Smartphones/Tablets
A Reminder for Free Android Apps
This is just a reminder that Amazon has a free app everyday (that you normally would have to pay for.) I’ve downloaded apps that cost as much as $5.00 for free just by checking out Amazon’s site each day. So if you have an Android-based phone or tablet be sure to check it out: http://goo.gl/ek7fg
Love a Good Rumor? How About the Next iPad?
NO ONE is better than keeping a secret than Apple, so NOTHING creates more interest than a rumor about what the next Apple device might be. Bloomberg reported Friday about a fully HD iPad with a quad-core (that means FOUR built-in processors) and 4G wireless speeds. Follow the link to read Bloomberg’s article.
Bad News for Doughnut Lovers
If you love Krispy Kreme doughnuts, especially when they are freshly made and the “Hot Now” light is on in the windows, then I have very bad news for you – it will now be even harder to keep your sugar intake down because they have apps for iOS, Android and your computer that will tell you when the Krispy Kreme near you has freshly made and still warm donuts. Just what you need following a month of holiday meals and desserts. If you hurry and get it now, you’ll have time to make a New Year’s resolution to REMOVE it from your phone. iOS and Android users can go to their respective app stores, for the desktop app go to KrispyKreme.com
Monopoly on Android is FREE Today at Amazon
If you have an Android phone or tablet, the Amazon App Store has Monopoly free today (normally $5.00.) You’ll need the Amazon App Store on your device, so go here first to get it http://goo.gl/qmYIc, then download Monopoly. Be sure to check the Amazon App Store because every day they have a free app.
Posted in Deals, Smartphones/Tablets | Tags: Amazon App Store, free android app, Monopoly | 
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Buying an iPad 2 for Christmas? Hold On–You Just Might Want the Asus Transformer Prime
For starters, you have to admit (whether you know it or not) there CURRENTLY are a lot more apps available for the iPad than for Android-based tablets. That being said, Android is quickly catching up (after all, how may flashlight apps do you need?) Asus has announced that their Transformer Prime tablet will be available on December 19, just in time to get it before Christmas.
Why would you want one you ask? Well for starters, it will be the first quad-core tablet on the market (that means it will have four processors handling the tasks currently handled usually by one processor.) The Transformer series by Asus also has a keyboard that you can dock with making it much more like a netbook AND as a bonus has an additional battery giving you even more time to use your Transformer without having to plug in.
Engadget did a thorough review of the Transformer Primer – check it out here: http://goo.gl/wiPmw
Posted in News, Smartphones/Tablets | Tags: ASUS Transformer Prime, iPad, iPad2, tablets | No Comments »
Hold the Phone! Unlimited EVERYTHING for $19/mo
I know, it’s hard to believe, but it IS possible to have a smartphone that gives you UNLIMITED calling, UNLIMITED text and UNLIMITED data for only $19 a month. How is this possible you ask? It’s leveraging the power of wi-fi. There is a new company called Republic Wireless that’s hoping to change how you feel about wireless companies. The usual cell phone carriers charge you so much because it it expensive to operate cell phone towers that can handle all the voice traffic, not to mention the ever increasing text and data traffic.
Well, Republic Wireless has turned everything around by leveraging the economy of wi-fi (which is already paid for) and using it in ALL cases before using the cell phone wireless network. Their thinking is since wi-fi is almost always faster than a 3G and in many cases even a 4G connection, why not use wi-fi to handle not only the text and data, but the actual phone calls as well.
I can’t speak to how well it works in practice, but it’s a novel idea and could easily save me $600 a year, so I’m certainly going to look into it further. Their web site is RepublicWireless.com, check it out here: http://goo.gl/BUPFg
Verizon is Selling Your Information to Marketers
If you’re a Verizon Wireless customer, you might want to opt-out of their program that lets marketers know where you’ve been, your gender, sites you’ve browsed on your phone, even what restaurants you seem to like – pretty much anything they can glean from your phone. PC World has an article detailing it including the link to Verizon’s Privacy Policy. I think it’s just a little ironic that the company that quietly changed their privacy policy to divulge more information about you starts its privacy policy with “Verizon is committed to protecting your privacy”. Though Verizon says it won’t provide personally identifiable information, seems to me they will be providing enough that it won’t be hard to figure out. Here’s the link to PC World’s article: http://bit.ly/TekChic0415
Posted in News, Security, Smartphones/Tablets | Tags: personal information, privacy, Verizon wireless | No Comments »
iOS 5 is Out!
If you have an iOS device (recent iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch) then the next time you connect to iTunes you’ll probably see a notice that there is a new update available. Below are a few of the 200 features Apple has put into iOS 5. Follow the link at the bottom to go to Apple’s site to see all the included features.
The iOS 5 update includes over 200 new features, including the following:
Notifications
Swipe from top of any screen to view notifications in one place with Notification Center
View notifications briefly at top of screen
View notifications from lock screen
Slide notification app icon to right on lockscreen to go directly to the app
iMessage
Send and receive unlimited text, photo, and video messages with other iOS 5 users
Track messages with delivery & read receitps
Group messaging and secure encryption
Works over cellular network and Wi-Fi
Click the link to see all the features: http://bit.ly/TekChic0414
Simple Tip to Save Your Smartphone’s Battery
If you own a smartphone (an iPhone, Android phone, Windows phone or BlackBerry) you know all about poor battery life. Think about it, most smartphones have at least 5 radios in them. One for making phone calls, then there is 2G, 3G, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and if you have a 4G phone you can make that SIX radios.
Have them all running at the same time and you can watch your battery life fall faster than the stock market when the tech bubble burst in March 2000.
What you may not know is that your cell phone provider doesn’t want you using their 2G, 3G or 4G network any more than possible. As a result if your wi-fi radio is turned on, it is CONSTANTLY looking for a wireless network to connect to and THAT will suck power from your battery. When your home, turn on your wi-fi and take advantage of your fast and free (from the phone’s perspective) Internet. When you leave home, turn off the wi-fi radio and just let the 3G (or whatever radio) handle data away from home.
Do you use Bluetooth? If not then go into your settings and make sure it’s turned off. If you’re not sure – then you probably don’t so just shut it off.
Now go forth and enjoy the freedom a full battery can give you throughout the day.
Yep – Tablet Prices are Dropping!
A week ago I wrote about how Amazon’s announcement of their Android based 7” Kindle Fire tablet at $199 was driving down prices on tablets. Well, now Lenovo has announced that their new A1 tablet that is due November 1st is now available for pre-order at $199 – matching Amazon’s price.
The Lenovo A-1 is a 7” tablet that though not aimed at the high-end market, should have more than enough performance for the average user. Unlike the Amazon tablet, the Lenovo A-1 will have front and rear facing cameras, SD card reader slot, Bluetooth AND will have built-in GPS that works even if you don’t have a wi-fi connection (which means you can use this as a 7” GPS unit in your car.) It will have a 1GHz processor and the resolution will be 1024×600. Onboard storage is only 2GB, another $50 will get you 16GB.
It comes with Gingerbread, which is not the latest version of Android software for the tablet, and we don’t currently know if it will run Android’s next operating system “Ice Cream Sandwich” that is coming out in a few weeks. But none the less it’s a promising tablet and we’re finally seeing the prices for these devices get down to where it’s easier for most to have a tablet of their own.
If you want to order one now, here’s the link to Lenovo’s site: http://bit.ly/TekChic0412
Apple’s Big Announcement: The iPhone 4S
Today Apple announced their latest phone. First they talked about several items included in iOS 5 (the iPhone and iPad operating system that will be released October 12th) like sending cards from an app and improved camera app functionality. They also talked about iTunes “Match”, which for $25 a year lets you upload songs you’ve ripped and even downloaded illegally onto Apple’s iCloud servers, letting you stream your whole collation to any of your iOS devices. Then the iPod Nano with new faces like Mickey Mouse and the iPod touch with the ability to send text messages over wi-fi.
Finally they got around to what everyone was waiting for – the PHONE. The new phone will be called the iPhone 4S, NOT the iPhone 5. That means on the outside it will look like the original iPhone 4, it will have a faster processor for smoother screens and also features faster graphics, which they demonstrated playing advanced games on the iPhone. It will be capable of faster3G speeds (though technically NOT 4G it may get marketed by the carriers as 4G) and they redesigned the antennas so that you’ll have a better connection even if “you’re holding it wrong” (apparently Apple is still blaming the users for how they are holding the phone.) They say it has an improved 8MP camera. They spent a lot of time talking about the new voice command features, including setting alarms and reminders by voice.
The phone will be available on October 14, with pre-orders starting Oct. 7th. The 16GB model will be $199 with contract on AT&T, Verizon and now Sprint as well. The current (and soon to be old) iPhone 4 will be $99 and you will still be able to get the 3GS model now for free with contract.
Amazon’s Tablet Forcing Competition to Offer Deals
With Amazon’s announcement this last week of their new $199 tablet (the Kindle Fire) we’re starting to see the pressure Amazon is applying to the competition, even though the Kindle Fire won’t be available until mid-November.
Best Buy is offering the 7” BlackBerry Playbook for $299, that’s a $200 discount from its regular price. http://bit.ly/TekChic0408
Target has the 1st Generation iPad with 16GB and 3G for $499. An iPad 2 like this is $629: http://bit.ly/TekChic0409
Tiger Direct has the 7” Dell Streak also for $299. That’s $100 off the regular price. http://bit.ly/TekChic0411
You may occasionally see some cheap (in every sense of the word) Android tablets for $150 or less, sometimes even under $100. These are cheap Chinese no-name tablets that are underpowered and don’t have access to the Android Marketplace, so without the Marketplace you’re really limited as to what you can do with the tablet. I would recommend you stay away from them, as tempting as it may be.
It’s expected that early next year Amazon will be bringing a 10” tablet to market, and so we can expect to see similar aggressive pricing from Amazon and price cuts from the rest.
Posted in Deals, Smartphones/Tablets | Tags: deals, Dell Streak, iPad, Kindle Fire, tablets | No Comments »
MagicJack for iPhone Let You Make FREE Calls
I’m sure you’ve all seen the commercials for the “Magic Jack”. Well, if you have an iPhone or iPad you can download the MagicJack app and call anyone you want in the U.S. or Canada over wi-fi or 3G for free.
Basically it feels like a competitor to Skype, but I’m not sure it has the call quality that Skype does.
None the less you can download it for free via iTunes and give it a try.
Go here to MagicJack’s web site for more info: http://bit.ly/TekChic0410
A New Kindle for $79 and a New Kindle Color Tablet for $199 Announced by Amazon
Get ready for a great Christmas present. Amazon announced today 4 new Kindles including a color tablet that is likely to take a chuck of the market from Apple’s iPad. Gone are the little round buttons, the $99 and $149 Kindles are touch based, the price difference is that $50 extra gets you a 3G connection so you can connect anywhere, $99 is wi-fi only. The $79 Kindle lacks “touch” and uses a simple directional pad – perfect if you would like to do your book shopping on your computer, then just let it download (over wi-fi) to your reader.
The BIG news was the expected announcement of the Amazon tablet that is being called the Kindle Fire. OK, it’s not a great name, but at $199 it’s nearly $350 cheaper than an iPad. And although admittedly it’s NOT an iPad, it comes with enough capability and features (like unlimited storage of your music and videos on Amazon’s Cloud service) that the price is likely to see a lot them fly out the door. It weighs less than a pound (14.6 ounces) so it will be easy to hold even in one hand. The Kindle Fire runs a rather locked down version of Google’s Android operating system, but you still have access to Amazon’s app store, and I’m sure it won’t take long before someone figures out how to “root” the tablet so you can access the Android Marketplace and install other apps not in Amazon’s app store. The Kindle Fire can be pre-ordered now and will be available November 15. The Kindle e-readers will be available November 21st.
Posted in News, Smartphones/Tablets | Tags: Amazon tablet, e-reader, Kindle, Kindle Fire | No Comments »
Intuit Rolling Out Mobile Apps for Your Phone
Intuit, the company that brought you Quicken and QuickBooks is now expanding its offerings to your mobile phone. Taking a “mobile first” approach, the apps (available for iPhone and Android phones) also allow you to sync with QuickBooks on your PC or QuickBooks online.
QuickBooks Mobile is designed specifically for QuickBooks, but Intuit is also introducing Online Payroll, GoPayment (a credit-card reader for your smartphone) and Mobile Banking for Intuit Financial Services customers.
PC World Business has a full rundown here: http://bit.ly/TekChic0407
Posted in Apps/Tools, News, Smartphones/Tablets | Tags: Intuit, Quickbooks, smartphone apps | No Comments »