nate.mcintyre

If you haven’t heard, Microsoft recently released the Windows 8 Consumer Preview to the internet masses, allowing nerds like myself a chance to get some hands-on first impressions of what their new flagship OS will look like. I for one can’t say that I am really all that impressed. It’s not that I don’t respect Microsoft for going out on a limb to drive innovation into a product that has been generally unchanged for more than a decade, I really applaud them for their efforts. The problem is that while I am a fan of change for the sake of innovating, Windows 8′s “Metro UI” feels more like change for sake of change and feels almost entirely catered toward touch screen devices. This would be great if it weren’t for the fact that this new UI is also forced upon users with the traditional mouse and keyboard setup, leading to a user experience that feels clunky, disjointed, and generally painful at best.

I could continue to ramble on endlessly and write multiple paragraphs about how I feel Microsoft missed the mark with Windows 8, but you probably wouldn’t want to read all that text now would you? Instead, I have decided to make life easier for the both of us and simply created this video containing some live video captures of Windows 8 Consumer Preview in action with my commentary and thoughts contained as well.

Conclusion

The Good Stuff

• Microsoft is creating a unified user interface (Metro UI) across it’s various devices. Users of Windows Phone should feel right at home with Windows 8 from a UI perspective.
• Easy support for tablets and desktops. Microsoft has done a great job making Windows 8 a “jack-of-all trades” so that they can leverage a single OS for their desktop, laptop and tablet markets.

The Bad Stuff

• From the perspective of a desktop user the interface feels clunky. In certain situations it is clear and obvious that Microsoft optimized for a tablet experience which is great if you happen to be using a tablet but is a very frustrating experience for a user running on a desktop or laptop.
• Overall Windows 8 feels as if it was designed purely for a novice computer user who simply wants to run a few applications, browse the web, and read email. To make the most ideal experience for this low level consumer, Microsoft seems to have sold the power user down river, forcing them to use a “dumbed down” operating system.

The Ugly Stuff 

• In many situations it feels as if Microsoft is simply changing things for the sake of forcing you to learn a new interface. A great example is the removal of the “Start” button that we have been trained to know was always available in the lower left corner. I could understand if removing it from the desktop experience was done to free up some valuable screen real-estate, but all it is saving is some 60-80 pixels in width on a task bar that is rarely ever completely full.
• The new Metro UI looks to be utterly crippling for any power user or developer who might want easy access to applications. With the new UI it appears that a developer will have to constantly move back to the new “Start Screen” in order to launch any applications on the desktop.

If you have a different opinion, please feel free to share your thoughts by posting a comment on the video on YouTube.

I have always been a Star Wars fan since the first moment I saw a lightsaber in Episode IV: A New Hope. Back when I was young though, we didn’t have fancy themed LEGO kits for our favorite franchises and thus I spent countless hours with my younger brother attempting to build Tie-Fighters, X-Wings, and Star Destroyers with various LEGO pieces that we would accumulate from different space themed sets. Thus you can imagine how hard it was for me to fight the urge to buy a few of these kits as over the past years as they have been released. Well, I finally broke down about a month ago and decided that my new office layout would be much more badass with it’s own LEGO Millennium Falcon on my bookshelf.

The kit is was comprised of 1254 individual pieces and took me just about 3 hours to completely assemble. Overall it has been a very fun addition to the office, reminding me of all those countless hours I tried to building those X-Wings as a kid.

[Update: With the March 7th event here and gone, I have gone back through this post and added some comments below regarding what I got right and wrong. Overall, I ended up being pretty much on the mark with the exception of my wish/hope that Apple would finally kill the 30-pin connector and move to a new MagSafe connection. A tech nerd can dream right?]

Seeing as how every other tech “journalist” and news site seem to be posting their iPad speculations for the March 7th event, I figured I’d toss my best educated guess in as well. Below you will find a listing of what features I expect to see available on the new iPad when they inevitably announce it tomorrow.

1. The New iPad Gains a Little Weight and Size  [CONFIRMED]

This rumor has all but been confirmed, but the new iPad will be a bit heavier and thicker than the super thin iPad 2. Why would Apple make the device larger you ask? Well, based on my predictions below, this extra space will allow them to expand the battery size in order to compensate for the extra battery drain required by the new Retina Display and 4G LTE features (listed below). This added size and space will allow for these new components to be added, yet the iPad will still be capable of keeping its remarkably long 10 hour battery life.

2. Improved Camera (Same as iPhone 4S)  [PARTIALLY CONFIRMED - NOT SAME AS 4S]

The camera on the iPad 2 is an absolute joke in terms of technical specifications and any new iPad device will undoubtably receive an updated camera. My expectation is that Apple will make it so that the new iPad uses the same camera as the iPhone 4S. Not only will this give the iPad an amazing camera, but it will also help Apple consolidate their supply chain and reduce their need to order any of the older camera components moving forward.

3. Faster Processor [CONFIRMED]

While I am unsure whether or not the new iPad will have a quad-core processor or a dual-core processor, it definitely will be faster than the iPad 2. This is almost a certainty considering the year gap between the last iPad release and fact that the technology has definitely gotten better. While I am sure many Apple fans will claim that the iPad 3 will be remarkably faster, my expectation is that most normal users won’t be able to notice the difference. The faster processor will simply be a requirement to allow the device to support the new retina display and 4G LTE support.

4. Retina Display [CONFIRMED]

Without a doubt, the new iPad will have a retina display. This has been a feature that was expected in the iPad 2, but eluded users. Given all the current talk from the supply chains regarding purchases that Apple has been making in the past months, I can’t help but assume that this is a definite feature for the new device. Furthermore, the continued rumors that the naming will be “iPad HD” only adds further proof that a retina display will be included.

5. 4G LTE Support [CONFIRMED]

Apple has been dragging their heels when it comes to 4G LTE support with their devices and my best bet is that they will use the iPad as their test platform for this new feature before implementing it in their iPhone. With all the recent downtimes that Verizon has been experiencing with their 4G LTE infrastructure, the smaller user base of iPad owners with data plans will allow Apple some critical real world data points that they can use when deciding if the 4G LTE technology and networks are ready for an iPhone release (iPhone 5) that supports 4G LTE.

6. New MagSafe Power/Data Connector [FALSE]

Apple has kept their proprietary 30-pin connector on life support for far too long. Based on recent patent filings regarding a MagSafe connector for transmitting data and power, I can only imagine that this will be the big hardware improvement and innovation slated for the new iPad device. My bet is that this new MagSafe adapter will also be implemented for the new iPhone later in Q3 2012. Similar to my reasoning involving 4G LTE support, Apple will use the new iPad as a testing ground to work out the kinks before rolling it out for the iPhone 5 (or whatever they decide to call it).

7. The Only Siri Enabled iPad [PARTIALLY CONFIRMED - ONLY VOICE DICTATION]

My bet is that iOS 5.1 will not support Siri on legacy iPad devices. Instead, Apple will use Siri for the new iPad as a carrot for those looking more reasons to upgrade to the new device from their current iPad 2. This is the same strategy that was employed to get iPhone 4 users to move to the new iPhone 4S and if I were a gambling man my thoughts are that Apple will pull a repeat of this marketing technique.

8. Release Date: March 16th [CONFIRMED]

I am cheating a bit on this one, but my guess is based on some conversations from the latest TWiT episode where there were discussions of a delayed Apple store grand opening down in Houston. Apple has never been one to unveil a new product and then make users wait for months on end, and March 16th is positions with enough time to get supplies to their stores, hype to build, and a Friday release makes it easier for fanboys to camp out and fuel additional purchases throughout the weekend.

Conclusion

There you have it folks. Based on all the tech blogs and news sites that I read on a daily basis, this is the basic feature set that I see for the new iPad that will inevitably be announced at tomorrow’s press event. My expectation is that Apple has already done a great deal to perfect the tablet experience with the iPad 2 and this new device will primarily serve as a product refresh with some new features that users have wanted, but without any dramatic changes or brand new features to speak of.

I’ll be reading the various live blogs tomorrow to see if my predictions were right and will update this post with the results. If you have any personal thoughts regarding my speculations, feel free to tweet them to me @natemcintyre on Twitter.

My father has worked for Hewlett-Packard for over 30 years and I have just finished up my first year with the company. Seeing as how I have always wanted to work for this great company since I was in elementary school, I thought this picture tribute to “The HP Way” seemed fitting.

Over the past weekend I had the chance to check out one of the Logitech Harmony One programmable universal remotes while at a friends house. For those who aren’t aware, with this remote I connect to my computer via USB and program it to replace every single remote that I currently use in my living room (currently 4). I had been thinking about getting one of these for a while now, but finally seeing it in action finally pushed me over the edge.

Seeing as how I had some $55 in gift certificates (BestBuy Rewardzone), I went to pick up a Logitech Harmony One remote from my local Best Buy today and found it to be priced at $199.99 on the shelf. This was odd, because I had seen it on BestBuy.com for $159.99 just the other night and had noticed that it even had the option for in-store pickup. After talking a bit to the employee as he walked me over to the register to make my purchase, he conceded that he has seen this sort of thing occur on a number of different products. The end result is, if you aren’t aware of the pricing that the EXACT SAME company offers on it’s website, they are more than willing to take that extra cash out of your pockets. Lesson of this story? Make sure you check BestBuy.com on your smart phone before you walk up to the register to make that purchase at your local store.

I can only imagine that BestBuy engages in this sort of pricing shenanigans as a means by which to leverage their brick and mortar retail presence while still being able to capture online sales by matching Amazon.com’s pricing. I can’t help but feel a little bit frustrated though at some of my previous purchases from the company which I probably could have saved some money on just by checking their online site.

For the past week or so I have had this written on one of my office whiteboards as a way to keep me motivated. Last night I figured I would snap a picture and tweak it a bit with a great new piece of software on my iPhone called Pixlr-o-Matic (they have it for Android too).

As I have been working to add some more social features to my blog I came across this great plugin I felt compelled to share. As a new iPhone 4S user, I have found myself taking a lot more pictures due to the much improved quality over my older Motorola Droid 2. To take these pictures, I tend to use Instagram a lot so that I can apply some quick filters and effects and then share them out. This lead me to look into finding a good WordPress plugin that I could use to tie in my Instagram pictures into my widget space off to the right and I think I have found the best option in Instagram for WordPress.

Not only does Instagram for WordPress do exactly what it claims, but it does so in a super simple and easy to set up method. No need for lots of configuration and access authorization, Instagram for WordPress uses the public API’s provided by Instagram to pull your latest 20 pictures and display them with a nice fading effect in your widget area.

If you are a WordPress blogger and use Instagram then I highly recommend giving this a look and adding it to your blog. If you are interested, you can download it here.

Ever since I got my iPad I have wondered just how easy would it be to write a blog post using only my iPad and the WordPress app. Thus this post was born!

[Spoiler] I had to cheat when it came to adding my header image as I was unwilling to spend the extra time fiddling with the iPad for image editing.

I have been enjoying my iPad for a few months now and it has greatly exceeded my expectations. Often I find myself preferring to use the iPad over my featherweight MacBook Air simply because it is even more portable and has guaranteed Internet access, courtesy of Verizon being oh so willing to charge me for an additional line beyond my smartphone (a gripe for a different day). I originally thought that I would only use it as a content consumption device, but over the last few weeks I have been finding myself using it a lot more for generating content as well through Evernote mostly. I’ll cut to the chase, heavy content generation on the iPad is NOT enjoyable at all.

I don’t mean to say that the iPad is horrible when it comes to content generation. In fact, I have become quite proficient at typing longer messages on the virtual keyboard (I have yet to buy a Bluetooth keyboard), but not to the extent that I would ever want to write lengthy blog posts.

The Good

• The iPad is essentially the best tablet computing experience available, especially with a constant 3G internet connection. This makes it even easier to pack than even a MacBook Air.
• WordPress app does a good job supporting text only input from the iPad.
• The iPad really is a great way to rapidly draft a post and then edit and add images on your laptop/desktop/whatever your primary computing hardware is.

The Bad

• The virtual keyboard is great for jotting down short notes, but just isn’t an enjoyable experience for longer content generation.
• In order to address the virtual keyboard one would have to purchase and then carry an additional device which essentially nullifies the portability benefit compared to a MacBook Air or Ultrabook.

Closing

The best way to use an iPad for content generation (focusing on blogging here) is probably as a means to quickly draft ideas when you have them and then flesh them out when you have more time and access to your laptop/desktop. While the experience isn’t horrible, it certainly was frustrating for me to deal with the lack of undo/redo when using the virtual keyboard. Some may say that the solution is to use a keyboard, but at that point you are better off simply carrying your laptop instead. As it stands now, iPad authoring is simply too unfriendly to be viewed as a preferred alternative to the laptop.