Tag Archives: apple
Gadgets

Apple EarPods: One Less Reason to Get an iPhone 5

By on Monday, October 1, 2012

Grabbed a pair of EarPods yesterday. They were out of stock in quite a few stores but I finally got lucky.

The EarPods come in a case that acts as a cable wrap and is really pretty and, more importantly, functional. The earphones themselves are just as beautiful. It’s got a curvy organic look. Supposedly it was designed for the human ear. They’re not in-ear headphones but they are shaped in such a way as to deliver the sound directly into the ear canal.

The sound is definitely better compared to the old Apple earphones. The sound is not as tinny as before. Definitely there was an improvement in the mid and low range. The bass is definitely not the thumping, at least in the ear, kind of way but I guess they also had to consider voice.

I’m quite pleased with them. Too bad, because now that I have them, there’s one less reason for getting an iPhone 5 :P

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General

Fragmentation

By on Thursday, September 20, 2012

One word that Apple always uses against Android is the F word. Not the one that rhymes with ‘Duck’. I’m referring to ‘Fragmentation’. They’re referring to so many Android phones from so many manufacturers with so many different features (e.g. screen sizes), and to top it off, so many versions of the core OS with different “skins” applied by manufacturers to, you know, differentiate themselves. They say it like it’s what will bring about the end of Android and that Apple doesn’t have it.

But fragmentation has already been with iOS since the original iPad release back in April 2010. It’s just that iOS 3.2 then came with a built-in mechanism for supporting apps with non-dynamic UIs (upscaling). The same mechanism was used by iOS 4 when the iPhone 4 and its 640×960 display came out.

Most developers quickly came up with updates that target the iPad and the iPhone Retina display. Now with the iPhone 5 and its 640×1136 display it will be the same: iOS 6 comes with a built-in mechanism (letterboxing) and developers will quickly come up with updates that target the new display.

For most developers and even some customers, fragmentation is not a big deal. It’s nothing new. Just look back at Windows and PCs: A huge variety of hardware? Use device drivers. An assortment of resolutions? Use dynamic layouting. Different graphics chips? Use OpenGL or Direct3D. Been there, done that. Survived.

For many customers, it is a big deal and quite scary. But that’s just what fragmentation is: a scare word that Apple marketing came up with. If you’re afraid, maybe you can use a better word: ‘Diversity’. Doesn’t sound scary anymore, yeah?

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Gadgets

Apple iPhone 5 vs Samsung Galaxy S3

By on Thursday, September 13, 2012

Now that Apple has announced the iPhone 5, it’s time for a side-by-side for comparison against the de facto Android flagship, the Samsung Galaxy S3. By the numbers alone, you can see that Galaxy S3 has set the bar and that the iPhone 5  is hard-pressed to match it. And the Galaxy S3 has been out for months now.

The significant advantages of the iPhone is size, weight, iOS 6, and the App Store. Size and weight is a matter of personal preference. While I like small phones, a lot of people love their phones with big-ass screens. As for iOS 6 and the App Store, both are under threat by the much-improved Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and fast-growing Android Play.

Read More

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General

New Kindle Fires

By on Friday, September 7, 2012

Amazon has announced a whole raft of Kindle e-readers and tablets. But the interesting ones to me were the tablets. There are 3 of them, the Kindle Fire 8.9″ HD with 4G, the Kindle Fire 8.9″ HD, and the 7″ Kindle Fire HD. The bigger Kindle Fire HDs compete directly with the iPad while the smaller competes directly with the Google Nexus 7 and the much rumored iPad Mini. The battle of the big three is heating up even more. What’s interesting is that while Amazon started with books, Google with ads, and Apple with songs, pretty much all of them are now selling the same stuff: books, ads, songs, movies, etc. But Amazon has a huge leg up: shopping. Google and Apple would do well to get into that, maybe by buying eBay?

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