The idea of the site was to lend a hand to folks that are new to the Apple scene and show how the products work within the Windows ecosystem that a lot of us already have cemented in place.  It also specializes in app reviews for new owners of “i” devices and how to make them play nicely in the Windows environment.

It’s not that narrow focused though.  I also want to cover all the breaking news about Apple products as well as offer opinion pieces about them.  App reviews are also popular.

If you think this is something you would like to try use the contact form above and drop me your information.  There is also a commission opportunity I can discuss with you.  I look forward to hearing from you!

So here are some quickly typed notes from the event along with screen shots from iPad of the live stream.  I took some shots so you could see it in the browser and the rest were done full screen.

New iOS

HDR Photos.  Takes 3 photos in this mode and applies algorithms to get the best possible photo.

iOS 4.1, Bug fixes

Game Center, compete with friends, invite to games.

Epic Games new game using Game Center. Project Sword.  3D world. Available this holiday season.

Available next week.  Free download in iTunes for touch and iPhone

Sneak Peek of 4.2 and it’s all about iPad.  Adding wireless printing.  Adds print center to the multi tasking bar.

Adds AirPlay changed from AirTunes.  Stream audio and video over Wi-Fi.

Adds folders

4.2 coming out in November, free update for ipad, touch, and iPhone

iPods

Shuffle gets buttons back. $49

iPod Nano

Now multitouch enabled, click wheel gone.  added a clip to make it wearable $149 8G, $179 16 ?

iPod Touch

#1 Portable Game Player

even thinner

Retina Display

Apple A4 Chip

3Axis Gyro

ios 4.1

Front camera FaceTime

HD video recording via rear camera

8, 32, 64

Available next week, pre order today

Ads are up next

iTunes

iTunes 10 new logo ditches the CD

Flashed the store, saw the rent tv episodes box.

Ping, a social network for music

Available immediately.

Ping also on the iTouch and iPhone.  In the store you can access it.

iTunes 10 available today

I checked for new iTunes during the feed and it wasn’t available

One more thing…

Apple TV

“Nothing is really hit in the living room yet.”

What do users want?  Movies and TV shows.

It’s 1/4 the size of the old one.

Power built in, HDMI connector 5.1 sourround, ethernet, wifi built in, N.

All rentals, no purchases. No storage management.  Streaming, no syncing.

Photo slideshows

Silent, cool and tiny

First run HD movies $4.99 when they come out on DVD.

HD TV shows was $2.99, now .99cents commercial free

ABC and Fox offering shows

Netflix, stream to apple tv.

YouTube

flickr photos

Mobile Me video and photos

stream from mac and pc, music, photos, videos

Lost the feed again.  Always restarts at the beginning.

Airplay again

stream content from ios device to apple tv

Push photos from iPhone to apple tv

Was $229, now $99

Available in 4 weeks, preorder today.

September 1st new shuffle, new nano, new ipod touch, new iTunes with Ping, iOS 4.2 with HDR photos, gamecenter, Apple TV

stream died again

Restart back to the guitar.

Favorite musical artist is?  Coldplay

or Chris Martin on piano.

He played two songs before being asked to keep going.  At the second song the Apple store came back to life although my iTunes still didn’t recognize a new version available.

Steve popped back on stage after the third song and of course my feed failed so I didn’t see the end live.  I restarted the entire feed to hear Steve proclaim that there would be an area setup for the press in order to get hands on with the new devices.  I did lose the feed a few times which was annoying but it was easy to restart.  I don’t know if it was a bandwidth, Wi-Fi, or an Apple issue.

iOS 3.2.1 Software Update for iPad

This iOS software update for iPad contains bug fixes and improvements, including the following:

• Improved Wi-Fi connectivity
• Fixed an issue that could prevent copy and paste of single-page PDF attachments in Mail
• Addressed an issue that could cause video playback to freeze
• Improved reliability of video-out when using iPad Dock Connector to VGA Adapter
• Added Bing as an option for Safari’s search field

Products compatible with this software update:
• iPad (Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + 3G)

For feature descriptions and complete instructions, see the iPad user guide at:
http://support.apple.com/manuals/

For more information about iPad, go to:
http://www.apple.com/ipad

To troubleshoot your iPad, or to view additional support information go to:
http://www.apple.com/support/ipad

Connect your iPad to the PC or Mac that you use for iTunes and click the Update button.  The process is very simple and is illustrated below.

My iPad has not experienced widespread Wi-Fi issues although it does have signal problems in some areas where a laptop will connect.  Hopefully this issue will be addressed in 3.2.1.  Check in the forums for more details and conversations about this update.  Forums

Carrier Service Coverage

The US cellphone market is driven by contracts, exclusivity periods, and subsidies. Whether we like it or not, we are at the mercy of the carrier. One of the biggest hesitations that fence wranglers have is dumping their current carrier to move to AT&T, and rightly so. The fact of the matter is that there is no one “best carrier”; ultimately, the best carrier is the one that works for you. Each carrier, whether it be CDMA or GSM based, has areas in which it may be stronger than others in both voice reception and data speeds. The new iPhone won’t do you any good if you’re constantly struggling to get a 3G signal or is dropping every other call. On the other hand, if T-Mobile is providing top-notch 3G speeds with little to no dropped calls, then you may want to consider sticking with them for now.

Of course this may be a catch-22; how do you know whether or not AT&T’s service will work for you? There are a few options:

1. Ask a friend/co-worker/family member – The easiest way to find out how satisfied users are on AT&T’s network is to ask a user. As popular as the iPhone is, you likely know someone, or know someone that knows someone that has the iPhone, or at least has AT&T as a service provider. Ask about their own experience with the carrier and be sure to ask about both voice and data. Depending on your own usage needs, you may want to ask for more details on one or the other. How often do you experience dropped calls? How many bars of reception does you phone usually indicate. Are there any dead zones you encounter? How consistent is the data connection? What are the speeds like? Does it usually operate on 3G or on EDGE? The more questions you ask the more information you’ll have to make the decision.
2. Get a GoPhone – Like other major carriers, AT&T has a prepaid, contract free service option called “GoPhone”. If you want to test out AT&T’s service, you can pick up a GoPhone for as low as $24.99 which includes a phone and $25 airtime credit, making the phone itself free (check out their packages here). You can also choose to pick up a handset on its own for as little as $7.99 and purchase an airtime card separately. Of course, you shouldn’t expect these devices to be anything more than a basic 10-key dialing phone, but it is a cheap and easy way to get some impressions on the network first hand. You won’t be able to test the data side too much, but it should give you enough to gauge speed and connectivity.
3. Take advantage of the 30-day trial period – AT&T has a 30-day period during which you can cancel your service without incurring the now $350 early termination fee. You will still have to pay for any minutes and data used during this period, but it’s a good way to test out the exact service you would have. This is a good route to take for those that are fairly certain about switching since you would be obtaining your device at the subsidized price and would not be limited to the GoPhone selection. One thing to be aware of is that although the service has a 30-day trial period, the equipment may be limited to a 14-day return period. If you go beyond this 14-day period, you would be liable for the full price of the device. Even if you do cancel within the 14-day period, you would likely have to pay a restocking fee, usually $35. Of course, you’ll want to confirm these details with your local AT&T rep or if ordering online, be sure to read the fine print as details may change or vary by region

Early Termination Fee (ETF)

As I alluded to earlier, one of the biggest, and priciest, things to consider in switching carriers is the dreaded ETF. If you’re currently under contract with another carrier, canceling your service before that contract period will likely cost you a pretty penny. Recently, Verizon Wireless raised its ETF to as much as $350. Luckily, most carriers do prorate this penalty, but depending on what month of your contract your in, the savings may not be as great as you would like. Don’t be fooled by your upgrade eligibility with your current carrier either. Although contract terms are usually for 24 months, most carrier will allow you to upgrade your handset after only 18 months; but just because you’re eligible for an upgrade doesn’t mean that you are no longer liable for the ETF if you were to cancel your service. To make sure you are completely out of contract, or to find out what your prorated fee would be, call your carrier’s customer service line to get those details. It’s always better to get confirmation from your carrier, rather than make the calculations yourself and assume they are right.

Upgrade Eligibility

Speaking of upgrade eligibility, all is not clear if you’re a current AT&T customer. Whether you have an iPhone or not, you may still not be eligible for a subsidized iPhone 4. AT&T faced extreme scrutiny for the way they handled upgrades from the original iPhone to the iPhone 3G, and still a bit more when the 3G S came to be. It wasn’t until customers wanted to upgrade to these devices after only a year that most realized what a subsidy was. This time around AT&T is trying to avoid those issues by offering upgrades up to 6 months earlier. Any customer that would have been eligible for an upgrade any time in 2010 is being allowed to upgrade to an iPhone 4 at the subsidized price. What about those that are not eligible for an upgrade until 2011? Well, you can still purchase an iPhone 4, but you will have to pay the full unsubsidized price of up to $600. On top of that, regardless of whether you get a subsidy or not, you are still forced to sign a 2-year contract with the iPhone; something that still makes no sense. If you’re willing to pay that high price tag to get your hands on the iPhone 4 earlier than you otherwise would, you could also consider purchasing an import. Various countries, including the UK and Canada, are getting the option to purchase the iPhone 4 direct from Apple, fully unlocked, with no contract requirement. Unfortunately, Apple’s Canadian and UK sites do not allow shipping to the US, but there is no lack of importers that will be more than happy to get a hold of these for you. Of course you can expect a slight premium for these unlocked devices, but if you’re being forced to pony up $600 in the states, and extra Benjamin may be worth it for you to avoid that contract; not to mention the fact that you get a fully unlocked device.

Alternatives

Yes, the iPhone is hot and all over the place; but alternatives are just as hot and have quickly closed the gap. Each major carrier has a “hot” device that is worth considering in case you’re still on the fence about jumping to AT&T.

• Verizon Wireless | Droid Incredible – Verizon can be credited for catapulting Android into the mainstream with last year’s Droid campaign. They’ve done a great job at not only marketing it, but also adding devices to the Droid line. Earlier this year they launched the Droid Incredible by HTC, so you know the build quality is amazing. Along with the great hardware you also get an 8 MP camera and Android 2.1 which includes Google Navigation. At $199 on contract, this phone is definitely worth the look. If you’re interested in HD recording, you may want to wait for confirmation of the Droid 2, which is rumored to have a 1GHz processor and support for 720p recording.
• Sprint | HTC EVO 4G – Part beauty, part beast, one of the year’s most anticipated devices hit Sprint recently, and has so far lived up to the hype. A large and beautiful 4.3″ screen combined with the integrated kick stand makes it perfect for watching video on the go. The front facing camera allows for video calls over both Wi-Fi and Sprint’s data network. If you’re in Sprint’s 4G coverage area, you should take a good look at this beautiful beast.
• T-Mobile | Nexus One – Google made a splash by kicking off the year with the first official Google Phone. The Nexus One sports an AMOLED screen along with a snappy Snapdragon processor making Android 2.1 run as smooth as butter. On top of that, the Nexus is one is fully unlocked and has no carrier branding or bloatware. What’s the big deal about that you ask? Since the Nexus One is coming directly from Google, you can expect to receive the latest updates quickly and fully loaded with all of the features. FroYo is just around the corner, and while everyone else is waiting for their update to be cooked up by the manufacturer, Nexus One owners will be enjoying it on day one.
• AT&T | iPhone 3G S – Yes, you read that right, iPhone 3G S. iOS 4 was released today and is available to all iPhone 3G and 3G S owners. There is nothing wrong with sticking with your current iPhone since you will still be getting most of the features of the iPhone 4. In fact, the omitted features may not even appeal to you. The only two features you will be missing out on are the improved camera with flash (including 720p video recording), and FaceTime video chat. Although those sound like major features, they are not features that are used or appeal to everyone. If you are of the opinion that video chat is a gimmick, and you rarely record on your phone, you can pass on the “4″. You could also use iOS 4 on your current iPhone to tied you over until you’re eligible for a subsidized upgrade. At $99, it is also a cheaper alternative while staring within the Apple ecosystem.
• Palm WebOS – If you’re looking for something that’s different, take a good look at the underrated and underestimated WebOS devices available on Verizon, Sprint, and AT&T. Both the Palm Pre and Pixi feature full physical QWERTY keyboards and true multitasking capabilities. With great price points, and a commitment from HP to continue development on the platform, WebOS is prime for expansion.
• Windows Phone 7 – I never recommend to wait for anything in the tech industry. If you wait for the next best thing, you will always be waiting; however, Windows Phone 7 is only a few months away and could prove to be a great contender. You can probably expect the usual first-gen issues, but the addition of Microsoft to the mobile platform landscape will provide a multitude of both hardware and software options for all.

Number Portability

One of the great things that many people take for granted today is number portability. There was a time when switching carriers meant losing your phone number and being forced to get a new one. Today, you can port your number from one carrier to another, avoiding the need to notify your hundreds of contacts of a new number. There are specific steps to follow to have this done right though.

1. Find Out Your Fee Liability – First and foremost, contact your current carrier to find out what fees, if any, you would incur by canceling your service. This is really just to avoid any unforeseen costs on your end. Sometimes learning that it will cost you $500+ to get out of your contract may change your mind. Other times it may just serve as preparation to pay for these fees when your final bill comes.
2. DO NOT CANCEL YOUR CURRENT SERVICE – This is extremely important. Many people have made the mistake of canceling their current service before signing up for their new service. Canceling your service will result in the loss of your number which you will not be able to recover. When you call to ask about your fees it is for information only, not to cancel or take any other action on your service.
3. Sign Up For New Service – Head to AT&T (or the service provider you select) and go through the normal sign-up process. If you are not specifically asked, be sure to mention that you want to port an existing number, and provide your current number. If you are signing up online, there will be a section specifically for number porting, though it may be called something else, like “number transfer”.
4. Wait For Your Final Bill – The new carrier will work with you previous carrier to have the number ported over. The time to have the number cut over is usually takes no more than an hour, and is often done as quickly as 10 minutes, but in some cases it can take up to eight hours. Once the number has been successfully transferred, your previous carrier will automatically cancel your service and issue your final statement, including any fees you may be liable for. Rest assured, the porting process is free, the fees would be related to a contract being terminated prematurely, or any unpaid service used. Though this should all happen automatically, be sure to follow-up with your previous carrier to confirm your service has been cancelled and that your final bill has been issued. You don’t want to risk being billed for continuing service you will not be using.
5. Enjoy – That’s it, you can continue to use your number and your friends and family will never even realize that you have switched carriers.

Know the Details

For most, moving to the iPhone 4 will likely be a straight forward process, but there are some hurdles to watch out for. The more informed and prepared you are, the easier the process will be. Tech is very personal, and it’s up to you to make the right choice for you. Hopefully, this helps clear things up for some, and helps those on the fence as well.

Still have questions? Head over to the forums and ask away!

Apple’s Pages, Numbers, and Keynote, are very pretty and functional applications with several gaping limitations.  Amongst the main limitations is they do not work fluently with MS Office documents which most of the world still uses.  Apple choose to cripple these apps in many ways as well as not provide us with full office integration which to me is a major oversight.

As this has been a major hassle for me, as well as many others, I was glad to hear of a new app that has just being released called “Quick Office Connect”.  Quick Office Connect is a very basic office application which works natively with Word documents, Excel documents, but only provides a viewer for PowerPoint files.  In terms of features, you get all the basics such as formatting, colors, fonts, etc.  You also get two other features which I found very useful.  First if works with DropBox (iDisk and others as well) natively which means you can open, edit, and save a document back to the original location.  Something that Apple apparently does not think we need to do.  Secondly, it has a real “Save As” function which allow you to open a document, edit, and save to a different file name and a different folder if you wish.  That feature alone is worth the price as I really dislike the way Apple omitted this feature in their applications for the iPad.

Basic editing functions

File management 

Summary

Overall I would say for the $9.99 price it’s a great app to have if you need to “actually” edit MS Office documents (except for PowerPoint) from your iPad.  Do not expect a full feature application but there is enough power and functionality there to satisfy most users, and it’s a great way to make changes while you are on the road without having to worry about the export and email process.

One of the first applications a new iPhone user looks for is a task management application; commonly referred to as a “To-Do” list. There are dozens of these applications currently in the App Store and I have tried many of the them both free and paid. I have finally settled on 2Do. This app is available in the App Store here.  For a task management application it’s quite powerful. It can handle simple one time tasks, recurring tasks,  and grouping of tasks into projects or checklists. Although the app is not cheap at $6.99, a “Lite” version is also available.

The Main View allows a user to view their entered tasks. It uses a tab concept called calendars to help the user view their open tasks by time period or context. Badges on each tab show the count of the items inside. Users can create new calendars or they can be created automatically when syncing to outside tools. More on syncing later. To add a new task, a user just touches the large  plus sign at the top of the page.  You also can drag and drop tasks to calendars.

Searching of tasks is provided by using the box at the top of the page. You can search by text and then save your search for later use. A real time saver for me. It creates a calendar tab based on your criteria. You can also search by date range if desired.

2Do Main View

Tasks may be sorted by using the Sorting options screen. Personally, I use the By Due Date function in order to prioritize my tasks based on when completion is needed.

2Do Sort Option

Clicking on an individual item brings up the Detail View which allows you to edit or add records.  In addition to the normal stuff, like task name and due date. 2Do gives you the ability to set actions like SMS or call. One of the neatest features is the ability to record an audio note. The app also allows the user to associate a picture from the Camera roll or to take a picture from the camera.  Tasks can be shared by Email or Tweet.

2Do Detail View

The real power of 2Do is its ability to sync with outside tools. For cloud based tools, 2Do will sync with Toodledo. Syncing is a manual process using the Sync View within the app.

There are also options to since with Outlook on Windows PCs and iCal on Macs. A small helper application is required on your PC or Mac to utilize this function. These applications are available at the 2Do web site.  Mac and Windows sync are handled via WiFi betwwen your iPhone and the Mac or PC.

2Do Sync View

Conclusion

If you are looking for a Task Management app with lots of power extras, I highly recommend 2Do.  Its well worth the $6.99 price. A bonus is that the makers of 2Do are in the process of creating a universal app for the iPad.

My iPhone 4 pre-order is “In Progress” at AT&T.  Hopefully all will turn out well and I’ll have the two iPhones on Thursday the 24th.

Stay tuned for updates and occasional impatient moments.  I’m thinking about holding some sort of ritual of purging myself from my old WinMo phone.  Still debating that.

Off to clear the calendar on the 24th!

NewtoApple

The Weather Channel Max for iPad,Accuweather.com for iPad, and Weatherbug Elite for iPad

The Weather Channel Max for iPad

TWC MAX+ starts with a very nice presentation. It must do a lookup of your current local weather and present you with a background of clear skies or storms.  On the front page you can tap to navigate to what you are most interested in.  Usually this would be the Local forecast or the weather radar.

The local weather presentation is laid out well for getting an idea of what today’s weather will be like as well as the evening weather.  It also presents the week ahead very nicely.  The bottom bar of TWC presents an ad as well as an up to date radar image and other information.  If you are interested in TWC’s tweets there is also a twitter box.

The radar imagery in TWC is on par with other apps if not above.  You are presented with many overlay choices including, clouds, temperature, rain, and snow.  Transparency is also adjustable.  TWC is a big miss when trying to “play” or loop the last 3 hours of radar images.  It’s very jumpy and you can’t get a good feel for where the rain clouds came from or where they are headed.  That was a big con in my choice for a weather app.

My biggest issue with this app is the advertising.  At random times when tapping from local to maps or any of the other presented information TWC will pop up a video advertisement.  It’s easily circumvented by tapping close but it’s a huge drawback for an otherwise nice weather app.  Sentiments in the feedback section of the app store agree.

The one spot where TWC rises to the top is the ability to see weather alerts for your area.  It’s nice to know when your area is under a severe weather alert or not.

This app is free but there is no ability to upgrade to a “no advertising” app.

Accuweather.com for iPad

Accuweather also has a free weather app.  It’s front page presentation is nice and informative.  You are immediately presented with today’s weather, evening forecast as well as the rest of the week.  A tappable spot in the lower right allows you to view radar imagery but it’s not zoomable.  It does allow you to playback recent radar images in a loop better than TWC but the map leaves a lot to be desired.

This app relies heavily on forwarding you to the accuweather.com website for more information.  Touch anywhere in the forecast and you see a pop up browser to that info.

It also presents weather warnings for the area though.  Touch the red exclamation and a popup gives you quick info about the warning.  A more info option once again takes you out of the app and into a browser.  I would much rather this information be presented in the app rather than taking the user to a browser.  In my opinion that detracts from why we use apps rather than going straight to their website in the first place.

Overall its presentation is good information wise.  It’s not the most colorful app but it gets the job done.  It has an ad at the bottom which is easily hidden by a single tap.  Speaking of ads, this is a free app although they do have a paid app for $0.99   I don’t think the ads are intrusive enough to warranty the paid app but it is nice to have the option.

Weatherbug Elite for iPad

Weatherbug differentiates itself from the previous apps in several different ways.  It gives you quick information about your area in it’s top bar and immediately presents a radar map in the bottom section of the app.  One thing that jumps out at you is the Camera section.  There is a webcam monitor at the top and with a quick tap you can swipe through area cams.  It’s a fun feature but unless one of the cams is in an area you actually know and live it’s mostly just for show.  Example:  The Titusville FL/Cape Canaveral area has a Walt Disney World webcam which is actually an hour away from the Cape.  Fun but not as handy as you may first think.

The forecast box presents the weeks forecast quickly and is tappable to gain more information.  The conditions box is a great view of what is currently happening in your area.  It’ is tappable for even more information.  I like the wind and humidity index of this look.

Radar imagery is provided by bing and is top notch.  Playback of past weather images is precise and has a loading bar so you know exactly when the images will start to loop.  The map also zooms in and out very well.  In my opinion this app has the best radar map for the three listed here.

WeatherBug also has Alerts but I was only able to find them on the front page in landscape mode.  In portrait mode you have to swipe the top bar in order to see the Alerts.  It would be nice to have some type of visible alert on the front page in portrait mode.

WeatherBug is free but only for a limited time.

Conclusions:

All these apps make it easy to add or change your location.  If you are travelling it’s easy to look at your vacation weather as well as what is going on back home.

Each app has more features than what is reviewed.  There are a multitude of different options especially with radar presentation.

Is there a winner?  In my opinion there is, but everybody is different and that’s what makes this platform so unique.  I tried VERY hard to like The Weather Channel app but the pop up ads and the absence of fluidity in radar imagery playback will earn it the little red remove “x” on my iPad.  Accuweather is Ok, but it just doesn’t compare to the other two.

Yes, there are more apps in the app store covering weather.  That will be for a future review.

WeatherBug wins the spot in my iPad.

As this is one of the few note programs I actually still use past the initial gee-whiz phase, I will go over the key features and discuss each one.

For starters, Evernote makes it painfully easy to capture information from your different devices. Although each platform is different in how you capture, all make it very easy to get information and organize it.

Capturing Data/Information

Computer – The main way to get information besides of course typing it in, is to use their built in screen/window capture utility which by itself is one of the best I have seen. When you install the program, it puts an icon in your task tray and virtually anything you see on the screen you can either capture all or part of it and save it automatically to a note. It uses full screen cross hairs so you can get a precise capture which makes it like windows snipping tool on steroids.

Main Program Screen

Example of a new note

 iPhone – The Evernote iPhone app is very unique and lets you take a quick photo snapshot, text, and a Voice note making the ultimate note taking app while in the car or walking down the street.

 iPad – The iPad app is a bit more limited in terms input as it does not have a camera but it does support voice notes and of course text.  Viewing and editing notes on the iPad is outstanding.

 Organize – Once you have captured in the information, everything is indexed and made searchable. In addition, you can add tags for better filtering, as well as create separate notebooks to better organize and display your notes. Notes can be displayed as Tags or Notebooks based on how you organize. As an added feature, you can “Encrypt” any portion of the text inside a note. For example, you could say in a note “My password for this is: 1234, and just encrypt the 1234.

 Find – Once you have inputted the note using any of the methods above, added your tags (optional) and name your note, you can search notes by keywords, titles, and tags. It even supports searching hand written text that is within a note.

Summary

This is no doubt one of the “must have” applications that works with in tandem with your iPhone, iPad, and computer flawlessly. It syncs to the cloud and all other devices at set intervals and is very powerful at searching. The service is free for up to 40 Megs a month (see chart for comparisons) and if you need more the cost is $5/month. If you want to keep information easily and find it even easier, try out Evernote.

Package Comparisons

http://www.evernote.com/about/learn_more/

Ok you have the brand new Apple MacBook, iPhone, or iPad and you want to be able to move data between all of your devices, enter DropBox. This  cloud-based file syncing service is available at www.dropbox.com. Dropbox is available for Windows, Mac, and  Linux. I have used Dropbox for over 2 years to transfer files between my Windows and Mac computers. With the introduction of the iPhone and iPad apps for Dropbox, you can now access and manage your Dropbox from your mobile devices.

Background

As described earlier, Dropbox creates a special folder on your Mac, Windows, or Linux machine.  Any files that are copied to this folder are automatically synced to the cloud. Subfolders are also supported to allow organization of your Dropbox.  There are three levels of access based on the amount of space needed. A free version with 2GB space is available and should be enough for most users.  For those needing more space you can get 50GB for $9.99/month or 100GB for $19.99/month.

Examples of Dropbox running on Mac, Windows, and the Dropbox web client are shown below:

Click to Enlarge

Dropbox for Mac

Dropbox for Windows

Dropbox web application

Dropbox for iPhone

When first starting the application, the user  is presented the option to choose if they are already a Dropbox user or not. If you already have an account, you are sent to the login screen to enter your credentials.

Dropbox initial screen

Dropbox Login

Once signed in, the user’s dropbox is displayed. Users have the ability to search their Dropbox. If a folder contains photos or images, Dropbox will display the images in a grid of pictures.  Selecting an individual photo will display the individual photo.

Dropbox comes complete with the ability to view documents by selecting individual documents including, PDF and office documents.

Clicking  the link symbol in the bottom left allows a user to email or copy links to the document. The file must be shared be in a shared folder to use this feature.

One of the best features of Dropbox on the iPhone is the ability to either take a new photo or add an existing photo by clicking the Plus key on the top of the screen. This feature is especially useful for capturing screenshots of the iPhone and then adding them to your Dropbox.

For those documents that you always want handy, you can mark them as a favorite. These documents are downloaded into the application and will be available off-line.  Note that using this feature will use up memory on you iPhone, but will allow you access to your documents at all times.

Dropbox for iPad

The big brother to the iPhone application is the iPad version of Dropbox.  It contains the same functions as the iPhone version plus a few extra. The application takes advantage of the iPad’s screen real estate to provider easier viewing of documents and photos.  You can mark documents as favorites and  send links.  One extra feature present in the iPad version  gives the ability to open a document from a list of installed applications on the Ipad. However, you can not save documents back to the Dropbox. A big shortcoming of the iPad in my book.

See the below images for examples of Dropbox on the iPad.

Conclusion

I consider Dropbox an essential utility for those us who need to work across platforms. It makes moving files between Windows and Mac quick and seamless.  With the introduction of Dropbox on the iPhone and iPad, I can now have access to my important documents while on the go.  The favorites function allows me access to documents even while offline.  The only real negative is the inability to save documents on the iPad back to your Dropbox. If Apple will allow this function in the future, Dropbox will truly  be a killer application.  So go give Dropbox a try. It’s free and you will quickly wonder why you have not been using it.

You can pre-order iPhone 4 starting June 15 and you’ll get free shipping as soon as your iPhone is available.

One little tidbit that was glossed over at today’s announcement was the release of Apple’s own case for the new iPhone.  Or should I say bumper?

Bumpers for iPhone 4

Dress up your iPhone 4 with a Bumper. Choose one of six colors — white, black, blue, green, orange, or pink — and slip it around the edge of your iPhone 4. With metal buttons for volume and power, two-tone colors, and a combination of rubber and molded plastic, Bumpers add a touch of style to any iPhone 4.

Release date is June 24th and rather than go through all the details and specs on the new iPhone I’ll turn that discussion over to the forums.

If you must have all the details right now check these links at Apple’s site.

Full Specs

Features

I recently sat down with Jose Ortiz and Sheldon Witney from the TDL Mobile Podcast and James Kendrick of jkOnTheRun to talk about the iPad.  We covered a lot of ground yet still needed a few more hours to finish what seemed like a marathon of a podcast.  In the end we started talking about apps and agreed we might need a few more shows to cover them all!  JK was very knowledgeable on “all things apps” and right after recording I headed over to jkOnTheRun to check out his addiction!

Check here for the show and a big thanks to Jose and Sheldon for inviting me to participate.

Air Video is an application for both iPhone/iPad that works extremely well for streaming directly from a local computer (stand alone or connected to your server) to your portable device. The PC/MAC is used for real-time transcoding and basically pulls content from your computer and streams it across your broadband connection. If the file is in an MP4 format, it will stream natively without the need to convert the format, although based on your network speed, still may transcode to lower the resolution. If however you have an MKV file for example, it will transcode the format real time as it streams it to you over your network or the internet. I have tested the transcoding on both a SD DVD as well as a BD (40gig uncompressed) MKV file and it all worked perfectly. The quality is based on your bandwidth but when I was connected to Wi-Fi, the quality of the HD playback on my iPad was amazing. The down side is it does not support the folder structure of DVD or Blu-Ray so you have to put your files in an MKV or other single file format in order to use them.

iPad Application

When you launch the application the first thing to come up is the last place you left off, or in this case the computer listing of which servers are available.

From here, you can add servers, select a server to watch, or adjust your global settings.

If you want to setup a new server, you can simply select “Specify Address Manually”.

Enter in the Sever Name or IP address, and click “Save”.

Once you select your sever, you are prompted with any of the shared locations that you setup on the sever side (see below for more detail on setting up shared content).

Once you select the folder of choice, your movies are listed for you to pick from.

Once you pick the movie you would like to watch, you are shown a screen shot preview. In the preview window, you are given two choices, one to “Play with Live Conversion” and the other to convert the file. For me, I typically use “Play with Live Conversion” (transcoding) as I do not want to alter the file or convert, but simply to view it. If you do convert, it will show up in the “Queue” allowing you to add additional movies to the queue and convert multiple files.

If you just want to play the file and stream it over the air, just select “Play with Live Conversion” and in 2-20 seconds depending on your computer speed and network speed, your movie will begin to play. Tapping the double arrows on the right will go into full screen mode.

Conclusion

Overall this is great application that will only get better. It does have some limitations such as degraded resolution based on network performance (to be expected), as well as the lack of support for folder structures. For what I use it for, the lack of folder structure support is a bigger concern as it forces me to create single file versions of my movies that I would not otherwise have to do. That being said, the performance is good, the app is stable, and it is fairly easy to setup. It is a great addition to you iPad if you spend allot of time on the road or if you have kids and want to keep them entertained. If you want to access a bunch of your media while you are on the road, you definitely want to look at this app.

Server Setup

The server software is a small piece of software that installs on your computer and allows you to point to the folders that you want to stream. You can setup multiple folders including pointing to your home server or NAS device. If you are religious about your playlists, you can also attach to an iTunes playlist that you have created.

Server settings for determining the parameters of the programs behavior.

Setup screen for internet access. This requires the PIN number to be typed in your iPad application when you set it up for that particular server and it allows you to test your connection to make sure that all is working well.

Click here for more information on Air Video in the iTunes App Store

In today’s connected environment, there are many times we need to get to information or perform a task when we are on the road.  Enter LogMeIn.  LogMeIn is a free service that provides connectivity to your PC/MAC through another computer (MAC/Windows), and recently through the use of your iPhone/iPad.  The app is called LogMeIn Ignition and is available from iTunes for $29.99.  The service is free and when used from a laptop or Desktop, however if you want to control it from you iPad/iPhone you have a onetime purchase for the application.

Before you can use the application, you of course have to setup an account online at www.logmein.com.  Once you created the account, you have to install a small application on your PC/MAC for the systems you want to control.  Once you are completed and you launch the application from your iPad (iPhone screen shots at the bottom), you are greeted with this login screen.

After you login, you will see a list of the computers that are available for your access (based on how many you installed the application on).  Touch the one you want to access.

After a few seconds you are rewarded with your computer desktop.  The one thing that stands out about this app is the mouse movement which is unlike any other I have run into.  The mouse cursor stays to the side of your finger making it very easy to control it precisely, as well as being able to click on even the smallest of items enabling you to navigate through menus, double click on icons, or move things around on the screen.

At the bottom of the screen, you have several options.

The first option brings up the keyboard at anytime for data entry.

The second option brings a popup that allows you to execute an “ALT-Tab” and “ALT-Control-Delete if you are on a PC.

The next is to change the mouse control to right or left click and next to that is a Zoom function (you can of course use the multi-touch, and pinch).  To the right of the Zoom key, is the settings button which gives many different configurable options.

And lastly, the end session button which takes you back to your listing of available computers.

Impressions

I often have the need to access my computer at home for various things and for a long time it was impractical unless I had my laptop with local Wi-Fi.  With the LogMeIn application for the iPad, I can access my systems from anywhere using either Wi-Fi or 3G. Naturally the 3G is a bit less responsive than Wi-Fi, but overall, the 3G performance will surprise you which says allot about how efficient the app is.  I have been using it since the iPhone days, but the real excitement comes from the iPad version as it is much easier to navigate and much more responsive.  The iPhone versions relies on moving the screen with a fixed mouse, but the iPad version feels much more natural as you are moving the mouse on a fixed screen.  I really recommend this app for anyone who needs to access one or more computers regularly as the app has proved to be very reliable, responsive, and is extremely easy to setup and get running.

iPhone Screenshots