Marianne Schultz

the musings of a geeky girl

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everythingiCafe: the show “iPad New, New iPad 3 HD”

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Chris Meinck and I recorded episode 52 of the everythingiCafe.com podcast earlier this week and it’s now available through iTunes for download. We were off for several weeks since I have been traveling far more than usual but my schedule has settled down for now so the game is back on.

This was a big episode covering the announcement of the 3rd-generation iPad and Apple TV, the release of iOS 5.1, and some welcome changes to iCloud. Both Chris and I preordered new iPads (which had not yet arrived when this podcast was recorded) and we were pretty excited to finally learn that it would have a retina display as indicated by so many rumors beforehand.

We also talked about the release of iOS 5.1, which contains two features I’m particularly happy about: the ability to delete individual photos from PhotoStream and a permanent camera shortcut button on the lock screen for the iPhone. I take a lot of iPhone and iPad screenshots for work and these end up junking up my PhotoStream and I’m happy I can finally get rid of those after I’m done with them. I also find myself using the home button double-click shortcut a lot to get to the camera on my iPhone 4S. My dog’s antics, while plentiful, can be brief in nature and every second helps to be able to capture them.

We also had a few choice words for AT&T in relation to iOS 5.1 since, somehow, it convinced Apple to change the network indicator on the iPhone to show 4G when connected to its HSPA+ network, which is not true 4G. I shake my fist at you, AT&T.

My Teh Awesome this week was the Jawbone Jambox, a Bluetooth speaker I mentioned in a previous blog post describing a trip to an AT&T store when my mom upgraded to an iPhone 4S. It worked really well on the trip I took last week to San Francisco to attend GDC with the TouchArcade editorial staff and I definitely recommend it if you’re looking for a portable yet decent-sounding speaker for your iPhone or another Bluetooth-capable device.

Chris’s Teh Awesome was the free app Houzz Interior Design Ideas, which has been helpful for him and his wife as they remodel their house. The app houses hundreds of thousands of photos of home design elements and lets you tag and save items and looks you like for later reference and shopping.

As I post this, my pre-ordered iPad is in my hot little hands and I’m really enjoying it so far. The retina display is truly impressive and I find I’m using it more than my iPad 2, though this could just be because it’s a new gadget for me. Did you get a new iPad? If so, how do you like it so far?

Deal alert: 50% off Incase headphones

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I subscribe to local deal alerts from LivingSocial and Groupon, two of the largest and most well-known deal-of-the-day services in the U.S. This morning, a deal from LivingSocial caught my eye and I thought it may be of interest to you as well if you come to my site for gadget-related information. Today, LivingSocial is offering up to 54% off Incase headphones, bringing the price of the company’s most expensive model, the Sonic headphones, down to just $72 (with free shipping) from $149.95.

Incase entered the headphone market last year, a surprising move to me given their focus on bags and other small accessories to date. However, their headphones are decent according to the reviews I’ve read (you can read one at iLounge here and one at Cut of Mac here) and all of them include an inline microphone and remote control (with volume buttons) that work with the iPhone and portable Macs.

Here’s what the LivingSocial deal offers:

  • $32 for the Pivot headphones (regularly priced at $59.95)
  • $42 for the Reflex headphones (regularly priced at $79.95)
  • $72 for the Sonic headphones (regularly priced at $149.95)
Free shipping is included (Incase normally charges between $5 and $12 to ship items within the U.S.).
Incase Sonic Headphones in black

Incase Sonic headphones, image courtesy of Incase

This deal will be available for 4 more days, making its end date March 19 (I’m not sure of the exact time). You can see the deal and purchase it here. Though I’m not exactly in the market for a new pair of headphones, I couldn’t pass this up and purchased the Sonic model.

In case you’re not familiar with how LivingSocial and Groupon work, you make your purchase and then you’ll receive a voucher via email, which is usually also accessible through the respective iOS apps each company offers, with additional details on how to redeem your purchase. When I’ve purchased physical products through these companies before, the voucher usually contains a coupon code that can be used to order directly from the offering company’s website.

I hope this is useful to you! Please be sure to read the fine print and terms and conditions and know that I’m not affiliated with Living Social or responsible should anything go awry or not meet your expectations.

To buy: DODOcase Morris Lessmore case for the iPad 3

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I preordered an iPad 3 (a process that took me a couple of hours thanks to the overwhelming traffic Apple’s online store received after the close of the announcement event) and have been thinking, as always, about the accessories I’ll get for it. While a screen protector is certainly on my list, I’m also thinking that I’ll go back to DODOcase for a case this time after trying out the offerings from Portenzo and Treegloo for previous iPads.

I’ve almost always chosen plain black cases for my iPad since I don’t want to draw attention to it when I’m out and about. However, DODOcase has a hardcover case made in partnership with Moonbot Studios in honor of the Oscar-winning animated short film, The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore. The Morris Lessmore DODOcase case has a red faux leather cover and is foil stamped with the main character’s signature hat and cane on the cover and the letter M on the spine. I found the short film to be charming and see my own love of books and reading reflected in it.

(You can buy the short film directly from the iTunes Store here and there’s also an interactive iPad book app for it here.)

DODOcase has said via Twitter that its Morris Lessmore case for the iPad 3 won’t be available to order for a little while yet so I’m going to have to be patient. If you preordered an iPad 3, what accessories do you plan to buy for it?

Inconceivable!

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You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

That is probably my favorite quote from one of my favorite movies, The Princess Bride. It came to mind as I read recent news about AT&T’s policy changes regarding its “unlimited” data plan. I put “unlimited” in quotation marks here since it sounds like AT&T no longer knows what this word means and has decided to make up its own definition for it.



 
Here’s the situation in a nutshell:

  • AT&T used to offer an unlimited data plan for $30/month (this plan was available, most notably, for those who purchased the original iPhone in 2007).
  • AT&T stopped offering unlimited data plans for any phone in June 2010 though those who already had this plan could keep it. However, if anyone left the plan, there was no going back.
  • AT&T starts throttling (intentionally slowing the connection speed) of those on unlimited data plans who are in the top 5% of data users in some areas. These areas are not defined for users and the top 5% metric varies from area to area, with no way for users to find out in advance what could get them into the top 5% and subject to throttling.
  • AT&T announces that they’ve done away with the “top 5% of users” criteria and are now beginning throttling for all users on unlimited data plans who go above 3GB of data transfer in a billing period.

You know, I get that AT&T’s network may no longer be able to handle its customers data needs and it needs to take steps to manage this before even more customers are negatively affected. But I think they’re going about this in the wrong way entirely.

AT&T: Just do away with the unlimited data plan if you’re not going to honor it anymore. It makes no sense to even keep calling it unlimited it if it no longer is. Migrate current unlimited data plan users to the 3GB plan (and allowing them to leave if they choose to instead) and deep-six the unlimited plan altogether. This would be a more appropriate and honest way to handle this situation instead of trying to redefine what “unlimited” means and dealing with the negative PR as a result.

Review: Case-Mate Pop! With Stand for the iPhone 4/4S

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Through Google Offers, I recently had a chance to get a Case-Mate product at a discount and chose the
iPhone 4/4S Pop! Case with Stand. There are a few different cases in the new Pop! line and this one has a pop-out stand on the back to hold the iPhone upright in landscape or portrait orientation. This case retails for $40 and comes in a variety of colors. I chose the all-black color option and after using it for a couple of weeks, I’ve found it to have some great features combined with a handful of negative aspects that put it just out of the running as my go-to case for my iPhone 4S. Read on to find out why.


[Read more…]

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