For today’s (and honestly, the next day or two) poll, we’re looking at 3D. Back at CES 2010 in early January, 3D was the hot ticket item. Every TV manufacturer and countless smaller companies had some sort of 3D device or service on display. How much we see of said technology at CES 2011 coming up in a mere month will be a good indicator of how well the market has accepted this 3rd dimension. Personally, I haven’t bought into it yet. From the products that I’ve seen and tested, I came away with the overall consensus that it isn’t that great and instead, more of a marketing gimmick. But I’d love to hear what you have to say.
So take a second today to head on over to the top right of the sidebar and cast your vote!
By this time of the week, you are all likely ready for the weekend. Tired of life’s toils and tribulations that bombard you each week day, having a couple days to yourself is nothing short of home-grown paradise. So how about kicking of that staycation of yours with a little gadget porn — a Boxee Box disassembled and ‘splayed across a table, ready for your eyes to comb over.
To say the tablet market is exploding right would be an understatement. Currently, there are no less than half a dozen manufacturers including but not limited to Toshiba, LG, RIM, and Apple. Each company and device has their own spin on how a tablet should look and function. Who makes the best tablet is more or less subjective. But there’s another new kid on the block — Creative.
But where other tablets have more or less focused on screen size, apps, or appearance, Creative is taking a different approach and focusing on sound quality.
What’s that sound? Oh, just the sweet sweet music of HTML 5 claiming another victory over Flash of course. Soon you, I, and any other human on planet earth who feels compelled to visit Virgin America’s website will be able to do so without pegging a core or four on our processor by simply navigating the website. For mobile users, this means the simple task of even navigating Virgin America’s website will soon be possible. According to Virgin America CEO, Ravi Simhambhatla, the move to HTML 5 will mean faster and easier navigation for desktop users where no special (read: proprietary) plugin will be needed and a much more natural and unhindered experience for mobile users as well. On the topic of mobile users in particular, not all mobile browsers support HTML 5 just yet. But lest we remind you how resource heavy Flash is, and how resource heavy HTML 5 is not. As more people jump on board the HTML 5 gravy train, 3rd parties and developers will surely follow.
Ah, the days of an even footing between desktop and mobile web usage is starting to shape up nicely. I don’t know about you, but I’m getting tired of seeing that stupid little blue lego block littering my mobile browsing sessions. Now that Apple has taken the lead publicly denouncing the importance of Flash and seeing second major company follow, how many more will follow and just how will Adobe respond? Interesting stuff indeed.
You may recall Steve Job’s now infamous quote many days back stating that if Adobe Flash were supported on the iPad, the battery life would fall from 10hrs. to 1.5hrs. A bold claim to make and one that I can neither confirm or deny being that I don’t actually have an iPad to play with. Even still, such a drop in battery life doesn’t seem very plausible. Flash on mobile devices has been known to kill batteries rather quickly, but that quickly?
Flash aficionado Mark Doherty whipped up a little 17-minute video showing off Flash — the entire 17 minutes mind you. When all was said and done, a quick trip into the battery status window showed that over those 17-mintues, the battery fell by only 6%. Even with the screen dimming for most of the video, having an active screen and active WiFi connection for the video, 6% doesn’t seem too bad, does it?
Mr. Doherty also goes on to say that Adobe has been flogging mobile Flash in house with H.264 results brining in a solid 3 hours on WiFi meaning most of even the longest movies in movie history should be viewable on a single charge. Suddenly I’m a bit more excited again. Anyone else?
For those needing a bit more proof (skip to the end…)
Isn’t it funny how HD’s dominance as “the” TV tech to have was rather short lived? In some senses I guess it isn’t that short. Looking at the bigger picture however again suggests otherwise. Overly philosophical theories aside, 3D TV is going to explode in the next few years. HD was cool and all, making the best of what a 2D picture could look like, but 3D is an entirely different animal. A fine, sexy, killing machine of an animal I would wager to say.
One of the obvious tools the 3D aficionado of the coming years will need is first a 3D capable TV. With that TV you’ll need some form of 3D content — hello satellite, cable, Blu-ray 3D. Good to go? Not quite there skippy. You need one more item — glasses. While we’d all like to see 3D pulled from it’s reliance on glasses, the ugly truth is you’re going to be in for quite a wait if that’s what you’re hoping for anytime soon. Be thankful for these new age 3D glasses aren’t nearly as ugly or gimmicky as the old red/blue anaglyph versions as you can see from the renderings above.
The pair of glasses pictured above are what a good deal of the 3D glasses that are both paired with 3D TV purchases and bought separately will look like. Red isn’t my personal favorite but if it gives me Avatar in my living room, well let’s just say I’ll deal with it. The only thing that makes your eyes to the double brow lift is the reported price tag of $75+. Youch. That $75 is on the low end as well with prices easily climbing to $150.
Clearly, these glasses and TV’s are not meant for families with children or the clumsy prone. At least not in the near term. As the technology advances and the market becomes more saturated, picking up said glasses at a fraction of the cost will become much easier. Even still, a 2, 3, or more child home would likely want to stay away from 3D TV’s and glasses for the mere fact that replacing the glasses alone could bankrupt them. Sad that greed is tarnishing a great technology and service from the start. But I digress…
Anyone out there ready to drop it big on 3D TV in 2010 and beyond? If you so choose, share with us whether you have kids or not and if that factors in to your decision. Happy commenting
As if iTunes wasn’t already massive enough, Apple’s recent purchase of La La could spell a tidal wave of change making it’s way though Cupertino. For the longest time, Apple has stood against the onslaught of online streaming services such as Last.fm and Pandora to name a couple, saying that “consumers would rather own their content”. Fair enough. I in fact would rather “own” my content as opposed to paying a set fee every month to “borrow”/stream content with no physical or digital back up of my own. In one fell swoop by purchasing La La, Apple completely wiped out any recollections I had of them trying to fight the advancement of online/streaming services. La La itself was a very unique online offering to say the least. The service would scan your hard drive in search of media content. Whatever content was on your hard drive you were allowed to stream for free via La La. Any content on La La’s site that you didn’t own you had the option of streaming one time for $0.10 or purchasing the song outright. Talk about innovative and cool!
Further bolstering this whole “tidal wave of change” at Apple comes by the fact that permanent positions within the company were made for several exec’s of La La to likely further develop iTunes and push it ahead in the realm of streaming content.
Going back to La La’s old model highlights one key thing: If Apple were in fact looking to relaunch iTunes as a new monster, streaming content, storing vast libraries, and allowing users to purchase music aside from streaming would no doubt require a huge amount of storage space. Apple already has some pretty beefy servers. But taking on something as large as they’re suspected of doing would require a completely separate facility. Could this be the facility Apple was scouting earlier this year in North Carolina?
The clues all point to an obvious answer. The answer of course being that Apple’s acquisition of La La wasn’t a “just because we can” move. At the very least, iTunes will be gaining some pretty cool streaming features and services within the app with more involved solutions being a full migration of iTunes to the web to Apple opening up their own streaming service removed from iTunes. If you’re asking why Apple would want to do that, I can only say “bloat”. iTunes while universally recognized as “the” music player/digital music store of choice by countless millions, the increasing amount of work Apple is requiring of one of it’s most popular projects is beginning to show. iTunes just isn’t as fast, simple, or easy as it used to be. A separate streaming solution either as a web app of sorts or complete website service all on it’s own would still be unique and relieve the iTunes app/name itself of being so weighted down.
Though until Apple officially announces anything or insiders close to the plans get a case of loose lips, it’s all speculation and dreams for us. What is Apple working on? What does the future have in store for Apple, iTunes, and the way we consume content as a whole?
What good would it do you to know how much the typical American consumers in digital data per day? In actuality, I can’t see any benefit at all unless of course you would use it as an interesting factoid for an icebreaker on a date. But chances are if you start off your date with “Guess how much Americans consumers consume in data per year?”, I can guarantee you’ll be going home alone and not so happy, ultimately crawling into a lonely, cold bed. Hey, that’s just the way it works. Now if you’re like me, for a split second — split second — I wondered how on earth I consumed 34GB of data per day. I know for a fact my measly 3Mb AT&T DSL connection would choke and die if I tried downloading that much in one day, the cable melting into a faint strand of the metals and synthetic material that once comprised an actual cable. It’s all in how you define “data”.
In the report by the University of California, San Diego , data consumed by Americans counted not only those on a computer screen (the typical figure you’d consider) but also took into account the tens of thousands we read each day on physical material, the multitudes of spoken word we hear, and the wide array of video services that bombard our senses on a daily basis.
Now, considering everything I read, hear, and watch in a day makes more sense and gets me a lot closer to that 34GB figure than I initially thought. It’s interesting to read over such reports and see how these various people get these numbers. Does every person take in 34GB of data? Probably not as there will always be extremes on both ends. Investigations and studies such as this and several others (remember “How heavy is the internet?” are cool and all, but in the end they’re not too terribly accurate.
What would you estimate your daily data usage rate is…?
As broadband speeds increase and proliferate around the world, more and more people will continue their turn to the web for their one-stop-shop of entertainment. Everything from pictures, music, videos, games, etc. are all going online. Traditional manufacturers and producers of said goods are finding it hard to compete with the much lower price barrier of the internet. They’re finding they can’t mark up services and products as much as they can in the physical world. The obvious solution is to downsize, get leaner, become meaner, and operate more efficiently. Don’t think big TV exec’s are scared…?
ABC’s Anne Sweeney had the following to say when a recent encounter with her daughter probably left her her pants a bit soiled and her heart skipping quite a few beats.
Anne Sweeney: Daughter, you need a TV for your dorm room
Daughter: Mom, you don’t understand. I don’t need it. I can watch everything I like online.
Anne Sweeney: You’re going to have a television if I have to nail it to your wall…
Can you hear the horror in voice? Anyone who says TV exec’s aren’t scared are either stupid or they’re…stupid. Ever decreasing revenue and a current failure to become successful online — not solely because of lack of online income, but because of failure to understand the digital world and adjust their business models accordingly — have TV exec’s frantically trying to salvage what little model they have left.
In the end, this quote may be taken out of context and twisted to benefit the blogger world. Regardless, if it is indeed legitimate, actually hearing what we all already know is both comforting and humorous. Just goes to show you that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks.
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For today’s (and honestly, the next day or two) poll, we’re looking at 3D. Back at CES 2010 in early January, 3D was the hot ticket item. Every TV manufacturer and countless smaller companies had some sort of 3D device or service on display. How much we see of said technology at CES 2011 coming up in a mere month will be a good indicator of how well the market has accepted this 3rd dimension. Personally, I haven’t bought into it yet. From the products that I’ve seen and tested, I came away with the overall consensus that it isn’t that great and instead, more of a marketing gimmick. But I’d love to hear what you have to say.
As if iTunes wasn’t already massive enough, Apple’s recent purchase of La La could spell a tidal wave of change making it’s way though Cupertino. For the longest time, Apple has stood against the onslaught of online streaming services such as Last.fm and Pandora to name a couple, saying that “consumers would rather own their content”. Fair enough. I in fact would rather “own” my content as opposed to paying a set fee every month to “borrow”/stream content with no physical or digital back up of my own. In one fell swoop by purchasing La La, Apple completely wiped out any recollections I had of them trying to fight the advancement of online/streaming services. La La itself was a very unique online offering to say the least. The service would scan your hard drive in search of media content. Whatever content was on your hard drive you were allowed to stream for free via La La. Any content on La La’s site that you didn’t own you had the option of streaming one time for $0.10 or purchasing the song outright. Talk about innovative and cool!
What good would it do you to know how much the typical American consumers in digital data per day? In actuality, I can’t see any benefit at all unless of course you would use it as an interesting factoid for an icebreaker on a date. But chances are if you start off your date with “Guess how much Americans consumers consume in data per year?”, I can guarantee you’ll be going home alone and not so happy, ultimately crawling into a lonely, cold bed. Hey, that’s just the way it works. Now if you’re like me, for a split second — split second — I wondered how on earth I consumed 34GB of data per day. I know for a fact my measly 3Mb AT&T DSL connection would choke and die if I tried downloading that much in one day, the cable melting into a faint strand of the metals and synthetic material that once comprised an actual cable. It’s all in how you define “data”. 
As broadband speeds increase and proliferate around the world, more and more people will continue their turn to the web for their one-stop-shop of entertainment. Everything from pictures, music, videos, games, etc. are all going online. Traditional manufacturers and producers of said goods are finding it hard to compete with the much lower price barrier of the internet. They’re finding they can’t mark up services and products as much as they can in the physical world. The obvious solution is to downsize, get leaner, become meaner, and operate more efficiently. Don’t think big TV exec’s are scared…?
