Google's New Panda Algorithm Changes The Face of Search Rankings

April 18, 2011 · Brandon Hann

In Google’s never-ending effort to rid their indexes of low or no-quality websites while boosting rankings for higher-quality sites, they have launched a new algorithm focused primarily on user feedback. As a publisher myself, this is a very important change. However, since I don’t practice in any deceiving tactics in order to boost my own traffic, I’m not too worried about it. As always, with any site that I write for or work on, what you see is what you get.

For those who have spent lots of time and other resources on building worthless websites, ripping content from higher quality sites, participating in link farms or any other form of “search fraud”, you can probably kiss your work goodbye. At this point, it’s only a matter of time until you lose your foothold and/or become removed altogether.

What did Google change?

To put it as simply as possible, Google changed the way it ranks websites. Before, it was all about keywords, how those keywords related to content, links and other factors. As of a month ago, it’s more about user opinions on particular sites. Essentially these are user feedback signals that can affect how well a site will rank compared to others of similar content. The goal for this change is to allow users (in time) to generate the popularity of the search results. While this may seem like a good plan on the surface, adding any human element of this magnitude can possibly carry some negative side effects:

Some users mistake low-quality sites for high-quality sites and vote accordingly. For example, a person who has always gotten their “news” from AssociatedContent.com might feel like it’s more authoritative than Msn.com, thus making MSN rank lower.
DoS-type attacks. I don’t know of any way to stop someone from creating some kind of bot that allows them to “vote down” targeted websites in hopes of getting their own site ranked higher.

More local search results

Another major change is the localization of results. For those of you who have some type of Google account, be it iGoogle, Gmail, AdSense, etc., you are already aware of how specialized the search results are for you based on a number of things like your previous searches, but this new update brings up more related results to your area based on your Internet connection.

Granted, this is helpful when you’re looking for local businesses or places to eat, but what about if you’re looking for national or international businesses? The Internet was designed to connect you to the world and some of the main reasons most people use it is to find those obscure places to buy products or to get information you can’t get locally. So what happens? Well, those results are more likely to get drowned out down into the next couple of pages.

The upsides

If you’ve built an all-original site and have continued to update it without the use of shady tactics aimed at gaining your higher search results, then you generally have nothing to worry about. In fact, these changes might actually help your site because it’ll clear out most of the junk that is probably ranking higher than you right now.

If you’re just a Google user, then these changes will help you dramatically because over time, the results you see will be based on what other people have said about a particular site and how great they felt the content was. Plus, we should be able to kiss the days when any search would pull up 20 spam sites goodbye!

My two cents

My one tip of advice: don’t write content just to get more traffic! Always write with the user in mind. Trust me on this. It will take longer to do and cause you to spend more time researching, but it will pay off greatly in the end. You can play the SEO game until you’re blue in the face, but what’s it all worth if you spend countless hours and money getting all this traffic to your site only to have Google make one simple change down the road that causes your site to lose 75% of your efforts?!

Use SEO as a way to make your already-great content shine even more. Don’t use it to just to play the ranking game. The best side-effect of this approach is that Google will never penalize great, original websites, so you’ll never have to worry about another Google update!

The Mysterious White iPhone 4

April 15, 2011February 16, 2016 · Brandon Hann

What a week this has been. We talked about the new iPad 2 and how it compares with the Macbook Air, looked at the overview of what’s in store for OS X Lion and now we’re talking about the white iPhone…again.

It’s been 10 months since the iPhone 4 launch and even though Apple clearly stated that the white version was going to be delayed, I don’t think anyone ever expected this kind of delay! There were all sorts of speculation as to why the delay even happened…everything from parts not being available, manufacturers not being able to live up to Apple’s standards and my favorite…Apple couldn’t create white glass.

The real reason was simply because the color white naturally has some opacity, so there were areas around the screen and camera that caused some light leakage (although this has not been confirmed by Apple). This would have caused flawed photos as well has a rather pretty-looking iPhone to be have its image marred. But nonetheless, Apple stated that the white iPhone is indeed due out this spring. What’s interesting about these Apple delays is that there are companies out there selling after-market kits that allow you to convert your iPhone into another color including…white. So how is it that they have managed to make the parts, but Apple can’t??

Check out these sites:

iPhone4Parts.com – If you’re willing to drop $80+, you can change the color of your iPhone without getting a lame case. I thought about changing mine to white, but they also have a transparent kit!!
WhiteiPhone4me.com – They offer just the white, but also have sim unlocking services as well. The pricing for the kit is £129 which equals about $210. Ouch!

But do we even really care anymore? Given Apple’s release history of the iPhone, shouldn’t we be expecting the iPhone 5 sometime in June? Well, it may seem that this won’t the case this year. PCWorld estimates that the iPhone 5 might not be released until late 2011 or as far out as 2012. This would seem likely due to the fact that Verizon just recently got the iPhone 4 and Apple may want to let those customers settle in before bringing out a new device so soon. In fact, there are already manufacturers claiming that iPhone 5 production isn’t beginning until at least September.

At any rate, if we can’t expect an iPhone 5 this summer, I’m all for it! I’m really getting tired of forking over large amounts of cash just to get the latest and greatest. I know I don’t have to, but I just can’t help it! 🙁 If a new iPhone 5 does make an appearance this summer, let’s just hope that Apple releases it in both white and black so we can stop blogging about this whole issue.

Apple Versus Netflix: The Digital Entertainment War

April 14, 2011 · Brandon Hann

I just talked about this yesterday and it looks like the rumors are already gaining momentum. The debate about whether Apple would try to take on Netflix in their ability to serve up digital content to the masses has the community jumping. The evidence? A huge, brand new data center built by Apple in North Carolina is on the verge of going operational.

This data center is said to rival those of other media companies like Google and Microsoft. Even better, Apple is already planning to build another one! All this information points to Apple’s desire and ability to be the leader of digital entertainment distribution.

iTunes has been widely successful since it first launched in 2001 and it has been the leader in digital music sales for years. However, it’s always lacked in the television and film arena. For television, it’s a no-brainer—competing with cable and broadcast networks who deliver instant programming 24/7 on hundreds of channels is no small feat. However in the film industry, we have been renting movies since 1985 when Blockbuster first opened and then in 1999, Netflix revolutionized this process by bringing movies to your door. Netflix revolutionized this process again by offering most of these same movies in live streaming.

Apple has the Apple TV and the iTunes store which allows for the “purchase” of movies and even tv shows (mostly those that have made it to DVD collections), but so far, they can’t touch Netflix. In fact, only recently has Apple began streaming their movies through the new Apple TV opting to cut out the ability to download and store movies on the device itself. This major change could very well be the stepping stone Apple needed in their quest to dominate your living room.

Pros and Cons

In Netflix’s corner:
Pros

Ability to have physical DVD and Blu-ray discs sent directly to your door
Live streaming of thousands of titles (and more coming each day)
Multi-device support (Blu-ray players, free phone apps, TVs, etc.)
Relatively cheap
New pricing plans for streaming service only (no in-home discs)

Cons

Not all movies are available via streaming
In-home disc count limited to 4 max at one time
TV shows limited to those only available on DVD

In Apple’s corner (Potentially):
Pros

Live streaming of thousands of titles
Possibly cheap? We’ll have to wait and see.
Multi-device support?

Cons

Might have to buy Apple TV to stream
No in-home discs

It’s hard to develop a pros and cons list with a product/service that doesn’t exist yet, but in terms of pure speculation, Netflix slightly leads the pack. The main reason for this is because they have a huge head start. Not only do they have hundreds of thousands of physical media for rental, but they are gaining massive traction with adding new streaming content. Netflix also has their software available on almost every connected device these days. Just about any Blu-ray player and TV comes with the ability to stream movies from your account. Knowing Apple, that alone might be the sole competitive difference. Apple is not known to be too kind when it comes to sharing software.

My two cents

Apple does have the advantage when it comes to customer base. They have millions of users already linked to iTunes via their credit cards, so adding an additional service charge to bring movies into the picture will likely not be a major hurdle for most consumers. Only time will tell of course and for me, it’s dependent on just how well Apple delivers that content. The deciding factor will come down to three things: 1. Title availability, 2. Network speed and 3. Where I’ll be able to watch this content.

iPad Poised to Take Out Radio and Other Media

April 13, 2011 · Brandon Hann

A new survey from Google shows that more and more people are opting to use their tablet devices, with most of them being iPads, over traditional media streams like listening to the radio or watching broadcast tv. This is happening just now?! I can’t remember the last time I listened to the radio!

The survey points out that more than half of the people questioned said they use their iPad more than listening to the radio and just about 25% of them use an iPad more than a computer. Finally, a third of these individuals stated they use iPad more than they watch tv. Because the iPad is so versatile, people can now use one device to access the Internet, watch videos, stream movies and tv shows, read newspapers and magazines, listen to music and play games. Of course cable and satellite providers have made honest attempts at keeping you on your television by offering on-demand content, DVR services, music channels, downloadable content, HD content, 3D content, free movies, etc., but without a tv capable of handling some of these things, you’re kind of up a creek.

Apple TV

Since the iPad is an Apple product, I doubt Steve Jobs cares that one of his own products is cannibalizing another market, but I know he figures he might as well have a piece of that pie too. Before he retires, Steve Jobs plans to “revolutionize” the living room. The Apple TV has been an interesting, yet vastly overlooked product since its inception. Originally called iTV (how original), the Apple TV began shipping in 2007 and has seen one major upgrade in 2010. However, nobody is really talking about it.

Is it possible that not everything Apple touches turns to gold? In light of this new survey, one could wonder what the future of Apple TV will be. If you actually take the time to look at the device, it really is pretty cool. You can stream purchases of videos, movies and music right from your iTunes account, access Netflix, NBA tv, YouTube and display slideshows from Flickr photo albums.

However, it would seem that this device is doomed. With the realization that iPads are here to stay, along with other competing products, Steve Jobs is likely to bring the cloud experience to your living room. By connecting all of your devices together, you’ll be able to do anything and everything on just about anything and everything in your home. I can see the commercial now:

Man is at work with 2 minutes left to go, watching a Netflix movie on his Macbook.
Man leaves work and continues same movie on iPhone while riding the subway home (I know there’s no cell service on subways, but work with me here!)
Man walks in the door, turns on tv and continues streaming same movie.
Man grabs iPad because he has to go to the bathroom and doesn’t want to pause the movie.
Man’s iPad battery dies, he gets upset and breaks iPad.
Man gets even more upset, breaks Macbook and tv.
Wife says she’s leaving because husband is to “connected” to technology.
Man is sad and lonely because Apple Care won’t cover physical damage.

On a serious note, if anyone makes that script into a YouTube video, I want credit!

My two cents

Of course the above example is a huge exaggeration, but the questions are pretty clear. Do we really need all this stuff? Do we really want everything to be so connected that we become so dependent on them? What I would like to see is a way for consumers to pay much smaller fees for tv service. If Apple plans to cloud up the living room with more on-demand tv choices like those you can get from Hulu, then I hope the cable companies respond by allowing customers to only pay for channels they wish to receive. At the rate all this is going, I’m sure it won’t be much longer before network television simply allows you to subscribe to your favorite shows rather than paying to have the whole channel.

MacBook Air (2011) vs iPad 2 vs MacBook Pro

April 11, 2011February 16, 2016 · Brandon Hann

Back in November, I discussed the comparison between the MacBook Air (2010), the iPad and the MacBook Pro in terms on functionality, performance and convenience so it’s only fitting that I now update this to include the new(er) MacBook Pro and the iPad 2. Unfortunately, the MacBook Air hasn’t seen any improvements or upgrades since the new aluminum design debuted in 2010, but it still holds up.

This article also comes on the heels of the iPad 2 release. I currently own an iPad and just like I’ve done with every iPhone model, I contemplated selling it and purchasing the new one, but this time, I can’t seem to justify it. In fact, I’m on the verge of selling my iPad (again). Since we last talked about this, my plan was to:

Sell my current desktop PC
Sell my iPad
Sell my MacBook
Buy a Mac Mini to replace my desktop
Buy a MacBook Air (11-inch) to replace my MacBook and iPad
Keep my iPhone 4 as my extremely portable device

This is funny because it originally called for selling my iPad, but I still own it! I never follow my own advice. Anyway, let’s explore the new and upgraded devices and see what my new plan will be…as if this time will be any different. 😉

MacBook Air (2011 model)

I know I’m calling it a ‘2011 model”, but in reality, nothing has changed. There’s no word on any major Air upgrades coming down the line, but we can probably rely on the standard performance upgrades that usually occur between major updates to features or design. Apple always seems to lose focus on one or more products while they’re honed in on a new one. I think right now, it’s iPad 2 and iPhone 5. MacBook Air is currently on the backburner. At any rate, here are the models again:

2011 MacBook Air models

As you can see, you still only have 2 major differences…an 11-inch screen and a 13-inch screen. After you decide what size you want, you only have two other choices to make: how big you want your hard drive to be and how much video memory you require.

iPad 2

Just as I described the 1st iPad, the second is still just an over-sized iPhone. On the surface, there’s nothing wrong with that. However, as you might imagine, when you want to perform more specific tasks like file manipulation or writing a document, you’re going to be out of luck. The iPad is and always will be an item of convenience. It’s great to have around when you want to read the daily news, play a few games, do some email and of course web browsing, but it is no computer…not by a long shot!

On my current 1st gen iPad, I really thought I was getting somewhere when I bought the wireless keyboard in addition to the USB and SD card adapters, but I was always irritated that there was no file system. I was hoping that the iPad was going to be close to ripping an LCD screen off a MacBook and turning it into a keyboard-less computer with touch capabilities. But no, you just get iOS.

Anyway, as for the iPad 2 itself, I loved it. I don’t own one and I don’t foresee myself getting one, but I have played with a friend’s and have used it many times in the store. The thing you’ll notice first about it is how light it is. Granted, the first iPad wasn’t heavy, but you can instantly feel the difference. This is important for those of you that plan on carrying this thing around everywhere. It actually weighs less than a 3-ring binder (depending on how much paper you have in it).

Pros and Cons

Pros:

Lightweight and small…very portable
Touch screen is as fluid as iPhone
Built-in 3G service (AT&T only)
Available for both AT&T and Verizon
10-hour battery
Dual cameras
Dual-core A5 processor

Cons:

iOS software – not a real OS compared to a MacBook
Somewhat bulky
No USB
No SD card slot

One other complaint I have is that the new Smart Covers from Apple, which are awesome, only cover the front of the iPad leaving the back to potentially get scratched.

MacBook Pro

Apple MacBook aluminum unibody (2008)

My MacBook is so old now, it came out when you could actually get a MacBook and a MacBook Pro in the aluminum design! Today, they are all Pros and the regular MacBook has been resigned to the old plastic design. The MacBook Pros today have a fairly different set of features than before, so I’m thinking of trading up. Here are some of the specs:

LED backlit screens with option antiglare widescreen technology
Thunderbolt port – up to 10Gbps for digital video output
Up to 750Gb hard drive (SATA) or up to 512Gb (SSD)
Up to 8Gb DDR3 memory
Faster dual-core processors (2.7GHz max)
New Quad-core (on 15-inch and up – 2.2 GHz max)

These computers are beefy! You can view the full comparison between MacBook Pros on Apple.com.

After upgrading my own MacBook to its max, I have found that I don’t even use my desktop computer anymore. There was a time when I thought about purchasing a Mac Mini to account for this loss, but there’s no need when I can just plug my MacBook into my 40-inch tv and go to work. I remember when I bought my MacBook, I explicitly got the 13-inch screen because I wanted the most portable laptop you could get, but now I wish I had gotten the 17-inch so it could stay on my desk while I use a MacBook Air for my portable machine.

Conclusion

These three devices are, in some ways comparable and not in others, but that’s what makes them such a great team! They tend to complement each other with varying results and when you mix them with any smartphone (or iPhone especially), you’ll achieve the most well-rounded tech setup you can get. This is where most people get stumped. You start asking yourself, “Do I really need this?” or “Is this thing going to really benefit me?” It also doesn’t help when your friends already think you buy Apple products just to be cool!

The results come down to functionality, performance and convenience. For me, the decision was hard, but I believe my new tech setup will consist of the following:

Sell my iPad
Keep my MacBook
Buy an 11-inch MacBook Air
Have no desktop computer

The idea behind this is simple. Like I said, I can always use my tv as a monitor, so there’s no need to upgrade to a larger MacBook at this time. I also don’t use my iPad enough to justify it sitting on my desk (although it does look really cool) and the MacBook Air would serve as my portable device where originally my iPad would fill in. I know it’s strange to think that a 13-inch MacBook isn’t considered portable anymore, but when you blog as much as I do, it becomes tedious carrying that thing around to various places.

Lastly, I’m still waiting for 3G capabilities to be added to the MacBook Air!

UPDATE (May 4, 2011) – There’s new competition to the MacBook Air! Samsung has released the Series 9 laptop that rivals the Air in almost every way.

Apple iPhone 5 Rumors

April 6, 2011February 1, 2016 · Brandon Hann

As with everything Apple, the rumors are already abound regarding a 5th generation iPhone. What will it look like? What new features will it have and most importantly, do I really need another iPhone?

It seems that every time a new iPhone comes out, we quietly tell ourselves that this will be the last one we’re going to buy…because it has everything we need. And then a few months before release date, the blogs are on fire about the all new design and features. That’s when the excitement overtakes you and before you know it, you’re trolling around every website you can find trying to scoop up just one more piece of new information.

iPhone 5 News

The blogs are already here! I found the first one by typing “iphone 5” into Google and it looks like www.iphone5newsblog.com is claiming to be the first site dedicated to the iPhone 5. The fact is that there is no actual news yet…just rumors.

As with other tech sites online, I plan to follow this product into oblivion like I’ve done with previous models to bring you the latest as it comes. And just like in the past, I’m sure I’ll have a week or two of discussions simply about iPhone 5 and nothing more!

The Rumors

Let’s get to the good stuff. I’ve rounded up some of the latest rumors about the new phone. Please remember, these are just rumors. Actually, it might be closer to a wishlist than anything else.

Larger screen – If only they added a phone feature to the iPad…then we’d have a larger screen! Actually, it’s very possible that the screen could reach a 4-inch size to compete with the latest Droid phones.
iPhone on T-Mobile – After AT&T announced they are buying T-Mobile for $39 million, it came as no surprise that T-Mobile customers were excited that this would enable them to get iPhone for the first time…legally. There’s no word whether T-Mobile will still operate as an independent company.
Faster processor – While it would be cool if they went with a dual-core processor, Apple might opt for a new A5 chip instead. This would likely be due to battery life.
Higher resolution – Just when you thought the screen couldn’t get any better, it just might! Dare I say a 3D iPhone?! How crazy would that be? I mean it might look cool to be using apps and placing phone calls in a 3D environment, but how funny would you look to people on the street?
Thinner and lighter – Of course this could be expected given the overhauls they’ve done to the iPad and the MacBook Air. How thin and light could they go if they plan to make the screen larger?
4G service – I can’t imagine Apple releasing their next phone without 4G capabilities, so we can *hopefully* assume this one is true!

More Information

Stay tuned to this site for more information as it comes. I’ll be blogging more and more as news is delivered and you can expect to stay informed by accessing www.ledfrog.com/iPhone.

Lastly, I found an interesting website that created this really cool mockup of the presumed iPhone 5 features. I’m re-posting the image here, but to see the original source, please check out NowhereElse.fr.

UPDATE April 20, 2011 – Reuters seems to have confirmed that iPhone 5 will likely ship in September. It would also seem as though the new phone will be more of a slight update rather than a whole new device. If this is true, we can expect a similar transition like we saw between the 3G and the 3GS. According to the article, it’s possible that the processor will be the only thing upgraded.

Apple iPad 2 is Here – Launch Day Craziness

March 11, 2011February 16, 2016 · Brandon Hann

Apple is very well-known for its launch days with people standing in long lines days before the “big day”, people fighting over who was there first and just general anger when people find out the store sold out of their desired item. Of course, the iPad 2 is no different.

While it did seem like a much quieter day compared to those crazy iPhone 4 days when everyone decided they wanted one after the world got to see the new model leaked early, it wasn’t without it’s interesting events. One such event places college student, Amanda Foote at the Apple store in New York. She was the first person in line after getting there on Wednesday night, but she wasn’t waiting for an iPad. According to her story (see video below), she heard about people selling spots in line in the past, so she decided to try her luck at such a feat. Apparently it paid off since she earned a cool $900 for her place. Considering she got there at 5pm on Wednesday and the store probably opened at 10am today, that means she was there for 41 hours–that’s almost $22 an hour–not bad for sleeping in the rain.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIZtBMUVT1g

Long Lines

I can’t imagine waiting in a line like this! I mean, how far do you start walking back before you wonder exactly how many iPads can this tiny store actually hold? Also, is it somewhat of a better experience to wait in a physical line rather then ordering online at home?

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUbiuLIxArU

Oh wait, I get it…you want everyone to see you walk out of the mall holding the fresh new box so they can drool with envy.

Backorders

Although Apple never tells you the truth, you can always get an estimate of how low their stock levels are by ordering from Apple.com. I just looked and sure enough, we have our first delayed shipping message: “Ships in 2-3 weeks”.

Maybe they should have done some pre-orders.

Is it worth the Hype?

After seeing and hearing all about how great the iPad 2 is and then verifying this belief by watching the videos above and reading the news in the next days about how many records have been broken for iPad sales, it’s not hard to fall into the same category as everyone else–that which forces you to own all of the latest technology you can get your hands on.

But, is it really worth it? Given that the majority of those iPads sold today will just end on eBay to all of the last-minute buyers who must now fork over 20-60% markups just so they don’t have to wait for Apple to replenish, you start to wonder if the iPad 2 is even worth all the hype. I don’t think it is. I already compared the iPad 2 to the iPad 1 and have made my judgment on selling my old one and not getting the new one, but that isn’t because I don’t like it. It’s simply because I don’t use it as much as I thought I was.

My only advice is to think about why you want to buy and what you plan to use it for before simply getting it because it’s shiny and new.

Apple iPad 2 – Coming March 11, 2011

March 7, 2011February 16, 2016 · Brandon Hann

Apple is well known for its snazzy, sleek product designs that have fan-boys (and girls) lining up at retail stores world-wide on product launch days. However, the rest of the crowd (those who are not interested in the latest “iProduct”) generally sees Apple’s product designs as nothing more than an industry slight–one that does a phenomenal job of covering up outdated system hardware.

I wouldn’t go so far as to say Apple’s latest products aren’t up to par with other related tech products. I just think they really believe the road to success is the old KISS method…keep it simple stupid. When the first iPhone came out, as well as every model since, tech gurus and Apple-haters have been complaining about low-quality cameras, slow processor speed, lack of memory, crashing apps, overheating issues, antenna problems and everything else under the Sun. They relentlessly compared them to every other smart phone on the market and in almost every case, the iPhone favored negatively. Meanwhile, while this tech war was being waged, one indisputable reality was taking place…millions of people were still buying iPhones.

iPad 2

And now we’ve come to this–the iPad 2. This week, Apple will start selling the 2nd incarnation of its famed tablet PC that everyone loved to hate. Once again, we have an Apple product that has met with some very harsh criticisms and comparisons to competing products–and still, once again, Apple has prevailed. While consumers were trying to find uses for the iPad, competitors were trying to beat it and iPad 1 did all but destroy e-readers such as Amazon’s Kindle or Barnes and Noble’s Nook along with a host of other tablet PCs. Apple must be doing something right.

Quick Comparison:

	iPad	iPad 2

Base Price	$399 (originally $499)	$499

Colors	Black	Black or White

Dimensions	9.56 x 7.47 x 0.5 inches	9.5 x 7.31 x 0.34 inches
Weight	1.5-1.6 pounds	1.33-1.35 pounds

Storage	16GB/32GB/64GB	16GB/32GB/64GB

Connections	Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, optional AT&T 3G	Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, optional AT&T 3G or Verizon 3G

Screen	9.7-inch 1024×768	9.7-inch 1024×768

Processor	1GHz A4	1GHz dual-core A5

Battery	Up to 10 hours	Up to 10 hours

Cameras	None	720p rear, VGA front

Sensors	Accelerometer, Ambient light sensor	Accelerometer, Ambient light sensor, 3-axis gyro

Location	Wi-Fi, Compass, Optional GPS (3G version)	Wi-Fi, Compass, Optional GPS (3G versions)

As you can see, not much has changed. Of course “not much” is a subjective statement seeing as how someone might feel like the addition of two cameras is actually worth the upgrade. Personally, if I sold my current iPad and got the iPad 2, it would be for two reasons only: 1. I can get Verizon 3G service and 2. I can now get it in white.

The processor is likely the third biggest change for me. Although the first iPad was fast enough for what you would generally use it for, it’s nice to have an extra boost–all without degrading the battery life–or so we’ll see! About these cameras…I’m sure the front camera is the better one to have given the Skype® capabilities or maybe you’re hard up for updating your Facebook profile pic, but I don’t see much use for a rear camera. Chances are you’re already carrying a camera in your pocket anyway, so why would you want to hold a 9″ iPad up to your subject and snap a photo? Maybe for a quick eBay listing while you’re at the restaurant? Yeah, I can see that happening.

The Competition

The New York Times said today, “So Far Rivals Can’t Beat iPad’s Price”. When have you ever heard “rivals can’t beat […] price” when talking about Apple products?? Isn’t Apple supposed to be the most expensive ‘everything’ you can buy? On top of that, Apple outsiders will tell you that you’ve overpaid for a sub-par product: “If only you had bought (insert manufacturer name here), you could have saved money and had twice as much!” All I can say is, “Wow!”

At any rate, the Times went on to say that because of Apple’s deep pockets, they are able to save money by buying large amounts of parts up front for larger discounts as well as not having to pay licensing rights to chip makers due to Apple’s in-house chip manufacturing of the A4 and A5 processors. Plus, Apple has the App Store, which brings in more than a billion dollars each year–this alone can subsidize the cost of the iPad. All these factors can let Apple reduce their profit margin to say…25% instead of the usual 50% they pull in from iPhone.

Motorola Xoom
How does the Xoom stack up against the iPad 2?

	Xoom	iPad 2
Base Price	$799 (w/ 2-yr contract: $599)	$499

Colors	Black	Black or White

Dimensions	9.8 x 6.6 x 0.5 inches	9.5 x 7.31 x 0.34 inches
Weight	1.6 pounds	1.33-1.35 pounds

Storage	32GB internal (future support for 32GB SD cards)	16GB/32GB/64GB

Connections	Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Verizon 3G (4G compatible)	Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, optional AT&T 3G or Verizon 3G

Screen	10.1-inch 1280×800 (HD 720p)	9.7-inch 1024×768

Processor	1GHz dual-core	1GHz dual-core A5

Battery	Up to 10 hours	Up to 10 hours

Cameras	5mp rear + Dual LED flash, 2mp front	720p rear, VGA front

Sensors	Accelerometer	Accelerometer, Ambient light sensor, 3-axis gyro

Location	Wi-Fi, eCompass, aGPS (with Google maps)	Wi-Fi, Compass, Optional GPS (3G versions)

My two cents

While the Xoom has the iPad 2 beat in a few ways, it’s hard to justify the price. Even though you can upgrade the internal memory using a 32GB SD card, adding the cost of everything might just exceed the cost of the 64GB iPad. Here’s what you should consider:

Xoom has a bigger and better screen
Xoom has better cameras
Xoom has expandable memory (in the future)
Xoom will support 4G
Xoom has the Android app store
iPad 2 has a larger app Store
iPad 2 is much cheaper
iPad 2 comes in a wi-fi only model
iPad 2 looks cooler

I threw that last one in there to see if you were paying attention! The fact of the matter is that Apple has another winner here and it all comes down to this: If you already own an iPad, keep it. There’s not much to upgrade to. If you can’t find a valid use for an iPad or another tablet pc, then don’t buy any of them. If you’re on the fence, buy the iPad 2. You can’t beat the size of the App Store and the price.

Verizon iPhone Is Coming

January 12, 2011February 16, 2016 · Brandon Hann

I am certainly not reporting anything new, but as usual, I do have an opinion! There’s a new iPhone section of Verizon’s website and it appears that they’re going with a pretty outlandish tagline: iPhone 4. Verizon. It begins. I can’t tell if they’re simply just that excited about the phone coming to them (as well as the influx of new customers) or if they’re declaring an all-out war on AT&T, but either way, let’s hope all these claims of Verzion’s superiority over AT&T are true.

It’s no secret that AT&T has suffered some harsh criticism over the last 3 years due to the breakout device of the century. Looking back, we had a phone that was developed by a computer manufacturer in a time where RIM ruled the day with their Blackberrys, so lovingly called “Crackberrys” and nobody (even Apple) thought it was going to go anywhere. We all know what happened next.

iPhone on AT&T

We’ve had the chance to see how AT&T has handled the iPhone and to many, it’s been a disaster. From complaints about dropped calls, network crashes and static on phone calls to pre-order disasters, iPhone 4 antenna issues (this was Apple’s fault) and the loss of the unlimited data plan, AT&T has built themselves quite the reputation. It’s no wonder why many people have opted to move to Verizon and pick up some kind of Droid phone.

In the wake of every major problem to hit AT&T, their response has been slow, inadequate or just downright lacking. Meanwhile, Verizon has been sitting in the back of the room just waiting semi-quietly for this day to come: the perfect combination of AT&T’s bad press and the end of the exclusivity contract. I say semi-quietly because none of us can forget the epic, and very public advertising battle between the two giants. AT&T says “There’s an app for that.” while Verizon touts, “There’s a map for that.”, in which they tried to tell everyone that AT&T has less network coverage than Verizon. The reality of that statement is that AT&T does have less 3G coverage, but overall, AT&T’s network is the same size, if not bigger than Verizon’s.

By far the biggest complaint among iPhone users on AT&T has been the data usage. iPhones are powerhouse, data guzzlers! When the phone first debuted in 2007, nobody had a device that could match it and AT&T was forcefully giving away unlimited data plans. What they weren’t prepared for was the increase in customers. Not only were more people jumping on the Apple bandwagon, but the phone allowed them to do so much more than anything else at the time. It was simply human nature at that point: if it’s there, why not use it. So what was AT&T’s answer? “We’re improving the network. Oh and by the way, we’re taking away the unlimted data plans.”

To add to all of that, AT&T has been able to maintain its exclusive contract between Apple that was hammered out in 2007, basically keeping the iPhone from being on any other network. Well, this contract is ending and now we’ll see how Big Red handles this wonder device.

iPhone on Verizon

Rumors that have been fluttering around the blogosphere for the last year or so have now been squashed. The iPhone is coming to Verizon on February 10th, 2011. and there’s no looking back! Many Verizon customers have had ‘iPhone envy’ for as long as they can remember—those customers not willing to jump ship to AT&T because they love their “more” reliable service so much. Who can blame them? With everything that I mentioned above plus all the bad press that AT&T has suffered the last 3 years, I’m amazed that I’m still an iPhone owner.

It’ll be interesting to see exactly what happens now that Droid phones have been able to gain some foothold in the industry. Will Verizon customers trade phones? Will AT&T customers pack their bags and head for Verizon-land? Will Blackberry finally meet its demise? Nobody can say for sure, but investors are already prepping. AT&T stocks have started to drop while Verizon’s have started to rise.

One other important note is that AT&T offered early upgrades to all existing iPhone users with the release of the iPhone 4. Of course many, many customers jumped at the chance to get the new phone, but failed (or didn’t care) to realize that they were being locked into 2 more years of AT&T’s service. This was no doubt AT&T’s last attempt to keep its iPhone customers alive and well.

The last major issue of concern is the well-known antenna issue–you know, the one where you couldn’t hold your phone without a bumper case? The question is whether Verizon will be getting the same, defective phone or if a re-design is in order. Time will tell, but these pictures sure point to good news.

New iPhone antenna "slits" — New iPhone antenna “slits”

Old iPhone antenna "slits" — Old iPhone antenna “slits”

For a closer view, check out Engadget’s article about the new iPhone casing design. The potential new design is somewhat of a concern due to the movement of the vibration switch and you know what that means!! That’s right, all new cases!!

My Two Cents

As if my opinions matters to you anyway…I’m sure you’ve already made up your mind about what you’re going to do. As for me, I’m locked in for just over one more year and after reviewing AT&T’s early termination fee schedule, I don’t think I’m going anywhere soon. Just in case you didn’t know what it is, if you own an iPhone, the cost is $325 minus $10 for every month you were in your contract. For me, that fee will be $225 if I jump over to Verizon in February.

My plan at this point is to wait for everyone else to jump ship and that should alleviate the network congestion. But that’s just hopeful thinking I guess and at least I’m not the only one who feels that way.

How to protect yourself from being phished

December 31, 2010 · Brandon Hann

Phishing is the number one reason why people lose access to their email, banking and even social networking accounts. Anytime you or your friend say your “account got hacked”, this is what happened. In reality, your account didn’t get hacked! If it did, then you’re saying that someone out there was able to break into the servers that hold your account and somehow retrieve access to your account. If that had happened, I can guarantee that I would never do business with a site like that again!

In fact, what did happen was that someone duped you into giving up your login information and this is far from a hack–it’s simply an ingenius way to fool the unsuspecting.

How does phishing work?

It’s the ultimate form of deception in the online world. Here’s the basic scam:

The attacker sets up a website that looks identical to the site he/she is trying to gain access to.
You receive an email that tells you that you have to sign into your account for some reason.
The message contains a link that looks legitimate, but then takes you to the fake site instead.
Once on the site, you ‘login’, but nothing happens.
By clicking the login button, you’ve just sent your username and password to the attacker.

I’m always surprised when I hear that people have fallen for these scams–especially because today’s antivirus software and even web browsers all generally have automated protections against known phishing threats.

So how do you keep from getting phished?

The number one rule to remember is always check the link you’re clicking on. Just because it says http://www.facebook.com/login doesn’t mean it’s actually going there. Here are the best ways to keep your account information safe:

Always check the URL once you click on a link. This cannot be faked! If you click on a link that’s supposed to go to Facebook, make sure that the URL in the address bar says Facebook.com.
Don’t click on links in emails. If you really want to be safe, just don’t click on the link. You can always go to the site manually and login. A lot of these scam emails will say that you need to login to update something in your account. Ok, so maybe you want to be sure. Just go to your browse and manually type in facebook.com and login to see what’s going on in your account.
Login with fake information. If you’re still not sure about the site you’re on, try to login with an obviously wrong username/password combination. If the site is real, you’ll get an error message saying your login information is wrong. If the site is fake, you won’t see anything happen.
Pay attention. A legitimate site will never ask you for your username and password and therefore would never ask you to login to your account to change some mundane details. If the site has a legitimate purpose for having you log into your account, they will usually tell you to login first to see an important message rather than sending it in an email.

What can I do if I got phished?

This depends on when you find out what happened. If you sent your login info and you realized right away that it was a scam, go log into the real site and quickly change your password. These scammers will usually send out the fake email to thousands of users at one time in hopes to get a few bites and they may not have sorted through all the login info they received by the time you found out, so you may still have a chance to save your account.

If you were already scammed and you lost access to your account, you need to contact the company that runs the site to explain what happened. They usually won’t turn over accounts based on a simple request, but they can monitor the account for suspicious activity and/or shut it down. However, don’t expect to get your account back. This rarely happens as it’s almost impossible for you to prove that you’re the rightful owner.

Help others in the community when you come across a known scam or specific person involved by alerting your friends not to respond to their requests. You should also report this information to the website they are attacking.

Final thought

Phishing will never disappear just like viruses, spam, black-hat hackers and other threats out there. There’s an old saying that says “Never let a sucker keep his money.” Don’t be the sucker. Don’t rely 100% on your antivirus software for for big name website to shut these scammers down. You need to rely on your knowledge to help you wade through these types of threats when using a computer.

Lastly, if you’re not to sure about a specific website or link, don’t enter any personal information on it!