links for 2010-03-07
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When it's time to party, we must party hard!
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Nice, new album on the way by the National.
links for 2010-03-06
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Nevius the voice of reason, as always.
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Android theme for today: My sister has a Moto Cliq on T-Mobile, running Android 1.5 or 1.6 with the Moto Blur overlay, and my aunt has a Moto Droid on Verzion, running Android 2.0. And no sign of an update for either to 2.1.
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Comprehensive look at what Android does better than the iPhone, and vice versa.
iPhone touch screen reigns supreme
For various reasons, since last fall I have tried out a a Motorola Droid (Android platform) and a Palm Pre Plus (webOS platform) as potential replacements for my iPhone 3GS. Both times, I have returned the would-be usurpers of my smartphone throne, with the iPhone remaining the clear winner (AT&T network issues aside, but I have concluded that they are not enough of a dealbreaker to force me to give up the iPhone). I would divide the reasons for the iPhone's continued leadership into two categories: 1) third-party app selection and 2) myriad minor refinements that add up to a better user experience (I think that is generally abbreviated as UX).
Regarding the latter, the user experience, it manifests in such ways as the little "bump" that a scrolling page exhibits when it reaches the end of the page, to provide the user with visual feedback. A very significant element of Apple's advantage in UX is the touchscreen. The iPhone touchscreen offers everything you want in a touchscreen: button presses are recognized the first time, with a natural level of force required from the user; multitouch is implemented throughout the OS; and the screen accurately traces the user's finger.
Both the Droid and the Pre Plus come up far short. The most noticeable shortcoming is in recognizing button presses, where you have to press an on-screen button multiple times before the press is recognized. This writer's account of Pre Plus frustrations rings very true for me. (I can also confirm his complaints about abysmal battery life and copy/paste frustrations, but enjoyed the integrated SMS/IM app.) Using these phones feels like you are navigating a touch screen that has a layer of petroleum jelly on it, or using a mouse on your computer with your opposite hand--everything is a bit more frustrating, you have to be more deliberate, and so on.
As the Wired article notes, both hardware and software aspects are important in creating a good touchscreen experience for users, so I am not sure which come up short for iPhone competitors. Probably a bit of both. I'm curious to see how long it takes smartphone competitors to catch up. Although the Pre Plus' webOS platform is very young, I'm more surprised by that phone's failings than the Droid, given that Palm has control of both hardware and software for the Pre and there are a great many former Apple employees at Palm. Insufficient resources, perhaps?
Anyway, absence makes the heart grow fonder, and I'm happy to be back using a smartphone that eliminates the little frustrations that make you curse...
links for 2010-03-04
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Some general thoughts on software patents, and specific thoughts on the Apple-HTC lawsuit.
links for 2010-03-03
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Nice to see some updates, but super-lame that the interface revisions are only coming to new boxes. I'll pass, given that I have lifetime subscriptions for my two TiVo HD boxes and the feature upgrades--apart from interface--are minimal. The only thing that might make me upgrade is a rumored discount on new box subscriptions for existing lifetime subscribers; we'll see what that winds up being.
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Nice to hear that Univ. of Michigan is weathering the general state and national economic malaise just fine. I don't root against State, so sad to hear of their problems.
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A must-watch for my dog-loving friends. I love the tongues coming out at the end.
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Pretty cool: Klosterman interviews Malkmus. I couldn't imagine a better journalist for the task.
links for 2010-03-02
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A nice overview of current RSS reader options on the iPhone. I've recently started using Reeder instead of NewsRack, as I find it just as powerful with a more streamlined interface.
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