The Macalope is sure that many of the kinks in the iPhone App Store as it exists now will get worked out over time, but one of the purported selling points was that customers would know that they're getting applications that have been vetted by Apple.
That's great and all, but if the "vetting process" means that bug fixes are slow to make it to users, it kind of tends to increase the exposure, rather than decrease it.
For those of us who have a hard time deciding what to eat or where to dine out, Urbanspoon has made a slot machine/roulette application (complete with 'pull' slot machine sound effects) to help us make a decision on where to eat. The application will determine your location from the GPS feature (which is still a pretty marked and powerful feature to the iPhone 3G that invariably raises privacy issues) and you can select he criteria you want, i.e., neighborhood, cuisine and price. And, for some inexplicable reason, you literally shake the phone to activate the selection feature. … Read more
I've mentioned it before, but I continue to be amazed at all the buzz about Pandora's online radio service, which creates playlists based on your musical tastes. About once a month, someone comes up to me and asks me if I'm familiar with it, and don't I just love it?
These fans seem to be casual music listeners in their thirties, knowledgeable about computers and personal technology but not obsessed with it. They may have an iPod at home, but have grown tired of their own personal music collection or haven't gotten around to connecting … Read more
How 1.0 iPhones use battery life with the 2.0 firmware and all those tantalizing applications is something that may be worth considering against the iPhone 3G's voracious appetite for power. During the past weekend, as new applications get tested out, I've seen the iPhone 3G use more and more power with the charge indicator gradually slipping away, ultimately flashing the "low battery" warning. This warning wasn't something common with the 1.0 iPhone I had. In fact, I had never seen that "low battery" indicator even after 7 days of camping-like … Read more
Loopt has an appealing application that allows you to track your friends and allows them to track you on a graphic map. It's kind of like a GPS-sonar radar that I've just discovered on the iPhone 3G. But, is this application really more like an electronic leash? Will your significant other track you? Will moms and dads track their children this year? Yes, Loopt has an extensive privacy policy that discourages/prohibits kids under 14 years old from using the service, but even one of my most 'public' friends (both online and in off-line) was actually hesitant about … Read more
Was it worth the wait? The 5-hour phone service/text/data outage? Do you really have to get the new iPhone on the first day? The first weekend? From a rational point of view, the answer is probably not. But, from an admitted early-adopter Apple-phile, a resounding hot tamale train YES is the answer. But, this is not without caveats of course (battery life, hassle, and jittery/buggy application crashes). Overall, the new iPhone 3G is slick. The applications (which work 90 percent of the time) are even slicker (many worth special attention to come in the next few posts). … Read more
People were still willing to wait in line for hours Friday afternoon outside the downtown San Francisco Apple store, as employees assured them sufficient supply of the iPhone 3G lay inside.
The line for the iPhone 3G at 4 p.m. in San Francisco was almost as long as it was earlier in the day: stretched down Stockton Street and around the corner onto O'Farrell.
Orange-shirted Apple store employees were moving up and down the line, answering questions and promising customers that there would still be an iPhone 3G for them once they got to the head of the … Read more
Apple's singular ability to whip up consumer frenzy might be in trouble after the debacle that was Friday's iPhone 3G launch.
Server problems turned this year's iPhone 3G launch into an exercise in patience for Apple fans and employees, as eager buyers faced waits of up to two hours to get their iPhone 3Gs activated in Apple stores, and many left with iPhone 3Gs in hand but the activation process incomplete. The same problems affected original iPhone owners trying to install the iPhone 2.0 software, turning their handsets into "iBricks."
The company had promised … Read more
What recession? Right now, there are several hundred people in line at the Seattle Apple Store in University Village, waiting to buy and activate a 3G iPhone, which starts at $199 and requires a two-year commitment to a voice-and-data plan that costs at least $70 per month. The line was just long as last year's, despite the tougher economic climate and the fact that we've had more than a year to get used to the iPhone--seeing one in public isn't much of a surprise anymore.
But apparently the promise of a faster data connection, GPS transceiver, third-party … Read more
It didn't take a check of other CNET stories to confirm that Apple/AT&T's registration servers have either went back to bed or checked out early on a Friday. After the cheers at 8:00 a.m. the line moved less than 20 feet within the first hour. There were at least two announcements from Apple reps (one in a utila-kilt even) that things are "a little bit slow," because of the "overwhelming demand." An insistent, we could always come back later was touted too.
At one point, I was getting discouraged. … Read more
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Christina Milian and the gadgets she loves
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