SOMEWHAT FRANK

What's the one thing you would most want to improve when it comes to your laptop or computer?

I love my Macbook Pro (MBP). It makes processing photos and videos a breeze. But like anything, my Macbook Pro is not perfect. I started thinking about this question and actually came up with two things that my Macbook Pro could improve on. They are listed below:

1. My computer gets hot! To remedy the situation I have installed smcFan Control an application that boosts the internal fan to cool the machine down.
2. The MBP keyboard is placed so far back the edge of the computer cuts into my wrists. To remedy the situation I often wear wristbands to help protect my wrists. These wristbands also represent my favorite colleges and professional sports teams. If you have a wristband you would like me to rock while I jam out on my computer please drop me a comment below.

Your turn. What would you most want to improve when it comes to your laptop or computer?

iPhone 3GS: First Impression

After making my second stop to the Apple Store in two days, I finally got my hands on an iPhone 3GS. My first attempt was unsuccessful because the AT&T network was down. So when I returned the next day, I decided to go with the white 32GB version since they were out of the black. I figured I could use the extra 16GB over my last iPhone 3G since I would most likely be taking advantage of the iPhone 3GS's video capabilities.

In order to purchase the iPhone 3GS I had to get yet another AT&T contract. This annoys me. The FCC needs to step in to stop the monopoly that Apple and AT&T have created by forcing all iPhone customers into an AT&T contract just to purchase a new iPhone. Consumers have no choice as they cannot fight of the beautiful songs of the Muses that play while starting into the touchscreen interface for a shiny new iPhone 3GS. Ok, I will get off my soapbox now, but I really think the FCC needs to do something.

Upon syncing up my new  iPhone, I was excited to test iPhone 3GS video camera so I recorded and edited a quick video using the 3GS. I think Flip should probably be a little concerned about the iPhone's video camera taking some of its piece of the mobile video camera pie, though there are still lots of people that will not have the 3GS. The Flip and other similar cameras also offer HD quality video which the iPhone does not so there is still value in having both but the gap between them is shrinking.

Aside from the new video camera, the iPhone 3GS also has a better still photo camera with auto focus and balance. So I performed a little photo test by taking a similar photo but using the touchscreen to focus on a different area.

iPhone Push Notifications Tested Via AOL's AIM

Apple will soon be launching of the iPhone 3.0 operating system and part of the new system is a push alert notification feature as highlighted at WWDC 2009 this week. Push Notification is the system developed by Apple to remedy the fact that the iPhone won’t allow third party applications to run in the background due to security, battery life and performance concerns. Push notifications are will enable certain tasks (like IMs) that come to your phone even when that application isn’t running.

TechCrunch recently tested Push Notifications using AIM the new 3.0 iPhone software. Watch the video above to see Push Notification in action with AIM but please note the video makes it seem like there may be a delay between an IM sent and received, but it’s basically instantaneous.

WWDC 2009: iPhone 3GS & 3.0, Macbook Pro & More

I did not attend Apple's WWDC 2009 in person but thanks to the Web, I still could follow along as we all look for the new iPhone G3S, SDK 3.0, Macbook Pro and more. This is what I learned from following the chatter online:

Computers

• Launched 3 new Macbook Pro models at 13, 15 and 17 inches
• All have built in SD Cards
• The 13 inch version was formerly the Macbook
• Lowered the prices on the Macbook Air

OS X

• Finder was rewritten in Cocoa programming language
• Faster installs by 45%

Safari

• Safari 4 will ship today with faster Javascript than IE 8
• Separated out plugins so that the entire browser won't crash

Quicktime

• Launched Quicktime X with a new logo to boot
• Offers http streaming
• New user interface
• Offers ability to trim and share videos directly within QuickTime to iTunes, MobileMe or YouTube

Dock Expose

• If you click and hold any application icon on your dock it will just expose the windows associated with that particular program
• Drag and drop support allows you to drag a file to the a docked icon and all of your windows will line up, allowing you to drag the file directly to the right one

Mail, iCal & Address Book

• Offering new exchange support orks with Mail, iCal, and Address Book
• Spotlight search will now search PC docs and attachments from within Mail
• Meeting invitations can now be accepted from within Mail
• iCal now does search to find available times for group meetings

iPhone OS

• 1,000,000 SDK downloaded. 50,000 apps in store. 40,000,000 iPhones & iPod touches sold already
  
• New OS 3.0 available today with 100 new features on June 17th to all iPhone users for free and for $9.95 to iPod Touch users
  
• New OS supports cut, copy, paste, MMS support, landscape mode in all Apple applications
• Support for sending Photos, contacts, audio files, etc over the cell network
• MMS Support won't be available by AT&T till later this summer
• Spotlight: enables search across entire phone, contacts, apps and details within apps, etc.
• Tethering allowing users to share the Internet connection with with Mac/PC, USB or Bluetooth
• Parental controls introduced
• iTunes: Rent and purchase movies right from the phone!
• iTunesU also now available on the iPhone
• Safari Mobile: Performance upgrades, HTTP streaming audio/video, Autofill, HTML 5 support
• Find My iPhone: MobileMe Service launched that allows users to locate iPhone on a map then send wipe command to delete all items on the phone remotely
• In App Purchases: enables the purchase of content within applications
  
• Real-time data straight out of iPhone (i.e. medical alerts)
• Turn-by-turn navigation via TomTom GPS app on the iPhone
• Textbooks on the iPhone via Iceberg app on the iPhone
• ZipCar on the iPhone allows users to book and even unlock a car with the iPhone

iPhone 3GS

• iPhone 3Gs is for SPEED
• Photo Camera - 3.2 Megapixel auto focus - Has a new autofocus, tap to focus, autobalance, low light sensitivity, auto macro
• Video Camera - 30 frames per second with auto focus, exposure control, and more
• Videos are kept in your photo library and you EDIT videos on the phone!
• Videos can be auto share to iTunes, MobileMe and YouTube
• Voice control - make calls & play songs, playlists and play similar songs with the sound of your voice
• Digital Compass
• Accessibility settings - voice over, zoom in, invert colors and mono audio
• Nike Plus Support 
• Hardware encryption for business
• Better battery life
• Most environmentally friendly iPhone
• Priced for $199 for 16GB and $299 for 32GB in black and white
• Available June 19th

iPhone 3G

• Available now for $99

I Want To Capture Video On My iPhone!

Video streaming via mobile devices can now be done thanks to services like Flixwagon, Kyte and Qik. These services have come out with a number of ways to use the services on Nokia and Samsung phones and stream video content live to the Web. It is pretty amazing technology. Flixwagon and Qik have both come out with ways to use its services on "hacked" or "unlocked" iPhones but currently there is not a way for these services to create a legitimate  iPhone  application with video capturing capabilities as TechCrunch explains. This is a total bummer.

I want video capture capabilities on the iPhone!

I want to be able use my iPhone to capture video while on the go. I would even go as far to say I would be ok with just the capturing functionality to start with and could hold out a bit on the streaming capability. Come on Apple what gives?

Video: AOL Radio iPhone App & Listen Anywhere

The Apple iPhone application was opened last week and AOL launched the AOL Radio application. The application is free and worth giving a try and a listen. It allows users to connect to both XM and local radio stations. It even is able to connect users with popular stations in larger markets. For example, I might want to listen to a popular Chicago station sports talk radio station like AM 670 the Score while in Washington, DC and AOL makes this possible.

I gave it a try and was shocked at the utility. I also now understand why the AOL Radio application was awarded by Apple for its superior design. I demonstrate some of the value the AOL Radio application adds to the iPhone as episode 33 of the SOMEWHAT FRANK TV video podcast.

Apple MobileMe Syncs Everything For A Fee

The release of the new 3G iPhone and the launch of the Application Store secured the spotlight last week but there was another release which caught my attention. Apple launched MobileMe to replace the .Mac service which has been around for awhile. Though the .Mac migration may have had a few hiccups, the new MobileMe service offers users who pay just $99 per year an Apple run exchange for keeping contacts, calendar events and email synced to a PC or Mac computer and iPhone or Touch. The release positions Apple into a new space as a supplier of personal enterprise computing solutions. Apple takes on "free" email providers by locking up new me.com users to an account on a yearly subscription. Will this change the "free" email standard?

Which iPhone Apps Are You Queuing Up?

I just got the latest version of iTunes and have been poking around the new iPhone application store. So far I have been impressed by the applications that are offered. I started to queue up a number of applications that should be added to my iPhone as soon as the 2.0 software update is released (or I could download it early here). I took a quick screen-shot of the applications I will be adding as soon as I get the iPhone 2.0 firmware update, they are as follows:

AIM, AOL Radio, Baseball, Eventful, Evernote, Facebook, Google Mobile App, Light, Local Picks by TripAdvisor, Loopt, NetNewsWire, NowLocal, NYTimes, Remote, Twitteriffic, Typepad, Whrrl & Yelp

The two that I have not seen yet are Flixwagon and Qik as they both have made public statements here and here respectively saying they will be working on the iPhone . I am hoping they are released soon as they stabilize and perfect the service offering.

I am curious to see what you will be added to your iPhone - let me know in the comment section below.

Video: Finally, I Bought a Mac

Aside from the iPod and its PC vs. Mac commercials, Apple must be doing something right as a number of influencer and early adopters appear to be going Apple. If you attend a technology and social media conferences these days you will see what I mean as you might find a sea of Apple logos in the crowd. I have held out on making the move to a Mac for quite sometime as I leveraged Windows and all it can offer to the maximum but when it came time for me to get a new machine I decided it was time to try out an Apple. I recently purchase my first Mac, a MacBook Pro to be exact. I decided to capture the moment as episode 27 of SOMEWHAT FRANK TV.

Chicago Tribune Embraces The iPhone

The Tribune Company, an old Chicago-based newspaper giant, has just announced an iPhone compartable version of one of its flagship properties, the Chicago Tribune. As a former Tribune employee it gives me great joy to see my old hometown paper now viewable on my iPhone at this URL: chicagotribune.com/iphone.

They have not enabled an auto redirect to when viewing ChicagoTribune.com from an iPhone but it does promote the iPhone option. I figure the auto redirect on the iPhone will be coming soon. Congrats to the Tribune on embracing the new device. Thanks to Steve Rubel for pointing it out.

Editor's Note: The SF Bit as I am calling it is new short or brief format post on Somewhat Frank which will basically offer a quick informative post or bit rather longer article format. Let me know if you like it and I will keep them flowing.

Perspective on Apple beta iPhone SDK Release

Yesterday Apple released their long-awaited iPhone SDK...sort of. For those who don't drink the Apple Kool-aid, Apple originally said that only web applications could be used to create iPhone applications. In October, after three months of unauthorized unlocking programs and hacks to install native iPhone applications, they reversed their decision and announced they would release a software development kit (SDK), so developers could write native code.

Sneak Peak: AOL Desktop For Mac

On Valentine's Day, AOL released a sneak peek of the new AOL Desktop for Mac (beta 8), available for all Tiger(R) and Leopard(R) users (10.4.8 or higher). Here are some of the highlights they list on beta.aol.com:

• Increased Speed: Installs in seconds and launches quickly - so you can begin browsing immediately, without signing in.
• New Browser: An all new browser allows you to surf all your favorite sites faster than ever before.
• Tabbed Organization: Tabs on browser windows and instant messages offer easy access and an uncluttered, organized view of all windows.
• Integrated AIM: AIM is built right in so you can see which Buddies are online, chat and more.
• Customization: A highly customizable toolbar makes it easy to keep your favorites at your fingertips, as well as access them on any Internet-connected computer.

Continue reading for additional details on the new AOL Desktop for Mac.

MacBook Air Unveiled, Yahoo Goes OpenID, Sun Buys MySQL, VC Funding At High, Facebook Plaxo Rumors & the 2007 Crunchies Awarded

Photo of the Week: Gabe Rivera of techmeme shows off his award for best bootstrapped startup at the 2007 Crunchies (more Crunchies coverage below). Photo taken by Zivity.

Somewhat Frank Weekly Tidbits: 01.20.2008

The Untold iPhone Story, Gates CES Keynote, Ways To Broadcast Yourself, Facebook Update Fatigue, The 24 Hour .com & Saving Your Eyes

Photo of the Week: I snapped this photo of my to do list earlier this week while staying at the W Hotel in Silicon Valley.

Somewhat Frank Weekly Tidbits: 01.13.2008

Apple Movie Rentals, American Content Producer Trend, Facebook Translations, Kayak Sidestep Analysis & 2007 Logo Design Trends

Photo of the Week: 'Tis the season for some holiday lights and this home with over 200,000 lights was quite the site. Thanks to Terren for snapping this photo and pointing out this tacky lights tour video on YouTube.

Somewhat Frank Weekly Tidbits: 12.30.2007