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- How To Cut the Cord Apple-Style in 2011
As if you needed another reason to ditch cable in 2011, it looks like prices are going up at some of the biggest providers. So if you’re finally tired of getting fleeced, here’s how to cut the cord and go cable-free the Apple way. You even have more options than you did the same time last year, too.
Option 1: The Mac Way
This is the most powerful and versatile option, but it’s also among the most expensive. You can get away with spending relatively little by using a Mac mini. The idea is to set up a Mac computer connected to your TV as a media centre. The Mac mini is perfect if you want to dedicate a computer entirely to this task, thanks to its small form factor and HDMI port. If you’d still like to use your computer as a computer, too, then getting a Mac notebook might be a better solution.
The benefit of using a Mac is that you have all of the power of a full desktop computer. That means you can browse the web, access Flash-based video sites (Hulu, network sites), and even play full-featured video games using USB or wireless game pads if you like. You can also use Boxee, XBMC or Plex (media player and organization apps) to make your Mac more easy to control and navigate with a remote in a home theater setting.
You can use Netflix on your Mac using the web interface, but there are better ways. Boxee has a Netflix app, for example, which makes it far easier to control. There’s also possibly a native Mac app in the works from a third-party developer, and Netflix itself might get in on that game when the Mac App Store launches next week.
- Hardware Required: Mac, HDMI or VGA cable (depending on which port your TV has available), Mini DisplayPort-to-VGA adapter (if you’re using a Mac other than the Mac mini).
- Cost: $$$$
- Advantages: Full computer at your disposal, supports Flash.
- Ideal for: The advanced Mac enthusiast who wants to have it all.
Option 2: The iPad Way
Using an iPad to cut the cord is probably the easiest option to overlook, but it’s also among the simplest. It can even provide HD output via the dock connector-to-VGA peripheral, though using the Apple Component AV cable will only provide standard definition video.
The iPad is also limited in terms of content sources. Obviously, it won’t play Flash content, and not all apps provide video-out support. Hulu Plus is a notable example of one that doesn’t. Some very crucial ones do, however, like Netflix. If you purchase or rent most of your video content through iTunes, though, the iPad will work well for you.
Finally, remember that controlling your iPad while watching video through your home theatre system could be quite awkward, and the device will have to remain tethered to your TV if you don’t have an Apple TV to stream to. But the iPad is a good choice if you’d like to also be able to take your media with you and access it on the go.
- Hardware Required: iPad, Dock Connector to VGA Adapter, Apple Component AV Cable.
- Cost: $$$
- Advantages: Also a standalone portable solution.
- Ideal for: The infrequent TV-watcher who spends most of his/her time out of the house.
Option 3: The Apple TV Way
The new Apple TV is a great option for Apple cord cutters, since it’s small, cheap, and easy to set up. It provides access to iTunes rentals and Netflix, and it provides HD quality video (720p). If you’re not really amazing at using OS X, and you want a set-it-and-forget-it solution, this is the way to go. It’s even quite portable, since it’s so small and only requires two cables, as I’ve proven many times by taking my own when visiting friends and family.
Apple TV does have some downsides to consider. Unlike the Mac and iPad, there’s no way to browse the internet from the device, which could limit your content sources. In fact, as of right now, you’re only able to get video from Netflix, YouTube, and iTunes, unless you’ve stored your own content on a computer attached to your local network in an iTunes-friendly format. Flash video isn’t anywhere near an option, unless you go the jailbreak route. Also unlike the Mac and the iPad, you won’t be able to store any media locally on the device, so you can only watch what you can stream from other sources.
If you have an iOS device, AirPlay provides another reason to consider Apple TV. You can stream content from your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch (providing you’re using iOS 4.2) from your device to your Apple TV easily, although the type of content that can be streamed is limited to YouTube videos, local videos synced from iTunes, pictures and music.
- Hardware Required: Apple TV, HDMI cable, optical audio cable (optional).
- Cost: $
- Advantages: Portable, cheap, easy to add to an existing home theatre setup.
- Ideal for: Average Mac user who wants to primarily use Netflix and the iTunes store for content.
Any other tips or ideas for ditching the cable subscription with the help of your Mac and Apple devices?
Related content from GigaOM Pro (sub req'd):
- Connected Consumer 2011: Rise of the Virtual Video Operator
- Report: A Mobile Video Market Overview
- Mobile 2011: Data Consumption Will Explode
Переслать - Get Some Free Help With NYE Resolutions With RunKeeper Pro
The new year is prime time for making good on that commitment to get back in shape, and your iPhone can help. We’ve looked at fitness apps in the past, but one in particular, RunKeeper Pro, deserves a second look, as it’s going to be available free for the entire month of January.
RunKeeper Pro is normally $9.99, and was recently featured by Apple as one of the highest grossing apps of 2010 in its iTunes Rewind microsite. The app is easily among the best fitness apps available for iPhone (there’s an Android version, too, which is also free for January).
If you’re looking to track your outdoor fitness activity, RunKeeper Pro is a great choice. It features workout tracking using an extremely easy account creation tool (just input your email and a password and you’ve created a profile), advanced settings for when the app provides feedback and audio cues, and the ability to choose what stat being tracked to focus on in the primary display. There’s also a FitnessClass mode, which combines coaching and audio cue elements to really keep you on track, and RunKeeper LIVE, which lets you broadcast your workout progress in real-time.
I’ve been using the built-in Nike+ app, and the more recent downloadable GPS-based Nike+ app for iPhone, but RunKeeper is a strong contender to replace both, thanks to its advanced coaching and feedback options. Especially thanks to its sharing options (you can make your routes and activities public and post activities to Twitter and Facebook) and that awesome price tag.
Related content from GigaOM Pro (sub req'd):
- How to Market Your iPhone App: A Developer's Guide
- Mobile App Developer Survey: Profiles, Platforms and Monetization
- App Developers: Are You Ready for HTML5 and Metered Data?
Переслать - How to Stop the iPad Magazine Download Slide
Yesterday, Women’s Wear Daily (WWD) reported that according to recent numbers, interest in iPad magazines is quickly dwindling, as noted by Om in his recent post about year-end predictions. Wired‘s iPad edition was widely praised, and sold 100,000 in its first month. By November, that number had dropped to only 23,000.
Wired is an extreme example, but other magazines showed similar drops in sales, as reported to the Audit Bureau of Circulations. Vanity Fair sold only 8,700 digital issues of the November issue, which was down from around 10,000 in October. Glamour‘s sales dropped 20 percent between October and November. So how can magazine publishers and Apple work together to stop the downward trend?
1. Work Out a Subscription Model
Paying per issue is no doubt one of the major disappointments for iPad magazine buyers. Apple and publishers need to agree on, and deploy, a workable subscription model that appeals to consumers, and they need to do it fast, before users decide that RSS and Instapaper more than meet their magazine-reading needs.
2. Treat Apps as Apps, Not Magazines
I realize that magazines want to stay true to their roots, but competing in an app economy means offering something more than just a digital version of a printed page, and that doesn’t just mean sticking some audio/video and share links on top of a scanned page.
Magazines aren’t approaching the iPad as the transformative device that it is, despite making claims in press releases that that’s exactly what they’re doing. Despite all the hype, I’ve yet to see an iPad magazine app that truly feels like it takes advantage of the platform. Even ones like Project, which is designed specifically for the iPad, don’t do this.
It may require additional investment, but magazines have to approach the iPad with a fresh approach. Start from scratch, study successful apps not in the digital magazine space, and think about what iPad users want from their devices. They sure didn’t spend $500+ just to be able to read scanned documents.
3. Reevaluate the Revenue Model
Magazines charge readers and feature frequent advertisements. For an app user, this is something of a contradiction. The way the app economy has evolved, iPhone and iPad users often expect free apps to be ad-supported, and paid apps to be ad-free. The traditional magazine model, then, seems a contradiction that carries the downsides of both free and paid app revenue models.
Making changes in the way magazines earn revenue won’t be easy, but it’s a necessary part of joining the world of digital publishing. To think you can just import what worked for print into an existing App Store economy for which users have their own expectations is incredibly short-sighted.
Related content from GigaOM Pro (sub req'd):
- Five Things Needed for a 48 Million iPad Market
- Can Anyone Really Compete With the iPad?
- In Q3, the Tablet and 4G Were the Big Stories
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