As I woke up this morning, I was happy to discover that the entire Web (OK, at least all the geek sites that I visit first thing in the morning) was covered with a story about a truly amazing new cellphone. I was pretty surprised that this new cellphone does not originate in the Apple kingdom, not Palm, not Samsung, not even Nokia.
iPhone
Apple’s In-Ear Headphones- A Winner
I was recently approached by an old friend of mine (when I say approached, I mean by email of course. Who talks in person nowadays?), who had just purchased the Apple in-ear headphones, which I posted about when they were announced. At the time, I was under the impression that they were not worth the money, to which employees of Apple inc. commented that I was wrong, and they are actually fairly priced compared to other headphones in their class. Anyway, I just received the review, and it is a good one folks. Seems like Eli knows a heck of a lot more than me when it comes to audio quality. So with no further ado, the in depth review of Apple’s flagship accessory, the in-ear headphones.
-Hillel
The Apple In-Ear Headphones with Remote and Mic:
A Review by Eli Ungar-Sargon
When I bought my new Apple In-Ear Headphones with Remote and Mic, I had mixed feelings. On the one hand, I felt the usual rush of excitement that only an Apple product can elicit. I love buying Apple technology and the company has earned my trust by consistently producing best-in-class products. On the other hand, my experience with Apple-made accessories has not been so rosy.
While the ubiquitous white Apple headphones that come with every iPod have evolved over time, they’re still not very good. They fall apart after a couple of years and their sound is not really fit for serious listening. Sure, they get the job done, but the sonic range that these ear-buds can reproduce is so limited that music ends up sounding muddy and unclear. Given this fact, it’s not surprising that the 3rd party market for iPod headphones has thrived. Apple saw this happening and in 2004 decided to try to get a piece of the higher-end headphone market by releasing their “In Ear Headphones”. Like a good Apple sheep, I bought them and I’m sorry to report that they were a total disaster. Not only did they have the most bizarre frequency response of any headphone I’d ever listened to, but they didn’t fit properly in my ear.
To make matters worse, their strange shape prevented them from achieving a tight seal, which is what an in-ear headphone must do in order to effectively reproduce those deep lows. In the end, I invested in a pair of pricey in-canal Shure headphones and let me tell you, going from stock iPod headphones to the E4cs was like moving from box wine to a ‘95 Chateau Margaux. My ears were happy until I bought my first iPhone.
While I loved the convenience of having my iPod and cell phone in one device, the Shures did not offer two key features that now came standard with the iPhone ear buds. Apple built into the new buds a clicker and a microphone that made answering calls while listening to music a breeze. That convenience won out for me and I found myself back at square one listening to music through the stock ear buds. But like an Economy flier who finally gets a taste of First Class, I yearned for better sound. What I needed was a solution that would allow me to enjoy the quality of the E4cs and the convenience of the mic/clicker at the same time. Enter the new Apple In-Ear Headphones with Remote and Mic.
The first notable difference between Apple’s original foray into the world of higher-end headphones and its latest effort is price. The original in-ear headphones sold for $39 while the new pair go for $80. The second difference is that the new headphones fit really well. Apple clearly learned from their past mistakes in this arena and I’m happy to report that the new ear buds actually stay in my ears. The clicker works as well as the stock iPhone clicker, though it is somewhat larger in order to accommodate the new volume controls which, as of the writing of this article, only work with the latest generation of iPods. In addition to allowing iPhone owners to answer calls, the mic also allows iPod Touch owners to make recordings and use Voice Over IP services from the App Store.
But what about the sound? Has this Economy flier finally made his way back to First Class? Not exactly. For the price, the quality of the new Apple headphones is hard to beat. They produce a rich sound and even provide an impressive amount of noise attenuation. Unfortunately, they can’t hold a candle to my old E4c’s. Part of this has to do with the fact that the E4c’s are in-canal headphones and so produce a better seal and superior noise isolation, but part of it is just plain old frequency response. The Apple headphones seem to have a strong emphasis on the mids and highs while the E4c’s produce more satisfying lows while maintaining an overall balanced sound. My only other criticism of the new headphones is their build quality.
Apple used the same gauge of wire that the stock buds come with and I can see them fraying after a few years of daily use. Having said that, the new Apple In-Ear headphones are a big step up from the stock buds in terms of sound quality and they come with that fantastic clicker/mic. If you have an iPhone or any of the latest generation iPods and you’re looking to improve your listening experience without spending an arm and a leg, this product offers great value. Walking around with my new headphones, I may not be back in First Class, but it sure feels like Business.
iPhone is Now Officially Smarter Than People
With all the talk and Hollywood movies about robots outsmarting humans, we might have reached a dangerous point (no, not really). A new app called Cube Cheater proves that the iPhone is in fact more intelligent than your average homosapien (I have not used that word since like 6th grade).
The app analyzes a Rubik’s Cube (can you believe they have a website?) in any given state and tells you how to solve it step by step using a 3D interface. You can input the state of the Rubik’s cube by painting it in the app’s UI, or by taking a picture of it, how cool is that?
I don’t know about you, but I do not know many people that can solve a Rubik’s cube, and the few that can, take much longer than Cube Cheater. Should I prepare for the revolution? (OK, so I watched one too many Terminator sequels, so what?)
-Hillel
Palm Might Sue Apple
No, I am not confused. It is true, Apple might get sued for infringement on numerous Palm patents that are implemented in the iPhone, as reported in a very lengthy and interesting article on Engadget. To sum things up, it is true that certain technologies we saw in our brief introduction to the Pre seem to be patented by Apple, and therefore if acted upon, might cause a delay in the release of the Pre. One of these so called technologies is the way the iPhone UI “springs” when reaching the top of a Web page (I seriously cannot believe they patented that). You can see it demoed in the video below.
However, it seems that for every one patent owned by Apple and possibly “stolen” by Palm, there are two of exactly the opposite. Seems like Palm has a patent on the way the iPhone adjusts the screen’s brightness, the method in which the iPhone toggles between different dialing options (speed dial, dialer, contacts, and call history to be exact), searching for a contact by typing initials only, and the way you implement conference calling in the iPhone. So, it is safe to say that if Apple does decide to sue Palm over certain patents implemented in the Pre, Palm will not go down without fighting. We might all be surprised to see Apple actually lose a legal battle at the end of the day.
Of course, chances are none of this will ever happen, kinda like the Cold War and how neither side ever launched out of fear of the other side’s retaliation. If Apple loses this battle, they will owe Palm royalty fees for every iPhone ever sold, that would be a whopping 16 million devices. I also do not see Palm taking the first shot in this war, I don’t think anyone doubts the amount Palm has to lose. If they lose this battle, say goodbye to the Pre, and therefore we can pretty much uncover the grave we dug for them right before they surprised us with the Pre.
As Nilay Patel of Engadget so elegantly puts it, “All we want is for both Apple and Palm to come to the table, hammer out a cross-licensing agreement like other companies in the wireless industry do all the time, and get back to work on innovative, exciting technologies and devices. The lawyers get paid that way too, you know”. Could not have said it better.
Watch the video below to see an iPhone technology for which Apple could sue Palm. I did not even know the iPhone did this, did you?
-Hillel
iPhone App Breaks Screen’s Glass
Well, it doesn’t really break the glass. But this new app, which is made by a French company by the name of VisuaMobile and will be available in the App Store soon, emulates what breaking your iPhone’s screen would be like. Watch the ad for “Fracture” above. The graphics seem really cool, and I have a strong feeling we will be seeing this app in Top Apps category very soon.
Check out the demo in the video below.
-Hillel
New iPhone “Read” Ad
Just to bring you another one of Apple’s great iPhone ads. Enjoy!
-Hillel
iPhone to Offer Wireless File Transfer; Finally
Looks like some very smart developer is working on one of the most sought after features for the iPhone, wireless file transfer. As I wrote those words, I thought to myself how hard it is to believe that Apple left out such basic bluetooth functionality like file transfer and stereo bluetooth. It really does not make sense to me, and I would love to hear some suggestions from my readers in the comments. Why is Apple so opposed to making our lives that much simpler, with features (I would not even call these things features) like copy/paste, video capabilities, and running multiple apps simultaneously?
I am a firm believer that most companies do not just leave out basic functions when designing a mobile device. I am sure somewhere along the line, Steve and some of his buddies were sitting in a very nice conference room somewhere and discussing what the iPhone would and would not have.
Maybe the conversation went something like this:
Steve: ” I want to make the best mobile device the world has ever known. It will have an amazing touch interface, and will work better than any previous phone”.
One of his buddies: “Well, OK, we can do that, but just take into account that certain functions that were available 10 years ago, will not be able to be implemented on this phone. No way we can get copy/paste functionality in it, for example. Not to mention Bluetooth functionality that can be found in the most basic of Nokia phones.
Steve: “OK, go ahead as planned, as long as you can swipe between pictures”.
OK, so that did not happen. What was really going through Apple’s mind when leaving out file transfer via Bluetooth? Please share your insights.
One thing I will tell you in full certainty, if this developer pulls it off, he will be a very rich man. Watch the demo in the video below.
-Hillel
Leave Steve Jobs Alone
So this is the deal people, I feel the need to post my feelings about the whole Steve Jobs saga not because I am some expert on stock prices but I think people are taking this too far.
1. LEAVE THE MAN ALONE – he is sick, let him be with his family, give him some quiet, he is human.
2. He says that he is still going to be involved on all major decisions, so don’t worry.
3. I’m sure that Jobs hired a very qualified staff to work with him, you don’t need to worry about the company going under.
4. He did this because he wants to downplay his absence but he will still be in the background.
Apple will be fine without him- maybe they should hire Jerry Yang, I hear he is looking for work 🙂
– Aryeh
Samsung/McCann Digital Use Web 2.0 To Market Omnia
A lot going on in the cellular world lately. Somehow though, even with the iPhone, the G1, and the new Pre, the Samsung Omnia is able to stand its ground. Yes, a lot of these new phone have more bells and whistles, but the Omnia’s feature set still keeps it at the top of the bunch. Just to give you a quick run down, the Omnia boasts a huge 3.2 inch screen (bigger than the Pre), a 5mp camera (better than the iPhone and the Pre COMBINED) with a built in flash (hear that Apple?), insanely fast HSDPA, WiFi, a blazing fast 624 mhz processor (I do not believe anything faster exists), has 8 or 16GB built in memory AND an expansion slot, stereo bluetooth (I am still talking to you Apple), plays DIVX movies, pocket Office, built in GPS, a high quality video camera, and all that in a ridiculously tiny 12.5 mm package (that is 4 mm thinner than the Pre).
I had the chance to play with the Omnia a little and the thing is just beautiful looking, and feels great in your hand. There really is not much missing in terms of the specs. The screen is resistive, not like the iPhone’s but somehow anyone that has reviewed it, cant stop talking about its responsiveness. It runs Windows Mobile 6.1, which is said to be a huge improvement over the older WM5. All in all, we got a winner of a device here.
OK, but there is another reason why I love this phone so much. It is the first phone that Samsung is marketing by using the tool that we have all grown to love so much, social network marketing. Samsung has joined forces with McCann (click on the McCann link to see a really cool ad campaign for Web advertising) digital to market the amazing Omnia using various blogs. One of these blogs is actually one of my favorites; Blonde 2.0. Ayelet writes a lot about the Web 2.0 world and she has acquired for herself quite the reputation amongst the social networking enthusiasts like myself.
Samsung and McCann have cooperated in the past as well, marketing a Samsung SC HMX10 high-def camcorder, but this is the first time they are using this tool with a mobile device, and I am loving it. As a blogger, a social networking addict (click that link to follow me on Twitter), and a mobile lover, I say great initiative from McCann and Samsung. I only hope the campaign is successful and they decide to continue with this concept.
-Hillel
HTC to Announce a Pre-Killer
Engadget Mobile just reported that an employee of Australia’s Telstra let us all know that HTC will soon be releasing a device that will be better than the Pre. Now, the big news is not that HTC is announcing a new device, or that it will be a good one. The amazing thing about this report is that manufacturers like HTC are now looking to create Pre-killers.
No more of yesterday’s iPhone killers. The iPhone is somewhat already part of the past, and the company responsible for this is no other than Palm. I don’t think anyone would have believed this scenario to be possible even a month ago. The truth is though, that Palm deserves the credit and a lot of it for their new Pre. It really is an amazing device that includes all the characteristics necessary to make what can be considered the best handset on the planet.
Like I said in the fourth episode of Likemob (the best podcast on mobile news), it is not the hardware that is getting everyone excited. Although, the hardware is definitely worth mentioning. They did manage to get a full QWERTY (even though it is a portrait one) into a 17 mm package along with a beautiful 3.1 inch multitouch touch screen display. But the OS is what makes this phone number one.
Palm really went all out with Web OS. I guess the two factors that make this OS a huge winner are the “card” interface and Synergy. The card interface allows the user to easily switch between tasks, such as viewing pictures, listening to music, and writing an email. All you do is press the Home button and the device zooms out for you to see all the tasks that are currently open. The coolest part, I think, is the ability to simply swipe one of the open tasks right off the display and by that, close the application. So unlike Symbian for example, in which closing a running app is a whole huge deal, this is completely seamless and could not be easier.
The other big thing that Palm introduced us to with the Pre, is Synergy. It is as it sounds. It basically combines all the different social circles of your life into one easy and basic interface. This includes a layered contact list with contact information from your Outlook, Web email account, Facebook account, and any other place the specific contact has info stored. This also includes a joined calendar and a combined email interface. It just makes things simpler.
What remains to be seen with the Pre is of course how well it will works in reality. Another huge question mark is the usability of the Palm App Catalogue. What will the installation process be like? Will it be similar to the Apple App Store or perhaps something closer to the hellish Symbian experience? We also do not know the pricing yet, although there is a rumor circulating that it will go for $399 with a contract.
Whatever the case may be, Palm has already succeeded in doing what no company has done in a long time. They have managed to finally give Apple something to worry about. There has been talk about various iPhone killers, but correct me if I am wrong, I have never seen anyone use the term “HD Killer” or “Omnia Killer” before. The mobile world has now moved on from the iPhone due to Palm, and the new goal of the cellular giants should be to create what is now called a Pre-Killer. Sounds better than iPhone killer anyway, doesn’t it?
-Hillel
Palm Is So Back With Its New Palm Pre
Today we wake up to a new world, a world in which Palm is a brand people are actually talking about, I feel like I am in 11th grade all over again. Anyway, Palm announced their new Mobile OS called Web OS, and their new flagship device, the Palm Pre. As for the naming, I would not have chosen those names, but I guess they are not as bad as some other names we have seen in this industry lately.
We do not know all that much about Web OS, so I will wait for more details before expressing my opinion on that matter. As for the Pre, I have an opinion, and it is a strong one. Palm might be the first company that I know of that went from being a total nobody to becoming a major player and threat to the biggest names in the industry, and this change took place over night. This new device is not only going to compete with phones like the iPhone and the G1, as far as I can tell, it has them beat, by a long shot.
Let me just run down the specs here for you. The Palm Pre has a 3.1 inch touch screen with multitouch, accelerometer for landscape browsing, Wifi, GPS, 3mp camera with LED flash, 8GB memory, a2dp, replaceable battery, Micro SD expansion slot, USB 2.0, portrait slide out keyboard, 3.5mm headphone jack, and a blazing fast processor and CPU. For an exact list of all the specs, see here.
The form factor is impressive and innovative (kinda looks like a mixture between a PEBL and an HTC Touch, do you see that?). The OS from what we have seen seems to be unprecedented in its speed, beauty, and functionality. It really combines the simplicity of the iPhone with the intelligence of the G1.
Just to give one example, the swiping gestures to move between web pages and open apps remind me of the iPhone, but the ability to receive notifications about new email or IMs resemble the G1.
Palm, from what they have told us, are trying to deeply integrate our social networking lives into this phone. I am talking threaded conversations over SMS and all the IM networks. I am talking close collaboration with Facebook and other social networks, bringing, for example, your phone, Google, Outlook, and Facebook calendar and contacts all into one view.
I could really go on for a long time here, so I will just stop here and say that this phone and OS will no doubt bring Palm back to being an industry leader, and I do not think it will take long.
To finish off with a quote from Peter Ha “This is an iPhone, Android, Palm race now, Symbian and WinMo are done”. Sorry Itamar, but I could not agree more.
-Hillel