Yesterday I had the unfortunate pleasure of having to use an umbrella due to a small rainstorm.  At first I proudly opened my small staph shielding me from the dangers of water hurling from above, whilst staring at the poor saps that had come ill-equipped.  Yet as I continued hurling towards my destination I noticed myself becoming increasingly wet.  By the time I had reached the sanctuary of indoors my entire shoes had been drenched, as well as the tips of my pants and my entire right arm.

With all the fancy cases that are out in the market today to protect our cell phones, notebooks, and MP3 players, why has no one taken the time to create something to well…protect US!  Imagine for a second you brought a water proof case for your notebook and suddenly you realized that over 40% of it got wet, wouldn’t you be furious and never buy that case again?  For some reason this logic does not seem to apply in the world of Umbrellas, as many of us will continue to buy the same crappy umbrellas which will instantly break again and again. More after the jump...

Just hours from now, Microsoft will officially unveil their Windows Phone 7 mobile platform. In a world saturated with iPhones, Android devices, and hundreds of thousands of apps, does Microsoft stand a chance? I guess the bigger question is, what do they hope to achieve with Windows Phone 7?

These days, people looking to buy a new Smartphone pretty much know what their options are. iPhone, if they're looking for a HUGE library of apps and don't care about the "openness" of the OS. Android (device), if they're looking for a phone that doesn't run on AT&T, and is "open" for you to download literally anything you want onto the device. Blackberry, if they're looking for a business-oriented phone. Windows Phone 7,  doesn't have a "thing" that people will go to it for, but the super-unique interface and a fresh take on social integration may do the trick.

I don't think any serious iOS or Android device user will switch to Windows Phone 7. Each of the two platform offer too much to leave behind in favor of a newborn platform. Microsoft could easily target the late adopters who haven't yet made the jump to Smartphones. This way, they can have a market of their own to grow with. We can only hope that Microsoft leaps through their infancy, and quickly become a serious contender in the Smartphone wars. More after the jump...

Earlier today, Adobe shares jumped nearly 12% on speculation that Microsoft will be acquiring them. Publications all over the internet went haywire saying how crazy this is, and that it may mean trouble for Apple. I think that's a load of bull. Technically, Apple's been doing just fine without Adobe, but there are some things that could hurt both companies.

Worse case scenario:
Microsoft + Adobe seize development of Creative Suite software, and creatives around the world are forced to use outdated software. Okay, let's wake up and smell the Americano. Adobe, even under Microsoft's evil wing will not cut Mac development, unless they're interested in losing the bigger chunk of their revenues. Creative agencies all over the world primarily run on Macs. Will they start switching to Windows? Yes, many will, but most will not.

Apple produce a fine bundle of applications known as Final Cut Studio. This will be Apple's chance to shine with the apps in their respective fields (as if it's not already). Imagine how badly Adobe's and Microsoft's reputation would suffer if they made these moves. Continue reading...

It's not perfect. I absolutely love Apple products, and I buy them because in my eyes, they're perfect for me. I was really looking forward to the iPhone 4, but the stupid antenna problem makes it not perfect. It's disappointing for a company like Apple to have overlooked something like this. To be honest, it kinda puts a dent in their reputation in my eyes.

I doubt Apple would fix this problem with their manufacturing process and offer replacements to the current iPhone 4 users. They might pull it off with the white iPhone 4, but I don't know if I'd like the color. I could really use the extended battery life of the iPhone 4, and the awesome camera, too.

It's cool that Apple is offering free cases to all iPhone 4 users, but I don't want to get one because I HAVE to! Oh well, I guess I'm gonna have to wait until the following generation iPhone 4S.

What's your reason? If you own one, why? Respond in the comments below. 🙂

After getting a sneak peak of the iPad app store, I was disappointed to see more expensive versions of existing apps on the iPhone. I am a proud owner of "Flight Control," a piloting game that costs a buck for the iPhone/iPod Touch. The "HD" version apparently will cost $5! The game better bring some great additions on top of the real estate enhancements, or $5 is just crazy.

Other companies are and will be guilty of doing this. Just as the iPad offers greater screen size and performance, so should companies offer a greater experience, if they want to charge more. A bigger screen means you can do more at the same time, but if this "more" doesn't bring anything new to the table, a bigger price tag isn't justified.

We WILL notice a general increase in app prices because more apps will be fully featured, whereas a lot of existing apps are cut down due to limited screen space. I'm cool with paying more for apps that are worth my time, and more than just a simflified solution.

The iPad's 9.7 inch screen allows for more complex apps to be designed. Everything from multi-touch gestures to content discovery and interaction has to be adapted, which translates to new and unique experiences. Apple redesigned the iPhone native apps from scratch, with a completely different user experience in mind. Check out the Guided Tours to see what I'm talking about. Some 3rd party apps are already shaping up to provide awesome experiences.

Ladies and Gentlemen, the Apple device everyone's been waiting for has finally landed with pinpoint precision. We were all expecting a bang, but most of us found the new iPad a pleasant surprise. As I predicted, Apple devoted their energy towards creating an amazing user experience, rather than a hardware phenomenon.

User Experience

It's designed to be what it is. It doesn't try or promise to do anything it's not supposed to do. This is the sole reason of why Apple's products are so successful. Would you run Photoshop on a device that's not designed to handle it? No, because you won't have a good experience. This is what Apple keeps in mind at all times - thus, why people always find things lacking in Apple products.

It's not designed to be the next revolutionary piece of hardware that will pop a piece of toast out its speaker holes, but rather to give users the experience they can't get on an a smaller and less powerful version of the same device (iPhone/iPod Touch). If you watch the iPad video on Apple.com, you will see the level of interactivity this device achieves is not really possible on a smaller screen. More after the jump...

Apple's "Come see our latest creation" event (Jan 28, 2010) is less than a week away, and rumors and soaring higher than ever. As with any other major Apple announcement (read: iPhone), rumors soar to the point where you don't know what to believe any more. The revolutionary iSlate device is supposed to change the market, as the iPhone did. Given Apple's track record of successful products, this will be one them (especially in the multi-touch department).

iPhone on Steroids

Nobody REALLY knows what Apple's hiding up their sleeve, but it most likely has to do with eReaders, portable computing beyond the Mobile Phone level, and a completely new way of consuming media.

An article from the Business Insider reported that Apple has had talks with NYT, WSJ, Conde Nast, Harper Collins and so forth about content distribution. On top of readable media, Apple's also interested in mixing video into the picture, which may be great for those on the go, provided there will be fantastic battery life. And as you may figure, Apple's definitely dabbling on the gaming side as well, teaming up with EA to show off what it can do.

Now, this is starting to sound a bit familiar, right? Yes, the iPhone. Just like how the iPhone introduced a new wave of portable computing and data consumption, Apple is aiming to do the same with the iSlate. They already have an established App Store, a fantastic base of developers, and a loyal user base. There's no better time to try and pitch a new product to those looking for the next greatest thing.

I read somewhere a long time ago that the display technology for this device was going to be revolutionary. If Apple is targeting both traditional media AND digital media consumers, they better have a screen that works superbly well for both tasks. It's one thing to introduce a fantastic new way of interaction with a device, but if you can't look at what you're doing for a long period of time, it goes to waste. Read on for more...

A few weeks ago I learned that Adobe Flash CS5 will have the functionality to create native iPhone applications. I thought to myself, "Holy cow, this will allow anyone who knows Flash to create iPhone apps!" I've always wanted to make iPhone apps but the lack of Objective-C programming skills prevented me from doing so.

If Flash CS5's iPhone application authoring does what it promises, the future of app development is in for treat. This means that anybody with ActionScript skills can make iPhone apps/games. The average user will become the "average developer" very quickly. It appears that this will erase the dividing line between design/development professionals and the average Joe.

Click here to view the Adobe Labs page for iPhone Apps.

Despite the high chance of crap-output from developer-wannabes, this will  give people an opportunity to create quality products. From what Adobe Labs has shown so far, it proves that this model works. In the meantime, I'll be boosting my ActionScript 3 skills, learning to make some awesome apps.

Feedback: Does this make you want to develop for the iPhone, or will this saturate the App Store with even more fart apps?

It's been confirmed that the latest OS X 10.6.2 build nixes support for Atom processors. This means (for now) that you won't be able to update your OS and continue running your Hackintosh Netbook. Apple's fight to keep iTunes exclusive to products whose names start with an "i" has been strong (read: palm pre).

Apple hasn't had a problem with supporting the Atom processors, but all of a sudden they're picky about it. To me, this can only mean one thing - Apple's shutting out competition. I think they're cooking something up of their own that might be a little "Netbookish." Some rumors say that they're building a device that will completely change the way we consume media on the go.

Something like this is probably since Apple has a history of reinventing existing products and concepts -- iPhone, Mac mini, Mighty Mouse, iMac, Unibody Macbooks, etc. They also have a history of being involved in media consumption with iTunes music, movies, and TV shows. Books and magazines, with an eBook reader of their own, may be a logical target. Would you be interested in a revolutionary $599 iReader?

By now, you have probably heard all you think you need to know about Twitter, and you either love it, or hate it. There are a million and one ways of approaching and using a service like Twitter. Some of the obvious ones are:

1. Staying in touch and up to date the minute with your friends
2. Following big-time celebrities like Oprah, Jimmy Fallon, Al Gore, Britney Spears, and you name 'em!
3. Keeping up with the news way faster than traditional print and TV media (ie; Iran Elections).

What I'm trying to get at is that Twitter is a lot more than what the average person thinks it is. It is not only a social networking service, but a tool for business, professional networking, resource mining, and virtually endless knowledge.

Since I am in the Graphic and Web Design field, I will be talking about its relationship with Twitter and all of its benefits. More after the jump...