Broken Record

I’ll say it again and again, but I am getting fed up with all these manufacturers all claiming that their tablet will be an iPad beater. Yet they are comparing as usual their offerings to the current model of the iPad.

They did the wise thing last year and waited for Apple to release the iPad before releasing the models that they previewed at CES. But Apple surprised them then not with just what the iPad was but in the thing that killed off most of the offerings in having a $400 version of the iPad. Everyone had been planning on the rumoured price point of between $800 - $1000. When Apple came well under that they killed off a lot of the competition who just weren’t able to compete.

The $400 iPad also forced Amazon to drop the price of the Kindle. Which was a positive move for the Kindle as sales of it have increased since. If it had remained at it’s previous price it would of died from the competition of the iPad.

Now we have RIM with their vapourware that has been delayed from the planned launch of early next year because they have technical issues with the battery life. Apparently it isn’t very good, and doesn’t compare very well with the current iPad battery life (10 hours on the wifi model). And as I have pointed out all their rhetoric has been to compare their vapourware (which no one has had hands on with, and now we know why) with the current iPad. By the time the RIM offering hits the streets iPad2 will be imminent or will have just come out.

That’s a dangerous game to play for a manufacturer to launch in the shadow of an Apple product release. Look how well that worked out for Palm with the Pre (we will over look the under powered hardware). 

Samsung tried to distinguish their tablet from the iPad rather well I thought. They made the screen smaller (7”) so it was more portable, and gave it cameras (which apparently aren’t that great). But then they go screw it all up in the pricing and letting mobile operators control it. The Tab is more expensive than the iPad and you get tied up with a two year contract!! Yes I know that UK mobile companies are now doing similar deals on the iPad, but the iPad initial cost is cheaper than that of the Tab.

I think that the wise manufacturer should stop comparing their unreleased product with the current iPad. I’d even go so far as to stop mentioning the iPad all together in relation to their product. How about just concentrating on what your tablet will do well, and why I should buy it, instead of trying to compare it to a moving target.

Why I Won’t Be Using Android Anytime Soon

Every now and again I keep thinking I’d like to dabble with a Google Android phone. I know it’s a moment of weakness for an iPhone fan boy. But I keep thinking well if it is good enough for Leo Laporte then maybe I should give it a serious look.

Now like most heavy iPhone users or fanboys I have the odd app or two installed on my iPhone. Ok LOTS of apps installed on my iPhone.

Well I know that the Google Android phones allow apps to be installed. So if I was to make the leap over to the Google-side then I would need to find versions or equivalents on Google Android.

This is where I find that the Google Android-verse is putting up a barrier to stop me making that leap.

I know that Google Android has a marketplace, it’s version of the iPhone app store in iTunes. However to search the full Android marketplace to see what is there I need a Google Android phone. The only part of the Android marketplace I can see on line is a tiny tiny best of version of the marketplace.

So where in the iPhone world if I have iTunes installed I can search the app store and have a look around, or more importantly there is the web version of the app store as well. So it is easy for me to search and find an iPhone app(s) before deciding if I want to buy an iPhone. The only way on the Android marketplace for me to see if I could make that move to an Android phone and have the same functionality is to buy the Android phone!

This to me seems a bit arse about face from the king of search. And I am not going to make a leap of faith hoping that there are versions of the apps on the new platform. I want to be up and running as quick as possible, producing the same sorts of results I am now with my iPhone if I decide to make that jump over to Google Android. Sadly Google’s not thought things over and just gets in my way of making that decision. Well they make it easy, I’m sticking with my beloved iPhone.

Apple vs Google Voice App

A lot shorter one for you to listen to today.

Hopefully a player has appeared above. If not you can download the mp4 audio file here.

N97 - Too Little Too Late?

Last week before I became ill Nokia announced to the world the output from two years of hard work by their top brains. They called that hard work the N97.

For me the N97 is too little too late.  This phone should of been announced a year ago. Now it is only one of the supposedly "iPhone killers". But I'd say it is more aimed at the Google Android platform than the iPhone considering the form factor. It certainly looks more like a polished Google Android phone than an iPhone.

Nokia claimed 15 million N95 sold since 2005 making it the best selling smartphone in the market, which sounds impressive. But when you consider that the iPhone has sold over 10 million in two years, it shows Apple are on target to capturing that title.

But lets look at why I think Nokia won't knock Apple off it's perch with the N97.

With over 10,000 apps, and millions of downloads, the Apple App Store can be only considered as a resounding success. Not bad for a phone that has only had apps for a year, and the dev environment is only on the Mac (free). Nokia or any other mobile company has not even come close to achieving these sort of sales or even number of apps for their platforms.

Nokia need firstly to somehow get developers to develop for their platform in large numbers. Which frankly I think they will find hard to do. Nokia will be the third platform of choice. Firstly developers will develop for the iPhone, then the Blackberry, and/or  for the Android. After that they may choose the N97 or possible Windows Mobile.

The funny thing is that EPOC is a stable multi tasking OS that has been capable of this touch interface for years. EPOC doesn't care the interface is just an abstracted layer for it, sitting on top of the real clever bits. Shame it has taken Nokia this long to start thinking of interfaces properly. Nokia and Symbian should be ashamed how they have let EPOC become an also ran OS for mobiles. They squandered a massive lead. Originally EPOC had Palm and Windows Mobile to compete against. Arguably it was the best of the three. Palm has died off, Windows Mobile has grown but not improved much. EPOC hasn't gone on and done great things in the meantime either. The Blackberry OS and iPhone OS have come up from nowhere and become dominant with a third contender coming fast up the inside as well in the form of Google Android.

Phone updates. This is a biggie. Apple release an update everyone who has the phone gets the update, regardless of carrier. It means that the platform developers write for is consistent across the globe. Nokia and others (happens a lot with Windows Mobile phones as well) release updates but they can be region specific, rely on the carrier to pass on (who do not always pass these updates on). Frankly who wants to develop for such a patch work platform, look at the problems developers have with PC's. They don't want that hassle with mobiles as well.

Nokia need to make their dev tools available for free, not only on the PC but on the Mac and Linux as well. IIRC the Nokia/Symbian dev kit needed Microsoft dev kits to work. Which as we know costs. Which discourages that healthy development community.

Nokia are releasing the N97 in the first half of next year. Why not now? By the time they release the N97, Apple will be announcing and making available the next improved iPhone. Which will have cut and paste, a better camera etc etc. Apple have all this ready they just don't have to release it, as there is no pressure from the competition yet. Which must scare Nokia and the others so much.

Finally Nokia need a version of the App Store that is as easy to use, integrates with the phone just as easily. Without what apps they do have will not stand a chance. The App Store makes it so easy to buy apps, and cheap as well. I suspect that Apple have a really high user buy rate that others would just love to have.

Anyway this is why I think Nokia has made it just a little too late to make the N97 a success. What do you think?

5 Free Google Tools For Webmasters

This is as much for me as for you, but I decided to summarise the current crop (hopefully haven't missed any) of free Google tools that are out there for folks running Websites/Blogs etc.

You will need a Google account to use these, but then that is free and not much of a hassle. Especially when you consider these cool tools you get access to.

• Google Search-based Keyword Tool (Beta) - Instead of me rehashing the words on Google, why not read this great posting about this new tool Google’s New Search-Based Keyword Tool Tells You What Keywords You’re Missing.
• Google's SEO Starter Guide - To use Google's own words from the page "So, the next time we get the question, "I'm new to SEO, how do I improve my site?", we can say, "Well, here's a list of best practices that we use inside Google that you might want to check out.""
• Google Webmaster Tools - Provides you with detailed reports about your pages' visibility on Google.
• Google Analytics - The one everyone will of heard of. Get stats on your site.
• Google Website Optimizer - Website testing and optimization tool.

If you come across any others let me know, and I will update this post.