Where it's Okay to be a Fan
I have been looking forward to the Google phone announcement with anticipation from the moment I heard about it several weeks ago. I have no interest in switching to Android. But when the only platform competitor to Apple decides to go full Apple and compete on hardware, it is worth taking notice.
Read MoreIn the beginning, the only keyboard available for the iPad Pro was the Logitech Create. I wanted the Apple Smart Keyboard. But it wasn't available. So I bought the Create. Within two weeks of ownership, I returned it for a full refund. Now, I'm back on the Create. This is my story:
Read MoreIt is not every day that Apple admits that they were wrong in a major way. Apple Watch 3.0 may end up being Apple’s biggest Mae culpa ever. Apple made some huge bets with the unveiling of the original Apple Watch. They bet heavily on features like...
Read MoreAllow me a moment to lay bare my biases. I am a diehard, Apple fanboy. Sometimes, we have no idea why we have the allegiances we do. When I was a kid, I found myself in a line of some sort. Some people were handing out posters for reasons I can’t recall.
Each kid received a poster of either Magic Johnson, or Larry Bird. I knew who Magic Johnson was, But I had never heard of Larry Bird. I got Larry. And from that moment to this day, I am a Larry Bird and Boston Celtics fan.
I have no idea why I have most of the preferences I do. But I know exactly why I am an Apple fanboy. Without recounting my entire computing history, I will just say that it is now, and always has been about accessibility.
Read MoreSpoiler alert! Captain America is a bad guy. Worse, a supervillain. When I say *spoiler alert*, I don't mean that I am announcing a plot point about which you didn't already know. I am saying that something has been well and truly spoiled. Marvel has ruined an American icon with their latest move....
Read MoreWhile this is not a review of the new nylon bands for the Apple Watch, it is a good time to let you know that the bands are very nice additions to a growing Apple Watch band collection. There are a number of colors. The aesthetic will not suit everyone. But once you see them in person, you are sure to find at least one that floats your boat. They feel great to the touch. You can hardly tell it is on your wrist. Anyone with allergies to the flouroelastimer bands now has a great option from Apple for the same price.
Read MoreBigger is not always better. And one size really doesn't fit all. I believe Apple was tossing around all of these cliches when they came up with the iPad Pro 9.7. I don't believe it is a reaction to iPad Pro sales. Even remix products take time to develop and execute.
Read MoreI spent most of a week in New York on a piece of business that didn't pan out. While there, I found the time to visit both the Apple Store and the Microsoft Store. It was a study in similarities and contrasts...
Read MoreThe FBI wants Apple to unlock an iPhone 5C. Make no mistake about it: This is an inflection point in our society. Whether or not you care about the iPhone, politics, or legal issues, this effects you regardless of where you are in the world...
Read MoreA lot has been made about the success, or lack thereof, of the latest crop of apple products. The metric many in the techospher seem to be using is how much you use the product. This seemed to make sense at first glance. But the longer I think about it, the less sense it makes. The time of usage myth is a little like the megahertz myth. More is not necessarily better. What does it actually mean to use tech these days. Let's take a closer look:
Read MoreHow are you liking your iPad Pro? Me too. But that doesn't mean that it couldn't be even better. In my earlier writings, I stated that there were some tasks I do for work that I can't do on the iPad Pro. That is only partly true. I can actually do everything for work on the iPad Pro, and do.
But I have to use a couple of workarounds to make it happen. With these two powerful apps, you can raise the productivity of the iPad Pro to a whole, new level. Best yet, these apps are great even if you don't have an iPad Pro. If you use a Mac along with any other Mac or iOS device, these apps are likely for you:
Read MoreI have been looking forward to this device for years. It has had a rough introduction to the world. But that is only true for early adopters like myself. By the time normal people start to discover and purchase the iPad Pro, these early jitters will all be sorted out.
Read MoreAfter long last, I finally got a Smart Keyboard for the iPad Pro. I have had most of this article in my head for about a week. But I couldn’t credibly write it until I actually got an official, Apple iPad Pro keyboard for myself. I have probably logged enough time on this thing in the Apple Store since the iPad Pro came out. But there are always a few things you learn about a product after living with it, that you don’t learn from spending time with a demo in a store.
Read MoreIn review after review, the drumbeat for the iPad Pro is all about whether or not it can replace your laptop. Tim Cook did not help matters with some of [his recent comments](http://www.cnet.com/news/apples-cook-on-the-ipad-pro-why-would-you-buy-a-pc-anymore/). While this is not a part of the marketing push for the device, it seems to be the only thing tech reviewers care about. It is as if to say, if the iPad can't replace your laptop, it is not worth your while. Can the iPad Pro replace your laptop? And does that narrative even make any sense? Let's find out:
Read MoreAfter a week I can say without reservation that I am loving the iPad Pro. I haven't used my notebook since I've had the iPad Pro, and haven't yet missed it. I have put it up for sale. So it is fair to say that I am all in on the iPad Pro. What I am not all in on is how it is positioned in the market.
Read MoreLet's start with second impressions. There is a reason Apple seeded all official reviewers with a Smart Keyboard cover and an Apple Pencil. Without these accessories, the iPad Pro is just a giant iPad. This also explains why reviews of the device seem to be much more positive from reviewers equipped with these accessories.
Read MoreI'm as giddy as a kid in a candy store on his birthday. The long wait for the iPad Pro is finally over. But don't mistake this little write up as some kind of review. It is not. It might be some time before I can actually give it a proper review.
Truth be told, I'm not even certain I am going to keep this thing. It might well go back to the store for a full refund. The jury is still out. In fact, the jury hasn't even been called in for duty. Just think if this as a first impression.
Read Moresuspect I am the first person in Birmingham, AL to try one of these keyboards. I suspect that because when I went to the Apple Store to see if they had them (for the second time that day), the sales staff said they didn’t. It just so happened that I knew they had just received a large shipment of new product, and so, insisted the sales person go to the back to check. As it happened, they did have the new keyboards along with the other new products announced that morning. None of the products were priced in the system at that time. After all that was settled, I walked out with the first Magic Keyboard to be sold, likely in the state. Here’s what I found:
Read MoreI want one. That should come as no surprise to anyone. Like the original iPad, I feel like there is a use-case for it somewhere in my life. I just can’t pin down what it is. I’ve been looking forward to the iPad Pro two years before it was announce. It is a product that has been much rumored, and I suspect, much delayed. My guess is that even Apple was unsure of the direction they wanted to take it. This writing is my attempt to sort out my feeling about the product now that its market debut is imminent. Also, this is my real-time musings on how I might actually use the product, in an attempt to sort the fantasy from the soon-to-be reality.
Read MoreI received my stainless steel Apple Watch with white sports band Friday evening. By Tuesday night, I had it boxed up and ready to be returned for a full refund. While not the typical way to start a product review, it is the part of the experience that was most visceral to me. But for now, let’s leave that repacked box aside, and talk about the experiences that led up to that moment. For that, we must flash back all the way to the beginning, For me, that would be long before the Apple Watch was a gleam in Tim Cook’s eye…
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