With the iPad coming out soon, a lot of people are lining up to get this revolutionary device that they have not touched, seen, or tested in person. Steve Jobs will do that to you. He says what an amazing and advanced product something is and people flock to go out and get it for themselves. I won’t be following you all. See, unlike all the Mac fan boys and girls I just cannot wrap my head around what the big deal is with this iPad. I cannot see myself spending over $500 dollars on a device that only kinda does what my other devices already fully do. Sure it would be easier to have an iPad on my lap while I’m in bed surfing the web… but what’s the point of surfing the web when half the content isn’t available because you don’t have Flash? Yes, it could be an amazing eReader, but if I wanted to read a book I’ll spend the $10 bucks at a store for a real actual book. And yes, the games on it could be amazing, with more surface area to swipe and tap it could lead to a wave of new and exciting games, but there is no way I’m spending $500 for a gaming system when I can get an Xbox or PS3 for under $300.
But alas, that didn’t happen. Shame too because I honestly feel that if the events had been different Apple would have had two killer procuts instead of one killer and one okay-maybe. But don’t worry Steve, when you invent a time machine (iTime?) you can go back and redo that one… or at least decide to let the iPad support Flash. I mean seriously, come on.
For a long time, I didn’t believe there would be an iPad. I had gone through the motion of too many false starts at various Apple events where the tablet was said to be announced. Then, when the news was finally true, I was under whelmed. Do I want a device that is larger than a phone but smaller than a laptop? Certainly. Do I want to navigate said device with the swipe of a finger? Sure. So, I sat down and set to work thinking about all the things I could use the iPad for if I were to own one.
Surfing the web (in bed or on the go…)
Collecting inspiration from the internet
Reading eBooks
Playing games
Administrative tasks
{Well, I guess now I should do the math and work out my finances to see if an iPad purchase is even feasible for me this quarter. The answer to that could be a make it or break it for my internal thought process!}
3D, the wave of the future and the next generation of how we view television. Now I like so many have gone to a few 3D movies, watched those Superbowl commercials in 3D, and even gone to a few amusement park shows that had a 3D portion. So obviously it was only a matter of time before it was time for 3D to come to your living room. But the big question I have to ask myself is “Why?”
But beyond the novelty of seeing a tomato fly right out at your face, what else is the point? Every time I have seen a 3D show the constant thought of “is this in 3D? Oh I guess that flew out at me… What does it look like without the glasses?” and so on. 3D is a fun thing to watch as a spectacle, but not for everyday life. Sorry TV companies, I’ll pass on your new product.
Not to mention that since I wear glasses, having to put on another pair of glasses is a little hard to do.
Remember a few months back when I was practically obsessed with this Violet May BlackBerry Purse? Well, you may also remember that I was searching for a similar and cheaper alternative, and I actually did! Below is my houndstooth Merona clutch wallet from Target ($15) that is not only a similar tri-fold style but also fits my BlackBerry, cards, money, change and checkbook! It might not be the hyper stylish silver python, but it is pretty cute for nearly $250 less!
You have probably noticed over the past few weeks that instead of reading posts by me, you have been graced by a few of my boyfriend’s tech posts. As I assumed, things became a little busy for me with the move and promotion and life in general, so Cousy stepped in to make sure I didn’t loose my loyal readership (plus, lets be honest, he loves discussing tech as much as I do!) I never formally introduced him as a new contributor or anything, but he will be posting from now on to take some pressure off of me. So, let’s welcome him now with a nice round of applause and a big thank you for keeping the pink mac alive, and for adding a little blue (aka male perspective) to the mix!
(A post, brought to you by Cousy the boyfriend)
MLB 2K is a popular baseball title for the major video game systems (PS3 and the Xbox 360) and it has issued an unprecedented challenge. In the past an achievement of something a player does in game has usually been rewarded with a pop-up message followed by some badge or mark signifying that yes, you did in fact beat this game on hard mode with out using any first aid kits, or winning the race by ten full laps. Usually this was just for “bragging” rights that really did not mean much unless you were a 13-year-old boy on a message board you loved to troll. In some more extreme cases a contest would be set up where the winner of a tournament would win a few thousand dollars.
But with the release, 2K Sports is spouting their new “realistic” pitching simulator where the player has even more control of the ball then ever before. Because of this MLB 2K series has launched a challenge for its newest release MLB 2K10. What’s the challenge? Pitch a perfect game.
A perfect game in baseball is when a pitcher wins a game that lasts a minimum of nine innings and no opposing player reaches base. The pitcher cannot allow any hits, walks, hit a player and let them take their base, or any opposing player to reach base safely for any other reason. Basically it is when 27 people of the opposing team get up to bat and never reach 1st base for any reason at all, whatsoever, no if’s and’s or but’s. So why is this worth a million dollars? In the entire history of the MLB there have only been officially 18 perfect games. That’s 18 in over 134 years and the first two in 1880 came within 5 days of each other. There is a perfect game once every 11,000 games. More people have gone around the moon than pitched a perfect game. Sinking in yet how rare of a feat this is?
So the theory behind MLB 2K10 is that the new pitching simulator that was created will be so exact to the real thing that pitching a perfect game will be impossible for the average Joe to do. In addition to the mere fact a perfect game is tough enough to achieve the contest only runs for two months, you have to live in the US but not in Arizona, Connecticut, Maryland, North Dakota or Vermont, you must be signed in online over your PS3 or Xbox 360, play with the up-to-date rosters, be playing in All-Star mode, and have a video camera recording your whole game which the tape will get reviewed by Twin Galaxies International which also handles Guinness Book of Records entries. Okay pretty daunting isn’t it?
But the point of all of this here is you didn’t know video games could pay you a million dollars just for playing did you? So ladies, the next time you catch your man playing some game all night instead of walking the dog, he might just be trying to win some money for a dog walker for life, personal masseuse on hand, and a shopping spree at Manolo Blahnik.
I know I’ve been missing for a week or so since January ended, but I have a very good excuse. The last few weeks have been crazy time for me because I was (1) promoted and (2) transferred for work! So, in said time frame of me being absent, I have been (a) looking for apartments, (b) buying obscene amounts of furniture, and (c) moving during one of the biggest snowstorms to hit the Northeast in years! Finally, just yesterday I was able to set up the Airport Express in my apartment so that I could get wifi and not have to sit at the edge of my bed attached to a chord if I wanted to surf the web. Actually, I have been doing a good amount of NOT surfing the web in the last few weeks, aside from when I was at work while I had nothing to do because my impending transfer caused restrictions on my workload.