1. iPad Case - During the initial announcement, I thought the iPad could be a great device to bring into interviews to show off your portfolio. This simple black case would be very presentable to carry into your next interview. When you open up the case, you can pass out your resume as usual and be able to present all of your work without skipping a beat. All this capability with something that probably weighs close to the same amount as a normal portfolio with a notepad inside.
2. iPad Keyboard Dock - If you have the deskspace next to your main computer and an iPad, why not have it charging while attached to a keyboard. Just use the iPad for all your incoming emails and switch over to this special keyboard dock for that very purpose.
3. iDisplay app - This app can extend your regular Mac desktop to your iPad so it acts like a second display. Again, this is a nice use for the iPad while it’s in it’s dock charging.
4. TweetDeck iPad app - If you’re a heavy Twitter user, you’re going to love using your iPad as a dedicated Twitter client with this app. You’ll be able to manage all your accounts, columns, etc. all with simple gesture commands and typing on the virtual keyboard.
5. iBooks iPad app, Numbers, Keynote and Pages - An iPad without iBooks, Numbers, Keynote and Pages is like a computer without Office installed… These apps will turn your iPad into a much more useful device for just $30 more in total.

What apps and iPad accessories do you think go hand in hand with Apple iPad ownership? Share your thoughts below.

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SPECS

PC’s can easily be higher-end systems than consoles. The drawback is that you just pay for it up front or as you go by upgrading your video card and adding in more hard drive space and RAM. The good news is that a good PC has historically still had more options in their games than the console counterparts. For example, you can run UT3 on a PS3 or XBOX 360, but it’ll run at the native resolution of 720p. A PC version of the game gives you the controls to run at a much higher resolution if you have the hardware to support it. You’ll also get access to user-created levels or complete mods on the PC without dealing with the censoring of that content on a console.

CONVENIENCE

However, I can respect the “console gaming > pc gaming” sentiment and I sit happily on the fence between both worlds. It’s become harder and harder to justify the hundreds of dollars you can easily pour into building a good gaming PC vs. the prices of consoles for somewhat similar performance and features. The game selection and ease of use of the consoles has always been their appeal and it’s just gotten better. The PC world (and especially the Apple world) have been unable to match the consoles in the ease of use for gaming department.

For quite a while now, there’s been a new market evolving in both the console and PC worlds. It’s a market where you can just download smaller titles at much lower prices. They typically have a little less flare, but pack in just as much fun. In the PC world, these are casual games that don’t require any high-end systems. Most people at least have a low end PC. A PC of some sort is almost required for daily living in today’s day and age, whether it’s a necessary evil to the user or something they love. These casual games will usually work the same on the low end $500 laptops as they would on the $5000 gaming PC. There’s even a market for completely free titles where you just pay for additional upgrades in game rather than paying for the gaming experience up front. These casual games that cost less than 10 bucks are perfect for people that don’t want to build a high-end gaming rig or just want some new experiences. Facebook and other web-based games have become successful with this market as well. Since everyone has a computer, the convenience of these titles and the ease of paying for them and downloading instantly means there’s no reason not to try it out.

PRICE

Overall though, I don’t understand how you can complain about a games price if you’re willing to buy a 2 hour movie on DVD or Blu-ray at $10-$30 that you may only watch once or twice. It seems like getting 10+ hours of game play should be worth paying a premium for depending on the production quality and enjoyability of those hours of game play. I’d pay $60 for a PC game. I’d pay $60 for a console game. I am ecstatic that there are companies also making games for under ten bucks, but games cost a lot to make and you’re probably not going to get the same quality or lasting power with a $10 game vs. a $60 game. This is why the free and cheap games are really just a new segment and not a replacement for games with those higher prices and higher production costs. The price I’d be willing to pay only depends on the experience that’s being offered and the quality of that experience.

I paid $80 for Street Fighter 2 the day it was released on the Super NES. It was the most expensive title ever and there was a lot of debate surrounding the price point. The price quickly dropped, but the few of us that rushed out to get the game despite the price got to enjoy playing many more hours and saved some quarters from playing in the arcades. The debate over the pricing or games and gaming on PC’s vs. consoles will not end any time soon, but hopefully the markets won’t just take the development of these for granted either.

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Initial Thoughts

CinemaTube and Remote Control

UI and Remote Control

CinemaTube Remote Control

However, the remote for the device is like gold. It makes interacting with the device simple and elegant. It’s extremely responsive and even though the UI’s presentation is lacking, the remote helps to cover up those imperfections.

Features

CinemaTube Back and Ports

Playing movies direct from ISO files was probably my favorite feature of having this device. If you have your DVD collection backed up to your computer or a USB hard-drive, you can use the CinemaTube BV-5005HD to navigate through the DVD menu just as if you had picked it off of your DVD shelf and put it in your DVD player. Everything was snappy and the remote is full featured so it never felt like I was using a computer. It felt just like using a DVD player.

One thing to note about the feature set is that while you can play videos from YouTube over the device, it’s really reliant on streaming from a PC with proper software installed — so honestly, it’s probably not something you’ll even bother with doing. I could care less about streaming from YouTube. I can always turn on the PS3, my iPhone or look on the laptop for that. It’s not a big deal to have YouTube on the big screen for me.

Overall

CinemaTube Package Contents

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The Blendtec Total Blender and company serves a group of people that don’t think the average blender sold on Wal-Mart’s shelves will do. Instead, they created a blender with plenty of power and sharp blades to cut through just about anything they throw at it. I don’t own one of these blenders and I don’t have any experience with them, but they’ve got me convinced that they’re probably the best blenders around. In fact, I’ve never seen an ad on TV for one or one on a store shelf, but Blendtec is a brand that stuck for me several years ago entirely becaused of their web-based marketing efforts. The Will it Blend YouTube video series and website of the same name allowed them to share videos based around the simple idea of blending basically anything in their blenders. It’s like a late night TV ad gone awry… but it works.

The company was relatively early to the game. They came up with a good idea and have stayed focused on content updates to Will it Blend? since 2006. The concept was good and even though the videos are distributed entirely on YouTube, they have a solid reputation. To be fair, I have no idea what kind of conversion rate they have from people that watch the videos to people that actually buy the product, but what can’t be denied is that they’ve built strong brand recognition with hardly any money spent. As of writing this, they have 213,124 subscribers on their YouTube channel and videos with views from hundreds of thousands to millions on some of their videos. That’s quite an audience and lots of eyeballs all because of a simple concept. Too often, people get caught up concerning themselves with doing something that’s too tech heavy for an Internet-based marketing campaign or just too much of a traditional advertising model. Companies also try too hard to be one of the cool kids and say “me too”, but everyone sees right through those supposed “viral” productions.

Blendtec Home

The keys for a good web-based marketing effort seem to be the following:
1) Keep it Simple. The KISS principle is almost always the best thing to keep in mind when doing anything. It also helps to keep your costs low. It’s easy to over-complicate a good idea or a good product. Apple has proven that having a simple product focused on solving one specific problem can have a much better impact than something trying to do it all. The Will it Blend videos never try to do too much and you shouldn’t either. Three steps is all they needed for success. 1. Show blender. 2. Show something go into blender. 3. Show dust come out.

2) Rinse and Repeat as needed. It’s just like the instructions on a bottle of shampoo. Once you have a good concept, don’t do it once and stop. That’s like starting a corporate blog and posting once. Sequels happen for a reason and once you have something people are responding to, you shouldn’t stop. It’s also important to listen to your audience. When you’ve jumped the shark, you’ll know it and you may want to try something different.

3) Be unexpected. The “Will it Blend?” series would not have gotten as much attention if they had just blended food. Not everyone needs to do something completely ridiculous like this, but taking steps to stand out from the crowd is important. Almost everyone has a competitor in one form or another and having a differentiating factor is important. However, having one that wouldn’t be expected is even better.

Will you be able to blend these three principles together into a successful web-based marketing effort?

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Getting rid of the Analog TV broadcast frees up a huge amount of airwaves for future use. I’m hoping that this could help with some new modern 4G wireless networks that will be faster and better than ever. I’m sure this is still a little while off and it’ll cost you extra money… Or maybe some more open free to the public band for newer WiFi would work. Either way, I welcome the new uses of the airwaves.

In the meantime, I just want to say welcome to Digital TV and Goodbye, Analog…

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