Default: Living within Apple's gilded cage

January 05, 2014 by David Johnson

A lot of people, perhaps most, never venture beyond the default settings and applications found on their devices at the time of purchase. Others make it a point of personalizing the settings, and loading up their favorite alternatives to the default apps, dumping the defaults in a folder, and onto the back page, out of sight and out of mind. I see no evidence that one group is happier than the other. However, it does appear that the more adventurous of the two end up having more issues with their devices. I happen to be both. In some things, I am Captain Default. In others, I am David, Lord of the Unbeaten Path. This weekend, we will be exploring the benefits of accepting the default position, and living happily within Apple's tightly controlled ecosystem.

Blackberry CEO wants to bring the Blackberry experience to the iPhone. Just say no!

December 22, 2013 by David Johnson

Blackberry's quarterly conference call took place on Friday. I will try to avoid adjectives such as train wreck, or disasterous. But it is difficult to report on it without at least using the word, predictable. On paper, they lost $4.4B. That's more money than they have. Accounting is a funny business. My undestanding of it is that much of that is a non-writedown writedown of unsold inventory, literally, worth nothing. Every phone they build is a liability to the company. Now, they would like to bring that worthless experience to iOS and Android. You can here John Chen: Blackberry CEO, say it in his own words

iPhones stay up-to-date far longer than Android phones

December 04, 2013 by David Johnson

You've heard it said that iPhones stay up-to-date far longer than Android phones. Now, we have a handy chart to demonstrate that point in living color:

Candy Crushed: you're not alone

November 22, 2013 by David Johnson

I have a confession to make: I love playing Candy Crush Saga. May whatever gods there be have mercy on my Candy Crushed soul. I am a grown man of 43, with a life, and serious pursuits. I have neither sister or daughter. I neither influence, nor am influenced by small children these days. I read books and study physics for fun. I love football. Yet, somehow, Candy Crush has wormed its way into my life. I am a broken man, reduced to wondering exactly when and how things went completely sideways for me. I still don't know the answer to that, but I do know that I am not alone, and neither are you.

$100 million is not enough to make the NBA want to use a Samsung tablet

November 21, 2013 by David Johnson

Here's a new one from the department of, you just can't buy good, fake endorsements. A few weeks ago, it was reported that Samsung was paying the NBA $100 million to use their products court side.. NBA signed a $100 million deal with Samsung Apparently, $100 million is not enough to force professionals to use a Samsung tablet. The innovative software that drives the NBA for coaches and players is exclusive to iOS. To get the money, they may display Samsung tablets. But they will be using iPads. All that Samsung money will be spent at the Apple Store this holiday. Ouch! That's gotta hurt. Click the link below for the video:

Activation Lock: another iOS 7 exclusive Samsung is finding difficult to copy

November 19, 2013 by David Johnson

Sometimes we iPhone and iPad users don't realize how lucky we are. Apple puts a lot of time, money, and energy into coming up with new ways to make using technology a joy. They put equal resources into making it safe and secure. Things Apple prioritizes are mere afterthoughts for competitors, until, that is, they see the competitive advance such features give Apple. Activation Lock is one of those features. Unfortunately for competitors, their attempt to copy it has hit a bit of a snag.

Microsoft's former CTO finds the iPad to be the only tablet worthy of his new app

November 15, 2013 by David Johnson

When you are the Chief Technology Officer for a major operation like Microsoft, you, presumably know something about the technologies that your company offers, and how they stack up to the technologies of your competitors. Nathan Myhrvold is no longer the CTO of Microsoft, but he was. And presumably, still knows something about the comparative merits of operating systems and smart devices. So when it was time for him to choose a platform on which to exclusively offer his own app, his platform and device of choice was decidedly not Microsoft's.

iPad mini with Retina display review: not much more to say

November 14, 2013 by David Johnson

When I picked up the Retina mini, I immediately remembered why I sold my 3rd gen. iPad last year. It was so cute. It felt so nice in the hand, just one hand was sufficient. But this iPad wasn't for me; it was for the other member of my household. And though I did recall why I dumped the full-sized model for the mini, what a difference a year makes.

iPad Joins Scalpel as Surgical Tool

August 22, 2013 by David Johnson

Seeing iPads in doctor's offices and hospitals is nothing new. The iPad is the tablet of choice among physicians. Again, not a surprise. People with the resources to choose whatever devices they desire tend to choose products from Apple. What's new is that the iPad has scrubbed, and moved into the surgical theater.

Are You an iPad User? New Survey Thinks it has You all Figured Out

August 16, 2013 by David Johnson

There is a new study from Flurry Analytics that reveals some interesting characteristics of iOS users. In particular, the study differentiated iPad and iPhone users, based on behavior and demographics. Usually, studies are looking at the differences between iOS and Android users. This time, we are getting some insight into different kinds of iOS users. More to the point, we might can gain some insight into the broader world of tablet users versus smartphone users in general.