"Erik Goldoff" <[email protected]> wrote on 05/18/2009 03:04:57 PM:
> I do NOT need any music features on my mobile phone, I'd rather > have a separate discreet device with its own battery, I use a > GPS in my car, don't need to prop up my phone ... Well, I'd say you are in the minority - even Garmin is coming out with their own converged GPS/phone (but I really hope they have their software on the iPhone post OS 3.0) There is already tight iPod integration with most cars these days - with the expanded dock support of 3.0, I would imaging the ability to integrate you iPhone with a screen and everything else in your car is not far off. Next logical progression, really... > At this I take offense ... I am not desperate, and definitely > not uninformed on the issue ... Fair enough. > yes apple FINALLY switched to > an Intel cpu and you can run Windows now on their computers ( > if you wanted to ) but they still hold tight to the ROMs, not > nearly the open design the PC has ( which, granted, leads to > some of the pc problems ) Sure they hold tight control over their hardware - that's what allows them to provide the tight end to end experience. For me, that's a feature not problem to be solved :) But they still aren't a monopoly. And Apple doesn't have to stay on Intel CPU's. If, through PA Semiconductor, they have their own breakthrough with ARM there is nothing to say they won't switch again. I highly doubt it because they do get a huge windfall in being able to easily run Windows along with Mac OSX - but Apple is far more flexible in processors then any other company (they have shifted processor architectures - successfully - twice now). > Sigh !!! I saw what was there ... didn't need a sheep to preach > about how virus free the mac was, or how it almost never > crashes ( I've seen more than my share, I used to support macs > as well ) ... I like Coca-Cola too, but tend not to hang with > their staff as they are somewhat cult-ish too ... watch one > when someone else asks for a Pepsi, they get visually disturbed > that the competition exists ... Mac ( and Apple ) has it's > place... there are still things it does better than Wintel, but > I don't worship at either alter ... I'd just like the tool that > fits my needs the best at the time. Again, that's sales. It's what every company who is pushing their product does. I don't see them talking up their products any more or less then other successful retailers. Do I accuse the Geek Squad drones at Best Buy of worshipping at the Microsoft alter when they start to hard sell me on the latest Windows bearing laptop? You and I may not appreciate it, but it does work for enough people for them to do it. Otherwise they wouldn't bother. > OK, so exactly what applications am I missing out on having on > my phone ? I haven't run across much that I need to have on a > device with a little screen and cramped input It seems like if you want it, there is an app for it. Heck, even if you don't think you need it there's an app for that :) Here are some I use in no particular order: Shazam - samples 10-20 seconds of a currently playing song and then tells you what it is. Great when you are listening to the radio and can't remember what that song is or hear something new and want to find out what it is. Midomi is similar, but not as accurate. However Midomi will let you sing or hum into it, and it's fairly decent about figuring it out. Sportacular - summarized sports scores in an easy to read format, categorized by sport. I'm not a huge sports fan, but it's a great fun app. You can drill down to individual games and it provides real time updates. The pro ESPN app will even stream video of events - I'm not that big of a sports junkie, but I have friends who are and swear by that app. Weatherbug Pro - for 1$ you get a pretty comprehensive weather application with full maps, ability to save favorite locations and more. The built in weather app isn't bad, but Weatherbug pro takes it to the next level. Pandora - personal radio station in my pocket. Works (amazingly well) over 3G and edge even. Love pandora... Yelp! - Reviews of restaurants and more. Even better, it's location aware so if I am on travel and I want to find a restaurant near me, in just two taps I have all the restaurants around me with reviews. It's incredibly handy. There are others like Local Pics and CityGuide that do similar functionality, but I always seem to come back to Yelp! 1Password - syncs with the desktop version. Encrypted password storage. Beats post it notes :) Car Care - I'm kind of OCD on recording my milage and tracking maintenance - great app with a simple interface. A pretty clever import/export engine too. I was able to load in five years of back records with one email. Google Maps - built into the iPhone, incredibly useful. Traffic information is very handy - different purpose from GPS. Location aware - tap a button and orients to where you are. Great for finding stuff around you on the go. Remote - Apple provide app that allows you to control iTunes or an Apple TV remotely. I have an airport express and an Apple TV in different rooms in my house from my main computer with iTunes - I can have music on throughout my house and control it with my iPhone from wherever I am. Sonos on steroids and at a fraction of the price. Kiwi - iPhone front end for Wikipedia - makes Wikipedia very readable and navigable on the iPhone display. Use it constantly. Clinometer - a level on steroids. I got it as a novelty but it really is useful and more accurate then I expected. When the phone is laying flat, it turns into a multi-axis bubble level - leveled up my pin ball machine in a couple minutes with it :) Again not something you use constantly, but very handy when you need it. GasBag - location aware app that shows you gas stations around you and current prices - great for a quick check if you need to fill up. Will be using it this weekend while on the road to avoid those expensive gas stations clustered around freeway exits. Trails - GSP breadcrumb app - use it while taking photo's to geotag photo's at the end of the day. Saved me from buying a couple hundred dollar geotagging device. Am really hoping that 3.0 allows for some background apps - this is one I would desperately like to run in the background constantly when I need to. Runners and cyclers will use it to track their training. All kinds of uses. Speaking of photography, while I'm not huge birder, Birdpost is a nice location aware app for tracking and reporting bird sightings. Lookup and FreePing - network test tools with a nice GUI wrapper that deal nicely with the "cramped screen and input" as you put it. Great for testing systems from "outside" without having to be outside :) DC Metro - I can never keep the trains straight - I just don't ride metro often enough. For $1 I always have the Metro map with me, and real time information on train arrival times. Handy when I have to play tour guide. Skype - Don't think I need to explain this one :) Sucks it's Wifi only, but I can't say I'm surprised. Various reference materials - dictionary, thesaurus, ebooks, etc. Again it's nice to be carrying just one device. Light - simple App that lets you set the screen to a color and control the intensity. Great to use as a flash light, but I also use it as a fill light for photography. Again I downloaded it as a gimmick and discovered it's more useful then you first think. AmbiScience Pure Sleep - more then just a white noise generator - I tried this on a whim one night and discovered I really like it. I do sleep better and feel more refreshed. Liked it so much I changed out my clock radio to one that has an iPod/iPhone dock. Much less expensive then the dedicated units, and far more flexible - there are multiple apps that do similar things, if I get tired of this one for a buck or two I can change it out. And then there are the games. Lot's of casual games that are great for taking a break or passing some time - like waiting for your carpool partner that says they will be right down and then 15 minutes later.... Nevermind the contacts, email, calendar, photo's and phone stuff you would normally expect from a phone. The biggest surprise to me is just how much the location aware stuff makes a difference. Google Maps and Yelp! for example take on a whole new dimension when they are in your pocket and know where you are. I've gotten so used to the location aware stuff that I catch myself looking for the "Where am I" or "Around Me" buttons when I'm on my laptop :) And that's just a small slice of what's out there. I'm constantly discovering new stuff - it's amazing what people are thinking of. With hardware support coming in the 3.0 SDK, things will get even more interesting. > there was nothing about the iPhone g2 that compelled me to pick it. Maybe some of the above that I described or what some of the other guys have told you about the iPhone will give you some more to ponder. > Guess so, cause we will anyway <grin> I also think WM6 has a > way to go, and was hoping Android would be more than it showed > up to be on the T-Mobile phone I'm glad to be done with WM. MS is hopelessly behind - they should really consider buying Palm and relegating WM to corporate use and eventually transitioning away from it. I too was a little disappointed in Adroid. I was hoping it would spur more out of Apple - and I think it has. I don't think Apple would have opened up the Dock connector as quickly, for example, if they didn't feel Android and the Pre breathing down their necks. I also don't think they would have been talking about background apps in the 3.0 timeframe without either of those phones pushing them. So for those reasons, if nothing else, I hope Android and the Pre "make it". Android I'm not so worried about (I don't think Google is going anywhere), but the Pre is in serious trouble due mainly to Palm's poor financial footing :( > now, if they'd only figure out a way to add a usb connected > real keyboard and video out to a monitor, *then* it'd really be > a platform I do miss having a mini-USB connection on the iPhone - just for charging, if nothing else. But like I said, iPod dock connectors are almost as universal these days so it's only a minor quibble. And I'm right with you on the keyboard. With Apple opening up the Dock connector with the 3.0 SDK, I'm sure there will be foldable keyboards like we had for the original Palm PDA's - that would be ideal for taking notes in meetings and such. A real keyboard (physical connection, built in stand - NOT bluetooth to suck more battery life) is something I'm eagerly awaiting. There's a little video out in 2.2 - I'm sure they will beef it up in 3.0 with the expanded dock access. > But that's just my opinion ... Indeed :) No worries. Choice and competition is a good thing. Eric Eskam =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The contents of this message are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. Government "The human mind treats a new idea the same way the body treats a strange protein; it rejects it." - P. B. Medawar ~ Finally, powerful endpoint security that ISN'T a resource hog! ~ ~ <http://www.sunbeltsoftware.com/Business/VIPRE-Enterprise/> ~
