While there are rumors of an iPhone mini or a budget iPhone... I think the next logical step would be to go the opposite way... a bigger iPhone.
Most of the Android phones coming out are 4.5" screens are bigger and Samsung has found great success with its big screened Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note/Note 2 phones, so it would make sense for Apple to get into that market.
While this may oppose what Apple has said about their iPhone being the perfect size... they (or Jobs actually) also said that they would not be making a smaller iPad.
This would also allow them to upcharge for a bigger phone (ie the Apple Tax) and open up several options for their iPhone line. The XL would be their premium/phablet line, the iPhone 5+ their main line and the smaller iPhone 4S form factor would be their budget line. And with LTE becoming standard, a bigger form factor would allow for a bigger battery.
Would you buy a bigger iPhone?
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
What kind of gear do I have?
While I call myself a big nerd... I'm more "big" than "nerd". I'm a regular on different forums and there are people out there who used to be like I was back in the day where they know all the technical specs, performance details and mhz of technology gadgets. Back then, it was really only desktop computers and notebooks... now with tablets and mobile phones... it's hard to keep up. So while I don't get caught up in all those numbers any more and I don't have a gaggle of equipment that I tinker with (nor do I spend all my free time flashing ROMs), I do have a number of devices:
Main Computer:
Sony SE VAIO 15" i5 1920x1080 FHD (wish they still had 1920x1200 WUXGA)
It's a good deck... took me a while to get it but it was the first FHD computer that came in at about $1k (end of 2011). Since then there have been more and while this particular model suffers from OrangeGate (the screen renders reds more orange than red) but it works. I've been meaning to replace the optical disk with an SSD... but I really don't think the price warrants the speed benefit.
Mobile Computer:
Toshiba Portege Z835 (Best Buy version) 14" i3 1366x768 (what I call Bleh-tina Display)
When Intel announced their Ultrabook initiative, I was ecstatic. I used to marvel at how thin Apple notebooks and always wished PCs would follow. I even bought a 13" MacBook Air and put Windows on it... but interestingly enough, I ended up just using OSX and the browser. It was then that I realized that for my home use, I don't really need a high power machine (I don't play graphic intensive games), but just something that was very portable, so I sold the MBA and ended up picking the Toshiba as my first Ultrabook because it had the keyboard layout I wanted (dedicated Pg/Home/End buttons) and all the ports without using a dongle. The bonus was with discounts and sales, it ended up being only $699 when other Ultrabooks at the time (again end of 2011) were $1k or higher. There are more Ultrabooks now in the $700 range but eventually when I replace the Tosh, I think they will be in the $500s (late 2013/early 2014).
Tablets:
iPad 2 32GB
Had an Asus Transformer (the first one)... sold it.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 8GB
After using a 10" tablet and now the 7", I actually think a 5-6" is better for portability... which brings me to...
Phones:
iPhone 4 32GB
Moto Xprt
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 (my newest toy)
The Note 2 is a great convergence device for me. It's not my main phone, so you'll hardly see me making phone calls with this gigantic slab on my ear (although it doesn't look that big next to me)... but using it as a 4G connected tablet (with pen input!) is its main function. I think the market for "phablets" is going to get bigger are more people combine phone and tablet usage.
I eventually want to get a Win8 convertible unit, tablet + notebook (I like that Acer and Asus both have keyboard docks that are 2nd batteries) and the iPad mini if they ever put a higher resolution display on it. I'll also probably upgrade to an iPhone 5S or iPhone 6 (whatever they come out with this year).
So what do you guys have?
Main Computer:
Sony SE VAIO 15" i5 1920x1080 FHD (wish they still had 1920x1200 WUXGA)
It's a good deck... took me a while to get it but it was the first FHD computer that came in at about $1k (end of 2011). Since then there have been more and while this particular model suffers from OrangeGate (the screen renders reds more orange than red) but it works. I've been meaning to replace the optical disk with an SSD... but I really don't think the price warrants the speed benefit.
Mobile Computer:
Toshiba Portege Z835 (Best Buy version) 14" i3 1366x768 (what I call Bleh-tina Display)
When Intel announced their Ultrabook initiative, I was ecstatic. I used to marvel at how thin Apple notebooks and always wished PCs would follow. I even bought a 13" MacBook Air and put Windows on it... but interestingly enough, I ended up just using OSX and the browser. It was then that I realized that for my home use, I don't really need a high power machine (I don't play graphic intensive games), but just something that was very portable, so I sold the MBA and ended up picking the Toshiba as my first Ultrabook because it had the keyboard layout I wanted (dedicated Pg/Home/End buttons) and all the ports without using a dongle. The bonus was with discounts and sales, it ended up being only $699 when other Ultrabooks at the time (again end of 2011) were $1k or higher. There are more Ultrabooks now in the $700 range but eventually when I replace the Tosh, I think they will be in the $500s (late 2013/early 2014).
Tablets:
iPad 2 32GB
Had an Asus Transformer (the first one)... sold it.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 8GB
After using a 10" tablet and now the 7", I actually think a 5-6" is better for portability... which brings me to...
Phones:
iPhone 4 32GB
Moto Xprt
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 (my newest toy)
The Note 2 is a great convergence device for me. It's not my main phone, so you'll hardly see me making phone calls with this gigantic slab on my ear (although it doesn't look that big next to me)... but using it as a 4G connected tablet (with pen input!) is its main function. I think the market for "phablets" is going to get bigger are more people combine phone and tablet usage.
I eventually want to get a Win8 convertible unit, tablet + notebook (I like that Acer and Asus both have keyboard docks that are 2nd batteries) and the iPad mini if they ever put a higher resolution display on it. I'll also probably upgrade to an iPhone 5S or iPhone 6 (whatever they come out with this year).
So what do you guys have?
Monday, January 7, 2013
Do nerds follow sports?
It's already known I'm an MMA fan but the NBA is actually my favorite sport. A group of friends have been doing Fantasy basketball for years... before the Internet and all these online leagues. I remember we had to compile stats from the newspaper each day and I even wrote a program to add up all the stats each week (this was before one of us started using Excel on Win 3.x/95 a few years later). I won our first year with a lineup of Shaq/Mourning (no one wanted to draft rookies) and Mookie Blaylock.
Much has changed since then and while we still have to do our stats partly manually (we compile by week rather than in total)... Fantasy basketball has been a great way to follow not just your local teams, favorite teams or favorite players... but all players. I guess because of all the numbers and stats, it's the nerd way to follow a sport.
I've long been a Clipper fan... since the days of Danny Manning, Charles Smith, Ron Harper, Ken Norman etc... so to finally see them succeeding is great. So stoked that Stern interfered and CP3 ending up in the Red/Blue than the Purple/Gold. I feel bad for Dwight over in LaLa land... and it's a bit weird that they can't put together more wins... but if the Clips can get to the Finals and win a ring... that would be awesome.
That would of course trip up LBJ's plans on multiple rings in Miami... but maybe that will spur him to move to SoCal in 2014 (fingers and toes crossed). I would become a Laker fan again if it was Dwight, Nash and LBJ and NO Kobe.
Much has changed since then and while we still have to do our stats partly manually (we compile by week rather than in total)... Fantasy basketball has been a great way to follow not just your local teams, favorite teams or favorite players... but all players. I guess because of all the numbers and stats, it's the nerd way to follow a sport.
I've long been a Clipper fan... since the days of Danny Manning, Charles Smith, Ron Harper, Ken Norman etc... so to finally see them succeeding is great. So stoked that Stern interfered and CP3 ending up in the Red/Blue than the Purple/Gold. I feel bad for Dwight over in LaLa land... and it's a bit weird that they can't put together more wins... but if the Clips can get to the Finals and win a ring... that would be awesome.
That would of course trip up LBJ's plans on multiple rings in Miami... but maybe that will spur him to move to SoCal in 2014 (fingers and toes crossed). I would become a Laker fan again if it was Dwight, Nash and LBJ and NO Kobe.
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