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  One word for the Amazon Kindle for iPhone

  Stii 8:19 am on March 19, 2010 | Comments: 2 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Amazon kindle, books, gadgets (2), iphone, iphone apps (3), kindle for iphone

  Impressive!

  I’ve been a sceptic about the Kindle since the day it launched. In the meantime I’ve seen it and it is pretty cool. Amazon made an Kindle for iPhone app that is completely free, which makes a lot of sense. Also a Kindle for Mac app, but I find it hard to sit in front of my Macbook and read a story. It’s simply not the same as lying on your back on the couch or reading on the toilet.

  At first I thought now this is pretty useless! The iPhone screen is WAY too small for anyone to read a book on. It CANNOT be a pleasant experience. Boy was I wrong?! It is fabulous.

  The interface

  I love the Kindle for iPhone user interface. It is dead simple. It fills the entire screen with the page. No scrolling or zooming necessary. To page, you simply swipe your finger across the screen. Okay, true, there isn’t a crapload of text on a screen if you read it (like these examples below) in the biggest font size available. This means if you read like a bloody speed demon, your finger are going to get some serious exercise! That wouldn’t be a bad thing either.

  

  When you tap the screen a simple interface appears that allows you to manipulate either text size, text and background colour and manage your bookmarks and locations.

  

  The 3 text and background colours are also very useful.
  Black text on a white background.
  White text on a black background.
  Grey text on a creamy (like a real book page) background. They call it the sepia option.

  What is amazing is how useful this actually is! When I was reading on the couch I had it black text on white and it was great. Later when I went to bed and was reading in complete darkness I found the white background too bright and actually straining my eyes so I switched to white text on a black background and it was perfect.

  

  Flip the phone sideways and it turns the book into landscape.

  

  You can highlight certain text or even make notes by simply touching and holding the screen. What is even better about this is if you use Kindle for Mac, Kindle for iPhone and you have a Kindle, it will sync your annotations, highlights and bookmarks across all the devices.

  

  I love the bookmarking feature of the Kindle. Funny that when I read a paper book, I fold the corner when I stop reading to bookmark my place. The Kindle app does exactly the same. Next time when I want to continue reading, I go to the bookmarks and I simply tap the location where I want to go to. Note that you can have many bookmarks throughout the book, so it really is handy.

  

  The sign up process

  This is the one area that almost impressed me the most. You need to have an existing Amazon account in order to register for the Kindle store. I have an existing Amazon account, but it is extremely old and I couldn’t remember the login detail, so I created a new account. It was a breeze. I even added my credit card detail and set up 1-click purchasing without hassles. Back at the Kindle store, I registered for the Kindle bookstore by entering my Amazon account detail and off we go. Searched or browsed for books, hit 1-click when I wanted to buy a book and next time I opened my Kindle for iPhone app it fetched my newly acquired book.

  All this took me less than 5 minutes. If you have an existing Amazon account it would literally take you no extra time, but typing your username and password. That is impressive!

  The book selection

  This was my major gripe since the launch. There are only 335 000 books in the Kindle store. Not all the books are being sold as Kindle books and what sucks even more is that if you are in South Africa, you often get books that are in Kindle format, but are not allowed to be sold in our area. A book like Freakonomics is in Kindle format, but you’re not allowed to buy it that way in South Africa.

  What did surprise me was that although it is still quite restrictive and limited, there is actually quite a number of books that did in fact interest me and are readily available. By the time I’ve read the books they do have, much more should be available.

  The book prices aren’t bad. For example, Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers cost just over $11. It is much better than what you’d pay for the paper book. I bought Mecury Falls by Robert Kroese for a mere $2.99 which is well worth it! The book Erlang Programming will set you back $33.99 which is quite steep. Then again, programming books never come cheap anyway.

  To check out the book selection, click here.

  Conclusion

  I love it. It will replace books for me forever. I will have to find something else to put on my book shelves to fill the space. It is by far my new favorite iPhone app. If you own an iPhone, you should definitely get it. If you don’t own an iPhone, then this is the second most important reason to get one! Get the app here.

  Will I buy a real Kindle? No, I won’t as I don’t think I need it. The Kindle for iPhone is sufficient for my needs. Yes, better display, better experience, blah, blah, blah… Can it beat FREE?!

  I must also add that I absolutely love the fact that books are now as mobile as my communication device. Never again will I have to page through a Femina, Fairlady or Huisgenoot while waiting for the dentist. It will definitely make me read a lot more.

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• 

  I wish I was this creative with an iPhone

  Stii 9:18 am on March 5, 2010 | Comments: 1 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: creative, everyday looper, iphone, iphone apps (3), Music (7)

  Check out this video. It is a song made with an iPhone App called everyday looper. What is amazing is how this guy just do it on the fly and it sounds DAMN good!

  It always without fail amaze me how good some people are at doing random things like this.

  This truly is one of the best things I’ve seen someone do with an iPhone.
  
   
• 

  Platter's wine guide 2010 launch

  Stii 10:30 am on November 13, 2009 | Comments: 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: 5star, iphone, iphone apps (3), platters wine guide, wines

  I was very, very fortunate to get an invite to this prestigious launch of the 2010 Platter’s wine guide as well as the official announcement of the first version of the Platter’s iPhone app which is the 2009 guide hosted by Andrew McDowall. What was, undoubtedly, the highlight of the evening was the fabulous 5 star wines.

  

  Now, let me be Frank (whoever that is). I’m not like the other esteemed guests. I’m a plonk when it comes to wine. To give you an idea, if it tastes good and the headache is not to bad the next morning, it is considered a good wine in Stii’s wine guide. If it comes in a bottle, thats a big bonus! I was absolutely AMAZED at the quality of the 5 star wines there. In fact, I’ve purchased the Platter’s iPhone app, because for the first time I fully understand this little fact:

  If the Platter’s guide says it is a 5 star wine, it is a 5 star wine.

  I was completely blown away by the exceptional quality of the wines. What also amazed me was the process of grading the wines and then the brutal process of becoming a 5 star wine. It is reserved for only a select few wines and after last night, I can fully understand why.

  Three wines that stood out for me was the Dunstone Shiraz 2008, Haskell Pillars Shiraz 2007 and a white blend by Rall wine cellars which was recommended by the brilliant Allan Mullins. Also, congrats to the winery of the year The Sadie Family. There were in total 41 5 star wines and it was simply impossible to enjoy them all and get home safely and I would have been damned if I had to spit it out! Sacrilege…

  

  The iPhone application will no doubt be one of my top iPhone apps in future. A couple of suggestions though:

  • They should look at getting wines to print QR codes on their labels which when scanned with the application will take you to the wine’s entry in the Platter app.
  • It would be great if they could pull in reviews, blog posts, etc from third party web sites so we could see what other normal users / experts have to say about the wines.
  • It could even be cool if they could build in a voting system like Reddit has so users could upvote their favorite wines. Yes, their recommendations are fantastic, but not everyone can afford a > R200 wine for a Friday night braai watching rugby.
  • The maps they’ve integrated are a nice feature, but a novelty*. I’m not sure it would be useful unless you’re in the wine country and looking for a great wine estate.

  

  I guess, the focus should shift somewhat from being an information only guide to a wine utility*. That would make it really handy for use consumers and after all, most wines get made for us, not true?

  Finally, I want to commend everybody involved in the guide. They’ve got the right mindset in looking to adopt technology and I was very surprised at their receptiveness thereof. It is not easy for old skool to adapt to the new and considering that Platter’s has been at it on paper for 30 years, it certainly is special to see the hunger for adopting new technology!

  * Special thanks to Rich Mulholland for explaining novelty vs. utility in such simple terms to me at the Nokia, the way we live next event.
  
   
• 

  Internetlessness makes one appreciate the mobile web

  Stii 6:54 pm on November 10, 2009 | Comments: 3 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: apps, internet (2), iphone, Mobile Web (2)

  Since the dreadfull move to a new house this weekend, I’ve been left at the mercy of the merciless Telkom. Thankfully, the iPhone has been a godsend to keep me in touch with my reality.

  It also made me think a whole lot about the mobile web and how extremely far behind it is. Sure, on the iPhone most web sites work. On normal phones, your options are very limited.

  We have a lot of work to do. A lot! Time to seriously consider your mobile offering and open a new world of knowledge to the mobile user.

  Please, since I’m not getting ADSL any time soon probably…

  Oh, this is also the first post I’m making with the iPhone WordPress app! Nifty…
  
   
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  Samsung Jet - first impressions

  Stii 12:26 pm on August 13, 2009 | Comments: 6 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: htc magic, iphone, samsung jet (2)

  I received the Samsung Jet to try out for 2 weeks. Ever since the Adgator Campaign I’ve been curious about this phone as it looked damn impressive and feature rich. My first impressions were kind of a mixed grill.

  

  The basics of the Samsung Jet

  I feel that Samsung could have invested a LOT more in getting the basics right.

  What irritated me was the unresponsive touch screen. If you are used to an iPhone then you’ll know what I’m talking about. They could have done a lot more optimization for the touch screen responsiveness. It is basically the same as with the HTC Magic. You need to press something twice or even three times before it registers at times. That being said, I noticed that the screen was almost flimsy. It feels soft and for good reason as it looks like it is pressure sensitive. A woman with long nails can click the screen with their nails and it would respond. This is something the iPhone don’t do.

  Second thing is setting up or connecting to a wireless network. I got it going, but there was simply too many options to go through.

  Third thing that bothers me is the setting up of Gmail on the phone. It should be a lot more simple. I tried once, didn’t succeed and left it. I’ll try later again when I have the time.

  Then there is the keyboard. When the phone is upright, it mimics a normal mobile phone keyboard and if you turn it sideways, you get a qwerty keyboard. I initially though this was dumb, but my wife loves it that way. Different strokes, I guess…

  I have to say, it looks fantastic. The display is astounding! The graphics is crisp, clear and very high definition.

  When I hooked it up to my laptop to charge it, I was glad to see it can actually charge via USB. This should be a standard for all new phones. Only problem is that it took hours to charge. Too long, considering how fast an iPhone charge. Surely this is something they could have investigated?

  Furthermore, it is PACKED with gimmicks. I mean PACKED. For example, if you open the phone menu and press a button on the side of the phone, your phone menu is transformed into this 3D rotating cube. It looks AMAZING. If you then open the photo gallery, your photos are presented like a 3D book with pages which you can page through. Very, very good looking and done well.

  I think it is a good phone. It is just a pity that it lacks the very basics that the iPhone has done so well. For me it did not feel intuitive enough, but my wife immediately RAVED about it’s user-friendliness. Depending on price, I’d say it is not a bad alternative. I would lump it together with the iPhones and Androids of the world. Only one small glitch though… need to figure out the apps or widgets and how or where to get them… This could be a deal breaker.
  
   
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  iPhone rule the first world, not South Africa

  Stii 11:20 pm on February 17, 2009 | Comments: 0 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: admob, iphone, Mobile Web (2), statistics (2)

  I’ve just skimmed through the January Admob handset reports. Very interesting. According to Admob, Apple’s iPhone rules the mobile web:

  

  However, in South Africa the iPhone did not even make the list. Below is a breakdown for South Africa:

  

  This is quite intriguing. It could mean that we’re simply being charged too much to afford it. For the full report, download it here.