Symbian OS and the Linux Desktop
A frequent counter argument against the iPhone comes from folks touting Nokia's various flagship phones. No one using an iPhone points to a Nokia phone as a better or more capable device, mind you. (That should be telling.)
So, this is interesting. From The Symbian Guru:
If you recall, when the Nokia N97 was announced, we all drooled over it endlessly. We marveled at its features, its monstrous internal storage, sliding hinge assembly, 1500mAh battery, and more. We waited a disturbing 6 months for it to actually be available…only to actually get it. The launch firmware on the Nokia N97 was so bad, I sincerely hope that whoever gave it the A-OK to be released has been fired from Nokia. It took them another 6 months just to release a firmware that wasn’t rubbish, and now, the ‘flagship’ languishes behind other devices, frustrating owners like myself more and more each day.
Their sentiments remind me of when I gave up on the Linux desktop. While Vista a few months later was a major stumble for Microsoft (to put it mildly), Apple has continued to charge along and Microsoft has regrouped with Windows 7. Meanwhile GNOME remains relatively stagnant (though superior to KDE) and KDE managed to out-Vista Vista.
That Terrible iPhone Reception Problem
John Gruber notes the folks at Consumer Reports looked into the iPhone 4 reception issues and made the (shocking, I tell you, shocking!) discovery that such reception issues are “the case with all cell phones” and that it wasn't a big deal. Gruber responds,
Who am I supposed to believe, the sensationalist hacks at Consumer Reports, or the straight-shooters at Gizmodo?
It's not as if Gizmodo is the sort of place that would buy a stolen iPhone and then have an axe to grind for being prosecuted for it.
(For an added chuckle, Gruber's English translation of Apple's latest comments on the matter are worth a read if you'll excuse some of his coarse language choices.)
Giving Up for the Night
I've been working on a coding project and it was going so well until about an hour ago. Since then, I've been hitting my head against the wall. I guess it is time to give up for the night. Oh well.
App Stores
“DVD Jon” writes:
While this is technically true, one should not need a PhD in Computer Science to use a smartphone. How is a consumer supposed to know exactly what the permission “act as an account authenticator” means? The CNET opinion piece “Is Google far too much in love with engineering?” is quite relevant here.
The piece is a very clear indictment of the Google model of app store. The so-called “curated” model of the iTunes App Store may be deeply flawed, but the Android Market has yet to offer something better or even as good.
A Little Less than KIN
If you are curious about the Microsoft KIN phones, my review of them is now available on Open for Business.
The iPhone as a Camera
Derek Powazek demonstrates the impressive camera capabilities of the new iPhone 4's camera. I think Apple might be on to something with this.
HT: John Gruber
iOS 4
I was able to grab iOS 4 for my iPhone 3GS minutes after it became available today. I have not had much time to play with it, but so far it feels like a really nice upgrade from iPhone OS 3.1. I really like being able to group apps into folders and I have been wanting a unified inbox on my phone since my first iPhone in 2007.
Time will tell if the “multitasking” support makes the phone feel more responsive, but so far, so good. My phone may be a year old, but it feels fresher with this new software. I am reminded of what a nice trend Apple has going with free upgrades for existing phones. Bear in mind that upgrading phone OS versions has never been a given in the past, and continues to be hit or miss on Android.
Now I just keep thinking of what iOS 4 will bring to the iPad when it appears later this year. At the least, the items that have appeared already on the iPhone will be much appreciated.
Filtering
For years, I have filtered my email into different categories — mailing lists, system administration, email forwards, and so on. Thus far, I have always done so on the client side, in my email client. Since switching to IMAP email a number of years ago, the big question became how to standardize those rules across different computers I might use during a given day.
.Mac (now MobileMe) paved the way, back in 2004 when I first signed up for it, by offering a convenient way to synchronize quite a few system settings, including filter rules. It worked great for keeping things humming along on my laptop and desktop. However with the advent of lighter clients such as the iPhone, a crack appeared in my system — the iPhone doesn't do filtering. Nor would my email be filtered if I viewed it in webmail. The situation has become more apparent since I started using an iPad, which, like the iPhone, lacks rules support.
All that said, I have finally broken down and tried server side filter rules. My main rules are now being applied on my server as messages come in. CPanel makes such filtering remarkably easy to setup. So far, so good.
Please let me know if you send me anything and do not receive a reply, however!
Google Earth is How It Should Be on iPad
If you need an example of what a 10” screen attached to Apple's A4 processor can do, you really should check out Google's updated Google Earth for iOS. While I thought Google Earth was pretty nifty on the iPhone and Android phones, on the iPad, the effect of using it is much more like on the desktop application.
I remember five years ago when I first tried Google Earth that it completely amazed me as I took it through the Grand Canyon and saw how it layered real satellite imagery on a 3D model of the terrain. It is something I always love having the chance to demo to people. And thanks to a well designed codebase, it usually runs at an enjoyable speed even on less than top of the line computers.
Yet, the idea of being able to see it at approximately “full size” in a touchscreen environment really changes things. It feels natural, like this is how Google Earth was always meant to be. I had a feeling if the program ever showed up on the iPad it would be amazing, yet given the current Apple-Google hostilities, I doubted the release of such a full iPad version would happen.
Great job, Google.
