheels after reading about this. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for not dealing with people calling and screaming like an idiot after getting $200 in overages they swear are totally wrong. I am, however, against The Great FCC stepping in and forcing these changes on cellular carriers. The minor concern, oddly enough, is cost. Services like this take resources to perform them. Resources in place for the constant monitoring of thousands or millions of customer accounts depending on the size of the carrier, and systems to then push those notice as they hit the marks to require them. These resources require cash to provide them, and that cash has to come from somewhere. That somewhere ends up being your wallet. Cell phone carriers ate the full cost or majority cost of a lot of fees they endure for being in business, so you can count on this being one you'll pay something toward.

That's all great you say? I don't mind paying a little extra to know where my usage is. It ends up being less in the end than paying the overages. Right, right?

This brings me to my second dispute, customers tend to be complete idiots. Yes, it's a large majority. Cell phone companies already provide tools available 24/7 to check your use. You ALREADY have these services, yet a large majority of customers either don't know about them or ignore them. Most times, it's that they ignore them. The problem is personal responsibility. They don't proactively check their use, which is YOUR responsibility and NOT the carrier. You are an adult, and you made an adult decision to get a service. You're given the information up front on what you get with your plan, and how to monitor it. You should be ashamed of demanding a babysitter.

You're usually going to get at least 2 out of the 3 options below...

Internet: Log into your account online. You'll probably find a big bright button as soon as you log in to check your current usage. They don't hide this.
Call in: It's a safe bet when you call your carrier, that annoying little menu system has an option there to check your use.
Text message alert: You shoot a text to a short code, and it sends a text back telling you the use.

So let's try a new approach, let's be proactive to our responsibilities and put on our big kids pants. Now hopefully I get a bit of relief and someone else agrees with me lol.

Priority Inbox

2011-09-19T17:38:00.000-05:00

It's been a year since I started using Priority Inbox, and it hasn't helped me one bit. It may be that I actually get too much email for Google to handle. It labels things important that aren't that important to me -- like GetGlue notifications. I miss things like invitations for Fresh and Easy wine tastings, which are very important to me and which I mark as such. Still, a new one comes in and it gets buried in my general inbox. Luckily I have friends in real life who ask "Did you get the invite to such-and-such event?" prompting me to frantically search my email in the hopes that I am not a suddenly ostracized blogger.

Google advertises:

Email is great, except when there’s too much of it. Priority Inbox automatically identifies your important email and separates it out from everything else, so you can focus on what really matters.

This little experiement has been a big fat fail for me. I have 500+ unread in my priority inbox that I need to sort out as "not important" since Google is not doing it automatically. This is not a time saver. Let's not even talk about my general inbox. I need to declare email bankruptcy at this point.

Has it worked for you? If so, what the heck am I doing wrong?

Nook Color - First Impressions

2011-06-17T14:07:00.001-05:00

I've been keening for a Nook Color since about Mother's Day. I don't really *need* a tablet or a newer eReader, but I wanted one, because I am a gadget queen. I didn't even want one when it was announced last fall, mainly because I was looking at the Viewsonic Gtab as a tablet and already owned an Aluratek Libre Pro.

The Nook Color is being advertised as "the most affordable Android tablet on the market", and a pretty nifty eReader too. It's finally in my hot little hands thanks to @hankito. I was actually going to wait to save up the $250 (it's $249 from Barnes and Noble) but we can't pass up a good sale!

Now for the interesting bits.

Unboxing
I was so excited I didn't bother doing an unboxing video, but I was eerily reminded of when I unboxed my Nexus One. By the way, my Nook looks like the big sister of my N1! First impression - ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS! and then the let down as I waited 3 hours for it to charge.

I still booted up that night before going to bed. The color screen is amazing! I had to turn the brightness down a bit for ~~playing with it~~ reading in bed.

Weight
Girlish accessorizing bits aside, I am loving this eReader/tablet. Some people have complained that it's too heavy. I also have an Aluratek Libre, bought just over 15 months ago. I like it. The battery life could be longer, but it has served me well. And it is incredibly light. The Nook Color is just under a pound and feels comparable to a hefty hardcover. I can hold it in one hand comfortably for over an hour and not feel fatigued.

Formats and Media Storage
The main reason I chose the Aluratek over the Kindle was the formats that it handles. The same goes for the Nook:

eBooks - EPUB (including Non or Adobe DRM), PDF
Other Docs: XLS, DOC, PPT, PPS, TXT, DOCM, XLSM, PPTM, PPSX, PPSM, DOCX, XLX, PPTX
Graphics: JPG, GIF, PNG, BMP
Audio: MP3, MP4, AAC
Video: MP4

I am not confined to one book store! I tested this by adding books I had bought from Borders to the NC. You need to have Adobe Digital Editions installed, authorize your device, and voila! Any book from NetGalley and Borders that I had previously purchased now reside on my Nook. I am a happy camper indeed. I also tested out safaribooks.com on the browser. You can read the books in the browser (the text flows beautifully), or download the PDF for offline reading. Win! I can also add to the included 8GB internal storage with up to a 32GB micro-SD card.

Screen
The screen is quite bright, but both screen brightness and font are customizable. You can choose between six different font sizes, six different page flows/margins, and six fonts - three serif and three sans serif.

I got a cover to go with the NC to protect it and give me that feeling of holding a traditional book.

The only thing I miss is the "Back" button, but I am getting used to pressing the home button or the "app drawer" that brings up the menu to go to my library, shopping, apps, the web, or settings.

Apps:
Of the pre-installed apps, I am addicted to the crossword puzzle game. Fair warning, to download any free books, apps, or even start your 14-day free trial of magazines you need to have a credit card on file. I did install goodreads and Seesmic since they are free. I have Angry Birds for free on my phone and didn't feel like paying to have it on my Nook. Right now most of the apps are premium, the main motivating reason for me to get it rooted. I want access to the Android Market.

The on-screen keyboard is amazingly responsive, as is auto-rotate (which you can turn off in settings if you need to). I want to get HBOGo on it so I can catch up on episodes of Game of Thrones!

Things I still need to test out:

Root with CM7 Nook mod
Maybe install NookieHoneyComb
Test out the actual battery life. It's advertised as 8 hours of reading with wi-fi off
Nook Friends and LendMe - I connected to twitter and Facebook and my address book and it found a few of my friends who also use the LendMe option.
B&N Specials

Bring NOOK Color into any Barnes & Noble store to get exclusive articles from top authors, and great offers including cafe treats and unique deals.
Read NOOK Books free when connected to the free in-store Wi-Fi®. I can do this while the Teen browses for hardcover versions. He hates using an eReader.

Twitter buys TweetDeck for $40 million, gives us 40 million headaches

2011-05-24T01:18:00.000-05:00

Earlier this month I was thinking to myself "self....what's the worst thing I could run across in tech news to read?" Well, next thing you know I read a report rumoring that Twitter was looking to buy TweetDeck, the largely popular desktop app for an estimated $50 million. Yeah, I think that answered my question pretty easily.

Don't get me wrong, I don't hate Twitter by any means. Hell I spend a large part of my daily routine on there across multiple accounts so there is obviously love there. I'm personally not a fan of how they do things. Twitter likes to have tight control of the "user experience", which is basically anything we see or do on the service. Normally, this is all fine and acceptable from a business or their product. One small thing about this situation is how much larger Twitter has grown due to third party apps and the extra flexibility and features they provide. Let's face facts....using Twitter on their website or through their official apps is no party.

Twitter really blew up and became a household name thanks to these apps and what they let users do. They made the user experience what it is. Despite this, Twitter already brought the fangs out recently when they announced they were not allowing any new third party apps to be developed, and were tightening the leash on existing apps. Someone keeps trying to tell them that they do a horrible jobs in presenting their own view of a user experience and no one there is listening. How many people actually use the website or official apps? The numbers are not staggering.

Now, they've gone out and bought the most used desktop client out there. A large part of me is praying that they don't change anything on it, as I love almost everything about it. I don't want to have that taken away to keep it in line with their experience. I definitely don't want to have to start using the Seesmic desktop app. Not saying it's bad, just not my personal preference.

At this point, it's honestly hard to say exactly will happen with this deal. There is however too much potential for this to be a bad thing for the user which will force them to move to greener pastures, or possibly stop using the service. I do ask you Twitter, before you decide to strip it all apart and make it to your liking....remember who brought you to the ballgame in the first place. If it get's torn apart, that's gonna end up being a worthless investment you've got on your hands.

Review: Nexus S 4G

2011-05-23T00:22:00.002-05:00

Finally it's around.....a pure Google phone on Sprint. I've been waiting a long time for it while the T-Mobile kiddies taunted us with their joys. Coming from an Evo 4G and Epic 4G, I've already got a high set of standards for performance and features. I'll admit I was hesitant to get it at first considering Samsung's track record on phones, but the phone not including their software was a win for me.

As for hardware specs, it stacks up pretty nicely:

Android 2.3 Gingerbread
1GHz Samsung Hummingbird processor
1xEV-DO CDMA and WiMAX 4G radio
4 inch 480×800 pixels Super AMOLED display
Integrated 16GB flash drive with no expansion card slot
5 megapixel camera with LED flash
VGA front facing camera
Dedicated, touch-sensitive Back, Menu, Search, and Home keys
Proximity sensor, light sensor and digital compass
Integrated A-GPS
Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n)
Bluetooth 2.1+EDR
3.5 mm headset jack
1500 mAh lithium-ion battery
Dimensions: 123.9 x 63 x 11.2 mm and 129 grams

I've had this phone about 4 days now and have really enjoyed Gingerbread. The battery life has gotten better, even with my constant abuse on it. Time for the run down on the device......

Display:
The display is the Samsung Super AMOLED screens which are freaking beautiful. Some people I've heard from say it's not as good on quality as the Epic, but after some testing I've seen the opposite. One thing to consider is the UI that Samsung uses is a lot sharper and has brighter colors than Google. After installing ADW and changing out the stock icons, I found the quality just as good.

The screen itself has a slight curve to it. Not quite sure why this was done, but it didn't affect quality it any way.

Camera:
The phone has what's become almost standard now with the front and back side cameras. I do wish they had gone with an 8MP camera on the back as it's in so many offerings, but I've been happy with the quality on it regardless.

One camera feature missing in the stock Android software is the focus option. If you hold down the shoot button for the picture, it will still do a fine focus on the image, but no zoom in and out option. That's.....well.....weird.

Video recording looks good. Unfortunately Samsung elected to only do 480p recording as opposed to 720p HD like the other models.

One thing some might miss is a dedicated camera button on the side. This was a little different at first, but then I realized I was no longer hitting the button on accident. Easy replacement is just using an icon.

Android 2.3:
This thing is FAST. Even with installing a ton of apps after my joy in how much storage it has, the OS hasn't skipped a beat and moves through everything very quickly. Google did a good job under the hood of kicking up the performance on this one. I did replace the stock home screen with ADW purely for the customization options.

The photo gallery software included in Android is great. It does a 3D tilt and angle kinda thing for viewing which is a nice touch. Samsung used the same feature with their Epic phone, so I was pleased I got to keep it. One thing I did notice when I first loaded in my pics.....let it sit there and load everything the first time. It wants to be left alone to load them all the first time, and it will let you know about it when you try to scroll through. Once loaded up, the pics scroll through seamlessly.

The stock browser works pretty well. Page load times are fast, no issues running flash, and no quirkiness. It's still not as good in terms of features and extra as some other options like you get with Dolphin Browser, and the gesture reactions aren't as good.

The stock keyboard is ok. I wouldn't be the first to praise about it, but it gets the job done. You're not going to get any extras in the stock build like Swype, but these can always be added to accommodate what you prefer.

Look and Feel:
I kinda like the curved design to it. That along with the weight make the phone very easy to hold and use comfortably.

The shell has more of a plastic feel to it than most phones, but it still doesn't feel like cheap material. I admit I am more spoiled on the cases that HTC uses, as they feel more durable.

The phone does lack an LED light on the front for notifications. There are some other options which give you an on screen notice like NoLED. Some people are reliant on that light, so if it's a must this may not be the phone for you. Me personally, my phone always has a notice for something, so I usually ignore the light anyways.

Final Thoughts:
I'll be the first to admit, this phone isn't for everyone. If you rely on extra features some manufacturers include in their UI, you will be left out. There are comparable substitutions on the market, but some features are still exclusive. Getting a pure Google phone though is a nice jump in performance and battery life.

Overall battery life is better on Gingerbread, which is much needed on Android in general. Believe me, it'll never make a Blackberry owner jealous. Then again, then can't do 1/4 of the things we can do with our phones. I personally would still recommend at least a task manager, or better something like JuiceDefender which manages that nasty data use when the phone is idle. I've yielded better results with this compared to most other apps, and the purchase for the pro version is worth it.

The selling points to the phone are it's pure Google with no carrier BS, which means it's first to get all the updates. There's no waiting for the manufacturer to make all their stuff work with it, and then the carrier. Google makes it, I get it immediate. Google has also done a solid job overall in the OS, so it holds it's ground with any other competition.

Google Music Beta is running, accepting invite requests

2011-05-11T20:41:00.000-05:00

At the Google I/O yesterday, Google Music Beta has announced to much acclaim. Info has been flying around on this one for some time now, and we finally get an opportunity to get hands on with it. Ok, well those of us who get the beta invite. Yes, I'm anxiously waiting for mine.

The service let's you upload up to 20,000 songs (that's not a typo) to your online account and stream them to devices like your computer, phone, or tablet. You can make your own custom playlists, or use a feature called "instant mix" which is automatically configured based on one song you choose.

The service does require Android 2.2 or higher, and is currently only available in the U.S. right now. The link below is the app download for those who get their invites.

Android Market link for Music 3.0

Gingerbread rolling out for Galaxy tab overseas

2011-05-11T20:36:00.000-05:00

Well this is giving me some reassurance in Samsung, finally. The original Galaxy Tab is finally getting the 2.3 Gingerbread update....unfortunately it's only happening in Italy at the moment.

I personally don't have the tab, but it's some kind of peace of mind for the Galaxy devices patiently waiting like my Epic 4G. Come on Samsung, show us some love....quickly!

Build number for the release is XXJQ1 (baseband version P1000XXJPZ) for those looking out.

Being your own doctor just got easier

2011-05-11T20:25:00.000-05:00

WebMD, one of the biggest online resources for health info, has finally released their Android app. The app has been pretty popular on iOS so far, so expect a good turnout for this version. Features include:

Symptoms
Drug treatment
First Aid information
Local health listings

Link for Android Market

Link for AppBrain

Skype Now Makes Calls Over 3G

2011-04-27T13:46:00.001-05:00

Download the updated Skype app and start making free calls.

The most secure USB drive EVER

2011-04-12T03:02:00.000-05:00

......or not.

I would actually love to say this is a joke, or a late April Fool's joke. Sadly, Brando is actually selling those for everyone out there just dying to have a USB key that can store your naughty pics and lock up your storage unit all at the same time. Someone get me on? Prices are listed below for those who can't resist temptation:

2GB  US$21.00
4GB  US$24.00
8GB  US$34.00

Motorola XOOM confirmed for Sprint, or they ordered the wrong accessories

2011-04-12T02:40:00.001-05:00

Being a Sprint user, and still going over my options in the tablet market, I was happy to hear this news. Either someone really screwed up on accessories shipments for the stores, or these Motorola XOOM cases that are appearing in stores nationwide mean this thing should be out pretty soon. This is pushing be just a bit closer to getting a tablet since the Samsung Galaxy tablet currently offered isn't real impressive. Kudos to BGR for the pics....

The AT&T steamroller and you!

2011-03-27T21:27:00.000-05:00

This I suppose is more of an in-depth follow up from a brief rant I did about this on my blog, The Fn Icon. Thanks to Amanda for giving me a chance to complain a little more.

Let me start by saying this....

I'm all for competition in any given market. Anytime you have competition, fair competition that is, it benefits the consumer. We get innovation, we get better pricing, and we're all winners. OK that might be a bit of a stretch, but hey, I like to think positive.

The cellular market is no different than any other. You keep a good amount of companies in the mix, they battle some back and forth on what they're willing to give up for subscribers (subs), and we pick and choose what we need most and jump on it. Through time numerous mergers and buyouts have occurred for the sake of growth, or sometimes even survival. Small market carriers group up into one to increase their overall base, large carriers eat up the small guys to increase their coverage maps. It's all economics.

The most important thing is you must maintain balance in the market. No one really gets hurt if Verizon picks up Local John's Wireless World. More than likely, our friend John has a nice batch of towers already set up in some rural area that Verizon can't see as financially worth while to expand into on their own. They buy out John, John makes a ton of cash to swim in on his bed, and Verizon makes that red coverage map a little bigger with less expense.

Customers are also happy as their coverage options just jumped by leaps and bounds. Previously, they may not have had the luxury of nation wide coverage as their small carrier couldn't foot the bill on all the roaming agreements, and Verizon had no towers out there so they were stuck. Now they walk in the Verizon store and get a huge stash of phones to pick and choose from. Again, this is a win for the consumer.

Most of these are just sideways moves for the most part. There's no real innovation that comes out of it, just a jump in coverage and selection. No one is going to jump out of their seat in excitement. Take the Sprint Nextel merger. To this day it still doesn't make sense as the two wireless networks aren't compatible, but Sprint got a nice jump in the business market with the direct connect service businesses love so much. Again, all they did was increase market share and revenue.

Then you have those mergers that are purely for innovation. Best example on current scenarios is the Sprint merger with Clear not long ago to help boost the 4G inception. Sprint had nothing invested in 4G really, and Clear had a nice market they were building but needed financial backing. Sprint jumped on the boat, 4G took off, and now it's being rolled out in various forms by all the major carriers. Carriers are happy because they get more revenue, and customers are happy with all the cool new phones and blazing speeds for porn.

Now we have the proposition of a juggernaut. AT&T is looking to purchase T-Mobile for $39 billion in cash and stock. Now I understand T-Mobile is only #4 among the major carriers, but the combined sub numbers are pretty astounding.

Currently, Verizon has about 101 million subscribers, while AT&T has 96 million, Sprint Nextel 48 million, and T-Mobile 36 million. All of the other players have less than 10 percent of market share combined.

Do the math.....that's about 132 million subs combined.

"Wireless competition will continue to flourish," AT&T said, arguing that the "transaction is in the public interest."

Really now? I remember the last time they said that when they bought Cingular. Their major claim was "more bars in more places". Funny, my signal never went up any. All I got out of that deal is never knowing the actual name of my cell phone carrier because it kept changing back and forth, and causing me hassle having to migrate from one type of account to another. Thanks guys.

AT&T has also neglected to come out and say what few perks that T-Mo customers have now will carry over. At the moment their prices are lower.....don't count on that to keep up. AT&T I think at times is happy being the most expensive carrier. Unlimited data? Yeah, not so much. AT&T is already on a tiered data system, and buying T-Mo is nothing more than an easy way to get into the 4G market they couldn't sink any real cash into. They've taken enough of a beating over their over clocked 3G network being billed as 4G. Now they can gut out T-Mo for their own gain to play catch up with Verizon and Sprint.

So who wins in this? No one honestly. When you have a monopoly like this happen, the consumer suffers. All the other carriers have to eat each other up into one which creates less parity, or just chip away on the bottom end of the sub base for what they can get and try to wait out the storm.

Once complete, they can set their own prices and gouge them however they choose. They own the market, so what can you do about it? All those new super sweet phones coming out you want so bad? Forget it....exclusive deals stick to the carrier who can shell out the most in subsidies. With the revenue they would bring in, they can lock almost any phone they want.

Now, who are the biggest losers besides consumers?

Sprint: They're #3 in the big boy market. They only gain they'll have is T-Mobile's low end customers which are rarely profitable. Now they'll be stuck between 2 carriers with a large advantage in subs, and pre-paid carriers that chew their ankles daily.

Small market carriers: Take your pick....Metro PCS, Cricket, US Cellular, etc. They'll never compete with the big boys. They'll have to join together or die out. For the most part, their coverage maps are based on deals to use space from the big boys. Wait till their incurred rates get so drastic they're no longer an affordable option and fizzle out.

Google: Yeah, I said it. AT&T's CEO absolutely hates Google. This is common knowledge. The few Google phones that made it to an AT&T shelf were so scaled down they're worthless. T-Mobile is the only carrier with a Google developer-model GSM phone. Don't expect that to continue.

T-Mobile Employees: One thing is a constant when companies merge....employees get fired. It's a normal cost cutting expense when it happens, and daddy isn't going to kick his own kids out on the street.

Here's the plus side to this whole scenario. It's going to be about a year before anything is final. During this time, there's going to be investigations by the FCC, SEC, FTC, Homeland Security, Congress, and every other all letter group that gets paid too much that you can think of. FCC insiders have already claimed there's no way they'll give the OK to this.

Let's certainly hope so......

Nick

twitter.com/NickTheFnIcon

Article I originally posted on The Tech Support Cubicle!

Sprint sticks to unlimited data, Dan Hesse just won't get off TV

2011-03-14T02:38:00.000-05:00

Let me start by saying this. I don't like Dan Hesse on TV commercials. In fact, I normally race to change the channel when Sprint commercials would come on just because of him. This time though, I find myself applauding him and Sprint for the decision to keep unlimited data options for smartphone users.

From the new commercial:

“The other day, I looked up the word unlimited in the dictionary. Nowhere in the definition did I see words like metering, overage, or throttling, which is code for slowing you down. Only Sprint gives you true unlimited calling, texting, surfing, TV and navigation on all phones.”

Don't take this as a direct fanboi post for Sprint. This is simply support for going against AT&T and Verizon in their decision to move to a tiered data system. Sure, 2GB sounds like a lot of data. Normally, it would be.

Smartphones however have evolved quite a bit over the years with their hardware capabilities and features, and continue to push forward. This in turn uses more data up and down on the network. Because of this, the standards of how providers operate have to change to accommodate. Upgrades have to be done to cover the usage, which obviously requires more cash. Thus far, the two most efficient options to cover this have been tiered data where you pay overages over the cap to cover your use, or pay a little more to maintain unlimited data.

This unfortunately has become a necessity to pick the lesser of the two evils. In my personal experience, the more experienced smart phone users have come to understand the reasoning, and have even embraced the extra $10 charge a month to not have to baby sit their usage. Most of the resistance has come from that group of users that have smartphones or are just buying them, and aren't familiar with what they're capable of. I suppose if you're jumping ship from that old LG flip phone, you might not really know what you're getting into.

In the case of Sprint, the extra charge doesn't apply to feature phones which are basically any non-smartphone. As for AT&T and Verizon on the tiered system, I'm not completely sure at this point. I would certainly hope this isn't the case.

Bottom line is this. Technology advances, sometimes faster than we like. Users want to do more, phones are made to do more, so the providers have to ensure the extra revenue is in place to go into the network so it can do more. You can either go with it, or re-activate that old Motorola Razr you used to love so much.

BBM to become cross platform?

2011-03-04T11:45:00.000-06:00

This is being reported by BGR, and although not 100% confirmed is certainly interesting...

I don't normally give much time to the rumor mill stuff, but this caught my attention. According to sources, RIm may launch their popular BBM service to Android and iPhone OS. Being a Blackberry user, the possibilities of this definitely have me happy. From what has gone out so far, it seems the realistic approach is the platforms will get a basic version of the BBM app. This would likely include standard chat, profiles, group chats, and status updates. Still not real sure on the more advanced stuff like file and picture transfers, video, and location sharing. It's possible that if these are locked out, may be available on some type of a paid model.

I never thought I would see something like this happen as BBM is one of the pride and joy items RIM has, but it does make sense. There's competition on the market from third party apps like Kik, Ping Chat, WhatsApp, GTalk, and others trying to nudge into the IM market. I've personally tested most of these, and wasn't real fond of the majority of them in comparison. The UI's on most weren't very appealing or clean, they lacked features, and in some cases just didn't work right at all. I'll admit RIM has an advantage on BBM considering they've been running it for a while now so they've polished it up. Fact is, it works...and it works very well. People who use BBM love it. People who doesn't use BBM have and love it, but they won't admit it.

I hope this is a rumor that comes true. I would like there to finally be one dominant IM app that works across the board, and isn't a disappointment. It would eliminate a lot of hassle that most smartphone users experience in communicating. I personally use BBM, GTalk, and texting. Wrap this up into one package, and I'll be a happy #geek.

Sucks to own a sidekick

2011-03-04T03:06:00.000-06:00

Well, if you're a Sidekick owner (they exist?) on T-Mobile, I'm sure you've received your notice already of impending doom. As of May 31st, Microsoft's Danger Services which powers the Sidekick, will be shut down. This effectively means the phone will basically brick, as those cloud services are needed for the phone to operate. You Sidekick owners will remember last September when the services had a major outage and users lost their contact, pics, bookmarks, etc. To my knowledge, at least almost everyone finally got their data recovered.

"After May 31, 2011, the Danger Service (a subsidiary of Microsoft) used by T-Mobile Sidekick customers for data services will no longer be available on Sidekick devices.

T-Mobile will provide offers for our Sidekick customers before May 31, 2011, to help make an easy transition from their existing Sidekick device to a new device. We will have more information to share about these offers with our customers in the weeks ahead.

To ensure the best possible transition for our loyal Sidekick customers, an enhanced Web tool is available on myT-Mobile.com to easily export their personal data, including contacts, photos, calendar, notes, to-do lists, and bookmarks, from the Danger service to a new device, computer, or a designated e-mail account. An application is also available in the Sidekick Catalog to make it easy to export personal data to the Sidekick’s memory card. Many T-Mobile stores can transfer data from that card to a new T-Mobile device if the customer brings in the memory card and Sidekick."

So what do the lonely owners get in exchange you ask? Well, two options. One, you can get out of the service with no ETF between March 31st to May 31st. Or, you can get 50% off select Samsung devices if you decide to stick around with a new 2 year agreement (how considerate).

I tried to take a look at their Sidekick transition page here but it doesn't look to be live, as it goes to a standard login page. Also, nothing on their main page. Looks like we'll have to wait until March 31st to see the options. Let's hope the 50% off isn't a ripoff as I assume that's off regular retail price. Normally the full upgrade discount is more than 50%. If it's not full upgrade price, a 1 year agreement would be a bit more fair to require as users are being forced out of their phones they signed an agreement to get. Full discount would be fair to ask a 2 year agreement on.

If you're nice, you might even manage to talk your friendly T-Mobile rep into giving you a discount on a nice new Blackberry device! Hint hint, nudge nudge.

All Free Things Must Come to an End

2011-02-14T11:57:00.002-06:00

I was saddened to read this morning the following:

From February 15 you will need to be a subscriber to listen to Last.fm Radio stations on devices, including your Last.fm Android app.
No other features are affected by this change.
In taking this decision, we have given a lot of thought to how this impacts some of our early adopters and long-time users like you. We truly appreciate what you have meant to our growth and success, and offer you the following as a token of our thanks;
A free 3 month subscription to Last.fm
This will start automatically on February 15th 2011. As a result you will continue to be able to use Last.fm as you do today until the end of your subscription. If you'd like to see the other benefits of your free subscription, please visit the subscription page.

We appreciate you may have questions about this announcement, so visit our blog to read more about these changes and offer feedback.
Last.fm Radio will remain free on the Last.fm website in the US, UK and Germany and for the US and UK users of Xbox Live and Windows Mobile 7 phones. We’ll also continue to offer radio for free via the Last.fm desktop app.

Last.fm sent this notice a week ago, but I guess I am a little behind on reading my mail.

So enjoy your free music while you can.

Dell Streak 7 on T-Mobile

2011-02-11T14:34:00.000-06:00

The much rumored about, talked about, hyped about first 4G tablet is now available for sale at your local T-Mobile store.

Tablets are definitely trying to take over as our go-to entertainment devices as well as mobile communicating. T-Mobile brings a lot to the table with the Dell Streak 7, billed as "Entertain the whole family with our first 4G tablet, powered by Android™" . Family-friendly apps like BrainPOP, video chat by Qik, books and magazines (pre-loaded with the Kindle app and you can get full color magazines from Zinio), T-Mobile TV and movies from Blockbuster make this something you may have to fight your kids for.

Specs:

7-inch multi-touch screen
17.6 oz (just over a pound)
Watch your favorite shows on the go with T-Mobile® TV
Thousands of family friendly apps—like BrainPOP™, Zinio™, Kindle™ for Android™, and Blockbuster™. T-Mobile^® TV brings you a selection of Live and on demand TV, including news, sports, and full episodes of kids’ programming.With Blockbuster^® you can watch the newest movies while on the go—with no monthly fees.
Talk live with T-Mobile® video chat powered by Qik™ with front- and rear-facing cameras
Full Flash® 10.1 support