iPad By Davis: “iPad and alternative tablet gifts: 2012 holiday guide” plus 6 more |
- iPad and alternative tablet gifts: 2012 holiday guide
- How to browse full screen on the iPhone using Safari
- Samsung to get a look at Apple's settlement with HTC
- Readdle having huge Black Friday sale on iPhone and iPad apps
- Slope: Elegant ‘No Hands’ iPad Stand on Kickstarter
- Happy Thanksgiving
- Siri can control Philips Hue smart lighting with a little bit of help from SiriProxy
| iPad and alternative tablet gifts: 2012 holiday guide Posted: 22 Nov 2012 06:12 PM PST
The definitive guide to getting the perfect tablet gift for Black Friday and the holidays!If you're looking at getting someone a tablet this year, chances are you're looking to get them an iPad. For most people, most of the time, the iPad remains the best combination of technology, experience, and content on the market. But which iPad should you get, the latest, greatest iPad 4 or the thinner, lighter, iPad mini? Should you consider an iPod touch instead? And what about alternatives? I Apple isn't the right answer, should you look at the Nexus 7 or Nexus 10, or an Amazon Kindle Fire HD, or a Microsoft Surface instead? Lets break it down. iPad
If you need a tablet powerful enough to get things done, get an iPad 4The iPad is the first, successful, mainstream tablet. If you're considering getting a tablet for yourself or as a gift, this is where to to start. Pros: High density screen. 720p front camera, 1080p rear camera. 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB options. Available with black or white front plates. Plays audio and video, reads ebooks. Runs iOS, all App Store apps, including hundreds of thousands of tablet-specific iPad apps. Weighs 652 grams. Starts at $499. Cellular/LTE available. Cons: Heavier than iPad mini, not as powerful as a full-on laptop. Bottom line: If you want something more accessible, enjoyable, and portable than a laptop, but still want a big screen and plenty of power to get things done, get an iPad 4. More info: iPad 4 review & feature guide Note: If you don't care about the latest and the greatest, you can grab the 2010/2011 iPad 2 with a worse screen, no LTE, and really bad cameras, and save $100. iPad mini
If you need a companion tablet more than a productivity machine, you want an iPad miniThe iPad mini is just like the full-sized iPad, only a little smaller and a lot lighter. It's a great alternative for people for whom the big iPad would be perfect... if only it wasn't so big. Pros: 1080p rear camera, 720p front camera. 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB options. Available in slate (black) or silver (white). Plays audio and video, reads ebooks. Runs iOS, all App Store apps, including hundreds of thousands of tablet-specific iPad apps. Fits in purses, large jacket pockets. Weighs 308 grams. Starts at $329. Cellular/LTE available. Cons: No high density Retina display, less powerful than iPad 4. Bottom line: If you want a tablet but already have an ultralight laptop (like the MacBook Air) to lug around, or the full-size iPad is just too big and heavy, save some size and weight and get the iPad mini. More info: iPad mini review & feature guide
iPod touch
If you need an incredibly small tablet to keep in your pocket, you want the iPod touchWhile you might not think about the iPod touch as a tablet, it does everything a tablet can do, and still manages to fit in even very small pockets. Pros: 720p front camera, 1080p rear camera. 32GB and 64GB options. Available in slate (black), silver (white), pink, blue, and red (Apple Store exclusive). Runs iOS, can play audio and video, read ebooks, and run hundreds of thousands of App Store apps and games. Cons: No cellular option (3G/LTE). Can't run iPad apps. Smaller screen than iPad line. Bottom line: If even the iPad mini is still too big, and you want your computing literally in your pocket, along with access to the App Store, get the incredibly mobile iPod touch.
Note: If you don't care about the latest and the greatest, you can grab the 2010/2011 model with a worse screen and really bad cameras, and save $100. BlackBerry Playbook
If you need a name-brand tablet at the absolutely lowest price on the market, you want the BlackBerry PlaybookIf the most important feature for you in any tablet is price, the BlackBerry Playbook is absolutely the cheapest 7-inch tablet from a major player on the market. Pros: 720p front camera, 1080p rear camera. Upgradeable to BlackBerry 10 in 2013. Wi-Fi version can be found for as little as $150 if you shop around. Cons: No high density display, less software choice than iPad. Bottom line: If price is your only concern, get the BlackBerry Playbook
More: BlackBerry PlayBook review Google/Asus Nexus 7
If you need a small tablet that still has big Android power, you want the Nexus 7If the iPad mini is a little too big, and the iPod touch is way too small, and you prefer Google to Apple anyway, the Google/Asus Nexus 7 is the best small Android tablet on the market. Pros: Higher density display than iPad mini. Excellent integration with all Google services. Starts at only $199 for 16GB. Cellular option. Cons: No rear camera. More like a big iPod touch than a small tablet (paucity of tablet-optimized interfaces/apps). No LTE. Bottom line: If you use a lot of Google services, and Google Play has a lot of content in your area, the Nexus 7 is the best small Android tablet on the market, and a good "bigger" alternative to the iPod touch. More: Complete Nexus 7 review
Kindle Fire HD 7
If you want a small, cheap media device totally tied to Amazon's ecosystem, you want the Kindle Fire HD 7The Kindle Fire HD 7 is more media appliance than tablet, but if you're in the U.S. and all-in on Amazon's ecosystem, the Kindle Fire HD 7 is a low-cost iPad alternative. Pros: Excellent for media. Cellular/LTE option. Starts at only $199. Cons: Lower density display than iPad 4. Not as good for general computing. Only available in a handful of countries. Bottom line: If you're looking for small, cheap device to read, listen to, watch, and play Amazon content, you want the Kindle Fire HD 7.
Kindle Fire HD 8.9
If you want a cheap media device totally tied to Amazon's ecosystem, with a bigger screen, you want the Kindle Fire HD 8.9Like the Kindle Fire HD 7, only bigger -- though not as big as a full-sized iPad -- and with a cellular option, if that's important to you. Pros: 8.9-inch high-density screen. Cellular option available. Starts at only $299. Cons: Not as good for general computing. Only available in a handful of countries. Bottom line: If you want to read, listen to, watch, and play Amazon content, but you want to do it on a bigger screen, get the incredibly cheap Kindle Fire HD 8.9. .
Google/Samsung Nexus 10
If you need a full-sized tablet with all the latest specs and Android software, you want the Google/Samsung Nexus 10The Nexus 10 is slightly bigger than the iPad, and while it still lacks consistent tablet-optimized interfaces and apps, it's also slightly more like a traditional, multi-window computer than iOS. Pros: Higher density screen than iPad 4. 720p front camera, 1080p rear camera. 16GB/32GB options. No LTE option (yet). Starts at $399. Cons: Paucity of tablet apps, inconsistent tablet interface. Bottom line: If you really want an Android tablet, and a big screen, get the incredibly cheap Nexus 10.
Microsoft Surface RT
If you need something closer to a netbook than a tablet, you want the Surface RT.While Microsoft's tablet remains confusing and confounding, if you absolutely can't decide between a Windows netbook and a tablet, the Surface might be worth checking out. Pros: Has elegant Metro interface. Lots of ports. Can run Office. 32GB/64GB options. Cons: Product line is needlessly complex. Requires touch-unfriendly Windows under-layer to run Office. Office is also touch-unfriendly. Bottom line: The Surface is brand new and it usually takes Microsoft 2 or 3 generations to nail a product. Still, if you absolutely have to have something that's part tablet, part netbook, get a Surface with a Type cover. More: Complete Microsoft Surface review
Which tablet are you getting?If you're shopping for a new tablet this Black Friday or holiday season, are you sticking with the tried-and-true iPad? Going small with the iPad mini or even smaller with the iPad touch? Or are you zigging instead of zagging and getting something by Google ro Amazon or Microsoft instead? Let me know what you bring home, and why you chose the way you did! 
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| How to browse full screen on the iPhone using Safari Posted: 22 Nov 2012 04:40 PM PST
When the iPhone 5 and iPod touch 5 went 16:9 there was a risk that, while browsing the web in landscape, the top and bottom navigation menus in Safari would not only look ridiculously long, but the screen would look far too short to be enjoyable. Luckily, Apple thought of that and included a new, full-screen mode for Safari in iOS 6. Using full-screen, every pixel of that new, widescreen display is available to show you content and nothing but content. Here's how it works.
   You can now browse to your heart's content in full screen mode until you choose to turn it off. How do you like that bigger screen now? 
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| Samsung to get a look at Apple's settlement with HTC Posted: 22 Nov 2012 10:33 AM PST
Samsung will be able to look at the settlement between Apple and HTC. Samsung will reportedly use the content of the settlement to determine if they need to halt sales of any of their products after their billion-dollar loss to Apple in a US court in August. Apple had previously sought to keep the specific dollar amount of its settlement with HTC private while providing the rest of the settlement terms for Samsung to view, though Samsung didn't find this sufficient. Bryan Bishop of The Verge reports:
Samsung feels that if Apple is licensing patents to HTC, then Apple is fine with someone using the intellectual property covered by those patents as long as they are paid for its use. Since Apple will be recieving a settlement from Samsung based on August's verdict, Samsung believes that an injunction is unjustified. Whether this will be enough to satisfy the court is up for debate, because licensing agreements typically involve a contract to use intellectual property, and while Samsung will indeed pay Apple a large sum of money, they still used the intellectual property without permission in the eyes of the law, having made no contract with Apple on the use of their intellectual property. The hearing for a possible injunction against Samsung's products will being on December 6th. Source: The Verge 
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| Readdle having huge Black Friday sale on iPhone and iPad apps Posted: 22 Nov 2012 10:22 AM PST
The folks at Readdle make some of the best productivity apps for the iPhone and iPad, and for two days (beginning on Black Friday) all their apps will be up to 80% off. One of their most popular apps, PDF Expert for iPhone will actually be available for free!
Readdle only has huge sales like this twice a year, so if you've been eyeing one or more of these apps, now's the time to snatch them up! If you do pick any of these up, let us know which ones and what you think of them! 
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| Slope: Elegant ‘No Hands’ iPad Stand on Kickstarter Posted: 22 Nov 2012 10:21 AM PST
If you visit here more than once in a great while, you know I'm a big fan of iPad stands. And now I've spotted another great looking one on Kickstarter: the Slope stand – for the iPad, iPad mini, Nexus 7 and 10, and Kindle. Take a look at that photo of the Slope above. No hands right? There doesn't appear to be anything keeping the iPad in place on the stand. The secret sauce is suction:
The Slope is made of 'aerospace grade' aluminum and should look great on a desk or just about anywhere you care to use it. It's got a small footprint, which is always helpful, and seems to be very versatile in terms of where you can mount it too. I'm in – I backed the project at the pledge level that gets me a Slope for the iPad ($59) – and looking forward to using this next March if the project gets funded. You can see lots more detail, demo videos, and of course become a backer at the Slope Kickstarter project page. © patrickj for iPad Insight, 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us         Related Stories
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| Posted: 22 Nov 2012 09:30 AM PST
Happy Thanksgiving to all of you in the US. I've got tons to be thankful for this year. A great family, work I enjoy doing, great friends online and offline, living in the best town anywhere in the world, Austin, and lots more. Hope you all have much to be thankful for as well and are enjoying the holiday with family and friends. © patrickj for iPad Insight, 2012. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us  Comments
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| Siri can control Philips Hue smart lighting with a little bit of help from SiriProxy Posted: 22 Nov 2012 03:13 AM PST
Brandon was able to control many things such as turning certain lights on and off, increasing the brightness of specific bulbs and he is currently working on color changes of the LED bulbs too. It makes you wonder just what Apple could achieve with Siri if it can perfect its understanding of normal language. The idea of a future home where its entire lighting, heating etc is controlled by your voice may not be that far away after all. You can see what Siri is capable of in the video below. SiriProxy Hue from Brandon Evans on Vimeo. 
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What could be more exciting than controlling your in-home lighting from your iPad? Yep, you guessed it, controlling you in-home lighting with your voice through the use of Siri. That is now a possibility thanks to developer Brandon Evans who has worked out a way to control the recently launched | You are subscribed to email updates from iPad By Davis To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
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