With the arrival of the $114 Kindle with Special Offers last week, Amazon.com has created an interesting dilemma for buyers.
The company has duplicated its Wi-Fi-only e-reader from a specs and hardware standpoint but offers you a $25 savings if you're willing to contend with some ads. Or you can choose to see it from a different perspective: to keep your Kindle ad-free, you must pay an extra $25.
Now some of you are probably saying: what's $25? Not much really. Here in New York, it's a couple of drinks at a bar (and sometimes $25 … Read more
The other day I noticed that one of our tech editors here, Joe Kaminski, had a light blue Smart Cover on his iPad 2. Now Joe prides himself on being kind of a macho guy--some of you might know him from the Digital City podcast--so a little ribbing was in order.
I said, "Dude, why does a guy like you have baby-blue iPad cover?"
"I know, I know," he said. "It's kind of lame, but it's the best color they had in the cheaper version. What, I'm gonna get that DayGlo … Read more
With all the talk of 3D, plasma vs. LCD, LED TV backlighting schemes, 240Hz vs. 120Hz, and all other sorts highfalutin technical specs, there's one small but potentially important TV feature that doesn't get a whole lot of play: The QAM tuner.
Just what is a QAM tuner? Well, according to Wikipedia, QAM stands for "quadrature amplitude modulation, the format by which digital cable channels are encoded and transmitted via cable television providers."
More specifically, it allows you to pull in certain digital cable channels without the use of a set-top box. Or, as the Wikipedia … Read more
Kindle and Nook users share one thing in common: a number of them are rather upset about high e-book prices and are voting their displeasure in their user reviews.
Case in point is Michael Connelly's new legal thriller, "The Fifth Witness," which is getting hammered in both the Kindle and Nookbook stores despite strong reviews from "real" reviewers. "The Fifth Witness" costs $14.99 while the hardcover currently runs $14.28 on Amazon and $14.73 on BarnesandNoble.com. Sure, $15 is a lot to spend on an e-book but the even bigger … Read more
At some point you've probably heard about AirPlay, a wireless streaming feature found on your iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, or any Mac or Windows PC running iTunes. While some features had been available for years under the AirTunes moniker, Apple rolled out the AirPlay name and an expanded feature list in the fall of 2010. With the arrival of iOS 4.3, AirPlay has been further enhanced, and--perhaps most significantly--third-party consumer electronics manufacturers are adding it to their products.
Apple sums up the technology like this on its regularly updated "Using AirPlay" page, which has some troubleshooting tips.
With AirPlay, you can wirelessly stream videos, music, and photos from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to Apple TV (2nd generation) and stream music to AirPlay speakers or receivers, including AirPort Express. You can also wirelessly stream videos and music from your computer to Apple TV (2nd generation) and stream music to AirPlay speakers or receivers, including AirPort Express.
That pretty much tells you what it's all about, but here's a closer look at what you need to know about AirPlay and some tips for getting the most out of it.
Only a limited number of products are currently AirPlay-compatible: Right now, only a handful of products offer AirPlay compatibility (see slideshow, below) and they tend to be fairly expensive. The exception is the Apple TV, which only costs $99, and Apple's AirPort Express (also $99 list). The majority of early AirPlay products are speaker systems, plus a few AV receivers that offer built-in AirPlay support.
Not too long ago I wrote a post about the iPad 2 as an e-reader. Recently, I read through some of the comments and noticed one that caught my attention.
"I refuse to buy books from Apple that can only be read on Apple devices," declared a CNET reader who goes by the handle GSOgymrat.
I pulled that quote out from a longer comment (see full version here), but I thought it was pretty telling. One of the big things that Amazon and Barnes & Noble have been playing up is the fact that their apps--and your digital … Read more
Let's get something out of the way right off the bat. I have an iPad. The original. I use it as an e-reader. I like it as an e-reader. I consider it a very good e-reader. But it's not perfect.
Like a lot of other people, after the lines died down last Friday, iPad 2 launch day, I took a trip to my local Apple store to mingle with the crowds and handle the object that has been getting so much attention. My mission, however, was a little more focused than some people's. Sure, I took the Web browser for a spin and tried to get a feel for how much zippier the thing might be. But I largely ignored the built-in front and back cameras and other new features such as the Garage Band app because plenty has already been written about that stuff.
What I was most curious about was how the iPad 2 performed as an e-reader and whether Apple had done anything to the screen to make the reading experience better. … Read more
I won't name names, but we have an editor here in the office, who, every time a new Apple product comes out, says he isn't going to get it. He had the iPhone 3GS and said he was going to wait for the iPhone 5 and not get the iPhone 4. Two weeks later, he had the iPhone 4 and had given his 3GS to his wife.
I said, "Dude, where's your discipline?"
"I know, I know," he replied sheepishly. "But I wanted it. I couldn't resist."
He's got an iPad, the original. I know he's going to get an iPad 2, even though he says he isn't. How do I know? Because the moment Steve Jobs got up on stage and showed his first slide, he said, "Gee, that looks pretty nice." He had him at hello.
The iPad 2 didn't look any different from what we expected it to look like--and it didn't look all that different from the original iPad. But suddenly there on stage in the flesh it had taken on a new, irresistible sheen. Not the Charlie kind of Sheen. Just the Apple kind. … Read more
Not long ago I did a story about how e-book piracy was accelerating and that publishers should be concerned. But while piracy is certainly an issue, there's something else lurking out there that may be a bigger problem: e-book price erosion. Or put another way, the blogification of the book industry.
Now, I know what you're saying: that's great news. These publishers have been gouging us with ridiculous pricing for digital files that cost next to nothing to produce (in terms of material costs) and finally we're starting to see lots of deals out there. But … Read more
We've all known more or less what was coming for a while. The iPad 2 was going to get slimmer and lighter, have a faster processor and better graphic engine, as well as sport cameras in the front and back--oh, and the already impressive battery life would be about the same. We also knew that if past Apple product upgrades were any indication, the new, improved iPad was going to be the same price as its predecessor. And it is, with the Wi-Fi-only version of the iPad 2 (16GB) starting at $499.
What's the #1 music streaming-app for iOS? Who wins in an iPhone v. S4 faceoff? We've got it covered with iPhone news, rumors, app recommendations, and more.
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