mendax.org » iphone http://mendax.org WyldKard's mental brouhaha. est. 1996 Tue, 31 Aug 2010 13:40:46 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 The 2010 Toyota Prius IV. http://mendax.org/feeder/?FeederAction=clicked&feed=Posts+%28RSS2%29&seed=http%3A%2F%2Fmendax.org%2F2010%2F07%2F27%2Fthe-2010-toyota-prius-iv%2F&seed_title=The+2010+Toyota+Prius+IV. http://mendax.org/2010/07/27/the-2010-toyota-prius-iv/#comments Tue, 27 Jul 2010 14:00:37 +0000 WyldKard http://mendax.org/?p=2080

The 2010 Toyota Prius IV isn’t the type of automobile that car aficionados lust after. Rather, it’s the type of car that those who only want to get from Point A to Point B will love because it’s fuel efficient and reminiscent of a luxury sedan. That’s not to say that it is a luxury vehicle, because it’s not, but the Prius IV has a number of comfort features that aim to impress: heated leather seats, good sound system, rear-view camera, sun roof, and vent-powering solar panel.

(Let’s clarify for a moment: we’re talking about the Prius IV, not the more basic I, II, or III packages. The differences between these may be slight, but to be fair, it’s the IV and V that are reminiscent of a luxury car, whereas the other packages can be significantly more spartan.)

It’s a hybrid.

For us, coming off a Volkswagen R32, the difference in performance is significant. The trade-off is obvious, however: a more quiet ride, with twice the mileage per tank and half the price. That trade-off may not be appealing if you’re prone to aggressive driving with open stretches, but in metropolitan areas where traffic patterns are dense, with fun escapes from this traffic being rare, then having a car without much oomph isn’t a huge issue, as long as basic driver comfort is met. And here, the Prius IV delivers fairly well.

And let’s be honest, that twice-the-distance-half-the-price thing is pretty awesome. With basic unleaded gas (87), we’re talking $25 for a fill-up, which gets us over 500 miles of range. Considering that the only other car to do that is the now-discontinued and very compact original Honda Insight, the Prius naturally wins the MPG race, and does so packing more people/stuff.

When we first looked at the 2010 Prius, the salesperson was keen on pointing out that the car had three driving modes. One was the “EV” mode, for forcing the car to run only on the battery. “Eco” mode was next, for focusing on best gas mileage. Third was “power” mode, for getting more juice to the wheels. Let’s be fair, though: in real-world use, you’re only going to use the second mode most of the time, because power mode doesn’t really add that much spin to your wheels, and EV mode shuts itself off when you go beyond a certain speed/acceleration, or if the air conditioner is up in high gear. So really, EV mode may be fine for just cruising around the parking lot, and maybe you’ll push the power mode button when trapped between two trailers on the freeway, but slowing down to a snail’s pace or putting the petal to the metal as it were accomplishes both of these things as well; eco-mode will automatically draw power only from the battery at low speeds, and provide more juice from the engine when needed. Perhaps giving consumers the perception of micromanagement is helping sales, but these options feel almost silly to us.

We assume that for power-management purposes, Toyota pulled the daytime running lights from the Prius, despite the fact that models such as the Matrix come standard with this feature: it’s a safety feature, after all. We can’t imagine that the power draw is that big of an issue, especially since the car will never be sucking battery juice exclusively when not cruising a parking lot. The mystery continues when you forget to leave the Prius’ lights on when the car is off, because unlike most other cars on the market now, the Prius doesn’t complain with an audible beep – the lights just stay on.

A cool family car.

The Prius IV is now considered an intermediate sized-car, up from the “compact” footprint that hybrids were previously known for. With four doors and adequate cabin room to fill the back seats, the Prius can make for a good family car, whether that means you have kids or just a backseat-filling dog. The rear seats fold down completely, and by “completely” we mean that they don’t angle upwards towards the front of the cabin, so sliding furniture or boxes or whatever else in is easy. There’s also no drop behind a lip when the trunk is open, again making for easy loading and unloading of whatever you plan to haul around. This is a solid hatch-back feature, and it’s a wonder that other car companies haven’t come around to this, as it really complements the already-spacious interior.

Locks on the Prius IV are keyless, as is starting the engine. There’s a key-fab that’s proximity-based, so as long as the fab is on your person, you can lock and unlock doors just by touching the car’s door handle(s). It’s a nice feature with a physical override in the event that you key-fab’s battery dies, and the effect of keyless entry is another space-age touch that makes the Prius cool.

Inside, the Prius doesn’t disappoint aesthetically – the dash is full of sexy, mesmerizing LCDs, letting you see where the car’s power is currently coming from (battery or engine), and not even displaying things such as RPMs, as most people could care less about this in the first place. This is indicative of the Prius’ market: not gear-heads, but people who appreciate a clean interface and straightforward usability. Were it not for the lack of little touches here or there, the Prius could almost be considered the Macintosh of cars.

Unfortunately, as space-age looking as the interior is, it’s not perfectly polished: the leather trim is minimal beyond the seats, with much of the dash and doors trimmed in a hard, patterned plastic. It doesn’t look bad, but it doesn’t look as clean as leather either, and while likely more durable in the long run, it doesn’t feel particularly robust when giving some areas a slight push and not feeling much resistance.

The car’s climate controls are nice, but aimed at the front seats. Rear passengers have it tough during very hot or very cold weather, because there are no rear vents – not even under the seats. Even our R32 which had little space in the back seats had vents beneath the front seats and at the rear of the center console. That the Prius, which is a larger car aimed more at a family market doesn’t have this, is almost ludicrous. “But WyldKard, we’ve had cars for decades without rear vents, and our rear passengers have made out just fine. ” We’ve made out fine without power steering for decades too, but that doesn’t mean modern cars should shirk this feature today.

The nav-stereo.

The stereo with built-in navigation is pretty good considering just how poor most stock navigation systems are. The downside is that a number of features are disabled when the car is in motion, such as entering an address or manipulating bluetooth controls for wirelessly connecting to, say, an . The nice thing is that none of these features require add-ons, which was the case with our R32 and bluetooth telephony. It’s pretty stupid for a car manufacturer to disable features temporarily under the guise of safety, however, when real-world use cases mean that a passenger should be able to use the navigation equipment when the car is in motion. In this sense, it’s rather sad that the car detects the presence of a passenger for the purpose of enabling the passenger airbag, but that this same detection mechanism isn’t used to unlock navigation controls.

The stereo itself is good – not as good sounding as the premium system that came stock in our previous 2005 Ford Mustang GT, but with adequate base nonetheless. Control-wise, the Prius IV’s stereo is fantastic, and truly shows how much better touch-screen interfaces are than the pitiful controls on our R32 were. Surely, it’s no iOS interface still, but it’s better than much of the competition.

Speaking of iOS, the Prius IV’s stereo connects to iOS devices via A2DP, letting you listen to any audio from an iOS device (not just from the app), as well as letting you make and receive calls using the car’s speaker system. Thus far, no one we’ve talked to in this manner even knew we were calling from the car, and assumed we were using our Jawbone headset or stock iOS . So good and convenient are these calls, that we haven’t recharged our bluetooth headset since setting the car’s bluetooth connection up.

Unfortunately, while the bluetooth connectivity is solid 80% of the time, there’s the occasional glitch. Normally, as soon as we turn the car on, bluetooth connectivity is achieved and playback from whatever audio app we used last resumes, be it from the app or Pandora. Every once in awhile, however, we have to run through a couple menus to get bluetooth to work properly, and while even rarer, there are times that bluetooth playback of our music suddenly stops, and we have to disconnect the device manually and reconnect it using the car’s stereo interface (when the car is stopped). We don’t know where the problem lies, as it may be an issue with ’s bluetooth implementation or Toyota’s, but it’s annoying either way. Fortunately, the only time we regularly have to touch the car’s bluetooth settings is when ours was not the last device used, such as if our significant other used the Prius with her . In those cases, when we start the car up, we have to tell it to look for our instead, but then we’re off five seconds later with streaming audio goodness.

Mandatory conclusion paragraph.

We didn’t get a chance to play around with previous Prius incarnations, but judging the car on it’s 2010 build, the Prius IV is every bit as comfortable as other “premium” cars in its price range. What you give up is base performance, but most families don’t care about raw performance as much as safety anyway. What they care about is getting from one place to another, and these days, doing it as cheaply as possible. Raw fuel savings may not be spectacular compared to a cheaper, non-hybrid car that’s still considered fuel efficient, but the Prius epitomizes fuel efficiency in a package that greenies can put on a pedestal for not supporting terrorism and being slightly more earth-friendly.

While the Prius still takes top honors among “alternate fuel vehicles,” we realize that’s partially because the respective roster is so thin right now. As this roster grows, the Prius will have to keep getting better, not just in respect to its hybrid engine, but in terms of features and polish as well. Right now, the Prius IV is slightly above middle-ground when it comes to in-car comfort, meaning that Toyota has a solid platform for building more budget-oriented vehicles, or more premium models. Whether the Prius maintains its position as Toyota’s flagship standard for hybrids remains to be seen, but with only a little more polish, we easily see it holding its ground for the immediate future, especially if other titans like Honda aren’t able to quickly capitalize on hybrid technology (e.g. the Insight’s sad resurrection).

Oh, also, the Prius’ brakes seem to work fine, in case you were wondering.

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]]> http://mendax.org/2010/07/27/the-2010-toyota-prius-iv/feed/ 0 Automobile audio done right. http://mendax.org/feeder/?FeederAction=clicked&feed=Posts+%28RSS2%29&seed=http%3A%2F%2Fmendax.org%2F2010%2F07%2F19%2Fautomobile-audio-done-right%2F&seed_title=Automobile+audio+done+right. http://mendax.org/2010/07/19/automobile-audio-done-right/#comments Mon, 19 Jul 2010 14:10:19 +0000 WyldKard http://mendax.org/?p=2076

When the mp3 was created, it didn’t take long before people wanted a way to play these digital music files in vehicles. Juggling cassettes and compact discs was cumbersome, and “skipping” discs were exceptionally annoying. The mp3 was a perfect solution for audible, mobile content, but the adoption of this format has hardly been seamless.

Around the year 2000, we rocked a hacked Netpliance i-Opener, which we hooked up to our car via auxiliary input, if not through a cassette adapter. The whole point was playing mp3s via Winamp, but our solution required a sizeable footprint near the dash, and didn’t work out long-term. We sported an another auxiliary-in solution with our first mp3 player, the Creative Jukebox. The solution remained poor, and even though a later car of ours sported the ability to play mp3s via compact disc, the interface for this implementation remained poor, just as it still is in most disc-based mp3 solutions today.

Even when we picked up a Volkswagen R32 in 2007 and had a built-in interface, we weren’t happy – the console-based solution meant that we had no access to the actual controls, and instead had to use the poor deck-based interface of the stock audio system. Even in 2007, some developers still refused to show full song identifiers on LCD screens, let alone a truly integrated solution. At least the system functioned with our 2G , but upon upgrading to a 3GS , the interface stopped working as a charger. Worse yet, audio through the interface would only work via the main music app, which meant that apps like Pandora wouldn’t push audio through the car’s speakers. So we were back to using a basic aux-in solution.

Some people maintain that given how poor most car stereos are with handling mp3s, that we should continue relying on disc-based solutions. But why rely on an older technology that didn’t even work well at its peak, when adequate technology for a solid digital music experience exists today?

The turn-around for us was playing with a stock Toyota sound system in a 2010 Prius. Between an aftermarket ProClip mount and power cable, and A2DP bluetooth audio, the ability to listen to our digital audio on our via the vehicle sound-system is nearly flawless; as soon as we start the car up, the Prius finds our and immediately begins playing from where it left off, not only via the app, but via Pandora as well.

Why rely on an aftermarket interface when the one on your works fantastic as-is? With the various mounting options ProClip offers, for nearly every modern vehicle out there, the only obstacle is a sound-deck sporting bluetooth audio. That’s a pretty cheap requirement for production, too, so it’s nearly inexcusable for audio decks not to incorporate this feature for all but the most bare-bones of systems. Props to Toyota for figuring this out.

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]]> http://mendax.org/2010/07/19/automobile-audio-done-right/feed/ 0 Still no iOS app data backup in iTunes? http://mendax.org/feeder/?FeederAction=clicked&feed=Posts+%28RSS2%29&seed=http%3A%2F%2Fmendax.org%2F2010%2F06%2F30%2Fstill-no-ios-app-data-backup-in-itunes%2F&seed_title=Still+no+iOS+app+data+backup+in+iTunes%3F http://mendax.org/2010/06/30/still-no-ios-app-data-backup-in-itunes/#comments Wed, 30 Jun 2010 19:09:46 +0000 WyldKard http://mendax.org/?p=2065

We’ve now seen four generations of iPhones, have witnessed iterations of the Touch, and seen the birth of the largest iOS device, the iPad. And, of course, we’ve seen numerous versions of iTunes supporting the various iOS releases, with app management advances such as folders and the ability to import files like PDFs from iTunes itself. But yet somehow, despite all these advances, we’re still without core app management functionality like off-device data backup.

In other words, when we install an app on one of our iDevices, we can backup related data when we sync the iDevice with iTunes. In the even that our iDevice gets lost, breaks, or has some sort of iOS upgrade problem, we can always restore from our backup to not only get our apps back, but the respective data for those apps also. This means we don’t lose our app configurations, game backups, et al.

However, if we delete a particular app from our iDevice, even if we’ve synced the iDevice with iTunes in the past, any data associated with the deleted app is not only removed from the iDevice, but from iTunes as well. Thus, if we delete, say, a game, we lose all our associated achievements, and if we ever reinstall that game onto an iDevice in the future, we have to start from scratch. How is this good ?

One of two things should happen when one deletes an app from an iDevice:

  1. If the iDevice was not synced with that app on it before, the user should be prompted with a message saying that deleting the app means losing all associated data too, unless the user first syncs the iDevice to iTunes before deleting the app.
  2. The user should be prompted as to whether they wish to delete the app and its associated data, or just the app. If the latter is chosen, the next time the iDevice syncs with iTunes, it off-loads deleted app data that is still resident, and only deletes it once it’s been copied to iTunes.

Users should then be able to manage associated app data from within iTunes. This doesn’t mean they should be permitted to edit that data, but choose whether to keep it or simply delete it (assuming they never want to use the app again, else start with a fresh install).

Right now, too many issues still present themselves with iDevices not to have app data persistent somewhere, regardless of whether an app is maintained on a given iDevice. Just this past weekend, when we had to bring in our 3GS because it entered a restore-cycle, and ultimately handed a new 3GS, we were advised to set up the as a new device, and not restore from a previous backup. Getting our mail, calendars, and contacts back were a non-issue thanks to Mobile Me, but everything else was a hassle. We can deal with moving icons around to once again set up our interface like we want it, but getting every app set up again is a pain, and in the case of apps that don’t themselves backup to the (like games), losing all associated data is unacceptable. Do we really need to wait much longer for this problem to be properly addressed by ?

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]]> http://mendax.org/2010/06/30/still-no-ios-app-data-backup-in-itunes/feed/ 0 Upgrade to iOS 4 and lose cellular data? http://mendax.org/feeder/?FeederAction=clicked&feed=Posts+%28RSS2%29&seed=http%3A%2F%2Fmendax.org%2F2010%2F06%2F25%2Fupgrade-to-ios-4-and-lose-cellular-data%2F&seed_title=Upgrade+to+iOS+4+and+lose+cellular+data%3F http://mendax.org/2010/06/25/upgrade-to-ios-4-and-lose-cellular-data/#comments Fri, 25 Jun 2010 14:38:53 +0000 WyldKard http://mendax.org/?p=2053

A number of people have reported losing data over AT&T when upgrading older iPhones to iOS 4. The culprit isn’t clear, though many owners reported jailbreaking their iPhones in the past, though this doesn’t appear to be a universal factor. Regardless, the common solution for getting data back is to restore the from a previous state, sometimes using a different admin account on an OS X system in order to force iTunes into re-downloading the iOS 4 update.

We underwent the same loss of data after upgrading our 3GS, and though a restore worked after setting the up as a new phone, we weren’t happy with losing all our data. (Restoring from a previous backup didn’t work, even after restoring the firmware and setting the up as a new device.) Fortunately, we found a solution that worked, which doesn’t require one to restore the at all.

It seems that the loss of data may be tied to AT&T’s carrier file, which may have ben corrupted/changed on older iPhones (possibly after jailbreaking or installing jailbreak apps). To fix this, get on a wifi network, and from the , head over to HELP.BENM.AT and follow the links to obtain the carrier file for your respective provider. Once the file has been installed, you’ll be back up and running with cellular data, without having spent the time to set up your as a brand new device.Similar Posts:

]]> http://mendax.org/2010/06/25/upgrade-to-ios-4-and-lose-cellular-data/feed/ 0 Replace an iPhone using different-line upgrade eligibility. http://mendax.org/feeder/?FeederAction=clicked&feed=Posts+%28RSS2%29&seed=http%3A%2F%2Fmendax.org%2F2010%2F06%2F23%2Freplace-an-iphone-using-different-line-upgrade-eligibility%2F&seed_title=Replace+an+iPhone+using+different-line+upgrade+eligibility. http://mendax.org/2010/06/23/replace-an-iphone-using-different-line-upgrade-eligibility/#comments Wed, 23 Jun 2010 13:37:15 +0000 WyldKard http://mendax.org/?p=2050

It’s upsetting that AT&T wasn’t clearer on this before we decided to rant, especially since their own employees didn’t know that one could replace a non-discount-eligible with a 4G purchased using the eligibility from a discount-eligible on the same family plan. At least, so says AT&T now, well after pre-orders for the 4G stopped, and units are already shipping. In fact, getting a 4G at this point will likely take several weeks before stocks are refilled.

Still, this information is useful, since it means we don’t have to wait until next year to upgrade at discount. If we did have to wait that long, we’d probably just wait another four months to see what next year’s will bring. Now, however, we need to rethink whether we can make good use of that 5MP camera, HD video-recording, and FaceTime.Similar Posts:

]]> http://mendax.org/2010/06/23/replace-an-iphone-using-different-line-upgrade-eligibility/feed/ 0 Heat: an unaddressed iPhone issue? http://mendax.org/feeder/?FeederAction=clicked&feed=Posts+%28RSS2%29&seed=http%3A%2F%2Fmendax.org%2F2010%2F06%2F21%2Fheat-an-unaddressed-iphone-issue%2F&seed_title=Heat%3A+an+unaddressed+iPhone+issue%3F http://mendax.org/2010/06/21/heat-an-unaddressed-iphone-issue/#comments Mon, 21 Jun 2010 20:31:45 +0000 WyldKard http://mendax.org/?p=2040

We didn’t give much thought to iPhones overheating last summer, when reports were going around about iPhones shutting down after a certain internal heat threshold was met. But that’s because we never encountered this behavior, since we evidently didn’t put our through these types of paces. Things took a turn when we began using our 3GS as a daily device.

The problem.

In the car, while we’ve experienced exceptional heat emanating from our 3GS, we still haven’t witnessed the device overheating and shutting down the active program. We guess that’s because of where we mounted the ; it sits right in front of a vent. During summer months on the east coast, we usually run with the air conditioner on, so the isn’t at the same temperature as the outside world. Since it sits so close to a vent, it’s also getting the benefit of air flow, which isn’t the situation in our second use case.


On a motorcycle, our is more exposed to the elements, or at least the heat. This is doubly-problematic because air flow is effectively neutralized since a motorcycle-mounted is generally enclosed for protection, so the doesn’t benefit from the motorcycle’s movement. On hot days, this means that whatever case the is in acts like a greenhouse. Eventually, east coast summers with temperatures in the 80s will shut down any mounted to a motorcycle, making navigation-by- impossible.

Possible solutions?


Moving the to an unenclosed case, snapped into some sort of mount, may be a part-time solution. Mounts like this exist, but their protection is questionable; do you really trust a mount where the “snaps in” and “snaps out” by pressing a plastic tab? With the vibrations common on motorcycles (not to mention bumps from off-road riding), it becomes a huge question as to whether such a mount won’t suddenly pop an attached off mid-ride.

A better mount system might still work here, but an off-the-shelf solution doesn’t seem to exist. Touratech makes decent aluminum mounts for other devices, but not for the (probably because the isn’t water-tight).

Relocating the ’s mounting location may be possible with the proper . For example, if the could be mounted in a position that offers more shade, where it’s not always getting direct sun, perhaps it would last longer before shutting down. Still, this likely wouldn’t fix the problem entirely, and coverage may be hit too.

Another solution may be to simply keep the in a vented pocket, so it’s not getting sun and benefits from airflow directed against the rider. Unfortunately, this means the rider only has access to audible cues, can’t see the map, and needs to pull the out whenever the navigation needs to be accessed.

In the end, no obvious solution exists if one wants to use -based navigation year-round on a motorcycle (at least in areas where it gets hot).

The 4G .

The latest , releasing later this week, uses the A4 processor, which we know to be faster than previous processors. This new should also sport better power efficiency, which may imply cooler operation. However, we couldn’t find any claims as to how much cooler the 4G runs compared to the 3GS. For us, this becomes a major factor in whether or not we upgrade, because if this new can handle higher heat environments, then it immediately challenges other units for motorcycle use; potentially, with an aluminum case, heat dissipation may be easier for this latest .

For those early adopters, drop us a line to let us know if the 4G seems to run cooler than the 3G or 3GS.

Update (06/23/2010): TiPb is proposing that Apple may have down-clocked the A4 processor in the 4G in order to get better battery life and “lower the thermal impact.” This would mean that the new has more RAM than the 3GS, but a slower processor, explaining why the iPad may still be faster than the 4G . This still begs the question as to how much cooler the 4G would run than the 3GS, however.Similar Posts:

]]> http://mendax.org/2010/06/21/heat-an-unaddressed-iphone-issue/feed/ 0 AT&T screwed up our iPhone upgrade eligibility. http://mendax.org/feeder/?FeederAction=clicked&feed=Posts+%28RSS2%29&seed=http%3A%2F%2Fmendax.org%2F2010%2F06%2F15%2Fatt-screwed-up-our-iphone-upgrade-eligibility%2F&seed_title=AT%26amp%3BT+screwed+up+our+iPhone+upgrade+eligibility. http://mendax.org/2010/06/15/att-screwed-up-our-iphone-upgrade-eligibility/#comments Tue, 15 Jun 2010 19:46:16 +0000 WyldKard http://mendax.org/?p=2034

While we may not think that the 4G is an enormous upgrade, it’s all about the cameras, and that’s specifically the area we’re hooked on. So for some 5 megapixel camera love (plus flash and HD video recording), the new has us interested. We bought the 3GS upon release, so we should be eligible for the discounted upgrade, but… we’re not.

We pre-ordered our 3GS to replace our 2G on T-Mobile, activating it on day one of 3GS availability. About half a year later, we converted our plan to a family plan, and then added a line for our girlfriend. There was also some hooplah about converting the plan to be region-free, since we both ported numbers from different area codes. During all this reshuffling, her phone somehow became the “primary” number on the account, which was inconsequential until today.

When we checked to see if our phone was eligible for the discounted upgrade, we were told it wasn’t, and that we would have to wait until February. The second line we added, however, even though activated half a year later, was already eligible, even though the reverse should be true. Apparently, AT&T can’t fix this in the system, because even if they switch the original phone back to be the primary, that switch alone causes a three-month penalty for future upgrades. So because AT&T didn’t set things up the way initially requested (presumably because it was easier for the salesperson who set up our second phone), I now can’t upgrade at the lowest cost possible. Why AT&T can’t simply swap upgrade eligibility between phones remains a mystery, considering that both phones are on the same plan, billed to the same person.

For us, this is a major complaint against AT&T, especially since the customer sales representative we spoke to today had major attitude when we politely addressed the issue and the reason for our dissatisfaction. This from a company we’ve defended from daily onslaught by other users. Thanks, AT&T. You have one more year from us, and then you better hope you’re still the only US carrier.Similar Posts:

]]> http://mendax.org/2010/06/15/att-screwed-up-our-iphone-upgrade-eligibility/feed/ 0 The iPod Touch is a baby iPad. http://mendax.org/feeder/?FeederAction=clicked&feed=Posts+%28RSS2%29&seed=http%3A%2F%2Fmendax.org%2F2010%2F05%2F05%2Fipod-touch-baby-ipad%2F&seed_title=The+iPod+Touch+is+a+baby+iPad. http://mendax.org/2010/05/05/ipod-touch-baby-ipad/#comments Wed, 05 May 2010 20:14:02 +0000 WyldKard http://mendax.org/?p=2013

One of the common quips about the iPad is that it’s nothing more than a “large Touch.” It’s a statement the naysayers are fond of making, along with those who lash out at anything made by as though were still the only developer putting out a useful, solid operation system anymore; it’s not 1999, people.

We’ve now had an iPad since Friday, the day the 3G iPads were released, and we’re quite happy with it as a replacement for our now-sold 17″ Macbook Pro. We’ve fielded numerous questions, but the most common is, “Why would someone want an iPad?” And that’s a loaded question, because it comes with a pre-established bias. But let’s answer it anyway: “Maybe you don’t. Not everyone would.”

That answer isn’t side-stepping the argument, either. The reality is, if you’re already happy with an existing portable computer, or you don’t need a portable computer in the first place, then the iPad isn’t for you, just as a roadster isn’t the ideal car for a family of four. If you’re in the market for a portable computer, however, and what you need it to do is the same thing 99% of computer users need a computer for, then the iPad fits the bill splendidly. It’s a fantastic entertainment and news device, is great for writing, and the distribution system for apps makes the iPad a headache-free device which you won’t need to reformat every six months because something’s broken.

And for techies who need the latest and greatest, and have the disposable income to make that need a reality, then the iPad is an obvious choice over an existing sub-notebook: it’s snappier, has a great app library w/associated distribution system, has a longer battery life, and has a data connection built in.

With four days of iPad use behind us, we’re not disappointed with the device at all, and look forward to the benefits that OS 4.0 will bring later this year. One side-effect of using the iPad, however, is our changed perception of using the . Quite simply, the no longer feels as revolutionary, or as spectacular, as before. Indeed, we’re making an effort to not run apps on the iPad, because most simply don’t look great when scaled up. That’s not to say that the still isn’t the best smartphone on the market, but merely that the now feels more like a phone with cool features, and less like a backup computing device; the feels almost cluttered now, what with its dense app icon distribution on the SpringBoard, and the lack of “whitespace” in apps.

In this respect, the iPad has set for the computing industry a new standard. What early, greyscale sub-notebooks were to their later, more powerful notebook brethren, the Touch is to the iPad. In other words, the iPad isn’t a big Touch, in much the same way the modern Mini Cooper isn’t just a bigger version of the old Mini. Yes, there are keen visual similarities, but one was effectively a prototype for the other. In the end, the Touch is a smaller, more restricted version of the iPad, which is a more apt description if any can be made, and it pinpoints the answer to the aforementioned question as to why one would want an iPad: early adopters didn’t ask why they should pick up an instead of one of the many non- mp3 players on the market. Rather, the reason was obvious: the was better, not because it offered much more functionality, but because it was highly polished. Those who didn’t see this would end up buying an a year or three later. Same with the iPad: if you don’t get it now, just wait a couple years when the early-adopters have made the reasoning all to clear.

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]]> http://mendax.org/2010/05/05/ipod-touch-baby-ipad/feed/ 0 We’re lovin’ the iPad hate. http://mendax.org/feeder/?FeederAction=clicked&feed=Posts+%28RSS2%29&seed=http%3A%2F%2Fmendax.org%2F2010%2F04%2F06%2Fwere-lovin-the-ipad-hate%2F&seed_title=We%26%238217%3Bre+lovin%26%238217%3B+the+iPad+hate. http://mendax.org/2010/04/06/were-lovin-the-ipad-hate/#comments Tue, 06 Apr 2010 19:00:03 +0000 WyldKard http://mendax.org/?p=1993

And we love it because it just makes people sound ignorant, or flat-out trollish. That’s not to say that the iPad wasn’t over-hyped by much of the media and the faithful: in our hands-on with the iPad on release day, it lived up to our expectations but didn’t surpass them. It was definitely cool, we look forward to our 3G version arriving later this month, and getting a chance to play with iPad-specific (the upscaled apps we tried didn’t look great). But the device was heavy – heavier than we thought it would, which doesn’t mean anything other than the fact that we wouldn’t hold it out in front of us for long periods of time, but we didn’t really expect to do that anyway.

But we still think the device is a potential game-changer. HP just announced their pricing and specs for their Slate, and if you think that’s a coincidence in light of the iPad’s release on Saturday, then you’re high. The Slate, after all, was announced before the iPad, and the Slate has everything to gain after critics’ lukewarm reception of the iPad on Saturday, versus a preemptive announcement that would have been drowned out by the iPad fanfare. But here’s the thing: the Slate is a Windows 7-based machine, and who the fuck wants that? And yes, we’re ignoring from the Slate-drooling-set the people who think they’ll be able to run modern Windows-based games and those who want to get their old-school emulation game on, because the iPad has already been hacked, and we’d sooner trust a jailbroken iPad than a buggy /HP product any day.

But back to the iPad hate, Gruber already refutes Dave Winer on the position that the iPad may fail because its users can’t develop applications for the iPad on the iPad: gaming have shown success for decades despite the fact that none have offered reasonable application development suites on the themselves.

But Winer has other arguments that need addressing, because they’re plain wrong. Especially when this one follows with Winer’s iPad-on-iPad-development argument:

It’s definitely not a writing tool. Out of the question. This concerns Jeff Jarvis, rightly so. This is something my mother observed when I demoed it to her on Saturday. Howard Weaver writes that not everyone is a writer. True enough, and not everyone is a voter, but we have an interest in making it easy for people to vote. And not everyone does jury duty, but easy or not, we require it. Writing is important, you never know where creative lightning will strike.

The problem with Winer’s argument(s) isn’t just his stream-of-consciousness blathering, but the missing evidence as to the iPad’s writing prowess (or lack thereof). Is he basing his argument on the fact that Pages is an extra $10 purchase? Or that a slew of high-quality writing apps isn’t already available on the AppStore? At what point does the iPad fail at writing where other mobile devices (e.g. netbooks) succeed? And don’t start with the multitasking argument, please, because if multitasking isn’t indeed a feature of OS 4.0, then state-saving between apps is still a work-around, especially if load-times between apps is negligible.

Winer goes on to condemn the iPad for not supporting his bookmark synchronization tool of choice: Xmarks. And a sillier argument he couldn’t make, because to judge an product for not supporting a third-party product is as nonsensical as us condemning every Android and Windows-based device because we can’t run Ulysses on them.

Three days into the iPad’s public availability, we haven’t seen one single, comprehensive review of the iPad where the final verdict isn’t positive. Those like Winer who paint a poor picture of the device either flatly refuse to adapt to the iPad’s new way of doing things, else simply don’t get it.

But here’s who did get it: when working with a computer illiterate family member this weekend, jumping back and forth between her and MacBook, she touched an icon on the MacBook’s screen, and later an entry field, because it’s a natural thing to do. And that’s the first time when we realized just how intuitive a touch interface is, because it’s finally a better input mechanism than a mouse. And when explaining how apps didn’t need to be installed by disc, and could be downloaded wirelessly, and how the chances of breaking an app, losing windows, overburdening a CPU, et al, we next to nil on the upcoming iPad, our family member wondered why it wasn’t so easy to begin with. Well, now it is, and she and thousands of others will pick an iPad up because it makes more sense than a traditional computer, and she and those thousands of people won’t be concerned with whether or not a random third-party app exists (because they’ll find one on the AppStore to do what they want to do), and won’t worry about developing iPad applications (ever). And that great force will undoubtedly trickle down to the unbelievers who want a lightweight computer, because the reality is, they too can do 99% of what they need a computer for, on the iPad.

And in the meantime, all the winers [sic] will realize that the iPad is as capable a writing machine as most any other.Similar Posts:

]]> http://mendax.org/2010/04/06/were-lovin-the-ipad-hate/feed/ 4 The iPad should interface with the iPhone directly. http://mendax.org/feeder/?FeederAction=clicked&feed=Posts+%28RSS2%29&seed=http%3A%2F%2Fmendax.org%2F2010%2F03%2F29%2Fthe-ipad-should-interface-with-the-iphone-directly%2F&seed_title=The+iPad+should+interface+with+the+iPhone+directly. http://mendax.org/2010/03/29/the-ipad-should-interface-with-the-iphone-directly/#comments Mon, 29 Mar 2010 20:15:53 +0000 WyldKard http://mendax.org/?p=1990

As we checked out ’s latest guided tours for the iPad, it occurred to us that since the iPad is capable of grabbing photos off digital cameras and memory sticks thanks to the iPad Camera Connection Kit, it should also be able to grab photos from an without having to rely on an intermediary computer. After all, some people’s digital camera is an , and they should be able to transfer pictures to the iPad just as easily as everyone else can.

Yet as we watched these guided tours, we also realized that the iPad’s Photos app, as cool as it is, doesn’t seem able to do a lot of other things we’d want, such as the ability to tag faces, perform basic editing functions, et al. In other words, the Photos app isn’t mobile replacement for iPhoto as much as it is a way to simply view photos on the go. And that’s a shame, because the iPad shouldn’t be a second (or third) mobile device in one’s bag, but a non-pro notebook replacement.

seems somewhat unsure of just how to market the iPad with this philosophy in mind. For example, while the Photos app seems to suggest that users stick with iPhoto for tagging and editing, they’re told that the iPad versions of the iWork suite are perfect mobile replacements for their normal OS X counterparts. Why the inconsistency?

Productivity-wise, it’s even a bigger shame, because we generally have more time when traveling to address tasks such as tagging, album management, etc, than when we’re at home or at work. The reality is that such photo organization simply doesn’t happen for us unless we’re on the road, and for the immediate future, that means we’d rely on the iPad for these types of tasks. To even argue that an expanded Photos app, with these features present, would somehow threaten iLife sales is laughable, and yet is holding off on adding (or revealing?) such features. Might they release an AppStore-distributed mobile iPhoto app for more money?

Understandably, relying on the normal OS X version of iTunes for synchronizing things likes movies may make sense to a degree (though not for movies taken with an ), but for smaller files, such as music purchased through the iTunes store, users should be able to synchronize the iPad directly with an , else the iTunes store should be changed to allow users to re-download material they’ve already purchased. The AppStore already allows this, but iTunes media seems to be an obstacle for this happening with multimedia.

So unless releases a dock-to-dock connector for synchronizing two mobile OS X devices, we may have to hold out for a media-in-the- solution from , else the long-sought-after wireless synchronization feature people have called for since the ’s debut.Similar Posts:

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