Tag: Apple

Guest Post: 7 Reasons Why You Need The iPhone 4S

Apple’s latest and greatest iPhone has taken the internet by storm, polarising opinion but still garnering a shedload of reviews in the process. Love, hate or tolerate it, there’s no hiding from the 4S this autumn. iPhone 4S deals are going on sale this weekend, so expect lengthy queues outside an Apple store near you. If you’re still unsure about what the iPhone 4S has to offer, here are seven reasons why you need to empty your wallet in order to fill your pocket with this mobile marvel.

It’s an iPhone 4S

1. Voice Activation. Listen up, button-pressing luddites, because with Siri voice activation this only needs said once: The future is here, and guess what? It speaks your freaking language. The iPhone’s new voice recognition technology is so advanced that you can dictate emails and text messages and even have them read back to you. Similarly, you can have your phone read out text messages you’ve received, leaving you truly hands-free. Worried about the weather? Ask Siri ‘Do I need an umbrella?’ and a smarter, less whiney version of C3PO will get back to you with the forecast. Hopefully.

2. Beefed Up Battery. We’re not just talking about relief from that irritating bleep bleep that tells you you’re low on juice. (Surely the bleep bleep is only serving to further drain the battery?) The battery fitted to the 4S allows you to talk for up to eight hours on 3G (14 hours on 2G); browse the internet for up to six hours (nine on Wi-Fi); watch up to ten hours of video; and listen to music for an eardrum-shattering 40 hours straight. If you’re a fair weather phone user, you’ll be pleased to hear that the 4S has standby power for 200 hours. If maths isn’t your thing, that’s over a week, incidentally.

3. Improved Camera. Are you truly ready for your close-up? Because this camera catches every wrinkle and every blemish, with eight megapixels working hard to prove that the camera doesn’t lie. The new cam has the ability to shoot moving pictures at a highly light-sensitive and impressive 1080p. You can finally leave your digital camera at home without worrying that you’ll miss a moment, although you may have to spend far more time getting ready to ensure you always look your best when a snap happy iPhone 4S owner is in your vicinity.

4. iOS 5. The newest Apple operating system can be downloaded by all iPhone users, but the 4S has it built in. The iOS 5 is powered by an A5 chip processor similar to the one found on the iPad 2 and can operate at twice the speed of the iPhone 4. Apple have also implemented complete Twitter integration with the iOS 5, meaning that fans of the site can effortlessly tweet from their phones. The Facebook app for iPad has also been deemed iOS 4.0 compatible; expect to see it migrating to iOS 5 in the not-too-distant future.

5. AirPlay Mirroring. With the 4S you can mirror your iPhone’s screen to your TV set via an Apple TV unit. Browse the web; watch a movie; view a slideshow – all on a big screen. This feature is especially exciting for game developers who no longer have to design graphics solely for a small screen. Who needs a Wii when you have AirPlay?

6. It Isn’t The iPhone 4… …which means no more antenna problems. The iPhone 4S has fixed the pesky signal problems that caused such a stir upon the release of its predecessor. It has a dual-antenna design that allows the phone to switch in areas of poor signal, and choose the stronger of the two in true Darwinian style. The best part of this is that you will no longer need one of those silly bumper cases for the 4S.

7. It Looks Virtually Identical To Its Predecessor. Hang on, so the 4S looks almost the same as the iPhone 4? Isn’t that a bad thing? When the iPhone 4 was released, it was heralded as being one of the sleekest, slickest handsets on the market. Nothing’s changed since then; it still holds its own against the competition. Why change a winning formula? Some people are worried that its identical looks will mean people will not be able to instantly recognize that you have the very latest iPhone. On the contrary though, your iPhone 4S will be instantly identifiable by the already mentioned lack of bumper case.

So there you have it: seven reasons why 4S is best.

October 16, 2011
Guest Post: 7 Reasons Why Androids Are Better Than iPhones

We’ve had doors and hairy chests and alien invasions, so what next from 7 Reasons groupie Sam Murray? Well, quite obviously, it’s post about smartphones. So, if you’re thinking of upgrading your handset soon, here’s Sam with some invaluable information. (Just remember to ignore all he says and buy an iPhone).

Long gone are the days where playground bullies proclaim, “my dad is harder than your dad”, the latest insult is more likely to be, “my phone is better than yours”. And if that phone happens to be an android, then I am in their gang and will wedgie anyone that says otherwise.

I could give more than seven reasons why androids are better than iPhones but after discovering the site ’33 Reasons’ doesn’t exist I have come back to share my top seven.

1. Battery Life. iDrain is a more apt description of most iPhones, especially the 3GS or earlier models (as the iPhone 4 has improved) For a phone whose star attraction is the ability to download applications it is a shame that you play and surf at your peril. It is the equivalent of being given the keys to a new Ferrari only to find out the faster you go the less time you will have.

2. Browsing. Although I do like a Safari, the grass might be greener on the other side of the electric fence. Yes the Safari browser on the iPhone is fast and reliable, but flexible? No. It still doesn’t have the ability to operate with Flash which automatically restricts users viewing certain websites. No not those kinds of websites. On the other hand, the Android has a range of browsers which you can choose from ranging from; Dolphin, Opera Mini, Skyfire, Fennec and the default Browser. Everyone loves options and that is the beauty of Android: You have options which all have fast page-load speeds, extensive features, and video support.

3. Open 24-7 – Wider Choice Of Apps. Yes that’s right. 24-7, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, and without the baggage of paying overtime. The Android is open source so developers all over the world have the ability to tap into the API and create new applications or improve current apps. This freedom sparks ideas and innovations which can help push the Android community forward. It reminds me of the Kurt Russell film ‘Escape from L.A’ where people are left to fend for themselves but hey, Kurt came out of it ok so its fine by me.

4. Wide Range of Choices. I may come across as an anti-iPhone protester so it may surprise you to know that I have one, and I really like it. However, I like “it”, not “them”, or “they”, or any other plural reference as another sad face on the iPhone chalk board is the fact that there is only one phone. This is the 21^st Century; choices are imperative. What happens if you want your handset to come with a QWERTY keyboard? Or if you want a slightly larger screen on your phone? I have to decide what type of sauce I want on my sandwich, I expect the same type of problem when deciding on my handset.

5. Notification – “Excuse Me Sir, You Have A Visitor”. You don’t want to keep opening the front door of your home to check if you have a visitor. That is why we have invented door bells and knockers so why should that be the case on your phone? On the iPhone there is a very limited notification system which means if you want to check if you have a Twitter message or a Facebook comment you have to open the app to find out. However, the Android has a notification bar which alerts users to new voice messages, email messages, Twitter and Facebook notifications, new Gmail messages and plenty more. If an app has a notification, it can let you know quickly, and in the background.

6. Synching with iTunes. The amount of tears that has been the result of wiping music and contacts from your phone after an unsuccessful and stressful synch could fill the Thames. This issue stems from needing to use iTunes to synch your phone whereas with an Android this is not the case. In addition, at times with the iPhone you can sync it with only a limited number of computers. Android phones do not need any such application and you can simply connect the phone into any computer and gain access to pictures, contacts, videos and music.

7. If you can’t beat them, join them… If these six reasons weren’t enough to persuade you then maybe this seventh will: Charlie Sheen has an android. #WINNING

This article was written in association with My Phone Deals who provide a wide range of iPhone, Blackberries and Android phones for 2011. They have everything from the latest phone releases to classic and reliable Nokia’s.

April 16, 2011
7 Reasons to get an Archipod

This, in case you haven’t seen one before, is an archipod. It’s a home office that you can put in your garden. This is why you need one.

1. External Aesthetics. Look at it. Just look at it! It’s amazing. It’s a pod that looks like a giant beehive. It’s got a door that opens upwards like a DeLorean or a gull-wing Mercedes or a spaceship or something. It has a porthole. A porthole! It looks like the coolest thing in the world; the only things that could possibly improve it would be a searchlight and a diamond-tipped funnel made of titanium.

2. Internal Aesthetics. Inside, it looks like a cross between a Japanese capsule hotel, a Kubrickian spacecraft and an igloo. It’s got a porthole there too! And a semi-circular command station…er…desk. Did I mention how cool it looks?

3. Name. It’s called an archipod, which is a portmanteau word consisting of archi from architect and pod, which comes from pod. But look at what else it contains. It says ipod in the middle of it. This means that all Apple-obsessives, or most-of-my-friends, as I call them, will believe that it’s the most desirable thing in the world; more desirable than a suit of armour; more desirable than a yacht; more desirable than a Fender Telecaster; more desirable than Jennifer Aniston. It even looks like something Apple would make. But I want one too. So it must be better than anything by Apple. And it is, because it’s an archipod!

4. Price. I have absolutely no idea how much an archipod costs. But if they were asking for all of the money in the world I’m fairly certain that someone would have told me, and they haven’t, so it’s clearly a bargain that’s worth every penny.

5. Roundness. Now, I have to be honest: It’s not totally spherical, and that’s something of a disappointment. But if it was a pure sphere, it might roll away, and then you’d have to ask the neighbours if they’d seen your archipod and they’d say, “You have an archipod? Wow, that’s so cool!”. And you’d have to explain that no, you’d lost your archipod, and then you’d be the cretin who lost the archipod (coolest thing in the world) and you would become a social pariah; an object of ridicule; a veritable leper; the neighbourhood reject, cast out of decent society into a hellish solitude of eternal archipod-loss-induced squalor, damnation, misery and…sorry, I digress. Anyway, that the floor is flat is probably a good thing as the archipod will always be where you left it. The rest of it is round, which means that, unlike conventional offices, you can’t have a notice-board covered with dreary “motivational” posters on the wall and no one can put a half-dead pot plant in the corner, because there aren’t any. Corners that is. I have loads of half-dead pot plants if anyone needs one,

6. Foil. The archipod is insulated with foil and to many crazy people, this foil-lining would be seen as a desirable feature that would stop the gamma-rays affecting their brains. It may currently appear that I am one of them but I can assure you that the only things affecting my brain at the moment are the archipod and an espresso – a double archipod with sugar and a biscotti.

7. Inspiration. Here at 7 Reasons we know that there are always seven reasons for everything, but I can’t think of a seventh reason to get an archipod. This is because I’m writing this in a rectangular room full of books and a cat. If I were writing in cooler and more inspirational environs such as…let me see…an archipod, for example, I’d be able to think of one easily. Oh, there you go, that’s the seventh reason to get one. That’s the wondrous power of the archipod: Even thinking of one provides inspiration. Right, I’m off to put my family on ebay now* and to have a lie down.**

*Details on how you can contribute to the Buy The 7 Reasons Team An Archipod Fund will be available soon.

**There’s no particular reason to mark that, I just don’t feel that I’ve said archipod enough yet. Archipod. Archipod! IT’S THE ARCHIPOD! There, that’s better.

May 28, 2010
7 Reasons To Love The Letter A

1. A is for Amore. You can say what you like about the Italians – and I usually do – but when it comes to love they have a good word for it. In fact it’s a beautiful word. One that actually makes it look as if you are kissing when you say it. Saying the word ‘love’ makes you look like a goldfish.

2. A is for Apple. When I was much, much younger I always used to fret over how I would remember the alphabet. Thankfully some bright spark came up with the idea of teaching me words to go with the letters. Which was brilliant. Soon enough I knew 26 new words. All starting with a different letter. Unfortunately, I still didn’t have a bloody clue which order they went in.

3. A is for Abracadabra. The biggest trick Paul Daniels ever pulled was convincing me and a bunch of my friends to whip our wands out one break time and wave them around the playground in an attempt to magically make the school disappear. It didn’t and the girls ran away. That was during the morning break. By the afternoon break my wand had been snapped in half by a girl called Lousie who accused me of making her scrunchie disappear. She was a right nutter. I imagine she’s quite butch these days. She’s never getting her scrunchie back.

4. A is for Scandinavian music. Sweden gave us Abba and Ace of Base. Norway gave us A-ha. Denmark gave us Aqua and Alphabeat. Finland gave us a rest.

5. A is for Airplanes. Without them we wouldn’t have a carbon footprint. This would be a great loss to my lounge. It’s very much a centerpiece.

6. A is for Audrey. Only two people in the history of the world have ever been called Audrey. And one of them wasn’t even real. The real Audrey was of course Audrey Hepburn. Has there ever been a more beautiful, intelligent and funny Belgian-Dutch-British-Irish-American-Swiss woman? No is the answer you are looking for. The fake Audrey was of course Penelope Keith. Or Audrey fforbes-Hamilton as she was more commonly known for a few half-hours between 1979 and 1981. She had no American in her what-so-ever. Though in the form of Richard De Vere she supposedly had a little Polish-Czech in her once in a while. Once they were married obviously.

7. A is for Ox. Don’t ask me. That’s the Egyptians for you. Apparently the letter A can be traced back to a pictogram of an ox head in Egyptian hieroglyphs or the Proto-Sinaitic alphabet. No, I don’t have a bloody clue what that is either. What I do know is that whoever traced it back probably got it wrong. Surely O is for ox?

December 8, 2009