The iPod Nano as a Watch

  For the past couple of weeks, I've been wearing my new iPod nano as a watch. Full time. It's been awesome. I've decided to break it down into a bit of a review because I can EASILY see this as the way that all wearable electronics are going in the near future.

Last September, Steve Jobs introduced the new iPod line just in time so that we all could buy them up before Christmas. Isn't that convenient? Since the iPod touch came out, that event hasn't provided as many rumors as say, the iPhone events or that event back in January of 2010. However, for people who don't want to pay for a Mac, the iPod line is the easiest and cheapest way to enter the Apple world.

The new iPod nano was a new design, with some notable changes.  The iPod nano (6th generation) no longer had a video camera on it (like its predecessor) or even a camera on it at all. It did, however, employ a touch screen (Apple's famous "multitouch") and a new user interface. The thing was tiny. It also had a clip on the back so that we were no longer buying armbands etc in order to exercise with them.  It was quite a different concept and has seemed to be very successful thus far.

While Steve was introducing it, he mentioned that one of Apple's Board of Directors had commented that he would like to wear it as a watch. What a brilliant idea. When Steve says something like that from the stage, it doesn't take long for the fanboys (myself easily included) to get going.

Enter, TikTok. You can read all of the information there. After seeing it, I knew I had to have one.

Long story short, I now own two TikToks and Allison and I each have our own iPod nanos.

So what do I think of it?

PROS

  • It's about the perfect size.
    • If I were a woman, it would be gigantic. But I'm not.
    • With this TikTok watch band, it doesn't appear bulky or annoying
  • It holds my music, and I can listen to it from my watch.
    • I wanted to use this iPod nano to listen to all my podcasts on.  The problem was, if I listened to part of them on my iPhone and then later on my iPod, I'd have to sync both devices in order to pick up where I left on on the other device. This is something I think Apple is working on, but an annoyance nonetheless.
    • I can sync up playlists (like my playlist for the pre-service loop on Sunday mornings) and have them with me wherever I go. This also allows me to leave my iPod (before: my iPhone) at the sound booth or what have you and still have my phone for, you know, communicating.
  • It stores my photos.
    • Need to show a slideshow of pictures you took on your last trip? You can carry them with you wherever you go (because you are always going to have your watch). Of course, you have to have Apple's 30-pin component cable, etc. But...still...does your watch do that?
    • It is a nice feeling that I can have my photos wherever I go and easily access them.  You're probably saying, "Doesn't your phone do that?" Yes, it does. But my phone also has apps. And music. Being able to split these things up onto other devices always has its advantages.
  • Built in Radio
    • Radio is always good.  And now, always available.  Want to listen to the Duke game on the radio?  In Cameron and they won't let you take anything in?  Don't worry. You have it on your watch. Now...for those noise canceling earbuds...
  • Built in Pedometer
    • All you runners know the advantages of having this at your beckon call at any given point. To be clear, I think it is only the software for the pedometer (still need Nike+) but I don't run, so I honestly don't know.
  • It's an iPod. As a watch.
    • Given, there is lots of nerd factor here...but come on.  It's at least an intriguing idea.
  • Has a "wake to clock" feature.
    • Let's be honest.  There wouldn't be much point of this if Apple has not enabled this.
  • LOTS of battery life
    • I only charge this like once a week, if that.
  • Apple Unity
    • I can charge it from the same devices as my iPhone and iPad (and so I always have one with me) and it will dock with the same docks I already have.  As annoying as their 30pin connectors seem to be, everyone know what an iPod cable is and most people have several spare. I keep one on my keychain so I am never without. The world is flooded with iPod cables and that works to the consumer's advantage.
  • Functions as a Flash Drive
    • Plug it into any computer, and it will mount as a flash drive. You don't even have to go through iTunes. GREAT idea and I just wish they'd open the phone up to this too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CONS

  • To see the time, you have press the "on" button.
    • Fortunately, the TikTok's design allows for the buttons to be on one side and the dock connector to be on the other.  To use it, you never have to take it out of the TikTok. That is a huge advantage of other watch cases for this iPod.  HOWEVER, there is a noticeable lag (1 second or less) from when you press the button to when you see the screen.  The iPod never turns "off" so this is perhaps waking it from a deep sleep.  If it has been illuminated recently, the screen appears nearly instantaneously (but when you are looking at the time, you generally haven't looked at it within the past two minutes). It's not the end of the world because I don't check my watch THAT often, but I could see how some people wouldn't be able to take it.
  • Turns out, plugging headphones into your wrist and actually trying to function is awkward.
    • It's not impossible and if you are just walking to class, it's not bad at all.  But, if you're trying to accomplish something, the cord can get in the way (not to mention if you have a really short ear bud cord). Thankfully, it is extremely easy to pop the iPod out of the TikTik and clip it to something.  Problem solved.
  • "Multi-Touch" is a bit of a stretch.
    • When people think of multitouch, they think of "pinch to zoom".  The ONLY multi-touch on the iPod is the function that allows you to twist the screen to better orient how you are looking at it.  Even in the pictures "app," you can't pinch to zoom in, just double touch to zoom. I wouldn't quite say that Apple lies, because it does recognize two point of touch input at once, but the term "multi-touch" is not to be understood in the way that Apple has allowed you to understand it previously.
  • No Digital Clock
    • This has got to have been an oversight.  The only clock face is analog. I'm used to analog watches, so that isn't a huge deal (and definitely worth having music on my wrist at any given point) but it would have been nice to have had a digital clock.  Maybe an update Apple?

So, is it worth it? I guess that's up to the individual. However, I'm never going back to a watch that doesn't hold my music. I use it more for music than I use my iPhone.

It is great. I can't wait to see some updates that make it even better.

-B

Sermon as Performance?

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjXYlwvS5LY] Not minding the attraction of the word "sermon" to a clip shorter than many pop songs, is this overproduced? Is it too much? How much of that is Bell's intention rather than the intention of the video producer?

Rob Bell is quite a speaker and teacher.

 

-B

Two is Better Than One

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wq2HalPB28s] Great commercial. Can't wait for all of my Verizon friends to get rid of their BlackBerries.

Notable: "Features vary by carrier." I have watched the commercial back several times (when I should have been reading) and can't find a single feature that won't be offered on both carriers.  It remains to be seen whether or not FaceTime will hit 3G on Verizon, and neither of the phones had Wifi connections prior to the cut to a FaceTime call (details matter) so this could perhaps be what they meant.  Maybe I have missed something, but the "features vary..." is very un-Apple like.  Tim Cook made it very apparent at the Verizon announcement that this iPhone and the AT&T iPhone are identical in features except that you will not be able make a phone call and access the internet at the same time.

If they had shown the Personal Hot Spot feature, that would have made sense.

Also, is it "two is..." or "two are..."? English grammar sometimes doesn't make any sense.

-B

People That Impress Me

We are not who we are until we discover who it was that made us who we are. Then, and only then, can we live into the reality of who we are and where we are going. To deny influences in our lives is just silly. For me, I have a lot of respect for the brilliant. I have a lot of respect for the movers and shakers in our world. These people have helped define our culture and because of my obsession with the impact that culture makes on our lives, I cannot help but be incredibly impressed with them and their work. Many of these below are not "righteous" people and did not stand for a purpose that we consider right. It is impossible however to deny their gifts and talents.

Whether or not I agree with them, these are people who impress me. In no particular order, off the top of my head, and I am sure the list it largely incomplete. I haven't even googled the names, so my apologies for misspellings.

Those that impress me:

Jesus Christ Howard Stern Leo Laporte Steve Wozniak Julia Roberts Bill Gates JS Bach Nolan Ryan Adolf Hitler Eminem Meryl Streep Steve Jobs Rob Bell David Crowder Joe Torre Andy Crouch Keith Olbermann Rush Limbaugh Paul Michael Jordan Louie Giglio Michael Jackson Tim Russert Eugene Peterson Jonny Ive Ellen Degeneres Kobe Bryant Franklin Delano Roosevelt Constantine Moses Chris Tomlin Mark Zuckerberg Larry Page Babe Ruth Asa Candler Mother Teresa Barack Obama Bill O'Reilly George Washington Job Thomas Jefferson Aaron Sorkin Leonardo DaVinci William Shakespeare Darlene Zschech TobyMac Matt Lauer Shane Claiborne John Wesley Warren W. Willis Diane Sawyer Beethoven Kevin James Norman Rockwell Benjamin Franklin Ruth Rick Warren Ray Romano Francis Chan Moses Hogan B.o.B Ricky Gervais Anne Frank Bruno Mars Michael W. Smith Billy Graham Ted Williams Steven Curtis Chapman Joel Houston George W. Bush Dan Marino Henry Ford Thomas Edison Dan Brown JK Rowling Stephanie Meyers Taylor Swift Kanye West Mark Driscoll John Gruber Charles Wesley Albert Einstein King Tut Peyton Manning Napoleon George Lucas Tom Hanks Ann Curry Jack Mason Peter Sean Parker Sergei Brin Jackie Robinson Martin Luther Martin Luther King Jr. JFK Abraham Lincoln My family

-B

How the Verizon iPhone Will Hurt Android

There are two types of people in the world:

  • Those that REALLY love their phone
  • Those that REALLY love their carrier

Since 2007, those who loved the iPhone have put up with AT&T despite the bad publicity the company got.

At 11am today, Verizon is expected to take the stage in New York and announce that Verizon will carry the iPhone for the first time.  This is significant because there has never been a CDMA compatible iPhone, and Verizon is the leading competitor to AT&T.

Many have wondered how many AT&T iPhone customers will switch later this month when the Verizon iPhone hits shelves.  I don't.

I've talked to a LOT of people who have Android phones and like them. But, given the option, would have bought an iPhone. It's not that Android is bad, but the cultish atmosphere behind it is found mostly in tech geeks, not the general public. The iPhone, because of Apple and because of its name, has a huge following in the consumer space. Android is more capable than iOS in many ways, but doesn't have the fit and polish that the iPhone has.

If given the choice between an Android handset and an iPhone and you are an average consumer, what would attract you to Android? What would attract you to the iPhone? I think the iPhone has more attraction points for the typical consumer.

The question isn't whether the Verizon iPhone will hurt AT&T.  Many AT&T customers have been AT&T customers for years.  Many are happy with their AT&T service and coverage (myself included). The Verizon iPhone will hurt Droid sales. The Verizon iPhone will hurt Android market share.

The Verizon iPhone will do nothing but help Apple.

I've been dreading this day for a long time because those who REALLY love their carrier will now REALLY love their phone.  And they will probably shove it in all the AT&T's customers faces.

But now I don't care.  At least they'll finally get their way. I care more about them being Apple fans than I do AT&T fans anyway.

-B

A Bicycle For Our Minds

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ob_GX50Za6c&]

You can say a lot about Steve Jobs, but from the very beginning, he "got it".

The ingenuity of human innovation HAS to be a God-given gift, and perhaps that is why it is so frustrating to see companies that do not focus on innovation in new products, but rather focus on profit instead.

My father once told me, "A man's work is only as good as his tools." We are fortunate that we were selected to be the inhabitants of this earth that can think for ourselves. In addition, we have the dexterity in our physical form that can take what our minds process and create new things that advance who we are. The tech industry today is easily one of the best examples, but innovation happens everyday in things like medicine and peace making as well.

I can't help but think that, in its own way, innovation is a form of worship.

-B

Texting While Driving

Short, yet emotional documentary that AT&T put together about the effects of texting while driving. Told by family, friends, and strangers who caused and were affected by texting while driving. One of the arguments made is that no one sees drinking while driving as something that is acceptable but almost all of us text and drive. With the advent of keyboard less devices becoming more and more popular, the dangers are multiplied. With drinking and driving, your vision is impaired. With texting, your vision isn't there at all. I'd almost rather have a drunk driver because they are most likely trying hard to pay attention and drive safely whereas a texting driver doesn't care.

[youtube=Http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DebhWD6ljZs&]

About a year ago, I noticed this to be a problem in my own driving habits. I have thought many times that phones need a driving mode, where text messages are automatically responded to with a "driving" mark and don't even appear to the driver. It could be automatic so that whenever a driver enters a car, the phone can't not go into the mode. Unfortunately, this would likely only appear in top level phones and cars, something teenagers don't often have. Unless, I suppose, congress were to step in.

Personally, I use my phone as a GPS device, attached by suction cup to my windshield. I use voice control for calling and ipod control and the angle is such that I don't even like typing on it while parked. It has worked for me because I don't even consider responding unless I am at a light. I just wish I had a way to let the sender know I wasn't ignoring them.

If you were 23 more times likely to die doing any other activities, you wouldn't do them. So why do we do this?

I invite you to think about what measures you might put into place in your own driving habits so that you aren't even tempted to respond to a text message.

-B

iPhone vs. Android

Great article by John Gruber about the cheapening electronics and the future of Android handsets at the $100 level. Read here. In short, components are getting cheaper and surely Android phones will release before the typical June release of the iPhone at lower costs with features equaling those of the iPhone. Gruber argues that the game Google and Apple are playing are two different games (he continues to argue that Google has yet to release an iPod Touch competitor, quite a successful product for Apple).

The thing to me (and Gruber strongly relies on it in his article) is the emotional attachment to a device. Once you are in the ecosystem, used to the system, like the process, it is easier to upgrade to the next model once you are eligible. I bought a new iphone case today and thought about what I would do if my phone broke. Easy answer: go buy another one. I have gotten to the point where I don't know what I would do without it.

Emotional attachment is key to the marketing of any product and Apple has seemed to master the manufacturing of those emotions.

Blackberry had this going for them. But they fell way behind in the race and more and more Blackberry users are thinking about an Android or iphone for their next phone.

Will people abandon their loves for cheaper prices? I don't think so. Will people abandon their loves for more features? Seems to be so.

Will Apple fall behind in the features race? I don't see any proof of that anytime soon.

-B

These Kids Get Everything...

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gKYFZyvehE] If you can stand the barrage of screaming kids excited about-well, everything, you'll understand that PS22 has been invited to perform at the Academy Awards. Red carpet treatment and all.

I typically don't pay too much attention to award shows (sadly, this often includes the Oscars) but I'll probably watch this time. In the past, these kids have been pretty darn impressive for an inner city school choir.

Hats off to the director (former teacher of a friend of mine) who has used YouTube to take the choir to national acknowledgment. The internet is so powerful.

 

-B

Kinetic Typography

I've been a fan of well done kinetic typography (music or spoken word put to motion) for a while. This is by far the best one I have seen. I watched it three times, and each time noticed things I hadn't before.

Phenomenal work.  I'm sure it was hours of labor-intensive work with Adobe's After Effects, but well worth the effort.

Devote the next three and a half minutes of your life to it.

Jonathan Coulton's "Shop Vac" (art and animation done by Jarrett Heather)

[vimeo=http://vimeo.com/17419652 w=640&h=360]

[Found via Daring Fireball]

Many churches are starting to use this moving text idea in worship services as a means of projecting lyrics for congregational singing. Sometimes it is done well.  Most of the time, it is annoying.

This clip above proves that it is possible to do, and to do well. We are a visual culture, and perhaps the lyrical display of text can add to the intention of the song...so as to be better understood.

I thought that it was worth sharing.

 

-B

djay for iPad

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuQl8T6ZHmE] Are there other djay apps on the iPad?  Sure.  But, I've used this one on the Mac and it is easily one of the best.

Most importantly, to me:

Seamless AirPlay integration (wirelessly transmit your mix to AppleTV or AirPort Express station)

So...imagine this.  The djay can be walking around the house, mixing the music, in realtime, sent straight to the house system wirelessly through AirPlay.

Seems pretty darn cool.

Welp, there goes $19.99 of the coming iTunes gift card money ;-)

-B

Apple in Education

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Image via Wikipedia"]The iPod family with, from the left to the rig...[/caption]

Brilliant, just brilliant.

Propaganda for sure, but still pretty great. Make sure to watch the videos.

I can speak, from experience, that GarageBand and iMovie has helped my father in school announcements, etc.  Yes, this technology was very possible before, but I think it is fair to say that Apple's implementation of iLife has brought the art of recording and editing audio and video to life for...children. How powerful.

It occurs to me that the integration, ease of use, consistency of not only the products alone, but the User Interface of them makes this an enjoyable experience for all.

My only question: What's the cost? Who pays for this? Seems to me that private schools might be the first to be able to implement this because of financial constraints.  They could most easily work it into the price of tuition.  I know of many schools (including Duke University) that have given an iPod or MacBook to each of their students when they enter college in hopes that they will use them for school activities (like iTunes U).

Here comes the future my friends.

 

-B

Does The Church Have Products?

A few weeks back, I wrote this on my Facebook wall:

When Steve Jobs returned to Apple, he took the entire museum of old Apple computers and gave it to Stanford in an effort to stop looking back and start looking forward. No longer did Apple worry about what had happened but it began to focus on who it was and where it was going to go. Perhaps it is time for us in the Church to tear down our traditions and reevaluate them. Let's simplify our products and figure out what the Church is. What would it look like if every church tore down its walls and started over? It would send a message for sure.

The question posed saw more responses than I imagined. (I won't include a permalink to the conversation because Facebook's privacy policies are iffy at best and I haven't asked permission to post any one person's comments.)

The part that I choose to focus on here is: "Perhaps it is time for us in the Church to tear down our traditions and reevaluate them. Let's simplify our products and figure out what the Church is."

In order to understand this fully, you'll need to understand a few things:

1) I'm slightly obsessed with Apple Inc.'s product line.

2) I'm significantly impressed with the work that Steve Jobs has done at Apple. (and much of that respect leads to number one being a reality)

3) I get criticized quite a bit for being so Apple centric. (It's ok, courage of my own convictions)

4) I think quite a bit about the dying mainline churches and what might save them.

You'll also need to understand the history of Apple Inc. (formerly Apple Computer, Inc.) and the highs and lows that the company has been through. If you aren't that up to date, don't worry, you can get the basics here. The important part is that Steve came back and revamped much of the company to turn it into what it is today.

My question posed above resulted in several responses both on Facebook and in person(reminder: name omitted):

"Steve Jobs isn't Jesus"

"Is the church a product?"

"The Church does not have "products;" the Church is not something that can be marketed."

"I'm not sure how [John] Wesley would have felt about the church having products..."

"I'm game."

"The church absolutely is marketable if that means sharing via medium other than word of mouth although you can certainly say that inevitably has flaws also."

"Bryant, you love Apple too much."

"Rather than us forming the Church into what we think it should be, we should be asking the questions about why we haven't allowed the Church to form us."

There were more, but now you have an assortment.

In trying to understand this more fully, I did some thinking and ended up at my bookshelf. I noticed that there were a lot of books on it that had to do with the Church and in one way or another the world (and therefore, the Church's relationship to it). I took a picture of all of them.

There are lots more. Written by all kinds of people: bloggers, Pastors, missionaries, seminary professors, and Apostles.

As far as I can see it, the question of "Does The Church Have Products?" stems off of this struggle with where the Church fits into our everyday lives. In the midst of the dying Church (some stats peg the United Methodist Church to have lost 6 million in membership over the past 50 years), we question whether the Church is still "relevant" to our lives.  The body of Christ-as a whole-has responded by creating magazines to investigate this, commercials to combat this, and books (see above) to discuss this.

Naturally, churches have moved to worldly ways of getting the word out about their relevancy in order to attract new people. As a result, we have seen the rise of a few things: Contemporary worship music (no longer boring services), stylish preachers (think gel'd hair and tight jeans), new looking buildings (the warehouse look is in), and advertisements on billboards (we all know who the churches with the money are).

This is scary to many. Especially (as I am learning) to seminary students.

Because here we are learning about the history of the Church, the mistakes and progression its made, and somehow this new fangled worldly marketing is scary. Rob Bell even mentioned in his book Velvet Elvis that he was appalled when he saw a sign advertising his new church.

"The thought of the word church and the word marketing in the same sentence makes me sick."

Rob Bell argued that people had to "want" to find the church. they had no advertisements, no flyers, no promotions, no signs.

The first week they had 1000 people in attendance. (People on Amazon.com's reviews of the book argue that Bell came from another giant church as an associate and so his name was probably already known to the area and his follower base was already there.  I can't vouch for those facts because I simply don't know, but it would explain quite a bit)

The bigger issue to me is not the marketing. I agree with Bell that if we break down our evangelism into "marketing", we have missed the boat. But that doesn't mean that the Church doesn't have products.

The obvious answer to whether or not the Church has products is "Yes, it does."  For better or worse, it does. Products, as I see it, are the things that come out of the Church.  The things that the Church produces.  Perhaps we should stop and look at some of the products of the Church (as as to convince you more fully): pastors, businessmen, bad theology, good theology, morally responsible citizens, not-so-morally responsible citizens, worship music, "non-worship" music, art, advertising, love for the marginalized, hate for the marginalized, etc.

Things come out of the Church. Because the Church is a body of people. And bodies of people exist for a reason (whether or not they are aware of it). From our own nature, we exist to produce. And so, we have products.

Here's where Steve hit it on the head in his return to Apple.  Apple had too many products.  One of the famous stories centered around Apple's printer production.  He asked, "our printers suck, why are we making them?" They stopped making them. They later gave up on the Newton project because Steve said "handwriting is the slowest form of input". When something wasn't working, they gave it up.  The started again and worked on it until was good. Then, when they debuted it again, they told people about it. And, because it was worth having, people flocked to it. In a mixture of simplifying and revamping, Apple turned around from being nearly bankrupt to being the powerhouse and influence that it is today. That's how the Newton turned into the iPhone.

So the Church has products. But the products aren't what we tell people about. Or at least maybe we shouldn't. Jesus is what we tell people about. Or what we should tell people about.

Here's my proposition: Jesus isn't the Church's product.  To say that he is would be to commit heresy. But, our perception and portrayal of Jesus IS a product of the Church. And sometimes, that is messed up. So perhaps we need to examine how we are portraying both Jesus and ourselves to the world. If we can re imagine a better way to be the Church and the body of Christ, we could score big. Maybe then evangelism would be what it needs to be.  Maybe then disciples would be created instead of just church attendees. Maybe then people would fall in love with Jesus through the Church instead of falling in love with the music.

Of course the Church has products. If it didn't, it wouldn't contribute to the world. That would be a shame.

Evangelism is the key to the Church's growth.  Proper evangelism comes from discipleship. All these things take care of each other. We ought to be more aware of how progression in culture effects us and what we can glean from it in order to better ourselves. The Church is a God-ordained body that exists to spread his name and glory so that more may grow in their pursuit of Christ-like life and perfection. But it is made up of imperfect humans that try their best. Sometimes, we just have to be realistic and trust that God will work through our imperfect products.

-B

P.S. - I've had the opportunity to help start two churches now from scratch. We talk about marketing in a live or die fashion. These churches cannot exist without people knowing about them. Word of mouth is great (and the best form of spreading the news) but sometimes isn't enough. We aren't looking to be huge, we aren't looking to be a mega-church, we are looking to survive. Many who have argued against me (though admittedly not all) have not started a church from scratch. I would highly recommend that those who have not had that opportunity, need to have it. It is an important experience full of highs and lows. For those who think they know the "right path", it is a nice reality check.

Google Non-TV

How long until the networks stop online ad-based streaming because people can hook their computers up to their TV's? I'd like to see what the numbers are for people who still watch live TV as opposed to who watches via TiVo or online?

Are the networks going to destroy television? Or have they already?

Read here

-B

YouTube Sensations Meet One Another

Many people advocate that the advent of technology has hurt our society in many ways. It is fair to say that society has changed because of it, and that in the wrong hands technology can be hurtful and destructive. However, there are so many upsides to our progression as a society, I kind of feel like it is worth the fight. In example, see below. We have two groups (one PS22 and the other Greyson Michael Chance) who had talents that were discovered on YouTube. They have both been able to do things that they might not otherwise have been able to do (perform for the President or Ellen Degeneres), had they not have posted the videos of them singing.

The connection is astounding.

Watch the reactions of the choir when they realize who it is that is in their presence.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEJFOs1maNM&]

It's as if they don't realize that many of their own videos are viral (given, it may be a different set of kids, but it is still the same group with the same attention to the same name).

I keep having this feeling that this type of connection and interaction (and sharing among the world via the Internet) can do a lot for the betterment of society. It can seem scary at times, because it makes it easier to disconnect from each other rather than to connect, but in the long run it can do things for us that we couldn't have otherwise done.

Better yet, think about how much technology's presence has progressed from the days in which it began. Tech and computers no longer have the "geek" label in the ways that it did before. More and more people are being referred to as "gamers" not because they own an XBox and play Halo, but because they own an iPhone or iPod. Sure, it has changed quite a bit, but it has helped to reach far more people.

I tend to think that the use of technology has helped us become more aware of problems in the world and society and has raised new voices that might have been marginalized otherwise.

And it has helped us discover new talent.

Technology, and the analogies that stem from it, reacher a wider audience than ever before and it is growing faster and faster. How do we embrace it and not let it destroy us?

-B

They're At It Again...

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKG4B7wFJUo] I gotta admit, these are good ads. And funny too.

-B

 

You know, it occurs to me though that they are REALLY pushing this video chat over non-wifi connections thing. The iPhone has FaceTime and it works REALLY well. They don't even mention a specific app (that I could see) to video chat with someone else. The problem with those too (I know, I use most of them) is that none of them are good. Yes, FaceTime has to be over wifi, but the video is always clear, the audio loud, and the experience good.  Everything I've tried with Android capable apps...sucks.  Plain and simple.  The video cuts in and out, the audio is too quiet, it doesn't handle slow connections well at all. I think it is time for FaceTime for Android. Suck it up Apple, it's better for all of us.