By: Hillel Fuld

Generally speaking, when I sit down to write a blog post, it is after I dedicated some serious thoughts to the topic and my conclusion/opinion on whatever it is I am writing about. This post is different. I am starting this with no clear conclusion. The topic of the next mobile platform by the world’s leading software company leaves me with one big question mark about its future success. I wrote about what I think the OS needs in order to succeed, and I knew all this before laying hands on a Windows Phone 7 device for the first time. Now, after playing and testing one out, albeit for a very short period of time, my thought have not changed much, in fact, they are even less clear now.

Let me give a little background since you probably have no clue what I am even talking about. Microsoft announced that they are not going to sit back and let Apple and Google have all the fun in the mobile industry. They introduced their next mobile operating system to compete with the giants, and they called it Windows Phone 7. Before I get into the pluses (there are quite a few) and minuses (unfortunately, these have quite a strong presence), let me say that Microsoft seems to have come out of its bureaucratic old school shell and realized that they are playing in a new world now. They reached out to what they defined as “key influencers” and gave them phones to review. This generated the desired result with quite a significant amount of online noise.

Well, Microsoft reached out to me and some of my fellow bloggers (unfortunately only after the above influencers had already spoken and we already knew what to expect) and invited us to an event in which they would demo the new platform and give us some “quality time” with  the new devices.

To be honest, I have never owned a Windows Mobile phone, but I did own an HP iPaq, which ran Windows Mobile 5. That was the first and last Windows Mobile device I ever touched. I am no Microsoft hater just in case you were wondering. While I do own a Macbook, iPod, and iPad, I use a PC as my primary computer and am not looking to change that any time soon. However, when it comes to mobile platforms, Microsoft never managed to impress me.

So, I sat yesterday in a room with some of the lead developers of the Windows Phone 7 platform and heard what they had to say about this new endeavor into the most competitive market on the planet. My thoughts on Windows Phone 7, as I wrote above are non conclusive and are actually all over the place, but here they are.

The Down Side of Windows Phone 7

Let’s start with the bad, shall we? What is up with the name, Microsoft? In a market dominated by iOS, Android, Froyo, and Gingerbread, you genuinely expect to compete with something called Windows Phone 7? I think you gotta rethink that strategy and come up with a name just a wee bit catchier. If you need some suggestions, you know where to find me.

Moving along, the overwhelming feeling I got in our meeting yesterday was that Microsoft has been developing this platform in somewhat of a vacuum reality. In a pre-iPhone/Froyo world, maybe you were able to wow bloggers with a universal search on the phone or integrated social features (truth be told, iPhone doesn’t compete on this front), but to compete today, you are going to have to work a lot harder than that.

The presenter spoke about how they will offer this OS on phones that all have the same specs. Same processor (minimum of a 1Ghz Snapdragon), same size screen (looked like a 3.5 incher), same three hardware buttons (Back, Home, and Search), etc etc. He then explained that this was the decision made by Microsoft in order to prevent a fragmented user experience for their customers. They do not want developers to have develop various versions of the same app because that would ruin the experience. Now, if you have read my writing, chances are you have come across my thoughts on Android fragmentation, but he was talking like Android is a failure of a platform. He did not even address the Android advantage of openness, he just said how different devices with different specs would never work. Strange…

Another example of this is the very basic principle of how the new OS looks. You do not scroll between home screens, as in side to side, but rather, there is one home screen with all the boxes you want and it is all accessed using “unlimited” vertical scrolling… He went on to say that most people do not look at things not on their main home screen. Again I say, while there is something to that, have you ever heard of a little phone called iPhone? That seems to have sold pretty well and last I checked people like the whole multiple home screens concept.

Anyway, everything he was saying seemed to be completely disconnected from the reality of the present mobile industry. More examples? No copy and paste, no multitasking. This might have worked two years ago, in fact it did work two years ago with the first and second iPhones, but Microsoft, this is not 2008 anymore. If you want to seriously compete, sorry to be cliché but get with the times.

One last complaint, and I know it all sounds pretty bad so far, but wait, there are many positive things about Windows Phone 7, is the lack if innovation, at least from where I was sitting. The event took place, as a fellow blogger and friend, Oren Todoros pointed out, in the “Innovation Lab” of Microsoft. The only innovation I saw was the fact that they had invited bloggers. Beyond that, social integration, a nice email user interface, no Flash support, an advanced search algorithm, these are all things we have seen. Truth be told, some of the implementation on this new platform is nice, very nice, but what amazing new things did Microsoft bring to the table here?

OK, here’s the thing. The people who invited me are going to be reading this (I hope they have not closed the page by now), but that is really not the reason that I am about to say what I am about to say. I would buy a Windows Phone 7, I really would.

Windows Phone 7′s Selling Points

The hardware, although it is pre-release and will probably be different when unleashed to the public, was impressive. I am going to put hardware on the side for a second and talk about the experience. It was fast. Really fast. It was intuitive, and I am talking more intuitive than Android. The deep integration of the various social tools was not revolutionary, but it was smooth and in my opinion better than any other platform I have tried. Full disclosure, I have not tried Palm Pre, which is supposed to excel at this.

The user interface was nice and seemed to be very practical. You can easily add these boxes, which to me screamed of Android widgets, although less customizable, and access almost any app, person, or phone function you desire in one click. The search on the phone was extremely impressive bringing up different results based on where you are located in the phone’s menus. It was fast, accurate, and overall impressive.

I could definitely see myself using one of these devices.

Windows Phone 7 and Apps

However, in my opinion, and the nice Microsoft developer disagreed with me on this point, good hardware is nice, a user friendly OS is important, but at the end of the day, what wins over mobile consumers in today’s market is software. Apps, apps, apps.

In my opinion, the fact that Microsoft is clearly going to be adopting the Apple policy over the open gates of the Android Market, might be their biggest and most damaging mistake. You do not need to tell me how big of a mess the Android Market is, trust me, I know, but at the end of the day, what Microsoft needs now more than ever is a happy developer community and rejecting their apps will not achieve that goal.

They politely explained to us that their standards of approval are transparent on the website and when they reject apps, they explain to the developer what they need to do to get approved. Microsoft, I got news for you. So does Apple! Yet we all know how much negative press they get as a result of their dictatorship-like app policies. Now, Apple can take that press, they can take a lot worse as this last week has shown, because they not only offer a superior industry leading product but they make their developers a heck of a lot of money. Not sure you can handle this bad publicity, especially after the latest Kin embarrassment.

On the flip side, the app experience, at least according to common sense, should be superior to that of Android with no fragmentation and strict standard of what makes the MarketPlace.

My Conclusion on Windows Phone 7

I can go on for a long time and discuss both the great and not such great things about Windows Phone 7, but I will sum it up for you. When this platform is released, no one will be calling it a revolution. However, it will appeal to the enterprise world (with nice Office integration, but lacking full editing capabilities) the way the iPhone cannot (yet), it will appeal to the gamer’s world (with nice Xbox integration) the way Android cannot, and to that Windows Mobile community that is very much alive and kicking, well they are a no brainer, they are gonna love this platform.

Microsoft told us they will be sending us a device to review and test over a more extended period of time. I hope after reading this, I will not be banned from ever touching any Microsoft product again. For what it’s worth, I have some criticism of the Windows Phone 7 platform, but at the end of the day, like I said, I would buy one, so that should count for something, right?

What I saw yesterday in Microsoft was a very pretty OS that takes some of the advantages of the Apple platform, some of the advantages of the Android platform and puts it all together in a nice looking and very practical user interface. I think Microsoft gave new meaning to the phrase “If you can’t beat em, join em”.

Would love to hear your thoughts. Would you buy a Windows Phone 7 device? What do you think Microsoft has to do in order to become a real competitor in this space? Please let me know in the comments.

Windows Phone 7: The Good, The Bad, and… You Decide! is a post from: Mobile | Social Media | Newest Technologies by Tech N' Marketing

By: Hillel Fuld

I have no intention of adding to the insane levels of noise surrounding the antenna “issue” of the iPhone 4. My take? It is an issue, but not one that the vast majority of users will even notice. In addition, let’s be honest, when was the last time you bought a mobile phone as expensive as the iPhone and did not use a case to protect it? So, if you were gonna use a case anyway, take Apple’s offer of a free bumper, enjoy the world’s thinnest smartphone with the world’s highest resolution display on a mobile phone, along with the world’s most intuitive mobile platform, and run.

Having said that, the fact that such a problem exists on a phone this expensive is a little bothersome. Apple has acknowledged that and offered free bumpers as well as a complete refund to dissatisfied customers. So if you are one of the “Yea, the iPhone 4 is great, too bad it doesn’t make phone calls” kind of people, then stop complaining and return the phone.

That is all I am going to say on the topic and I think the whole thing is so blown out of proportion, it is ridiculous. Having said that, Steve Jobs’ “Antennagate presentation” was even more ridiculous. It is amazing to me that no one else is talking about this, but when watching the video of his speech, it was so blatant to me that he knew he was in trouble, and was trying to hypnotize the crowd to believe the antenna issue is a non issue. How many times did he repeat “smartphones are not perfect”? How many times did he have to say “We love our customers”? While Steve Jobs is usually the master of keynotes, this specific one was embarrassing and amateur in my humble opinion.

And so I bring you a great spoof on that speech, which calls out some of the absurdities we witnessed come out of Jobs’ mouth. So sit back, watch, and enjoy. Oh, and for heaven’s sake, move on and stop talking about this, enough is enough!

iPhone 4 Antenna Ad Spoof is a post from: Mobile | Social Media | Newest Technologies by Tech N' Marketing

If you have been alive for the past few days and have come anywhere near anything that resembles the internet, you probably heard about the latest online campaign by Old Spice. It is being called by many the best use of social media ever, and Google’s CFO even called it “The future of marketing”. If you somehow did not hear about the brilliant campaign, let me sum it up for you.

Isaiah Mustafa, AKA, “The Old Spice Guy” had a commercial, which you can see below, that became an instant hit. The company then released yet another commercial, which took off immediately as well. Then came the brilliance.

They took the campaign to the interwebs and opened an OldSpice Twitter account, in which Mr. Old Spice responded to people’s questions/comments on Twitter, Facebook, or Youtube with a personalized and always hysterical Youtube video. The responses were always prompt, always funny, and never ever promotional (at least not in the traditional sense of the word).

With the growing number of spammers on social media combined with the millions who have no idea how to maximize its potential, I thought I would list some things that the Old Spice guy taught us all about how to use social media. So here goes:

1. Originality: Twitter and social media in general is a hot trend. Everyone is doing it and to succeed, you need to think out of the box. What Old Spice did, noone has ever done before, but I’m sure many will do after (the spoofs are already starting). Every single video Old Spice made was original, engaging, and just awesome. It’s OK to follow the flock when it comes to trends, but in order to make it in this game, you are going to have to do something different. Take the leap, you won’t regret it.
2. Dont talk, Just Do: Did you hear the Old Spice guy call himself a Social Media Guru in any of his videos? I didn’t! How about an Online Marketing Expert? No? Yea, me neither. He did not even mention the words social media throughout this campaign, yet he utilized social media like it has never been utilized before. We, and when I say we I mean all you morons who think having “Guru”, “Expert”, or “Specialist” in your Twitter bio impresses anyone,  need to stop giving it a title and talking about the tool. We need to realize that Twitter is a means to an end. Whatever that end is for you is what you should be focusing on and not how many followers you have or how many times you were retweeted today. There, I said it!
3. Be Human: One of the main reasons this campaign was such a success, is because the Old Spice guy was accessible. People, at least the lucky ones, knew they could write to him and actually get a response out of him despite his new found fame and celebrity status. This is extremely important, and while some people do not spend the time answering their Twitter replies, the more successful people on Twitter, the ones that truly get it, they answer almost all their replies. This brings me back to the main point here, social media is just a fancy way of saying online communication. It is a new age way of carrying out a dialog.  Yes, it has widespread exposure and huge potential for promoting your product, but it all starts with engagement. If you are not talking to your followers, and you are not CNN or Barack Obama, you will eventually see the results in the form of less people talking to you or in some cases actually stopping to follow you.
4. Mix it up: It is no secret that to succeed online, you need eyeballs on your site/product/service. What better way to get those eyeballs then to get an Alyssa Milano, Kevin Rose, or Chrstina Applegate to promote it? However, you will notice that for every celebrity Old Spice dude responded to, he replied to at least two or three “regular” people. This is an absolute must. If you have been on Twitter, you have probably seen those people who are constantly writing to Kutcher, Shaq, or any other celebrity, and they do not take the time to write to just regular folk. This won’t work for many reasons, but mainly because a person like that is missing the point. They are not contributing anything to their followers, they are essentially spamming celebrities, and they will never see the results they are hoping for.
5. Don’t be Obvious: One of the reasons this campaign took off the way it did is because people couldn’t wait to see what was next. I saw at least two highly influential people in my stream saying they found themselves on the Old Spice Youtube channel just refreshing the page to see if there was another video. Each video was unique, intelligent, and provided some real entertainment for the viewer, which brings me to my next point, humor.
6. Humor: Humor sells, people! People like to laugh and that is another reason this campaign did what it did. This dude was hilarious. Now, if I am on the topic of humor, let me say that I follow quite a few comedians on Twitter and with all the tech geeky stuff in my stream, these guys really lighten up the mood. If you are a marketing professional, I don’t need to tell you to use humor in your campaigns, but Old Spice has taught us once again that we need to stop taking Twitter so seriously. We need to stop treating it like it’s rocket science and just be ourselves.
7. Don’t Sell, Conversions Will Come: This point is absolutely crucial. Did you hear Mr. Old Spice trying to actively sell you his product? Besides a few “You can smell like me if you use Old Spice” jokes, 99% of the video content he posted was completely not connected to Old Spice. Yes, the product was always in the background (figuratively speaking) but he almost never brought it out to the forefront. People, you should know this by now, but just in case, Twitter is great to promote and sell, but do it wisely. Do not try to hard sell your product on social media and do not spam your followers. Dell does a great job selling on social media by offering exclusive bonuses, and Old Spice set the bar with this new campaign. I am not sure if anyone analyzed their sales yet, it might be a little early for that, but I would definitely buy some Old Spice stock right about now if I were you.
8. Real Strategy: Old Spice announced yesterday (in a video of course) that the campaign was officially over. This was of course disappointing to all of us fans who were enjoying the videos, but on the other hand, it showed that there was a real strategy in place. He could have gone on for days without losing any of our interest, but they decided in advance just how long the campaign would run and when that time came, they pulled the plug. Did that cause them damage? Absolutely not! It showed structure and organization. That is the way to promote your product using social media.

In conclusion, the Old Spice campaign will probably be talked about in companies around the world for a long time to come. It will be a hot topic on social media well into the coming weeks and months, which basically means that Old Spice has accomplished its goal, and then some. I am very interested to see what the 6 million YouTube views, the 70,ooo Twitter followers, and the 22,500 comments will translate into when it comes to sales, but I don’t think there will be any surprises there… Most important though? They accomplished all this without calling themselves a “Social Media Guru”, using a provocative avatar of Britney Spears, and even replied to people with less than 100 followers.

8 Social Media Treasures We Learned from Old Spice is a post from: Mobile | Social Media | Newest Technologies by Tech N' Marketing

By: Hillel Fuld

Apple is undergoing quite possibly its largest PR disaster in its history. The new iPhone 4 has had stains on many displays, major reception issues that Apple handled quite poorly, and even an iPhone 4 explosion incident. Yet, with all this bad coverage, the iPhone 4 is hands down the most successful Apple product launch ever (1.7 million phones in 3 days).

So how does one explain this? Is it a classic case of “There’s no such thing as bad press?” or is there something else happening here? Well, I guess we will never know what might have been if the whole Gizmodo story never happened, and Steve Jobs had not told his customers that they are holding their iPhones wrong. However, putting this specific product launch aside, there is something much bigger about Apple and their marketing strategy that explains the success of the iPhone 4 and many products before it.

You can debate whether to use a PC or a Mac, you can even debate iPhone VS. Android, but I think most people would agree that Apple is a company that excels at marketing and specifically product launches. One of the most interesting articles I ever read is entitled What Consumer Technology Companies Can Learn from Apple Product Launches and I strongly recommend you read it here.

Additionally, one of my favorite writers, MG Siegler wrote a post on TechCrunch the other day entitled “It’s as if Apple Hired don Draper.” In the post, he talks about how Apple has effectively turned FaceTime, a feature of the new iPhone 4 enabling video calling, into a huge success. The reason this is so amazing is that Apple did nothing new here. Video calling has been available for a decade now and Apple’s version is actually significantly inferior to its competition. As opposed to Nokia phones, Android phones, and even some Windows Mobile phones, FaceTime only works over Wifi and only to other iPhone 4s.

Yet, Apple is focusing all its marketing resources on promoting the iPhone 4 with FaceTime, and all the ads have the same motif. They all manage to play on the emotions of the consumer, whether it is enabling a husband abroad to see his wife, a grandfather to see his new grandchild, a father to see his daughter’s new braces, and the list goes on.

This is nothing new for Apple and they have been making effective emotional ads since as far back as 1984. Whatever the case may be, I am not saying these ads are exclusively responsible for the success of iPhone 4, but I’m pretty sure they don’t hurt it either.

Watch the videos below of Apple campaigns starting with the 1984 advertisement, the original FaceTime commercial and four of Apple’s newest iPhone 4 ads.

Would love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

Apple’s Marketing is at it Again with iPhone 4 and FaceTime is a post from: Mobile | Social Media | Newest Technologies by Tech N' Marketing

One of the direct results of a new tech product being released on the market is the birth of many industries to support the new toy. This is true for new popular mobile phones, it is true for computers, and it is definitely true for a product like the iPad. The iPad accessories industry is booming with hundreds if not thousands of sites dedicated exclusively to iPad accessories.

When I ordered the iPad, it was only natural to order a few accessories with it. I ordered the Apple Bluetooth keyboard, just in case I could not get used to typing on the iPad’s virtual keyboard, and I ordered (or tried to at least) the official Apple case for its new tablet computer. It is now a month later and I do not have either one of those accessories in my possession.

As for the keyboard, I recently sold it to a friend after realizing that I did not need it as the iPad keyboard was perfect for me, and that there was no way to carry the thing around without bringing another bag specifically for the keyboard. So I got rid of it, but not because it was not an awesome product, it was, I just did not need it. “It’s not you, it’s me”.

Moving along, the Apple case, much like the iPad itself is sold out throughout the US. The store at which I got the iPad did not have the case, nor did any of the tens of stores I asked friends to check for me. It was not possible to get my hands on one. Now, a month later, I could not be happier that that was the case (no pun intended).

After I could not get the Apple case, I started doing a little research about iPad cases and what was recommended by users. I came across a few great cases, but in my checks, one case really stood out from the crowd, the Marware Eco-Vue, so I decided to go ahead and get one.

It took me some time to actually get it, but when I did, I was impressed from the second I opened it. Now, to those who do not own an iPad or do not understand why I even need a case, a quick explanation. Much like the iPod Touch and the iPhone, the iPad is not much more than one big screen. The screen is everything. The device itself is very thin and can easily be dropped, which would not produce good results I imagine.

The iPad is a beautiful device and one that, assuming you went out and spent your money acquiring, want to protect. If you have an iPad and are not using a case, it is an accident waiting to happen and as soon as you finish reading this review, I recommend you buy one immediately.

OK, so I needed a case, and Apple’s was nowhere to be found. So I found the Marware case, ordered it, unboxed it, and was in love. How could I be in love with a stupid case? Well, the Marware Eco Vue not only protects the iPad from all sides and gives you a significantly better grip on the device so as to prevent it from slipping out of your hands, it also actually makes it nicer than it already was.

That was one of the things I was looking for in a case. I did not want something that would ruin the good looks of the iPad and that is why the Apple case is so popular in my opinion. It is minimalistic in a way only Apple knows how to do, but it is functional and does not add any thickness to the iPad. However, the Marware case one ups the Apple case in that it does all that plus a whole lotta features.

Now to be honest, I have never written a review of a case before, but so many people on Twitter (follow me here) asked me my opinion on the matter, I figured I would give it a shot.

The following is a list of all the features offered by the Marware Eco-Vue iPad case:

• Beautiful Eco Friendly Leather Exterior: This is not something that is easily put into words since you gotta see it to believe it, but the outside of this case is made with seriously high standards. The leather is clearly high quality and when it is closed, this case provides the ability to walk around in public with your iPad without looking like a complete douche.
• Suede Interior: While the outside of the Eco-Vue is a nice black leather, the inside is a grey suede-like material. Truth be told, I did not check if it is real (I think it is) because I honestly do not care. It is extremely elegant looking and provides a great feel when the case is open. It also happens to look extremely striking and stylish.
• Kick Stand: This is something I believe Apple should have added to the iPad itself, obviously in a very simple way so it does not affect the beauty of the iPad. One of the biggest complaints I, and many others, have with the iPad is that typing on it could get awkward. I am not referring to the keyboard, which is awesome, but rather the angle at which it lays, or lack thereof. It lays flat and to type, you need an angle. The Eco-Vue has a magnetic kick stand that puts the iPad at the absolute perfect angle for typing and when you are not using it, it simply disappears into the case using a magnet. Brilliant implementation on the part of Marware.
• Hand Strap: Another one of the complaints people have is that the device is hard to use when you’re standing up. The Eco-Vue has a place into which you can insert your hand and it enables you to hold the device in a very comfortable and effective manner. This is the kinda thing that people see and say “Oooh. now THAT is smart”. Gets that reaction every time.
• Elastic Strap: One of the major issues with the Apple case is that it is always open, no way to lock it. The Marware Eco-Vue has a great elastic strap that enables you to lock the device when it is closed as well as open. You simply put the strap over both sides of the case and it is locked in that position. Once again, a perfect addition to the case that does not in any way take away from its looks. I do wonder however, if this strap is strong enough to last… I guess we’ll know that by the time the iPad 2 comes out.
• Flexibility: So we already addressed the typing angle that the Eco-Vue offers, but what about watching movies or viewing pictures? You can do that too with this case and stand it up in landscape or portrait mode, although this is not done with any kick stand or addition, you just open the case and stand it up. While it does feel secure and I have already watched movies like this, there is nothing stopping it from falling over with the slightest accidental push, so this is something that could have been done better.

All in all, I could not be happier with the Eco-Vue and every single iPad owner that has seen it, without exception, has been impressed to the point that they said they want to get one. The case is a little bit more expensive than the Apple case, with the Apple case costing $40 and this one $45, but even if it was $20 more, it would be worth it in my opinion.

What iPad case are you using? Are you happy with it? Would love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

The Marware Eco-Vue is the Mother of All iPad Cases is a post from: Mobile | Social Media | Newest Technologies by Tech N' Marketing

by: Eli Ungar-Sargon

The smartphone market has become a very competitive place over the last year. With new app phones being delivered by HTC and Motorola on a monthly basis, Apple’s vaunted iPhone is finally facing some real competition. Unlike previous would-be iPhone killers, superphones like the Droid X and the EVO 4G are running mature versions of Google’s Android operating system. The impending release of Froyo, the most recent version of Android, will only make the case more emphatically that there are finally some serious alternatives to the iPhone. It is against this backdrop that Apple has released the iPhone 4 with its revamped operating system, iOS 4. While early speculation suggested that this iPhone might signal the end of Apple’s exclusive relationship with AT&T, Apple has, for the time being, decided to maintain their exclusivity with the wireless carrier in the U.S. And despite the increasingly competitive landscape, Apple seems to be selling iPhone 4’s faster than they can make them. Is all the hype justified? Will the iPhone 4 put Apple back on top of the smartphone market?

Hardware:

The iPhone 4 is the most radical redesign to hit the iPhone line since its debut back in 2007. While both the iPhone 3G and 3GS had rounded, plastic backs, the iPhone 4 is now more edgy with nary a piece of plastic in sight. This makes it a much more attractive device, but it is not as comfortable to hold in the hand.

The iPhone 4’s screen is a sight to behold. While no larger than the iPhone screens of yesteryear, its resolution has quadrupled to 960X640 with a whopping 326 pixels per inch. Putting aside the controversy over whether Apple’s term “Retina Display” is marketing hype or scientific description, this screen is in a class of its own. Unlike some of its competitors, Apple has steered away from both larger screen sizes and AMOLED-based display technologies. Instead, they have chosen to keep their screen at 3.5’’ and push the bleeding edge of LCD technology. It’s hard to argue with the wisdom of this decision. When you lay eyes on a Retina Display, the icons and text are so crisp that it feels like you’re looking at some exotic backlit ink.

Perhaps the boldest part of this iPhone redesign is the relocation of its antennae. Instead of hiding them in the back of the phone, as they did in all three previous versions, Apple has built the new antennae into a steel band that wraps around the outside and is sandwiched between two flat panels of glass that serve as the front and back. A hole just to the left of the receiver reveals a new front-facing 640×480 camera. On the back panel, the improved 5 megapixel camera sits right next to an LED flash that does double duty as a video light. On the inside, the iPhone 4 boasts an A4 processor, from the same family of in-house, speedy chips that run the iPad, 512 MB of RAM, and an all new gyroscope, which provides precise spatial awareness for sophisticated motion-based applications.

Making Calls:

It’s now a running joke: The iPhone is a great phone unless you want to make a call. Much of the anger over this issue has been directed at AT&T, the only network that sells the iPhone in the United States. But it’s very difficult to know how much of the problem is due to AT&T’s network and how much is due to the design of the iPhone itself. So how does the new iPhone 4 with its external antennae fair in the reception and dropped calls department? Noticeably better. In my informal and highly unscientific testing, I have seen better reception and more reliable call quality everywhere I’ve been in the Chicagoland area. Moreover, early adopters in both NYC and the Bay Area, AT&T’s two weakest zones, have been reporting similar performance boosts. Apple has also improved the call quality in the iPhone 4 by building a better receiver and, taking a cue from Google’s Nexus One, including a noise canceling mic. This makes the voices on both ends sound fuller and more present than they did on previous iPhone iterations.

The one caveat about all of these improvements is that there seems to be a design flaw in the antennae band. As it turns out, if you hold the phone in your left hand in the most natural way possible, your thenar eminence creates a bridge between two of the antennae and kills reception. There are a number of simple solutions to this issue, including putting the iPhone in a case, or, as Steve Jobs so cavalierly suggested in an email to a concerned early adopter, holding it differently. But for a device that is so precisely calibrated, this uncharacteristic flaw in its design anthropology stands out like a sore thumb. Overall, though, the iPhone 4 is a huge step forward when it comes to reception and reliability and it is a significantly better phone than both the 3G and 3GS. Still, the really exciting innovation here comes from a new technology that bypasses the AT&T network entirely.

Face Time

Face Time is a video conferencing app that Apple baked into the iPhone 4’s Phone application. As of this writing, it only works when both caller and receiver are using iPhone 4’s connected to Wifi. A Face Time call can either be initiated over the wireless carrier’s network, or directly through the contacts, but either way, once the invitation is accepted, the call is conducted over Wifi. After a few seconds, both phones activate their forward facing cameras and the call begins. In my tests, the video streamed flawlessly and I was surprised at how much better the audio quality was than an ordinary cell call. I was also delighted to discover that with a single tap you can toggle between the forward and back facing cameras, making it easy to show your Face Time partner something that’s in front of you. Face Time is the best, easiest to use implementation of video conferencing that I have ever used. It’s a teasing glimpse into the future of mobile communication and the feeling you get when you use it, the why-isn’t-Skype-this-easy feeling, is pure Apple. The cherry on top is that they’ve released the technology as a set of open standards for any enterprising developer to implement. This means that we may some day see Face Time calls between iPhones and Androids. Next up, world peace.

Web Surfing

If I had to choose one application that defines the iPhone experience, it would be Mobile Safari. Three years and hundreds of apps later, I still find myself in the iPhone’s browser more than any other app. The improvements to Mobile Safari in iOS 4 are subtle. Bing has been added to the list of search engines that can be used and the app now fills in URL’s and makes suggestions while you type in the search field. These may seem like minor changes, but when you look at web browsing on an EVO 4G, or any of the Droid phones, you realize just how much work Apple put into getting this experience right from the beginning.The essential user interface element in interacting with an undersized browser is pinch-to-zoom and this gesture on the original iPhone still beats the pants off of anything the competition has to offer three years later. Perhaps the most noticeable improvement here comes in the form of data speeds. When on Wifi, the iPhone 4 is able to take advantage of the much faster and increasingly prevalent 802.11n Wifi standard. When on 3G, the iPhone 4 uses AT&T’s fast HSDPA data protocol as well as the brand new HSUPA for much better upload speeds. Browsing on Mobile Safari is a speedy experience and Apple’s incremental improvements to the UI are its way of saying: “We got this right the first time.” They did and the added processing muscle and faster data speeds in the iPhone 4 keeps Mobile Safari well ahead of the pack.

Email and the Virtual Keyboard:

People are very particular about email, but I’ve always had a fine time with Apple’s paradigm for this essential function. Seeing as the largest group to switch to the iPhone this year comes from RIM, some of the new features in iOS 4’s Mail app, like the unified inbox and threaded conversations, along with a whole host of improved enterprise features, should make these people feel better about their decision to go iPhone. What might throw a soon to be ex-Blackberry user off is the touch-screen keyboard. I tell people who are contemplating a move to the iPhone to give themselves two weeks to get used to the virtual keyboard. On the iPhone 4, the responsiveness of the on-screen keyboard is back to the level that it was on the original iPhone. This is a good thing, because it had become a little bit laggy on my iPhone 3G and if you’re trying to sell people on using a virtual keyboard, it needs to respond as reliably as a physical keyboard would.

The advantages of touch-screen keyboards, once the initial learning curve is overcome, are numerous. For example, I do a lot of freelance work in translation and the ability to switch the virtual keyboard from English to Hebrew with the tap of an icon has made the iPhone an indispensable tool in my work. Other advantages include the ability to utilize context-specific keys. For example, when you are entering a URL into Mobile Safari, there is a “.com” button on the virtual keyboard. Apple’s on-screen keyboard is the best implementation of a touch-screen keyboard in existence, but as good as it is and as much muscle memory as I’ve developed with it over the last three years, I still must admit to a pang of jealousy over Google’s voice-to-text input option. Perhaps Apple’s recent acquisition of Siri means that they will be implementing a similar feature soon.

Multimedia:

The iPhone has always been an impressive multimedia player, but Apple seems to be resting on its laurels with the iPod app in iOS 4. There are some minor tweaks, including greater control over the creation of on-the-go playlists and a more attractive, iPad-like interface for displaying albums in portrait orientation, but the app is by and large unchanged from previous versions. I’m tempted to posit that this lack of user interface and feature innovation is due to Apple’s dominant position in the mp3 player market and the fact that they simply don’t feel any pressure to innovate in this space anymore. None of this is to suggest that the iPhone 4 is a poor multimedia device. A quick look at the media players available for Android devices will cure you of such notions in a hurry. I just wish the iPhone had wireless syncing and a more robust podcast management system. These features are long overdue.

Audio Playback

To test audio playback on the iPhone 4, I listened to both music and spoken word first through the speaker and through headphones. When I listened to the Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 through the speaker, the iPhone 4 was a little bit weaker than the iPhone 3G, but provided much more detail in the mid and high ranges. Listening to Christopher Hitchens read his superb “Hitch 22” in Audible’s enhanced format, the iPhone 4’s speaker came across as a little more tinny than the iPhone 3G’s. However, when I plugged in my reference-quality Hf2 headphones the new iPhone outperformed the 3G in every way. Music as well as spoken word was fuller and more detailed across the sound spectrum. Another welcome improvement in iPhone 4 is the way that the device handles volume control. Instead of the rocker that previous models used, the iPhone 4 has discrete “+” and “-” buttons on the side that yield a finer granularity of control over the volume increments.

Video Playback

The iPhone 4 is the first iPhone to allow HD content playback.To test video playback, I rented the iTunes HD version of Glengarry Glen Ross. Mamet’s masterpiece was razor sharp on the Retina Display with deep blacks, excellent color reproduction, and wide viewing angles. Having said that, I still don’t see myself watching anything more than a 10 minute YouTube video on this screen. It’s just too small for sitting back and watching feature-length content. And I’m okay with that. This is an always-with-you device that needs to comfortably fit in a trouser pocket. And while I think that the EVO 4G and the Droid X do offer a better video experience than the iPhone 4, I also think that they’re just too big to be comfortable as phones. What both of those phones do have that the iPhone 4 is sorely missing, however, is some way of feeding HD content directly to an HDTV.

Performance and Battery Life:

The iPhone 4 is very responsive. I upgraded to it from the iPhone 3G and the performance boost was instantly tangible. Having said that, the difference between the iPhone 3GS and the iPhone 4 is not quite as dramatic. To get a sense of the performance differences between these three phones, I put together a little experiment. In the video below, you will see the iPhone 3G, the iPhone 3GS, and the iPhone 4 all starting up the resource-intensive and completely addictive, Plants vs. Zombies. All three phones were restarted just before the camera started rolling so as to prevent any confounding variables from influencing the results. The finish line in this race is the appearance of the “tap to start” text at the bottom of the screen. The quicker it displays, the faster the phone.

In addition to the raw increase in computing power another thing that really makes the phone feel fast is iOS 4’s new multitasking capabilities. Simply double tap on the Home button and a drawer appears at the bottom of the screen with all of the apps that were recently opened. Instead of having to go back to the home screen every time you want to launch an app, you can now just access this drawer and move seamlessly from one app to the next.

The milage that you get out of the iPhone 4’s battery will vary depending on what you are doing with it. Apple claims 40% better battery life than the iPhone 3GS and most reports seem to bear this estimate out. Personally, I found that on a heavy day of use, which included non-stop web surfing and email, an hour of phone calls, 30 texts, two Face Time conversations, 10 minutes of video recording, 20 photos, and 15 minutes of gaming, I got a little more than 14 hours of battery life. On a lighter day of use, it was closer to 20 hours. This is twice and thrice the amount of battery life that I got out of my iPhone 3G and even with heavier use I feel confident in saying that the iPhone 4 will make it through a full day of work with a little left over in the tank. If you do find that you’re out of juice, the iPhone 4 is very quick to recharge. In my test, it went from dead to full in 2 hours and 20 minutes. The only criticism that I have when it comes to the iPhone 4’s performance is that it gets hotter with normal use than any previous iPhone.

Camera

Before I convey what I’ve learned about the iPhone 4’s camera over the past week, I’d like to start with a disclaimer. The iPhone 4 is not a real camera. Despite the enthusiastic and over-the-top reaction of some early reviewers, the laws of optics did not change with the release of Apple’s latest smartphone. This is a “camera” in the way that Keanu Reeves is an “actor.” That is to say, sort of. For the past week, I’ve been testing the iPhone 4’s photo and video capabilities. For still photography, I pitted it against the Canon SD 870 IS, a two year old 8.0 megapixel point-and-shoot and my trusty Canon 5D with a 28mm prime lens. For video, I used the Flip Mino HD and my beloved Sony EX1 as points of reference. Here is what I learned:

Still Photography

The first thing you notice about the camera app on the iPhone 4 is how snappy it is. There’s virtually no shutter lag and I would go so far as to say that it’s quicker than any point-and-shoot I’ve ever used. In addition, the stunning Retina Display provides an excellent live viewfinder. Apple has shown an enormous amount of taste and basic photographic IQ here by choosing to avoid the megapixel wars. Instead of going for 8 or 10 megapixels, which would surely have looked better in side-by-side comparison charts, they chose a modest 5 megapixel camera, and in so doing, they were able to keep the sensor pixels large enough to make the system perform in low light. Apple should also be commended for squeezing every bit of quality that is physically possible out of this tiny imager. Having said that, when it comes to actually producing images, the iPhone 4 is not playing in the same league as even an entry-level point-and-shoot camera. The digital zoom is terrible and should be ignored with extreme prejudice. The iPhone’s LED flash tends to ruin more pictures than it saves and it is often better to manually disable it and let the photons fall where they may. Below are a series of images of different subjects in different lighting conditions that show how the iPhone 4 fares against real cameras. Notice that when the light is right, the iPhone can produce decent images, but if there’s either too much light, or too little, the camera kind of freaks out.

For full resolution files of the photos, click here.

Video Recording

Video recording is the biggest disappointment of the iPhone 4. Quite frankly, it records the worst HD video I have ever seen.The camera can’t handle mixed lighting situations and it has a horrible tendency of blowing out anything that remotely resembles a highlight. The sound is also terrible for anything but the closest subjects. It’s almost meaningless to say this, because they’re both terrible video cameras, but the iPhone 4 is not quite as good as the Flip. It’s difficult to make this judgement as it’s like trying to distinguish between different kinds of ugly, but in the final assessment, the Flip is a more forgiving camera. Although the iPhone has some things going for it, like better low light performance and color representation, it just doesn’t handle real life point-and-shoot video as well as the Flip. Below are a series of videos in different settings showing how the iPhone 4 performs against the Flip and the Sony EX1.

The potential of the iPhone 4 for citizen journalism is exciting and the release of iMovie, a $5 app that allows you to do simple video editing on the phone, means that more people will be able to produce better video about the subjects that matter to them. I wouldn’t be surprised, for example if the iPhone 4 started to play an important role in documenting human rights abuses around the world. And for that kind of footage, just being available and ready to shoot is all it takes. But it is important to point out the deficiencies of the iPhone 4’s camera, because the iPhone is a convergence device. It is true that if you have an iPhone, you don’t need an mp3 player, because the iPhone obviates the need for such a device. The same can be said for a GPS unit. If you have an iPhone and you download one of the myriad GPS apps on the App store, you don’t need to also buy a GPS. But this is not true of either a digital still camera, or a camcorder. The improvements that Apple has made to the camera are impressive, but it would not be true to say that having an iPhone 4 obviates the need of having either a point-and-shoot, or a camcorder. It’s just not good enough.

Final Thoughts

Before the iPhone 4 was officially announced, I found myself in a very interesting position. I had recently acquired the iPad Wifi and I was at the end of my two-year contract with AT&T. I looked at the new generation of Android devices and I was tempted. I could, it seemed, buy an Android smartphone and tether my iPad to its internet connection. I would then have both a phone that didn’t drop calls and all the benefits of the ultimate iOS device. It made sense until I really started to pay attention to all of the little things that I had come to take for granted on the iPhone. It’s not that the iPhone is perfect and as I’ve mentioned throughout this review, there are elements of Android that Apple can and should learn from. But when you look at the gestalt of the thing, the iPhone experience is still unmatched. From the consistency and polish of the user interface to the fact that you can count on significant updates making their way on to your phone in a timely and predictable fashion, the iPhone provides a superlative mobile computing experience.

By improving the iPhone’s capabilities as a phone, Apple has also responded to the number one complaint that people had with the previous models. In spite of the somewhat disturbing antenna debacle, the iPhone 4 is much better at making and receiving calls than its older siblings. And there has never been a better time to join the party. AT&T recently dropped their $30 one-size-fits-all unlimited data plan in favor of two new plans. The first is a $15 per month plan that gives you 200 MB of data and the second is a $25 per month plan that has a data cap of 2 GB. The upshot of this change is that you can now buy an iPhone and pay as little as $55 per month for the service. That’s $15 less per month, or $360 less over the course of a 2 year contract than was previously possible. So not only is the iPhone 4 itself cost-competitive with the best Android devices out there, but the entry-level cost of ownership is also significantly lower. If you’ve been holding out, this is an excellent time to buy. If you do decide to buy the iPhone 4, do yourself a favor and buy one of Apple’s Bumper cases for it. Not only will it eliminate any of the aforementioned antenna issues, but it will also give the phone a better feel in the hand.

With the iPhone 4, Apple has once again succeeded in setting the gold standard for smartphones, but the market is red-hot and the competition from Google, HTC, and Motorolla is coming on strong. This space will be very interesting to watch over the next year. And that’s a good thing, because in the end, you and I are the beneficiaries of the Mobile Wars.

My special thanks to Pennie Ungar-Sargon, Eli Vaknin, and Amanda Newman for their help in putting together the supporting materials for this review.

Apple’s Flawed Masterpiece: An In-Depth Review of the iPhone 4 is a post from: Mobile | Social Media | Newest Technologies by Tech N' Marketing

By: Hillel Fuld

It’s been two weeks since I first unboxed my iPad 3G and it’s been two weeks of a whole lotta fun! This is the first blog post I am attempting to write on the iPad and so far, so good.

Over the past two weeks, I have discovered some pretty amazing apps. Apps that enable me to stream videos of any kind from my desktop to the iPad, which solve the whole Flash and video support issue on the iPad. I have found apps that have turned out to be more addictive than caffeine (haven’t had a coffee yet, this is what popped into my head). I have also found apps that significantly increase productivity, like for example this WordPress app, which saved me the trip upstairs to my office and enabled me to write this post on the iPad.

However, LogMeIn Ignition for iPad stands in a category of its own and I am not just referring to its $30 price tag (full disclosure: the developer so graciously sent it to me for review). I am sure that even if you are not familiar with LogMeIn, you can probably figure out what it does by it’s name. It enables you to log in to any computer remotely.

Remote access is not a new concept, it has been built in to Windows for years, but when you are doing it from an iPad, it is a whole different ball game. The thing is, there are many apps on the iPhone/iPad platform that enables you to do this.

However, what makes this app different than all the other apps that claim to provide the same functionality is that this one actually works, is easy to set up, and will have you amazed within seconds of setup.

LogMeIn is a service available for free with the option to purchase premium accounts with some extra features that I actually highly recommend trying. Once you have an account and the iPad app, you can log in to any computer and fully control that computer within seconds of launching the app.

So here is how it happens. You launch the app and are presented with some useful tips about how to navigate the computer once you are in. This includes pinch and zoom functionality, right and left clicking, dragging objects, and a whole lot more.

Once you log in, you can see the desktop of the main computer and easily scroll around. Here is the thing. It takes some time getting used to since it is somewhat slower than what you are used to with a regular mouse. There are two ways to scroll, by moving the cursor, which is the default and I found to be less effective, and by moving the screen itself. The second option was more responsive and more natural to iPad/iPhone users.

Along the bottom of the app, there are a few options to customize the experience. There is a keyboard button to bring up the keyboard, a zoom option, which was extremely responsive and accurate, a button to press different combinations on the computer such as Ctrl Alt Del, a right/left click option to change the default way the app clicks, a Settings button, and a Close option to end the session.

The right/left click button is obviously for Mac users, but i have to say, although I do use a Mac, this button was confusing to me with no apparent explanation as to what it is, I found the app right clicking when I wanted it to left click and vice versa. It was so strange to me that I actually wrote the developers that there was a bug, only later realizing what that button actually does.

The interface has some more hidden goodies especially when bringing up the keyboard, but to not bore you with the technical details, I will say that this app is a must have for anyone who has ever gotten stuck with no access to their home computer.

LogMeIn for iPad is a well thought out and beautifully designed app with a simple UI and all the features you would ever need in a remote access app. They just released an update as we speak, which supposedly speeds up the whole process, but I personally did not feel like it needed speeding up before. The developers did a great job with this app, and not only am I going to use the app regularly, but it might have replaced apps like Real Racing HD or Weather HD as the app I use to show my friends how awesome the iPad is.

Have you used LogMeIn? What did you think? Please let us know in the comments.

LogMeIn for iPad Is Sure to Amaze You and Your Friends is a post from: Mobile | Social Media | Newest Technologies by Tech N' Marketing

By: Yoni Weisinger

Toshiba announced the release of the Libretto W100 for their 25th Anniversary. The exact details are a bit vague, but what we do know is that there will be a limited number of these sold and they will be on the market in August. So what is so great about the Libretto that possibly revolutionizes the notebook computer?

The thing that really sticks out about this notebook is that it has not one, but two 7.0-inch multitouch 1024×600 pixel resolution displays. This concept may very well redefine true multitasking. With Toshiba’s new LifeSpace interface, which is essentially a virtual bulletin board, imagine you are importing photos from your camera and you see one you don’t like, just drag it down and edit it or save it for later.

You can also capture an image from the top screen and drag it down to view later. The Libretto runs full Windows 7 so you can type up a Word document using the beautiful various onscreen keyboards with haptic response (possibly customizable for different languages and programs?) or use a bluetooth keyboard and use one screen for research and the other to type.

Both screens can be used to view one webpage document or any program. The Libretto is also an eBook reader. The exact specifications are not definite but supposedly it’s powered by an Intel Pentium U5400 CPU operating at 1.2 GHz, 2 GB of DDR3 memory and a 64 GB SSD, which makes it quite powerful.

Other specs include a 1-megapixel webcam, Bluetooth, MicroSD card, Wireless-N , one USB port, an 8-cell battery and a Windows 7 operating system. It’s also a very portable device, measuring merely 4.84 inches by 7.95 inches when closed, weighing just under 2 lbs.

Speculated pricing is in the $1,099 range. Keep in mind that this concept is designed with portability in mind not performance.What Toshiba did with the Libretto W100 was create a whole new class of notebook computers.

I look forward to hopefully getting my hands on one and maybe one day we will all finally be able to say goodbye to the physical buttons forever.

Is the Toshiba Libretto W100 the Future of Notebook Computers? is a post from: Mobile | Social Media | Newest Technologies by Tech N' Marketing

By: Hillel Fuld

With the iPhone 4 launch behind us, I think it is safe to say that not only was it a success, it might have topped all previous product launches with what is estimated as 1.5 million iPhone 4s sold in one day. Ever since Apple announced the phone, no scratch that, ever since Gizmodo showed us the phone, everyone knew it was going to be a hit. With the new beautiful design, the additional memory, the unprecedented display, and the improved camera, the new iPhone is a force to be reckoned with.

Having said that, the iPhone 4 launch was unique in something besides its impressive numbers. With the release of every new iPhone (as well as other phones), there are always some people who complain about something, but the iPhone 4 brought on such a large number of complaints, and some of them very justified, that it actually became a serious problem for Apple both on the PR front as well as the actual product.

The following were some of the flaws with the launch of iPhone 4:

1. Reception: While it is strange that this was not an issue mentioned in the major iPhone 4 reviews, within hours of people receiving their new iPhone 4, the Web was overflowing with complaints about dropped calls and poor reception. Now, I know what you’re thinking. With the AT&T exclusivity, why is this even news worthy? The iPhone was always known for its dropped calls and poor signal. Well, this time it’s different. The reception on the new iPhone 4 is actually better than the 3Gs primarily due to some Apple innovation of how and where they placed the antenna. Apple basically turned the side of the iPhone 4 into a full fledged antenna. Cool idea, huh? Yes, except for the fact that most people cover that part of the phone when talking, which means that the antenna is blocked causing poor reception, not to mention increased radiation.Everyone is talking about poor reception when holding the left side of the phone, but what most people do not know is that when the antenna is covered, the phone also has to work harder to communicate with the tower, thereby increasing its radiation as well. This strikes me as a very serious manufacturing flaw. The latest rumor is that Apple is releasing a software fix to this, although not really sure how such a thing can be fixed by software. As for the radiation issue, Apple recently rejected an app called tawkon, which helps users lower their exposure to mobile radiation. If I were Apple, this might be the perfect time to reconsider that rejection. Just sayin…
2. Yellow Stain: Another major issue iPhone 4 owners are complaining about is a mysterious yellow staining of the Retina display. If we were talking about one, two, or even ten users, the claim might be dismissed as ten defective devices. However, when we are talking about hundreds or even thousands of registered complaints, it is apparently something more serious. Latest updates on this is that the stain goes away by itself after a few days, which led people to explain the weird yellow spots as having something to do with wet glue under the display. While the fact that it is not a permanent issue reassures me a little, the thought of buying a phone for hundreds of Dollars that has wet glue under the screen is something I never expected from a company like Apple. Unlike the first issue, I have not read any official responses from Apple on this problem, which leads me to my next point.
3. Apple’s Reaction: The official response from Steve Jobs himself is telling users that they should stop holding the phone that way. Really Steve? You are now going to educate us on how to hold phones? You are really going to tell millions of people that they have been holding their phones “wrong” for years? Cmon, even for Apple, that is some serious Chutzpah. If the reception issue got me a little worried about the phone and made me seriously consider if I wanted to abandon my beloved BlackBerry, this response from Apple just pissed me off and reminded me that Apple still thinks it knows better than the consumer what the consumer wants. Bad move Apple, again!
4. Apps: While this point is up for debate, I foresee a serious problem in the App Store as a result of the new iPhone 4. Everyone knows and talks about the fragmentation problem with the Android OS. What works on the Nexus might not work on the larger Dell Streak and what works on Android 2.1 most likely will not be supported by 1.6 devices. This was one of Apple’s winning points over Android. However, with the iPhone 3GS, the iPad, and now the enhanced iPhone 4 display, what looks decent on the 3GS will most likely appear completely pixelated on the iPhone 4 and the iPad. The good news is that as a result of the Retina display, iPhone 4 apps will look perfect in full screen on the iPad, but where does that leave the majority of apps that are still optimized for the 3GS? More importantly, where does this leave 3GS owners in a few months time when all the apps are going to be compatible with the iPhone 4 and the iPad? Will they be backward compatible or will there be a very fragmented App Store the likes of which we have seen in the Android Market? I guess only time will tell…
5. Glass: One of the points that Jobs made very clear when introducing the new iPhone is that both the back and front of the device are made out of some enhanced kind of glass that is thirty times more durable than the plastic on the 3GS. Well turns out a glass phone might not be the best idea… One of the first videos I watched on launch day was a drop test of the iPhone 4 and let’s put it this way, it was painful to watch. While the screen did not crack on the first drop, it did shatter into many pieces after a few drops!  While I can count on one hand the number of times I have dropped my mobile phone, there are many people out there who for them, this is a regular occurrence and I expect a lot of “my iPhone 4 screen cracked” complaints over the next few months.

In conclusion, I will say that Apple created a beautiful device with the iPhone 4 and there is no doubt it will become a huge success and affect the standards of future smartphones. However, both the device and the actual launch were not without flaws, and in my opinion, the worst part is how it was all handled by Apple.

Would love to hear your thoughts on the above issues in the comments.

5 Fundamental Flaws of the iPhone 4 Launch is a post from: Mobile | Social Media | Newest Technologies by Tech N' Marketing

By: Hillel Fuld

So I have been getting a lot of feedback on my previous post about the issues I have with the iPad and apparently people got the very mistaken impression that I am not happy with the device. This could not be further from the truth and at the risk of definitely being called a fanboy in the comments, I will say that Apple did a phenomenal job with their debut into the world of tablet computers.

The iPad is not a perfect device. I would not mind having a camera or two, possibly a USB port, and maybe even a Retina display, but after a week of use, I can tell you with full confidence that if you buy one, you will never regret it.

After a week of using it, I can also tell you something else, there are some amazing apps available for the iPad and while the numbers are nowhere near the amount of iPhone apps available, I have pretty much found any app I could imagine ever needing on a tablet computer.

The following is a list of my 9 favorite iPad apps, and you will see, they are not all in the same category. Some are pointless and addictive games, some are serious productivity boosters, and others will just make your life that much easier, but the common denominator is that they are awesome:

1. iDisplay: ($3.99): I discovered this app only a few days ago when I was looking through the website of one of my favorite iPhone development companies, Shape Services. What iDisplay does is simple and seriously awesome. It turns your iPad into a second  monitor for your main computer (Mac or PC). This is something I have done many times at work and have always found to be a useful feature. The app works perfectly and could not possibly be simpler to use. Besides, to a person not familiar, it kinda looks like some iPad magic.
2. Air Video: ($2.99): One of the complaints people have with the iPad and Apple products in general is their lack of flexibility when it comes to video content. Whether it is Flash or just different video formats, Apple is very strict when it comes to allowing video on their devices. With Air Video, you can stream all your videos from your desktop and view them on your beautiful iPad screen. You need to install the app and a server on the computer and within seconds, you are up and running. The app can convert video, save files, or just play them. In my tests, the app worked flawlessly.
3. IM+: ($6.99) Every time I write a post about top apps on any platform, somehow IM+ is always there. It was true about the iPhone, it was true about BlackBerry, and now it is true about iPad. Basically, IM+ allows you to communicate with all your friends on practically any network. That includes AIM, MSN, Gtalk, Yahoo, Skype (unique to IM+), Facebook Chat (a little bit about that to follow), and many others. The UI is beautiful and takes advantage of the large iPad screen. To be fair, I will say that Shape Services (same developer as iDisplay) gave me the app for free but if they had not, I would most definitely spend the money on it. Also, connecting to Facebook Chat crashed the app on multiple occasions, but from what I understand, IM+ is not to blame for that and the issue is being solved as we speak.
4. Angry Birds HD: ($4.99) This app is hands down the most addictive game I have ever encountered on any platform, period. I would stop there, but to offer a little more information, Angry Birds is a game in which you throw (is it called to throw when you use a slingshot?) angry birds at pigs to try and eliminate the pigs. Sounds dumb, huh? I dare you to try this game and not get addicted. If you download Angry Birds and do not love it, money back guarantee (Disclaimer: If you do not like the game, go seek help but I am not really going to return your money). There are different types of birds, each with their own flying and destroying abilities and the game has many levels. I am up to level 21 and there is a whole lore more to go.
5. Dropbox: (FREE) If you are not familiar with Dropbox, you are missing out on one of the best Web services of the last decade. Dropbox allows you to keep your files in sync across multiple computers/devices. I use it to access my work files on my home computer, my BlackBerry, iPod Touch, and iPad. The files are available on all those platforms and always remain in sync since the actions take place over the internet and not on your computer’s hard drive. To best describe Dropbox, I would say it is your Windows Explorer (you know the place you access all your files in Windows? Not to be confused with Internet Explorer!) in the cloud. One of the most important apps on the iPad and it is completely free.
6. Real Racing HD: ($9.99) This is the most expensive app I have ever paid for and after using it for a week now, I can say it was worth every penny. Real Racing HD is a racing game optimized for the iPad’s stunning screen. The graphics are unparalleled and the racing is competitive and exciting. You can race against the computer, nearby friends over Wifi, or other drivers in a global network. As you achieve results in your races, you unlock new cars and tracks, which gives you more of an incentive to succeed. The game has managed to get the same reaction from everyone who has seen or tried it, and they all say the same thing: “Wow!”
7. iBooks: (FREE) This is a no brainer and probably the first thing every iPad owner downloads. It is in every iPad commercial and it is free so I do not need to convince anyone. However, I will add that Apple did an amazing job with the whole eBook experience on the iPad with the Apple iBook Store as well as the Kindle app, I am not really sure why anyone would still go out and buy a Kindle. The bookshelf look is sure to impress the less geeky among us and putting aside the actual reading, if you are looking to justify your purchase of the iPad to someone and cool sports cars don’t do it for them, try the iBooks app, that is sure to blow them away.
8. Beejive: ($9.99): Beejive, just like IM+ is a leading app in the instant messaging arena. I love the app on iPhone and BlackBerry, and the iPad app is also great. For the sake of transparency, I will say that the developers sent me the app for free. Now, here is the thing about Beejive. It works! It is stable and does not have any crashing problems or bugs I experienced. It also supports multiple protocols such as AIM, MSN, Gtalk, Facebook, and many more, but Skype is not supported, which for me is a big drawback. I have to be honest, I prefer the IM+ interface, but I found Beejive to be more stable in my tests. So this is a close call, but whether you choose Beejive or IM+, you will not be disappointed.
9. Osfoora HD: ($3.99) While there are probably close to a hundred Twitter apps on the App Store, Osfoora is hands down the nicest one. The features are all there and on that front, Osfoora HD can compete with the best of the Twitter apps, but where it blows away its competition is its design. I am not going to try and describe the UI to you because you gotta see it to believe it, but trust me, it is designed to perfection. In terms of its features, to just name a few, it has multiple account support, full landscape support, Auto Refresh, full Twitter list integration, advanced drafts manager, support for Twitlonger, both types of RTs, Instapaper, threaded DMs, and a whole lot more. The two options Osfoora HD is missing in my opinion is the ability to customize the main bar and remove or add icons as well as support for push notifications, but I guess you can’t win em all.

In conclusion, the above list is the result of my week long shopping spree in the App Store. There are many more great apps on the iPad and if you want some more recommendations, feel free to reach out to me on Twitter (follow me here). All in all, to the people that say the iPad is a device they would have no use for, I say with all these apps and the other ten thousands apps available, 90% of what I do on my computer, I can do on my iPad, just in a more visually appealing manner.

If you have great iPad apps I did not mention, please share them in the comments!

9 Apps Every iPad Owner Must Download is a post from: Mobile | Social Media | Newest Technologies by Tech N' Marketing