Take Your Tablets
- Image by clintonjeff via Flickr
For some months now the Apple iPad has reigned supreme as the king of the tablet computers. This could all be about to change with a plethora of new contenders about to hit the market in time for Christmas.
First off the line was the Telstra T-Touch Tab – an entry-level offering being sold as a Pre-Paid device for only $299 with 3Gb of data to get you going. Optus have since announced their own inexpensive tablet launching mid-December for a similar price.
Also recently made available – so far with Vodafone and Optus and soon with Telstra is the higher end Samsung Galaxy Tab dubbed as the first real contender to the Apple iPad.
So lets take a look at both of these devices and see if they actually measure up.
The Telstra T-Touch Tab is an inexpensive device at $299 – almost competing price wise with some of the knock-off tablets available on eBay. The good news is that it come with Android 2.1 which is a relatively recent version of the operating system which means that it will run most of the software available from the Android Marketplace. The official marketplace is a nice inclusion which is by no means standard on earlier devices or cheap copies.
Hardware wise the 7 inch T-Touch feels like decent enough quality. It is solidly built with a metal backplate and built-in kickstand. The device comes with 2Gb storage – but only a couple of hundred meg’s onboard for apps which is poor. Devices below Android 2.2 Froyo can only run apps from onboard memory – so lets hope that a software update is forthcoming soon! The device must be charged from a provided power cable/adaptor – there is no capacity to charge from USB and at the time of writing – which is a good few weeks after launch – there are still no accessories available such as a case or car charger.
As a mobile device the T-Touch is currently lacking. With reasonable usage you can get two or three hours out of the battery. Fire up Mobile Foxtel and you are down to maybe an hour and a half. On a trip from Baulkham Hills to Dural and back (which is not that far!) it died before we got home. Hopefully once a car charger becomes available it will be of more use.
Another downside is the screen – which is resistive touch. This is the older type of touch screen which responds well to a stylus (included) or if using fingers requires quite a bit more pressure. Being used to an iPhone and iPad I found this quite frustrating – although I did get used to it after a while. It is also a funny shape being 16:9 widescreen format – this makes it too long and thin to practically use in portrait orientation.
In summary – there is a lot lacking from the T-Touch Tab – but then you get what you pay for. If you are keen to have a play with Android and don’t wish to spend much money it is a good way in – and perhaps once a few accessories are available things will improve.
Moving on lets see what the Samsung Galaxy Tab has to offer.
This is quite a different beast. It is also a 7 inch tablet – but nearer to a 4:3 form factor. In fact it is a similar size to a paperback book. The quality of build of this device is exceptional – it feels like a solid slab of plastic. The screen is made from Corning Gorillaglass and as such is incredibly strong. One online video shows someone taking potshots at the screen with a BB gun – they must be mad but the screen was undamaged!
The clarity and brightness of the Tab screen is beautiful and, in fact, the pixel density even exceeds the iPad – and it shows.
This time there is plenty of room for memory – with 16Gb onboard and 2Gb dedicated for apps. The microSD card slot can take a 32Gb card and because the Tab runs Android 2.2 Froyo applications can be moved off to the card. One of the other great benefits of Froyo is that it can make the device into a portable wireless access point which can share the data connection with up to 5 devices. This function even offers WPA2 encryption which is the current state of the art security for WiFi!
Battery is much better that the T-Touch – lasting 5 to 6 hours on average. Again though, Samsung have opted for a proprietary connector and charger. When plugged in to USB the device will hold its charge – but will not charge.
In Australia the Galaxy Tab comes with Navigon navigation software free, as well as a 2 month trial of The Australian newspaper. Need for Speed Shift is promised as a free download – but there is no sign as yet.
From a software standpoint Android on this device is reasonable, but it does crash far too regularly for my liking and is not as stable or refined as iOS.
I do like the size though – and I disagree with Steve Jobs comments that 7 inch devices are useless. Each has their place. The iPad is much better for actually getting some work done – the Galaxy keyboard is just too small to be practical. The Galaxy can, however, easily be chucked in a small bag for a day out – something which is hard to do with an iPad.
So to finish up – if I had to make a decision I would say stick with iOS for now. Android is still rough around the edges and frankly the quality of Android apps is not as good as those found in the iOS app store. If you are determined to avoid the Apple ‘walled-garden’ then I would recommend spending some more dollars and opting for the Galaxy Tab.
As always I recommend Telstra NextG for coverage – especially now that their prices have become more affordable.
Related articles
- “Verizon Samsung Galaxy Tab Video Review” and related posts (phonesreview.co.uk)
- “Samsung Galaxy Tab first impressions” and related posts (sampletheweb.com)
- “Review: Samsung Galaxy Tab Android Tablet” and related posts (vr-zone.com)
- Telstra unveils Android tablet (android-tablet.org)
- Samsung Sells 600,000 Galaxy Tab Devices At Launch [TNW Mobile] (thenextweb.com)
eReading and the Kindle 3
- Image by 3water via Flickr
As an avid reader and a gadget fan I have a long term interest in ebooks. My first ebooks came from the ebookstore peanutpress.com and were read on the Philips Nino PDA in terrible grayscale! Peanutpress.com is now ereader.com and has been bought by Barnes and Noble. I still have an extensive library of over 100 novels with them and software readers are available for the iPhone and iPad as well as several other devices.
An alternative to peanutpress.com in the early years of the noughties was mobipocket.com. I tended to avoid mobipocket because they were more strict with overseas licensing and frankly, more expensive. Mobipocket were eventually bought out by Amazon and a modified form of their DRM (Digital Rights Management) file format was used for the Amazon Kindle.
The Amazon Kindle which launched in November 2007 sold out its initial production run in two and a half hours! It was not the first ebook reader based on e-ink technology – Sony launched its first model in 2006 – but the Kindle soon came to dominate the market.
All Kindle devices have been characterised by ease of use and free access to Amazon’s Whispernet 3G data service. This allows for the bookstore to be browsed and for books to be purchased and downloaded anywhere a mobile signal could be had. In late 2009 the second generation Kindle and Whispernet were made available Internationally. Global book licensing issues remain annoying – but can be circumvented fairly easily if you so choose. Regardless – an extensive library is available.
In hindsight 2010 may be the year that marks the beginning of the end for the printed novel. I don’t think books will be going anywhere in a hurry – there remains an emotional experience in the opening of a nicely presented book – but for “pulp fiction” and perhaps textbooks, digital is the way to go
Amazon have really opened up the Kindle platform this year with software available for iPhone, iPad, Android, Blackberry, Mac and PC as well as new models of their Kindle and Kindle DX readers. The new models have more memory, WiFi (plus or minus 3G) and a fabulous new screen. This new screen boasts a 50% improvement in the contrast ratio and it really shows – it is much better to read even in lower light. Amazon also set a nifty leather case to go with the Kindle which has a built in LED reading light – powered from the Kindle itself
Experience wise, I find myself using the Kindle for novels. It lends itself well to linear reading and is easier on the eye. Evidence also suggests that putting a backlit screen in front of your face at night interferes with sleep. For textbooks and manuals – or anything with pictures – I use the Kindle app on the iPad. The colour and increased screen size make it more usable. Im still not 100% sold on e-textbooks – it is nice to have the real thing in front of you – but the cost savings can be substantial.
In summary – if you are investigating ebook readers the Kindle 3 seems to be the way to go. They have come down in cost considerably, are high quality and have a great catalogue of content. As a bonus, a plethora of companion software allows you to consume your content on other devices you may own – and Whispersync keeps your bookmarks consistent across all of them.
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iPad – From An Apps Perspective
- Image via Wikipedia
I have been struggling for some time to write a meaningful article about the iPad. When it comes to the device itself there has been so much press that little remains to be said. Is it, as Steve Jobs proclaims, ‘Wonderful and Magical’? I think so. Whilst there are shortcomings, such as lack of Flash, I have not really noticed this as an issue in real terms. That said I would REALLY like to be able to watch ABC iView or any of the other TV Catch-Up services on it!
It crossed my mind that a good approach to writing an article would be to relate my experience of taking it with me on a holiday to the USA and how it would manage as a laptop substitute. I should clarify that I did have to bring a laptop for work – but aside from using it to download photo’s onto, it did not see the light of day. I would not have even needed this if it had not been for the iPad’s camera connection kit being sold out months in advance!
Connectivity wise I have the WiFi only iPad. As I already had a pocket WiFi hotspot for all my other gadgets, it seemed pointless to pay extra for the iPad and pay monthly for another data plan. In the US i was reliant on free WiFi which I was able to access from McDonalds and hotel reception areas. Since my trip Starbucks offers free and easy WiFi across the US and Canada.
I was concerned before departure that the battery, while good, would not make it across the Pacific to San Francisco. I needn’t have worried. Most of my use was reading books (Kindle App), magazines (Zinio) and various other documents (Goodreader) and listening to some music and podcasts. On arrival I still had about 50% battery left. On the way back the story was much the same except that I also watched a movie on the iPad.
In the US I had no trouble keeping up with my email. The Mail app is very nice and typing is not a bother in small doses. I have the iPad office apps (Pages, Numbers and Keynote) and they work well for dealing with attachments. A variety of news apps kept me informed (Bloomberg, ABC and Early Edition). Using PressReader I was even able to read my Sydney Morning Herald daily. The native ‘The Australian’ app is not bad
- but still needs polish. I was even able to listen to Australian radio stations using WunderRadio.
If I needed access to any of my work documents they were all safely stored online and accessible from Dropbox. Notes in Evernote. If necessary I could access the work server via remote desktop and work on it as if I was there by using iTap RDP.
As a games platform the iPad excels and Nintendo/Sony would have to be worried, especially when you consider a top end game on the iPad is less that $15 on average. On the games front Plants vs Zombies will keep you busy for hours…
The value of the iOS came home to me after 3 days in Yosemite with no connectivity (Yes – I did suffer withdrawal!). We ate at a redneck diner just outside the park – which funnily enough offered WiFi). I had my iPhone with me, was able to check my email and fix a minor crisis in Australia.
Until next month…
Android – The Alternative Phone OS
- Image via Wikipedia
I have been playing with the iPad for a couple of weeks now and will have lots to say about it in next months article – hopefully as the device is released here. Suffice to say it is all I had hoped for and more!
One thing I did find was that the iPhone started to seem a little wanting – it became an iPad Nano and it has never seemed to me very good as just a phone. It was a good opportunity to test the grass on the other side of the fence and try a phone based on Google’s Android operating system.
Not being sure that I would stray to far from my familiar Apple I wasn’t willing to spend too much and ended up buying an HTC Tattoo and am surprised to say that I quite like it.
It is quite compact in comparison to the iPhone and has a cheaper resistive rather than capacitive touch screen. This is noticeable in slower touch response – but ultimately you can plonk down twice the dollars and walk away with an HTC Desire with all the bells and whistles if you so choose.
Across all of these devices though the operating system is the same – Google’s Android with a “pretty” layer over the top called HTC Sense. While it is nowhere near as polished as iPhone OS there is plenty to like – and fiddle with if you are a bit of a geek.
One fine feature is the ability to put information widgets across multiple home screens. Thus it becomes a simple swipe to check Twitter and Facebook, or access other application shortcuts. Multitasking is functional and I had not realised how much I missed it on the iPhone.
One of the core features of Android is its ability to integrate and sync social networks very well. After entering my Gmail credentials I suddenly found that my Calendar and Address Book were populated. Once logged into Facebook its started to suggest linking Facebook friends with Address Book entries. Now in the Address Book I can see Facebook status updates!
So there are lots of toys to play with in Android. Im not yet convinced they add greatly to the experience – but so far Im having fun and that is what tech should be about!
Dropbox
- Image via CrunchBase
In the past we have looked at SugarSync as a tool for online backup and file.
Lately though I have made a switch to another service called Dropbox. Whilst it is similar, there are many features of Dropbox that make it more useful for offsite backup and collaboration.
Setting up Dropbox is pretty easy. Sign up for an account – free for a 2Gb starter plan – and then download and install the required software. The software is available for Windows, Mac, Linux and even iPhone – so there are no limitations by platform.
Once installed you will have a Dropbox folder and anything saved into this folder will be automatically uploaded and saved into your online, secure, space. The way I set this up was to move my entire documents folder into the Dropbox. It took a bit of fiddling to get everything pointing to the right place – but once done all of my work documents are transparently saved online.
If you have several machines you can install Dropbox on all of them and your files will be kept magically in sync. It is worth noting that somehow the software is clever enough to only sync the parts of the file that changes – reducing file transfer times and data usage. Also – it knows if the computers are on the same network and sends the files direct, rather than up to the Internet site and back down again.
There are a couple of elements to file sharing. First, if you have a large file you need to send as a one-off you can drop it into your Public folder and grab a download link which can be easily emailed. Secondly – and this is the exciting bit! If you are collaborating with a colleague you can share to them a whole folder of files – although to do this you must both be Dropbox members. The folder will be available locally on both computers and any changes made by either party are automatically synchronized to the other user.
If you make a mistake the default Dropbox plans come with 30 days of version control – ie every version created by any small change is kept for 30 days. There is an option to extend this out to unlimited.
In terms of pricing – for many users 2Gb will be enough and is free. The smallest paid account is 50Gb and comes in at US$99 per year. The option to add unlimited versioning is called ‘Pack-Rat’ and is an extra US$39.95 a year. In summary this is a very good service offering peace of mind and easy collaboration.
With luck next month will see an iPad for review!
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Aliph Jawbone Icon Bluetooth Headset
- Image by Richard Clement via Flickr
Thanks to the NSW State Government I spend a minimum of two hours in the car a day on the M2 – and paying nearly $20 a day for the privilege. This is a good time for me to catch up with interstate work colleagues or friends and family on the phone.
The inadequacy of bluetooth hands-free systems became apparent to me as my wife became more involved with the school run and I found we were trying to communicate when we were both in a car. It became a real struggle to decipher the muffled, mumbling noise occasionally pierced by the sound of a screaming infant. I thought that there had to be a better solution.
A colleague had recommended me some time ago to a brand of bluetooth earpiece called Jawbone made by a company called Aliph. Based on technology developed for the military, these devices have a small sensor which sits on you cheek and picks up the sound by vibrations through your face. This is then compared with the sound coming through the microphone and by some clever processing virtually all ambient noise is removed. This is remarkably effective – I was sitting next to my young daughter with a nebuliser running and the person at the other end of the phone was completely unaware that the machine was on.
The Icon is Aliph’s latest Jawbone model and as of writing is unavailable in Australia – other than through eBay. There are 6 variations of colour and style – 3 aimed towards men and 3 more jewelery like for the ladies. Another interesting feature of the Icon is that it talks to you in a style that matches the phone variation. For example the Bombshell is a crumpled gold model with a sultry, sexy voice. The voices will tell you when the headset connects, how much battery life remains and the number of the person calling you. New voices can be uploaded to the headset by connecting it to your Mac or PC.
Another interesting feature is ‘apps’. Well, this is what Aliph are calling them but it is a bit of a stretch. Essentially it means that the single button can be programmed to call a preset number for a service – but you cannot set it to a number of your choice which seems silly. Lets hope that this becomes more useful in the future.
For me a big plus was that when connected to an iPhone there is a battery meter for the headset next to the iPhone battery meter. Apparently this was a function available to the original Apple bluetooth headset which was not sold in Australia.
In summary the sound quality of this headset leaves everything else I have tried in the dust. I bought one for my wife as well and we are able to have a comfortable conversation in the car. There is no manual volume control on the device which I found strange at first – volume is adjusted depending on ambient noise – but I have not had a problem. Availability is difficult at this stage – but I’m sure they will be on sale here soon.
Kodak Zx1 Pocket Video Camera
- Image by Richard Clement via Flickr
The pocket video camera market emerged recently in Australia with the introduction (finally!!) of the Flip range of camcorders. Available in standard and high definition these camera’s strike me as being quite high priced for offering video of a quality found in a decent still camera. What is worse, none of the pocket video camera’s seem to offer any sort of image stabilisation meaning that you have to be VERY careful with your shots.
Being the contrary sort I decided to try a different option and go with the Kodak Zx1. This camera offers the same sort of functionality as an HD Flip – shooting VGA and 720p High Definition. Hardware wise the camera is ruggedised with rubber flap protected ports. One of the key differences is that the Kodak runs on standard AA’s and an SD card. This offers a great degree of flexibility and means that if you run of of juice in the provided rechargeables you can nip into any corner store and you are soon good to go again. The Flip range have built in USB plugs so the whole camera plugs into your computer – with the Kodak you can use a separate cable or, because it uses SD cards and not internal memory, remove the card and put it into the SD reader found on most moderns PC’s. The last key hardware feature with the Kodak is a built in mini-HDMI port and a cable is provided to connect the camera straight to your TV. This is quite a nice bonus from Kodak as many of these cables start at around $30!
Video quality is actually surprisingly good with excellent colour saturation in decent light. The caveat there is – decent light. The lens is little bigger than that on a camera phone and so in low light the video soon becomes quite grainy and almost unusable. The video files are saved as Quicktime .mov format and can be used directly in iMovie and many other video editing applications.
Normal price is around the AU$250 mark – although I picked mine up from catchoftheday.com.au for $120. An example of the video is below:
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Pogo Sketch
- Image by Richard Clement via Flickr
The Pogo Sketch is a stylus designed to work with todays capacitive touch screen devices. The tip (described well by Leo Laporte as a ‘puffball’) is a spongy material that mimics the action of the finger tips on the screen. It is very effective when gloves – such as surgical gloves – have to be worn so the touch interface would not otherwise work.
The Pogo Sketch also works well with the Touch Trackpad of the latest generation MacBook and MacBook Pro computers, In fact the company that makes the stylus, Ten One Design, also make a piece of software called Autograph which allows you to sign documents on your Mac.
Similar to Autograph is the iPhone application Zosh. You can email PDF documents to yourself at your Zosh account (account is free, app is AU$3.99) which can then be downloaded to your iPhone, signed and emailed on. If you have been keeping a fax machine just to send on signed documents you can finally lay it to rest.
In summary, whilst you might not need the Pogo Sketch on every occasion it is handy when working in a clinical environment – or to help sign electronica documents using Zosh service.
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Amazon Kindle In Australia
- Image via Wikipedia
When I heard that the Amazon Kindle was going on International sale I just knew I was about to part with a decent chunk of change! Those of you that follow Dr Gadget will remember that around 12 months ago I reviewed the BeBook – a more open source device that has served me fairly well in the interim. Updates for the BeBook slowed down considerably in the months since – and the last major upgrade moved the device away from the Mobipocket format to the more Open Source ePub format. Given that by this point I had purchased quite a few Mobipocket books I was not best pleased by this change – although I can see the rationale for the future given that Mobipocket is owned by Amazon.
Moving on to the Kindle – whilst still expensive it is less so than the BeBook. With shipping and a leather case it arrived in Australia just shy of $350 – considerably less than the $499 BeBook. Quality wise it certainly has a better finish. Charging is accomplished via a USB cable that comes with the device. Unfortunately it only seems to work properly when plugged into a computer – I have tried it with several USB power adaptors and none seem to work. Once charged the battery is good for about 4 days with wireless switched on – or a couple of weeks with wireless off.
When it comes to reading books the Kindle really shines. Amazon’s stated aim was to make the device ‘disappear’ and allow the reading experience to come to the fore. This is certainly the case. The page turn buttons are large and perfectly placed and the page turn process is much faster than the BeBook. The first book I read on the Kindle was the new Dan Brown – The Lost Symbol and as promised the use of an ereader did fade into the background allowing me to engage fully with the story.
One of the key features of the Kindle is access to the Amazon Whispernet. Basically the device comes with built in 3G networking which is available in over 100 countries at no cost to the user. This allows browsing and buying books from the Amazon Kindle bookstore – plus the delivery of newspapers and magazines. At the moment the range of books and periodicals available to Australian subscribers is limited by International copyright agreements – but there are ways to access the full range of books if you are crafty enough! The absence of Australian newspapers is disappointing and is apparently due to ongoing negotiations with Australian publishers.
There are additional costs when buying books and magazines and having them delivered via Whispernet. For books you will pay a US$1.99 premium but this can be avoided by purchasing via computer and downloading to Kindle via the supplied USB cable. That said, even with Whispernet delivery a new release is typically US$11.99 – far less than bookshop prices. As far as I can tell magazines and newspapers can only be delivered via Whispernet at a cost of US1.99 per issue or a flat rate of US$4.99 per week. There is a basic web browser built into the Kindle which is only supposed to provide access to Wikipedia – but my Kindle does not seem to have these restrictions so I can’t complain!
Formats wise the native Kindle format is AZW although it can also read text files and Mobipocket files that do not have DRM (Digital Rights Management). For other files types there is a clever workaround. Each Kindle has its own email address to which files – such as Office documents or PDF files – can be mailed. They will be converted and sent to the device for US0.99c per megabyte. To avoid the charge you are given a second email address whereby documents are converted and sent back to you as Kindle books to load up via the USB cable.
In conclusion the Kindle is a fabulous device that will only improve as the content legitimately available to Australians increases.
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