Tag: ipad

Flash Users Double HTML5 Users

Infographics are an “in” thing right now, because, let’s face it, it’s hard not love visually-appealing graphics that offer a clean presentation of the information in question. In this case, the subject under scrutiny has to do with web file formats of choice. In this case, it’s Flash versus HTML5, the expected successor to the Flash thrown.

While that may be, the infographic in question, provided by Periscope.com, reveals this upcoming changeover has a ways to go before Flash is rendered obsolete. First, the infographic, resized for presentation purposes. Click the image for a bigger version, which measure around 1.2 megabytes worth of file size:

As you can see, while the desire for HTML5 might be high, the adoption process is still ongoing. As of this month (May, 2011), there are over 2 billion Flash users, as opposed to 800 million HTML 5 users. Of course, these numbers could mirror each other in a few years, but for now, Flash is still king.

Blame YouTube, I guess.

Another area of interest lies in the browser-ready section. For the Internet Explorer crowd, only IE9 supports HTML5. Firefox has had HTML5 support since version 3.6 and Google Chrome has supported the format since version 10. In the mobile device territory, support for the newer format is surprisingly high, with the exception of the Nokia and BlackBerry environments. Of course, if either company wants to keep up with the Joneses — Google and Apple, apparently — then such expect such a distinction to change in the near future.

Of course, HTML5 is still in its fledgling stage, so expect these numbers to be a little different in a few years. An area discussed by Periscope includes iPad proliferation. It seems Apple is pushing developers who want to design for the “iEnvironment” to focus on the iOS format:

If your goal is to develop content in HTML5 so that it can be viewed through both a web browser and the iPad, (to reach the largest amount of people), you might be a little disappointed. Content developed in HTML5 for the iPad has the least available features and performs the worst out of all HTML5-compatible scenarios.

Periscope concludes their post with the following heads up, “from a purely analytical point of view, the best option for developing a feature-rich dynamic data visualization right now still seems to be Flash.” Just as long as a standard-format iPad user isn’t part of your intended audience.

May 11, 2011
BlackBerry PlayBook Launch Sales Respectable

The BlackBerry PlayBook has received a lot of attention since its official release Tuesday. Much of this attention has been negative, and many felt that RIM’s foray into the tablet market was destined to flop.

Initial analysis by the Royal Bank of Canada Capital Markets paints a slightly sunnier picture for RIM. The Toronto-based bank projects that around 50,000 PlayBooks were sold on launch day, a figure that is quite respectable considering the notable problems facing the new tablet.

This figure, while optimistic, is paltry compared to the world’s most popular tablet, the iPad. As the Economic Times points out, the 50,000 PlayBooks sold total a mere sixth of the 300,000 iPads sold on launch day last April. However, the PlayBook sales did beat launch sales for the Android OS running Samsung Galaxy and Motorola Xoom.

Apparently, 11% of the major chains selling the tablet reported selling out. Those major chains include Best Buy, Staples and Sears. Over 20,000 units are said to have sold in stores and 25,000 were sold through pre-orders.

Before the Playbook even hit shelves, it had received mixed reviews. While many applauded its ease of use and functionality, many were incensed by its lack of native email and calendar clients, as well as its lack of BlackBerry messenger.

The existence of the BlackBerry Bridge App helped to ease these concerns, as it provides an easy way to link the PlayBook to users existing BlackBerry Smartphones. But, adding more problems to the device, AT&T is not allowing the app as many speculate they don’t like the fact that it allows users to tether to their 3G for free. Yesterday, it was reported that the BlackBerry Desktop Manager for Mac will not receive PlayBook support until this summer.

As quoted in the Times, Analyst Peter Misek of Jeffries & Co, in his research note Wednesday, said, “While the launch of the Playbook is not attracting overnight crowds, pre-order sales and in-store demand in major cities has been solid; however, AT&T’s prohibition of free tethering is an unexpected negative.”

So it looks as though BlackBerry Fans are hungry for a tablet that boasts the same type of functionality as their smartphones, even if the first offering is a little flawed.

April 21, 2011
iPhone Sales Drive Massive Revenue and Profit Growth for Apple

Apple released its second-quarter financial results today. This includes a record March quarter driving 83% revenue growth, and 95% profit growth.

Second quarter revenue came to $24.67 billion with profit at $5.99 billion ($6.40 per diluted share). For the same period last year, the company reported 13.50 billion revenue and $3.07 billion profit.

The company also recorded year-over-year iPhone sales growth of 113%, having sold 18.65 million iPhones in the quarter. In addition, the company sold 3.76 million Macs (28% YoY growth), 9.02 million iPods (a 17% YoY decline), and 4.69 million iPads during the quarter.

“With quarterly revenue growth of 83 percent and profit growth of 95 percent, we’re firing on all cylinders,” said CEO Steve Jobs. “We will continue to innovate on all fronts throughout the remainder of the year.”

CFO Peter Oppenheimer added, “We are extremely pleased with our record March quarter revenue and earnings and cash flow from operations of over $6.2 billion. Looking ahead to the third fiscal quarter of 2011, we expect revenue of about $23 billion and we expect diluted earnings per share of about $5.03.”

iPhone sales estimates had been all over the board, but clearly they’re doing well, based on this earnings report. Analysts expected the iPad to be doing a little better, but it looks like Apple will survive. iPod decline isn’t entirely shocking.

The iTunes store had its best quarter ever, Oppenheimer said in the conerence call. This included $1.4 billion in revenue.

He also noted that Apple will be celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Apple Retail Store on May 19, and that in a few days they will welcome their one billionth visitor. Apple plans to open 40 new stores in fiscal 2011.

COO Tim Cook talked a bit about the tragedy in Japan and how it might impact earnings in Q3. He said that there has been disruption for many suppliers of components, but employees have been “working around the clock” with suppliers in Japan on contingency plans. He says Apple does not anticipate any material impact to component supply or cost in fiscal Q3 barring any unpredictable, unforeseen incidents (aftershocks, etc.).

In other Apple news, it has come out that the iPhone is tracking and recording users’ movements. The iPhone 5 is expected to ship in September.

April 20, 2011
iOS Update Comes to iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch

Apple has launched iOS updates for its various devices. The main update is iOS 4.3.2, designed to fix bugs with the original 4.3 software.

Among the bugs the update addresses are FaceTime display and WiFi +3G connectivity issues.

The 4.3.2 update is available for the iPhone 3GS, AT&T iPhone 4, iPad, iPad 2, and iPod Touch 3rd and fourth generations.

There is also an iOS 4.2.7 update for the Verizon iPhone. This one comes with bug fixes and security updates.

Users can download the updates through iTunes. MacStories has direct links to updates for each device.

iOS 4.3 was launched in March. “With more than 160 million iOS devices worldwide, including over 100 million iPhones, the growth of the iOS platform has been unprecedented,” said Apple CEO Steve Jobs upon its announcement. “iOS 4.3 adds even more features to the world’s most advanced mobile operating system, across three blockbuster devices—iPad, iPhone and iPod touch—providing an ecosystem that offers customers an incredibly rich experience and developers unlimited opportunities.”

New features of iOS 4.3 included faster Safari mobile browsing performance with the Nitro JavaScript engine, iTunes Home Sharing, enhancements to AirPlay, the choice of using the iPad side switch to either lock the screen rotation or mute the audio, and a Personal Hotspot feature for sharing an iPhone 4 data connection over Wi-Fi.

A real iOS upgrade is expected in June at Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference, which was announced last month.

April 14, 2011
iPads to Kindergartners

When I was in Kindergarten, all I had were puzzles and watercolors. Kindergartners in Auburn, Maine will have access to thousands of apps in the App Store.

Auburn Maine, a town of 24,000 is set to provide all of its Kindergartners with iPads in an effort to link education and technology for the very young. The town’s school board voted unanimously to provide 285 students with iPads by next fall. With the current prices, the investment is projected to be about $200,000.

This is not the first time Maine has looked technologically forward. In 2003, they were the first place where every 7th and 8th grade student was given access to laptops. iPads are already being used in classrooms around the country including Paducah, KY, Charleston, SC and Scottsdale, AZ. But this is the first town to give iPads to every Kindergartner.

The AP quotes teachers in the district:

“It’s definitely an adventure, and it’ll be a journey of learning for teachers and students,” said Auburn kindergarten teacher Amy Heimerl, who received an iPad on Tuesday ahead of the full deployment in the fall. “I’m looking forward to seeing where this can take us and our students.”

“The more education teachers have using these tools the better we can enhance children’s learning and take them to that next level,” said Heimerl.

Of course, some people are concerned about the new program. Some feel that since the kids will be able to take their iPads home with them, the chance of breaking them is sky high. Taxpayers don’t want to waste money on trashed iPads. Some worry that all that time staring at a screen will hurt the kids.

The iPad has tons of apps that could be used for educational purposes. Games, reading tutorials and math programs would allow kids a fun, engaging way to learn. Former Maine Governor Angus King thinks it is definitely all about engagement.

“If your students are engaged, you can teach them anything,” King said. “If they’re bored and looking out the window, you can be Socrates and you’re not going to teach them anything. These devices are engaging.”

April 13, 2011
iPad App Offers Social Video With Showyou

Online video company Vodpod has introduced a social video app for the iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch called Showyou.

The Showyou app allows users to see all the videos shared by their friends on Facebook and the people they follow on Twitter. Users can discuss and share videos with their friends without clogging up their Facebook and Twitter feeds.

Let’s Showyou (2) from Showyou on Vimeo.

The company says it developed the Showyou app specifically for the iPad because there was a lack of good apps for finding and sharing videos on the device.

“We felt the iPad, in particular, was an awesome device for watching videos but that there were no good, let alone great, apps for finding and discovering videos on the iPad (or iPhone, or iPod Touch),” the Vodpod blog says.

“Connect your Vodpod account on Showyou, and you’ll see videos from the purposefully-curated you follow on Vodpod alongside videos your friends have shared via Facebook, or that people you follow have shared on Twitter. Showyou gives our Vodpod members a whole new outlet and potential audience for their hand-crafted video channels.”

April 13, 2011
iPad Gets Businessweek App

Businessweek said today it has launched a new iPad app called Bloomberg Businessweek +.

Bloomberg Businessweek + allows users to access live information on companies, including current stock prices, performance history, and recent news. Bloomberg personalities are also featured via exclusive video and audio content including a weekly look behind the cover story with Bloomberg Businessweek’s editor and creative director. Additionally, both Charlie Rose and Bloomberg’s Tom Keene will offer their weekly print columns with audio commentary.

Key features include:

*The ability to search across issues by company or keyword, save articles in a personal library, and share favorite stories via email, Twitter and Facebook.

*A special “Highlights” section which gives a synopsis of the week’s top articles.

*A dedicated navigation bar and global table of contents make it easy to find articles and other information.

“We re-imagined the Bloomberg Businessweek magazine for the iPad, enriching it in ways that make sense for our readers,” said Oke Okaro, general manager and global head of Bloomberg mobile.

“Packaged in a clean, easy-to-use and unique interface, the app offers a great reading experience optimized for the iPad.”

Users can download the app on iTunes and get access to a free issue. The monthly subscription is $2.99 while current magazine subscribers can get the app, including each issue, for free.

April 11, 2011
iPad To Continue To Lead The Tablet Market Through 2015

Apple’s iPad will continue to account for the majority of the global media tablet market through 2015, according to a new report from Gartner.

Because of the popularity of Apple’s iPad, iOS will account for 69 percent of media tablet OSs in 2011, and represent 47 percent of the media tablet market in 2015.

“Seeing the response from both consumers and enterprises to the iPad, many vendors are trying to compete by first delivering on hardware and then trying to leverage the platform ecosystem,” said Carolina Milanesi, research vice president at Gartner.

“Many, however, are making the same mistake that was made in the first response wave to the iPhone, as they are prioritizing hardware features over applications, services and overall user experience. Tablets will be much more dependent on the latter than smartphones have been, and the sooner vendors realize that the better chance they have to compete head-to-head with Apple.”

Google’s Android OS is on track to increase its global share of the media tablet market from 20 percent in 2011 to 39 percent in 2015. Analysts said Google’s decision not to open up the Honeycomb, its first OS version dedicated to tablets, to third parties will prevent fragmentation, but it will also slow the price decline and ultimately cap market share.

“Volume will be driven by support from many players, the ecosystem of applications for tablets getting more competitive and some platform flexibility allowing lower price points,” said Roberta Cozza, principal analyst at Gartner.

“The new licensing model Google has introduced with Honeycomb enables Google to drive more control, allowing only optimal tablet implementations that don’t compromise quality of experience. This might mean that prices will drop at a slower pace than what we have seen in the smartphone market.”

Research in Motion’s QNX OS, used on the forthcoming BlackBerry Playbook tablet, will offer users a consistent expereince across its entire prorduct portfolio and create single developer community.

It will take time and significant effort for RIM to attract developers and deliver a compelling ecosystem of applications and services around QNX to position it as a viable alternative to Apple or Android. This will limit RIM’s market share growth over the forecast period,” Ms. Milanesi said.

“It will be mainly organizations that will be interested in RIM’s tablets because they either already have RIM’s infrastructure deployed or have stringent security requirements.”

Gartner analysts said platforms such as MeeGo and WebOS, which currently have a weak presence in the smartphone market, will have a limited appeal unless they can grow that business.

“Smartphone users will want to buy a tablet that runs the same operating system as their smartphone. This is so that they can share applications across devices as well as for the sense of familiarity the user interfaces will bring,” Ms. Milanesi said.

“Vendors developing on Android should be prepared to see more cross brand ownership as some users might put OS over brand when it comes to the purchasing decision. Improvements on usability and brand recognition are the strongest differentiators they can focus on.”

April 11, 2011
iPad 2 Best Buy Rumors Addressed

There has been some controversy flowing around the web, regarding rumors about Best Buy witholding sales of the iPad 2. Both Best Buy and Apple have apparently addressed these rumors.

The rumor was that Best Buy was holding back iPad 2 devices, even though they were in stock, and instructing employees to tell customers that they didn’t have any.

The root of the rumor appears to be from a tip sent to CrunchGear, by a Best Buy employee. Boy Genius Report claims to have actually obtained an internal communication delivered to all retail employees at a Best Buy store in California, which said:

“NewsFlash: ipads cannot be sold according to BBY. All ipads except for preorders MUST be held until further notice. Cant tell customers were holding them either.”

They also shared the following statement from Best Buy, saying:

“Best Buy continues to receive iPad 2 inventory from Apple on a regular basis. As we’ve said previously, we are fulfilling customer reservations first. Our stores have been asked to temporarily hold non-reserved iPad 2 inventory for an upcoming promotion. This is a customary practice for us when there are supply constraints. Best Buy enjoys a great partnership with Apple, and we’re delighted by customer response to iPad 2.”

CrunchGear’s original tipster sent an alleged note from Apple COO/acting CEO Tim cook, saying, “My understanding is most of their stores sold all of their initial supply on the first night of the launch and the balance were out by the following day. I am not aware of any units being held.”

It does seem a bit out of the norm that Cook would send such a note to some random Best Buy employee. Take from it what you will.

There has been talk about friction between the two companies, but there’s really no concrete evidence to back up such a notion, as far as I can tell.

iPad 2 sales have been estimated at 2.4-2.6 million for March, despite the somewhat strange lack of any official numbers from Apple.

The iPad 2 recently went on sale in 25 more countries, beyond the U.S. RadioShack also started selling the device. It’s even received high marks from Consumer Reports, after the organization blasted the iPhone 4 (both the AT&T and Verizon versions).

April 8, 2011
Bing for iPad App Launched

Bing has released a new iPad app. The main theme, Bing appears to be looking to get across with it is that of more content from the homepage – or at least easier access to it.

“Since launching, Bing has been focused on helping people stop searching and start deciding – regardless of where they are,” a representative for Bing tells WebProNews. “The Bing for iPad app goes beyond the traditional search experience, offering a new visually rich way to search the Web.”

“The experience is designed specifically to capture the fluid and intuitive nature of touch on a large, high resolution screen – allowing you to quickly browse news, movies, weather, local business listing and much more,” he adds. “And, you can do it all with the swipe of a finger – no more back button.”

The app’s opening page shows the local weather, top news, maps, movies in theaters, top trends and stock market news. There is also a “Trends” icon that lets you click on a picture and get the latest headlines, including breaking news, gossip, fashion, sports news, etc.

For Maps, you can click the Map icon on the homepage to find your exact location and what’s nearby.

The free Bing for iPad app is available for download today in the Apple App Store.

April 7, 2011
iPad 2 Gets High Marks from Consumer Reports

Apple’s iPad 2 with Wi-Fi and 3G was rated the best tablet on the market by Consumer Reports. This is particularly interesting, given Consumer Reports’ recent history of not recommending Apple’s iOS products.

Last summer, Consumer Reports gave the iPhone 4 a thumbs down, citing the widely-publicized antenna issues. A similar evaluation was given earlier this year for Verizon’s version. Consumer reports had not problem recommending a variety of Android devices.

Until recently, the iPad didn’t really have much in the way of competition, in terms of tablets, but the iPad 2 has more , and has managed to come out on top. The antenna issues don’t apply to the iPad, so it makes sense.

“So far Apple is leading the tablet market in both quality and price, which is unusual for a company whose products are usually premium priced,” said Paul Reynolds, Electronics Editor at Consumer Reports. “However, it’s likely we’ll see more competitive pricing in tablets as other models begin to hit the market.”

The battery life of the iPad 2 seems to be one of the main factors in Consumer Reports’ evaluation. They tested ten tablets by playing the same video clip over and over again until they died. The iPad 2 lasted 12.2 hours. The lowest-ranked tablet (the Archos 70 Internet Tablet) only lasted 3.8 hours.

Reynolds is certainly right in that pricing will only get much more competitive. In fact, this is one of the main reasons Android has managed to gain so much smartphone market share. The platform is available on a wide range of devices of varying prices – many of them far cheaper than Apple’s iPhones.

We can expect a similar trend in the tablet market. We’re in the very early stages. Of couse there are also non-Android competitors that will become bigger parts of the equation, like offerings from RIM, HP, and Microsoft.

April 5, 2011
Photoshop for iPad Demoed By Adobe

Adobe already has Photoshop Express available for iPad and iPhone (previously photoshop.com mobile). This is, however, only a light-weight version of the software greatly lacking in features comapared to the full Photoshop experience.

That’s all going to change soon. Adobe demoed a new full version of Photoshop at Photoshop World 2011. Here’s a brief clip uploaded to YouTube, which shows the new Photoshop in action:

(Tip of the hat to Photography Bay and zaone on YouTube).

The way this version handles layers looks particularly cool.

A fully-functioning version of Photoshop for the iPad (and other tablets) would no doubt make the devices an even more attractive option for businesses/enterprises. Of course, there are already plenty of apps in the App Store that can easily be used to replace many features of Photoshop (for a lot less money, I might add), but Photoshop is still the leader of its genre of applications.

Adobe has not put a release date on Photoshop for iPad, but designers and businesses that are already heavily using iPads will certainly be eagerly awaiting it.

On a related note, Adobe also introduced the Photoshop Family Feedback site at feedback.photoshop.com. This is simply a place where users can leave ideas and requests for the Photoshop team, as you may have guessed. This could be particularly helpful in the development of the new iPad version.

March 31, 2011
iPad No Longer a Distraction: Obama Admits to Owning One

Apple CEO Steve Jobs recently announced that the company sold over 15 million iPads, so it should come as no surprise that even the leader of our nation is toting around one of the popular devices.

President Barack Obama famously used social media to his benefit during the presidential campaign by distributing his message of “hope,” and gaining supporters, through Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and other social sites. To this day he remains one of the most followed individuals on Twitter with more than 7 million followers.

Continuing with his streak of being in touch with technology, President Obama had dinner with the most notable CEOs of Silicon Valley back in February to discuss important topics such as education, research, and jobs. Then to much surprise Michelle Obama said on the “Today” Show that the Obama girls would not be having Facebook accounts, “I’m not a big fan of young kids having Facebook. It’s not something they need, it’s not necessary right now.” This came as a shock because many believed that the President, that embraced social media, should be teaching his children to be smart and responsible digital citizens.

Yesterday during a town hall meeting in Washington with Univision, Obama spoke with Univision anchor Jorge Ramos detailing the gadgets he owns and uses regularly, including an iPad that he has tethered to his Blackberry. The conversation with Ramos went as follows:

Ramos: Not long ago I was having a conversation with my son. He’s only 12 years old, and he couldn’t believe that I grew up in a world where there were no cell phones, no Internet, no computers. (Laughter.) So do you have your BlackBerry with you, or do you have an iPhone? What do you have?
Obama: You know, I took my BlackBerry off for this show, because I didn’t want it going off, and that would be really embarrassing. But usually I carry a BlackBerry around.
Ramos: Do you have an iPad?
Obama: I do have an iPad.
Ramos: Your own [a] computer?
Obama: I’ve got my own computer.
Ramos: Very well. (Laughter.)
Obama: I mean, Jorge, I’m the President of the United States. You think I’ve got a — (laughter and applause) — you think I’ve got to go borrow somebody’s computer? (Laughter.) Hey, man, can I borrow your computer? (Laughter.) How about you? You’ve got one?

This interview with Obama comes after he admitted last May during a commencement speech at Hampton University that he did not know how to use an Apple iPad, iPod, or other gaming consoles such as the Xbox 360. He said that these devices are a “distraction” and “a form of entertainment, rather than a tool of empowerment.”

This just goes to show that the iPad is definitely more than simply an entertainment device, and that we can rest easy knowing that our President doesn’t have to borrow someone else’s computer.

March 29, 2011
iPad 2 at RadioShack Tuesday

Word has quickly spread that the iPad 2 will become available at select RadioShack stores starting on Tuesday.

Apple news site MacRumors obtained a screenshot from an internal RadioShack memo, which says, “We are thrilled that iPad 2 will be available at 500 RadioShack locations across the country starting March 29! Details have been sent to these stores.” The publication claims to have confirmed this will store representatives.

The iPad 2 would certainly go a long way in improving Radio Shack’s offerings in the Tablets & E-Readers category. Currently, theCoby MID1025-4G Kyros 10.1″ Touchscreen Tablet is leading the pack (at least on price) on Radioshack’s website.

Other retailers that are currently selling the device include Best Buy, Target, Walmart, Verizon, AT&T, and of course Apple itself.

On Friday, the iPad 2 went on sale in 25 additional countries, and quickly sold out in both the UK and in Australia, according to reports.

Apple is now selling the iPad 2 in the United States, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK. Models will soon be available in Hong Kong, Korea, Singapore and additional countries in April.

Apple has yet to disclose sales numbers on the iPad 2.

March 28, 2011
iPad 2 On Sale Today In 25 More Countries

Apple started selling the iPad 2 in 25 more countries today. Those would be: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK. That’s the Wi-Fi only models.

The Wi-Fi + 3G models will be available in Hong Kong, Korea, Singapore and additional countries in April.

“While competitors are still struggling to catch up with our first iPad, we’ve changed the game again with iPad 2,” said Apple CEO Steve Jobs. “We’re experiencing amazing demand for iPad 2 in the US, and customers around the world have told us they can’t wait to get their hands on it. We appreciate everyone’s patience and we are working hard to build enough iPads for everyone.”

The web experience should be getting a lot better in general on the iPad. New functionality for WordPress.com blogs and a plugin for WordPress.org sef-hosted blogs should ensure that. That’s a pretty good chunk of the popular web, and there will only be more tools from other platforms to come, I’m sure.

The iPad 2 went on sale at Apple retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers at 5 pm local time and online at the Apple Store beginning at 1 am.

March 25, 2011
iPad WordPress Plugin Makes Sites Tablet-Friendly

WordPress announced today that it has been working with Onswipe on a new WordPress plugin that makes sites more iPad-friendly or in their words, “reimagined for a touch experience”.

OnSwipe is a platform that helps publishers make their content more appealing on touch-enabled devices through web browsers.

The plugin makes your WordPress site iPad-optimized with HTML5, support for touch interactions, swiping, rotation, etc. WordPress says the functionality is already available and active for over 18 million blogs on WordPress.com. The plugin available for all self-hosted WordPress.org sites.

“With the launch of Apple’s iPad we have seen the future of computing and it is touch,” says WordPress’ Nick Momrik. “Nothing matches the visceral feel of navigating your digital world with your hands.”

“When you tap to view a post, you get to see the full content with a slick commenting interface and social sharing tools for Twitter, Facebook, and WordPress.com literally at your finger tips,” says Momrik. “It’s a lot of fun browsing sites with Onswipe.”

For publishers and webmasters the plugin means you have a new option for making your site more attractive to the growing number of iPad users (note that WordPress says they’ll be working on expansion to support other tablet devices). More and more people are going to be viewing your site on an iPad. You want to give them as enjoyable an experience as possible. The game has changed greatly from the days when all you had to worry about was what your site looked like on a desktop PC, or even just a PC and a mobile phone.

WordPress says it is seeing 750,000 page views a day for WordPress.com on iPads, and that the number continues to increase.

For iPad users, their web browsing experience should continue to improve as more sites take advantage of tools like this that make their sites more iPad-friendly. It will be interesting to see if increased user experience improvements from sites via the web browser will put a dent in tablet app downloads or creation/updates on the publishers’ end. A lot of sites may find it just as easy/appealing to make their site itself more tablet-friendly, rendering the need for another app useless or a waste of time and money.

March 24, 2011
iPad 2 Buyer Reportedly Got it For Free After “Wife Said No”

It only makes good business sense for a company to pay close attention to returns being made on a new product, to ensure there are no major defects. Apple has taken their monitoring of the iPad 2 to the next level.

An individual may return the wildly popular iPad 2 tablet for many reasons. The backlight may bleed, it may have dead pixels, the Wi-Fi could be wishy-washy, you just might have gotten one cheaper off of a street scalper…or after an impulse buy your spouse might make you return it.

MacRumors recently reported that Apple took notice when a man returned his iPad 2 with a note attached that read, “Wife said no.” An undisclosed source that is “close to Apple” said that the note caught on and climbed its way up the corporate ladder to two Apple execs who made the decision to send the man a free iPad 2. The quote from this undisclosed source reads:

“[Apple’s] focus this week has been to troubleshoot all the iPad 2s that customers are returning to the stores. One iPad came back with a post it note on it that said “Wife said no.” It was escalated as something funny, and two of the VPs got wind of it. They sent the guy an iPad 2 with a note on it that said “Apple said yes.”

If this story is true, and Apple actually said, “Yes,” Apple has some pretty amazing customer service taking place, and one very happy customers to boot. And I’d bet that any customer’s wife would be A-OK with him receiving a free iPad.

Don’t get your hopes up too high with the idea of receiving a free iPad 2 after returning your iPad with a clever note attached. Sure, the Cupertino giant wants to satisfy customers, especially after iPad 2 returns claim bleeding backlights and yellow splotches on the screen, but the validity of MacRumors’ aid ‘source’ is questionable at best.

Apple has yet to confirm the validity of the story. True or not, this makes for a very cute and humorous customer service story.

Did you have to obtain spousal approval before buying your iPad?

March 22, 2011
Addicted to Angry Birds? Mike Tyson’s Got A Cure

Noted pigeon racer, Mike Tyson, is offering a helping hand for those you having difficulty beating your addiction to Angry Birds on your tablet device, and it comes in three easy steps. Or fewer.

Actually, one step is all it takes if you follow Tyson’s suggestion.

As it stands, that’s an interesting switch for the Animal Planet’s newest star, at least as far as mobile devices go. When you consider Tyson was recently at SXSW promoting the new RockLive boxing game, which is designed for — you guessed it — Apple’s mobile device environment.

Is this a case of biting the ear that feeds you? Bad puns aside, no, not really.

Instead, it looks like the always-captivating Mike Tyson has found a calling that will take him well into middle and perhaps advanced age: being a pitch-man/spokesperson/famous person of interest who’s sure to attract attention. If you’re promoting a product, especially one geared towards the tech sector, there are worse decisions you can make than getting a controversial, but oddly endearing character to pitch your product.

Whatever the case, the pitch for his Animal Planet, Taking on Tyson show offers a touch of brilliance, if, for nothing else, giving us the opportunity to see Tyson embrace his silly side. Watching him knock an iPad out of somebody’s hands was awfully keen as well, because, let’s be honest, how many of you have wanted to do the same when you see someone showing off their ability to ~~spend money on anything Apple makes~~ manipulate a tablet device?

H/t to Laughing Squid (via ESPN SportsNation’s YouTube page)

March 18, 2011
Does Time Warner’s iPad App Steal Cable?

Time Warner unveiled an iPad application that allows users to stream their Time Warner’s cable television subscription to a tablet device, and not surprisingly, some of the cable networks were none too pleased about having their content streamed for free.

Clearly, the revenue made from the initial subscription is not enough to cover the overhead of installing an infrastructure capable of online streaming. Wait, that’s not what this is about. Instead, it’s a case of those providing the content wanting to further monetize their shows, even if Time Warner’s app is free. According to MediaWeek, the Time Warner app allowed subscribers to:

…stream video content to iPads and other tablet devices. Although Time Warner Cable introduced the free app just 24 hours, a number of cable network groups have already made it abundantly clear that they had not signed off on any such distribution arrangement.

The report goes on to say the application has the capability of streaming up to 32 cable networks to Apple’s tablet, including channels like Comedy Central and the USA Network. Nevertheless, not all content providers are pleased with Time Warner’s actions. Perhaps if there would’ve been some collusion between the content providers and Time Warner, things would be different; but as it stands, there’s a lot of work to be done before these “TV on the go” applications become commonplace on the tablet environment.

There may have, however, been some overreaction on the content providers’ part:

…one affiliate chief acknowledged that streaming to gizmos within a limited range of hearth and home may be “less of a threat” than the networks are letting on.

But it’s never been about a measured reaction. Things like Time Warner’s app and the subsequent hubbub comes down to two things: control over content in order to monetize it. Meanwhile, the consumer is once again left out in the cold.

March 15, 2011
iPad App From Time Warner Features Live TV

Time Warner Cable has launched an iPad app that will allow its subscribers to watch live TV on the device in any room in their house.

The TWCable TV app for iPad is a free download and is available to subscribers who pay for Internet and video service.

Features of the app include:

*Tap to stream live digital TV programs instantly to iPad anywhere in your home.

*Scroll through the channel guide to see “What’s on now,” and “What’s on Next”.

*Use your home’s existing WiFi connection without extra hookups.

*Access to live feeds of 32 channels in HD.

“It’s just phase one of a much bigger vision that we plan to execute on this year and into the future. It’s so much easier and faster for us to develop in an app environment than for set-top boxes, so you can expect to see more improvements faster and more frequently,” said Jeff Simmermon, Director of Digital Communcation, Time Warner Cable.

“For example, we’re going to add more channels and functionality as soon as we can. We’re already working on developing set-top box remote control functionality and DVR management.”

March 15, 2011
Barry Diller Talks Daily Beast/Newsweek, The Daily, and the iPad at SXSW

Barry Diller, Chairman and Senior Executive of IAC/InterActiveCorp (and Expedia) spoke at SXSW Interactive today here in Austin about a variety of media-related
topics.

In response to all of the big valuations we’ve seen lately (Twitter, Groupon, etc.), he said, “What interests me is starting businesses on our own – finding ideas that
we can support, and simply investing in invention or ideas, and not in chasing crowds.”

“I’ve never been an investor,” he added. “I got into the Internet very early – very lucky.”

“I think for everybody here [SXSW], what I like so much about this place is that so many people here are essentially following their curiosity…They’re enabled by a miracle – the Internet is a miracle.”

He then discussed the Newsweek/Daily Beast parntership. “We started the Daily Beast because we said nobody was out there – no place yet that had actually a journalist’s [an old media process] that was in the rhythm of the Internet, he said, adding that it’s not an aggregation site, and stressing that it brought a truly old world, journalistic discipline to the Internet.

“Along comes Newsweek,” he said. “Which was becoming more and more irrelevant as a weekly news magazine” when news flashes at the speed of typing a few keys and at the
push of a button. He said, at the Daily Beast, they had longer pieces – deeper things they wanted to cover, so they took the DNA of the Beast and infused it into the print book.

He admitted that he doesn’t know if it will work. “We’ll see in six or eight months,” he said.

The discussion then moved to iPad-only publications – namely “The Daily”.

Diller said he finds it amazing that they put out such a product, and spent so much promoting it, and made it so hard to actually use, recalling that he had to download it on his PC before getting it on his iPad. “That does not seem to me like a contemporary product,” he said.

He pondered why News Corp. would put out an original product for any single platform. “In today’s world that sounds kind of nuts,” he said. “Apple likes it if you pay them. That’s what Apple likes… they invented a gadget. Until that gadget gets superceded by others, which will happen, their closed system will work.”

He then admitted to owning an iPad 2, saying that it is better than the original, but adding that the latest Kindle is better than the original too.

March 14, 2011