August 21, 2008
- Sony Ericsson comes to T-Mobile just in time for the 3G launch. I think the brand will be a great fit for T-Mo’s customer base. #
- A car stereo head unit that can accommodate an iPod makes so much sense, thought DashJack was working on this http://snurl.com/3il8u #
On the heels of my Switched On column on how PC companies should focus more on the notebook as the new living room PC, the alert team at Stage Two Consulting set up a meeting at Boxee’s SoHo’s office, which is, um, close to those of Pando’s (which makes me wonder whether Boxee would integrate a Pando client at some point because it could be handy and oh such juicy lawsuit bait).
In any case, Boxee, which began life under the pirate flag of the Xbox Media Center, has won praise for its user interface, which I agree is a fresh, fluid and engaging departure not only from Front Row and Windows Media Center but also previous attempts at creating clones of them (such as MythTV) from the open-source community. Company co-founder Avner Ronen compares what Boxee is doing for the open-source media center UI to what Firefox did for the open-source browser.
Rather than overwhelming you with infinite entertainment choices, by default it filters up the top recommendations and consumed items from those in your social network. Of course, it can also broadcast out your entertainment choices. Boxee, like the Dash Express, can also post what you’re doing to Twitter and other social networks. The software is still in alpha, and thus has some serious feature gaps. Search, for example, is in the queue, and the company notes that recording of cable content will get a lot easier with Tru2Way. Boxee runs on Macs and Linux with a Windows version slated soon, and we talked about a number of potential paths to the living room..
I’ll be sharing more thoughts on Boxee in the coming weeks.
Tags: boxee, media center
The vocal minority amplifying around the blogosphere’s echo chamber is now broadcasting across morning news shows regarding the iPhone’s alleged reception problems. There are likely steps that Apple could take to improve reception, but if this were a true defect, I think the response would be so overwhelming that you wouldn’t be able to get within 100 yards of an AT&T or Apple store.
Even retaining a degree of control that most cell phone manufacturers would give their SEND buttons for, the iPhone is a very unusual product for Apple in that it has had to rely on partners (phone carriers) for a core part of its user experience. But of course because of Apple’s high profile and tradition of owning the customer experience, many of the fingers of blame are pointing at it. So it needs to offer an acknowledgement, an explanation, another :”open letter” — something beyond a discreet missive.
The company has set a great precedent extending service for customers struggling with MobileMe. Surely it’s not in a position to offer similar free service for those having cell phone problems. As a relative newcomer to the cellular industry banking billions on the iPhone as a Trojan horse for OS X, Apple has too much at stake with the iPhone 3G for it to stay shrouded in a cloud of questionable reliability. And phones are too important to their consumers to deal with disappointment for long.
Wireless connectivity is what it is. Not to necessarily knock AT&T’s network quality, but the iPhone has likely attracted many newcomers to 3G (certainly from AT&T’s existing subscriber base) and, in what may be the cause of even more of the griping, switchers from Verizon Wireless and Sprint that may be used to dealing with more mature 3G wireless networks. As a company that is pioneering the way or many new broadband wireless users, Apple is getting some arrows in its back.
Back in 2003, Steve Jobs noted that downloading music illegally was bad karma, and yet the company has consistently lambasted struggles that Vista has had, many of which have been the result of driver and other issues that are the “fault” of Microsoft’s ecosystem partners — karma indeed. If this keeps up for much longer, how long will it be before a straight-laced personification of reliability stands aside a harried deadbeat as they intone, “I’m a Nokia phone.” and.”.. and I’m an iPhone 3G.”?
Tags: Apple, iPhone 3G, reception issues, reliabilityAugust 20, 2008
- Re: Canon shipping 100m compact cameras, Engadget asks how many of yours have died? For me, one out of five (S2 IS). http://snurl.com/3hxf1 #
- Canon shipping 100m compact digicams, Engadget asks how many of yours have died. For me, one out of five (S2 IS). #
- UrbanMax confused in terms of standing up versus sitting down usage experience. May be a MID for that fake Bigfoot. http://snurl.com/3hxid #
- The Gadgeteer pans CastGrabber. Julie got a lot further than I did in actually getting it to work at all. http://snurl.com/3hxpc #
- PlayOn seems like a nice implementation of Hulu on TV, but I suspect most mfgs. will do deals with Hulu directly.. http://snurl.com/3hxs7 #
- Sad tale of no demand for collector’s LPs (http://snurl.com/3hy2y) reminds me of “Time Enough at Last” (http://snurl.com/3hy35) #
- Hmm, Japanese handset mfgs. looking to export their tech. That didn’t work too well for Korean mfgs. and Helio. http://snurl.com/3hyof #
- Intel UrbanMax simply reflects different design tradeoffs to “convertible” tablets. http://snurl.com/3hyq0 #
- Who would like to see the Vadem Clio reborn as a netbook? #
- Hillcrest Labs sues Nintendo — great PR. “Mommy, why do the bad men want to kill Mario?” http://snurl.com/3i7ho #
August 18, 2008
- New Switched On column posted: From Bluetooth to the bedroom and the backyard http://snurl.com/3hhub #
August 17, 2008
- Wii getting DVD playback may finally help end the travesty of people moving while watching TV http://snurl.com/3fo8p #
- Atom is apparently doing well. Of course, that’s *shipments.* Let’s see how well they sell to consumers. http://snurl.com/3fo9u #
- I applaud Vudu’s approach to “getting out of jail cheap” assuming it includes movies not finished within 24 hours http://snurl.com/3fobv #
- New Switched On column posted: Rethinking the living room PC http://snurl.com/3fsn0 #
August 13, 2008
- Wii getting DVD playback may finally help end the travesty of people moving while watching TV http://snurl.com/3fo8p #
- Atom is apparently doing well. Of course, that’s *shipments.* Let’s see how well they sell to consumers. http://snurl.com/3fo9u #
- I applaud Vudu’s approach to “getting out of jail cheap” assuming it includes movies not finished within 24 hours http://snurl.com/3fobv #
- New Switched On column posted: Rethinking the living room PC http://snurl.com/3fsn0 #
August 12, 2008
The AP is reporting that Best Buy will become the first independent retailer to offer the iPhone 3G in the U.S. Carrying the iPhone is certainly a feather in the wireless cap of Best Buy, which has been rolling out its Best Buy Mobile stores and stores-within-a-store. Best Buy, of course, also has Apple-staffed sections within a store so it will be interesting to see where the iPhone will be merchandised (likely in both sections).
Best Buy is also in a great position to highlight some of the many iPhone-compatible accessories that would not be carried in an AT&T store and, of course, the retailer has a far larger footprint than Apple stores. However, it may mark the first time the iPhone has been put side by side with other handsets with large touchs creens from other carriers in the U.S.
Tags: Best Buy, iPhone 3G
In an Analyst Angle column I wrote for RCR Wireless News about AT&T’s adoption of Microsoft Surface for its showrooms, I argued that having the table-based kiosks available in stores would benefit the wireless carrier and be good for the industry. Some wrote to me saying that what the wireless carrier really needed was a greater number of skilled store workers and not gee-wizardry, but of course those things are not mutually exclusive. In fact, they are complementary.
In fact, when I was interviewed for Fox Business News on the day of the iPhone 3G launch, there were no iPhones at the store that was the site of the interview. There were, however, two Surface computers and, yes, they were being used by curious customers months after their introduction.
One interesting angle in this deployment is the branding of applications on Surface. The most interesting is CityTips, which may help reduce some of the load on concierges at the hotels by serving as a local guide to restaurants, bars, etc. I’m sure it won’t contain much that couldn’t be found on a laptop, but it’s a pretty common scenario for group outing planning to happen in a hotel lobby.
Other apps include he Sounds of Sheraton playlist creator, which would be a lot cooler if it could be used to deliver CDs (yeah, I know but lots of hotel rooms still have players) to a guest’s room, and Sheraton Snapshots, which seems like the weakest of the three as all it does is let you surf photos and information of other Sheraton properties. That’s the kind of thing that can be done at one’s leisure. When you’re a tourist, you’re interested in what’s happening in town, not at other hotels.
Tags: Microsoft Surface, Sheraton hotels
If your company is a startup, I’m generally not a fan of trying to distribute your product or service exclusively through established TV and landline service providers such as Comcast or Verizon. Mobile apps via wireless carriers are but one exception. But if you’re Starz Entertainment and you have relationships with these service providers and your product is a movie distribution service based on subscription, then it’s also a different story.
As a standalone service, the cost of acquiring customers to Vongo must have been expensive. But by taking advantage of the existing billing relationships that Verizon’s FiOS TV has with its customers, Starz Play as the revamped service will now be known, will garner more exposure and, more importantly, more bundling opportunities. As Netflix has shown, a sustainable number of consumers like a subscription option for movies on demand. It’s just unfortunate that the handoff from Vongo couldn’t have been made more seamlessly.
Tags: starz play, verizon fios, vongo