Oh where to start… there have been oh so many dumb comments about the iphone in the last week. Most of which have made me go from various shades of slightly grumpy to totally incredulous.

But I thought I would put two of my favs up now (I may come back and edit this page later :-))

http://digg.com/apple/First_iPhone_Hands_On?t=15971646

How many HTC Touch versions of ANY websites are there? None
How many cars offer full integration with your Samsung Instinct? None

Oh my god didily dang…

two little observations about these points….

All websites can work with HTC touch if they are coded correctly(that is they are properly compliant to web standards and have a mobile css) and oh yeah the play flash as well!

and the second point… firstly any phone that offers bluetooth can be integrated and oh yes in stereo as well. This person seriously thinks about spending say 1k on an Iphone which is what it will cost at least, and then bases say a 30k car on this. The phone will be obsolete come next year (if not earlier) and the car? I can just see the car for sale adds in the future.

Good car, low km’s (sorry doesn’t support Iphone2.2, ready for quick sale)

People it is a phone, it is obsolete before it lefts the shop, you will drop it loose and scratch it. That happens. Get used to it and stop thinking that it is the best thing since sliced bread. The best thing since sliced bread was spreadable butter, that way your bread did not get mangled. (and whilst bread and butter both have a used by date, they are not obsolete!)

edit– this sums it up the best

“Apple Is to Geeks What Breasts Are to Men”

contains such great lines as

“It’s like watching a group of teenage boys who have never seen a pair of breasts lining up to get a peek at their first Playboy.”

and

“At the end of the day, as much as I love breasts, I won’t pay money for them and I certainly won’t wait in line for them.”

go and read it….

Tags: Annoyances, apple, Funny by Me
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yet another video of multi-touch interface. This gives you all the instructions on how to make your own version as well. Equipment required:cardbox and a webcam and computer.

and more instructions here

http://ssandler.wordpress.com/MTmini/

Tags: General by Me
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This time from All About Symbian, who put the Iphone 3g and the n95 8gb head to head.

“it’s clear that the iPhone 3G, despite the 2008 refresh, is still rather outgunned by the N95 8GB, but there are wins for the high profile device from Apple. It’s cleaner, more elegant, has a larger screen, a great text input method and more foolproof desktop connectivity. And that shortlist of wins is probably enough for a lot of purchasers, especially those with lesser ambitions and a deep lust for shiny Apple hardware.

But the Nokia N95 8GB, as with the original N95 (on latest v21 firmware) and now also the N82, is simply awesome as a piece of technology, winning on overall data connectivity, multitasking, camera, video camera and in general as a smartphone tool for anyone with a smattering of technological knowledge. Paired with a Bluetooth keyboard, the N95 8GB can, for short periods, replace phone, camera, camcorder, music player, navigation device, laptop, games console and Blackberry, among others.”

Firstly the above article gets the price points correct. Not the $199 garbage that media organisations around the world have swallowed.

There are a lot of features that are missing. My 16y/0 nephew uses bluetooth on his phone to transfer files (namely mp3’s) between friends all the time. Not going to happen with the Iphone is it.
Not running background apps is not going to work as well, no GPS logging like sports tracker are going to be possible unless of course Apple release something 🙂

Take the wikipedia info for example..

”

• Color: Black or white (16GB model only)
• Size: 115.5×62.1×12.3 mm (4.5×2.4×0.48 in)
• Weight: 133 g (4.7 oz)
• Tri band UMTS/HSDPA (850, 1900, 2100 MHz)
• Assisted GPS, with fallback to location based on Wi-Fi or cell towers
• 2 Megapixel Camera features geotagging (producing geocoded photograph)
• Battery has up to 10 hours of 2G talk, 5 hours of 3G talk, 5 (3G) or 6 (Wi-Fi) hours of Internet use, 7 hours of video playback, and up to 24 hours of audio playback, lasting over 300 hours on standby.^[20]“

That is it… that is all that is really new in the Iphone, the rest is software (which apple are going to control to the nth degree). Sure it looks nice. But the phone added 3g and is being sold in some new places and that is it.  Nothing new to see here people… get over it.

I could go on… and I most probably will… but not now, it is bed time.

Tags: Annoyances, apple, nokia by Me
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Consider the point I made about the battery on the Iphone….

here is the fine print to consider from Apple US.    Think about this when you are looking at your phone that you have charged and de charge multiple times everyday cause you have used all the 3g, gps and web things.

“What is the iPhone Battery Replacement Program?

If your iPhone requires service only because the battery’s ability to hold an electrical charge has diminished, Apple will repair your iPhone for a service fee of $79, plus $6.95 shipping. Be sure to follow these instructions for optimizing life span and battery life before submitting your iPhone for battery replacement.

How much does it cost to participate in the program?

The program costs $79, plus $6.95 shipping. The program cost is $85.95 per unit.
All fees are in US dollars and are subject to local tax. Service may not be available if your iPhone has been damaged due to accident or abuse. Please review Apple’s Repair Terms and Conditions for further details.

Will the data on my iPhone be preserved?

No, the repair process will clear all data from your iPhone.  It is important to sync your iPhone with iTunes to back up your contacts, photos, email account settings, text messages, and more.  Apple is not responsible for the loss of information while servicing your iPhone and does not offer any data transfer service.  Please do not send any accessories with your iPhone.

How long will service take?

The repair process normally takes three business days. See the iPhone Service FAQ for information about getting an AppleCare Service Phone for you to use with all of your data while your iPhone is being repaired.

All quoted prices are in US dollars.”

Tags: Annoyances, apple by Me
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This video is just to cute to ignore and not share.

Tags: Funny, video by Me
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For me the Iphone comes down to this point. Don’t believe the Hype.

Take this from PC World

“Think of mounting your iPhone on the dashboard, and using the iPhone’s GPS/Google Maps functionality to get to the mall, and then using some sort of iPhone……

An iPhone/GPS device looks to be yet another disruptive technology pairing by Steve Jobs and Apple’s talented engineers. It will be interesting to see how the device lives up to the promise, and how competitors scramble to answer the latest Apple broadside.”

What a load of crock… the N95 has had a gps for years now.. I know I use mine all the time. I send Twitter messages with embeded coords all the time. I geotag all my photos and put the non personal ones up on Flickr. Wow the Iphone is so new and cool. There are a number of mash ups around the trap for doing GPS stuff with your phone. BIG F”ING DEAL APPLE.

I think most journalists are being very lazy today. Oh lets read the Apple press release and call that news. It is not news.

And my being lazy today is to only put this one example in.

(Ok.. the other one is that everyone is talking about the 10 hours talk time, sure it is 10 hours, but only on 2g not 3g, that is 5 hours – details here http://www.apple.com/iphone/specs.html)

Sure the Iphone is a sexy device I will agree with that. But, and it is a big but, there are better devices out there. Touch is not the be all and end all and even then there are touch devices out there by people other than Apple. The reason that touch is not the be all and end all… Phones are 1 handed. You use one hand to make a call (ie speed dialing, texting e.t.c) so you can still pick your nose or drink your coffee.

Look at some of the issues with the Iphone. Fixed battery. Power users are going to find this a problem.Image the case you use your phone for a few months and the battery goes flaky (it does and will happen). Now in the real world you go out buy a new battery plug it and you are away. Time taken 5 minutes. In the mac world here is the case. Take you phone to mac shop if you are lucky get a “loner” phone. Wait a week or so, then get your old phone back. See this works with an Ipod you can do with out music. Can you do with out your phone for a week!

2Mg Camera, seriously that is not good these days as most entry level phones carry this size. Non upgradable user memory, most phones these days take mmc or similar cards to have more memory or apps stored on them (yes my n958gb does not upgrade and it annoys me). Also there is no front facing video camera so video calling is out… you might be able to do it in theory, but in practice it won’t work. (and I have already spoken to a few people that do use video calling and they were shocked at this).

Let the flame wars begin.

Tags: apple, gps, Mobile, nokia by Me
3 Comments »

Stop: Hammertime

Originally uploaded by wolfcat_aus

I drove out of my way on the way to work to get this photo 🙂 (ok it was at the end of a street that I drive past, so not that dramatically out of my way) I saw it on Saturday and was still having a giggle about it 2 days later. One of the more clever things I have seen in a long time. (Or perhaps I just need to get out more)

A great use of a Stencil and whilst I am sure it has been done before I don’t think I have seen it done so well.

This is on the Corner of Stanley Street and Orrong Road Elsternwick.

Look at the bigger version to see everything clearly. (but I might stop passed on another occasion and get a better photo)

Oh yeah and try and get the song out of your head now!

Tags: Funny, Photos by Me
1 Comment »

The article is here

direct link to screencast is here…

http://people.mozilla.com/~beltzner/overview-of-firefox3.swf

Screencast showing of the all new all singing all dancing Firefox 3 and what is new and improved. I for one welcome our new foxy overlords… and don’t forget Firefox download day coming soon….

Tags: General by Me
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A couple of things to note….

1- The beta will expire shortly and no longer allow you to access satellite images. You will need to upgrade to the final version. (care of betalabs)

2- The Final version has had a change (there is is a new version number on download) everything still works, but I can’t see any difference, but will drive around and see if anything has change. (AllAboutSymbian)

Download here – http://europe.nokia.com/A4984199

Tags: Mobile, nokia by Me
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Finally got my money back yesterday for the pizza that never arrived (took them a week to do it!)… wow prompt service and I got this email from Domino’s as well…

“Dear Wolf,

Sorry for the delayed response. We take your feedback very seriously and
have passed it onto the relevant store management who will be in contact
with you within the next week to resolve the issue.

We apologise your meal was unsatisfactory. This is a store level problem
and therefore store management are the best people to speak with as they
will be able to resolve the issue so that it does not occur again.”

I don’t think she read the email that I sent….  and what is with this “We apologise your meal was unsatisfactory” you have got to be kidding,…. it wasn’t unsatisfactory… it never arrived and never was going to.  Further it has nothing to do with the local store… I am sure the local store didn’t build the online system.

But then again they might have it would explain why it is so crap.  (Although i am still holding out for free pizza :-))

Tags: Annoyances by Me
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