Is A Picture Worth A Thousand Words?

After watching the Will Ferrell short, embedded in this months issue of Wired magazine for the iPad, it gave me pause. Photographs have been used as an advertising vehicle in magazines, newspapers and many other print media. In the hands of a skilled photographer, concepts can be delivered in a concise format. The question, however, is always: did the the viewer “get it”?
Wired magazine and may other publications are experimenting with the iPad as a way to transmit media through the moving picture. In this short we are presented with the dilemma of weather or not a picture could tell the story as accurately as the video. You be the judge.

Filed under: Apple, iPad, Photography, Tablet, TV

Will It Be A Thumbs Up?

It’s funny how a new device can spawn so many new patterns of behavior. As we sit on the cusp of Apple’s iPad release we will once again, gaze into the future, hoping to get a glimpse of the changes that such a device will bring to our lives.

The hotly debated issue of the iPhone was weather or not we would be able to hunt and peck out messages with equal alacrity to that of the Blackberry. This is the first time, if I’m not mistaken, that a virtual keyboard will be going up against a regular keyboard, and there will no doubt be just as many many opinions offering the thumbs up or down in support of this new format.

I’ve got to hand it to Apple, they certainly are willing to blaze new trails and push us kicking, if not, screaming into the future.

Filed under: iPad, Tablet, Apple, Blackberry, iPad, Keyboard, Research in Motion

Who’s That Over There? – Part II

So it seems like Steve is being tricky. I had previously written that a mistake had occurred as Steve Jobs navigated to the NY Times website and the Flash content didn’t work, during the iPad debue. It has been pointed out that this was no mistake. Judging from Steve’s attention to detail, this argument certainly has merit.

What was really going on behind the curtain? Well, it turns out, it was all orchestrated. It appears that Apple is dissatisfied with Flash performance and is making a push for HTML5 as a replacement. He was simply planting the seed in the minds of the viewers.

This could be a risky strategy. All it would take is another vender to come along with a compelling tablet running flash and the plan would fall apart.

Filed under: iPad, Tablet, Adobe, Apple, Flash, HTML5, iPad

Who’s That Over There?

Apple, once again, has done a phenomenal job at taking an existing, dormant technology and transformed it into a lust-worthy item.

Yesterday Apple announced the iPad. It had the been the focus of attention of media for months. Everyone speculating its physical layout and the impact that it could potentially have on the technology industry. I was certainly blown away by the possibilities of such a device. Watching the keynote address, Steve, in typical form, sold us on the dream of being able to own the ultimate mobile device. The iTunes store, the App store, the new iBook store would all be integrated into an online browsing Shangri-La. With flourishing multi-touch gestures, we will be able to navigate the likes of the New York Times with such ease and pleasure… Oops!

What just happened? Did you catch that? As he flipped to one of the NYT pages that characteristic blue cube reared its ugly head, indicating that all was not well. For those with moderate technical savvy (just about everyone in the audience) the dreaded revelation was made clear for all to see. Flash had, once again, been left out of the ultimate mobile device.

I have heard all the excuses. I love you Steve, but there is no longer any plausible argument (other than stubbornness) why you continue to exclude flash support from you mobile browsers. Flash is everywhere. How can you have a pleasurable browsing experience if you can’t view flash content?

Come on Steve. Do you see that elephant in the corner?

Filed under: Tablet, Adobe, Apple, Flash, iPad, iPhone, Kindle, Mobile

It Is Not Written In Stone

The coming of the tablet seems to be the story that we keep hearing and inevitably leads to disappointment. All the major players have their feet in the pool but few waves are being created.

Take a look at the specs of the latest buzz-maker from Microsoft. They are featuring a book-like device, opening into two 7-inch screens. Why? This just shows a lack of creativity and an inability to stretch their imagination. Once again, everyone will wait around for Apple to get the ball rolling then attempt to climb aboard. It will be too late. Let the iPhone be a lesson.

Maybe the problem is, we are calling it the “tablet”. It doesn’t, exactly, inspire forward thinking.

Filed under: Tablet, Apple, Archos, Microsoft, Tablet