!$text$!

Test 2.6

    Hey there, sorry to say I won’t be able to update for a few days as I am changing over to a new host. I had heard great things about MediaTemple and will be moving my blog over there so long as I don’t struggle too much handling it. They’ve already helped me with quick responses, so check ‘em out. Till next time…

Well, whether I deserve/earned it or not, yesterday, thanks to everyone who read the blog, was my biggest day since starting this up about a month ago. Yesterday I broke 100 views for the first time and finished with 180, not drastic but certainly a step forward, so I appreciate those who took the time to read iZach. Thanks!

Ah more Touch news, a big surprise huh. Well this one brings into question some of the problems and complaints that people have had with the iPod Touch. We’ve heard the problems of the screen just not being as phenomenal of that on the iPhone, we’ve heard a couple accounts of iPod failure, and of course the list of things the iPhone has over the Touch will be thrown out by people for months to come. No surprises there. But there are some small issues that I can’t believe Apple missed. Obviously the internals of the Touch and the iPhone are similar but I now have reason to think that Apple just did not spend enough time field testing and general testing the Touch. This showed up on the front page of Digg this morning. The Touch calling itself an iPhone huh? Some kind of facade, some kind of trick? Nope, just a stupid slip up by the Apple. Now, I’m aware there was more to test with the iPhone, as it is a phone after all, and finding out where connection speeds and how well the antenna worked was crucial. Still, people putting in hours with the Touch finding the errors and reporting complaints could have helped, right?

Is this kind of event a big deal? No (but the screen is kind of disappointing, though not dramatic). But, it shouldn’t even happen. The iPhone received extensive field testing months before it’s release. There were very lucky people wandering around cities with the “holy” device for a while. The iPod’s Touch release was quick, coming not long after the release of the iPhone. So obviously Apple had the technology and they’ve had this in the works, but yet a few shortcomings. So was there inadequate testing, or none at all? Hmmm….

    Well, I was at the mall today and strolled into the Apple store to see if they had the Touch, and also wanted to see the new lineup of Nanos and the classic in person. I did not see the Touch on display, as I’ve heard is the case in most stores. However, I saw an empolyee standing by the iPhone section with at first glance looked to be an iPhone, on an extreme diet. Of course, it was the Touch. I asked if I could see it and he was nice enough to let me check it out for a couple minutes. Now I obviously couldn’t sit there for an hour and learn every little thing about the new device, but a touch was enough to get a feel for the new iPod. The first thing that screams out at you is just how thin the Touch is. I couldn’t believe it, I was impressed bu the iPhone but this is just awesome. It feels solid, as Apple products do, but still I couldn’t help but picture the thin touchscreen snapping after being sat on or rolled on at a weird angle.

Another downside was that I was unable to mess around with the iTunes wifi store on the Touch because the Apples stores wifi was not working properly, disappointing, but at least I got my turn with it. I wish I could offer you more insight, the layout is obviously in most senses that of the iPhone but as to it’s exact functionality I just didn’t get the time. I did see a few people walking around the mall peeling the plastic off of their new iPods and heard shortly after that they had sold out, so get em while you can!

p.s. Check out the review over at Gizmodo!

I love it! For those who haven’t noticed a few of the guys at Sportscenter have been quoting The Flight of The Conchords recently, and it’s brilliant. Argument with the ump=”Be more constructive with your feedback please”.

Hey…it brought a smile to my face…

(Brandon Jacobs Takes a hit during the preseason)

Image Courtesy of ESPN

Hey everyone I’m back and this time I’m going to talk about something different, sports. Lately, I’ve just covered tech and a few of my personal adventures but now I’m going to cover a little bit of everything else that I love and hopefully you can enjoy as well. Now, as a New York Giants fan last Sunday was a long night watching them end the night with a loss to the Dallas Cowboys. A loss is one thing, especially after a comparably phenomenal performance by quarterback Eli Manning, but a loss of three key players to injury is much worse.

I cringed at the sight of seeing Eli Manning thrown to the ground with his throwing arm taking the blow Sunday night. Regardless of his history and expectations I saw a side of Eli earlier that night that made me think he could be the quarterback we’ve needed, and then he’s taken off the field. He seemed tough though, and after the game claimed he had a bruised shoulder. Myself and many other Giants fans took a sigh of relief with this, I’m sure. But, lately the story has been coming in telling varying stories from all sides. Giants head coach Tom Coughlin says Eli looks good, and on September 12 he took a few snaps, handoffs, and a few light throws. Now, Eli has been listed on a “Day to Day” basis as far as his return goes. (Click more for the rest of the story) That seems reasonable enough. But still, there has been no announcement as to whether or not Eli will start Sunday against the Green Bay Packers (the Giant’s home opener that I will be attending). But there has been cause for concern. Different sources close to Eli have stated that doctors diagnosed him with a seperated shoulder, an injury that could take Eli out for 3 to 4 weeks. But, the Giants injury reports have continually stated that he has a bruised shoulder, but in other cases the report has said he has a contusion of the A-C joint. Which of these are true will remain to be proven. We won’t know for certain until we see him throw, hopefully this Sunday. But Eli’s opening game injury may prove an opportunity for backup quarterback, Adam Lorenzen. Lorenzen is known by fans as the “Hefty Lefty” for his near lineman weight (about 270 pounds) and of course his left handed dexterity. Lorenzen has not started a game for the Giants but has been brought in on numerous occasions, including Sunday night following Eli’s departure from the game. The Hefty Lefty could be interesting to see play though, as he is quick for his enormous size and has a great arm, though some say his accuracy plagues him. Whether Eli starts or not I would not be surprised to see the Lefty in for a while just to give the youngest Manning a break. It will all come together this Sunday at 1:00 PM EST.

Unfortunately for the G-Men Eli Manning was not their only loss on Sunday. Their newest running back, Brandon Jacobs, had the responsibility of picking up where Tiki Barber left off. Jacobs swapped in and out with Barber last season becoming noted for his ability to make holes in the defense rather then find them as his predecessor did. Unfortunately the promising back suffered a knee injury against the Cowboys and is listed on a week to week basis, likely missing a up to a month. Giants veteran defensive end Osi Umenyiora also was injured when he too suffered a knee injury. Reports on him say he is day to day and there is speculation that he could be back in time for the Packers. But as far as Brandon Jacobs goes, we saw a bit of a spark from the young Derrick Ward who came in to replace Jacobs. Ward, the second string running back game into the game and ran for 89 yards averaging 6.8 yards a run. He looked pretty good filling in a spot that many believed could not be filled even by Jacobs. John Madden said Sunday night that the Giants should give Tiki Barber a call and send a plane to get him from NBC studios in New York to Dallas. Tiki’s new distaste for the Giants organization kept him in New York unfortunately, ignoring the call of footballs most recognized sportscaster. But Derrick Ward looked good and even scored a touchdown without letting the ball hit the turf during his short time on the field. I look forward to seeing more of Ward and Jacobs this season, they have big shoes to fill, but Jacobs size and Wards agility should get the job done.

And to wrap things up, the Giants new kicker Lawrence Tynes did not practice Wednesday with a calf injury, he is expected to kick today. So, be sure to check back here in the future for more updates on the Giants and other teams around the league. I will try to keep updating across various types of news bringing you another look at what’s going on.

Walk into the Apple store nearest you and without doubt you will find crowds. Are they gawking over the iPhone? Not anymore they’re not. Mr. Jobs and company have of course unleashed the latest myriad of iPod products. We’ve got a little bit of everything spawning from last weeks “And the beat goes on” event. From some newly colored shuffles to an added touch. The details are everywhere, and as always I try not to tell you what you’ve already been told a million times about the iPod shuffle, Nano “Fatty”, iPod classic, and the iPod touch. But, I will remind you that, these new products were not the only things that came out of the event. New services also came with the new pods. Updated iTunes lately? Noticed that ringtones tab when you plug in your iPhone? Well if not, go do a double take. The first of the new iTunes changes is the ability to add custom ringtones to your iPhone (for the iPhone owners who haven’t already found a way to do so for free like I have). For 99 cents extra you can select a portion of a limited choice of songs that you would like to have play everytime your wife calls to ask if you’re going to pick up dinner. Personally I have not tried the new service but from what I’ve heard, it’s nice, it’s reasonable considering the price of other ringtone services, and easy to use. However, not all iTunes songs can be made into ringtones. But even bigger news came at the conference, the news of an iTunes store accessible on your iPhone or iPod touch via WiFi (it’s about time…etc…). According to Steve Jobs, by the end of the month the service will be available. And there’s also been a partnership with Apple and Starbucks (no surprise that the two trendy companies did so). Now, when your enjoying your vanilla latte and reading a more popular blog then my own on your iPhone and you hear a song wafting through the familiar coffee shop atmosphere, you can access the iTunes store and purchase that song from the Starbucks radio playlist. Not groundbreaking, but neat none the less.

So what about the iPods? Well the shuffle just got a new paint job. The iPod classic, resembling a birthchild of the Nano touchwheel mixed with an iPod video comes in an 80GB ($249) and a 160GB ($349) flavors. That’s more episodes of Lost and the Office (well not anymore for the latter, thanks a lot NBC) then is healthy. Then there’s the iPod Nano “Fatty”, which really will just be known as the Nano (3rd gen). The Nano is compact, square, and plays video. The Nano and classic both have coverflow as we have come to love in iTunes and even more so on the iPhone. I can’t imagine that it will be as fun using the touch wheel, and early reports say the coverflow is a bit choppy, can’t beat the original. It’s a nice looking little device, but watching movies on that tiny little screen can’t be comfortable. But on top of it all comes the iPod Touch, a gutted iPhone with some flare. The new device is thinner then the iPhone and obviously does not have the phone features. But it is the same iPod that we love on the iPhone and it even has Safari, Youtube and WiFi. It comes in 8GB for $299 and 16GB for $399. The slightly smaller and more angular cousin to the iPhone is looking good, and when it releases in the near future it will no doubt create a buzz.

So how do my fellow iPhone owner (and lovers) feel about all of this. Does the touch take away from the allure of the iPhone. Sure we can make calls, text, and do so much more on our Apple phone, but will seeing more and more of these devices take a way from it all? Not to mention the price cuts on the iPhone which I mentioned in my previous post. How do you feel about it all?

Alright for those of you who haven’t seen the great Steve Jobs has heard the complaints of those (like myself) who spent $600 dollars on their 8GB iPhone. The price has been lowered “for the holidays” to $399! That’s great, but not if you already spent the hard earned cash on it. So what does Steve do? Well he gives you $100 to your local Apple store or the online store. Now to some this may not be the kind of compensation they’re looking for, but if you ask me, this is more than adequate. So I’ll let you read the open letter for yourself. I’ll be back this weekend for some talk on the reactions and aftermath of Apple’s latest iPod lineup and all of the new iTunes news. Later.